Marauder

> Marauder's a fast shot and a fast talker. Both good skills to have as a merc.
>
> Gavin Malkin ("Intersect Thunderbolt")

> HIGHLY DANGEROUS! Possibly moral.
>
> Editi

## Suit Intel

> It's always too soon when your time is up...Live and die by the barrel of a gun.
>
> Text displayed on suit startup

A bulky heavy power suit laden with extra armour plates, thrusters and heavy weaponry. It is painted in a Phoenix Collective vermilion and black colour scheme with a distinct pirate crossbones motif, including the face-plate resembling a laughing skull. The unit is built as a high-power aerial bombardment platform, and accordingly sports multiple advanced weapons systems, enhanced fire-control faculties and thick armour. Due to its weight it once manoeuvred like a brick, but thanks to the triumph of thrust over aerodynamics could still sustain high flight speeds. Recently added manoeuvring verniers have somewhat rectified this, these are accompanied by additional thrusters in the skirt armour.

Its armament includes its signature custom built predator cannon for general purpose combat and exterior rocket pods for long distance and wide area bombardment, as well as a forearm integrated EMP grenade launcher. It originally featured a back mounted rail rifle which has since been upgraded to a fearsome and extremely destructive "Cross" type superheavy linear cannon (courtesy of the Collective's shady black market contacts), which is Marauder's go-to suit hunting asset and is stored on the left shoulder in line with the cruiser missile launcher used for extreme range firing. The right shoulder mounts a newly added folding Scorpion cannon for wide area bombardment, with the venerable rocket pods once adorning the suit replaced with a series of verniers for greatly improved mobility. A pair of adjustable armour plated shields are mounted on either shoulder.

Marauder has seen many upgrades as a benefit of the great financial success enjoyed by Carcer during his run of profitable jobs with the AC and Vertex, though unfortunately his insistence on only buying parts from shady Chicago based suppliers over Armor Corps vendors means the suit has continued to suffer frequent weapon malfunctions on a regular basis due to sub-par components, though its pilot is now so familiar with these that he can usually repair them in seconds. Following the Halloween massacre he finally obtained a brain implant to control it remotely in future crises.

## Pilot Intel

 File:Carcer.jpg
*"I don't really like Armor Corps, but I **do** like their money."*

"*Being paid to fix problems you were paid to **cause** is one of the best parts of being a mercenary."*

Carcer Carmine (undoubtedly an alias, his original name and nationality are unknown) appears to have spent the bulk of his time since suitfall pointedly avoiding the major factions and hanging under the radar operating as a small-time solo mercenary, accepting minor jobs here and there and making the effort to avoid drawing too much attention. He is inherently distrustful of Armor Corps and other major political entities (doubting their pretensions of legitimacy) and appears fearful of becoming a cog in their system.

After slumming it like this for some time, however, he seemed to have taken an interest in the idea championed by Clownfish of the Phoenix Collective as a loose third party wildcard faction of independent mercenaries. He approached that group requesting admission, whereupon he immediately found a place within the Ravens, who he discovered to be entirely his kind of people. Initially he often worked alongside a regular partner: Phoenix Collective Lynx Gavin Malkin of Intersect Thunderbolt. The two had a solid team dynamic and were thick as thieves (probably because they literally *had* been thieves on at least one occasion). He also expressed interest in joint operations with fellow Raven Elena Wagner, and the three of them later founded a small, loose unit: Fireteam Vertex, which was then further expanded with the addition of one Maria Clarke, though Gavin would later part ways with the group for his own reasons.

Carmine himself tends to act quite cool-headed and easygoing, frequently expressing a dry sense of humour. He takes his commitment to his contracts seriously, though he is oft heard griping that many of the pilots his chosen faction tends to attract are (in his own words) "unprofessional psychos". He fights mostly because of the sense of personal satisfaction he obtains from a job well done, perhaps the reason that he works remarkably well with others in spite of his history. He jokingly claims to be a people person, and not without cause: he pays attention to the behaviour of others and considers himself a good judge of character, aiding him in the negotiating aspect of mercenary work. He tries to remain in good humour toward all and to not carry grudges between missions for much the same reason; yesterday's foe may be tomorrow's client. That said, his preference for simplicity, honesty and transparency is just that: a preference. If a contract calls for it he can be surprisingly duplicitous for such an apparently straightforward man and more than once has furthered a mission by creatively running his mouth off.

