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Features:
Low armor, high speed and maneuverability.
Weaponry:
Long range, surface-to-surface and surface-to-air missiles, chain gun mounted on the front for medium to short range encounters.
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Real Life Equivalent:
US Army M220 TOW Missile ATV
The M220 TOW Missile ATV can only launch one missile at a time making it much less advanced than the RDA Grinder, which can launch multiple missiles simultaneously. In addition, the M220 requires a driver and a second person to operate the missile launcher. With the RDA Grinder, it's more of a one man operation.
The M220 TOW Missile ATV is primarily used in antitank warfare, and is a command to line of sight, wire-guided weapon. TOW is used to engage and destroy enemy armored vehicles, primarily tanks. Secondary mission is to destroy other point targets such as non-armored vehicles, crew-served weapons and launchers.
This system is designed to attack and defeat tanks and other armored vehicles. The system will operate in all weather conditions. It's capable of penetrating more than 30 inches of armor, at a maximum range of more than 3,000 meters, and can launch 3 missiles in 90 seconds.
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The Terrain Ride of Terror. The Doom Buggy. This small ATV packs a sorte of deadly missiles complimented with front chain guns. The ATV Grinder is a ground vehicle used by the RDA. It is a fast and deadly single-occupant, all-terrain vehicle, and is maneuverable in all kinds of topography.
The lethal forward-sighting weapons include four chain guns mounted above the front wheels, and missile racks mounted above the rear treads. The Grinder has proved effective in hit-and-run attacks on Na'vi warriors and Viperwolf packs.
Although the vehicle itself is armored in the front, the sides and rear of the vehicle are extremely vulnerable to melee attacks and arrows. This problem is reinforced by the slow acceleration of the vehicle. Because its weapons face toward the front, many of the troops on Pandora have started to use weaving tactics to compensate for this shortcoming. The RDA uses the Grinder mainly for recon and strikes on the enemies' rear.
On Earth, the RDA Grinder proved to be very effective on several campaigns during the Venezuela War. I know that firsthand since I was in charge of the 487th RDA Grinder Squadron during my tour of duty in South America. Three platoons of RDA Grinders (approximately 150 Grinders total) could take on an enemy's whole regiment (approximately 2 - 3,000 soldiers).
During the Battle of Orinoco River, several hundred enemy guerillas had set up an ambush point south of the river on the edge of the Orinoco Delta jungle. They were extremely deadly bushfighters and knew how to use the rainforest's thick cover to their advantage - blend in with the jungle. For several months they carried out successful ambush attacks on my fellow Gyrenes. Two Grinder squadrons including mine set out to hunt down these bushwhackers.
We had finally pinned them down into an isolated patch of thick jungle area about three times the size of a football field. These bushfighters were excellent marksmen, so we bided our time and kept the Grinders out of sight just below the crest of a hill that overlooked the jungle patch. It was near dark and with a split second synchronized attack, we lined up all 100 Grinders on the crest of the hill and launched half our missiles, the jungle patch exploded in flames like a Phoenix rising.
We heard screams so loud, it almost didn't sound human. Within seconds, small dark figures began popping out the jungle patch. We had shot several of them with our chain guns before we realized they were Howler Monkeys. After the battle, we searched the charred jungle patch and found the burnt bodies of 714 bushfighters and 24 Howler Monkeys. Minimal casualties to the indigenous I always say. Keep it humane. More or less. . . . From The War Diaries of Colonel Miles Quaritch.
Terrain:
ATV-like vehicle travels quickly over the rough and uneven terrain of Pandora for support during military operations.
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