VTOL Jet Booster

Description[edit]

The VTOL Jet Booster is a piece of equipment used to increase the speed of any VTOL. The Booster itself has existed in different forms since the time of Early Spaceflight. Its modern versions were separately created by Clan Hell's Horses in 2839, while Cal-Boeing of Dorwinion developed its own in 3009 in the Inner Sphere. The technology remained Experimental until the late Jihad, when it entered limited production in 3078,[1] and slightly later the equipment entered mass production.[2][3]

Rules[edit]

Game Rules[edit]

Gameplay[edit]

The VTOL Jet Booster doubles the cruise speed of any VTOL it is equipped to, but not its flank. While it does not need a special roll to be activated, when in use a piloting modifier of +3 is added in order for the vehicle to avoid making a sideslip. No special piloting maneuvers can be performed while the Booster is active.[4]

Construction[edit]

The VTOL Jet Booster can be mounted on either a non-fixed-wing Combat Vehicle or Support Vehicle–type VTOL. The Booster is located in the main body of the unit and only one booster may be mounted per vehicle. The Booster's weight is 10 percent of a VTOL's engine weight, which is then rounded up to the nearest half ton, and the item takes up one slot. The booster cannot be Pod-mounted onto an OmniVehicle.

Per Tactical Operation's construction rules table, the cost of a VTOL Jet Booster is 10,000 per x a Vehicle's Engine Rating. The Equipment Rating for the VTOL Jet Booster, as of 3075, was D/X-F-E. However, this is no longer the case due to various equipment reclassifications, which began in 3078 and continue into the Early Republic Era.[5]

References[edit]

  1. Technical Readout: Prototypes, p. 207: Jihad Technology Advancement Table - VTOL Jet Booster Classifications change noted from being Experimental Technology to Advanced
  2. Technical Readout: 3145, p. 217: "Dark Age Technology Advancement Table" - VTOL Jet Booster reclassified at Tournament Legal/Standard Rules
  3. Tactical Operations, pp. 350, 410–411: "What information is available on VTOL Jet Booster"
  4. Tactical Operations, p. 350: "VTOL Jet Booster's usage rules"
  5. Tactical Operations, p. 350: "Construction Rules for the VTOL Jet Booster"

Bibliography[edit]