For whatever reason he displays a distaste for directed energy armaments, preferring to exclusively use solid-state ammunition based weaponry, be it kinetic or explosive, and likes to have a well rounded arsenal that can cover multiple likely contingencies.

Following Operation Mile High Club, in which he received a near fatal injury and only survived thanks to the efforts of his partner, he's come to find he has more reason to cling to life than even he had expected. He was also forced to confront his professional pride for the first time after he unwittingly laid it aside during his single-minded pursuit of his vendetta against the Axem, and is wondering if Gavin hasn't influenced him as much as the opposite. His meeting with Maria Clarke also caused him to realise that the success of his career has made him an icon for mercenaries; something about which he is ambivalent: on the one hand it's likely to motivate some PC members to pursue higher standards in their work, but on the other hand he worries he may be glamorising the mercenary lifestyle and leading people to gamble their lives on chasing his success.

Being as rock-steady as he is emotionally, he has something of a hobby of serving as a mental touchstone for others to consult for advice and bounce their thoughts off, and more than a few pilots have come seeking his counsel. His mannerisms in this respect are considered somewhat fatherly, leading some to dub him 'Maraudad' behind his back.

Lives in a penthouse in downtown Chicago purchased after his early run of success working for ACC (now featuring a hangar for his suit since he obtained his brain chip), and acquired an office space not far from it sometime following the formation of Vertex, in which he sometimes meets prospective clients or fellow pilots if them coming over to his home would be too personal.

## Appearance

Carcer is a tall and scruffy man, with perpetual stubble, unkempt hair and a preference for loose, comfortable clothing with plenty of pockets and webbing. His normal relaxed and easygoing demeanour is no affected facade: he simply is just generally that laid back. He has a long, deep scar running diagonally across his torso, a legacy of his near death experience during operation Mile High Club, along with a T-shirt that reads 'I got cut in half and all I got was this lousy T-shirt', a legacy of his recovery from the above.

## Relations & Allies

> Carcer's probably getting worried."
> "So let him worry. That's what he does.
>
> Othinus & Gavin Malkin

> That's one heck of a point there. Every one of them really."
> "He \*does\* that.
>
> Fuchs Yoko & Gavin Malkin

### **Fireteam Vertex**

**Gavin Malkin (Intersect Thunderbolt):** Carcer often found himself deployed together with this senior mercenary. Following their coup during Operation Hunt For Chile October they became occasional drinking buddies (Gavin found his underhandedness in that op unexpected and amusing) and this spun off into a regular partnership and an odd (but strong) friendship that has only deepened as time wore on.

Gavin appreciates having someone cool headed to take the lead and handle social interaction and Carcer respects Gavin's skills and experience and rather enjoys working with him, especially given their similar backgrounds and attitudes toward their profession. Between that and their very different natures they play off of each other rather well, and the pair have enjoyed great success together (often at the Armor Corp's expense, a positive to them both) as well as accumulating no small amount of infamy (for the same reason). He takes (perhaps excessive) glee in bantering with his partner about his (as Carcer perceives) poorly concealed soft side.

He owes Gavin his life in light of the latter's heroic efforts to rescue him from his near death during operation Mile High Club, and this has only reinforced his determination to be there for his partner and help him become the better, happier person Carcer believes he has the potential to be (as well as to repay the favour, which he eventually did by stabilising him with emergency first aid during the Halloween Massacre), though after the incident in Romania he got a lot more concerned about the state of his ego, at least until he mellowed some after he finally hooked up with longtime crush Othinus, which Carcer founds immensely, smugly, gratifying. His subsequent abrupt departure from Vertex and cited reason took Carcer aback, but he's reluctantly let his old partner be out of fear that any attempt to help would only worsen his insecurities.

