Rhino
| Rhino | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Class | Assault | ||||
| Weight | 100 tons | ||||
| Armor | 1675 | ||||
| Perk Armor |
2094 | ||||
| Heat Dissipation | 12 | ||||
| Speed | 0 | ||||
| Buoyancy | -0.4 | ||||
| Jump Heat | 70 | ||||
| Load-points | 59 | ||||
| Perk Load-points |
73 | ||||
| Hard-locked | No | ||||
| Hard-mounts | Howitzer Cannon Rhino v2 X4, Ultra Autocannon Heavy X2 | ||||
| Omni-mounts | none | ||||
| Shutdown Level | 100 | ||||
| Resistances | |||||
| Ball | 0% | Ener | 0% | Expl | 10% |
| Acid | 0% | Chem | 0% | Sonic | 0% |
| DoT | 0% | Electronics | 0% | Melee | 0% |
| Creator | razi soyinka | ||||
The Rhino is a slow, heavily armored assault-class fire support mech most effective at mid to long ranges.
History
Development of the Rhino prototype was underwritten by a large initial order from the mysterious zT Raiders, who had been briefly employed by House Davion during the second Clan War before they launched their own campaign to rule Terra as bandit kings. The Rhino soon became the terror of the battlefield, as lances of zT Rhinos often laid low entire battle groups. The Rhino's success on the battlefield was initially limited only by the original prototype's propensity to overheat during extended engagements. The original Rhinos also suffered from meager ammo supplies. The overheating problem was soon solved by replacing the original tri-beam high-powered laser arrays mounted in the arms with cooler-running auto cannons, though these were not nearly as effective when dealing with flying mechs. Rapid advances in warp and strife jet technology quickly rendered the Rhino nearly obsolete, as it could not effectively fight the new breed of flying adversaries such as the Vixen, Alien, and especially the Xenomorph. Just as the book was about to close on the once-dominating assault mech, its armament received an overdue revamp highlighted by improved howitzer cannons that fired smaller bore HESH rounds that flew faster, heated the barrels less, and had a greater area effect than the original HEAT munitions. The newer models can also carry more ammunition than the original howitzers. While the modern Rhino can still risk overheating during protracted engagements, Rhino pilots enjoy significantly increased heat flexibility for designing their backup arsenal. An increasing number of Rhino pilots are using the revamped triple auto cannon array, which trades fire rate for three-round flak groupings that perform much better against airborne targets.
Description
The Rhino's primary armament features four powerful howitzer cannons which deal massive area effect damage and are most effective from medium to long range. For point defense, it mounts two triple-barreled auto cannons that fire in a flak pattern. The Rhino may well be one of the slowest mechs around, but few mechs can survive more than a few barrages if caught in its death zone.
Other Notes
Many Rhino specialists swap out the auto cannon arrays for other arm-mounted weapons, especially lasers or LRMs to deal with fliers, or an anti-melee shield to deal with warp melee mechs. Nearly all Rhino pilots install a coolant system, a ventrally-mounted triple heatsink, and lower arm heat sinks. These help deal with the massive heat buildup from the howitzers during extended barrages.
