Model Number: LNR-EM01A
Code Name: Cataphract
Unit Type: Limited Production Elite Combat Mecha
Manufacturer: Beretta-Ferrari Manufacturing of New Venice
Operator: Lega Nuova Roma (Black Knight, Red Eyes Armada)
Rollout: AD 2950
First Deployment: AD 2951
Accommodations: One pilot in cockpit torso
Dimensions: Height: 15 meters; Width: 5 meters
Weight: 50 metric tons (empty); 75 metric tons (loaded)
Armor Materials: Lunar-Titanium w/ Carbon-Fiber Composites.
Powerplant: Cold Fusion
Propulsion: Rocket Thrusters (feet, back) w/ maneuvering verniers in shoulders
Performance: Turn 180) 2 seconds; Run (land): 200 Kph (125 Mph); Flight (atmosphere): Mach 1 (10Km ceiling); Underwater: 200 meter limit.
Equipment & Design Features: Sensors: 6000 meters; 360 degree panoramic viewscreen w/ linear seat cockpit in ejectable ball module.
Fixed Armaments: Beam Sword x2 in forearms (eject out the palms to activate), Beam Shield x1 on off-hand arm, Beam Rifle x1 in main hand; (Optional) Missile Pods on leg and hip hardpoints, Missile Launcher (replaces Beam Rifle), Anti-Ship Cannon (replaces Beam Rifle), Shoulder-mounted missile hardpoints (for anti-ship missiles) x2
The New Roman League--a confederation of Italian mini-states sharing a region of space coreward and towards Galactic North from Earth, underwent a modernization program for its militia in the middle of the last century. The lords of the league agreed upon a policy of issuing a shared model of manlike mecha to elite personnel. That model became the Cataphract, and the sight of these mecha--resembling plate-armored warriors from the Italian Renaissance of Old Earth in their aesthetics--became famous around the galaxy.
In the years since its introduction, the Cataphract became the model around which elite rapid-response and shock troop units built their ranks as those originally using them in household guard units transitioned to the Praetorian model from Mazarati-Benelli of Second Salermo. The Cataphract refined its design over the years, becoming well-known throughout Galactic Christendom and inspiring many other realms to build their own Limited Production models for use by elite units.
Because these units were meant for elite pilots, designers made the cockpit module in its entirety able to eject from a critically damaged mecha; those later retrieved could easily slot into another of the same model, during which time their personalized settings would export into the unit's firmware. This cut the downtime before a pilot could return to action greatly, and thus it became common practice for repair crews to swap a module to a fresh unit before commencing repairs on a damaged one. This modularity also allowed a pilot to quickly adjust loadouts. This greatly extended the lifespan of the model, with most Lega Roma elite units still fielding Cataphracts into the dawn of the 4th Millenium.
It is also because of this practice that one unit became the personal unit of the Red Eyes Armada pirate captain known as "Dashing Jack". During a daring heist in 2997, Jack and his crew followed up their daring theft in 2996 of the battleship that would become infamous as Redalen's Revenge with a raid upon New Palermo. They slipped past security on a stolen transport, took that ship all the way to a Lega Roma arsenal where damaged mecha get refurbished, and stole a total of 30 units- one being the Cataphract that would become Black Knight.
Now in the service of the Red Eyes Armada, it would sully the honor of the class by participating in a long series of pirate actions culminating in The Taking of Gabreila Robin in AD 3001- the inciting incident in The Matter of the Milky Way. That would be the beginning of the end for Black Knight, however, as volunteers from Lega Roma units would answer the call to come against Hell's Heart to rescue Countess Gabriela. Alongside Lord Roland of the Solar Guard, and other Solar Guard units, Black Knight would come to its end and the honor of the Cataphract would be washed clean.
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