Code Geass: The Demon and the Dragon

by Knightmare Gundam of Ni

For most, fighting alone against a world power spanning two-thirds of the globe would be suicidal. Luckily, these two aren't alone. AU based on the premise of Lelouch having a twin. Lelouch/C.C, OC/Kallen. DEADFIC

35. Technical File 4: Of Dragons and Ogres

Code Geass: The Demon and The Dragon

Fourth Technical File : Of Dragons and Ogres

Nidhoggr Drive

The power source that allows Knightmares to operate even with their horrendous energy consumption, the main reason why Sakuradite is such a high commodity in the section of military commerce, is the Yggdrasil Drive. Approximately a total of one-hundred fifty cubic centimeters in size, the Yggdrasil Drive provides power by using the energy from a Filler to spin a solid block of magnetized Sakuradite suspended in a large amount of liquid Sakuradite. The magnetic forces exerted on the liquid Sakuradite generates enough electrical energy to power entire city blocks, which only manages to power a fourth-generation Glasgow Frame for about five hours, give-or-take.

Learme, however, has designed a new Drive. Dubbed the Nidhoggr Drive, it is approximately 20% the size of a Yggdrasil Drive, and yet generates 25% of the energy that a Yggdrasil Drive does. This is due to the decreased size of the magnetized Sakuradite block, which allows it to revolve at much higher speed and thus exert greater magnetic force on the liquid Sakuradite, therefore generating more electrical energy. Due to the size of the Drive, it can be used in place of common combustion engines to power vehicles. However, in Knightmares, the Nidhoggr Drive is nothing less than a godsend.

Despite its smaller size and lesser energy production, Nidhoggr Drives are perfect for Knightmare Frames when incorporated as part of a Nidhoggr Drive System, wherein five Nidhoggr Drives are connected, allowing them to co-produce energy, and taking up the same approximate amount of space while providing 125% of the energy of a Yggdrasil Drive. Also, while the larger Yggdrasil Drive takes up much of a Knightmare Frame's torso and is thus a prime target, the Nidhoggr Drive System is dispersed throughout the Knightmare Frame, with one central Drive placed in the torso, while four others are placed in or near the extremities. Thus, with the addition of a proper blast panels to channel explosive energy out of the Frame, a Nidhoggr Drive System-equipped Knightmare can survive a direct hit to the torso with comparatively minimal damage, whereas a Knightmare with a Yggdrasil Frame would be shot in the torso, have the liquid Sakuradite ignited, and explode in a manner similar to that of a several megaton bomb, only far less focused, raining burning mechanical parts and the shredded remains of the pilot all over the immediate area.

The Nidhoggr Drive is still rather dangerous though, in both the amount of heat it produces and the effects of it being hit. This can be solved by use of extreme heat sink, cooling and venting systems. This nontheless means that a Nidhoggr Drive Knightmare is not stealthy at the least. The same systems can be modified to also be defensive systems designed to direct most of the explosion from a Nidhoggr Drive outwards.

CBKF-001

Ryūō

Pilot: Draco (Learme Lamperouge)

Unit Type: Custom-Built Multi-Range Heavy Knightmare Frame

Manufacturer: Lamperouge Industries

Operator: Black Knights (Zero Squadron)

Height: 4.82 Meters

Weight: 7845 Kilograms

Armor: Titanium Carbide/Synthetic Diamond/Beryllium hybrid composite

Power Source: 1 x Nidhoggr Drive System

Propulsion: 2 x Adhesive Armored Landspinners
Sakuradite-Laced Synthetic Musculature

Equipment and Design Features: 1 x Advanced Factsphere
Command Interface Uplink to Akuma
Magnetized Low-Friction Gel-Coated Joints
2 x Shoulder-Mounted Electronic Counter-Measure Systems (Optional)
2 x Shoulder-Mounted Sonic Vibration Scanners (Optional)

Fixed Armaments: 2 x Shoulder-Mounted Mono-crystalline Beta Carbon Nitride Slash Harkens
2 x Forearm-Mounted Mono-crystalline Beta Carbon Nitride Slash Harkens
1 x Radiation Beam Emitter
1 x 'Honoo no Ryu' Liquid Plastic Fire Flamethrower

Optional Fixed Armaments: 2 x Shoulder-Mounted 15mm Tri-Barreled Gatling Guns
2 x Shoulder-Mounted 30mm Tactical Guided Multiple-Launch Rocket Systems

Hand Armaments: 2 x 'Tsukiken' 30.3mm Magnetic Coil Pulse Pistols/Oscillating Radiation Sabers (MCPP/ORS)
1 x 'Raikou Kai' Linear Rifle

Bio: As it is developed from information obtained by stealing data from Rakshata's Knightmare Development Lab, the Ryūō is similar in form to the Guren, although it's weaponry and the modifications made to its design by Draco give it a significantly different role. The Ryūō shares the motorcycle-style cockpit design, which Learme approved of, as well as the basic torso and limb shape (exchanging the right arm with a mirror-image of the left arm). However, instead of using the Sakuradite-Infused frame designed by Rakshata, Learme instead utilized a larger and more powerful version of the Sakuradite-laced pseudo-musculature that his powered armor has, increasing the amount of Sakuradite in both the musculature and the frame itself, which also improved the Ryūō's strength relative to the Guren, but reducing its overall agility. This unique design also gives the Ryūō remarkably human movements, especially when moving with retracted landspinners. The shoulders are markedly larger, providing room for ammunition for the gatling guns, and allowing more powerful pneumatic launch systems for the shoulder Harkens. Some of the lessons taken from the Io Prototype Assault Frame include incorporating electromagnetism into its joints, although in the form of magnetized low-friction xerogel coatings, which still allow the Ryūō a wider range of movement and faster reaction time than most mass-production Knightmare Frames.
The most iconic feature of the Ryūō, however, is undoubtedly its head. The entire structure is vaguely wedge-shaped, with two horn-like structures protruding at a 75-degree angle from it. Two-thirds up from the 'chin', a zig-zag line of fang-like golden reflectors show where the head separates to reveal the Ryūō's most powerful weapon, the Radiation Beam Emitter.

Developed from Rakshata's Radiation Wave Surge Emitter on the Guren, the Radiation Beam Emitter (RBE) focuses the radiation, microwaves, etc., into a tight high-energy beam and fires an electron pulse alongside it, creating a massive electrical and radiation energy surge in a target that vaporizes all liquids and ignites ammunition and Sakuradite, causing an explosion in the target. With Knightmare Frames, the explosion is even larger due to their Sakuradite-based Yggdrasil Drives. The resulting explosion has been seen to occasionally ignite the area, as well as lubricants on the Frame itself, creating an area around the target where everything is set on fire. Due to the effects of blooming, The RBE has an average range of 150 meters, although it makes up for this by being capable of instantly piercing through entire Knightmares to even affect those behind the initial target. The RBE is capable of operating on a somewhat lower-power setting, more similar to a simple cutting laser. The RBE is based on the lower 'jaw' in order to allow easier access to the Nidhoggr Drive System's energy reserves.

Incorporating one of the lessons he's learned and relearned time and time again on morale and how to manipulate it, Learme has also installed a smaller, more short-ranged version of the Sakanade Thestalos Super-Incendiary Flamethrowers on the top jaw of the Ryūō's 'head', called the 'Honoo no Ryu'. Instead of using plasma torches to ignite the Liquid Plastic Fire though, it instead fires a low-energy RSBE beam approximately .5 milliseconds after releasing the LPF. The resulting flame is generally a scarlet-tinged shade of purple, again depending on the 'burnee' and atmospheric conditions. The Honoo no Ryu has an incredibly short range, about 125 meters, although it makes up for this with devastating damage both physically and psychologically.

The 'horns' on the Ryūō's head are actually a combination of heat sinks and coolant control systems that prevent the RBE from overheating, and thus igniting the Sakuradite in the Ryūō and reducing it to melted scrap. The coolant used in them is a revolutionary new 'molten salt' made from sodium fluoride and sodium tetrafluoroboride. In the tips of the 'horns' are atmospheric sensors that detect and report such statistics as humidity, pressure, even wind direction and speed, allowing Draco to more accurately adjust the RBE's power and concentration.

