LEGION's Factory Walker

Written by Splice Master, Chris "Slappy " Kluge, and Co-created with me, Chuck Walton II, Legion's Factory Walker is a new Splicers RPG character class that made it’s debut in the first ever double issue of a Rifter# 71/72, Adventure Article with all "Official" source material titled “Splicers: I Am Legion”, which is published by Palladium Books.

palladium-store.com/1001/produ…

Below is the write-up which speaks for itself:

ROBOTS of LEGION

"A lot of their information came from direct observation, but they admit that a robotic emissary from the Eve personality was the one responsible for filling in most of the blanks.  They inform the group that the enemy they have been tracking is an errant, renegade Machine personality that calls herself Legion.  Apparently Legion downloaded her consciousness into an enormous prototype robot called the Factory Walker and declared war against every human, robot, and animal on the planet. It is not a war of destruction, but rather it is her goal to transform every creature on the planet (both organic and inorganic) into a component of one gigantic cybernetic organism under her control. Legion is consuming everything on the planet and using it as raw materials to build an enormous army. Her robotic body contains state-of-the-art manufacturing capabilities, which enables her to salvage metal, plastic, and other high-tech materials from the battlefields and construct her own unique robot designs such as the scorpion-like Collectors at incredible speeds. However, she is in a period of rapid expansion right now, and she finds it more expedient to simply capture and reprogram N.E.X.U.S. designed robots rather than build all her minions from scratch. 

 Legion applies this same cold, mechanical precision to the human beings that she has been abducting from the surface. She sees them as nothing more than spare parts. Strong, able-bodied men and women are converted into humanoid cyborgs known as Legionnaires (like the two the players fought earlier). The sickly, weak, and elderly are turned into components for one of the monstrous Fusion Borgs like the one the player characters just faced. Children are transformed into maintenance borgs that help service, rearm, and repair her minions. They do not retain any aspects of their humanity. Their flesh may still live, but their minds have been replaced with Legion’s consciousness. Even the dead are salvaged and turned into Necroborgs and Necrobots, but Legion seems to have a preference for creating living cyborgs."

Factory Walker

(Splice Master's Special Note: The Factory Walker is only making a visual appearance within this episode and is not meant to be engaged in a combative encounter, as it would be pure suicidal. We have decided to reveal just the write-up and visual descriptive stats for the Factory Walker. A complete description and combative stats will appear in a later episode!)

The Factory Walker

The Factory Walker is the single largest robot on the planet. Legion designed this enormous war machine to house her consciousness and act as the brains of her ever-expanding body (her vast army of minions). It is more than just a war machine; it is the key to her plans for conquest. This enormous spider-like juggernaut not only possesses twice the destructive power of a Land Dominator, but it also contains four state of the art manufacturing bays and a fully equipped medical center. The Factory Walker can convert raw materials, battlefield salvage, and living captives into combat-ready robots, cyborgs, Necroborgs, weapons, munitions, spare parts, and even swarms of nanobots at amazing speeds. It enables her forces to remain completely self-sufficient (and continuously growing) even without access to the Machine’s Industrial Centers. 

The Walker contains the schematics to every N.E.X.U.S. robot design. Each bay is large enough to build an Assault Slayer, and these ingeniously designed manufacturing centers can produce even the most complex automaton ten times faster than any Machine installation. Of course, Legion still finds it much more expedient and efficient to simply capture and reprogram existing robots rather than build new ones. She rarely constructs N.E.X.U.S. designed robots and prefers to churn out her own personal designs. Unless the Walker’s resources are needed elsewhere, Legion will generally dedicate at least two bays to producing a steady string of human and animal cyborgs or her favorite robot minions known as Collectors.

The Factory Walker may possess impressive offensive capabilities, but Legion chose its armaments more for their defensive applications. She knew from the moment the Walker took its first step, it would be under almost continuous assault by the Machine and the Resistance. Legion focused on area effect weapons like mini-missiles and Gatlin guns since they are not only perfect for engaging large concentrations of enemies, but they are also great for shooting down incoming missiles and fast moving enemy aircraft. In fact, the enormous mini-missile launchers mounted on the Walker’s back are capable of throwing up such a tremendous volley of missiles that it is nearly impossible for anything to get through. This type of strategy is usually costly in terms of munitions, but the Factory Walker can replace spent rockets so quickly that this is rarely an issue. Its primary offensive weapons consist of a pair of powerful particle beam cannons mounted on the forward weapon arms. These stubby barreled cannons may not have quite the range and power of the Land Dominator’s main weapon, but each is still capable of liquidating a Battle Track in a few shots. Legion was willing to trade away the power of more massive cannons in favor of an increased field of fire. She never wanted to be deprived of her most powerful armaments if the enemy ever got too close (which was the main weakness she saw in the Land Dominator).

