Tohilan

*“Robot drones....they insult us with wave after wave of their mechanicals! Not even worth turning and Awakening! I won’t blunt the blades of my warriors or wear out their guns dealing with mechanical chaff! Let the Rain Burners deal with them, they need the experience! Let the air brigades melt those metal idiots into slag and our Ne’R’Mar can recycle them. Then we’ll return them to their makers as ammunition in our guns when we confront them directly!”*

*---Warchieftain Genda Hotspear, Blood Rider*

*“Ain’t much left of the landscape after the burn-snakes brought their rain of fire through here. Water ran clear off the glassed parts of it, turned the ashes of the rest into pure muck. I can sorta see where the Blood Riders are coming from when they talk about ‘honorable combat’ when it comes to a tidier battlefield, but here they felt they needed to just get RID of the enemy and fast. I gotta agree, there ain’t no clean way of getting rid of an army of stinkin’ undead, so they did what they had to do. Gonna be a time, though, until this land grows anything but bad memories.”*

*---Major Henrique Haldune, Provisional National Militia, Hiroshi III*

*“If they will not come out from behind their fortress walls to fight, then we will remove those walls! Let them try to hide behind their shields when metal runs like water! They can come out and fight or they can drown in molten slag and boiling metal! They will face us one way or the other!”*

*----Warmistress Chaldara Goldenflame, FlameWing Warchieftain.*

*“Fun, flying up here knowing every antiaircraft battery in the territory is looking in our direction and waiting for us to come into range, isn’t it? Makes you feel all special inside, doesn’t it? That feeling is called courage and it comes with the glow of glory. A brief and fatal glow if we’re not extra careful going about our duties.”*

*---Malik WaveBlinder, Male Shemarrian ECM Operator, Tohilan Air Brigade, Blood Riders.*

## EcoS-K-92 Tohilan Aerial Warmount

‘Burn-Snake’, ‘Fire Clouder’, ‘Rain Burner’

Developed at the same time, and to much the same purpose, as the EcoS-K-96 Lavoenix, the Tohilan was the result of work by a different subchapter of the Blood Riders, in a different sector of their Tribal territories. While the Lavoenix is meant to capture the essence of the awesome phoenix, the Tohilan has a more alien design, and many outsiders assume it is either inspired by, or actually IS, a creature from some alien realm that the Blood Riders have encountered.

### Description

Much less charismatic (in fact, some observers have called it ‘fearsomely hideous’) than the Lavoenix, the Tohilan owes more to the Shredwing in its long serpentine design. However, the elongated, multi-segmented body is born aloft by low-powered antigravity nodes in its ‘spine’ and by multiple thick wing-pods, each holding a plasma thruster system. The streaming glow of expelled plasma from these wing-pods, as the Tohilan flies, has earned them such nicknames as ‘burn worms’ and ‘fire clouds’, especially at night. That same plasma stream can be directed downwards as a weapon; the superheated jetwash can incinerate targets as the Tohilian passes overhead.

The fore section is particularly outlandish, with a vaguely hammerheaded look. The two massive jaws also set the Tohilan apart from other Warmounts; the Tohilan can both bite and breath plasma fire with its two mouths, triple-duct open-cycle plasma jets inside being able to feed supplemental plasma down spinal conduits to the wing pods, or reverse to expel out the intake mouths. Each mouth also features louvered teeth and an extendable prehensile tongue that unfurls from a sheath just under each mouth. The Tohilan can chew apart foes and vaporize the remains to feed its internal nanite material conversion regenerative systems.

Set between the two mouths is a small sensor-covered head. Two more large eyes are outboard of the mouths, giving the Tohilan excellent peripheral vision. A heavy twin-barrel gun turret is mounted below this sensor head.

Attached to a small thorax segment immediately abaft of the large ‘head’, are four insectile leg-claws. These can be used to assist the Tohilan in crawling, but they are more often used to spear opponents and prey. Another set of legs sprout from between the plasma segments and the tail.