**Elena Wagner (Yuki):** Carcer took an almost instant liking to the elfin sniper for her cool head, polite demeanour and unshakeable professionalism. He felt that with her attitude and specialities she would contribute well to his and Gavin's dynamic, and recruited her to that end. Plus, he is endlessly amused by having a gunslinging pixie riding along on his shoulder (and the long range fire support's not too shaby either). Still, agreeable as she is, she keeps her cards close to her chest and is a very private person, so Carcer still doesn't know much about her. That and her *uncanny* habit of appearing or disappearing without his notice lends her a certain air of mystery. That she's adopted the Predator Cannon (a weapon derived from his designs) rather flatters him. Her brief encounter with Hanai at Halloween convinced him she needed a friend that could give her the push she needs to interact with others, though Hanai's subsequent actions have soured him on the idea of her doing it. Instead he encouraged Elena to pursue a potential burgeoning friendship with the more level and stable Maria Clarke, which seems promising.

**Maria Clarke (Sangria Prowler)**:This promising PC rookie transpired to be an enormous fan of Carcer and his work, and it was through her he realised how much of an influence he had generated; having inadvertently become a de-facto icon of the Phoenix Collective, a fact that has him in two minds, and while he finds her enthusiastic approval flattering it also disconcerts him somewhat that she holds him that highly. He's tried to give her what advice he could to smooth out her relative inexperience and naivete. Following a trial run of sorts during a mission he extended an offer to sign her onto Vertex full time, which she accepted. Their working relationship seems to be growing more familial as time goes on.

**Konomu Parasu:** Despite attaining permanent residency in the AmC, this member of the catgirl resistance found difficulty obtaining gainful employment until Carcer encountered her again and, looking for a secretary to offset his workload, hired her in that capacity as Vertex's first non-combat, non-suit employee.

### **Phoenix Collective**

**Amanda Kelly (Clownfish):** Though they've never met, her vision of the Phoenix Collective as an ad hoc counterweight to the Armor Corps was a not insignificant influence in his joining on with them, and he holds a good deal of respect for her as a result. With her having not been seen in the public eye in years and him having long since begun accumulating more money than he could spend, Carcer has somewhat slipped into her position of sitting on a pile of money for a rainy day, just in case (though the increased power of the AmC makes it less likely it would be them he'd need to spend it on, and he's become almost as wary of them as the AC).

**Loose Sexkiller (Reach Heaven Through Violence):** This Lynx puts Carcer in two minds. On the one hand, he's relatively even tempered and good natured for a PC mercenary, but on the other he's a living cruise missile given to single short bursts of spectacularly intense and suicidal violence in combat that leave everyone in the vicinity in pieces, himself included. Not a bad guy, but a little too reckless, somehow even more so than Gavin. His new, more intel gathering based approach to missions is an encouraging change.

**Ellis Castelli (Malicious Compliance):** Carcer developed an *instant* loathing of him based upon his cocky mannerisms, shifty nature, condescending attitude, poor work ethic and general oiliness. He was a reminder to the Raven that more PC members than he'd prefer are like that. Plus, Carcer refused to buy for a second that he has turned a new leaf and joined the Engineers, seeing him as a man out for himself over anything and is bewildered (though not surprised) that they have bought his transparent turnaround hook line and sinker. As such he still considered him a Man Of Honour rather than an Engineer, and eagerly awaited his sudden but inevitable betrayal so that he could dispose of the little weasel. He got a chance (after a fashion) during Halloween, when he destroyed Ellis's suit, though the man himself was long dead, a victim of his own sloppy workmanship, a fitting end in Carcer's book.