The Ryūō's primary weapons are the independently-made 'Tsukiken' Pistol Sabers. Based off of old 'pistol-saber' designs in early Europe that combined cavalry sabers and pistols, the Tsukiken utilize a combination of the caseless firing system of Learme's Pulse Magnum and the Raikou's coil system. By incorporating highly conductive elements into the gunpowder that the round is coated in and generating a high-voltage electric current into the round, it ignites the propellant while at the same time activating the coils that further accelerate the bullet, the conductive elements in the gunpowder creating a circuit conveying the electric pulse to the acceleration coils. This results in a much higher muzzle velocity than either technology alone would convey, at least on the scale of the pistols. Primary ammunition is a 30.3x136.7mm diamond-like carbon-coated hollow points fired at 2 kilometer per second speeds on average. The entire system protrudes noticeably out of the upper part of the blade portion, with the laser targeting device mounted on the top of that. The end of the barrel is an attached muzzle brake designed to reduce recoil.
The blades, forming the primary body of the Tsukiken, are made of the only amount of heterodiamond Draco had, in monocrystalline form, and use advanced micro-oscillators to vibrate at extremely high frequencies. Rather than use masers to heat the blades as the Lancelot and Bors' weapons do, they instead utilize miniaturized radiation wave emitters, incapable of doing anything approaching what the Guren's claw does, but fully capable of heating the blades to temperatures exceeding that of the MV weapons. The whole effect causes the sabers to literally glow a threatening bloody scarlet. Due to the radiation that occasionally leaks out, the atmosphere immediately around the blades is partially ionized, causing them to appear to be wreathed in flames. The ammunition is supplied by 20-round magazines, inserted just forward of the grip and behind where the blade starts, which is tapered so that it covers the magazine like a guard, so that the clip can't be accidentally sliced off during a melee fight.
The entire weapon draws energy to power it from the Ryūō by using highly conductive materials in its grip, storing the energy in a small Filler-type battery planted on the other side of the grip. This allows the Tsukiken to be used without having to worry about recharging or replacing the battery.

While the RBE is the most powerful weapon, and the Tsukiken Pistol Sabers are the most adaptable, the weapon often associated with the Ryūō is the devastating Raikou Kai (see below).

Auxiliary weapons include the two shoulder-mounted and two forearm-mounted Slash Harkens, made of the same single-crystal Beta Carbon Nitride material used in Draco's Katana, and with monoatomic hyperdiamond edges and lines made of twined titanium and carbon nanotubes. The main result of this is a sort of partial camouflage for the Slash Harkens, which are completely reflective and thus are often the same color and pattern of the surrounding area, causing them to blend in, as the wires are impossible to realistically detect. This makes it very, very difficult for targets to detect, and thus either dodge or deflect them. The shoulder-based Harkens have a more powerful launch system, as well as an extra 50 meters worth of line, allowing them longer range beyond most standard Slash Harkens.

On the shoulders are multipurpose weapon mounts capable of holding different types of armaments or equipment, capable of reloading the equipped weapon from internal ammo storage bins located in the shoulders.
First among the weapons are two tri-barreled 15mm gatling guns, which fire standard 15x117mm armor-piercing incendiary rounds. The incendiary effect is achieved by a combination of magnesium tips and a white phosphorus coating inside the jacket. However, a built-in surprise factor is that, after exhausting all 350 rounds of API rounds, the gatling guns switch to Armor-Piercing Explosive rounds incorporating a half-gram of C4 explosive wired to impact detonators into the tips.
Another weapon is the two Tactical Guided MLRS systems, essentially the Bors' MLRS only modified for smaller yield and shorter range. The effect depends on the warhead the rockets are equipped with, although Learme prefers a special incendiary warhead using the Napalm-C that the Sakande Thestalos uses.
They can also use special equipment, like ECM emitters and larger variants of the Reikoku's SVS.

The Ryūō's landspinners are encased in a titanium carbide/beryllium hybrid composite armor, which is coated in an electro-active nano-adhesive similar to that covering the Bors' Smash Harkens, giving them greater grip and allowing the Ryūō access to areas normally off-limits to most Knightmare Frames. Depending on the amount of electricity administered, the adhesive can either allow the Ryūō to proceed smoothly across ice-covered areas, or allow it to scale high-inclined terrain. Also, due to the increased traction offered by the adhesive, the Landspinners could be reduced in size, allowing them to fold into the Onigami's legs to let the Knightmare move acrobatically, similar to hominid or primate species.

In order to receive direct commands from Zero, Draco installed an encrypted telemetry/command link to Zero's Akuma, allowing Zero to utilize the Ryūō's advanced sensors and giving Draco a faster response time, tactically speaking. This also allows Draco to more easily command the Zero squad, whose Reikokus have the same link.

The Ryūō's armor is a condensed Titanium Carbide reinforced by Beryllium, all with binding synthetic diamond lattice integrated into the structure. This gives the Ryūō its primarily black coloration, as well as the appearance of having scales on close inspection, with the synthetic diamond lattice showing faintly on the surface of the armor. The golden fangs are made of a golden alloy designed to produce a moderately powerful electromagnetic field to focus any plasma the RBE produces into the beam. The cameras use red-tinted polymers in their casing to counteract the blue-shift that results from their high-power lenses.

XMSR/C-01

Raikou Kai

Weapon Type: Experimental Magnetic Sniper Rifle/Carbine

Manufacturer: Lamperouge Industries

Operator: Black Knights (Onigami)

Barrel Length (Battle Mode): 2.7 Meters
Barrel Length (Sniper Mode): 4 Meters

Barrel Diameter: 60mm

Firing Mechanism: Hollow Electromagnetic Rails filled with High-Pressure Liquid Sakuradite
Hollow Electromagnetic Coils filled with High-Pressure Liquid Sakuradite
1 x Electromagnetic Pulse Electrode

Feed Mechanisms: 30-round box magazine
Bolt-Action Breech-Loading
Muzzle-loading

Sight: Guncam, 20x Zoom with Low-light/Infrared/MagRes Imaging
Attached Laser Targeting Designator System

Telemetry: Quantum-Encrypted Directed Pulsed Radio Beam Transmission

Maximum Range: 20 km

Round Dimensions: 60x260.4mm

Standard Round: DLC (Diamond-Like Carbon)-coated Jacketed Hollow Cavity (magazine-loaded)

Special Rounds: Magnesium/Sakuradite alloy-tipped Tungsten Carbide Armor-Piercing Fin-Stabilized Discarding-Sabot (APFSDS)
Depleted Uranium/Sakuradite-catalyzed C5 High-Explosive Armor-Piercing (HEAP)
Hollowed Depleted Uranium Shell filled w/ White Phosphorus/Powdered Sakuradite Armor-Piercing Incendiary (API)
Aluminum Carbide w/Tungsten Carbide ball-bearing Discarding Sabot Spread-Shot (DS3)

Bio: The Ryūō's most recognizable weapon, the 'Raikou Kai' Linear Rifle is based off of the Raikou Gauss Cannon initially used by the JLF in the Hotel Incident, as well as the experimental 'Sukur' Railguns used by the Io and the Sakanade. From the end of the firing chamber to the bore, the Raikou Kai is 4 meters long, all of it hollowed out magnesium diboride and silicon fullerene tubes and coils filled with super-pressurized Liquid Sakuradite capable of accelerating rounds to a maximum of 5 km/s, giving the Raikou Kai a realistic maximum range of 20 km, if that. It uses an integrated scope-like guncam for targeting purposes, linking via a directional pulsed radio beam to the Ryūō's Advanced Factsphere in order to feed targeting data to the Ryūō's targeting computer while also providing an accurate targeting icon on the HUD without limiting Line-of-Sight to just the scope-view. Also attached is a laser targeting system, giving the Ryūōrange values and the ability to mark targets for artillery and/or other sniping elements.

The Raikou Kai's design is somewhat based on that of a Barrett M95, sharing the same basic bullpup form in order to make maximum use of its size, although eschewing the muzzle brake and replacing the scope with the guncam. Also, due to the generally mobility of Knightmare Combat, the Raikou Kai does not have a bipod mount. This is offset by the fact that the Ryūō's mechanical arms are far steadier than that of any human's.

