The Mech Touch novel Chapter 3249

Chapter 3249: Crumbleshells

The struggle at the flanks took a turn from the worst as soon as the odd turtle mechs showed up. Though the Larkinsons had always been on guard against these hardy machines, it was only now that the expeditionary forces truly experienced what this ranged mech was able to accomplish!

"Those cannons hit too hard!"

"Our ranged support can't take them down!"

"Calm down! We need to charge up to them and destroy them up close."

"We can't! The other Hivar Roarer mechs are screening for their turtle mechs!"

It was only now that the main strategy of the Hivar Roarers came to life. The tiger mechs, avian mechs and other bestial machines merely served as bodyguards for the turtle mechs at the moment.

Their only role was to prevent enemy melee mechs from getting close enough to crack open the turtle shells!

When Ves saw how much impact the turtle mechs were making, he immediately became alarmed.

"What the hell are those mechs?"

He quickly called up the intelligence and the various analysis reports compiled by other mech designers.

Apparently, the turtle mechs were called the Crumbleshells. They were the signature mechs of the elite Mokabe Bombadiers mech regiment.

Even though the Bombardiers wasn't classified as an elite mech regiment, it shared several similarities with the Steel Rain.

The most notable aspect of the Crumbleshells was their odd shape and the advantages they bestowed. They were designed around their shells which offered plenty of internal volume while at the same time not displaying a large profile towards an enemy.

THese turtleshells were as thick and resilient as the armor of a medium space knight. They could withstand a lot of attacks head-on, but they were highly noted for their even thicker side armor.

By concentrating a lot of armor at the sides which would usually face towards the enemy, they were much harder to damage and disable than humanoid space knights.

"This armor design is quite ingenious actually."

Aside from the vulnerable gun ports, the turtle mechs did not possess any other exterior weak points! The top, bottom and sides of the Crumbleshell design were all thick and well-protected, but not to the point that it affected its mobility too much.

Defense wasn't the turtle mech's only strong point. Unlike space knights, the Crumbleshells were able to output a moderately high amount of damage at medium range. The gauss cannons that took the place of the limbs of a normal turtle were all of medium caliber.

This did not sound impressive at first, but the Crumbleshell's main armament were designed according to much different specifications from the cannons of the Steel Rain's iconic Cracker series.

The special cannons were characterized by relatively low accuracy, low firing rate, respectable impact damage and most notably access to a lot of ammunition!

The Crumbleshell was not a heavy mech, but due to the reasonable size of its cannons, it was able to carry a large amount of ammunition and energy cells. In addition, its large bulk and plentiful armor allowed it to absorb a lot of heat.

Although the Crumbleshells weren't accurate enough to perform long-ranged bombardment, their threat level rose drastically as long as they came closer to their targets. By employing their distinctive spinning maneuver, they were able to fire their four cannons in rotation at the same target, thereby putting any enemy in their sights under a huge amount of pressure.

If the mech being targeted couldn't find any cover or if no one forced the Crumbleshell to interrupt its action, the poor machine was bound to get crushed!

This was what was happening at the moment. The Crumbleshells did not work together to concentrate their firepower on a single target. While this allowed them to destroy individual mechs at a faster rate, they instead picked their own targets and therefore maximized the amount of human mechs that came under heavy pressure.

Instantly, the tide had turned. Though the Valkyrie Interceptors urgently used their pulse submachine guns to hit back at the Crumbleshells, the rapid streams of pulsed particles simply bounced off the exterior of the turtle mechs without accomplishing anything except chipping the outermost layer!

It was more than obvious that the Crumbleshells functioned similar to a lighter version of Doom Crawlers in space. They were practically invincible at medium range.

The only way to slaughter them in an efficient manner was to attack them at point-blank range!

Anyone could see that while the Crumbleshells completely sacrificed every form of melee combat capability. They did not even have articulating limbs which meant they weren't able to employ claws or wield handheld weapons that could help them fend off attackers.

In fact, the firing angles of their four gauss cannons were also very awkward. As long as a mech managed to land on the top or bottom of their shells, there was nothing the Crumbleshells could do to fend off their slayers!

Yet no matter whether it was the Ferocious Piranhas, the Bright Warriors or the other swordsman mechs, none of them succeeded in breaking through the ranks of the other Hivar Roarer mechs.

Though the dwarves were more than happy to go on the attack, they excelled at defense! As long as they had to defend a fixed position or an important unit, they were able to employ numerous tactics that were highly effective at preventing breaches.

The hardiness of their mechs also played a good role at this time. The general dwarven design philosophy always put a lot of emphasis on defense. Even the Hivar Roarers which was supposed to be the lightest and most mobile mech division of the Ferril punitive fleet did not go too lightly when they formed their mech roster.

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