Smilodon

Ferrite:	4500
Bioptics:	2500
Niodes:	110

The inspiration for the ground-breaking design of the Smilodon came from the nightmares of a Meiji Shogunate engineer's young daughter. She dreamt of a great beast that would slay anyone who approached, leaving many fallen warriors along its path. Now, the Smilodon inspires nightmares of its own.

At the time of its creation the Smilodon was the largest mecha in existence. It is still one of the most feared. The technological advances pioneered by this design keep it at the forefront of mecha design discussions. During the early years of its deployment, the Smilodon was repeatedly seen destroying entire formations by itself. Even today many pilots will avoid direct combat with a Smilodon unless they have considerable reinforcements.

The Genbaku A.I. mounted in the Smilodon is in a class of its own. Designed to be a headhunter, the Smilodon is often sent to neutralize enemy command mecha. To quickly destroy multiple targets on its own, the Genbaku utilizes a key piece of its processing power to analyse its prey for any exploitable weakness. The rate of Crit-Kill shots fired by a Smilodon is higher than nearly all other mecha, including much newer and larger machines. The Smilodon is the first mecha with this ability available when it steps off the assembly line. Secondary targeting protocols controlled by the AI direct area attacks at any opponents in the general vicinity. The Genbaku can control up to five upgrade modules. With the right set of custom equipment, the Smilodon can execute a Crit-Kill in nearly one in three shots fired.

Powering the Smilodon is the sleek Kenada Fusion Plant. Even before any added equipment, the Smilodon is remarkably fast and can maintain a higher rate of fire than any other designs in the heavy class of mecha. The Kenada directs a great deal of power to the weapon systems as well. The Smilodon keeps its weapons in a constant state of overcharge to generate damage greater than factory specifications. Several large overload capacitors complement the weapons suite and enable the Smilodon to create triple-powered blasts for any weapon it carries. Highly adaptable, the Kenada carries five ports for custom equipment giving the pilot hundreds of possible power configurations.

The chassis and motive system of the Smilodon is also unique. While there are several multi-legged mecha designs, the Smilodon’s engineers chose to approach movement with a radical departure from the popular Tetrapod and Hexapod motive systems. They envisioned and built the groundbreaking Predator type movement configuration, a design that quickly proved it can support the Smilodon’s impressive Speed. Nicknamed the “Battle Cat” by pilots, this mecha is a quick and agile adversary. The chassis is fitted with three slots for the addition of custom equipment. For defense, a pair of heavy shield mounts and a pair of self-generating shield pods are installed to provide some general protection against incoming fire.

Lightning fast and exceedingly deadly, the Smilodon is favored by high-ranking Shogunate pilots for its aesthetics and superior performance. Rumors have been circulating for years that the Shogunate military is secretly testing an updated model of this design, but for now, the Smilodon's dominance of any battlefield it enters is nigh-unparalleled.

The Shogunate High Command knows the value of the Smilodon; since its initial deployment, Alpha Corporation has been ordered to keep a dedicated research and development team assigned to keeping this mecha at the cutting edge of performance. In the early 3300’s, Alpha Corp’s engineers completed an update package for the Smilodon’s systems that significantly extends the mech’s abilities.

Primarily offensive in nature, the update served to showcase and reinforce the mech’s deadly reputation. Several processors were added to the Genbaku, providing a boost to the already fearsome Crit-Kill probability of the mech. The secondary targeting system received a generous enhancement, increasing damage caused by Trample attacks. New high transmission superconductors increase power flow to the weapon systems to generate increased output regardless of weapon type. Several shield pods were added to the frame raising the amount of self protection created by the Smilodon.

Legendary Pilots

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  Samael Wormwood

  When Samael Wormword was a young rookie pilot the Smilodon was the King of the Galaxy. After watching veteran pilots use the mech to great effect on the battlefield, Samael vowed that one day, he too would pilot one of these great beasts of war.
  
