User:XW3 AR3 L3GION/M312C Rapid Reconnaissance Vehicle

"Hey, who needs a Ghost when we have the Wasp! ZOOM!"

- Unknown UNSC Serviceman

The M312C Rapid Reconnaissance Vehicle, abbreviated as the M312C RRV or otherwise known as the Cheetah by UNSC personnel, is a light, one-man hoverbike. The Cheetah, as with its namesake, is the fastest land vehicle fielded by the UNSC or any other faction; this speed gives the M312C an unparalleled existance on the battlefield.

The M312C RRV comes from a direct line of Boosted Gravity Propulsion Drive (BGPD) vehicles made that has only recently become widely available to the UNSC, the UEG and humanity in general.

History
The M312A, the Cheetah's predecessors, was designed during the Human-Covenant War and was heavily based the Covenant Type-32 Rapid Assault Vehicle or Ghost and on humanities limited knowledge of the BGPD. The M312A was a prototype in the best sense of the word, it had multiple faults and glitches (one problem was that the M312A sometimes would not start, leaving the scientists and engineers puzzled) and lacked any viable weaponry (the M312A simply had two light machine guns attached).

The M312B was created three years later, many of the faults had been corrected but still, the vehicle was nowhere near mass production. Many times during the testing stage did the engine cut out when the prototype reached a high enough velocity (the actual velocity limit differed from 50 to 130 KPH) but weaponry had been intergrated into the design, however, accuracy wasn't included and in combat situations ammuntion would run out very rapidly. The M312 was initially shelved for later research due to the Covenant genocide of the human race.

The M312 design came back into circulation after the Great War, and with the right technology and know-how from the allied Sangheili engineers, the M312C was an almost perfect vehicle - with (almost) no faults and plasma weaponry similar to the Type-32 RAV's the Cheetah was put into production.

Technical Details
The Cheetah follows the Covenant Ghost in shape and design and especially with the usage of the Boosted Gravity Propulsion Drives. The BGPD layout is similar to the T-32 RAV and is arranged in 'strips' on the underside of the Cheetah: two short strips on both the front and aft which keep the vehicle afloat, while another two long strips are found on the wings and provide the majority of the vehicles movement.

Like the Ghost, the front of the Cheetah is larger than the rear, as the frontal section contains its energy weapon system, its anti-gravity propulsion system, imaging, control and guidance systems and fuel storage tank as well as a mount for the Cheetah's wings. The rear section contains the driver/operators seating with an compartment underneath the seat for storage, the aft's extremely minimal armour plating and the Cheetah's 'boost' ability.

Boost Ability
The boost ability take energy from all non-vital systems and channels them to two nozzles which allow the Cheetah to achieve speeds of 180 KPH (on flat ground). With the boost ability comes the option of ramming or mowing down enemy infantry using the Cheetah as a battering ram; the frontal section is more heavily armoured because of this.

Weapon Systems
The Class-2 Energy Gun, also referred to as Twin Plasma Cannons are set more deeply into the chasis than the weaponry of the Ghost. There are other versions of the Cheetah that include Galilean Nonlinear Rifles or missile pods to add variety to the Cheetah capabilities.

Wings
The Cheetah's 'Wings', if they can be called such, are vital to the M312C RRV's movement, firing system and guidance systems. There are two sets of wings, an thinner upper set and thicker lower set. The upper set contains advanced imaging sensors which allow the Cheetah internal balance system to make micro-adjustments to the output of the anti-gravity system allowing for a smoother ride, while also allowing the weapon system to identify enemy infantry and vehicles and relay accurate firing data to the users reticule to ensure maximum accuracy and damage.

The lower set of wings contain the Cheetah's most powerful pair of propulsion strips, which allow the vehicle to move like it does. It also keeps the vehicle stable if the Cheetah is ever attacked by explosions or large caliber rounds, which could rock and tip the vehicle costing valuable seconds to right the vehicle and make good with their escape. Small caliber bullets or plasma weaponry could cause the vehicle to tip but more often than not, these rounds are aimed at the operator, killing or wounding the operator before even tipping the vehicle.

Other Systems
The Cheetah also has several magnetic 'sleeves' which allow UNSC operators to attach weaponry or equipment which cannot be held on the operators body or underseat storage. UNSC Snipers have been seen using the sleeves to hold their sniper rifle steady whilst they engage in long range combat.