AM06 - Aranide

The AM06 Aranide was a series of RAM developed by Greater Angkal during the Interstellar War as an improvement on the AM05 - Malarkade II.

## History

### Origins

By the time the first round of the Interstellar War ended it was clear to all observers that the Rapid Assault Machine was the future of warfare. Angkal military officials evaluated the Malarkade II following the ceasefire and came to the conclusion that while the machine was adequate for future service, it would be prudent to develop a new machine. The main driver of the new RAM project was the Revolutionary Guard which wanted a more advanced machine to augment the elite RAM divisions they fielded. The Aranide is notable for being the first Angkalian RAM design not created by the military. Instead, a design competition was held with four companies building their machines around specifications laid out by the military.

The specifications were as follows

* Must be able to carry a variety of heavy armament including a dedicated sniper system, a siege laser, and at least two bazookas.
* Must have a minimum of three subarms for additional weapons usage
* Must be at least 50% faster than the Malarkade II and have sealed titanium composite armor.
* Must be a modular design for easy customization. Must be able to adapt Malarkade I/II parts

Four companies presented their designs to the military and Greddal &Co's design was eventually accepted. The company had been so confident that their design would be accepted that they had already created ten prototypes which were also accepted into service along with the production variants. These prototypes would go on to be the special Command variant of the machine.

### Usage

Unlike earlier designs, the Aranide was not intended for export. It was priority hardware for the Revolutionary Guard and was its mainstay RAM during the second and third rounds of the Interstellar War. It was also used by elite units of the regular army. The Aranide served in virtually all theaters of war including the Free States Campaign and it quickly gained a fearsome reputation among Alliance pilots. Like all RAMs of the era, however, the Aranide's quality was compromised during the final days of the war. Although production never stopped, after a certain point every Aranide that left the factory was composed almost entirely of Malarkade I/II parts.

## Characteristics

The Aranide had several sensors placed around the head in order to give the pilot a full field of view. Unlike the Malarkade II, the Aranide came with a shield although its armor was more than capable of protecting the pilot. Due to its stronger reactor and its relatively low weight, the Aranide could carry a much heavier weapons kit. Its offensive capabilities were greatly increased by its four subarms. It was also the first RAM to come have a predictive system although it was only found on the elite variant.

## Armament

* 130mm Malarkade Machine Gun
* 380mm Bazooka: a much larger caliber bazooka capable of heavily damaging enemy RAMs with a single shot
* Thermal Saber: a massive upgrade from previous melee weapons, the thermal saber allowed Aranide pilots to cut through enemies with ease
* Tri-Cannon: a wrist mounted weapon that rapidly fired 50mm shells
* Roulette Shield: a wrist mounted shield with a notch cut into it that allows the user to fire while taking cover behind it
* Siege Laser: a weapon capable of firing a powerful laser intended to destroy heavily fortified areas. Can also fire multiple lasers in rapid succession. Has an internal reactor must be plugged directly into the machine's reactor for continuous fire. Not a part of the standard kit
* Long Range Engagement System (LRES): a dedicated sniper platform for the Aranide. Not as powerful as the sniper systems available for the Malarkade series, it did provide the Aranide with far more flexibility as it was far lighter, less cumbersome, and easier to produce. Not a part of the standard kit
* Infantry Suppression Grenade
* Standard Grenade

## Variants

* AM06 Command: equipped the Krimari Predictive System.