The firing procedure is as follows:
First, the guncam scope and laser targeting device confirm target lock, atmospheric conditions, and distance.
Then, they feed the data to both the Ryūō's primary Fire Control System and the secondary Rheinmetall-based one in the Raikou Kai's stock.
Third, the relevant information is displayed on both the Ryūō's HUD and the Draconian Powered Armor's, where Learme makes the decision as to precisely what kind of damage he wants to do, adjusting setting appropriately. Then the trigger is pulled, the Fire Control Systems sending the appropriate signals.
The Electrode emits a controlled EMP of appropriate strength to start the round moving.
The Gauss Coils activate, positively charged electromagnetic fields 'pulling' the round to faster speeds.
Then the Rails activate, negative magnetic fields 'pushing' the round to yet faster speeds.
By the time the round has exited the barrel, it is traveling at speeds ranging from 2.9 km/s to 5 km/s.

Standard ammunition is the 60x260.4mm Jacketed Hollow-Cavity bullet, which is coated in a diamond-like carbon to reduce atmospheric friction and aid in armor penetration and is loaded into 30-round box magazines for use.
Special ammunition includes a Tungsten Carbide Armor-Piercing, Fin-Stabilized, Discarding-Sabot tipped with a magnesium-Sakuradite alloy, which is heated via friction to allow it to penetrate some of the heavier armor used in G1 fortresses and naval battleships. Also available are HEAP rounds made of depleted uranium using, instead of plastic explosives, a liquid Sakuradite-based chemical explosive that has blasted a 1-meter hole in a condensed concrete block. The most unusual round is a hollowed-out depleted uranium shell filled with a rather unusual substance: compacted powdered Sakuradite mixed with white phosphorus. When ignited (via a timed fuse) the powder burned slowly at a temperature of 4,000 degrees Celsius. Experimentation with this substance on common mammals (i.e, rats) saw their fat ignited, and other subjects exposed to the smoke died of exposure after two and a half hours. Also available is the Discarding-Sabot Spread Shot used by the original Raikou, firing a hollow aluminum-carbide composite shell filled with tungsten carbide ball bearings. After half the distance to the target, the shell splits and the ball bearings begin to spread out to an approximate diameter of 50 meters, acting like a shotgun's pellets.

As an electromagnetic weapon, the Raikou Kai consumes enormous amounts of energy and produces a staggering amount of heat. However, unlike its conceptual predecessor, it does not have four Knightmares worth of energy available and is not mostly open to the air. So, it instead uses a Micro-Filler originally developed by Learme to provide his powered armors with energy, and integrates a cooling system based on the Sukur's into the weapon itself.

The Raikou Kai has two distinct modes of operation, differentiated by barrel length, muzzle velocity, and energy/heat efficiency. Each mode utilizes differing amounts of energy and usually fires different ammunition types.
Battle mode is more energy and heat efficient, utilizing less of the rails and therefore producing less heat, allowing the Raikou Kai a total of 30 shots per Micro-Filler and allowing a firing rate of perhaps one or two rounds per second. However, it has a muzzle velocity of about 2.9 km/s, reducing maximum effective range to about 5 km, although it is actually intended for ranges of 750-1250 meters. In this, the mode is vaguely similar in concept to a carbine, as compared to the Sniper Rifle mode. The ammunition used by Battle mode is the Diamond-Like Carbon coated Jacketed Hollow Point rounds supplied by box magazine.
Sniper mode is the more iconic mode, utilizing the Raikou Kai's full 4-meter length along with its maximum muzzle velocity and range. However, it requires enormous amounts of energy, reducing shot-per-Filler to maybe three. As such, it usually uses the special ammunition fed into the chamber via the breech or muzzle. The higher amount of energy results in a higher heat generation that taxes even the entire combined cooling system, causing a further reduction in firing rate to one round per twenty-to-thirty seconds.

The Sniper Rifle's appearance is that of a rectangular barrel attached to a 'stock' (actually the Micro-Filler port and secondary Fire Control System unit) with a cylindrical camera attached that extends from the end of the 'stock' to an eighth of the barrel's length. Only the upper half of the barrel is the actual operating equivalent of a standard small arms rifle barrel, containing the magnetic rails, coils and capacitor charge systems. The lower half contains the heat sinks and cooling systems, and operates by slowly absorbing the heat into blocks of high-conductive metal before cooling them with a high-pressure liquid helium coolant, which then evaporates and is purged into the atmosphere via ventilating systems. Comparisons have been made between the Raikou Kai and the M95 Infanty Anti-Material Rifle, in both appearance and intended use.

Type-11HM

Reikoku

Pilots: Akito Yamamoto
Sasaki Kojiro
Kiryu Sakumo
Alex Yamato
Eris Baxter
Qilin Sheng-Ha
Ouka Shinobu
Antonio Nicholi Bellaci
Mischa Mriya Antonov
Peter Wettergren

Unit Type: Customizable High Mobility Combat and Special Attack Knightmare Frame

Manufacturer: Black Knights/Lamperouge 'Industries'

Operator: Black Knights

Height: 4.6 Meters

Weight: 7945 Kilograms

Armor: Titanium Diboride w/ Boron Nitride/Graphene nanosheets

Power Source: Nidhoggr Drive System

Propulsion: 2 x Armored Adhesive Landspinners

Equipment and Design Features: Modular design
1 x Advanced Factsphere
1 x Hardened Beryllium Carbon oxide composite/Nickel-Alumina oxide Aerogel Shield (optional)
1 x Sonic Vibration Scanner
1 x ECM Pod (optional)
Low Friction Joints
Advanced Command Uplink

Fixed Armaments: 2 x Monomolecular Slash Harkens

Optional Fixed Armaments: 1 x Arm-mounted dual-barreled 15mm machine gun
1 x Arm-Mounted Titanium Nitride Pile Driver

Optional Hand Armaments: 1 x Oscillating Monomolecular Revolving-Blade Katana
1 x 45mm Battle Rifle
1 x 30mm Sub-Machine Gun
1 x Knightmare Shotgun
1 x 75mm Sniper Cannon
1 x 240mm Gauss Launcher
1 x 30cm Cannon

Bio: Developed by Draco as a counter to the Britannian's advanced Mabinogi Knightmare Frames, the Reikoku is based of off Zero's Akuma and Draco's Ryūō, except geared towards high-mobility anti-Knightmare combat and special operations, keeping the needs of the Zero Squadron in mind as a highly-reactive and powerful force.

The Reikokus are made primarily from Sutherland and Gloucester parts that have been heavily modified by Draco, using technologies developed by both him and the Ashfords to lighten the parts while maintaining a high survivability. Notably, he replaced the aluminum/iron alloy armor with a titanium-carbon diboride composite reinforced with layered boron nitride nanomesh and graphene sheets. Rather than using Sutherland or Gloucester heads, Draco instead custom-built new heads based off of the Ryūō's, basically wedges with eye-like cameras and a small Advanced Factsphere built in as a 'third eye' on the central forehead. Due to Draco's personal design philosophies, the parts have been aesthetically modified to appear smoother and rounded, which also adds to their defensive ability against anti-armor projectiles. The traditional Britannian cockpit has been replaced with a motorbike-style cockpit, as with the Guren and the Onigami.

Overall, the Reikoku's are designed in a modular way, allowing parts to be swapped out as easily as changing clothes, thus allowing a high degree of customization, as during his initial design phase, Draco made and rejected several different part ideas that he eventually went back to, making them special-utility parts, an example being a shoulder that incorporates a small rocket launcher, or a hand that has monomolecular-edged claws instead of normal fingertips. Some of the optional arm parts even replace the hand with an entire weapon instead.
This design also allows faster and easier maintenance, allowing the mechanics to simply replace a damaged or otherwise incapacitated part with one almost exactly alike within seconds, rather than taking half an hour to fix it, and then afterwards repairing the damaged part when given time.

The Reikoku's basic armaments include monomolecular slash harkens like the Guren Heavy Assault Type, except being made of a titanium-based alloy and using carbon nanofilament wires. On either the left or right forearms, the Reikoku can be equipped with either a 12mm twin-barreled machine gun that fires armor-piercing incendiary rounds, or the Sakanade's deadly Titanium Nitride Pile Driver, graded against all Britannian Knightmare Armor.

