M-61A3 Panther Main Battle Tank

(General information and capabilities about the M-series vehicles may be found here: M-series.)

The Panther is a medium tank design (commonly known as a main battle tank or MBT) produced by Archangel Heavy Industries (AHI) for internal use and sale to legitimate parties. It is based almost entirely off of the M-61A2 Gardner Main Battle Tank that was in active service with the old American Empire at the time of the Cataclysm. The Gardner was introduced at the same time as the M-36A1 Stirling Light Tank which AHI has released as the M-36A2 Jaguar Light Tank.

The Panther (Gardner) was designed to act as a sort of "general purpose" tank. As the most balanced of the tanks offered by AHI, it is well armed and armored and is thus capable of engaging a variety of threats. In fact, with a well-trained crew, this tank is capable of engaging, and usually defeating, a Glitter Boy power armor while surviving the encounter.

Only slight modifications from the original design were made while producing the Panther. The main gun was improved with some slight advances in rail gun technology. The sensors were also replaced with improved versions. Other than these and a few stylistic changes, the vehicle is virtually identical to the pre-Rifts version.

Like the other tanks in service with the old American Empire at that time, the Panther was equipped with advanced fuel cells instead of a conventional engine or nuclear reactor. The tanks of hydrogen fuel are stored within the vehicle. However, the hydrogen tanks that powers the energy weapons are stored with the ion cannon and pulse laser.

As with most of the other M-series vehicles, the Panther is equipped with the Mk II Computer-Enhanced Targeting System. This is an extremely advanced targeting system that was on the cutting edge of pre-Rifts technology.

The Panther has a very sleek, relatively low-profile design. The "engine" (fuel cells) is placed at the front of the tank to help provide additional protection against head-on fire. This means that the turret is further to the rear than on most tank designs. The turret itself is smaller than might be expected due to the fact that none of the crew are actually inside it. The main gun is loaded through an advanced and reliable automated system that will quickly load any type of ammunition specified by either the gunner or commander. This eliminates the need for one of the crew to act as a gunner. The weapon is fully stabilized and has advanced recoil compensation to eliminate what little recoil there is. This means that the tank can fire with full accuracy while traveling at top speed over rough terrain.

The advanced composite spaced laminate armor is steeply sloped to help deflect incoming shots and sports an ablative coating to help protect against energy weapons. Armored side-skirts are in place to protect the treads from incoming fire. The treads are also slightly wider than normal to help lessen the ground pressure from the tank and thus increase its operational possibilities. A special explosive charge is mounted on the bottom escape hatch. This charge is designed to create a foxhole for the crew in the event that they are forced to abandon the tank. The explosive does no damage to the tank itself as it is directed down completely.

Two hatches are present on the rear of the tank. One is an alternate means to enter the tank besides the top hatches. The second is the door to a rear compartment. This compartment is normally used to carry either additional hydrogen tanks (up to 4 tanks), additional rounds for the main gun (up to 40 rounds), or a combination. It is also possible to carry other cargo in this compartment.

Model Type: M-61A3
Class: Main Battle Tank
Crew: Three: one driver, one gunner, and one commander. Can accommodate up to one passenger if necessary.
M.D.C. By Location:

     Turret - 330
     160mm Main Gun - 130
     Primary Turret Missile Launchers (2) - 110
     Secondary Turret Missile Launchers (2) - 90
     Forward Light Weapon Turret - 110
[1] Turret-mounted Light Auto-Cannon - 65
[1] Co-Axial Ion Cannon - 50
[2] Primary Sensor Array - 60
[2] Secondary Sensor Array - 60
[2] Searchlights (2) - 20
     Escape Hatch (1, bottom) - 50
[3] Treads (2) - 180
     Reinforced Crew Compartment (main body) - 170
[4] Main Body - 600

Notes

  1. Each of these items is small and/or difficult to strike. Any attacks must be called shots and are -3 to strike.

  2. This item is very small and difficult to strike. Any attacks must be called shots and are -4 to strike.

  3. Depleting the M.D.C. of a tread will immobilize the tank until it is replaced. Replacing a tread will take 1D6x10 minutes by a trained crew (2 replacements are carried on board) or three times as long by the inexperienced. Changing the tread is only advisable when the vehicle is not under attack.

