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AR-3 Tercio power armor is a model of power armor that was fielded by the by the Ejército de Tierra (Spanish Army) before the Great War and by survivors in its aftermath. It is fundamentally similar to the European Commonwealth's BA-56 power armor while being modified for ease of construction in Spain.
Background[]
With the fracturing of the European Commonwealth in 2060, Spain was among the nations scrambling to re-establish military independence. In order to do this, the Spanish government deemed it important that Spain become resource-independent and capable of producing its complex weapons locally. While many parts of this program did not reach maturity by the beginning of the Great War, power armor was one that did. Developed by the firm Carbonisé from the European Commonwealth’s BA-56, the AR-3 “Tercio” was the production version of the firm’s third prototype. The suit reached full production in 2065 and saw its first deployment alongside the Spanish garrison in Gibraltar. The second major deployment was in Catalonia and the third in the Basque Autonomous Community. In the latter case, to quell a violent uprising.
AR-3 suits continued to be produced and deployed up until the Great War as Spain struggled to hold together under the stress brought on by the collapse of the European Commonwealth.
Characteristics[]
AR-3 Tercio is powered by a micro-fission reactor located on the back of the suit, held in an exterior casing. The suit's armor is made mostly of shaped steel-tungsten alloy plates with the reactor casing made of the same material with a lead lining. While this makes the suit exceptionally heavy and reduces mobility greatly, it offers exceptional protection against most kinds of small arms fire. The armor is also fairly simple and may even be repaired or modified in post-war workshops. In spite of this, the greatest weakness of AR-3 power armor is a lack of quality control. Many suits lack essential features or utilize lower quality armor plates, some even having plates made of tool steel. This makes maintenance of what should be standard AR-3 Tercio more difficult. Additionally, many features are found missing on some models with faulty radiation protection, missing safety or utility features, and, most commonly, poor environmental seals. While most of these issues are fixed, even by wastelanders, it has lead to a general perception of AR-3 as the poor man's power armor.
Variants[]
- AR-4 Almogavar power armor - Developed by Carbonisé as a solution for disparities in armor quality and other features between factories, AR-4 Almogavar features a more commonly available steel alloy alongside other simplifications. While of a lower quality than ideal AR-3 Tercio, the average quality of this model is much higher.
Locations[]
- Gibraltar Military Base - Suits of AR-3 can be found throughout the region, being highly prized for the protection they afford.