Approved Tech Rakieh guided cluster bomb

[Klesta]

OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION

• Intent: To provide a ground missile releasing submunitions for ground assaults
• Image Source: Star Wars X-Wing Miniatures game
• Canon Link: ST2 concussion missile
• Restricted Missions: N/A
• Primary Source: ST2 concussion missile, thermal detonator

PRODUCTION INFORMATION

• Manufacturer: Ringovinda Systems
• Model: Rakieh-class guided cluster bomb
• Affiliation: Open-Market
• Modularity: Yes: can change the grenades for shaped charges
• Production: Mass-Produced.
• Material: Duraplast, tritonal, other high explosives, electronics, ion drive

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

• Classification: Guided cluster bomb
• Size: Starfighter-mounted
• Length: 1m
• Diameter: 155mm
• Weight: 35 kg
• Ammunition Type: High explosive grenades
• Ammunition Capacity: 1 (14 grenades as submunitions)
• Effective Range: Standard starfighter concussion missile
• Rate of Fire: Single action

SPECIAL FEATURES

• Proton grenade submunitions
• Submunition dispenser
• Standard guidance system

DETAILED SPECIAL FEATURES

The standard (heat-seeking) guidance system allows the missile to home in on a target, in conjunction to the ion drive, fast enough to allow it to be used against other attack craft or other fast-moving targets. Also, when the guided cluster bomb arrives at about 20 meters from the target, it releases its submunitions in a circle roughly 20 meters in radius, with one thermal detonator at the center, and two concentric rings of thermal detonators.

Strengths:

• Can be used with great precision in ground assaults
• Can be used against capital ships
• Provides a large spread of explosive power for its weight

Weaknesses :

• Fast cook-off time: if a launch platform with Rakiehs still loaded catches fire, it will explode soon thereafter
• Its effectiveness decreases significantly when the target's speed rating gets better than average starfighter-scale ships, rendering it much less effective against fighters (when contrasted against bombers or gunships)
• Useless when fired against enemy fighters from an angle other than head-on due to the non-homing nature of the grenades
• Unexploded grenades, while uncommon, can be a hazard long after the fact

DESCRIPTION: In the Chiloon Rift campaign, the Dominion Tenth Sector Army realized that mobile field artillery capable of taking out large numbers of targets at once was necessary for ground attack use. Based on the ST2 concussion missile hitherto in use, the Rakieh guided cluster bomb, named after [member="Rakieh Atur"], carries a different payload compared to the original concussion missile: instead of one big explosive charge, 15 smaller explosive charges are loaded inside the warhead, released about 20 meters above the target (in a ground assault) or away from the target (in airborne engagements or in space). The dispenser spreads the 15 thermal detonators as follows: one in the center, four in a cruciform fashion in the inner ring, 10 meters from the center, and 10 more in the outer ring, 20 meters from the center. The submunitions are set to explode 3 seconds after their release or upon contact, whichever happens first.

Also, as with many concussion missiles, it is guided by infrared, that is, the missile is heat-seeking, which was more practical than sensor-guided guidance due to the short range of the missile. However, it also shares common flaws of concussion missiles: its ability to be used against other ships significantly degrades when one gets into above-average starfighter territory; due to the inertia of the submunitions, it is useless against attack craft unless fired in a head-on situation.

Important note: Counts for 1 concussion missile when used in attack craft

 

[Raziel]

Approved.