I realized, at one point, that a majority of my focus had been on land and air. Even then, my land forces contained troopers, snipers, heavy weapons, and melee. The air at least has some presence in the form of combatants and Elite combatants, but there was still one area that had gone untouched: the sea.
Originally I had assumed I would have the same problems with an aquatic model as I did with the flight model. Thankfully the idea went smoothly, and the general movement in the water came about quite naturally. As you can see, the model has thrusters affixed to the back for the main propulsion, and then the standard flippers on the feet for stabilization. The real problems came about with the construction of the robot.
Beyond the obvious additions for underwater movement, you'll see that the robot is entirely constructed from a different base. First, everything has been overhauled with new materials to make this a nice, light suit, so that it will not immediately sink if any systems went off line. Speed in the water was a top priority, and it compensates for the low armor count. The base skeleton and surrounding "skin" is far off from the Footsoldier standard, and is closer to the green gel seen on my Devil model. The "skin" is smooth and embedded with a lattice of circuitry to keep it's shape. The chest piece is completely solid and serves as the power source.
Speaking of the power source: as you could probably guess, the solar powered standard for my various robots did not work for the marine model. The center generator on the chest is actually a battery that holds a charge. The charge comes from movement, so that as the robot moves, the water flows through and provides water-powered energy that is held in the chest piece. The robot can be stationary on a full charge for at least 12 hours and, naturally, the robot will have very little reason to stay still for that long. When stocked in a ship, they would be attached to a generator while awaiting use.
Moving on to the weaponry: I thought of a spear type weapon at first, but I wanted something that could attack quickly and also help with an attack on enemy ships. Granted, there will have to be a torpedo-equipped version at one point, but for a standard, I figured the weapons on this model would suffice. On the left arm you'll see an underwater cutting torch that I pumped up with quite a bit of power. It is a drain on the energy reserves, but I counteracted that with the power, since the robot will be able to turn it on and continue movement along the side of a ship and cut a gash in the hull. Granted, the cut will be small, but consider the aquatic model in great numbers, and you'll see the danger. On the right arm you'll see a shield type weapon. It can act as a shield, but it's main use for the particular shape is extra propulsion and stabilization, and a housing unit for a mini-dart gun. The mini-darts are not self propelled, but the gun fires them with such power that it can be counted as an underwater middle range weapon at a range of 20 feet. Also, you'll notice heated blades on the outside of the shield as an extra melee weapon that requires little power.
In the end, I believe the aquatic model has been a stunning success. Tests have been fantastic, and the robot has performed well above my initial ideas. This will most certainly serve as a basis for further aquatic models.
