The origin of the research and development of this mysterious heavy battle suit can be traced back to the large-scale Greenskin invasion on their home world of Viol'ra. Although the design level was extremely rough and the construction process was rudimentary, the Tau people helplessly discovered that the Greenskin invasion The firepower displayed by the primitive-looking ancient giant garbage made of leather and the huge garbage mountain like a mountain is unmatched by the current ground forces. The Fire Caste fighting on the front line found that their XV8 series combat uniforms were no longer able to adapt to the enemy's attacks. The scale requires a more heavy-duty combat suit to deal with the enemy's increasing firepower.
In the subsequent battle in the Gulf of Damocles, when using existing weapons to attack the opponent's super heavy tanks and Imperial Titans, the Fire Caste and the Ethereal Class also saw the true strength displayed by the Human Empire. They realized that the Tau's equipment was indeed difficult to adapt to a very large-scale war.
Originally, in the Fire Clan’s way of war, mobility is more important than firepower output, and hit-and-run is more important than standing still and waiting for help. A wise commander will not let the enemy be several times stronger than himself. They will not feel the slightest fear of the numerical advantage, nor will they feel the slightest panic about the huge war machines deployed by the enemy. Through coordinated tactics, strict discipline and carefully planned battle plans, these trivial problems can be easily overcome.
However, even Commander Qingxi, a master tactician who values offense, willingly admitted after fighting against the Human Empire: If a heavy battle suit with further improvements in size and armor could be created, , then the hunting core will be better able to deal with the terrifying firepower that is becoming more and more common.
So the Ether Parliament officially ordered the study of heavy combat suits. However, in the following decades, the Earth clan's attempts basically failed. The early prototypes were all bulky equipment that were either not suitable for Implementing the Fire Caste's tactics will either cause immeasurable risks to the wearer. The only finished product is the KV128 bombardment suit called Thunderstorm, but it is too bulky and slow, and even requires Manta to deploy. It is difficult for the Fire Clan to accept such a result.
Just when the research reached an impasse, Shou'an appeared.
This crazy Earth clan scientist realized that the core problem of the heavy combat suit is the power system. As long as there is a powerful enough power system, mobility is not a problem.
And the choice he made was to move a ship power furnace to the battle suit!
The Tau's hero-class cruiser uses a dark matter reactor, which generates energy by fusing dark matter. It is also a cross-generational product of the Tau's space vehicles. It is this reactor that Shou'an is eyeing. .
Most Earth Caste scientists sneered at this crazy idea, thinking it was almost impossible, because the ship's dark matter reactor is larger than a Manta, and the Fire Caste's technical specification is ten meters. the following.
But there are still some Tu clan scientists who support Shou'an's idea, and with their joint efforts, it actually came true! They have really developed a dark matter reactor that is the size of a fire warrior!
After many tests, this reactor was proven to be able to drive a heavy combat suit with a height of about seven meters. After research and trial production of a batch of finished products, the new combat suit was developed The Earth clan members of the team confirmed that the performance of the reactor was indeed quite stable. Although there were still some safety risks, it was completely within the acceptable range. After reporting to the Ether Council, it was confirmed as the energy source for the new battle suit and named the Nova Reactor. .
After solving the core problem, the development of the new battle suit immediately entered the fast lane, and ten years after the development of the Nova Reactor, a mature plan was submitted to the Ether Parliament.
The Ether Council was very satisfied with the data and performance of this battle suit, and officially determined its equipment number - XV104, code-named [Riptide], and immediately classified it as a top secret project. (Leave aside equipment, let alone the Mechanicus Cult, which has a very powerful centralized model in which the top leadership personally handles scientific research projects.)
After that, let the representatives of the Tu clan of each clan take charge of the research projects. The technical blueprints were brought back to the home world, and some prototypes were manufactured in small batches and tested secretly on their respective battlefields. After summarizing the test results, the project continued to be improved, and was finally fully finalized and mass-produced in the preparation stage for the third expansion.
As the hero of XV104's research and development, Shou'an naturally brought the results back to his hometown and built three prototypes in one go. It was only because he had just experienced the Tyranid invasion that not long after, the star field around his home world was wiped out. When it was empty, a huge dark area called "Quiet Land" even appeared. There were no large-scale enemies, and there was no chance to carry out large-scale testing activities. Therefore, after learning about this special military operation against Ada That’s why he was so determined to come and host it in person.
When the battle suit was about to approach the target area, Katan turned off the thrusters and suddenly lowered back to the ground. He was very confident in the endurance of the battle suit. The XV104 was far stronger than All existing battle suits. The huge battle suit fell heavily, and the huge piston-shaped mechanical legs trampled a crazy claw demon under its feet, causing the ground to tremble.
Immediately afterwards, Katan activated the heavy pulse rate gun installed on his right arm, and then swung his waist, bathing all the deformed skinless monsters in the roaring water. in plasma.
Those Ugul who were biting the fire warriors were scorched in an instant, and those who survived had to flee in all directions because of the fierce firepower.
These muscular, twisted creatures are obviously biochemical weapons of the opponent. They have never appeared on the battlefield before. Judging from their empty and aimless heads, it is obvious that they are creatures that are highly adapted to dark environments and are specially designed for underground combat. Prepare.
In fact, their brute force is indeed terrifying, they can easily tear apart the body of a fire warrior, and even the armor of a hammerhead shark, and they are very fast and move silently.
But they are meaningless facing XV104.
The heavy combat uniforms rushed past the charred remains of the Ugurs, then aimed at a dark god of death in the distance and fired fierce plasma bullets.
But the sniper whose armor was carved into a skull immediately disappeared from the spot, floating into the distance like a ghost, and released a black curtain that even visual equipment could not penetrate. The plasma could only be harmless. swept across the ground.
At this time, a laser shot hit the side of the battle suit. Katan felt the impact, but the opponent did not penetrate the armor, so he immediately turned around and fired.
Although the opponent moved at high speed, the VX104's fire control was also the most advanced. The plasma barrage of strafing still hit the enemy's rear. The Falcon swayed and fell to the ground, and at the same time, the hatch popped open. , the emergency escape device was activated, and two slender figures wrapped in psychic energy sprang out like lightning, leaving the dangerous range when the tank exploded.
Ca'tan was a little regretful that he failed to kill those damn pointy-eared enemies, but he knew his mission, so he turned to a new target to provide support for the fire warriors behind him and on the sides.
At the same time, under the guidance of the combat suit's tactical system, two missile shield drones flew past and launched missiles in the possible direction of the enemy.
The remaining surviving drones were also buzzing nearby. Due to the well-trained volleys of the defenders, they kept a distance from the enemy and seemed to briefly intercept Ada's attack. offensive.