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LEGION OF DOOM TROOPER (Mark I)



The Legion Of Doom are the lowest-ranking and lowest-powered combat-type minions in Overlord Chuckg's dominion.

Given that a tensquad of Legion troopers not only *can* kick Captain America's ass into next year, but *have* done so, that is not a comforting observation. Start with a genetically modified homo drakensis trooper -- the genemods are to take out the IQ and higher brain functions, leaving a body physically as capable, swift, and resilient as a Draka but without the sentience. Legion troopers have genetically lobotomized biocomputers for brains, with mechanical (not electronic, so as to avoid effector and EMP problems) nanocomputing add-ons to provide them with the higher functions needed for combat units.

The Draka genetic template provides adequate strength and resilience, but reaction speed is further improved by bio-grafting organic superconductor elements into all major nerve paths and replacing the cerebellum muscular coordination centers with a move-by-wire quantum nanocomputer, based on the Midnighter design.

Communications is provided by subvocal/mastoid voice communicator implant and cybernetic visual HUD -- direct neural interface was ruled out as a potential security risk. However, drug glands have been provided that allow the trooper to gland all non-recreational Culture drugs, including Quicken, which provides for enormously increased mental perception rates during communication.

The trooper's gear is then augmented with infantry fighting armor capable of withstanding near-misses from tacnukes, another Draka design. Total life support is provided.

The standard weapon is a three-in-one heavy combat rifle -- plasma packet pulses for lightly (1) armored targets and property destruction, arenak (2) railgun slugs for more heavily armored targets, and a 40mm electromag grenade launcher for multi-role purposes. Commonly available grenade loads include laser-initiated fusion micronuke (equivalent to 2-ton blockbuster bombs), nerve gas, devourer nanites, surveillance swarms, and plutonium dust for radiological poisoning area denial. Whenever possible, the plasma pulse is used, as it is the only one of the three options that does not require ammunition resupply. (A miniature total-conversion battery powers each energy weapon, thus providing nigh-infinite endurance.)

Weapons have basic security coding, and more elaborate security codes for periodic updates. In practical terms, you have to hack the damn SOB *hard* just to be able to use it at all if you're not a legitimate user (as all troopers and senior Minions are), and then you have to pull off a *miracle* hack in order to *keep* using it past the first periodic security check-ins. (Level 2 diagnostics are held daily, unless Field Command issues an exemption due to operationial considerations. Level 3 diagnostics are held weekly.)

A combination of drugs, computer boost, and metabolic tinkering reduces the unit's need for sleep to one hour per day.

The training of troopers is immense -- however, due to the duplication effect of their being born, it was only necessary to do it once. The mind-template was then copied and flash-downloaded to all troopers. The training of the original unit was utterly intense, comparable to that of Kurt Russell's character in "Soldier". Specialized secondary training packs were then added on for various roles (infantry, armor, air cavalry, pilot, space pilot, etc).

Basic infantry training is mandatory for all trooper templates, regardless of role.

A medical corps is unnecessary, due to Draka regeneration plus the healer nano standard in each fighting suit. Fighting suits can be lived in almost indefinitely. Fighting suits contain very comprehensive electro-magnetic sensor packages and sensory overload filters. Additional sensor packages are available for recon units or special tasks.

Emotions in the trooper units are nil. Strictly speaking, they're not even sentient -- they're merely neural-net biocomputers.

Squad and officer level units also exist, with comparatively greater computer add-ons to their brains. Field-grade officer units have mechanical nanocomputing AIs... again, mechanical rather than electrical nanocomputing is chosen to prevent effector hacking. Likewise, a lack of direct neural interfaces denies a chosen entry path.

The lack of true sentience is made up for in the company-grade and NCO units by:

Legion troopers do not ever train or fight alone by choice, although the tactical programs do provide for lone-fighting scenarios. The tensquad is the basic unit. Ten tensquads form a hundred. (Company equivalent) Ten hundreds form a thousand. (Battalion) Ten thousands form a regiment.

At last count, the Legion Of Doom held more regiments than can be printed on this page in Arabic numerals. Of course, with multiple universes to garrison, that many is required.



Footnotes:

(1) "Lightly" as in "21st-century armored car"

(2) Skylark Of Space reference. 500 times as strong as steel.

(3) Information is expensive to create the first time -- and cheap as dirt to copy. So you build *one really good* tactical computer OS at great expense... and then use it as widely as you can.

And, of course, getting a copy is... well, another side benefit of mechanical nanocomputers is that they can, and will, dissolve into sub-molecular sand the instant they're tampered with.




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