Gaiaterra: Elysea's Conflict/Attack Dog

''"Grrrrr--ROWF!" (lit. "For democracy!")''

-Dogs are not actually capable of understanding complex political ideas

The Attack Dog is the primary animal scout of the Alliance of Hawke.

History
"..."

-...

Renowned for their selflessness, vigilance, and loyalty, the canine race has been amongst humanity's closest allies since our respective species first crawled from the primordial ooze. For over fourteen thousand years of human history, domesticated dogs have guarded homes, scouted trails, and bravely sacrificed themselves on our battlefields in the name of the greater good, asking in exchange for only a warm fire, a comforting word, and the occasional hunk of warm flesh on which to sup.

Even today, the surest signifier of inbound Alliance forces is the appearance of an Allied Attack Dog, highly trained Shepherds rendered instantly recognizable by their high-tech training collars, matching kevlar-wool hybrid sweaters, and steely-eyed devotion to the Allied cause just like the K-9s of Aquila. This has in turn led to the veneration of these elite canines as avatars of liberation amongst the downtrodden peoples of our world's less democratic nations - as the old Skyrim saying goes, "where attack dogs lead, freedom is sure to follow", and indeed it does.

After the overwhelming success of the now fifty-year-old Canine Combatant Research (CCR) program in Kirkwall, the Alliance Council voted to establish a series of seven such campuses across the globe, devoted exclusively to the training of specially bred Shepherds in the arts of field recon, tracking, guard duty and the various lupine forms of unarmed combat. Upon graduation, qualified attack dogs are assigned to Alliance companies throughout the globe, often deep within enemy territory, where their keen senses and razor-sharp teeth have thwarted countless enemy ambushes, saving innumerable lives in the process.

That is not to say that these four-footed soldiers are invulnerable, as any visitor to Newark's deeply moving Memorial to our Canine Fallen will attest. No matter how fast and well-trained an attack dog may be, it stands little chance when faced with a fully armed enemy battalion. Despite several disastrous attempts to expand the purview of CCR programs to include armored assault and tactical weaponry as part of their core curriculum - notably the infamous "Scent Activated Smart Bomb" incident of four years ago, which left over fifty dead and numerous others injured - the attack dog remains at his or her best when pitted against a single opponent, whom they can render unmanned with a single, swift chomp to the vitals.

Alongside their impressive physical attributes, the most recent CCR graduate attack dogs have gained a new tool for their arsenal - an adapted version of the same WP100 Sonic Disruptor used by the Andoran controversial Dolphin Scout Infantry. While the adaptation process sacrificed some of the aquatic weapon's killing power, the effect is still more than robust enough to allow an attack dog to leave its enemies stunned and helpless with a single, amplified bark. After a series of unfortunate, highly publicized incidents wherein Allied Peacekeepers were permanently deafened by their over-enthusiastic canine charges, it has been mandated that all Allied forces be outfitted with specialized earpieces designed to tune out the WP100's frequency.

Trivia

 * The Attack Dogs in Alliance service are Dobermans, unlike Aquilan K-9s, which are German Shepards

Guardians of the Tacitus

 * K-9 (Aquila)
 * Attack Dog (Alliance)
 * Battle Cat (ADI)
 * Burst Drone (Protectorate)
 * War Lion (Asur Command)
 * Halfling Wolf Rider (Andora)
 * Tiger (Empire)
 * Atomic Tiger (Castanic Nuclear Division)
 * Gorilla (Community)
 * Merlion (Serpent Clan)

Destroyers of Balthazar

 * Attack Bear (Voshkod)
 * Giant Scorpion (Brotherhood)
 * Squig (Horde)
 * Alshain (MLA)
 * Long Legs (Collective)
 * Cold One (Cult of Pleasure)
 * Hippo (Encantadia)
 * Buzzers (Scrin)

Neutrals

 * CORV Drone (Coalition)
 * Fenrisian Wolf
 * Ice Wolves (Heralds)
 * Hawk (Order)
 * Mutant Hound (Survivors)
 * War Wolf (Syndicate)
 * Giant Rat (Skaven Horde)
 * Kroot Hound (Tau Merchant Guard)
 * Exo Scout (Conglomerate)
 * Cougar (Legion)

DLC

 * ... (Federation)
 * ... (Corona)
 * ... (Party)
 * ... (Skynet)
 * ... (Dominion)
 * ... (Elemental)
 * ... (Autocracy)
 * ... (League)
 * ... (Swarm)
 * ... (Pirates)
 * ... (Elona)
 * ... (Ascalia)
 * ... (Confederation)
 * ... (Kingdom)
 * ... (Goo)
 * ... (Security)
 * Giant Centipede (Imperium)
 * ... (Dynasty)
 * ... (Warlords)
 * ... (Cult)
 * ... (Raiders)
 * ... (Theocracy)
 * ... (ASA)
 * ... (Insurgents)
 * ... (Bastion)
 * ... (Guardians)
 * ... (Hierarchy)
 * ... (Sundered)
 * ... (Ecumene)
 * ... (Concordat)
 * ... (Contingent)
 * ... (Rangers)
 * ... (Eden)
 * ... (InGen)
 * ... (Hallows)
 * ... (Commune)
 * ... (Clique)