Because of its size, the Tohilan comes with an integral electronic warfare jamming system. The Tohilan riders will typically include a Male Shemarrian as an EW operator to interface with this system and add his own expertise to that of the Tohilan’s intelligence.

### Purpose

The Tohilan is meant more of a ground attack warmount or bomber, rather than an aerial fighter. In combat it cruises, undulating like a snake, above the battlefield, blasting wide swathes of territory below it with superheated plasma. The pattern of plasma damage is known to create a ‘Tohl-Road’, a lane of melted and fused soil that can be clearly traced across a battlefield. Lasers and a heavy gun turret can also be used to chew apart more specific targets, and the Tohilan has the option of carrying explosive bombs to further the destruction.

Though a Blood Rider design, the Tohilan seems better suited for the sort of combat practiced by more extremist tribes such as the FlameWings, so it should come as no great surprise that the latter tribe has expressed an interest in it. The Blood Riders defend the philosophy behind the Tohilan as being used in extreme cases where there is no glory in destroying vast numbers of mindless minions, animalistic opponents, or robotic enemies. Blood Rider Tohilians are meant to be used to clean up battlefield ‘chaff’, opening the way for the Tribe’s glorious warriors to engage targets of greater prestige.

It is perhaps telling that the Tohilan‘s name is derived from that of a (Mayan) MALE god of fire (also war, rain, and sustenance). with the implication in the matriarchal Shemarrian culture that the style of combat carried out by the Tohilan, while mighty, is a step back and somehow more ‘menial’ than the more prestigious and glorious combats waged by the females of the Tribe. Indeed, Tohilans are typically used in a support role, and are usually piloted by lower-rank riders and/or Male Shemarrians and NeShemar. Assignment to a Tohilan is considered a ‘technical’ role, or a necessary tactical deployment, with fewer opportunities for personal glory in individual combat. That isn’t to say that Tohilans haven’t distinguished themselves in aerial combat, or in attacks on heavily protected targets, only that most Blood Riders consider the Warmounts ‘streetsweepers’. Among themselves, dedicated Tohilan riders are competitive with each other when the opportunity presents itself, in seeing how quickly they can reduce an enemy position, or annihilate troop formations.

The shortcomings of the design, besides its low glory prospects, are that the Tohilan is relatively slow, compared to jet and aerospace fighters, and it is vulnerable to attacks from above. To remedy that, the rider pod typically carries one or two gunners who protect the rear dorsal arcs of the Warmount with energy rifles or rail guns. The supplemental weapons modules can also be fitted on rotating turrets to swivel back to protect the rear arcs.

The Tohilan is used by both the Blood Riders and the FlameWings. A variant is also being considered for the IceFlames.

## Abilities

The Tohilan has also been known to carry up to 18 jetpack- or wing-equipped Blood Riders (such as the winged Kometa Elite) clinging to retractable handholds along the Warmount’s long serpentine spine.

The Eye Lasers are small targets; -5 to strike on a called shot.

Tohilan's can swim, but rarely does so, dislikes being underwater for anything other than brief periods of time.

### Special Systems

#### Heat-Resistant Armor

The Tohilan is clad in refractive armor; heat- and plasma-based attacks do 1/3 normal damage, and even magic-heat and fires do HALF damage.

#### Jammer Pod

Electronic jamming system that gives radar-guided weaponry a -4 to strike the Warmount. Or it can be used offensively, to foil ALL radar-guided weaponry in a 3 mile radius (-2 to strike).

#### Prehensile Tongues (2)

Each mouth-head has a retractable external tongue-tentacle that extends from a sheath on its underside. Each tendril is about 10 ft long and has a Robotic P.S. of 28, and is used for probing into small spaces, or feeding materials into the Tohilan’s mouth.

#### Flare/Chaff Launchers (4)

The largely decorative winglets behind the cockpit pod are outfitted with countermeasure launchers, very useful considering the Tohilan is an attractive target for antiaircraft missiles.

