Cleric Track

**Key Features** | »» 6 pounder main gun»» 25mm Talon Steel plating»» *"Priest"* electromagnetic generators (x2)»» 6-cylinder high-pressure steam engine»» Shelf with religious books

*"Better to be dead than Black Hand."*

- Cleric Track operator
## Tactical Analysis

* **No antique:** The Cleric is the main battle tank of the Crusaders, boasting far heavier armour than its contemporaries but a comparatively underpowered gun.

* **Beefing up:** While activating the *"Priest"* electromagnetic generator slows the Cleric to a fraction of its speed, the generator also beefs up the Cleric's armour considerably.

* **Without experience, one has no power:** Without their advanced upgrades, Clerics suffer from many of the drawbacks common to most main battle tanks; while Clerics can handle infantry without too much trouble, airstrikes are still fair game.

* **With great experience, comes great power:** Woe betide the enemy facing a crack Cleric crew: Clerics become far more dangerous to all foes as the crew retrofits the tank with a machine gun, a second cannon and 18-pounder caliber increase, a flamethrower, and incendiary rounds for all of their weapons.

## Operational History

During World War I, the World saw an invention that revolutionized warfare forever. The Tank. The invention of the tank was actually an accident. When British officer Major Walter Gordon Wilson saw an experimental tracked tractor designed by William Tritton, a modified tractor able to move naval guns, Wilson was impressed with the tractor and envisioned a similar design with armour plates and guns, rumbling across the mud and trenches. He shared his idea with an eager British command, which led to the design of the *"tank"*.

Its first action was in the Battle of the Somme in 1915. German soldiers were horrified and started running when these metallic beasts rolled over the trenches. With cannons mounted on each side, the tank had enough firepower to take out any position their enemies held. The British Mark I tank, as it was designated, led to the eventual mechanisation of warfare.

Following the war, the creation of faster, stronger and more advanced tanks led to the Mark I's becoming obsolete. As such, the Mark I's were retired from British service entirely, consigned to the scrap heap. This was not the end for the Mark I, however. During the First World War, Talon agents had been present at the Battle of the Somme. They had seen the deadly effectiveness of these new weapons in action and reported on their observation. Having heard about the lethality of these new weapons and realizing the obsolescence of horse mounted cavalry, the Talon came to a decision - they must acquire a working tank.

Eventually, after much manipulation and manoeuvring on the part of Talon agents, several Talon loyalists in the British Army found themselves as part of the crew of the same tank. The Talon plants quickly dealt with the rest of the crew while the tank was out in the field, and the Order was able to succeed in making it look like the tank had been destroyed by a German artillery barrage.

 File:VM-TalonClericTrack.png  Reverse engineering the captured Mark I was not too difficult, and the Talon craftsmen were able to improve on the design significantly. The new and improved design, christened the ***"Cleric"***, proved way and far superior to anything else on the battlefield at the time. Over the next few weeks, several more Mark I tanks disappeared under mysterious circumstances, presumably destroyed in action. The tanks were brought to Talon craftsmen for total conversion. The craftsmen disassembled the tanks completely. Taking only the frames and tracks, they armoured the tanks with Talon Steel plating far superior to the original steel armour, and added a Talon Steel steam engine more powerful than any engine then in use. The two side cannons were replaced with a single turret mounted six pounder, and numerous other minute improvements were made. As a final touch, the tanks were repainted with the colours and insignia of the Order. The result was a battle tank surpassing anything else then in service.

The new *"Cleric"* tracks only appeared in the last week in the war, and were very few in number, for the Talon had only managed to get their hands on a few of the Mark I tanks. However, wherever they went, they struck fear into the hearts of soldiers who saw them. This led to several rumoured sightings of monster tanks, with glistening steel plating, massive guns, and steam coming out of the back, which dominated the battlefield against all opposition, decimating even other tanks. The new tanks were most effective in hunting down Cult members, but there were too few of them. The Talon needed *more*.

So after the war, when the British decommissioned the Mark Is, the Talon saw it as an opportunity to acquire more tank frames for conversion. The Talon exploited every possible source, in order to acquire as many examples of the Mark I chassis as they could, even turning to tanks that had been abandoned on the battlefield but were still salvageable. In addition, the Talon had begun a small production run of Cleric tracks by this time. The result was that the Talon arsenal of Clerics was greatly expanded following WWI.

Over the years, various improvements have been made in order to keep the Cleric a viable opponent on the battlefield, though the basic design has remained unchanged. Most notably, two *"Priest"* electromagnetic generators have been mounted on the back. The electromagnetic generators are meant to boost the armour plating of the Clerics, although they require large amounts of power to operate. Though it no longer has the unparalleled dominance it had in WWI, especially with the introduction of more modern tanks, it is still deadly. Before the *"Chosen One"* had reached maturity, Clerics were often used in raids against the Cult, where they proved superior to Scorpion Tanks.

## Behind the Scenes

The Cleric Track is designed after the French Char B1 tank and probably a bit inspired by the Mark I. tank, the very first tank.