Wet Powder Manoeuvres

Icari Isidolde

A former rogue-turned-soldier for hire whose exploits during the Neutral Rim War bestowed upon her the moniker of the greatest mercenary in the Neutral Rim. You first ran into her as a possible enemy while she was on a secret job from the late Admiral Harold Grey to spark a war between the Solar Alliance and PACT by "arranging" the sinking of an Alliance diplomatic vessel by PACT ships. Despite the rocky start to your relationship with Icari, she eventually grew to become a trusted confidant onboard your old ship - although she would be quick to deny that and insist she was only there for the money. Despite frequently being hired (or perhaps because she was frequently hired) by the Alliance, she has a largely cynical view of the Solaris government. That cynicism colors her perception of the world in general - she was, after all, thrust into the ugly underworld of human society from a young age when her parents were murdered by Compact rebels.

Findings of the People's Armada, Re: Melee Combat

Following the deployment of the M-300 Type A Ryder (referred as the "Elite" ryder model by rank-and-file pilots), the People's Armada introduced the Model 1 Beam Sword to our glorious officer corps. As part of Dear Leader Veniczar Fontana's Fleet Modernization Project, this study was commissioned by the Veniczar to analyze the role that the Model 1 Beam Sword played in the Neutral Rim War.

After compiling extensive battle data, as well as reviewing over 5000 hours of nose camera footage, the People's Armanda has found that overall, the Model 1 Beam Sword accounted for approximately 0.00004 percent of the confirmed kills performed by the M-300 Type A Ryder. Missiles accounted for 63 percent of the kills while the stock M-1 Rifle accounted for the remaining 37 percent. Pilot interviews confirmed the Model 1 Beam Sword's lack of utilization, with virtually all interviewees seeing no strategic value in charging headlong into the paths of enemy ryders at speeds of over 100 km per second to intercept enemy ryders within the Beam Sword's 20-meter effective range when the far more practical M-1 Rifle was available.

According to the Intel Office, the Solar Alliance currently has no active ryder model armed with any sort of melee weaponry.

Then why did the People's Armada originally believe that melee weaponry was an integral part of a ryder's arsenal? The truth lies in the wretched lies of Imperialism. We the People's Armada largely inherited the New Empire's military equipment - an expediency which was necessary at the time - and with it, inherited the Empire's fascination with melee weaponry, which in turn, they inherited from the Imperialistic Holy Ryuvian Empire. Based on the facts gathered by this commission, the People's Armada concludes that melee weapons serve no credible tactical purpose and is merely a symbol of the Imperialistic past. Thus, we recommend that all existing melee equipment be phased out and replaced with heavier missile pods.

Note by Icari: Peh! The real reason PACT pilots can't hit worth a damn is because most of them are farm boys drafted from backwater worlds with around two months of actual flight training. There's no way any of them have the nerves to get close enough to use a sword. In the hands of a skilled pilot and a ryder with the right specs, just one flyby with a sword will end a ryder. Think of that the next time your missile pods are dry and all your assault rounds are bouncing off the front plating of an enemy ryder!