Drone

THE DRONES

"Why trust your safety to anything else?"

Drone Mark III
Player: @Danton
Character Build
Class Focus:	Tank
Power Level:	Confidential
Research & Development:	Confidential
Biographical Data
Real Name:	A771-D Class Drone
Known Aliases:	'Drone'
Gender:	N/A
Species:	Artificial weapons platform
Ethnicity:	N/A
Place of Birth:	Argent Research Lab Millenium City
Base of Operations:	Worldwide
Relatives:	N/A
Characteristics
Age:	N/A
Height:	24'
Weight:	Unknown
Eyes:	Red sensors
Hair:	None
Complexion:	Grey
Physical Build:	Humanoid
Physical Features:	Metal
Status
Alignment:	██ ██ ██ ██ ██ ██ ██ ██ ██ Neutral
Reputation:	██ ██ ██ ██ ██ ██ ██ ██ ██ Prominent
Identity:	Mass Produced
Years Active:	0.5
Citizenship:	Legal property
Occupation:	Property
Education:	Wide ranging programming
Marital Status:	N/A
Known Powers and Abilities
Exceptional strength and resilience. Advanced combat AI.
Equipment and Paraphernalia
Powerful energy weapon mounted in torso. Auxiliary protective systems. Advanced sensors. High speed rocket

Attributes
	Strength	█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █		Endurance	█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █
	Agility	█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █		Speed	█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █
	Fighting	█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █		Projectiles	█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █
	Durability	█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █		Resistance	█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █
	Intelligence	█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █		Psyche	█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █
	Intuition	█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █		Charisma	█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █
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Product Specifications

The following are statements from the ARGENT corporation's official releases regarding their product the A771-D Drone.

Physical capabilities

The A771-D Drone is an incredibly powerful machine. Fully capable of lifting trucks overhead without straining the chassis of the model, it is designed with this massive physical strength both for metahuman crime prevention purposes, as well as for search and rescue and clean up duties.

The metallic alloy that makes up the unit's armor plating is designed to be able to withstand high calibre gunfire without deformation, as well as resist high power energy blasts and explosives. Yet even with this it manages to be light enough to allow it to traverse urban environments using short range booster rockets without causing damage to the property of your city's residents.

Just how light is it? Each A771-D Drone deployed in your fair city will come with an aerial deployment unit. This fast craft can physically carry the Drone to where it is needed, allowing for rapid response. All possible thanks to ARGENT systems.

Electronic capabilities

One of the most common concerns voiced by our satisfied clients is: "But the Drone is an artificial intelligence, surely that leaves it open to invasion and reprogramming by any hacker." Not so, here at ARGENT we installed advanced electronic countermeasures to prevent any kind of hacking attacks. In addition, the A771-D Drone features a nearly completely closed off system, and so any hacking attack would need to be physical connected to the machine. No small feat, we can assure you.

When it needs to engage with an electronic device, a small, physically partitioned section of the AI is activated and a wireless linkup established. Without risking its own systems the A771-D Drone is capable of interacting with most electronic devices, allowing it to better perform its functionality of keeping your city safe.

Combat capabilities

Sometimes to keep your city safe, you've got to engage criminals in a fight. The A771-D Drone is programmed with enhanced combat subroutines allowing it to engage enemies while minimising collateral damage to significantly below the average established by metahumans. Utilising these subroutines, the unit can react optimally to approaching threats, while leaving open avenues of returning offense.

In addition to the above mentioned extreme strength and resilience, the A771-D Drone also possesses a multi-directional chest mounted energy blaster. With power settings ranging from a stun setting equal to your average everyday tazer (although at a significantly improved range) all the way up to a blast capable of knocking the strongest supervillains around, this defensive system can help your citizens rest easy, knowing this powerful protector is watching over them.

Appearance

Physical appearance

The Drone unit in service in many cities around the world is the Mark 3 model. These units are of humanoid design, approximately 8 meters tall with a metallic shell. Across its chassis there are glowing red energy units that act as a combination of sensor system and auxiliary defensive system. The unit possesses a humanoid shaped head with a single red sensor between where human eyes would usually go. A symmetrical set of black painted sensors on the side of the head stand stand out on either side. A large glowing red mineral of some kind resides in the middle of its chest, from which its multi-directional energy weapon emits its attack.

Currently ARGENT are painting the drones green and black, but it is known they are manufactured with a silver and black colour scheme.

History

The Drone series of urban protection/pacification units have been pushed by ARGENT as the 'next generation of crime fighting and civilian protection'. This heavy marketing push has gained them some traction in a number of markets with cities paying a reasonable fee to rent the Drones and support teams necessary for them to operate within their jurisdiction.

The Drone series was deployed as auxiliary backup in a number of cities across the United States and Canada, until an incident of a metahuman performing search and rescue was classified as vandalism. Although the Drone was defeated by the metahuman eventually and the remaining survivors of the original incident saved without incident, the situation left a very negative impression of the ARGENT Drones in the public consciousness. The Drones were withdrawn for 'upgrades and moficiations' shortly afterwards.

