Sandrider

An impressive meld of battleship, sand walker, and sometimes even hydroplane, sandriders are the dominant war vehicle on Ar'Satros. Ranging from the practical and nimble quadruped runner to the walking city of a millipede megacrawler, sandrider battleships come in vastly different classifications. Although they are a common sight, these metal war machines are revered and feared by the citizens of Ar'Satros.

Every self-respecting colony, city-state, and warband on Ar'Satros is in possession of at least one sandrider battleship. Larger colonies led by powerful warlords may have hundreds of sandriders including several immense octopod battlecruisers, but most merely maintain a serviceable defence force.

## Capabilities

Sandriders are reminiscent of the battleships of worlds with oceans. They have an armoured hull and a deck, usually with structures made for housing crew and armaments. But due to the endless desert of Ar'Satros, sandriders sport great metal legs attached to the sides. These legs enable easy traversal across the desert where sand ships could become bogged. Not without mobility, most sandriders are able to retract or flatten their legs to form a sled on which they are able to surf dunes like waves, and cover long distances quickly in good conditions. This "skimmer mode" is used to cover long distances in straight lines when no protruding rocks or obstacles block their way. Almost all battles are fought in "walker mode" as it provides greater manoeuvrability.

## Classifications

Due to their vastly varying appearance and size, different models of sandriders are classified according to its number of legs and its primary function in battle. Considering the varying and often ramshackle production of sandriders, these classifications are often only noted in passing as an estimate of the ship's capabilites.

### Quadruped Runner

Or "quadros" are small sandriders much like small yachts that can take a small crew quickly from point A to point B. Lightly armed, these riders often serve as transport vehicles or supply runners. They are regularly deployed to battle, galloping up dunes on all-fours like racehorses. Gyrostabilisers aboard quadros move a bearing-mounted internal frame to keep the crew compartment stable while the sandrider runs.

### Hexapod Battlecruiser

The hexapod is the smallest and most common of the front-line warships used commonly on Ar'Satros. These flexible battleships are capable of crewing anywhere from a dozen to over a hundred crew members. Large-scale battles are waged between groups of hexapod battlecruisers to devastating effect.

### Hexapod Megacruiser

Larger hexapods are referred to as "megacruisers". These enormous machines can crew thousands, and have immense, heavily armoured legs capable of carrying the bulk of the machine's chassis. Rarer than many forms of battlecruiser, hexapod megacruisers are usually used as defensive bulwarks due to their heavy armour and lack of easy mobility. In the event of full-scale conflict, megacruisers may be deployed as unstoppable forces towering over buildings and pelting them with endless fire.

### Octopod Battlecruiser

Larger and more heavily armed battlecruisers, octopods usually crew several hundred staff, and are often attended by a small squadron of hexapods. Octopod battlecruisers are a sign of status; warlords who can maintain a fleet with a functional octopod battlecruiser are not to be taken lightly.

### Decapod Battlerunner

Battlerunners are unique in that they employ different mobility priorities. Where battlecruisers are capable of comfortably skimming across dunes in good conditions, battlerunners often cannot, or have trouble doing so. Where battlerunners excel however, is their capable sand running. With extra legs on which to spread their weight, battlerunners can move more quickly and capably while in walker mode. These sandriders are regularly employed as service ships, running annunition and fuel between larger sandriders or cities, or even for breaking through seiges with supplies.

### Centipede Auxiliaries

"Centipede" is the name given to any sandrider with more than ten legs. These nimble but often slower ships usually lack skimming capablities and are fielded when reliability is highly valued. Most are capable of functioning at nearly full capacity with fewer than 80% of their legs.

## Features

Sandriders are famously outfitted with armoured legs for trudging - or in some cases sprinting - over the desert. They also feature either smooth, curved hulls or sled-like attachments on their legs to enable their universal ability to sail the dunes provided conditions are correct. With these features, the features listed below are seen in many sandriders to provide extra utility for the harsh conditions for which they are built.

### Propulsion Engines

Some sandriders, especially larger and more expensive models, feature engines which propel them across the dunes as a jet would be propelled across the sky. All sandriders have some form of power generation for fuelling internal systems and especially leg movements, but propulsion engines are a special case which can facilitate speedboat-like movement over the sands.

Propulsion engines come in many forms, but most common are turbine jets, engines which force air and fuel into compressed compatments for ignition; propeller fans, which blow enormous amounts of air in one direction to generate force; and IDT's (Ionic Wind Thrusters), engines which gather trace gases from the air and ignite or move them to generate thrust.

#### ITD ABEP Concept

ABEP, or Atmosphere-Breathing Electric Propulsion systems gather gases from the atmosphere to be ionised to act as a method of propulsion. Previously only used for spacing engines due to the abundance of ions outside of the craft, ABEP technology has been adapted for use in surface and air travel. ABEP modules gather gases from the atmosphere and store them passively. Once stored, gases can be filtered and passed through an ionisation process to be used in IDT's; ionic wind thrusters.

> Why not "IWT"?
> "IWT" was replaced with the snappier "IDT" after transitioning through "I-dub-T" ("dub" short for "W") as it was easier to say when haste became valued over linguistic accuracy.
>
>

### Sails

While it is rare to see sandriders with cloth sails, less traditional sails are sometimes employed to provide propulsion where gravity is unable to assist: beam sails. Made possible with laser technology and efficient cold fusion reactors, beam sails fill with the light generated by onboard lasers and move the sandrider as cloth sails would with wind.