Directorate Officer
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
- Intent: To update the Droideka Mark II for Directorate use
- Image Source: originally here, modified by your's truly
- Canon Link:
- Primary Source: here
- Manufacturer: Baktoid Combat Automata (originally) / Lucerne Labs (refit)
- Affiliation: Directorate, Silver Jedi, Closed-Market
- Model: Droideka Mark II-D
Production: Minor
- Modularity: Shield modules
- Material: Chimera Composite armor plating, Biolux series Organoform Circuitry, standard droid components
- Classification: Fourth Degree
- Weight: 90 kilograms
- Height: 1.83 meters
- Movement: Wheel, Quadrupedal
- Armaments:
1 Triple Blaster Cannon (head) - 2 Twin Light Laser Cannons (arms)
- 1 Twin Ion Cannon (chassis)
[*]Misc. Equipment:
- Myntor Personal Shield Generator
- Ionization Buffer
- Magnetic Feet
- Internal Comlink
- Composite Radiation Sensors (per canon droid)
SPECIAL FEATURES
- Wheel Form: Like the original Droideka Mark I and II, the Mark II-D can roll up into a wheel to quickly transverse over surfaces.
- Magnetic Feet: The Mark II-D's feet have modified to have include powerful magnets, which can be switched on to allow the Mark II-D to cling to metal surfaces, such as deck or hull plating.
- Ion Resistance: The Directorate has installed a basic ionization buffer to protect the droid's central processing unit from indirect ion attacks. In addition, a large portion of its internal circuitry has been replaced with Lucerne Lab's proprietary organoform circuitry. This does not make the droid immune to ion or EMP attacks.
- Myntor Personal Shield: The Directorate replaced the Droideka's original shield with a Myntor personal shield, which provides the droid with roughly the same amount of protection as the original. At the cost of making the unit more detectable though, the droid can now alter some its resistances through its auxiliary shield module. It can also expand this shield to protect nearby allies.
- Heavy Firepower: The Mark-IID carries the same weapons as the original Droideka Mark II, which lends the droid an impressive amount of firepower.
- Upgraded Shield: The Mark-IID incorporates a Myntor Shield Generator, allows the Mark-IID to alter its resistances to certain damage types as well as expand shield coverage to cover nearby allies and objects.
- Ion Resistant: The Mark-IID is resistant to low-level ion and EMP attacks by weak weapons or indirect attacks. Many direct ion attacks (such as by a DEMP gun or ion cannon) will still fry many of the droid's subcomponents.
- Movement Impaired: The Mark II-D suffers the same movement issues that the original Droidekas experienced. It is a relatively slow unit while walking on its four legs. While relatively fast on flat hard surfaces in wheel mode, it is also not very maneuverable nor can it utilize any of its weapons while travelling in wheel mode.
- Easily Detected: The Mark II-D is easily detected because of its Myntor Shield Generator, which not only has a high energy signature, but which also emits a continual crackling sound.
- Large Target: The Mark II-D is a relatively large target compared to many battle droids or infantry.
Over the years, the Directorate has come into the possession of a large stockpile of Droideka Mark IIs. Most of these droids were captured or seized in operations against criminal cartels across the galaxy, but several Directorate companies started to reproduce them on their own as part of their contribution to the Directorate's armed forces. While still formidable as blunt weapons, the droids have been found wanting in several aspects, which led to the decision to retrofit the droids to better meet the Directorate's current needs.
The most striking change that most people notice in seeing the droids is the replacement of the once gleaming bronzium armor with the dull gray-green Chimera Composite Armor. The benefits are this upgrade are debatable and many Directorate officers think it to be almost superfluous given that the droid largely relies on its shield for protection. While the original shield generator was still adequate in terms of power by modern standards, Lucerne Labs replaced it with a Myntor Shield Generator produced by its subsidiary company Lucerne Personal Defense. This shield can be altered to provide with different types of resistances, which allows the Directorate to tailor the droid's defenses against specific foes or environments. Perhaps just as importantly, it allows the droid to expand its shield to provide protection for allies in its near vicinity. Other upgrades to the droid include an ionization buffer and the extensive use of Biolux series Organoform Circuitry, both of which were introduced to better protect the droid from ion and EMP weapons. Because most Droideka Mark II-Ds see service on Directorate warships, the droid was also retrofitted with magnetic feet to better enable it to maintain firing positions while onboard starships and other artificial constructs where it might be based. Offensively, the Droideka Mark-IID is unchanged from its predecessor, utilizing the same weapons, sensors, and combat programming. It notably still does not have all the power needed to run both the triple blaster cannons and the ion cannons at the same time.
Lucerne Labs has started to roll out these retrofitted units throughout the Directorate forces, with priority being placed to those units engaged in frequently close quarters combat or charged with guarding valuable items. The deep space vault in the Epian Asteroid Belt for confiscated contraband is among one of those facilities. Thus far, the droids have been deployed as supplements to existing units, rather than collectively en mass because of their mobility limitations. Due to the Directorate's partnership with the Silver Jedi, numbers of the droids can also be found in service with organizations affiliated with the Order of the Silver Jedi.