Imperial Vehicles: Sentinel-Class Utility Gunship

ST/HP: 90

Hand/SR: +3/4

HT: 10f

Move: 6/250 (+11)

LWt.: 6.9

Load: 1.8

SM: +4

Occ.: 13SV

DR: 250*

Range: 360,000

Cost: $30M

Loc.: G3rRt

Stall: 0

 *The Sentinel has carbide composite armor; double DR vs shaped charges and plasma weapons.

Notes

Standard Imperial Gunship Vehicle Electronics:

• Medium Tactical Ultra-Scanner: 30-mile scan, 3-mile imaging/bioscan; 360°;
  
• Targeting Computer: +5 to hit target with a scan-lock.
  
• Night Vision Sensors: +9 nightvision, ×8 magnification (up to +3 to aimed attacks, if the vehicle aims for three turns).
  
• Tactical ESM: +1 to dodge missiles.
  
• Decoy Launcher: +1 to dodge missiles.
  
• Medium Holographic Radio: 1,000 mile range (orbital); “palm sized” holographic console.
  
• Winch: 800 lbs capacity; 20 yard cable; 6 yards per turn.
  
• Open-mounted Searchlight: 500 yard beam.
  
• Security: Simple Electronic Locks.
  

The Sentinel has room for two crewmen in its cabin, generally a pilot/navigator and a gunner/electronics crewman. Controls are computerized and may be customized so that any crewman can control any part of the vehicle. In its main compartment, it has room for up to 11 people or 5 stretchers in some mixture of standing room or fold-up chairs with harnesses. The passenger cabin has sufficient stowage space for an additional 500 lbs of cargo (typically weaponry or spare fuel/power cells).

The Sentinel has a single blaster autocannon turret located beneath the front of the vehicle, and two rear-mounted missile pods. These generally carry plasma-lance missiles to deal with heavy vehicles, but might be mounted with plasma missiles to defeat infantry targets. It also has to retractable open mounts built just inside the passenger compartment. With the doors open, a 70-lb weapon can be mounted in them and fired by passengers. By default, these are two additional blaster auto-cannons.

Weapon	Dmg	Acc	Range	Ewt	RoF	Shots	ST	Bulk	Rcl
Blaster Auto-Cannon	6d×2 (5) burn	9	400/1200	70	8	300/Ep	21M	-10	2
100mm Plasma Missle	6d×10 burn ex	3	2000/ 10,000	25	1	6	11B	-8	1
160mm Plasma-Lance Missile	6d×20(10) burn	3	2000/ 10,000	25	1	6	11B	-8	1

Look and Feel

The Sentinel-class utility gunship is a blocky vehicle, not dissimlar from a modern helicopter sans rotors. Its carbide composite armor is generally given a flat black or dark grey paint job, though the Sentinel-S has a programmable camouflage system (+$1M); When compared to imperial fighter craft, it takes up roughly the same amount of “floor space” but, lacking wings, most of its bulk is actual bulk, and it is roughly the same size as a small tank or large van; it can be compared to an aerial Vanguard in both function and appearance.

All hatches to the vehicle are “seamless,” and require a gentle touch on the right panel at which point they slowly open on gentle, soundless hydraulics. The Sentinel’s front has a wide window, allowing for a considerable view of the battlefield; it projects its vital statistics onto the windshield as a HUD. The cabin is separated from the main compartment by a simple hatch, allowing the crewmen to join their passengers, or for a passenger to move to the front if necessary. The passenger cabin can be reached via either the front cabin or via one of two hatches that lead out of the vehicle. The starboard side of the gunship is equipped with a winch, allowing it to draw stretchers or up to 4 people at once into the vehicle without descending to the ground. During travel, the interior is pressurized for a single day’s worth of air and life support, but no more than that. It’s not meant for extended trips through space, but it can travel to and from orbit without much trouble.

The Sentinel-class utility gunship sees a lot of use across the Valorian Empire. Imperial Security uses it as a patrol vehicle or for paramilitary raids. The Imperial military typically deploys them from the Imperator-class dreadnought; they allow the dreadnought to deploy up to 5000 soldiers in a massive formation via a veritable fleet of up to 500 gunships that fly from orbit towards their target. The Sentinel-class gunships mobility and space-worthiness and its very long endurance allows it to deploy soldiers nearly anywhere for a surgical strike, or even an invasion large enough to seize a spaceport, while flying close air support (especially when backed up by faster and more heavily armed Peltast-class strike fighters).