The standard armaments are the 45mm Battle Rifle for medium to long-range combat using full metal jacketed Armor-Piercing Explosive rounds with a hardened steel jacket and filled with copper and delayed-fuse TNT, and the 30mm SMG for medium to close-range combat utilizing magnesium-tipped API rounds.
The Knightmare Shotgun is essentially a large shotgun scaled for Knightmare Frames, equipped with a monomolecular-edge bayonet The main ammunition is a smaller version of the Discarding-Sabot Spread Shot used by the Raikou, utilizing gunpowder instead of magnetic rails.
The Sniper Cannon fires a variety of 75mm rounds, including HEAP, APFSDS , and HEI, using the Advanced Factsphere in a similar way as the Onigami's Raikou Kai, linking via directed radio beam to share data and incorporate reticule and laser-assisted targeting data between the guncam, the Factsphere, and the Reikoku's main Fire Control System.
The Gauss Launcher is a hand-carried version of the Guren's, downsized for better portability, with the same general ammunition types. This does, however, limit its range to about 450 meters or so. Among the types of munitions available are fuel-air explosives, high-explosive grenades, sub-munition deploying shots, and an anti-infantry Radiation Wave bomb.

After the Battle of Narita, Draco uses the concept of the Burai Kai's Revolving-Blade Katanas, improving on the design with titanium/beryllium/silicon hybrid composite materials and micro-oscillators, as well as coating the chains with low-friction compounds. In the end, this replaces the standard monomolecular-edged titanium diboride katanas that the melee-focused members of Zero Squadron use.

Among the Reikoku's equipment is a shield made of two layers of a super light Beryllium Carbon oxide composite E-material, with the space in bewteen filled with a nitrogen alumina oxide aerogel, giving it an unprecedented amount of resistance to some of the best armor-piercing munitions available to the Britannian military. To reduce enemy sensory ability, the Reikoku can mount a standard ECM pod on its cockpit, allowing it to intercept and jam enemy communications and radar.
An especially unusual invention is the Sonic Vibration Scanner, which works in the same manner as echolocation, except that it works through all sonic frequencies and links to the Factsphere to provide a visualization. By adding a silhouette identification program, the Reikokus can easily pick out the shapes of Knightmares, vehicles and infantry among the clutter that the scanner picks up, allowing markedly more accurate readings than experimental units in development at A.S.E.E.C. As the Scanner works through the human frequencies, it causes a high-pitched bird-like call when used. This has been seen to cause a slight panic among Brittanian pilots, and some of the more learned ones have taken to calling the Reikoku 'Morrigans' after the Celtic goddess of the same name.

The Reikoku utilizes low-friction compounds in its joints, allowing it to match the reaction speed of the Arawn and Mabon Mabinogi frames, while possessing an advanced command link to both the Onigami and the Akuma, allowing a greater degree of coordination between Zero Squadron and the more standard Black Knights squadrons. A sub-system of the command link also uses encrypted radio transmissions to allow Zero Squadron secure communications with each member any time, and allows them to share data, allowing greater-than-normal coordination between the Squadron, surpassing even that of many of the Mabinogi units.

Currently, a mass-production variant of the Reikoku is in development, with deployment slated for summer 2018, hopefully after Japan has been liberated and Britannia's former Knightmare production facilities have come under Japanese control.

Type-12RE

Sakanade

Unit Type: Limited Production 6th Generation Assault Use Semi-Autonomous Knightmare Frame

Manufacturer: Lamperouge Industries

Operator: Black Knights

Accommodations: pilot only, in pressurized hybrid Britannian layout with panoramic cockpit display

Height: 4.9 Meters

Weight: 10200 Kilograms (base weight, combat weight can exceed 13700 Kilograms)

Armor: 4th Generation Laminated Chobham

Power Source: Sakuradite Energy Filler linked to Li-Ion battery series.

Propulsion/Motive Systems: Many x High-Power Linear Actuators
2 x Enlarged Adhesive Armored Land spinners
2 x Variable Pressure Combat Tires

Equipment and Design Features: Hybrid Yggdrasil drive
1 x Advanced Factsphere Open Sensor Camera, mounted in chest
Prussian Rheinmetall Advanced Fire Control System
Full NBC(Nuclear Biological & Chemical) Protection system
Hybrid Liquid Nitrogen and Water Ammonia cooling system
3 x back weapon/equipment hard point; 4 x hip and forearm weapon/equipment hard point
Dual-Band Radar System
Enhanced Target detection Suite
1 x High-Definition Super Telephoto camera
Electronic Warfare Package
Laser Designator equipped Scouting Periscope, mounted in head
Advanced Command Uplink
Parachute Drop Pack

Fixed Armaments: 8 x Titanium Nitride Monomolecular Claws
2 x Titanium Nitride Monomolecular Pile Driver, mounted under each forearm;
2 x Titanium Nitride Monomolecular Slash Harkens
2 x Titanium Nitride Monomolecular Toe Anchors/Claws
1 x 12.7x99mm CIWS, mounted in head;, 450 rounds

Optional Fixed Armaments: 105mm Recoilless Cannon, 40-round, blast shield magazine
60mm Low Recoil High-Impulse Multi-Role Sequence Cannon, 120 rounds
Dual 30mm Tandem Aden Cannons, 500 rounds
40x53mm Grenade Launching Machine Gun, 600 rounds
400mm High-Impulse Grenade Launching Cannon, 4 rounds
18x164cm 16-tube ADATS tandem warhead Missile Launcher
30x250cm 2-shot Long Range Anti-Surface Variable warhead Missiles
13x285cm 2-shot Low-Stratospheric Surface-Air-Missile Launcher
7x161cm 61-tube Unguided Variable Munitions MLRS
"Akar " Palette Shield
"Azuki" Enhanced Riot Shield

Standard Hand Armaments: 1 x 30mm Machine-pistol, stored in left hip holster, 75-round magazine, 2-spare magazines in holster
4 x 75kg Sakuradite based Thermobaric grenades, stored in right hip holster

Optional Hand Armaments: 1 x "Asi Mk.2" 6-barrel 20mm Vulcan Cannon
1 x "Kemva Mk.1" 40mm Low Recoil High-Impulse Sequence Cannon
1 x "Kemva Mk.2" 85mm Low Recoil High-Impulse Multi-Role Cannon
1 x "Tolro" 155mm Howitzer
1 x "Sukur " 120mm Railgun
1 x "Thestalos" Super Incendiary Flame Thrower
1 x "Mizuho" 7x72cm 19-tube 2-shot micro super-cavitating torpedo launcher
1 x "Fuzeiyari" High-Oscillating Rocket Assisted Naginata
1 x "Hinokogiri" 2.5 Meter Plasma Induction Rocket Assisted Oscillating Monomolecular Revolving-Blade Katana

Bio: Based off of and heavily cannibalized from Britannia's RPI-13 Sutherland the Sakanade was originally designed by Learme Lamperouge as a direct rival to Britannia's RPI-29 Gloucester. The original Sakanade prototype was designed with near unrivaled speed and close combat power inspired from the AAX-0 Io to completely outstrip Britannia's Gloucesters. However Learme quickly realized that the highly refined Type.-1R Burei Kai could reasonably easily match the requirement of being able to defeat Gloucesters, combine that with a need for a devoted multi-role, assault and area dominance frame and the Sakanade's design ended up taking a veritable 180. Upon suggestions and information provided by Mischa Antonov the Sakanade received a further face lift in its design, vastly expanding on its versatility and engagement capabilities by further cannibalizing weapons and equipment from the European Union's Knightmare designs.

The Sakanade first strips off all of the Sutherland's original armor, head, manipulators, feet and land spinners before reinforcing the entire frame with Titanium struts for a far greater load support capability. Next the standard linear actuators on the Sutherland's joints are all replaced with larger multi-gear ratio variants imported from the EU, thereby both increasing power efficiency slightly as well as bringing its power to weight ratio up to 3:1. This also resulted in a slight stretching of all of the frames limbs adding more than a half a meter to the frames overall height and significantly increasing the length of the arms and legs. The cockpit is redesigned slightly after the Io's with a large Panoramic display to give the pilot far greater battle field awareness, the inclusion of a full NBC protection system was also paramount as well as the conversion of the cockpit block to a pressurized one for several reasons.

