Axle - Pilot

Axle
General Data
Callsign	Axle
Name	Melody Zhukov
Age	27
Gender	Female
Faction	Capellan Confederation
Statistics
Health	3
Gunnery	5
Piloting	2
Guts	3
Tactics	3
Abilities
	Intensify Firepower
Tags
Military Cautious Dependable Officer Vehicle Crew Capellan

Biography

BattleMechs may rule the day in 31st century combat, but the brick and mortar of many a militia and even professional military are the dedicated tread-heads; those men and women who willingly and ably fire up their trusty Vedettes or Galleons in defense of hearth and home, or for the glory of their ruling House. Being part of the conventional side of things is often a thankless, fruitless endeavor that leaves many crews bitter as the MechWarriors hog the spotlight. But sometimes, tankers get lucky. Sometimes they get the right shot at the right time, winning the salvage lottery, and joining the illustrious ranks of the Mechwarriors; the knights of the modern era. But sometimes weird shit happens and you end up sitting in the cockpit of a Cicada, still wondering how all this could have happened.

That’s Axle’s story. She was the commander of one of many Vedettes assigned to garrison duty on St. Andre, then in the Chaos March. As is often the case, her company was set to engage raiders who sought to pick at the corpse of an ancient Star League base there called Fort Ravengale. The battle met, and as the chaos set in, she was manning her cupola when an enemy Cicada bore down on her Vedette suddenly, landing a kick and throwing her from her perch while detonating the autocannon ammunition stored inside the tank. Just after, a friendly shot destroyed the head of the marauding ‘Mech, sending it toppling down beside her wrecked tank. The friendly that made the shot was then obliterated by a stray particle cannon bolt, and the rest was a blur as she fell unconscious. When she woke, she was in the hospital with a concussion, broken ribs, a ruptured disc, and the sole remaining professionally trained person within 1000 klicks that had any kind of shot at strapping into and utilizing the 40-ton war machine that had died right next to her. She didn’t have a choice then, and still doesn’t now; the bills won’t pay themselves, and the Capellans didn’t want to keep her, so she struck out to the Periphery to make ends meet. And most Merc outfits are too fancy for treads.",

Bonuses

Vehicle Crew: Can pilot vehicles.

Availability

Part of the Tank Crew character origins starting option. Can be found as a random starting pilot or in hiring halls.