Kossandra Tank
Mass: 45 tons
Movement Type: Tracked
Power Plant: Jones 180
Cruising Speed: 43.4 kph
Flank Speed: 63.2 kph
Armor: Crimson 3
Armament:
1 Magesty Arms Hellbore Autocannon
3 Browning Machine Guns
Manufacturer: Majestry Automotive & Heavy Industry
Primary Factory: Payvand, Tetski, Kossandra’s Memory & Canopus IV
Communication System: Magestrix Alpha
Targeting & Tracking System: Magestrix Gamma
Type: KO-1 Kossandra Tank
Technology Base: Inner Sphere
Movement Type: Tracked
Tonnage: 45
Equipment Mass
Internal Structure: 4.5
Engine: 180 14
Type: ICE
Cruising MP: 4
Flank MP: 6
Heatsinks: 0
Control Equipment: 2.5
Lift Equipment: 0
Power Amplifier: 0
Turret: 1.5
Armor Factor: 104 6.5
Armor Value:
Front: 30
Turret 30
R/L Side: 15
Rear: 14
Weapons & Ammo Location Tonnage
AC/10 Turret 12
Ammo (20) Body 2
Machine Gun Turret 0.5
Machine Gun Front 0.5
Machine Gun Rear 0.5
Ammo (100) Body 0.5
Overview:
In the years before the Reunification War, the Magistracy of Canopus focused its efforts on economic development, rather then military conquest. As a result most of their military spending was on their Navy, which was responsible for securing their lines of communication and protecting their many merchant and passenger vessels. Only a limited amount of funding was left over for the MAF ground forces With only limited resources, the Magistracy Armed Forces could not invest heavily in expensive battlemech and modern armor production facilities, nor was there much need for them to do so. The main concern facing the MAF was bandit raids on their world, which could largely be dealt with by local militia forces, backed up by a small standing army. While the Battlemechs and modern armor needed by the MAF could easily be procured from the Free Worlds League and Capellan Confederation, it was determined that it would be cheaper to produce the new militia tank locally. In 2545 the Kossandra Tank had entered production on Canopus IV and by 2570 it was most common AFV in the Magistracy and was in production at factories on Payvand and Tetski.
Capabilities:
The Kossandra is a basic tank designed for use by the Magistracy militia. A simple design, it was cheap to produce and could be deployed in large numbers, with massed formations of Kossandras being able to counter typical bandit raiding forces.
When requesting the new design, the senior officers of the MAF specifically asked for a tank that was designed for defensive operations. The resulting design is relatively slow compared to contemporary designs such as the Capellan’s Korvin Tank. This was not seen as a weakness as it was expected that the tanks would commonly fight from fixed defensive positions. It was for this reason that the armor was concentrated on the front and turret of the tank, leaving the sides and rear very vulnerable. To help conceal the tank, the designers chose a very low silhouette, many Kossandra unit commanders tank advantage of this by using hull down positions which leave only the tank’s turret exposed to enemy fire.
The main gun of the Kossandra is a Magestry Hellbore Autocannon. This provides the tank with a heavy punch and makes it a credible threat to enemy battlemechs and heavy armor. There is a co-axially mounted machine gun in the turret and 2 other machine guns, 1 mounted in the front of the tank and one in the rear. These are intended for use against infantry forces.
Deployment:
At the start of the Reunification War the Kossandra could be found in every armor unit in the Magistracy. Outmatched in capability by the SLDF and FWL armored forces, the Kossandras and their crews fought bravely to defend their homeworlds. Large numbers of these tanks were destroyed but the design remained in production through the end of the war thanks to a factory the Canopians established on Kossandra’s Memory in 2577. Following the end of the Reunification War, production of the Kossandra was halted in favor standard SLDF designs.