**Fuchs Jaegar (Kirin):** From the get-go Carcer had always felt there to be something off about this aspiring rookie mercenary. Having never been anything but upbeat and pleasant around him, he maintained courtesy with her nonetheless, but her constantly questioning inquisitive nature, attempts to ingratiate herself toward his team and ties to TE have led her to be rather suspect in his eyes, and he keeps his guard up around her. The mplication created by certain clients of his that she is an agent of Editi some description makes sense to him.

**Stan Geraldo (Buio):** Has tried to set Maria's former partner on the psychological straight and narrow as best he could manage, but her accounts of his behaviour have him slightly concerned.

### **Armor Corps**

**Mark Wolfe (Silver Knight):** Carcer had always regarded this AC posterboy as a fundamentally good man hobbled in his ability to actually *do* good by his being fettered to a rotten organisation, a view that personally meeting the living legend has only reinforced. He holds a considerable degree of respect for him and considers his shoddy treatment by AC high command to be a real shame and a perfect example of why that organisation isn't fit to wield the power it claims. He has caught some flak from Gavin for this, as the other mercenary regards Wolfe disdainfully as something of a whoopy superhero. Repeat encounters with him have highlighted to Carcer his tremendous and concerning martyr complex, which the mercenary has tried to call out whenever possible.

**Editi (Carrier Prime AI):** His misgivings about Editi were vindicated in light of events in Japan, but they're also moot given her death

**Tommy (Carrier Prime):** Initially not overly concerned with him considering him something of an extension of Editi given his passive, enabling attitude to her, his and his brother's (allegedly non-deliberate) harassment of his fellow Vertex pilot Elena raised his hackles quite a bit. Was somewhat ambivalent about his death, recognising him as a twisted menace like Editi in and of himself, but naively so, almost arrested in development.

**Abrecht Ryman (Mecoptera):** Though he considers him a deranged and eccentric madman with a questionable grasp on reality, Carcer nevertheless has to concede from experience that the Swiss-man has the best hacking skills of any suit pilot he's ever encountered, and that at least merits a little wary regard. Oddly, though he still considers him shady and unhinged, Carcer can't help but find his overt and unabashed selfish misanthropy a refreshing change from the slew of the blindly self righteous that populate the Armor Corps, even holding some measure of bizarre respect for that kind of self-aware honesty. All the same, Gavin is absolutely right that it's fun to give him shit. Still, he really is accumulating a lot of power fast...Halloween certainly didn't do him any favours, nor did his interference in Romania, nor his growing arms empire. At least he always pays well.

**Hanai (Tail Gear):** Initial encounters with this returning AC veteran were promising: Carcer was appreciative of her putting in actual effort on-mission, and she got more out of Elena in five minutes than he'd managed in a year. *Then* a certain thanksgiving dinner happened and Hanai's careless shitstirring lead to Elena being harassed and upset, behaviour which she then compounded by consistently lying through her teeth to him about the incident in spit of being called out on it. He remains cautious and sceptical. A reconciliation isn't out of the question, but it's also not likely unless she undergoes a sincere change of heart about her behaviour, and her prior dishonesty means forgiveness won't come easy even then.

### **Moqaddas**

**Alvilda Elofsdottir (Valkyrie):** Carcer originally didn't have the most interaction with her, as she is significantly less outgoing than her AI, who it seems does most of the talking, but as far as he could tell she was a pleasant lady given at times to battle lust and with an occasional sly side, and he's not sure whether the latter was influenced by her AI or instead precipitated her. She did buy him a nice shirt to commemorate his near death though. How thoughtful! Since Gavin's hookup with Othinus the two have been co-conspirators of sorts in supporting the couple. This increased proximity has exposed him to her more nurturing side and he was quietly struck by her wisdom, maturity and compassion, rare traits he respects highly in people, though he quashed that nascent train of thought as soon as he noticed it, confident it would be for the best not to further pursue. Is sincerely happy for her in her retirement, feeling it to be the perfect place for her.

