RoboDozers

From OPU Wiki

Properties

• Common Metals Cost: 400
• Rare Metals Cost: 0
• Build Time: Short
• Hit Points: Medium
• Armor: None
• Track Type: Tracked
• Speed: Slow

Commands (not always available): Move, Stop, Bulldoze, Transfer, Self-Destruct.

Description

The first of these simple but powerful vehicles was brought to New Terra from Earth, and the same basic design continues to be in use by both colonies. Important in early colony construction, many of their functions have now been rendered obsolete by improved construction techniques and improved all-purpose ConVecs. The primary function left to Robo-Dozers is in road construction. Operational Notes: Robo-Dozers can bulldoze any passable terrain. Bulldozed areas are faster for all vehicles to traverse, and construction time for structures is reduced when placed on bulldozed terrain.

Tales from New Terra

It was Penny Hill's first day in the Garage. She was fresh out of tech training, and a little in awe of everything. She'd wanted to be a mechanic since her father had taken her for a ride in a Cargo Truck when she was a little girl. Now, her dream was becoming a reality. Old Tolo, the head mechanic and Garage foreman, was just completing her tour of the facility. The Garage was a sizable structure, one of the biggest pressurized spaces in the colony, but today it was crowded with vehicles in various stages of repair. "So, where do I start?"

Tolo smiled, and a scar puckered across his left cheek. Tolo was something of a legend, the only mechanic to be decorated as a war hero. "Got just the job for you, something you can prove yourself with." She followed him between a pair of parked Tiger combat vehicles to the back corner of the Garage. There, looking worn and tired, was an ancient Robo-Dozer. She looked at him questioningly. "You want me to fix this?" He shook his head. "I want you to dismantle it. Save any useful parts, and send the rest to the GORF for recycling."

She looked up at the Dozer. It was a big job, but she could handle it. But where to start? As Tolo watched her closely, she climbed up onto the Dozer's track and wiped some of the dust off its frame with her hand. On the faded yellow paint was painted a large black number 1. She blinked in surprise. "This is Number 1, the original Dozer brought from old Earth." She'd watched this same Dozer at work a dozen times throughout her young life. She ran her hands along the metal, knowing that it had been assembled hundreds of years ago on a dead world. She turned to face Tolo. "I can't disassemble this."

Tolo just looked at her. "It's your job." "I can't." "And if it means you'll lose your job?" She hesitated only a moment to square her shoulders. "I'm sorry, I just can't." Tolo cracked a smile. "Brave lady. Stick by your principles no matter what. I like that. You pass the test." She looked at him, confused. "Get down from there," he said. "We'll find you a real job. I got a Scout just came in that needs its drive overhauled." She shook her head. "It was just a test?"

He chuckled. "Chairman told me I could keep old Number 1 around just as long as she was useful. Well, you can see she's still got a use, as long as there are new recruits to evaluate."