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Skonar

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Fox Lieutenant

Fox

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Data Canister 603b ; X-COM Archives

Specialized X-COM equipment

Portable Infantry Motion Detection Unit

Codename: Motion Scanner

 

As the reports from the first battle zones began to come in, it was apparent that field scouts needed a new way to pinpoint enemy units effectively. Often times soldiers would pass what was thought to be a secured area, only to be ambushed by hostiles. Scouts simply could not check every nook and cranny in the short amount of time they had to secure the area. A solution was found.

 

With X-COM's unexclusive access to all the secret government projects in the world, the prototype X-MS motion scanner was the ideal solution. The device was small enough to be placed on the soldiers belt or in his/her backpack, and easily held in one hand. Its weight was a little less than 5 pounds, and the advanced power cell technology could keep it on for well over 24 hours without need of recharging. The cheap cost for components and quick manufacture time helped the scanner be quickly introduced to every strike team around the world.

 

The operation of the scanner was simple: with the squeeze of the trigger (the handle of the scanner was much like a pistol's) the scanner would emit a combination of radio pulses which could detect movement with an accuracy of up to 20 meters in all directions (360 degrees). The readout would show up on the small plasma screen, movement being shown in yellow "blobs". The larger or faster the unit, the bigger the blob. The user could judge the location of the scanned unit, based on it's location on the screen.

 

Unfortunately, after a number of tries and the same number of failures, the scanner could not be adapted to scan strictly non-terrestrial units. The user would always need to compare the scanner data with his fellow soldiers, to make sure he/she was not reporting the location of an ally as that of an alien.

 

While the ultimate goal of the motion scanner was never achieved, the information the device provided proved invaluable, and was even used in the final battle at Cydonia. There were rumors of plans to impliment the technology into the HWPs, but the war ended before such changes could be made.

 

--------------------------------------

 

Yeah, there's my first attempt at one of these things. I didn't spend too much time on it, and I made quite a few things up :) , if anyone disagrees with any of it feel free to voice your opinion. I didn't bother to look at the X-COM Field Manual for any other writings on the Motion Scanner, so sorry if someone else covered it :)

 

Edit: I just realized, after rereading this, that I sort of wrote it in past-tense. I guess I figured these data things were written after the war or something, I dunno :)

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JellyfishGreen Lieutenant

JellyfishGreen

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Nice one, Fox. I don't think the Motion Scanner's been done, and that covers the Game and Fic aspects nicely.

 

I also like how Ali's medikit post leads to the possibilities of painkiller substance abuse among shellshocked soldiers. "Remember, long term effects are untested, but you rooks probably won't live that long anyway..."

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The Veteran Captain

The Veteran

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--- Data Canister 13A, X-Com Archives.

 

The Heavy Weapons Platform, or HWP project began late in 1998 to relieve tactical personnel from their strict duty roster allowing a mission to fly with four less combatants than previously necessary. The majority of the design, manufacture and testing of the HWP was undergone at Pine Gap in central Australia and the first unit came online early in 1999 at the beginning of the Alien War.

 

The basic HWP was constructed to very precise specifications. At two meters wide and as many long it is capable of carrying a vast amount of superior technology. The armour fitted to the HWP is constructed of the most advanced alloy known to man and provides well over twice the protection of even the toughest armour available to other personnel.

 

Contained within the HWP is an array of sensor equipment which can be used to function as a mobile radar, forming a three-dimensional map of the terrain that surrounds it and patching it through to any nearby craft and soldiers. Along with the onboard video camera, the HWP also features infra-red, ultra-violet and thermal imaging systems. All of these recordings can be patched through to any nearby receptors or relayed over long distances via nearby craft.

 

Earlier prototypes featured initially four and later six wheel drive but rigourous testing often resulted in failed mobility. Instead the wheel driven unit was replaced by one driven by tracks. This offers a much greater ability to traverse foreign obstacles successfully and increases the stability of the vehicle on uneven terrain. The HWP also boasts a number of bottom mounted 'terrain sensors' to avoid grounding on foreign objects.

 

The engine that powers the HWP has in the past been used in manned military tanks and as such is the most reliable available with a good top speed and admirable maneouverability. The tracked wheels of the vehicle also allow it to turn on the spot making it almost impossible to become stuck in a tight or awkward position.