  4. Depleting the M.D.C. of the main body effectively destroys the vehicle.

Speed: 65 mph (104 kph) on land. Cruising is normally about 30 mph (48 kph). Sealed and using an automatic snorkel, the tank can travel underwater at 30 mph ( 48 kph) at a depth of up to 18.5 feet (5.6 m).

Range: 120 miles (241 km) on one tank of hydrogen, though two tanks are normally connected at a time. The tank normally carries 6 tanks inside for the main fuel cells. Additional tanks may be carried in the rear compartment. Changing a tank takes approximately one minute for a trained crew and three minutes for the inexperienced. Two tanks are also carried to power the pulse laser and ion cannon.

Statistical Data

Height: 8.5 feet (2.6 m)
Width: 9.5 feet (2.9 m)
Length: 24 feet (7.3 m)
Weight: 51 tons (46266 kg)
Cargo: A small compartment large enough to hold a suit of light to medium body armor, compact rifle, handgun, and survival kit for each crew member. The rear compartment is roughly 2' x 2' x 6'.
Color: Typically camouflage, olive drab, dark grey, dark blue, or Midnight Black.
Power System: Fuel cells and electric motors.
Cost: Restricted military vehicle. It may also be sold to other militaries or established mercenary groups. Legitimate sales go for 5 million credits. Tanks of hydrogen are 500 credits each or 200 credits to refill.

Special Systems

  1. 160mm Hypervelocity Railgun: This is the Panther's main weapon. It is an advanced rail gun capable of firing rounds with a variety of warhead types. The weapon can easily punch through the armor of light to medium vehicles and can also seriously damage heavier opposition. Normally this weapon is fired by the gunner, but can be controlled by the commander.
       The turret is capable of 360 degree rotation and the weapon can traverse 40 degrees up and 10 degrees down from the level position. An advanced stabilization system is incorporated into the turret. It allows both the main gun and the co-axial ion cannon to be fired with full accuracy while at top speed over even rough terrain. In addition, the on-board computer-enhanced targeting system actually assists the gunner in determining and aiming at weak points in the target's armor. (See the Sensors and Systems section for information.)

    2. Primary Purpose: Assault
    Secondary Purpose: Defense and anti-aircraft
    Mega-Damage: Varies with round:

    Armor Piercing: 3D6x10+35
    High Explosive: 3D4x10 to a 20 foot (6.1 m) radius
    HEAT: 4D4x10+30 to a 12 foot (3.7 m) radius

    Range: 16900 feet (3.2 miles, 5150 m)
    ROF: A maximum of three attacks per melee regardless of gunner's hand to hand combat numbers.
    Payload: 110 rounds. The standard distribution is 60 AP, 25 HE, 25 HEAT. Up to 40 additional rounds may be carried in the rear compartment.
    Optional Rules: Two optional rules for armor penetration are presented. The author suggests #1.

    1. If the armor piercing round destroys more than 40% of the remaining armor of the target area in one hit, then it penetrates that area. When relevant, objects inside the target area take half of the equivalent damage that was inflicted in S.D.C. (Ex: A damage roll of 145 M.D.C. removes more than 40% of the armor from the main body of the target and thus penetrates. All objects inside take 72 S.D.C.)

    2. Armor Piercing rounds do critical damage on a natural strike roll of 18, 19, or 20.

  2. Co-Axial Ion Cannon: Designed to engage targets not worth spending a main gun round on, this weapon is located directly to the right of the main gun. Both weapons will always be aimed at the same target. Normally this weapon is fired by the gunner, but can be controlled by the commander.

    3. Primary Purpose: Anti-personnel, anti-vehicle
    Secondary Purpose: Defense
    Mega-Damage: 1D6x10 per shot.
    Range: 4000 feet (1200 m)
    ROF: Equal to the gunner's combined hand to hand attacks.
    Payload: 100 shots. It takes approximately two minutes for a trained crew to change the hydrogen tank that powers the weapon, assuming that a spare tank is available. Untrained crews will take about six minutes to accomplish this task.