The head takes a cue from the Io and removes the Factsphere to make room for a 12.7mm CIWS machine gun firing a Raufoss derivative bullet that is highly effective against most types of targets and armor as well as its own targeting periscope. Room was also made for a compact but powerful Dual band radar system for interdiction of both ground and sky borne targets, other enhancements were made to the sensors as well for greater effectiveness in severe weather conditions. The inclusion of a super telephoto camera also significantly increases the Sakanade's engagement range, as well as opening up the possibility of precision targeting for sniper termination. Thanks to its radar and an improved computer system the Sakanade also has an Electronic Warfare Package, though on its own it isn't a very powerful one but through an advanced command link similar to that used by the Zero Squadron Sakanade's will collectively use their EW packages to create an astonishingly more powerful and uninterruptible system. The Sakanade's also usually have a higher ranked BK piloting them who receives the combat information and communications from the units under their command and through another advanced command link passes the more important information on to Zero's Akuma. Cosmetically the Sakanade's head looks like a samurai helmet wearing a bone white Japanese Ogre mask giving the frame a more fearsome appearance along with its optics being a menacing yellow Tekatite glass tends to add to their psychological impact.

The Sakanade's armor is derived from the Io's but significantly lighter in most areas, only the Torso armor is a virtual carbon copy of the Io's material wise, with the all important Yggdrasil drive and cockpit being far more heavily protected. The Io's slant armor design is also apparent on its enlarged torso, where the Sakanade's advanced Factsphere has been moved to roughly the same location as the Io's chest camera, also protected by a retractable armor plate. The rest of its armor on its arms legs and head is first made from a surface layer of an only 2mm thick sheet of stamped Titanium backed by a 15mm thick layer of the Io's ceramic armor and then 100mm thick blocks of the Io's Nickel Alumina Aerogel. This is followed by another layer of ceramic armor and Aerogel that is finally backed by the same spall liner layer of Quevlar as the Io's but has doubled in thickness to 20mm. This new armor offers protection superior to a Main battle tanks while being nearly ten times lighter than the Io's yet still capable of stopping an APFSDS from a 120mm tank gun. This is not to say the armor is invincible so much as it can take a tremendous pounding and still be usable, literally allowing the Sakanade to wade through a veritable firestorm of destruction that would leave other frames cut to ribbons. On the down side the new armor does significantly increase the frames silhouette, making it much more bulky, and because the light armor is of a different construction it's design has changed as well, moving away from slant to rounded armor. The result is that the Sakanade has a very odd appearance with its slant armor torso and rounded armor extremities; the frame gives off the daunting impression of a body builder wearing a tank hull on his torso, actually making the frame look very imposing from a distance and up close.

Also incorporated into the Sakanade is a Hybrid Liquid Nitrogen and Water Ammonia cooling system partially inspired by the Io and certain EU frames, this combined with the ability of Aerogel to absorb Infrared radiation makes the Sakanade many times cooler than most frames. A serious flaw that most modern KMFs have is their massive thermal signatures that make them stand out on infrared sensors like a mortar shell lit off on a birthday cake. Because of this cooling system the Sakanades' can regulate their temperature to more closely match their environment making most anti-Knightmare weapons that traditionally rely on infrared guidance all but useless.

Other significant design changes were the alterations made to the feet and land spinners in order to better improve the Sakanade's balance and load support capability. The whole land spinner assembly has been enlarged, lengthened by a half a meter, strengthened with titanium struts, a more powerful drive train and its adhesive armored land spinners, designed by Learme, have been nearly doubled in size to further distribute the frames weight. The feet themselves take another cue from the Io and have been made much wider and longer and look vaguely like the Gloucester's feet now, three interesting additions to the Sakanade's feet is that number one they are actually treaded on the bottom like an over sized set of hiking boots. Second, in the joint between the heel and the ball of the foot there is now an inflatable and deflatable heavy gauge combat tire powered by an additional high torque electric drive that aids in propulsion and traction immensely. The third and final design addition was a pneumatic Titanium Nitride coated High-Carbon Steel Alloy toe claw/spike that primarily is meant to act as an anchor or stabilizer on very steep terrain or when firing a heavy weapon respectively. Though it does have two additional uses, one as a kicking weapon for tearing open enemy frames and it can be used to make the Sakanade either stop very quickly, spin suddenly on one leg or just plain old lock itself in place during a close combat fight.

The next major design change actually occurs in the Sakanade's manipulators/hands, these have been changed so much that they can no longer use weapons created for most other Knightmares of Britannian or Japanese origin. The hands now consist of an enlarged thumb but only three enlarged instead of four smaller fingers, leaving the Sakanade with only four digits per hand; however this was necessary to make the hands much heavier duty to wield some very large and powerful weapons. The hands themselves are also made from a Low-Carbon steel alloy that has been cured at sub-zero temperatures to create stronger more uniform molecular bonds. The other reason the Sakanade can't use standard Knightmare armaments is because each digit ends in a claw coated in many super compressed layers of super cooled Titanium Nitride that has been sharpened to a Mono-atomic edge by a precision laser. These claws make the Sakanade a beast at close range combat since for an enemy having a Sakanade sink its claws into their frame will literally be the third to last thing they hear. Followed shortly by the sound of their frame being dismembered like a rag doll in the hands of a baseball junkie in a roid rage and then the sound of their cockpit being peeled open like an oversized sardine can, obviously this is where part of the Sakanade's tremendous strength comes in very useful.

The final change to the arms was the swapping out of the Sutherland's Stun Tonfa with a set of Titanium Nitride Pile drivers made via the same method as the Sakanade's finger claws, the pile driver itself is a long elliptical double edged blade. When the Sakanade's hands are closed into fists and the pile drivers are in their normal retracted state the blades themselves stick out approximately 3 decimeters past the fist and the rear of the elliptical blade sticking 6 decimeters past the elbow armor. When the pile drivers are fired Electromagnets in a split second slide them forward until they extend past the fist by a length of just under 1.7 meters. At close range combat these weapons are positively lethal capable of slashing through Gloucester lances and easily bypassing some of the strongest armor like a surgical knife through tissue paper. Often time's enemy frames that have engaged a Sakanade have been recoverable due to the minimalist damage done to them except for one long and thin stab wound in the front of the torso that comes through the cockpit hatch. Sakanade pilots also make it a point not to clean the blood from an enemy pilot off the blades unless it's done by the elements, adding to the psychological effect of the frames is to see the gold plated blades on their arms and fingers stained in fresh and old blood. A word of warning to Sakanade pilots, the TiN Pile Drivers cannot stand up to Britannian Maser Vibration weapons, though because of the heavy alloys used in the pile driver blades' construction it will resist being cut for about 1.8 seconds.

On another note the Sakanade's Slash Harkens have been remade in the same manner as the finger claws and PD blades but with new Carbon Fullerene cables that are 60% thinner for nearly triple the length of cable while still being stronger than the original. The Slash Harkens also have their own special hard points built in, during an airdrop operation these hard points are actually the main attachments for the Sakanade's parachute that it hangs from, with the chute and backup chute mounted over the cockpit and chest. This is also one reason for the Sakanade's pressurized cockpit so that at High altitude the pilot is safe from the extremely atmospheric pressure, the second reason is that the Sakanade much like the Io is completely submersible up to a depth of 250 meters. Because the Sakanade is an Assault unit it was decided by Learme that it should have an all important high altitude parachute drop ability and the ability to launch nearly fully independent amphibious beach assaults, another reason for the big feet was to allow the frame to easily slog through the muck resting on the ocean/river/lake bottom. Though to move through the surf to the beach faster a battery powered KMF sized DPV (Diver Propulsion Vehicle) was made for the Sakanade which it hangs on to and steers through the water with its hands. Its amphibious abilities also add another reason for the Sakanade's head periscope.

