Ares
Resources Extraction Division, Jackhammer asteroid shell breaker.
Weaponization of
commercial mining equipment: The Mining Coalition has scrambled to
convert as much of Areas industrial mining equipment into ad hoc
weapons systems as quickly as possible. The miners are master
fabricators, re purposing and constructing equipment/weapons as they
must, being completely isolated from the resources of the inner
sphere.
Industrial jackhammer hard surface overburden removers are used for the toughest shell breakthroughs. Only lasers are more powerful, but consume far more energy and fuel, so Jackhammers are a cheaper and more cost effective tool for asteroid shell breaking. The mining coalition has retrofitted and re-purposed the many varied mining tools that they are so intimately familiar with for the purposes of offense/defense.
The jackhammers are used on a regular basis as kinetic energy round throwers, providing the miners a cheap way to keep the Ares Corp. mercs at bay, by launching a hail of penetrators at approaching enemy vessels. The penetrators are cheap, and some have been modified with basic guidance, explosive, and thruster packages. Unlike missiles, the bare penetrators, "fly dark" ie. they have no visible / electrical spectrum emissions which would betray their position to the target vessels. Enemy vessels have no warning of approaching rounds, until they are hit.
Achieving a hit is difficult, often lucky, but the fear factor has been very effective on enemy vessels. Penetrators are cheap, and so large numbers can be thrown at a target.
They have also been successfully used as "crowbars" to break through the armor of a large security vessel, armor not normally broached by any mechanical system.
Industrial jackhammer hard surface overburden removers are used for the toughest shell breakthroughs. Only lasers are more powerful, but consume far more energy and fuel, so Jackhammers are a cheaper and more cost effective tool for asteroid shell breaking. The mining coalition has retrofitted and re-purposed the many varied mining tools that they are so intimately familiar with for the purposes of offense/defense.
The jackhammers are used on a regular basis as kinetic energy round throwers, providing the miners a cheap way to keep the Ares Corp. mercs at bay, by launching a hail of penetrators at approaching enemy vessels. The penetrators are cheap, and some have been modified with basic guidance, explosive, and thruster packages. Unlike missiles, the bare penetrators, "fly dark" ie. they have no visible / electrical spectrum emissions which would betray their position to the target vessels. Enemy vessels have no warning of approaching rounds, until they are hit.
Achieving a hit is difficult, often lucky, but the fear factor has been very effective on enemy vessels. Penetrators are cheap, and so large numbers can be thrown at a target.
They have also been successfully used as "crowbars" to break through the armor of a large security vessel, armor not normally broached by any mechanical system.
