Scrapper Tank

**Key Features** | »» Heavy iron plow (x1)»» High-torque engine»» Puncture-proof tires (x4)»» 4x4 drive»» Ornery driver

*"Get off of my property!"*

- Scrapper driver, shortly before charging
## Tactical Analysis

* **Out, Darn Scout!**: The Scrapper's main "attack" is to violently push the target unit away from itself. While this has obvious applications in the field of "get out of my base", it can theoretically be used to boost friendly units a bit in the desired directions. It may be more useful than it sounds, given that certain oversized tanks can no longer be airlifted.
* **It's More Like an Iron Drape, Really**: The Scrapper Tank's giant plow can be used to soak up the attacks of enemies. Lead in with a few Scrappers, and the rest of your army will make sure the enemy never gets the chance to switch targets.
* **Say Zdravstvuyte to my Diminutive Friend**: The Scrapper's secondary buries a Terror Mine in the ground. When an enemy approaches a Terror Mine, a Terror Drone will spring out of the ground and attack. Keep in mind, however, that each Terror Mine only contains a single Terror Drone. Also, there is a small window between the drone emerging and actually getting inside the enemy, during which the drone could be destroyed.
* **And His Friend**: When a Scrapper pilot has proven himself worth his salt, his tank is outfitted with more expensive Phobia Mines, whose Phobia Drones have a shorter span between emerging and attacking, and if survived can burrow elsewhere to ambush another convey!

## Background

*"Use the plow, that's what﻿ its for."*

- Infantry poses no problem for the Scrapper.
After the mediocrity of the Grinder Tank, the Soviets still had a problem. There was still rubble cluttering the cities, and no easily-weaponized method of clearing it. From the minds at the "Stone Yard" municipal garbage dump came a new plan. Why shove the debris into the nearest body of water, they reasoned, when you can launch it instead? To this end, they retrofitted one of the hand-me-down loader-lifters used at the junkyard, replacing the articulated arms and lifter with high-speed pistons and a large, almost damage-proof plow. During one of the junkmen's test runs, a Soviet Commissar was nearly beheaded by a flying Anvil Tank turret. He immediately and furiously demanded to know what was going on. In short order, the designs for the **Scrapper** were appropriated and the original designers were compensated accordingly. An office in the Vladivostok Battle Lab was set aside for the purpose of trimming up and properly "Sovietizing" the machine. A few weeks later, a machine emerged from the lab, battle-ready and Soviet from top to bottom. Gone were the cupholders, the extra inches of flank armor, and anything else that detracted from the Scrapper's mission.
The mission, as it stands, is to remove unwanted obstacles from anywhere the Soviet Union sees fit. This incredibly ambiguous statement allows the Soviets to deploy the Scrapper pretty much however they want. The massive plow allows the Scrapper to function as the "moving wall" the Japanese scorned in favor of nanorobotic shielding. If it gets in close enough to a vehicle or infantry, it can send the unit flying backward with a quick piston-powered shove of the plow. Some more "innovative" commanders even use Scrappers to give their own troops a "boost".
Besides expelling unwelcomed guests, the Scrapper can also neutralize enemy vehicles before they could even reach the base using its Terror Mines. Originally designed by a combat engineer named Viktor Kosinsky, a Terror mine is essentially a metal box with a sensor on top and a Terror Drone locked in it. When an approaching enemy vehicle is detected, the Terror Drone would be released onto the surface and force its way into the unwitting vehicle——at least it was hoped so. In practice, it turns out that being stashed into a small, dark, underground cell is as harmful to a drone as to a human being. Its sensory capacity and comprehension would be severely dampened due to continuous isolation, so when released it will usually stand idle for a moment as if it doesn't know what to do next. This creates a small window for a would-be victim and its teammates to destroy the drone before getting infected. The Bureau of Robotics has repeatedly refused to comment on the reason behind such flaw, or whether Terror Drones are still controlled via direct interface with human brains.
A solution to said problem may have been found, however——replacing Terror Drones with Phobia Drones, which are designed and better equipped for underground missions. However, Phobia Mines have yet to enter full production yet, so most of Scrappers will make do with Terror Mines for now.

## Behind the Scenes

 File:VM-SovietScrapperTank.png
The Scrapper is based on a suggestion from Graven Image. Its secondary is based on a suggestion from J0k3.
Its ability bears some similarity to Spider Mines in *StarCraft.* Viktor Kosinsky is a parody of Victor Kachinsky, a *StarCraft* character who excels at using spider mines.

 **Armour Type** | Superheavy Armour