The last set of standard armaments is a 30mm Machine Pistol in the left hip holster, accessible by both the left and right hand as a secondary/backup weapon, naturally the 30mm round is more than effective against knightmares but it is also effective against tanks as well. The pistol fires a HEAP/I (incendiary) that is essentially a massively scaled up version of the 12.7mm Raufoss surprisingly in single fire mode the Machine pistol is accurate out to ranges of more than 2.5 kilometers, though it should almost never have to be used in this fashion since it is a PDW. On the right hip is an armored holster accessible to both hands containing four 75kg Thermobaric Grenades filled with liquid Sakuradite and aluminum nanoparticles stored in a tank under tremendous pressure. When the initial burst charges go off, splitting the tank along multiple fracture lines, the super compressed material vents out over a spherical radius of roughly 35 meters combining with the oxygen in the air and then be ignited by an ignition charge in the grenade to create an explosion. Because the grenade doesn't throw fragments, except for debris, it can easily be used both defensively and offensively and is magnificently effective against virtually everything, from ground troops to ornithopters, to armored vehicles and Knightmares. And with an Area of Effect of 70 meters there is little chance of even a highly mobile unit such as a Knightmare getting away from the grenade fast enough to avoid being caught in the main blast wave, of which most KMFs have no hope of surviving due to the materials they are constructed out of. It should be noted that Maser devices can prematurely ignite the airborne particles before they fully spread actually offering some protection to frames like the Lancelot. Another point of interest worth mentioning is that upon ignition the chemicals in the atmosphere combined with the Thermobaric substance briefly burn a stunning fusillade of alizarin red, blue, magenta, green, and bright yellow before turning into a fireball of all encompassing death.

The rest of the Sakanade's armaments and weapons are optional equipment typically attached to various points on its body, namely the forearms, hips, back, and rear skirt armor allowing for an intense variety of weapons. This is also where the most vital component of the Sakanade's design comes in, it's Prussian Rheinmetall Advanced Fire Control System used in the EU's KMFs, and this system is perhaps one of the most advanced in the world and as such is a bitch to get one's hands on under most circumstances. The EU went to great pains to ensure they could not be acquired and reverse engineered by Britannia as such Lelouch's acquirement of enough them for each Sakanade is almost a miracle. The system uses all of the KMF's sensors in a collective network to very precisely and nearly instantly gain a targeting solution on virtually anything, which is a very important ability the Sakanade's must have. Thanks to this the Sakanade practically never misses anything it shoots at, making evading its attacks an exercise in luck or an act of god.

On the Pilot Pod of the Sakanade are two weapon and equipment hard points these equip the following weapons per pilot preference or the desired mission role:

105mm Recoilless Cannon, a do all anti-hard target weapon, mainly meant for use against armored vehicles and entrenched fortifications but is still highly effective against Knightmares and even airborne threats. Firing a rocket assisted Armor Piercing Explosive round, each gun has its own 40 round armored magazine designed to actually provide extra protection to the Sakanade's cockpit (standard design to all the back mounted cannons) from flank attacks, the cannon has an effective range approaching 8 Kilometers. The best part of this weapon is it's very cheap operating costs and relatively easily acquired ammunition.

60mm Low Recoil High-Impulse Multi-Role Sequence Cannon: one of three kill anything and everything weapons the Sakanade mounts, the gun is based off of the EU's 57mm Bofors 3P Assault cannon that fires a very special smart ammunition. It's Ammunition is a 6 mode of operation all purpose round made from a hardened steel casing filled with HE and tipped with an AP Tungsten Carbide Ballistic cap. The rounds firing modes are as follows: Proximity mode (General Purpose), in this mode a magnetic proximity sensor is used to detonate the shell mid flight when it approaches an object of significant enough size, I.E. any large vehicle ranging from a tank to a fighter plane. Gated Proximity mode, this proximity mode is directed to air defense against missiles and instead detonates only when it passes close to relatively small magnetic fields. Gated Proximity Impact Priority mode, in this format the round maintains the same proximity detonation settings as the previous mode but with the stipulation of not detonating unless it somehow misses the intended target meant for use against low flying aircraft and missiles. Time mode is a setting for causing the round to airburst over a surface target at a predetermined distance, spreading high velocity shrapnel over a large area, primary use is against small fast moving or concealed targets such as Knightmares and light vehicles but is also effective against personnel and materials. Impact mode is a line of sight mode that cause the shell to detonate immediately upon impact with a target highly effective against most surface targets excluding armored vehicles and fortifications. Armor Piercing mode, in this mode the shell detonates a split second after initial impact in order to penetrate bunkers and tank armor with utterly devastating results. With a total of 120 rounds and a fire rate of roughly 2.5 rounds a second this cannon remains relatively light but allows the Sakanade to engage and destroy virtually any and all threats at ranges exceeding 9.5 kilometers, the down side is the very high operating costs particularly the ammunition.

Dual 30mm Tandem Aden Cannons: a significantly smaller and lighter gun system, it is usually carried as a Personal Defense Weapon against Knightmares, armored vehicles, low flying aircraft, and personnel , it is generally preferred by Sakanade pilots who wish to keep their frames as mobile as possible or if the rest of their weapons are relatively large and unwieldy. It's ammunition consists of 500 rounds of Armor Piercing Incendiary in two separate magazines feeding to each 30mm cannon, which is well suited against KMFs and most vehicles and is capable of effectively engaging at ranges of just over 3.2 Kilometers. This weapon can also function in a secondary role as a light assault weapon against fortifications and material destruction, fire rate is 7 rounds a second.

Dual 40x53mm Tandem Grenade Launching Machine Guns: another Light Assault weapon these tandem grenade launching machine guns may not offer the oomph of a larger weapon but they make up for it with sheer area saturation power. With a rate of fire of 5 rounds a second the two guns can dump a frightening amount of HE on an enemy very quickly, usually both guns' separate 300 round magazines are loaded with HEDP (high explosive dual purpose) grenades. These have a small HEAT warhead wrapped in a fragmentation casing capable of penetrating tank armor and killing personnel within a radius of 12 meters via the frag casing. The other grenade it can fire is a Flash bang smoke grenade very useful for creating a distraction or creating a debilitating smoke screen. This weapon is meant more as an anti-personnel and material weapon put does still function well against most other surface threats so long as they are relatively close. This weapons biggest draw is it's very short effective range of 1.5 km and maximum effective range of 2.2km making it far less of a standoff weapon, this is however balanced out by its fire superiority and reasonable operating costs.

400mm High-Impulse Grenade Launching Cannon: this weapon is actually more or less a mortar that fires a scaled up version of the Sakanade's Thermobaric Grenades, it goes without say that with 4 large scale versions of those grenades in a launch unit it tends to be rather hazardous. Hence this weapon is usually used on units who are equipped with mostly lighter weapons so as to offer greater fire support capability for Burei's. It also has the rather utilitarian ability to clear mine fields and large amounts of vegetation, unsurprising considering it can level an area 200 meters in diameter. The psychological effect of this weapon is incredible thanks to the incredible light show it makes but with it's very short range of just over a kilometer limited ammo and very real threat to its user it is not favored by all but the most daring and stupid pilots and usually only sees use when nothing else will do.

18x164cm 16-tube ADATS tandem warhead Missile Launcher: ADATS, Air-Defense Anti-Tank System, an EU developed high maneuver multi-role missile system designed for use against low flying aircraft, reactive armor equipped tanks, and bunkers/fortified gun emplacements. These missiles are wire guided up to 500 meters at which point they will switch to infrared guidance to a target. The warheads are tandem HEDP meant to be effective against virtually any defense, while lowering the overall weight of the missile. While Lelouch and Learme had intended this to originally be a derivative of the Io's Girtab micro missiles it was found by them to be far too expensive to create Girtab's on a limited production basis so the idea was temporarily shelved. All-together the ADATS is very flexible and is effective against KMF and despite the missiles and launchers size it is perhaps one of the lightest back mounted weapons.

30x250cm 2-shot Long Range Anti-Surface Variable warhead Missiles: a LASM based roughly on the Maverick AGM platform these missiles boast above all else incredible potency at ranges out to 80 kilometers. Obviously these missiles are a non-line of sight or NLOS weapon relying on telemetry from a scout sniper team to acquire a firing solution, like the ADATS they have two guidance modes, against fixed targets they rely on GPS. In the case of a mobile target the scout sniper team can light the intended victim up with an infrared targeting laser and though they weren't intended for it this method can even be used to shoot down large slow moving aircraft. This LASM also has the ability to switch between warheads, an anti-fortification Bunker Buster, and a modified version of the 400mm Thermobaric grenade for an effect equivalent to a Daisy Cutter bomb. Relatively light weight and flexible this weapon tends to be a favorite among Sakanade pilots despite its limit of only two missiles it is a highly effective strategic weapon when used correctly.