 

The typical HWP sports a thirty round, high powered, armour piercing cannon. It operates on either a slow or a fast repeater firing between ten and thirty rounds a minute. When operating a slow repeat, the cannon is significantly more accurate than one held by a soldier, using onboard targetting and tracking systems to calculate the shot. In fast repeat the cannon is less accurate but just as deadly, penetrating several inches of metal alloy in laboratory tests.

 

A second HWP model has also been developed for demolitions work and suppressive fire. In place of the cannon it is armed with a large rocket launcher and loaded with eight rounds, one loaded into the weapon. The rockets loaded onto this type of tank are extremely powerful and are capable of bringing down entire buildings with a direct hit. The targetting system for the rocket tank is incredibly advanced and offers a certain hit on stationery targets but it is slow to refire.

 

All Heavy Weapons Platforms feature a highly sophisticated on board intelligence unit to control their motions and actions on the battlefield. The system operates on a 'seek and destroy' program unless otherwise stated by it's briefing program. This allows the HWP to be set as an Automated Moble Sentry or AMS as well as allowing for a more cautious program for use when dealing with civilian populated areas.

 

Whilst in the default seek and destroy program the HWPs adhere to a strict routine before moving or firing. The onboard intelligence system works constantly to assess and reassess any threats in the local area and therefore is constantly aware of the surrounding area and any lifeforms that may be present. When lifeforms are detected nearby, onboard cameras and recognition systems determine whether the target is human alien or an XCom trooper.

 

When a hostile unit is located near to the HWP the mobility systems automatically become a low priority allowing the onboard tactical computer to assess the threat posed. If the threat is concluded to be of significant danger the HWPs targetting systems will come on line and it will begin to trak the enemy unit. The mobility systems are now restored to full order and the HWP may relocate in order to secure a more reliable line of fire. When this is achieved the tactical computers will take control once again and the target will be assaulted and monitored until all vital signs are within preset safety margins.

 

As well as the automated program, HWPs are also able to be controlled by a removed human influence. This option of manual control provides the HWPs with tactics that would not otherwise be considered by the on board intelligence unit. Manual control is vital when facing superior numbers as overwhelming information can on occasion corrupt the HWPs data stream and cause it to miscalculate a movement or assault command.

 

It is possible to manually control a HWP from many thousand miles away provided the correct transmitters and satellites are in place. On most missions a single operator will be enough to control a HWP but on larger scale missions it may be necessary to employ a second operator and control movement and aggression indepentently of one another. Even when a HWP is functioning automatically, an operator will be standing by in case of emergency. In this situation a manual override system is in place.

 

With plans for the 'Enforcer' walker cancelled, the HWP is a welcome addition to XCom. Capable of withstanding as much punishment as they can HWPs are invaluable to any fighting force. With both the Cannon and Rocket versions of the HWP already active on the field it is hoped that further developments in the field of laser technology could soon result in another even more devastating support unit.

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Alitorious Lieutenant

Alitorious

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Hrmmm... I can have several responses!

 

1: Well, there ya go! Makes it much better.

2: Goggles at big wizdom type smartness.

3: Oh, you edited it just for me? :) That makes me feel all tingly inside!

4: Damn right you fixxed it! Now it's not so worthless.

5: I... uh.. that is... uh...

6: It changed?

7: More nitpicking! <Insert dozens of [nitpick]s here.>

 

I hope you get the general positive meaning from that.

 

Oh, BTW, is that supposed to work with the fanfic, or is it sort of in an 'alternate universe'? (Because then it might solve the RC'ers vs. the AI'ers problem I think a bunch of us are curious about.)

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usmarox Sergeant

usmarox

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Data Canister 0508c; X-COM Archives

Small Arms/Ammunition

M41 Grenade Family

 

The standard-issue hand grenades used by X-COM throughout the First Alien war were all members of the M41 FOFUS group. These represented a departure from contemporary grenade design, based on the experiences of military forces in small-scale peacekeeping and regional conflicts during the late 20th century.

