An-Temural Drop-Pod

An unmodified An-Temural shell before weapon and secondary system installation.

> *"Give me 12 good men and 3 'temurals and I can lay down so much fire it'd make an Ork blush"*
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> - Staff Sergeant Elias 'Iron-Woad' Hárkin, Gallatran 17th 'Skyhammer' Regiment
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**The An-Temural drop-pod** used by the Steel Legion provides local forces with a strongpoint to aide in the defence or assault efforts through rapid deployment and heavy armament. Armed with a series of heavy weapons, commanders electronic sight and various support systems it creates a capable defense point for troops that can hold off forces many times it's size. Both the equipment and control architecture within the pod itself is generalised enough that it can be used by both transhumans and humans alike, allowing anyone with authorized access codes to effectively and easily make use of it. The whole assembly consists of the concrete pillbox itself attached to a Anvillus Pattern Dreadclaw frame, replacing the troop compartment with appropriately designed heavy retro-thrusters and support arms to hold onto the fortification.

## Launch Process

The whole assembly is launched from specifically widened tubes on a ship to accommodate the size of the pillbox. The initial launch is assisted by magnetic rails and the weight of the pod itself. This method of launch is used instead of the normal method due to the smaller fuel tanks on the drop pod frame compared to a normal configuration along with the increased thrust needed to slow down the whole assembly before impact with the ground.

 Once the pod reaches a certain height above the target landing site the retro-thrusters burn most of their fuel supply slowing the whole assembly down before letting go of the pillbox and allowing its weight to bury it into the ground below. As the fortification is deployed it will launch a salvo of smoke grenades from single-use launchers to cover it's landing from enemy fire. Before the pods are launched a general survey of the local area is usually completed or roughly calculated to account for the type of terrain it will be burying itself into as well as to calculate the speed the pillbox should be dropped at to allow it to properly bury itself in the earth.

 Once the pillbox has been deployed the pod assembly will use the remainder of its fuel to launch into the air to either land at a nearby friendly base or be used as a suicide projectile against enemy forces in the area. During this time the command system and any secondary systems deploy, cementing the place of the fortification as a permanent fixture to the battlefield.

## Main Armaments and Equipment

 The main use of the An-Temural system as a defensive position means it needs to be able to handle a varient of opponents and attacks that assault it. This is achieved through the 3 heavy weapon mounts inside the fortificaiton, each with their own window allowing them to cover a 290 degree area around itself. Each of these 3 weapon emplacements are mounted to the roof on gimbal joints, the increased flexibility and smooth movement, with the mountings themselves allowing virtually any heavy infantry weapon to be mounted on it. This is complimented by a twin-linked turret on top of the fortification that can be pre-programmed or slaved to the commanders console inside.

With gunner protection in mind each weapon mount has a metal shield with a fold-down plate to allow iron sights to be used in the rare case the other sights are disabled. If they are working though, the gunner will have access to the optical package on the gun-mount, providing optical enhacements such as zooming and night vision, all linked to a electronic firing display near the rear of the gun.

To allow for adaptability to mortals and transhuman physiology, the guns also have two sets of controls. A pair of handles are mounted on either side of the weapon with panel triggers while a single pistol grip is mounted on the rear of the weapon, sized up for transhuman use. as a secondary feature the transhuman trigger also has a soft-cushion on the rear, allowing it to be used as a support for mortals when firing by placing it against the chest for support.

Internal to the pillbox there is the command station displaying several screens that can link to any of the camera views dotted around the fortification. This includes a dedicated screen for the commander’s sight, which includes night vision and thermal imaging capability. Internal servers and cogitation machines are keptin an armoured locker underneath the commander's screens and are mounted on scock-absorbing mountings along with all of the other fragile equipment inside to avoid damage during atmospheric entry and landing.

A second and rarer weapons package does away with a large amount of equipment, even reducing the heavy weapon mounts from 3 down to 2, and doing away with the commander's turret alltogether. In exchange a large-bore twin barreled automatic mortar is mounted internally on a rotating platform. While this specification is useful in some situations it's use is not as widespread as the standard 3-gun twin-linked turret configuration, likely due to the fact that, while powerful, the pillboxes do not house enough enough ammunition for extended use and will need to be resupplied quickly after initial landing.

## Secondary Systems

The design of the fortifications large spike on the underside may seem slightly strange at first, but it's purpose is two-fold; Upon impact the spike is driven into the earth, allowing for greatly increased stability and ensuring that an enemy cannot simply push the An-Temural away, and secondly, the space provided by hollowing it out allows for several heavy-duty support systems to ensure that when the fortificaiton is dropped, it stays where it's meant to and fights to the bitter end.

For pillboxes with mortar platforms the spike will hydraulically deploy several nozzles into the earth around it’s circumference. These nozzles will deploy a quick-setting ferrocrete to provide a stable platform to fire from by creating a solid foundation to be established and make their removal all but impossible without large industrial machinery. This ferrocrete also allows the shock from the weapon firing to be dissipated more evenly into the earth, reducing the effect of the pillbox sinking into the
ground due to the weapon’s recoil.

 The second, and widely used support system is the “Parman” forcefield generator. Through ingenious alteration to the existing vehicle -based field generator it has been housed inside the limited space of the
spike’s casing. While cramped inside the housing, the shock absorbing system was fitted to allow it to survive initial impact with the ground through the relocation of the energy source. In this case several large battery units have been placed inside the main compartment of the pillbox, with racks for spares. The fields main method of operations allows for maximum efficiency of power-use by assessing incoming threats and creating
small, but densely powered shield area to absorb the shock of the
weapons fire. This system does have a flaw in the fact it relies on a 360degree camera system to assess any incoming threats and a cogitator unit to process that information and activate the shield in the right area. This system can be tuned dependant on the user’s
needs, changing the size of the field generated when it does snap
into life, with larger areas using more power. In the event that the camera system or cogitator unit are unavailable the system can be switched over to a ‘normal’ mode of operation where the shield is projected in a bubble around the pillbox, but this does place a massive drain on the battery life, drastically reducing its effective usage.

## Miscellaneous Systems

Cameras have been placed at strategic points on the outside of the fortification, feeding both normal and night vision surveillance into internal screens and firing displays for the weapons mounted inside. This can be displayed on any of the internal screens and even act as a backup sight for gunners, displaying a view of the battlefield in front of their position.

The outermost edge of the pillbox is sloped to allow for a full coverage of fire and deny the enemy the ability to use the pillbox as cover. Lining the outermost sloped edge of the pillbox are single-use grenade sockets that can fit a variety of grenades. As part of the initial descent to the planet, the moment the pillbox is dropped from the drop-pod-assembly it automatically launches a round of smoke grenades from the edge facing the enemy to allow allied forces to embark into it with an extra layer of protection.

Access to the pillbox is achieved through a hydraulically sealed door that is locked from the inside with a panel control on the outside . Any allied forces that are deployed in the operational zone will be briefed on the door access codes or have access to an electronic tag that will allow them to use the pillbox. This entrance is also covered with a camera and a gun-port built into the door if the enemy manages to get into the covered alcove.

Internally there is a grenade trap has several hole built into the floor, leading to an empty cavity underneath the pillbox floor to isolate the explosion from the main area. And finally spare ammunition boxes are kept in heavy-duty footlockers on the outer edge of the main compartment and are also used as step-ups for mortals to sit at the turret positions with shallow indentations in the floor to give them stability.