Gaiaterra: Elysea's Conflict/Kurma Mobile Armor

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The Kurma Mobile Armor is an Elonan field infantry. Planned to be voiced by.

Tactical analysis

 * Like a turtle: Slow moving but deadly, the Kurma Mobile Armor is a battlesuit that the Sultanate bought from the Syndicate. Carrying a massive ten-gauge shotgun, the Kurma is deadly against infantry, as long as it can close the gap.
 * Break their shell open: The Kurma troops also carry satchel charges full of explosives to use against enemy armor, safe from being crushed or blown to pieces like other infantry.
 * Six-million rupee turtle: Kurma operators can expend their fuel reserves to increase the speed of their servos and motors for the joints of their suits, allowing them to temporarily move as fast as any other infantryman without losing their protection.
 * Can't beat the hare: Unlike other battlesuits, the Kurma moves slowly and is vulnerable to air attack. Sultanate commanders must always be mindful of this weakness.

History
"Be careful! That armor cost more than your life and everything you have!"

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The Brotherhood tests a lot of their designs in nations that really have no choice but to accept their presence. Nations too poor to refuse the Brotherhood aid, or too corrupt to complain about the many, many deaths. Elona might have been such a nation, but the many Western-educated leaders provided a troubling buffer against the Syndicate's usual methods. Instead, the Brotherhood offered to work hand in hand, developing their technologies in return for giving the Sultanate a cut. The Sultanate agreed, though it keeps a close eye on the Brotherhood's actions.

This has resulted in some benefits, one being the Kurma Mobile Armor. Developed as the Brotherhood's first attempt at a battlesuit, the Kurma was just a man in a suit of armor that had servomotors attached to the limbs and joints. Testing was slow, and many a sepoy wound up with their elbows, knees, and spine bent in ways that men were never meant to bend them thanks to the early testing. The Brotherhood gathered enough data to realize that it would probably be better to meld the man and machine into one, but the Sultanate decided that the armor showed more promise as a suit than an integrated piece of sin against nature.

Buying the concept from the Brotherhood outright, the Sultanate set to refining the suit's systems. Ensuring the motors only bend as the user moves, the power supply was the biggest problem. Typically, the Kurma can run off a set of batteries for an hour and a half, though only moving as slowly as a Voshkod Tesla Trooper with a half-charge. Integrated weaponry was therefore a luxury that couldn't be afforded. Instead, the Kurma operators were given a massive ten-gauge shotgun, solid slugs, and a supply of satchel charges to use against enemy armor.

The Kurma operators were also given priority in terms of propaganda. Why focus on the harsh and unforgiving life of a sepoy when you can show the people how far Elona has come with a film of a Kurma team surrounding and destroying an Clique vehicle platoon. The answer is that careful cinematography comes into play (though it was reported that the director had to be stopped multiple times from having the Kurma go into a massive dance number). This favoritism has led to the Kurma operators being ostracized from their fellow troops and put at the forefront of battle by commanders who don't realize that their armor isn't an invincible shield against the enemy. Only after a massive defeat by the MLA in the sands bordering Hyboria did the Sultanate realize that perhaps their armor wasn't a total war winner. To compensate, new motors are being distributed which should aid in moving the Kurma around the field.

Despite being headlined as elite infantrymen, most Kurma operators are common sepoys who had some knowledge of mechanics or electronics on enlisting. Shoved into a hot, cramped, awkward suit of armor and told to essentially walk straight up to the enemy, most Kurma operators have instead perfected a new tactic, of huddling close together to one another and practically crawling towards the enemy. One Alliance observer has termed this tactic "turtling".