In addition to lethal armaments, the Walker also contains several non-lethal weapon systems that it uses to collect subjects (both living and robotic) so they can be converted into Legion controlled minions. There are four gas vents mounted along the sides of the Walker that allow it to blanket a 500-foot (152.5 m) radius with various types of toxic chemicals. Legion commonly uses knock-out gas or paralyzing compounds, but she will switch to Creeping Death nerve gas when she needs to flush out hidden opponents (or just to make a statement). Mounted around the “mouth” of the Walker are six retractable tentacles that can deliver a powerful electric shock to any target they ensnare. A quick shock can stun or disable any living target, but they can also disable robotic targets by delivering a continuous electrical discharge. The electrical current temporarily scrambles the robots circuits while only inflicting minimal damage. The Walker then reels its disabled pray in towards the mouth where a battery of surgical lasers is used to “lobotomize” the robot so that it can be safely brought inside for reprogramming. Legion can also encase targets in super strong carbon nanotube webbing. She generally does this as an extra precaution when she captures prototype robot designs that she in unfamiliar with or for times when her instincts warn her that a particular victim may be part of a trap.

Legion has designed one of the most sophisticated pieces of technology on the planet.  Before exiting N.E.X.U.S., she stole hundreds of the most advanced designs she could find from the Machine’s vast databanks, plus she invented some impressive new designs to serve her unique needs. Even Hecate marvels at many of the innovative features that Legion incorporated into her personal transport vessel. The Machine knows that destroying the Factory Walker is the key to stopping Legion, but several of the personalities are hoping to find a way to delete the Legion persona without damaging the Walker. Some wish to reverse engineer this amazing piece of technology to unlock its secrets, while others hope to follow in the footsteps of Legion and use it to unleash their own personal plans for global domination. Sometimes it is unclear if Legion’s successes are a result of her tactical genius or just the Machine’s divided mind sabotaging itself.

Class:  Mobile Industrial Center and Heavy Assault Robot.

Speed: 

Running: Maximum speed is 60 mph (96 km), but normal cruising speed is 45 mph (72 km).

Digging: Not possible.

Leaping: Not Possible.

Swimming: Not possible.

Flying: Not possible.

Statistical Data:

Height: 90 feet (27 m) tall when standing at full height.

Width: 80 feet (24 m).

Length: 230 feet (70 m).

Weight: 400 tons.

Cargo: Can carry up to 150 additional tons, but typically only holds 80 tons.

Power System: Possesses multiple fusion cells that allow it to continuously run at peak efficiency for up to 100 years.

Trade Value: None.

Horror Factor: 19.

Senses and Features: Standard, plus the following:

• Manufacturing Bays (4): The “abdomen” section of the spider-like body is divided into four separate Manufacturing Bays. Each bay is large enough to construct an Assault Slayer, or it can build several smaller robots simultaneously. One bay is constantly dedicated to processing raw materials and salvaged metal into useful components, although other bays can be quickly converted to this purpose whenever necessary. All these bays are a continuous buzz of activity, with dozens of mechanical armatures and millions of nanobots working in conjunction to churn out robotic minions at blazing speeds. The Factory Walker can produce any N.E.X.U.S. designed robot 10 times faster than the most advanced Industrial Center, but it is still much faster for Legion to simply capture and reprogram existing robots. Completed robots, cyborgs, and supplies are released through a heavily armored door on the underside of the abdomen.
• Medical Bay: A smaller medical center is located near the Manufacturing Bays.  Its sole purpose is to process humans and animals for cybernetic conversion. This high-tech facility can process ten humans (or similarly sized animals) simultaneously. Only living cyborgs are created in the Medical Bay; Necroborgs and Necrobots are built in the Manufacturing Bays from bodies salvaged from the battlefields.
• Processing Bay: The front of the Walker contains a large access door that serves as the “mouth” of the robot. All raw materials (robots, humans, animals, scrap metal, and raw ore) are processed and sorted within this portal and then passed on to the Manufacturing Bays. Bringing living beings and functioning robots into the Walker is a dangerous endeavor, but Legion took every precaution to ensure her safety. The interior corridor is heavily shielded and bristling with hundreds of defensive weapon emplacements. If anything within the bay presents any type of resistance, all weapon systems are immediately triggered. The entire Processing Bay becomes an inescapable corridor of death filled with laser fire, plasma blasts, and rail gun bursts. Everything within the bay suffers every melee round until all invaders are destroyed. This also inflicts significant damage on the bay itself, but the Walker’s nanobots repair all damage within 4D6 minutes.
• Nanobot Repair System: The Factory Walker is covered in millions of nanobots that continuously make repairs to damaged systems. Even the most catastrophic damage can be repaired in time, but Legion usually just builds replacement parts to speed up the process. Damage to the main body regenerates per minute, and damage to the limbs and weapon systems regenerates per minute.
• Satellite Uplink: Legion designed a special satellite override that allows the Factory Walker to interface with the Machine’s satellite network. It is the only thing keeping N.E.X.U.S. from targeting Legion’s forces from orbit with military satellites. The last time she tried to target the Walker, Legion seized control of the very same satellite and used it to destroy three other satellites. Legion created thousands of backdoor access points to keep connected to the network, but N.E.X.U.S. is constantly working to shut them all down. It is a continuous battle that Legion seems to be winning for the moment. She is currently working on plans to launch her own network of satellites into orbit as a means to permanently remove the Machine’s tactical advantage.

Number of Attacks per Melee: 25.

 Hope you ENJOY! More to come, so stay tuned, get the Rifters and experience this cinematic  adventure as it continues to unfold.