Range: 6,000 ft, creates a 30 ft cloud, +10 ft per each additional chaff/flare launched in the volley. Cloud lasts 2 melees before dissipating (or less in a very strong wind).

##### (Triax Style)

* 01-50 Enemy Missile or volley detonates in chaff and threat is neutralized
* 51-75 Missile/Volley diverts and may pursue/lock on to other targets
* 76-00 No Effect! Missile(s) still on target!

Will also temporarily blind and impede flying monsters who fly into it. Reduce APMs/combat bonuses/ speed by half for 1d4 melees

##### (Northern Gun Style)

10% chance per chaff cloud deployed of decoying missiles, up to maximum of 60%.

Aircraft, power armor, and beings flying through the chaff will be -6 on perception, -3 on initiative, -5 to strike, -2 to parry, -2 dodge, and lose 1 melee attack that round (or the next). Sensory and Piloting rolls are at -20% for as long as the characters are caught in the cloud, and the next as they recover.

Payload: 18 shots per launcher array, 72 total

### Weapons Systems

#### Eye Lasers (4)

 Damage
 Damage2
 Rate of Fire
 Payload

The Tohilan mounts four powerful eye-lasers, two in the central sensor ‘head’, and one outboard of both mouth-heads

Damage: 4d6 MD single shot, 1d4x10 MD for a pulse burst, 8d6 MD dual shot,
2d4x10 MD for a dual pulse burst (counts as one attack)

#### Plasma Breath (2)

 Damage
 Rate of Fire
 Payload

Both mouth-heads can spit out a blast of superheated plasma. Their wide area of effect makes them particularly dangerous and effective in assaults on ground targets, and especially large targets like fortifications and warships.

#### Plasma Rain (12 modules)

 Damage
 Rate of Fire
 Payload

If the initial plasma breath blast doesn’t do the job, the Tohilan flying over head and ‘soaking’ a target with blasts from its plasma drive modules, will likely finish the job.

Damage: 1d4x10 MD to a 15 ft wide area(thus, the Tohilan creates a ‘footprint’ 30 ft wide) . Small targets, such as humanoids, will be subjected to the effects of one plasma module in sequence (that still means that the target might get lashed by 6d4x10 MD in damage by a flyover) while larger targets (like warships or fortifications) will get blasted by ALL the plasma pods, taking 12d4x10 (or 8d6x10) MD.

##### Plasma Cloud

In aerial combat, the Tohilan has been known to release clouds of less intense plasma gas that forms a glowing cloud, in a manner similar to how some deep sea squid release clouds of bioluminescent ink to distract predators. The cloud is 3d4x10 ft wide/long, and persists at full strength for 1 melee, and acts similar to a Blinding Flash spell; those staring directly at the cloud without eye protection or optical flash protection will be -10 to strike, parry, and dodge for 1d4 melee rounds, and optical targeting systems will lose lock for the rest of that melee. Anybody actually flying through the cloud will take 2d4 MD damage from the superheated plasma.

Forward Twin Gun Turret

Mounted in the front of the Tohilan under the sensor head and between the two mouth-heads is an obvious ‘bionic’ addition; a ball turret mounting two heavy guns. These are typically projectile weapons and are used on targets that prove resistant to the plasma attacks.

##### Heavy Machine Guns ( .50 cal)

 Damage
 Rate of Fire
 Payload

Antiquated, but still effective, weaponry, though dependent on specialized ammunition.