  3. Turret-mounted Light Auto-Cannon: This is the same weapon as is mounted on the Jaguar only with a slightly increased rate of fire. In most intents, this is a powerful heavy machine-gun. However, since it is more powerful than most conventional machine-guns it was classified as a light auto-cannon. This weapon is placed in a cupola on the top of the turret and must be fired manually. Therefore, it does not receive any strike bonuses from the vehicle. In order to use the weapon, the commander (or gunner) must stand up a small access path from the main body through the turret. The weapon is primarily used against flying opponents. Normally this weapon is fired by the commander, but can be used by the gunner if necessary.

    4. Primary Purpose: Anti-aircraft, anti-vehicle
    Secondary Purpose: Defense: anti-personnel
    Mega-Damage: 1D4 per single shot. A burst is 60 rounds and inflicts 1D6x10.
    Range: 3000 feet (914 m)
    ROF: Single or Burst. Equal to the gunner's combined hand to hand attacks.
    Payload: 6000 round ammo box; that's 100 bursts.
    Note: The weapon is fitted with a laser targeting device. When used, the device gives a +2 to strike.

  4. Forward Light Weapon Turret: A small turret is mounted in the forward hull, slightly to the right side. This turret is capable of 260 degree rotation and the weapon can traverse 30 degrees up and 15 degrees down from the level position. A light grenade launcher and a laser pulse cannon are mounted in the turret. Both weapons always aim at the same target and cannot be moved separately. The turret is normally controlled by either the gunner or commander. However, this is the only weapon that is capable of being controlled by the driver if necessary.
    5. Primary Purpose: Anti-personnel
    Secondary Purpose: Anti-vehicle
    Mega-Damage:
    Grenade Launcher: (Fragmentation) 4D6 single to a 12 foot (3.6 m) radius or
    2D6x10 for a 10-round burst to a 40 foot (12 m) radius.
    Pulse Laser: 2D6 per single shot. Burst as per machine-gun rules.

    Range: 3000 feet (914 m) each
    ROF: Either grenade launcher or pulse laser. Equal to the gunner's combined hand to hand attacks.
    Grenade Launcher: Single or 10-round burst
    Pulse Laser: Treat it as a machine-gun as per the modern weapons rules.

    Payload:
    Grenade Launcher: 400 rounds
    Pulse Laser: 450 shots. However, for damage purposes, consider a "magazine" to be 90 shots. It takes approximately two minutes for a trained crew to change the hydrogen tank that powers the weapon, assuming that a spare tank is available. Untrained crews will take about six minutes to accomplish this task.

    Note: The pulse laser is tied into the enhanced targeting system. Therefore, it receives those bonuses. However, the grenade launcher is too inaccurate for this and is not tied into the system.
  5. Primary (MRM) Turret Missile Launchers (2): A pair of medium surface to air missiles are located on each side of the turret. Standard issue is fragmentation warhead, but other types may be used. (See the new missile/bomb tables for other statistics). It is also possible to mount other types of more conventional medium range missiles on the tank. However, the missile racks would need to be modified and doing so would strip the tank of its primary defense against air threats. Normally this weapon is fired by the gunner, but can be controlled by the commander.

    6. Primary Purpose: Anti-aircraft
    Secondary Purpose: Defense
    Mega-Damage: 2D4x10 to a 50 foot (15.2 m) blast radius
    Range: 70 miles (112.7 km)
    ROF: 1, 2, 4
    Payload: 4 missiles, 2 per side.

  6. Secondary (SRM) Turret Missile Launchers (2): Four short range surface to air missiles are located in a second launcher on each side of the turret. Standard issue is plasma/HEAT warhead, but other types may be used. (See the new missile/bomb tables for other statistics). This is a dedicated surface to air missile launcher. Thus it is unsuitable for other types of missiles and cannot be modified. Normally this weapon is fired by the gunner, but can be controlled by the commander.

    7. Primary Purpose: Anti-aircraft
    Secondary Purpose: Defense
    Mega-Damage: 1D6x10 to a 15 foot (4.6 m) blast radius
    Range: 5 miles (8 km)
    ROF: 1, 2, 4, 8
    Payload: 8 missiles, 4 per side.

  7. Smoke Dispenser (2): Mounted on each side of the turret towards the front is a smoke grenade launcher. This is used to lay down a dense smoke screen. The smoke screen may be used for defense, to provide cover while pulling back, or to confuse the enemy.