13x285cm 2-shot Low-Stratospheric Surface-Air-Missile Launcher: also inspired by EU Knightmare designs these missiles are based off of the MIM-72 Chaparral, a ground based derivative of the AIM-9 Sidewinder. These high-speed highly maneuverable missiles are meant for use against high flying aircraft and fighter planes using both standard Infrared Guidance and Semi-Active radar guidance from Any Sakanade that can receive telemetry on the missiles target to track and kill with a near perfect success rate. The warhead used by this SAM is a Continuous Rod or Annular warhead that uses a proximity sensor to detonate the warhead when it is alongside its target craft; the results are devastating on most aircraft, literally, and quite often, cutting the airframe in two and guaranteeing a kill. The only drawback is like the LASM each launcher carries only two missiles but with a near perfect kill ratio and that the SAM is so light to carry this is easily ignored.

7x161cm 61-tube Unguided Variable Munitions MLRS: an artillery system using small unguided rockets, this system is similar in some respects to the 40mm grenade launching machineguns but offers a far greater effective range with huge blanket coverage of the target area. The primary use of this system is as an anti-personnel/material weapon by loading the rockets with incendiary and fragmentation munitions but they can also be armed with HEDP bomblets for use against light armor. The maximum effective range of this system is 50 Kilometers but severely decreases target area saturation, sees its best use at ranges of 35-40 kilometers or less depending on atmospheric conditions. This is also one of the lighter weight back weapons and is favored by pilots because it can be used as a line of sight weapon instead of just as an artillery piece, though it does require some skill to aim.

"Akar " Palette Shield: a longer and wider version of the Io's original Akar shield this version attaches directly to either the right or left forearm, it is still effective as a bludgeoning weapon but that is not what makes it special. Using a branch of the Rheinmetall FCS the Sakanade has a semi-autonomous defense mode where in when it's sensors pick up an incoming threat it will automatically position the frames shield to defend from it making it that much harder to take a Sakanade out of a fight even with heavy artillery.

"Azuki" Enhanced Riot Shield: the Azuki is based on the RPI-11 Knightpolice unit's riot shields but reconstructed from the same light armor as that on the Sakanade's extremities so that despite being large enough for a Sakanade to completely hide behind it is still quite easy to move around with only one arm. The shield attaches to whatever arm it's affixed to via an armature that connects to the forearm's hard point and a handle affixed to the shield, thus turning a Sakanade into a moving gun emplacement. When equipping these shields a method of engagement that Sakanade pilots prefer is to take after the old fashioned Roman Phalanx, advancing in formation with their shields in front or to one side, especially effective during amphibious assaults.

The following weapons are the Sakanade's hand armaments, starting with the "Asi Mk.2" 6-barrel 20mm Vulcan Cannon, despite its name this weapon shares practically nothing with the original Asi except that it's a hand held Gatling weapon. The Asi Mk.2 is the second of the Sakanade's three kill absolutely anything and everything weapons, it is by far the most economical, reliable, and simple of the weapons though with a straightforward operating principle anyone can understand and easily acquired ammo. Though it lacks many of the nifty abilities of the 60mm smart cannons it is still fully capable of destroying virtually anything including incoming enemy missile ordinance, tanks, and bunkers. The gun mainly fires Armor-Piercing Incendiary rounds which are especially effective against Knightmares; with an effective range of just under 6 kilometers and a fire rate variable between 300-3000 shots per minute it is a very flexible weapon. The gun system itself can be carried with one arm easily and is belt fed from a 2000 round armored ammo container dock to the rear waist armor under the cockpit. For safety reasons the ammo container is equipped with blast panels to redirect energy away from the frame if it is hit by an explosive/incendiary round, this ammo feed system is also standard for most of the Sakanade's hand carried weapons. All in all the Asi Mk.2 is perhaps the most used hand weapon the Sakanade's have and being a Gatling type weapon also makes it a distinct favorite.

"Kemva Mk.1" 40mm Low Recoil High-Impulse Sequence Cannon, the third and final kill absolutely anything and everything weapons, the Kemva is for all intents and purposes a much smaller hand carried version of the back mounted 60mm smart cannons. Firing the same type of six mode smart ammunition this gun is meant to be the perfect hand carried weapon if it weren't for the cost of said ammunition as such it's use is slightly more limited than the more standard Asi Mk.2. The Kemva Mk.1 does boast a slightly better range than the Asi Mk.2 at nearly 7 kilometers though obviously it's ammo payload is much smaller at only 500 rounds, still this is a great weapon and is perhaps the second favorite hand armament among Sakanade pilots.

"Kemva Mk.2" 85mm Low Recoil High-Impulse Multi-Role Cannon, is based on the Prussians Flak 41 ADATS cannon and holds the same smart type ammunition in common with the Mk.1 but focuses on a far superior range as more of an artillery piece/sniper cannon. Due to the large size of its ammunition it's fire rate is quite slow but since it was designed for long range high accurate fire this is usually not a problem, though it is still effective as a mid range weapon. The Mk.2 can engage aircraft and incoming ordinance at altitudes of 13 kilometers effectively and ground targets at ranges up to 30 kilometers; total available ammo is 90 rounds.

"Tolro" 155mm Howitzer, the largest and heaviest of the Sakanade's Hand armaments it is also one of the few that isn't belt fed due to its size. The Tolro is a full sized howitzer with a range of 48 kilometers and fires a GPS guided shell that is flawlessly accurate, when using this weapon a Sakanade will usually hang a ways back from the main line of battle with a pair of Burei covering it. The reason for this is that a Sakanade must forsake most of its regular armaments to carry a full complement of ammo for this weapon, the gun is fed ammunition via a 10-round box magazine with spare magazines in single carriage holsters that can mount on the hips, pilot pod hard points, and on the rear waist hard point, including the gun that's a total of 60-rounds. However by not equipping one of the hip hard points and the rear waste hard point with a magazine holster it would still be possible to carry one of the other hand armaments excluding the Sukur Mk.2 but it would limit the Tolro to only 40-rounds and make the Sakanade much heavier and slower.

"Sukur " 120mm Railgun, only one of these was made by Learme as an experiment using technologies inspired from the Raikou Kai, possessing a shorter barrel, a higher rate fire, a much higher muzzle velocity, and using a miniaturized hybrid liquid nitrogen and ammonia cooling system. Similar to the Tolro this gun is not belt fed but it is thankfully much lighter and it's magazines have a doubled capacity due to the 120mm APFSDS and 120mm shot shells that don't require any sort of traditional propellant. Also because of the decreased weight it is much safer to carry another hand armament and be quite content with only 4 magazines with a total of 80-rounds between them all. Because of lack of an opportunity to properly test the Mk.2 Learme has yet to accurately learn much more than the weapons muzzle velocity and the effect an APFSDS has on a hardened target. Due to the technologies applied from the Raikou Kai the Mk.2 now has a muzzle velocity of over Mach 8 and produces a rather interesting affect when it's kinetic penetrators contact their target, because for all intents and purposes whatever is hit by the round ceases to exist on the macro-molecular scale. To be clear the matter of the target still exists but the KP connects with so much force that not only does the penetrator simply disintegrate but so does most of the structure of the object that is hit, though obviously the farther you get from the epicenter of the impact point the larger fragments you'll find. Amazingly the kinetic penetrator also possesses so much potential energy on impact that it produces a substantial amount of thermal and electrical damage to the target area as well. The real coup de grace though is the creation of hypervelocity spall and shrapnel that spreads out behind the target after being struck reducing any unfortunate thing that might have been standing behind it to nothing more than confetti. Under normal circumstances this weapon is impossible to dodge but skilled pilots who seem to have an instinct for battle can often times anticipate the weapon firing and successfully dodge it.

