Name: Ranald Colbert

Universe: Armoured Trooper VOTOMS

Canon or OC: OC

Appearance: [url=http://i.imgur.com/z4BAlIH.jpg]Face.[/url] Physically, Ranald is a lean and athletic man, with a build that is well-suited to his line of work.

Age: 33

Personality: Mr. Colbert is a soldier, and thus does his best to remain calm and level-headed on the battlefield. Panicking would only get him killed very quickly, especially when piloting an AT. However, in situations where his life isn't at stake, Ranald is far from unsociable. In fact, he can be rather chatty.

In addition, after suffering a head injury, his memory is a bit spotty, particularly in regards to his military service. He recalls enlisting in the army and later joining the Red Shoulders, but none of the specifics of his tour of duty. He knows a man by the name of Colonel Pailsen was his commanding officer, but not what sort of man he was.

Abilities: Ranald is fairly proficient in regards to piloting an Armoured Trooper (a.k.a. Vertical One-man Tank for Offense & ManeuverS, or VOTOMS), as is expected of a former member of the Red Shoulders. However, he is far from the best, and wouldn't stand a ghost of a chance against a Perfect Soldier, for example.

In addition, as a result of his incredibly lethal line of work, he's picked up a basic understanding of first aid. While he's no surgeon, Ranald can treat minor injuries, and if they're beyond his ability, at least stabilize them for a time.

Equipment: 

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[*] [b]Pilot suit[/b] ([url=http://i.imgur.com/BBz6teY.jpg]Example image[/url]): Standard issue for an AT pilot, it's sturdy, reliable, and quite fetching. The suit includes a combination gas-mask and emergency air supply, along with a built-in set of goggles. The latter directly links with the eye cameras of an AT.

[*] [b]Bahauza M571 Armour Magnum[/b]: An emergency sidearm, the Bahauza is a single-shot pistol which fires high-calibre rounds capable of punching through all but the thickest of armour plating. Naturally, this makes it quite effective against vehicles, Armoured Troopers in particular.

[*] [b]X-ATH-P-RSC Blood Sucker[/b]: The Blood Sucker is an experimental Armoured Trooper, designed and built exclusively for the use of the Red Shoulder remnants under Colonel Yoran Pailsen. In essence, it is superior to the standard Scopedog, possessing greater speed and manoeuvrability, along with somewhat improved armour. However, despite its larger fuel tank, the Blood Sucker's engine guzzles Polymer Ringer's Solution rather inefficiently, resulting in a maximum operational time that is much lower than its 'inferior' cousin (80 hours to the Scopedog's 218).

Its armaments consist of the GAT-45-RSC 'Bloody Rifle' (Essentially a really big assault rifle), two smoke launchers mounted on the midsection, and like almost all ATs, both arms are outfitted with the cartridge-powered hydraulic arm punch.

[url=http://www.mahq.net/mecha/votoms/lastredshoulder/x-ath-p-rsc.htm]A picture of the AT in question, along with some overly specific statistics.[/url]

[url=http://www.mahq.net/mecha/votoms/lastredshoulder/lineart/x-ath-p-rsc-cockpit.jpg]The cockpit.[/url]

Note: Armoured Troopers are fragile to an almost comical extent, as their armour can only withstand small-arms fire at best. In addition, the Polymer Ringer's Solution that fuels them (in addition to allowing an AT to fluidly mimic human movement) is incredibly volatile, and will explode rather violently if the AT is struck by a heavy impact or exposed to extreme temperatures.

Now all this would be fine and dandy, if not for the fact that Ranald's Blood Sucker was left barely operational after a recent battle (see background). The left arm was blown off, the camera lens is cracked, and the main fuel tank is empty, while the reserve tank is nearly so. As a result, the AT will be of limited use until it receives maintenance or is simply replaced.
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Faction: Presently Factionless, most likely to join up with Shocker+ or the Sentient Milieu.

Background: 
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Born in the Astragius Galaxy during its Third Galactic War between the Gilgamesh Confederation and the Balarant Union, Ranald was one of many whom enlisted in the Gilgamesh army. As it was the era of the Armoured Trooper, he was trained to pilot one, and displayed a somewhat exceptional prowess for it. Apparently, this was enough for Colonel Yoran Pailsen to draft him into the recently formed 'Enhanced Special Forces' a.k.a the Red Shoulder Batallion, wherein he endured the Colonel's rigorous training program. The Red Shoulders proved to be quite effective, and were also infamous for their savagery, which lead to them being nicknamed 'The Bloodsucker Batallion.'

When the war came to a close, the Red Shoulders were disbanded as per the conditions of the armistice between the two nations. However, like many other former Red Shoulders, Ranald decided to remain under the command of Pailsen, who was now in direct cooperation with the Secret Society. Wholly unaware of Pailsen's goals, Mr. Colbert simply guarded the Colonel's compound (the ruins of an old Red Shoulder base) alongside several others, utilizing the Armoured Troopers they'd been given.

Unfortunately, this proved to be a less than wise decision in the long run for Ranald. Four former Red Shoulders, who were evidently less than fond of Yoran, decided to mount an assault on the compound. Despite losing three of their number, the attackers managed to wipe out the remaining Red Shoulders and kill the Colonel. Normally, this would be the end for Ranald, getting killed in action and promptly forgotten. However, it seemed fate had different plans, and kept him alive (albeit unconscious due to a head injury) with his AT partially intact. When he awoke, Ranald found himself inside an entirely different compound, with quite the splitting headache.
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