Gaiaterra: Elysea's Conflict/Tanuki Assault Vector

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The Tanuki Assault Vector is a type of Katsuragi Protectorate combat amphibious vehicle. Planned to be voiced by.

History
"Patrolling the Protectorates borders!"

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The sleek Tanuki Vector Assault craft is not a new development in the Protectorate's Project Phoenix King arsenal. Versions of the compact vehicle have seen service for nearly a decade as police vehicles, and the civilian version is quite a popular way of navigating the crowded streets of Eataine. Cheap to build, extremely fast, and with a low profile, the Tanuki has gained a reputation as a reliable long-ranged patrol craft and infantry fighting vehicle.

Though lacking the offensive and defensive power of the Tengu or the SDF standard Hayabusa boat, the Tanuki is much cheaper to build and easier to use and is a great deal faster on the ground due to its lower weight. Tanuki units have already seen service in the Aionysus islands, eastern Voshkod, Fodlan coasts, and the Elsword coast. They are also extremely popular with the Yakuza.

The Tanuki floats several feet off the ground on six vector jets in a manner similar to the Sudden Transport and is capable of impressive feats of speed. Unfortunately, the low traction makes the vehicle difficult to turn on the move, and deceleration must be a gradual maneuver with no ground contact and less flexibility than the Tengu. The Tanuki's kinetic-burst cannons are modeled after Allied shotguns, firing short bursts of superheated slugs in a widespread to discourage enemy aircraft and take out isolated infantry elements.

The Tanuki excels at hit-and-run attacks. To protect it against vehicles, the Tanuki's drone bay allows it to deploy Suzumebachi EMP drones, which dive onto enemy vehicles in the manner of a burst drone before disabling them with a powerful electromagnetic pulse, buying time for the patrol vehicle to escape, as a matter of fact, the drones is how the Tanuki got its name.

During early testing, when one of the drones was activated to test the EMP, the strange screeching noise and excessive static discharge generated as a side effect caused several technicians to suffer dizziness, nausea, and one even defecated himself. Seeing them stumble around, one designer jokingly commented that they were acting like the Tanuki Racoon Dogs of Myth, shambling about like they had drunk an entire keg of rice wine and that he wouldn't be surprised if they went off to try to seduce women. Despite being such an off-color remark, one of the executives of Aichi Hoverworks actually found it clever and quite humorous. Thus the name Tanuki stuck.

Rumour has it the Tanuki was in fact based on the classic Aquilan Ranger Scout Car or the former SDF Komatsu jeep, and despite the vast difference in shape between the two vehicles the idea has merit. Both are small, light military vehicles with anti-infantry weapons and a priority of speed over armor, and both have seen excellent sales in civilian markets as well as military contracts.

Indeed, the Tanuki is leading the pack in foreign vehicle sales as something of a novelty in Aquila and Eorzea; they are popular enough that former movie star and Minutemen Commander Col. Ronald Reagan uses an imported 1977 V.C. sports model as his personal staff car. The export of Tanuki vehicles are carefully regulated, and each vehicle contains a special internal failsafe that will burn the sensitive integrated circuitry if non-authorized personnel attempts to access it, denying foreign scientists a look at the computerized core.