"Thestalos" Super Incendiary Flame Thrower, Sakanade pilots' number one favorite weapon, both for its rather obvious flashiness and tremendous demoralizing effect on their enemies. This oversized Flamethrower is somewhat heavy due to a requirement for a super high pressure pump to push the fuel agent out to a maximum range between 230-260 meters depending upon atmospheric conditions. The Napalm used in the flamethrower is an agent the Lamperouge twins purchased off the EU's black market, a so called LPF (Liquid Plastic Fire)/napalm-c or Ultra Napalm/Satan's vomit. This new formula is based on napalm-B/Super Napalm but is more stable/harder to ignite; using Nitroglycerin, Liquid-Latex, cyanoacrylate, Powdered Thermite, and a polyurethane adhesive to augment the original formula. The standard gas pilot light at the end of the muzzle have been replaced with a pair of plasma torches to ensure complete ignition of the Napalm material which tends to burn a pretty magenta, green, and bluish white at an astounding temperature of 1850 degrees Centigrade for up to 15 minutes, also dependant on atmospheric conditions and what it's burning on. Napalm-C is extremely sticky and near impossible to remove from the surface it adheres to even with a fire hose until it has completely finished burning. Hypothetically a single Sakanade could cause a skyscraper or parking garage to collapse by setting most if not all of the foundation supports on fire and simply wait for them to soften to the point of collapse. A conformal armored and insulated fuel tank is attached to the rear waist armor under the cockpit and pressurized with nitrogen and argon gas and contains enough Napalm to fire a continuous stream for up to 40 seconds. The napalm-C is fed to the flamethrower via a self-sealing Quevlar fuel line for maximum safety though due to the nature of the protection systems even a HEAT shell to the fuel tank wouldn't cause it to combust without the application of some good incendiary rounds immediately afterwards. The psychological impact of the Thestalos is perhaps what makes it so terrible, once it hits you your dead, the ability to reduce tanks to molten piles of slag is one thing but when applied against Knightmare Frames it becomes a truly ferocious weapon. Because Knightmares are traditionally made with ultra light materials such as aluminum alloys and various polymer compounds they have a tendency to burn quite well, not simply melting but also oxidizing and accelerating the speed at which they are consumed. In the unfortunate case of any KMF that is hosed by the Thestalos ejecting is pointless if not done in time since any of the Napalm-C on the Pilot pod will cause the pilot to die an agonizingly painful death from being burned alive in their own cockpit after ejecting. Because of this it became a rule of thumb amongst Britannian pilots to do one of four things: Run Away (the best and wisest course of action), Pray (also a wise idea and hope that someone who cares is listening), Fight from Long range (terrible idea since Sakanade's are equipped to excel at ranged combat), or Fight at close range (Worst course of action). Unintentionally the Britannians gave Sakanade's equipped with a Thestalos a rather good and well liked nickname by their pilots, "Zippos" dubbed after the brand of lighters the name was originally used as a code word to identify the diabolical flame thrower equipped units. Unfortunately the name stuck in a bad way with Sutherlands being nicknamed "Matchstick Men" and being depicted rather comically in Japanese street gang graffiti, and Sakanade pilots who use the weapon often painting a large Zippo lighter on their shield with one matchstick painted on it for every KMF they had torched. To say the least Zippos' reputations became so bad (or good) that Britannian soldiers and Knights were given standing orders to flee on sight of the units and during any firefights with Zippos it became a common occurrence for Knightmare pilot's to prematurely eject out of fear of becoming another flaming statistic. As a bad joke by Britannian brass it was said that if your Knightmare is lit up by a Zippo and there is not a nearby body of large water nearby to send your frame diving into. The best thing a pilot can do is sit and wait for their Yggdrasil drive to explode, which would at least offer a relatively quick and painless death compared to the alternative of burning alive after ejecting. In short if it wasn't for the Thestalos' very short range it would probably be used by all Sakanade pilots all the time, in the mean time it is usually only used by a few frames at a time unless the mission they are on involves a great deal of wide spread material destruction.

"Mizuho" 7x72cm 19-tube 2-shot micro super-cavitating torpedo launcher; a roughly meter and a half long cigar shaped hand held weapon containing high velocity wire guided medium range super-cavitating micro torpedoes. The Mizuho is primarily a defensive weapon with each warhead being just large enough to either destroy a RMI-13 Portman or an incoming enemy torpedo/depth charge. Because it was only meant to see use during amphibious assaults as a defensive weapon until the Sakanade reached the relative safety of the shore, at which point it would either be holstered on one of the hips or temporarily discarded on the beach. Also because the Mizuho would likely see very limited use only 1 was made for every 2 Sakanade's produced but with 38 torpedoes per launcher they usually provide more than enough defensive coverage.

"Fuzeiyari" High-Oscillating Rocket Assisted Naginata, based off of the Naginata used by the Akuma, the Sakanade's Naginata is a slightly enlarged version of the Akuma's but with a liquid oxygen rocket motor built into the balance point of the staff. This allows the Naginata to be thrown a significantly greater distance than just under the Knightmare's power alone. The Naginata is meant to be stored on the Sakanade's pilot pod hard points but it is a rarely equipped much less used weapon, usually only being regularly used by the Sakanade pilots with particular skill in close combat.

"Hinokogiri" 2.5 Meter Plasma Induction Rocket Assisted Oscillating Monomolecular Revolving-Blade Katana, this weapon is the basis for Kyoshiro Tohdoh's custom Type-3F Gekka's Seidotou Brake Blade. The Hinokogiri itself is based off of the Burei Kai's Katen Yaibatou Revolving Blade Katana but scaled up in size and technology for the Sakanade's use. The most notable design addition is 5 Plasma Induction Rockets to the Mune (back) of the "blade" to drastically increase the speed of the Sakanade's swings with the slightly oversized sword. The Hinokogiri is typically carried on the left hip hard point by pilot's who are either skilled in close combat or just want another weapon on hand, though most pilot's may choose to go without in order to save weight.

Overall the Sakanade is one exceedingly tough customer capable of going toe to toe with Britannia's 5th and 6th generation frames and tearing them a new one or even going up against Britannia's 7th generation frames and giving them one hell of a fight before being taken out.

D/N: color wise the Sakanade is mostly a light blue gray, the color of dead human skin and the shoulders, head armor, torso, and bits of the leg armor and all of the joints are painted black. The shoulder armor and feet look like a Gloucester's. the Tolro Howitzer looks like the RX-79G Gundam's big artillery cannon, the Kemva Mk.2 is based on the real life Flak 37 88mm cannon from WW2 it's ammo and that for the Kemva Mk.1 and its 60mm back mounted version are based off of BAE Systems BOFORS 3P All-Target Ammunition. The Asi Mk.2 is based off the M61A1 Gatling cannon. Okay now I'm feeling lazy so if you want to know what other real life weapons the other back armaments are designed from just ask.

- The Author -

My sincerest apologies for neglecting my stories for so long. Senior year is...irritating. The next part of the 'Star Wars Festival' Filler will be up in a while, just as soon as I can get my head back to it's gleeful, happy-go-lucky writing mode.

As for this technical file, it has most of the stuff seen in Narita, and is entirely Black Knights focused with no Britannians to be seen. That said, Velshard's Sakanade is still going to peel the layers off of your eyeballs. I still recommend reading it, as the effort will pay off when Sakanade show up later and you can think 'Oh man these Brits are screwed', chuckling gleefully.

Also, I've drawn another Ryuo picture, hopefully much better than the last one, and posted it on deviantart. Go to the site, and search 'Ryuo Knightmare'. It'll be the colored picture.

And if K'GoN highjacks my fic again, glare at the screen. Fourth Wall operating procedures will make him feel bad.

Review Replies:

Allora Gale: I'm hurrying, I'm hurrying!

citus334: In this universe, Star Wars is a clever cry of protest against the Holy Britannian Empire's policies. It was rather subtle in this though.

Alex Yamato: Ticked is a bit of an understatement. You don't call on the Glaston Knights when you're 'ticked'.
Very inefficient and underpowered, but awesome for scaring the crap out of people.
Heh.
The picture the dots make is very ugly for the guy...while at the same time, very beautiful.
Imagine being in the Sarlacc's stomach, without the slow, agonizing pain.
Will do!
To reply to select parts of your Killer's Realm review, no mechanicals, as they might reproduce and then we're all screwed to hell, heaven, and back.
I'll check it out.

Kojiro Kun: Thank you very much! However, I don't share the same view when writing filler. It's...tedious.
I'll fit it in.
Really? For me it was my first though upon seeing her and learning her name. Guess it goes to show...

Robby Cartwright: They have chainsaw katanas. Dozens of them. Or, they will. There's enough chainsaw goodness to last.

sakurahanaalice: that will be amusing to write.

JavMac: Thank you, I hope to hear more from you!

Knightmare Gundam of Ni