    8. Primary Purpose: Defense
    Secondary Purpose: Confusion
    Effect: Creates a cloud of smoke with a 30 ft (9.1 m) radius
    Range: 1,200 feet (365 m)
    ROF: Two per melee
    Payload: 24, 12 per launcher.

  8. Sensors and Systems of Note: When first built, the Panther (Gardner) had many advanced systems incorporated into it to help it survive on the modern battlefield. Some of these systems were very new at the coming of the Rifts and are thus found in only a select few other vehicles.
    1. Radio/Video Communications: The long range, directional communications array has a range of 500 miles (804 km). The short range directional radio has a range of of 5 miles (8 km).
    2. Radar: Advanced radar with a range of 50 miles (80.4 km). It can identify 96 targets and track 48 as low as 50 feet (15.2 m).
    3. Spotlights (2): Range of 600 feet (183 m).
    4. Heads-Up Display: All crew members have an advanced helmet system with an integrated HUD capable of displaying any type of information fed from the computer.
    5. Stabilization System: This automatic stabilization and recoil reduction system allows the tank to fire both its main gun and co-axial weapon with full accuracy while moving at top speed even over rough terrain.
    6. Mk II Computer-Enhanced Targeting System: This was virtually the most advanced system of its type before the coming of the Rifts. This sophisticated targeting systems integrates and analyzes all incoming data (including low-light, infra-red, ultraviolet, video, and MAD) nearly instantaneously. It then assists the gunner in targeting the most vulnerable area of the target by actually automatically placing the gun on target and displaying a readout of the target and vulnerable area(s) on the HUD display. The vulnerable area may be a natural weak spot of the target such as a head or it may be an area where the target has already taken damage.
         The only problem with this system is that it was designed and programmed before the coming of the Rifts. The system has therefore had to be reprogrammed with current information about existing robots, power armors, vehicles, aircraft and other potential threats. In fact, the database is programmed with all known (by AHI) threats in North America including Supernatural threats. However, information from other areas and countries is extremely sparse.
         Luckily, the system was designed with the ability to make guesses about a target based on a set of generic templates and by comparison with other similar threats, though not at full efficiency.

        7. Effect: The main gun, co-axial ion-cannon, and the forward turret pulse laser can make called shots just like a normal shot but at only a -1 to strike penalty (6+ to hit instead of 12+). Against targets that are not in the target database, the shot is at -3 to strike (8+ to hit instead of 12+). Other penalties may still apply.

    7. Imaging Systems: The tank has complete visual/video, low-light, infrared (thermographic and infrared light), ultraviolet, and magnetic anomaly detection (MAD) imaging systems to allow it to fight in any weather and conditions.
    8. Periscope and Snorkel: A telescoping sensor array is installed in the turret. It is capable of a 10 foot (3 m) extension from the top of the turret (it can see over a 18.5 foot/5.6 m obstacle) and also acts as a snorkel when the tank is under water. The sensor array is tied in to all of the imaging systems of the tank.
    9. EMP Resistance: All systems in the tank are hardened against electro-magnetic pulses (EMPs). Almost all systems also have multiple backup systems so that the tank can continue functioning at full capacity even when damaged.
    10. Fire Detection and Control: The tank is equipped with sensors that immediately detect any internal fire and activate the extinguisher system to put out the fire anywhere in the tank.
    11. Full Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Protection: The tank has full NBC protection when sealed. This includes computer controlled life-support, internal heating and cooling, air purifier, air circulation, gas filtration, and independent oxygen supplies for up to 48 hours.

  9. Bonuses: The Panther incorporates many advanced and unique features. Features such as high maneuverability and excellent interface design increase the effectiveness of the tank.

    10. + 10% to all piloting rolls (driver)
    + 15% to all navigation related rolls due to inertial tracking and other features
    + 10% to all communication related rolls due to advanced communication systems
    + 1 attack per melee (driver)
    + 2 to initiative (all)
    + 3 to strike with missiles (gunner/commander)
    The tank is so maneuverable that a dodge may be attempted, but without any bonuses.

Designed by Chris Curtis (curtis@thepentagon.com).

Copyright © 1998 Chris Curtis. All Rights Reserved.