Model Number: AWX-3
Code Name: Regulus
Unit Type: experimental assault walker/technology demonstrator
Manufacturer: Heliadonian Imperial Army
Head Height: 9.7 m (excluding the antenna)
Average Weight: 25 metric tons
Armor Material: black cercronite alloy
Powerplant: advanced hydrogen reactor

Armament

Fixed:
-CGX-10 Gauss gun - an experimental automatic Gauss gun; normally low-powered, but the power can be increased at the cost of the firing rate
-Mk. 4 arm vulcan - six-barrel 35 mm vulcan mounted on either or both arms, capable of firing 820 rounds per minute
-.50 caliber anti-infantry machine gun

Optional:
-TB-54 thermal blade x 2 - experimental melee weapons, edged with heat conducting xenium
-A-12 missile pods x 2(not shown) - 18-tube missile launchers mounted on the hips (replaces hip armor)

Production Notes

The Rigel and Alphard, Heliadon's main assault walkers, often face difficulties during the Heliadonian campaign in Earth. To address these problems, a series of experimental terrorwalks were designed, finally culminating into the AWX-3 Regulus.

The Regulus' design is a hybrid of the Heliadonian assault walker and the Earth nations' humanoid fighters. It features the former's dual articulation leg design and the latter's humanoid upper body. The leg design was heavily modified so it equals if not exceed back-articulating (humanoid) legs in terms of mobility while maintaining stability under the influence of Earth's gravity. Long arms and a large backpack are also characteristic to this model. Another odd design feature is the eerily human-like head, which is a rather peculiar aesthetic choice by the designers.

The backpack meanwhile, is lined up with two plasma rockets and eight maneuver jets. As in any other terrorwalk, the backpack is connected to the machine's powerplant, which is an advanced hydrogen reactor, whose power output is comparable to four times that of the regular hydrogen powerplant used by second-generation terrorwalks.

The machine's armor is made of black cercronite, a highly enhanced variety of the regular cercronite used by Heliadon's assault walkers.

The building cost, scarcity of material, and non-standard construction limited the production of the Regulus to a single functioning unit. This individual machine was later used as a testbed for new weaponry, making possible for it to acquire the latest arms manufactured by the Heliadonian Army, which are later tested in actual combat.

The Regulus has proven itself a formidable weapon during the later days of Heliadon's Earth campaign, a bane to the French, British and German forces in Western Europe.

Side Notes
-Regulus is named after the brightest star in the constellation Leo
-Cercronite is a mineral mined deep beneath the Martian surface. It is named after the Cercro Labs, it's discoverer and a Mars-based research institute taken over by the military during Anselm's revolution.
-The twin thermal blades are based on the Sandrock's shotels, combined with an old similar weapon of my own concept.
-Xenium is a rare Martian metal that can heat up to 6000 degrees Celsius without melting
-The blue accent is a signature of the Orca Tactical Squadron.

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Finally, after quite a few months of hiatus, I'm done coloring [link] I've chosen field gray for the primary colors, as I was inspired just earlier by the German Army's WW2 field gray colors. Not that I simply lack in originality, but I actually find it better than plain gray, a color I've applied onto this thing a few weeks ago. Now the last thing needed here is the unit insignia. I think that should take some time as I'm the type of person who really isn't into abstract art.

EDIT: 12 Dec. 2009. Added some gloss on the black parts.



Armalite Rifle font (the green one) © Vic Fieger [link]
AWX-3 Regulus © me
Steal and invoke my wrath, heathen!