Name: Hound Soldier (aka “Houndsoldier”)
Alignment: Helic Republic
Family: Shepard Dog
Registration Number: RPZ-12
Crew: 1
Height: 7.4 Meters
Length: 23 Meters
Weight: 66 Tons
Top Speed: 330 kph
Weapons: Twin 60mm Buster Cannons, Triple Impact Cannon, Quad Missile Pods, Hardened Alloy Cross Lances, Hardened Alloy Claws and Teeth.
Special Abilities: Active Radar System.
Level: 4
The Hound Soldier was manufactured by the Helic Republic as a high-end alternative to the Command Wolf. With a whopping 330 kilometers per hour behind it, faster than the average Lightning Saix, the Hound Soldier is one of the fastest boosterless Zoids ever created. However, don’t mistake the Hound Soldier for the Lightning Saix; they’re quite different machines. While the Hound Soldier can run at 330 kph, it can only do so in a straight line, and its extreme speed severely hacks away at its maneuverability. The Hound Soldier is also easily one of the best armed Zoids in its class, boasting a quartet of missile launchers, a Triple Impact Cannon, and a pair of powerful Buster Cannons. And that’s only the ranged weapons: for weapons, the Hound Soldier has a pair of long and powerful lances for melee.
As far as performance goes, the Hound Soldier is like the high end version of the Command Wolf (as was stated earlier). At lower speeds, the Hound Soldier’s agility and maneuverability is really quite good. In fact, some former Command Wolf pilots have in the past remarked that they could “pull all the old tricks” from inside this Zoid’s cockpit. So much for the saying about old dogs, eh?
All jokes aside, the Hound Soldier is quick and all-around powerful Zoid. Performance only suffers at high speeds, and the ‘Soldier has an array of powerful weapons to deal with its enemies. The Hound Soldier can also operate in many different terrains (plains, forest, jungle, swamp, urban...) without too many problems. The only catch is that its armor isn’t the greatest -- a few shavings below Blade Liger-grade. Still, the Hound Soldier is one of those machines that always seems to have another ace up its sleeve, and many pilots favor and respect it for its adept juggling of performance and firepower.
Weapons:
Twin 60mm Buster Cannons:
The Hound Soldier’s main weapon is its pair of Twin 60mm Buster Cannons, both of which mounted on the Hound Soldier’s back. They’re special for one and exactly one reason: the word “Buster”. You see, both of these cannons are actually extremely -- almost ridiculously powerful specially-made beam cannons. The shots from them hit like a pair of shells three times the size (IE: 180mm), but they can only be fired once every three seconds. Still, if you get hit by these, you’re going to feel it. It’s also worth noting that the Hound Soldier must either be traveling at low speeds or stopped to use these weapons, as the kickback can topple the Hound Soldier if its not careful.
Triple Impact Cannon:
Barrels mounted in an inverted triangle formation under the Zoid’s neck is the Hound Soldier’s Triple Impact Cannon. This is the standard deal, a replica of the weapon found on the Shield Liger or the Zaber Fang. It fires AZ60mm shells at a semiautomatic rate, and has a maximum range of 300 meters. It’s a powerful weapon, if somewhat short ranged.
Quad Missile Pods:
There’s a missile pod on each on each of the Hound Soldier’s shoulders. Each pod contains three missiles, meaning that the Hound Soldier has a grand total of 12 missiles. They’re also multipurpose missiles, meaning that they can lock onto either ground or aerial targets, but the lockon time against either is increased to 1.5 times the standard time as a result. However, the missiles are otherwise standard AGM-strength, and are a very potent group of weapons if used together properly. The missile pods may not lock onto separate targets.
Hardened Alloy Cross Lances:
Why anyone decided to call them “cross lances” is a pure mystery, but the Hound Soldier has a pair of 11-meter long lances attached to its neck. They can either stay at the ready, resting behind the Zoid’s head, or pivot out into a lancing mode, where they’re sticking straight out from the Hound Soldier. The tips of the Lances are also sharpened and pointed, giving them considerable extra piercing power. A high-speed ram from the Hound Soldier is often enough to send these lances through even heavy armor, and do quite a bit of damage to the receiving Zoid. While the mounts for the lances are less armored than they perhaps ought to be, they’re close enough to the cockpit so that firing on them with ranged weapons is an illegal offense. That’s in the sanctioned Zoid Battling circuit, anyway; all’s still fair in war.
Hardened Alloy Claws and Teeth:
Just in case the Buster Cannons, Impact Cannon, Missiles, and Lances can’t do their job well enough, the fifth option for the Hound Soldier is regular melee. It’s got the standard sharpened claws and razor-like teeth to do the job. Just be sure to note that it’s hard to use these to supplement the lances, because the lances themselves often keep a speared enemy Zoid away from the Hound Soldier.
Special Abilities:
Active Radar System:
The Hound Soldier has an Active Radar System which it can use to track down opponents. This system isn’t as fancy as the 3D Doppler Radar found in the Composite Sensory Units, but it still puts a blinking dot wherever it detects an enemy or unknown Zoid. Allies are in a different color. Nifty, and better than the basic stuff. Also, the sensor is located in the Hound Soldier’s skull, meaning that its essentially impossible to destroy without taking the cockpit with it.
Available Modifications:
