Po

Po.jpg
Po
Production information
Manufacturer Ceres Metals Industries
Production Year 3031[1]
Mission Main Battle Tank
Type Tracked
Cost 1,064,800 C-bills
Technical specifications
Mass 60 tons
Armor Starshield Type V
Engine 240 Ceres ICE
Speed 65 km/h
Crew 4
Communications System CeresCom Model 37-P
Targeting Tracking System Ceres/Maladev 3
Heat Sinks 0
Armament
BV (2.0) 719


Description[edit]

While often derided as a poor man's Rommel/Patton tank, the simply constructed and dependable Po Heavy Tank, named by Romano Liao for the mischievous and vengeful spirit of Chinese tradition, has become the principal combat vehicle on Capellan worlds lacking 'Mech units.

Desperate to rebuild after the devastation wrought on Capellan Confederation by the Fourth Succession War, Chancellor Romano Liao sent out a call for affordable weapons with which to defend her realm. An up-and-coming military weapon designer named Ivan Maladev, who not incidentally was Liao's paramour at the time, took inspiration from the history of ancient Terran nation of the Soviet Union and designed what would become the Po. Even with the design hastily rushed into production, due to Capellan court intrigue Maladev never survived to see how popular his design would become.[2]

Introduced in 3031, the Po is built around the rugged, dependable, and cheap Ceres 240 internal combustion engine, which gives the tank a maximum flank speed of 65 km/h. Ten and half tons of armor provides respectable protection for a heavy tank. Along with its ease of maintenance and decent firepower, this protection has made the Po a popular choice among cash strapped mercenaries, lower ranked garrison units, the Free Worlds League and Word of Blake, with such export sales keeping much needed funds flowing into the Confederation's coffers.[3]

Weapons and Equipment[edit]

The Po carries an uninspired but serviceable weapon array, with the main offensive punch coming from a turret mounted Ceres Arms Model T Class 10 autocannon. A weapon with an excellent combat record, the Model T makes the Po a serious combat threat to light and medium 'Mechs. Two Maxi Mini Machine Guns - one turret-mounted alongside the autocannon and another mounted in a ball joint on the front of the Po - constitute the tank's secondary weapons.[3]

Variants[edit]

  • Light Gauss 
    Selected as a Light Gauss Rifle testbed by the FWLM in the late 3050's, even though this model boasted far superior range when compared to the old AC/10-equipped original, the reduction in firepower made it unpopular with tank crews and Ceres discontinued production of the variant in 3064.[3] BV (2.0) = 739
  • LB 10-X 
    Introduced in 3069 and seen in large numbers in the CCAF's "shadow lances", this variant replaces the standard autocannon with an Oriente Model O Class LB 10-X AC, the weight saved being devoted to an extra ton of autocannon rounds, allowing it to use both standard and cluster rounds and doubling its combat endurance.[3] BV (2.0) = 778
  • HV (Production) 
    The 3079 production version of the HV Variant keeps the same weapons, but trades the fusion engine of the prototype for a Ceres 240 fuel cell engine. This reduces the weight of the engine and reduces the cost of the tank. To fill the weight left by the smaller engine, designers fitted an extra three and a half tons of Ceres Nemean Hardened Armor, bringing the total armor weight to fourteen tons. BV (2.0) = 1,021[5]

Design Quirks[edit]

The Po HV (Production) variant is subject of the following Design Quirks:[5]

Related Designs[edit]

  • Po II‎ - A late Jihad upgrade to the original Po tank, the so-called Po II was an advanced and expensive version of the cheap and simplistic original.

Gallery[edit]

References[edit]

  1. MUL online date for the Po
  2. McCarron's Armored Cavalry, p. 22
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Technical Readout: 3058 Upgrade, p. 100
  4. Experimental Technical Readout: Liao, p. 10
  5. 5.0 5.1 Technical Readout: Prototypes, p. 53

Bibliography[edit]