**Othinus (Valkyrie's AI):** He regards her as extremely impish, with a love for mockery and taunting that in his opinion often goes too far, especially when she's trying to use it to express affection. He is inclined to pay a little more mind to her than most because of his longtime partner's incredibly obvious and adorable thing for her, though it's partly because he suspects she will mishandle the situation with her tasteless levity and upset him. He tried to convey his concerns to her, and found her remarkably straightforward and receptive on the matter, so perhaps there's hope. That said, the thing with Flugel and Leliel was fucked up and a cause for concern. Eventually took the plunge and confessed her own feelings for Gavin, beginning a relationship that seems to be doing them both a world of good.

### **Hanse**

**Hars Adan (Symione):** This Hanse operative is mature, coolheaded, professional, relatively easygoing and good at her job, all attributes that gave her a very positive first impression to Carcer. Balancing that out though, is the fact that as Hanse everything about her is automatically suspect and not to be trusted. As legit as she seems, he's been wrong before and Hanse are deceptive by nature. He'd like to like her, but there's always that niggling doubt.

### **GIMD**

~~Ha-2~~ ~~Hanii~~ Lenn **(Tanchozuru):** From what interaction he's had with her, Lenn has struck Carcer as a fairly pleasant and dedicated young woman, albiet one unsure of herself and her place. Upon running into her new establishment in Chicago he's taken to patronising it on occasion.

### **Traitor forces**

**Flugel:** The rebel leader and demagogue earned a measure of Carcer's respect during their first encounter, as Carcer immediately determined his organisation to be vastly more competent and well managed than the Armor Corps, and after some time it became apparent that they had higher moral standards as well. Were it not for their Traitor status (and the fact they'd never offered) he could easily have seen himself working for them.

**Axem Rangers:** A Squad of elite Traitor suits (eventually turned independent mercenaries) operating out of their own ship that have dogged Carcer (and with him Gavin) throughout his career working with the AC, thanks in part to their backing themselves up to their ship upon their (many and brutal) deaths. They were first encountered on his very first sortie (Operation Bullet Hell), where they appeared from hiding near the end of the mission to engage the Coalition forces before disengaging and fleeing, which Carcer took as a job half done and resolved to one day finish as a matter of personal pride. They later resurfaced in the middle of Operation Mile High Club, once again jumping in mid-mission. Overextended behind enemy lines Carcer was ultimately overwhelmed and dealt his near-fatal injury, though the Rangers had been sufficiently ravaged as to also break away immediately after. Thereafter, he and Gavin resolved to finish them next time come hell or high water. That opportunity finally came during Operation Iron Kingdom, where they were able to gain the initiative and launch their own ambush, swiftly crippling the rangers before running down and obliterating their ship.

As satisfying as this was, doing it entailed going out of the way of his actual mission, a fact that has shaken the Raven's deeply held sense of professionalism

**Strigoi:** The leader of this group of wannabe vampires *would* have held his emnity for taking Gavin hostage in an attempt to renogotiate a badly worded exchange, but the matter became moot after later Gavin brutally dispatched him.

## Operational History

Operation Bullet Hell (+15 points)

Operation Hunt For Chile October (+15 points, bragging rights)

Operation Dogmeat, The Real Deal (+15 points by way of mercenary participation award)

Operation Sigma Oscar Sigma (+15 points)

Operation Mountain Rush (+15 points, +5 points bonus for completion of extra objective)

Operation Holey Moley (-30 point buy-in, +15 point reward, cap increased to 315)

Operation Mile High Club (+15 points, cool scar)

Operation Crush And Overwhelm (+15 points)

Operation Vector To The Heavens (+15 points)

Operation Million Suit March (+15 points)

Operation Black Sea Straights (+15 points)

Operation Ascension Burns (+15 points)

Operation Get Dat Fuckin' Disc (+15 points)

Operation Between The Frontline And The Stars (+15 points)

Operation Fortress of Giants (+15 points)

Operation Iron Kingdom (-15 point buy-in, cap increase to 330)

Operation Deus Vult (+15 points)

Operation Level Ground (+15 points)

Operation Antarctic Assault (+20 points & +20 cap)