 

Design conception took place in the early 1990s, following the end of the Cold War and bearing in mind the new military paradigm of multirole equipment. Existing designs, such as the L2A2 and M29A2 antipersonnel fragmentation grenades, had been found to suffer from significant operational inadequacies due to the design of the fragmentation component. Reports from the Falkland Islands conflict of 1982 highlighted this end-user dissatisfaction, where the small, high-velocity fragments produced by the notched-wire filler were often absorbed by the soft peat terrain. Similar issues were reported again during Desert Storm, where soft sand caused identical failings.

 

With this in mind, the design team looked to the grenades of World War II - the No.36 Mills Bomb, and the MkIIA1, whose most significant distinguishing feature with respect to modern thrown explosives was a heavy cast-iron fragmentation casing, which produced larger, heavier fragments with better penetration qualities. With this in mind, the team set out to replicate the design using modern materials. In a number of trials, sponsored by government defence procurement agencies and private security concerns, a 5mm aluminium casing was found to replicate the fragmentation properties and pattern of the classic MkIIA1 'pineapple', while retaining a weight similiar to the modern designs.

 

The revolutionary component, and the one from with the series takes it's name, was the Full-Option FUsing System. Previously, the detonation delay of the grenade was determined by the fuse charge. While a number of fuses - 1s, 3s, 5s and 10s being the most common - were available, flexibility was limited by the necessity to screw the fuse into the body before use - a simple but delicate operation rarely performed under fire. This led to ineffective grenade use, where overly long fuses were used for maximum flexibility, but at the same time providing opportunity for enemy soldiers to escape the blast, or in some recorded instances, to throw the grenade back. Attempts in the field to work around the problem, by 'cooking' grenades (i.e., allowing them to arm and start counting down before throwing them) were partially successful, but often resulted in injury to the thrower.

 

To counter these problems, a universal fuse was created. Using a simple, electromechanical timer and detonator, the user was able to select a suitable delay at the time of the throw. A simple twist cap both broke the insulating safety seal and rotated the detonator contacts away from each other by the correct amount. The ruggedised production fuses were accurate to at least 1s in 30s, and frequently surpassed this. Although initially designed to fit only into the M41 fragmentation body, a number of adapters were produced to allow compatibility with other explosives, notably the Mk.4 WP/Smoke grenade. It's simplicity and robustness also led to a standalone version suitable for use with demolition charges. The fusing system underwent further development after entering X-COM service, ultimately being incorporated in an alien elerium charge as a human-usable alien grenade, replacing the barely-understood psychotronic mechanism originally installed.

 

The fusing system proved so reliable and successful that it was used as the basis for the motion-sensing thrown antipersonnel mine commonly known as the prox grenade. In this variant, the twist-timer was replaced by a simple on/off switch for a crude vibration-based motion sensor. Used with both the M41 and M29 grenade bodies during the First Alien War, it was found to be extremely useful in the fast-moving small-unit environment. A final production version, introduced in 2005, incorporated a new sensing head based on X-COM research, and a remote-safe disarming system.

 

(See also grenade, proximity grenade, smoke grenade; also cross-ref alien grenade)

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Skonar Lieutenant

Skonar

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About a million years late, but, yes, all the canister numbers have meaning. The kind of, intent I have going, is sort of the development of a personal timeline/thread of coherancy for the whole series, which I kinda, fitfully share here.

 

The Canisters, in my mind, are remnants from just after the apocalypse era, when Genesis starts - during that whole apocalyptic conflict.

 

The Canisters are long term storage devices, put into use for the UFOpedia. (In my version.)

 

As I know them...

 

 

894 - Canister filled with first Alien War technical data.

 

443 - Canister filled with pre-war data derived from USA based covert services.

 

1778 - Canister filled with commented documents compiled for a historical perspective in the Apocalypse era.

 

We also see the 'Infolines' in that fic I did awhile ago, which were originally data-canisters, mainly recoveries from the Apocalypse networks, which would probably have been in the range of around 1600-2000.

 

The Canisters from 0-400 are all prewar, 400-1000 during the first war, I think, then 1000-1100 going up to the second alien war, 1100-1500 during and just after the second alien war, 1500-1600 being the earth-side of the frontier stuff, and, yeah.

 

Just don't quote me on this stuff.

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