Gaiaterra: Elysea's Conflict/Su-17 "Vulture"

"Vulture ready for take off!"

-Su-17 "Vulture"

The Su-17 "Vulture" is the main multirole fighter used by the Moonlight Liberation Army. Planned to be voiced by *TBA*

Tactical analysis

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Overview
Formerly based on a fictitious concept that was rejected by Malfurion for being too Guardian-ish and knockoff of an Andoran Apollo fighter design, the Interceptor are refurbished versions of the the Su-17 'Fitter' which was exported to Voshkod allied like Ascalia, Pro-Voshkod Southern Continent nations, Encantadia and Elona. The MLA-modified Su-17s, nicknamed "Vulture", will also be functionally different in that it's default armament now consists of two externally mounted 30mm autocannons and UB-32 rocket pods.

History
"..."

-...

Short story
"This is outpost Molotok, come in! Anyone, please come IN!" the radio operator yelled in a fruitless attempt to get through the signal interferences that turned every message going in and out of the base into a garbled mess of static, occasionally broken up by distorted fragments of speech. Across the entire region, Voshkod forces found themselves in the same chaotic quagmire. Back home, Premier Lunafreya had canceled all his meetings, observing the unfolding crisis alongside her chiefs-of-staff, who had all been used to comfortable desk work after Lyse and Alexander's glorious victories over the Elsword-Aquilan task force at (Kurmok) in 2024 V.C.. Now, they could only sit and watch impotently as the Southern Continent was falling and with it the dream of a Voshkod "tropical" empire. Suddenly, someone inside the command tent noticed a group of armed fighters at the entrance. The operators scrambled for their pistols, but the strangers lobbed a number of Molotov cocktails into the tent, immolating it along with every poor soul inside it. The rebels chuckled at the sight and moved on, only to get gunned down by an enraged General Orlov as he and Fran Eruyt, fought their way through the base. Meanwhile, Redwald Provost and his co-pilot climbed into the cockpit of their Mi-24. Foregoing any system checks in the heat of the moment, they tried to get the rotors to full power as fast as possible to evacuate the General. "We're almost there, Sir, hurry!" Fran reassured Orlov who remained silent and looked at the carnage around him as if in some kind of daze. Columns of fire and black smoke rose from all corners of the base while the air was filled with the sound of wild gunfire and frantic screams.

Suddenly, he made out a flying object approaching rapidly from beyond the horizon and signaled Fran to halt. "You see that thing? Is that a plane?" the General wondered. "Ha! Looks like frontal aviation's coming to bail us out!", Fran exclaimed with new-found hope, raising her fist to cheer. But then, the suspicious plane opened fire, completely mauling the helicopter along with its pilots in a murderous barrage of 20mm rounds. "P-P-Planes!?" Fran uttered in total disbelief. "They have planes now!?". Mere moments later, the plane turned around and unleashed a rapid volley of rockets onto the remaining vehicles while a second squadron rained down rockets on the fleeing Voshkod soldiers who were now abandoning all their posts and fleeing for their lives. This was the cue that snapped Orlov out of his temporary daze. "Everyone! After me! Follow me to the Shelter!" As he ran, he grabbed Fran, who was still frozen in shock, by her shoulder and pulled her with him. What he and everyone else oft-ironically referred to as "the Shelter" was indeed little more than an improvised contraption of metal cargo containers buried in the sand, with only a small hatch and a short air pipe sticking out at the surface. Originally set up to protect personnel and equipment from mortar barrages, no one wanted to spend much time inside these "steel coffins", for the lack of proper air conditioning made them exactly that. But Orlov knew that the battle for his base was lost and that anyone caught out in the open would be slaughtered. Their only choice was not to fight but to hide.

Guardians of the Tacitus

 * F/A-18E Super Hornet (Aquila)
 * Harrier (Alliance)
 * FA-50 (ADI)
 * Kaizen (Protectorate)
 * Draken (Andora)
 * J-10 (Empire)
 * KF-16 Fighting Falcon (Community)

Destroyers of Balthazar

 * MiG-35 Fulcrum (Voshkod)
 * Yak-141 Freestyle (Brotherhood)
 * MiG-15 Fagot (Horde)
 * Su-17 "Vulture" (MLA)
 * F-20 Tigershark (Collective)
 * MiG-21bis Fishbed (Encantadia)
 * Mystere
 * ... (Scrin)

Neutrals

 * Land Speeder Tempest (Coalition)
 * Chaos Harrier (Heralds)
 * Samael Assault Plane (Order)
 * Hawker Jumpjet (Survivors)
 * Phoenix Interceptor (Syndicate)
 * nEUROn (Conglomerate)
 * Thunderbolt Fighter (Legion)

Bonus Factions

 * A-143 Buzzard (ASA)
 * Bastion AMX (Bastion)
 * Multirole Fighter Creep (Rangers)
 * G91 (Pirates)
 * Elona Mirage 2000 (Elona)
 * MiG-17 Fresco (Ascalia)
 * Beta Warbird (Dominion)
 * Netz (Security)
 * Tolan Rocket Glider (Ascendancy)

DLC

 * Viper (Federation)
 * Chongming (Corona)
 * ... (Party)
 * Vulture Droid (Skynet)
 * ZR-15 (Elemental)
 * Jackal Fighter (Autocracy)
 * MiG-17 Fresco (League)
 * ... (Swarm)
 * AMX (Confederation)
 * J35J Draken (Kingdom)
 * ... (Goo)
 * Me-262 Schwalbe (Imperium)
 * ... (Dynasty)
 * La-11 (Warlords)
 * Gargoyle (Cult)
 * JF-17 Thunder (Raiders)
 * Fokker (Theocracy)
 * Hawker Hunter (Insurgents)
 * Ender of Malice (Guardians)
 * Paranoia Craft (Hierarchy)
 * Dervish Jet Fighter (Sundered)
 * Inti Fighter (Ecumene)
 * De Havilland Vampire (Concordat)
 * X-32 JSF (Contingent)
 * F-16V Viper (Eden)
 * Dracoavis (InGen)
 * ... (Hallows)
 * F-86F Sabre (Commune)
 * Mirage 2000 (Clique)
 * Reisen (Guild)
 * Assault Dragonfly (Threat)
 * ... (Traders)
 * SAAB 21R (Entente)
 * ... (Oblivion)
 * ... (Corporation)
 * Banshee Fighter (Covenant)
 * ... (Institute)
 * S-55 LFS (Eremite)
 * P.1127 Kestrel (Netstorm)
 * ... (Carnival)
 * ... (Wraiths)
 * ... (Chronophage)
 * F7U Cutlass (Privateers)
 * ... (Foundation)