Overlord Dropship

The **Overlord Dropship** is an unquestionably deadly transport vehicle used by the Helghast during their war against the ISA. Swarms of these vessels commenced the initial assault on Vekta by dropping payloads of troops and causing massive amounts of damage to Vektan defenses.

## Specifications

Sleek and quick, the Overlord Dropship employs a state-of-the-art rappelling system that allows Helghast troopers to rappel safely down into a secure location. The craft is heavily armored and nearly impossible to shoot down without heavy firepower. The craft also has up to 6 Petrusite capacitors onboard functioning as backup generators providing both fuel and power to ensure that it will work even if the main petrusite fuel is empty.

Given its shape and design, it is fairly accurate to say that the Overlord's lift is provided by a set of heat wave airlift nozzles installed in its underbelly. It is very possible that the twin air intakes installed on top of the craft feed a hydrazine turbine whose combustion processes provide heated air running at extreme pressure through the craft's aft section to the nozzles, thus providing a cushion of hot air underneath it much like a hot air balloon. This can be proven by observing the dust circle formed by downdraft underneath a landing Overlord, and by the flames seen under the main body of an Overlord lifting off.

Though it is unknown if the craft has any rear facing exhaust nozzles for forward motion, the presence of the two large, rotating airbrake fins on its aft is evidence of its ability to direct airflow from the existing propulsion system over these surfaces to generate aerodynamic efficiency in flight. The landing system appears to be comprised of two robust, forward facing landing struts with variable geometry pads which allow the craft to land on uneven terrain while a single, variable geometry strut located in its stern provides the final fulcrum. Though the tri-bogey landing system may seem somewhat unstable on a craft which is forced to endure high intensity landings, the Overlord's seeming ability to use the tailfins as additional backing points is not excluded.

From footage provided by in-game cinematics, it is apparent that the dropship's passenger bay is either stitched with some form of possibly fire retardant synthetic fibers or is simply inlaid with metallic grating which serves as the bulkheads, floor and ceiling. The presence of a retractable set of seating arrangements inside the bay on some models is evidence of its modular nature while the standard presence of overhead meshes gives the passengers the chance to store their equipment during transit.

The Overlord utilizes a non-direct line of sight method of flight, meaning that the pilot does not have a canopy for observation and instead relies on a set of monitors fed through different angle cameras installed around the craft. This is proven by the cluster of visors and sensor suites installed in the Overlord's bow section where two prominent, rectangular tubes bear a suggestive resemblance to infra red sensor viewers and a direct line of sight magnification lens installed on most modern UAVs. It is also very likely that other onboard equipment suites include IFF frequency pilot tubes, targeting systems, night vision visors and long range radio antennae. As a result, it is fair to say that the onboard cockpit is designed for a single pilot and is highly intuitive with several monitors providing vital gauges and other data located around a central console giving all round vision via a potentially sectionally combined view of the surrounding area.

The Overlord is a very versatile platform which has been known to be carried by batches of six in the aft sections of Helghast Assault Cruisers where they are stored on a sliding guide rail conveyor. How the troops mount the ship is unknown as close inspection of the rail shows almost no possible access points. It is, however, possible that the loading ramps are retractable into the cruiser's stern extension sponson underneath which the Overlords are stored, and are deployed parallel to the dropship's passenger bay for loading.

Unlike its counterpart, the ISA Intruder, the troops are offered much better protection because of the craft's armor plating, and are carried safely inside a standard infantry bay, as opposed to the troops having to deal with the extremely hazardous, rollercoaster-like rides atop the Intruder where they're exposed to groundfire and debris like missile propellant or having the risk of falling off if not strapped in. Despite these advantages, it is unable to perform the more rapid troop insertions with the same success as the Intruder, as it was possibly designed with durability and the application of "shock & awe" value in mind rather than just getting troops from point A to point B extremely quickly. Also, the Overlord's somewhat more time-consuming process of having to deploy its ropes and the troops rappelling down them a few at a time gives the enemy more time to open fire on the deploying troops, contrasted with the Intruder dropship just rapidly landing and its troops jumping out all at once.

The Overlord is still in use after the Vektan Resettlement, and appears to be functionally the same as the older models. The upgrades given to the Overlord in the last 30 years shows upgraded firepower to three triple-barreled autocannons which replace the machine guns, the winglet surfaces are increased and a set of canards have been mounted on the forward section. The auto cannons are equipped with laser detectors which increases it's accuracy against hostile troops.

## Weapons

As a standard Helghast aircraft capable of transporting up to eight regular troopers into battle under the cover of its heavy armor and additional weaponry comprising:

* VnS-10 Scylla machine guns

* A pair of unguided missile pods

The Overlord performs the duties of an assault transport/gunship in the Helghan Army, much like the real-life Mi-24 helicopter. More resilient than its ISA counterpart, the Overlord is designed as an aerial tank for the purposes of demoralizing the enemy and suppressing them with preliminary covering fire until the onboard troops have had a chance to dismount.