Damage:

* (SDC) 7d6 SDC single shot, 4d6 x10 SDC (1d4 MD) per 10 rd burst, 8d6x10 SDC per 20 rd burst, 1d4 MD per 40 rd burst.
* (Ramjets) 1d4 MD single shot, 5d6 MD per 40 rd burst.
* (High Explosive) 2d6x10 SDC single shot, 1d6 MD per 10 rd burst, 2d6 MD per 20 rd burst, 4d6 MD per 40 rd burst.
* (AdHEx) 1d6 MD per rd, 1d6x10 MD per 10 rd burst, 2d6x10 MD per 20 rd burst, 4d6x10 MD per 40 rd burst.
* (Tracer) Every 11th round is a tracer, which gives a +1 to strike with bursts. However, the tracer stream also makes it that much easier for enemies to backtrace and locate the machine gunner.

##### Rail Guns

 Damage
 Damage2
 Rate of Fire
 Payload

Twin She-6000 Rail Guns, one of the more common mounts due to readily available parts, ammunition and easy of maintenance.

##### Laser Cannon

 Damage
 Damage2
 Damage3
 Rate of Fire
 Payload

A fairly standard laser cannon with rapid-fire capability.

##### Ion Cannon

 Range2
 Damage
 Rate of Fire
 Payload

A fairly common alternate weapon.

##### Particle Beam Cannon

 Damage
 Damage2
 Rate of Fire
 Payload

A heavy energy weapon alternative. Most particle beams come from the Darkwaters tribe in technology trades between the two tribes.

##### Disruptor Cannon

 Damage
 Damage2
 Damage3
 Rate of Fire
 Payload

Knockoff of Golgan Argosy weaponry. The Blood Riders generally look with disdain upon the Golgans, regarding them as cowardly and hiding behind mercenaries and satrapy soldiers, and typically do not copy their weaponry, but for ‘sweepers’ like the Tohilan, the disruptors were considered a viable option.

##### 40mm Grenade Launchers

 Damage
 Rate of Fire
 Payload

A standard grenade launcher using common components.

Damage:

* Fragmentation 4d6 MD to blast area of 12 ft, 2d6x10 MD to blast area of 40 ft w/ 10-rd burst
* Armor Piercing 1d4x10 MD to blast area of 3 ft, 3d6x10 MD to blast

area of 8 ft w/ 10-rd burst

#### Tail Laser Cluster

 Damage
 Damage2
 Damage3
 Rate of Fire
 Payload

The tail spikes conceal several pulse lasers, used for protecting the Tohilan from attackers attempting to dog it from behind.

Can also spray a 20 ft wide area, doing 3d6 MD, and increasing the chance of hitting missiles coming in from behind.

#### Optional Modular Weapons (2)

The Tohilan has provision for TWO weapons similar to those standard to the Monstrex, atop the two mouth-heads. These can be fitted on swivel-turrets so they can be brought to bear on targets above and behind the flying warmount.

#### Optional Bombs

The Tohilan has multiple bomb clamps; one on the main body between the plasma thruster pods, and one on each thruster pod outboard (18 clamp points total). The central bomb mounts can be fitted up to 500 lbs bomb each, while the outboard clamps are limited to 250 lb ordnance.

Occasionally, Tohilans have been known to carry cargo pods in place of bombs on these clamps, dropping supplies to friendly troops.

Damage: Varies by
weapon carried;

* 250-lb Bomb----2d4x10 MD to 50 ft blast radius
* 500-lb Bomb----4d4x10 MD to 60 ft blast radius

#### Optional Plasma Pods (12)

In an emergency, the Tohilan can deliberately supercharge its plasma propulsion pods and then detach them as enormous bombs. The pods’ magnetic containment systems are sealed after a massive injection of plasma, and the pod(s) blown free of their spinal connections. The magnetic containment quickly deteriorates, and the pod goes off like a massive plasma block. This is typically done as a move of last resort, as the Tohilan CANNOT regenerate the pods, but must have them replaced by Tinkers and Assembly Forges.

Range: Can be accurately dropped from 3,000 ft.

Damage: 4d6x10 MD to a 100 ft blast radius

Rate of Fire: Barrages of 1-12 (all)

Payload: Potentially, all 12 drive pods can be detached and used like this , but loosing more than 6 pods in this fashion will cause top speed and all bonuses to dodge and roll to be reduced by HALF.

