Schrek

Schrek PPC Carrier
Production information
Manufacturer	Aldis Industries Alphard Trading Corporation New Samarkand Metals Grumman Amalgamated
Production Year	2813
Mission	Long-range heavy fire support
Type	Tracked
Cost	3,829,500 C-bills
Technical specifications
Mass	80 tons
Armor	ArcShield VII Mk 5
Engine	GoreTex 240
Speed	54.0 km/h
Crew	6 Members
Communications System	Olmstead 3000
Targeting Tracking System	Omicron IX
Heat Sinks	30 single
Armament	3x PPC
BV (2.0)	935

Description

Designed for extended, long-range bombardments, the Schrek PPC carrier is capable of unleashing a deadly rain of particle fire.

Developed by Aldis in 2813 to overcome the heat issues which hampered the effectiveness of their immensely popular Demolisher tank, the company took an entirely different tack, replacing the Demolisher's mammoth autocannons with a trio of PPCs and enough Heat Sinks to fire them continuously.

While highly effective when firing from cover and the perfect partner to the short-ranged Demolisher, the design is unpopular with crews due to the Schrek's limited mobility and pitifully low seven tons of ArcShield VII Mk 5 plate, which makes it highly vulnerable to counterbattery fire. The Schrek's reputation also suffered due to the decline of technical knowledge during the Succession Wars era. Its use of an increasingly rare fusion engine to power its weapons array drove up the cost to buy and maintain the vehicle, pricing it outside the range of all but the most elite units until after the War of 3039.

Weapons and Equipment

The trio of turret-mounted Magna Hellstar PPCs allow the Schrek to unleash horrific firepower on a target. Also unlike other vehicles or BattleMechs mounting as many particle projection cannons as the Schrek, such as the fearsome Awesome, the vehicle mounts enough heat sinks to continuously fire all three at once from a fixed position. Because the Schrek mounts no other weapons, and due to the inability of PPCs to effectively fire at close range, it is rarely deployed without escorts such as the Demolisher.

Variants

• Anti-Infantry 

  A relatively rare field variant first seen in 2833, several units drop a few tons of armor to mount a machine gun or small laser to fend off infantry attacks.

• Autocannon 

  Born of the dark days of the Third Succession War when Schreks were often cannibalized to replace the PPCs or fusion engines of BattleMechs, some owners repurposed the design as an "autocannon carrier", installing an ICE and autocannons. Three AC/5 with three tons of ammunition and eight machine guns replaced the energy weapons. While boasting a similar mission profile, stripping out unneeded heat sinks also allows extra armor to be added.

• C3M 

  Developed during the Jihad this Schrek variant replaced one standard PPC with a light PPC. This freed enough space and weight to add a C3 master, a Guardian ECM suite, and an anti-missile system. BV (2.0) = 993

• Armor 

  Introduced in 3072, the common armor is replaced with heavy ferro-fibrous armor to increase protection. This variant also has an AMS to increase the defense capabilities of the vehicle. BV (2.0) = 1040

• Lothian 

  Produced for the Lothian League on Leximon this variant replaces the trio of PPCs with a trio of Marian sourced Ultra AC/10s. Similar to the Autocannon field refits the Lothian variant also removes the fusion engine and replaces it with an ICE. It carries 6 tons of UAC/10 ammunition and is protected by 7 tons of Ferro-Fibrous armor . BV(2.0)=1,005

• LB-X

  Developed by New Samarkand Metals and inspired by the Narukami this variant replaces two of the PPCs with LB 10-X ACs turning it into an anti-tank and anti-air platform. The autocannons receive two tons of cluster and standard ammunition in CASE protected bins. The Narukami influences the armoring scheme with this variant receiving 14 tons of Hardened Armor. BV(2.0) = 1,258

• XL

  This variant provides a speed increase by adding an XL Fusion engine and adds 7 tons of heavy ferro-fibrous armor. BV(2.0) = 1,074

• Gauss Carrier

  Developed for the CCAF in conjunction with Grumman Amalgamated this variant is a severe divergence from the baseline. Designed to apply lessons from the Victoria War, the Gauss Carrier employs stealth armor, an ECM suite, and a trio of Light Gauss Rifles. It additionally carries 4 tons of ammunition and mounts a Light engine. These stealth tanks are commonly seen on the Davion/Capellan border although the Dutchy of Andurien has fielded a few against the Free Worlds League. BV(2.0) = 1,203

Custom Variants

• Schrek II-X 

  The Schrek II-X, a 95-ton variant built on Arc-Royal, uses an XXL engine to free weight for additional weapons. The tank has six light PPCs in its turret; three of them are paired with experimental PPC capacitors. A targeting computer makes their fire even more accurate. Eight and a half tons of heavy ferro-fibrous armor protects the crew, while a total of 45 heat sinks dissipates the massive heat load. BV (2.0) = 1,407

Apocryphal Variants

Apocryphal Content Starts

The information after this notice comes from apocryphal sources; the canonicity of such information is uncertain.
Please view the reference page for information regarding their canonicity.

These variants were introduced in various apocryphal sources, and thus far have not appeared in any canonical media.

From Ronin! Szenarioband - 3034 A.D.:

• Vacuum 

  Upgraded to operate in an airless environment, dropping one of the design's three PPCs in the process, this version was deployed by Ronin forces on Krakau, the moon of Predlitz, in 3034.

From MechCommander:

• Mixed-Tech 

  The exigencies of the 3059 Operation BULLDOG saw both sides employing mixed-tech refits of Inner Sphere fighting machines. One especially curious example was a variant of the Schrek which replaced the trio of PPCs with a mismatched pair of extended-range versions: one of Inner Sphere origin, the other of Clan origin. Most or all of the saved weight apparently went into armor, making this one of the thickest-armored vehicles encountered during the operation, much unlike the primary configuration.

Apocryphal Content Ends

Notes

• The Schrek appeared in Dragon Magazine in 1986, predating Technical Readout: 3026. Some fluff was altered for the TRO:3026 entry but the game statistics were identical.
• In German products, the unit's proper name was translated to Schreck.

Gallery

• 

  Original Schrek from TRO:3026

• 

  Decolorized reprint of Schreck (Schrek) from German HWH:3031

• 

  Schrek from TRO:3026 Revised

• 

  Schrek from TRO:3039

• 

  Schrek from RG:iClan vol. 32

• 

  A Schrek in battle from CCG

Bibliography

• Experimental Technical Readout: Mercs
• Field Manual: 3145
• Record Sheets: 3085 Unabridged — Old is the New New
• Ronin!
• Technical Readout: 3026
• Technical Readout: 3026 Revised
• Technical Readout: 3039
• Technical Readout: 3085
• Recognition Guide: ilClan, vol. 32