  Samael spent his early career with the 99th Chessmen and then the 82nd Omicron Guard. They taught him the value of patience, to take his time and understand how to best build his mechs with the gear and weapons on hand. He selected the best equipment to enhance the Smilodon’s natural speed and crit-kill and paired that with as many Galaxy Eye Lasers as he could. This dedication to his craft has allowed him to create a formidable 65T combat specialist formation that is almost fully Smilodons. His current clan, The Guardians of Bunny, use this to great effect.
  
  These much loved mechs have earned the nickname “Smiley” because of the huge grin they put on the pilot's face as he dances across the battlefield dealing death and destruction. So, know this…the next time you face Samael Wormwood’s 65T formation in battle, he is sitting there in the pilot’s chair with a hungry grin and a challenge. Are you brave enough to try him in battle? Then bring it!

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  T.j. Ritter

  T.J. has made Zeon a fan favorite and has lead them successfully through many clan wars from the cockpit of his Smilodon mech. Equipped with Crit-Kill capability and capitalizing on the mechs speed, he has become a household name amongst mech pilots. Fast, deadly, and highly accurate, his battles are almost works of art to behold.

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  Rick Hoffer

  Although he is the last of his line, Hoffer takes pride in his family heritage, which he traces all the way back to an Old Earth nation-state called "Scotland". He credits these Gaelic people for most of his major personality traits, from his facility for amusing banter, to the "furor Celtica" he displays in battle. While his personal motto is written in Latin rather than Gaelic, it is appropriate for such a notoriously cunning and aggressive warrior: "Si vis pacem, para bellum".

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  Orion Prime

  Orion Prime is a member of a select few pilots in the galaxy. He is one of increasingly few active pilots who was there from the beginning. He fought in both the inaugural King of the Mountain contest and in Clan Wars 1.
  But past achievements do not always define a legend. After some early successes Orion took a step back to assess the state of the galaxy, the art of war, and the skills needed to be a superb pilot. Not one to rush things he took his time moving up the ranks of pilots and only gaining new levels of piloting license when he felt his skills equalled the task at hand. His philosophy seems to be one of a student, the kind of student who knows there is always something new to learn and so he continues to study.
  Until recently Orion simply maintained a low profile by keeping a deceptively low level pilot’s license. When he decided to join the ranks of Division 1 combat he quickly rose into the elite ranks of the 300 club and has continued to gain levels with no indication of slowing.
  Although there are now many larger and arguably more technological mecha available Orion Prime still keeps his original king of the battlefield mecha, a Smilodon, in pristine shape and outfitted with the best gear he can get his hands on knowing that every once in a while when fog and fortunes of war converge into the perfect storm he and his Smilodon will be needed. And in that moment the student will become the master.
  
  

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  Jeff Haas

  Haas has been winning tournaments since the 3260s, and his earliest and sweetest wins were with a pack of Smilodons. The speed of these Shogunate felines lets them pounce on heavyweight opponents before they can react, and the bite of two Ferrite Storms allows a Smilodon to outclass lighter foes with superior firepower. Even now, after almost five decades, his "ace-custom" Smilodons occasionally stalk the arena floor.

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  Justin Verret

  Justin is famed for winning the highest division in the inaugural King of the Mountain of 2361, largely on the power of his Smilodons. His use of an entire squadron of Smilodons propelled him to success against enemies who simply couldn’t compete with their unmatched speed and penchant for crit-kills. Once the leader of the famous clan Cyberstorm, Justin has ceded his power in favor of a simpler life, going where the high-paying contracts call him. Although he has moved on to the larger mecha that have become available, Justin retains a soft spot in his heart for the Smilodon, his first love.

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  Akira Hashimoto

  Colonel in command of the Meiji Shogunate's fearsome Special Operations Group (colloquially known as the Hidden Demons), is perhaps the most respected Smilodon pilot in the galaxy. His Smilodon is painted a trademark hot pink to demonstrate his utter fearlessness and taunt his opponents.

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  Connor 'Shameless' Fontenot

  Any high-ranking pilot takes pride in the customizations conceived for their mech of choice, but "Shameless" Fontenot's Smilodon, "Cassie," stands out from the field: his support team has developed a power system allowing Shameless to operate with more active weapons modules than even the manufacturer thought possible.