Rumours state that ARGENT is prepared for another attempt at a deployment, even going so far as to establish automated construction facilities in anticipation. While a number of governments are hesitant since the previous negative public perception, slowly clients are being found. Currently only a few Drones seem to exist, being used mostly as presentation models for clients, but stock market analysts are predicting a rapid rise in ARGENT stock by the end of the financial year, indicating they believe a successful roll out will occur before then.

Drone MK I

Drone MK I

According to literature the Drone MK I was a proof of concept model. Standing at about six meters tall it was generally to prove the potential of the design. Several of these Mark I designs are on display in the ARGENT offices.

Drone MK II

The MK II drone unit was a larger scale field test. Some components were simplified, and others scaled down to account for the potential for large scale production. However according to literature distributed by ARGENT some cost efficiencies were not fully implemented in this design and it was not considered for large scale production. However this final prototype was enough to justify a third design for mass production.

A green painted Drone MK III

Drone MK III

The first production model, the MK III Drone, is the current up to date model of the unit. Although the ARGENT models are painted a combination of green and black to better match ARGENT's corporate image, individual colour schemes can be requested by clients. This is the bulk production model and all information within this file as of 01/01/2014 is to be considered applicable to this production unit.

• A newly negotiated contract came into effect in the new year, allowing ARGENT to operate several of the Drone MK III models in Millenium City. Initially four Drones were to be deployed to Millenium City.

• In two weeks of successful operation, the Drones have successfully dealt with a cell of DEMON cultists, halted a bank robbery, and assisted in a variety of civilian assistance operations. A Drone tenderly helping a cat out of a tree on camera is considered a marketing success (potentially a set up) by ARGENT.

• The first significant setback has occured for the Drone product. A Drone MK III was deployed in Millenium City to help deal with a particularly powerful metahuman causing havoc on the 13th of January. Unfortunately for ARGENT the Drone was rapidly disabled by the metahuman, and the present metahuman response team continued to deal with the incident. However ARGENT has used this to lobby for a larger Drone presence in Millenium City, and it seems they may get it.

• During a recent incident involving a rampage by Gravitar, a Drone was deployed to assist. The machine was useful in the combat, being able to withstand Gravitar's (admittedly divided) attention for the duration of the skirmish. Gravitar was eventually forced to flee, and the metahumans present indicated satisaction with the performance of the Drone, but were hesitant to support its continued use.

• After negotiation with the office of the Millenium City Mayor, the Drones deployed in this city have been left their original silver/black/red colouring rather than the ARGENT green, to avoid negative connotations recent incidents have given the corporation. They have begun regular patrols around the city as well as responding to emergency situations. This raises questions about the battery life of Drones in the field.

Known Weaknesses

As of yet, PRIMUS analysts are yet to receive a Drone unit for examination. Without falling back on conjecture it is impossible to narrow down specific weaknesses the design may have.

Opinions and Comments

Relation with authorities

MCPD

PRIMUS analysts are currently liasing with MCPD to find out their perception on the ARGENT Drone.

PRIMUS

Until further analysis is conducted, there is no set perspective on the ARGENT Drone within PRIMUS ranks, and no official statement has been made.

UNTIL

PRIMUS analysts are currently liasing with UNTIL to find out their perception on the ARGENT Drone.

Civilian reception

There are numerous reports of medium sized towns accepting a consignment of two or so Drones to act as metahuman crime deterrant, and while these have only been called upon in a few cases to prevent metahuman crime they are typically well received by the population and perform acceptably in combat. Some metahuman backlash had been in the media at the time the release of the Drones, so an alternative protection was well received by smaller governing organisations and civilians at large. In addition, assistance in rescue efforts has resulted in solid, positive PR coverage.

This PR coverage has led to ARGENT lobbyists to persuade larger cities to take a consignment of several Drones to assist in their crime fighting actions, including Millenium City. We believe Millenium City will be the pivotal point for this sales pitch, as in the event the Drones are successful in supplanting some of the city's need for superhumans, they will be considered a resounding success. Currently within Millenium City the public are cautious, and the hero community is unwelcoming of these efforts.

Quotes

Quotes from Metahumans are welcome here:

RP Hooks

• There are current legal battles revolving around the ownership of several patents important in the design of the Drone.

• Against all odds, this seems to be an ARGENT created machine that is fulfilling an admirable goal of protecting the public.

OOC notes

The Drones are intended for a long term RP story arc. With that said, I am very happy to involve them in your current story arc. If you wish for the Drones to have a presence in your RP event, just contact @Danton to organise something.

Drones ARE mooks that can be destroyed, but they are meant to be exceptionally powerful mooks that are capable of holding their own against a group of low powered characters, solo against mid powered characters, or a group of them against a single high powered characters.