Gaiaterra: Elysea's Conflict/Pincer ICV

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The Pincer ICV is main primary IFV of the Aristocracy of Encantadia. This unit is planned to be voiced by Samantha Tabak

History
In terms of doctrine, many of the successes that can be attributed to Gaiaterran warfare can be attributed to their embracing mechanisation within the Armies of Gaiaterra. From the aftermath of the Voshkod-Aquilan War, infantry and armour have operated in tandem, multiplying their battlefield effect considerably. Key to this doctrine of mechanisation is Voshkod's BMP-1 and the Alliance's Schutzenpanzer Lang HS.30. A combination of the heavy armour and tracks of a tank, space for transporting an infantry squad, and a weapon designed to support that squad, the IFV revolutionised the way infantry moved about the battlefield. Unlike infantry in unarmed APCs, an IFV could not only drop troops off but support them once they were at the front.

The vehicle that would become the Pincer went through several iterations before arriving at the familiar ICV-3 and ICV-4 profiles. The first ICV, built in 1970 V.C., was based off the Voshkod BMP-1 and it was armed with a pair of 50mm anti-tank guns mounted on a large turret with a full basket; the design briefing was quite literately a fusion of tank and transport. Weaknesses in this model were apparent before the war even started, though they still saw action as impromptu light tanks.

The ICV-2 was closer to the final form and less resembling a Voshkod's BMPs, with a simplified turret mounting either a single 50mm gun or a pair of 30mm guns; the machine was considerably lighter, but the only way in or out of the machine was the hydraulic rear ramp and the turret and driver hatches, which was obviously a liability in the field. In 1981 V.C., however, the ICV-3 began production.

With an even smaller turret mounting a single machine gun and a 30mm gun making room for a roof hatch and side observation ports allowing soldiers inside to monitor the battle, the ICV-3 was produced in massive numbers and was the face of mechanised warfare. Often, the vehicle would be retrofitted into A and B marks, with A models carrying an autocannon and B models carrying two machine guns; this specialisation was useful on the field by allowing commanders to concentrate either weapon on a target while the other vehicles were free for other duties.

Since then the Pincer being the main primary Infantry Fighting Vehicle of Encantadia, it has been produced constantly, in increasingly upgraded models. It's difficult to tell where the ICV-3 ends and the ICV-4 begins, but the modern model barely resembles BMP series that Voshkod was using. An entirely new, remotely operated turret keeps the crew from venturing above the protection of the hull and removes a considerable structural weakness from the vehicle, while the inside of the vehicle is entirely reconfigured and totally modular, allowing the machine to perform a wide variety of battlefield roles, such as casualty evacuation. Better armoured than the closest Voshkod's current analogue, the BMP-3 "Mauler", the Pincer has sacrificed speed and flexibility for this protection; it's barely capable of staying afloat on water and has no additional weapons beyond its pair of heavy machine guns unlike the BMPs that Voshkod was using.