UnS-62 Soldat Tactical Zeoform
The venerable Soldat represents a military zeoform that was designed into obsolescence almost before it was out of the prototype stage and yet was made anyway. It was originally a development from the troubled UnS-5 series. Unita’s UnS-60 and 61 prototypes finally laid the demons of that seemingly cursed run to rest.
Once approved by an initially skeptical Guardcorps, the new UnS-62 Soldats proved to be reliable, easy to maintain, well-protected and—most importantly of all—cheap and easy to produce from existing 5-series facilities.
Improved armor production techniques that would later achieve their full potential on the Stormer were pioneered on the Soldat, and did much to repair the reputational damage for fragility that the Soldat’s predecessors had earned.
Weight and costs were reduced by limiting the basic Soldat’s manipulator arms to a simple gimbal weapon mount on one side and a basic utility arm on the other to assist with loading and clearing jams.
In terms of filling the void left by the 5 series and manning the line, the Soldat has performed admirably, and it can still be found in garrisons, militias, and second-line units across the Heliospheres. However, it made compromises in mobility, sensors, and weaponry that leave it vulnerable to most opposing zeoforms it encounters, to the extent that it must depend on numbers to prevail.
Work on what would eventually become the UnS-65 Stormer Tactical Zeoform had begun before the first Soldat left the factory. The considerable challenges of that ambitious project have ensured the Soldat has stood the line for longer than any of its creators would have thought possible.
One of the most respected analysts, known both for highly detailed breakdowns and post-engagement evaluation as well as more informal “pop” texts is “Drew Chambert” (a nom de plume). Little is known about this writer except it is evident they are or have been a zeo designer, possibly even a pilot at some point, and have some quite deep connections into both Pact and GuardCorps operations. Their writings and audiocasts are available across all one hundred heliospheres to a greater or lesser extent.
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