Designation: Gamo (Pincer Command Unit, Enforcer)

I. Dimensions:

Height:	6.2 m
Depth:	5.5 m
Breadth :	5.8 m
Weight:	26.5 metric tons

II. Type:

• Single seat all-weather combat mecha.

III. Service History:

• The service entry date is unknown. The earliest confirmed recording of a Gamo mecha was taken in 2031. Until about 2044 the Gamo was not deployed in large numbers.
• The Gamo remains in service with the Invid. It can be piloted by humanoid pilots.

IV. Propulsion:

• Main engines: 2 x IE-4 plasma-shock expansion engines with vectorable nozzles at the rear of the mecha, with a maximum thrust between 180 kN and 210 kN per engine.
• Attitude control: several internal gyroscopes for attitude control.
• Powerplant: 1 x Protoculture cell energizer.
• Fuel capacity: 14 standard cannisters of protoculture.

V. Performance:

• Maximum level speed (Terra-type atmosphere) : 725 kph
• Minimum speed : 0 kph (hover)
• Maximum running speed : 112 kph
• Delta-v capacity : ~2 kps
• Protoculture endurance : Approximately 100 hours of operational use.

VI. Electronics:

• One IMHM-1VS visual/LLLTV sensor cluster in the center of the front plate. The spectral resolution of this sensor is very poor.
• One IMHM-1RS variable frequency multi-mode phased array spherical radar system with main antennas in the arms and forward edges of the main body, and secondary antennas in the legs and rear. The radar system is advanced even by contemporary Terran standards and offers a full set of ranging, search, track, mapping and observation modes, including a high-resolution ISAR option. The installation can also function in a passive ESM mode.
• (post 2042 mecha on Earth only): One IMHM-1PS Protoculture sensor, providing detection and tracking of active protoculture-powered mecha. For detection of a high-power Veritech fighter, good resolution extends out to 3.75 km, fair resolution out to 7.5 km, and poor resolution out to 21 km. A typical Destroid is detectable at slightly more than half these distances, a Cyclone at four percent of these distances, and a Gallant rifle at about one percent of these distances. Mecha in service on Earth from around 2035 to 2040 operated equivalently at about twenty-five percent of the above ranges.
• Audio receiver/speaker system with built-in translator.

VII. Armament:

• Two IHM-1 laser cannons; one on each shoulder. These cannons fire a high-intensity multi-wavelength infra-red laser (600-1000 nm), capable of delivering 10 MW of power each. A continuous beam is sustainable for up to three seconds. Both cannons fire together, and can be aimed at the same point on a target for increased penetration, or the beams can remain parallel, for more extensive but shallower damage.
• Two IHM-2 plasma pulse cannons under the chin. These cannons are versions of a cannon also seen in the gunpods for the Iigaa mecha. The cannon stores plasma and discharges it in discrete packages ('annihilation discs'). Typically, a one-second burst from a single cannon contains 2.6 MJ of thermal and kinetic energy. The IMG-2 can store sufficient plasma for 10 seconds of continuous fire.
• Two three-taloned anti-personnel claws on arms.

VIII. Armor:

The armor of the Pincer is composed of a composite of metals, ceramics, and organics unique to Invid manufacture. Research continues into the composition of this material, though results from X-ray crystallography, NMR, and mass spectroscopy studies remain classified. The armor stops all small arms, heavy infantry weapons fire, and light mecha-mounted weaponry, and provides fair to good resistance to medium mecha-mounted weaponry, such as the Valkyrie's 55mm APFSDS round. In addition, the armor is highly sloped, and rounds that hit at oblique angles are very likely to glance off it without penetrating.

Note: The sensor eye is highly susceptible to damage, and any hit there will disable the mecha by penetrating the cockpit and killing the pilot.

All Invid mecha provide full protection from nuclear, biological, and chemical hazards, using a sealed overpressure cockpit environment.

IX. Development:

The Pincer Command Unit (PCU) was developed by the Invid at a relatively late stage of the long Invid/Tirol wars. It was developed as a mecha for fire support, heavy assault and for battlefield commanders, previous heavy mecha apparently being considered ineffective in those roles. However, either for problems with the manufacture of these mecha or because of problems with the protoculture supply (the Gamo uses a multiple of protoculture compared to smaller mecha), the numbers of observed Gamo remained low, and as a result, it remained a rather unknow design.

This situation did not change until 2044, when the Gamo was seen in ever larger numbers on Earth in the armies of the Regess. There, it was used in all its designed roles, as well as backup to the Iigaa suicide attacks in space. Apparently, the Gamo is a succesfull mecha and popular with its pilots.

The Gamo is clearly a descendent of the same Invid development thinking as the Iigaa and the Gurab. The overall design is crablike, although the Gamo has fixed cannons rather than hardpoints. The cannons mounted are high capacity laser cannons, with two small pulse cannons tucked under the chin of the mecha. The armor protection is thick and well rounded to aid in deflecting incoming rounds. The Gamo's usefulness is occasionally higher than that of the Gosu battloid; the Gamo can, for instance, bring more firepower to bear on a target than the more nimble Gosu.

The Gamo is an impressive mecha, and its future in the Invid arsenals seems to be assured for the foreseeable future, with production still continuing. It is likely in service both with the humaniform Invid on Earth and the Regess is deep space.

See additional design notes.

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