Mecha Galaxy Technical Manual

Rook

Ferrite:	18500
Bioptics:	16000
Niodes:	120

"Hold the line? With a couple of these I'll put them in checkmate!" -- the now famous words from Cog-Marshal Taggart when he saw his first delivery of Rooks.

Statistical Readout
Tonnage	75
Armor Points	175
Start Weapons	10
Min Level	51
Min Heavy Skill	30
Levels/Weapon	5
Manufacturer	Star Factories

Bonuses
Build	Missile Damage + 5%
Build	Speed - 8
Level 3	+ 1 Cockpit Slot
Level 4	Laser Shield 4%
Level 5	+ 1 Weapon Slot
Level 6	+ 1 Chassis Slot
Level 8	Missile Damage + 5%
Level 9	+ 1 Engine Slot
Level 10 + every 5 levels	+ 1 Weapon Slot
Level 11	Speed + 2
Level 12	+ 1 Shield Slot
Level 14	Laser Shield 4%
Level 15	+ 1 Cockpit Slot
Level 16	Missile Damage + 5%
Level 18	+ 1 Chassis Slot
Level 19	3X Damage 5%
Level 21	+ 1 Engine Slot
Level 22	Speed + 2
Level 24	Missile Damage + 5%
Level 24	Laser Shield 4%
Level 24	+ 1 Shield Slot
Level 27	Shield (8)
Level 27	+ 1 Shield Slot
Level 30	+ 1 Engine Slot
Level 32	Missile Damage + 5%
Level 33	+ 1 Chassis Slot
Level 33	Speed + 2
Level 36	3X Damage 5%
Level 36	+ 1 Cockpit Slot
Level 40	Missile Damage + 5%
Level 41	+ 1 Cockpit Slot
Level 44	Speed + 2
Level 46	Shield (10)
Level 46	+ 1 Chassis Slot
Level 48	Missile Damage + 5%
Level 50	Speed + 10
Level 50	Wide Fork 5%
Level 55	Speed + 2
Level 56	Missile Damage + 5%
Level 60	Crit-Kill 5%
Level 61	+ 1 Cockpit Slot
Level 64	Missile Damage + 5%
Level 66	Speed + 2
Level 66	+ 1 Chassis Slot
Level 70	Wide Fork 2%
Level 71	+ 1 Cockpit Slot
Level 72	Missile Damage + 5%
Level 76	+ 1 Engine Slot
Level 77	Speed + 2
Level 80	Missile Damage + 5%
Level 88	Missile Damage + 5%
Level 92	+ 1 Cockpit Slot
Level 100	Precision (10)
Level 104	+ 1 Chassis Slot
Level 126	+ 1 Shield Slot
Level 141	Shield (5)
Level 153	1.6X Damage 5%
Level 156	+ 1 Engine Slot
Level 165	Splash Shield 5%
Level 178	1.6X Damage 5%
Level 189	Shield (5)
Level 201	1.6X Damage 5%
Level 213	3X Damage 5%
Level 226	1.6X Damage 5%
Level 237	Shield (6)
Level 249	1.6X Damage 5%
Level 250	+ 1 Cockpit Slot
Level 274	1.6X Damage 5%
Level 286	Shield (6)
Level 297	Wide Fork 3%
Level 300	+ 1 Chassis Slot
Level 300	Laser Shield 2%
Level 304	Missile Damage + 2%
Level 310	Speed + 2
Level 317	Laser Shield 2%
Level 321	Missile Damage + 2%
Level 324	3X Damage 2%
Level 329	Speed + 2
Level 336	Laser Shield 2%
Level 340	Missile Damage + 2%
Level 344	Shield (4)
Level 350	+ 1 Shield Slot
Level 351	Missile Damage + 2%
Level 357	Speed + 2
Level 366	3X Damage 2%
Level 369	Missile Damage + 2%
Level 373	Speed + 2
Level 379	Shield (5)
Level 383	Missile Damage + 2%
Level 386	Wide Fork 2%
Level 395	Speed + 2
Level 399	Speed + 2
Level 400	+ 1 Engine Slot

The Rook is a beast. It is the first mech built with a "wide fork," allowing it to quickly deliver explosive ordinance across an enemy's entire front line. It can also withstand massive damage and survive, thanks to its bulky uthorium armored plating and Viridel shielding. It can rip apart whole squads of mechs and the surrounding environment in one blow. The Rook has been used to break sieges and as castle-like bastions in the battle line. It has been the agent of many a turning point in key battles on the Cogwerk periphery.

This 75-ton machine has heavier armor than the Bishop, so it is slower to maneuver. However, this is a reasonable trade-off for additional protection, especially against lasers.

The design team developed a way to stabilize the mech when shooting through special extendable braces. This allows The Rook to absorb the recoil of firing all its missiles in one devastating alpha strike. Combined with elite fire control systems, these braces give high targeting accuracy for missiles. The Rook has massive magazines for its missile racks and high-speed feed systems allowing for incredibly high rates of fire.

The fire control system deserves special attention. No expense was spared here. Not only is the system capable of engaging multiple targets, but it can quickly shift targets as they are destroyed - even while missile are in flight. The system can assess and prioritize targets at the same incredibly rapid pace that the Rook can dish out its missiles. The biggest problem with the system is simple data overload. It takes time and experience before the pilot can use all these features to their fullest extent.

The Rook is one of the few mechs built solely as a missile weapons platform. The three primary missile systems (the AHI, the T9 berserker, and the Tandem Bomb) are more affectionately known by field commanders as the 'Hurricane,' 'Typhoon,' and 'Tornado,' respectively. These are enormously effective against concentrations of opposition forces, regardless of their composition. Death Head and S2A missiles round out the Rook's on-board armament, equally devastating in their own right, but with a narrower area of effect.

The Rook has another property which endears it to field commanders: it spends more time in the fight and less in the shop, built on the frame of a mech that has a long record of service as a workhorse on mining colonies. it is easily maintained, resupplied, and repaired, even in the field. An added feature is that replacement parts are readily available, and a wide variety of weapons can be attached to the frame.

The Rook is more expensive than the Bishop, but the results it has shown on the battlefield prove its value. In the field, a pair of Bishops supported by a pair of Rooks has successfully decimated much larger Hegemony forces.

Legendary Pilots

Jenna Deen -- Jenna earned a rough, tough reputation after someone called her Rook 'stocky.' As that pilot left to go on medical leave for nose reconstruction, Jenna yelled after him "It's the size of the payload that counts!"
Mike "Benefactor" McClusky -- McClusky is famous for working with squads of light mechs. His usual MO is for his Rook to tear open formations, allowing the faster mechs to sweep through the gaps and decapitate enemy leadership.

Armament

Rook comes fully equiped with:

95

90 AHI Missile

ELITE

Fork 80%

A wide area weapon designed to pummel whole swaths of a battlefield.

90

91 Tandem Bomb

ELITE

Wide Fork 10%

Spreading holiday cheer. EVERYWHERE.

70

99 T11 Berserker

ELITE

Fork 55%

These missiles fire in tandem and can engulf two mecha in fiery doom with a single shot.

48

98 Death Head