The Mule Industrial Exosuit severs as the primary labor and occasionally combat exosuit for the Iron Company and was first manufactured in YE 43.

Heavy, brutal, and practical; the Mule is one of the few power armors the Iron Company fields, and was primarily designed with hauling cargo in mind, but was later expanded into industries such as construction, forestry, and mining. The requirements for the suit were something that was durable, easy to repair, low maintenance, and easy to pilot. Built on a heavy-duty frame wrapped in thick armor to protect its hydraulic system used for movement and powered by a combustion engine and can move quickly for its size-far faster than what most would expect, it has proven to be a fairly robust platform able to operate in most environments.

Its speed, along with its durability and strength lends itself, if somewhat awkwardly, to throwing hands. A combat package consisting of a mace and a handheld 40mm Mauler autocannon was added for emergencies, though other weapons could be used as well. Additional equipment could be added but it requires extensive modification. First sighted in YE 44¹⁾ as its operator had managed to disable the thing after winding up with glass in its joints, this awkward machine served as one of the many tools in the Iron Company Smith's toolbox. No one's sure where the name 'Mule' came from as its original designation was 'Utility Exosuit Model 1, multi-purpose industrial'. Likely it came from some smartarse in the Unvorsum making a joke about beasts of burden.

The Mule Industrial Exosuit is a burly, brutish design; its exterior plating seems to be made from straight castings, shaped into something resembling armor, and its large backpack has several exhaust ports for the engine. Its helmet seems to almost be a parody of a hoplite helmet with hoses and crude optics attached to it.

The Mule is an incredibly durable and strong platform useful for when you need to move cargo or mine. The MULE is easily repaired; one could fix it in one's garage with hand tools if need be. It's also very fast, especially for something of its mass. This combined with its strength and toughness, means that it can get it can take a hit from, stumble into, and then say “Hi!” to that enemy squad and proceed to punt them back to their own lines. Describe what makes this power armor special.

In spite of its incredible durability; a near-universal thing with Company equipment; the MULE does not like being shot-if a shot breaches its thick skin, it could very well spell doom for the armor; igniting the fuel tank's contents or cause the hydraulic system to explode. It has a hard time stopping or maneuvering while running full tilt. Its simplicity also works against it, as it takes extensive modifications for it to mount the majority of common equipment found throughout the sector, and without some kind of power amplifier, it cannot mount energy weapons.

• Ground Speed (Running): 76 KPH

See Damage Rating (Version 3) for a guide to damage ratings to include.

DRv3 Tier: Light Anti-Mecha, Size: Heavy Anti-Armor

Getting in the armor's pretty straightforward; the entire setup can be opened up by releasing the clamps on the armor plates on the torso, lift it up then climb in, shut the torso, and lock the plates back into place Explain how the user inserts oneself and exits the power armor.

Controlling the armor is as straightforward as getting end-a a pair of footpads located in the “Boots” are used to move forward and reverse-body movement controls turning and arms. A great deal of strength however is required to utilize the suit to its fullest ability.

The MULE's hydraulic systems allow it to push around or lift roughly twice its weight in cargo, but depending on how big its cargo is it will have a hard time carrying anything on its own and will require assistance. Its standard hands can be refitted with a pair of “forks” akin to a forklift to help it move cargo more easily. It has gages monitoring fuel, air, and hydraulic pressure of the suit during operations.

The Armor is the usual, albeit an unusually thick layer of ablative composite armor that makes up the vast majority of their armor plate-rivaling some lighter mechas in terms of protection. It is sturdy, cheap, and works against most weapons types, ballistic, hollow charge warheads, and even some of the more common energy weapons such as lasers. Though more exotic forms of energy like Aether still pose a major threat.

Should it be needed for military operations, it will be painted to match its environment and between that and its low-tech systems, it is fairly hard to detect.

The mule is environmentally sealed and protected against NBC attacks-probably the single most expensive part of the machine, with blowers to filter out radioactive particles, and posses an internal air supply however, due to the oxygen requirements of the user and the engine it only lasts about for about 4 hours. The hydraulic system and fuel tanks are self-sealing, but major catastrophic damage can still result in failure.

This power armor uses a combustion engine for power, usually either diesel or gasoline, but occasionally natural gas may be used. It also has a battery to help power onboard systems, but generally speaking, it has no other power systems to speak of.

This unit has a basic radio effective out to 7 miles-it does have the ability to mount a rudimentary infrared suite as well for combat operations, but it has a limited range-600 meters.

In the event the MULE is pressed into a combat situation²⁾ it can be armed with the following.

• 4cm Mauler Autocannon| Medium Anti-Armor
• Power Armor Bar Mace | Heavy Anti-Armor

The MULE has 3 hardpoints; one on the shoulders for a lamp, and two on the back for carrying extra fuel tanks, supplies, or ammunition. All weapons and tools are hand carried.

Commissar Farzi created this article on 2023/05/23 20:28. Art by Midjourney AI.

Wes approved this article on March 24, 2024³⁾