### Programming

The Ecotroz have installed robotic AIs, then infected the matrix with a low-level Ecotroz sentience.

Has all the same standard programing as the Monst-Crane, but is configured for aerial movement and combat.

Has the equivalent of the following(for aerial maneuvering purposes):

Pilot Jet Fighter 65% (+5% per level of experience).

The Ecotroz entity can also pick up one Secondary skill at levels 2, 6, and 12 of experience, though the nature of the Tohilan intelligence and design is such that it is limited to skill selections from Technical: Language (understanding) and Lore (Cattle & Animals, Indians, Juicers, Magic, Demons & Monsters, D-Bees, Faerie---at least with regards to identifying their relative threat level), and Wilderness (Hunting).

### Combat

 Dodge
 Parry
 Auto Dodge
 Roll
 Pull Punch
 Claw
 Tongue Lash
 Tail Lash
 Body Block/Ram

Tohilan's can be vicious fighter, enjoying roasting foes that are below them. In close quarters, they have been known to impale targets with their legs, latch on with both mouths, often having a tug-o-war between the two, while blasting with the plasma modules.

## Ecotroz Fragment

The Ecotroz intelligence fragment inhabiting the ‘bot gives the Tohilan an aura and behavior more befitting a sentient being than a robot. Tohilans are known as slow, ponderous, patient fliers, loitering over targets while melting them to slag. They are also vulture-like in their disposition; they can patiently cruise about, but are able to instantly pounce on targets of opportunity, and are quite vicious when engaged in aerial combat. When operating in urban areas, they have been known to gnaw on the sides of buildings as they pass through.

The Ecotroz fragment does occasionally need sleep/rest...though they only need 2 hours of rest/meditation per 24 hours...they can push this, going without for as many days as they have I.Q. points (most Warmounts, unless otherwise noted, have an effective IQ rating of 8), but will have to go dormant for 4d6 hours after such exertion.

Note also that the Ecotroz-possessed ‘bot can infect other bots with the Ecotroz viral-entity, by bite or sustained touch (takes 3 attacks).

## Variants

### EcoS-K-92-IF ‘Alazar’ IceFlame variant.

Its main difference is the replacement, in sequence, of plasma thruster modules with cryogen pods, allowing the Warmount to alternatively shower targets below with plasma and freezing vapor. Alone, the shower of super cold vapor does little damage to armored structures, but combined with the rapid application of superheated plasma, contractile damage has been known to occur.

The Alazar is distinguishable by its slightly larger wing and tail vanes, which serve as radiators for supercooling cryogens.

Changes/Modifications:

#### Plasma Pods (6)

This limits the plasma damage from a flyover to 3d4x10 MD for small targets, and 6d4 x10 MD for large targets.

#### Cryogen Pods (6)

 Damage
 Damage2
 Damage3
 Rate of Fire
 Payload

These are heavily insulated pods that can vent ‘cold jets’ or clouds of heavy fog that conceal an aerosol rain of supercold liquified gas droplets.

Payload: Conditional; each pod has enough capacity for 50 shots of cryogenic gas, before needing to recharge (cooling and filtering ambient atmospheric gases) at 1 shot per pod per 20 minutes (or rather 6 shots per 20 minutes).

#### Combined Fire/Ice Attack

A flyover attack using both plasma and cryogens does synergistic damage: 4d4x10 MD for small targets, and 8d4x10 MD for large targets. Furthermore, the targets’ armor will be briefly embrittled to follow-up attacks: Critical damage ‘to strike’ number drops by -1 (-2 for armor-piercing attacks), so an attack that normally does Critical Damage on a natural 19-20, now does it on a roll of 18-20, or 17-20 if it is specifically an anti-armor attack. This effect lasts for 1d4 melees after exposure, after which the armor gradually re-warms or cools down and regains some of its former reliance.