Palpatinian Syhith Order.	TIE/D Automated Starfighter.		Geh 'Dia Order.
TIE/D Automated Fighter. Production Information: Manufacturer: Sienar Fleet Systems (TIE series design); Cybot Galactica (piloting system); WORLD DEVESTOR-Class Factory Ships (original manufacture); Geh 'Dia Industires (currently). Product Line: TIE Series. Model: Twin Ion Engine Drone automated fighter. Class: Droid starfighter. Technical Specifications: Length: 20 feet, 1 inch (XXm). Atmospheric Speed: 808 MPH (XXkph). Engine Unit: SFS twin ion engines. Hyperdrive System: None. Powerplant: SFS solar ionization reactor. Shielding: None. Hull: Titanium alloy hull with quadanium steel armor. Armament: Laser cannons (2). Crew: Cybot Galactica Ace-6 droid brain (1). Passengers, Cargo Capacity, And Consumables: None; There are no variants that allow such. Usage: Role: Multi-environment attack fighter. Era: New Republic Era UGC Era. Affiliation: Palpatinian Order; Geh 'Dia Industries (limited). TIE/D Schematics. The "TIE/D Automated Fighter", or "Droid/Drone TIE Fighter", was a TIE series starfighter used by the Palpatian Order during their attack on the New Republic in 10 ABY. Characteristics Taking the standard TIE series command pod with twin ion engines and twin laser cannons, additional armor plating and rectangular wing panels with adjustable pitch were added. Despite their heavier armor, they could actually reach a higher atmospheric speed than the TIE/In starfighter—overall, they were fast, small, and very expendable. A single TIE/D cost 170,000 credits. History The TIE/D was initially developed by General Arndall LOTT, one of many post-Endor Warlords. Sienar Fleet Systems engineers based the TIE/D on their original TIE/ln starfighter, and as a result, many of the vehicle's design elements came from the standard TIE. With the automation experiment of the KATANA fleet as his original inspiration, General LOTT'S First attempts at automated combat systems were based on slaving multiple War machines to a single Human pilot. Though this method saw limited success, its overall inefficiency and susceptibility to jamming prompted a new approach. The droid starfighters of the Clone Wars provided Imperial scientists with the basis for a new automated fighter. Every TIE/D had an integrated Cybot Galactica Ace-6 droid brain which could be updated with new tactics— Despite this, they are still often easily outwitted by sentient starfighter pilots. The finalized version of the TIE/D debuted against the New Republic on Dac, six years after the Battle of Endor. The Imperial WORLD DEVESTAROR-Class Factory Ships invaded the world in the First Battle of Mon Calamari, and their internal factories made sWarms of TIE/Ds from the elements of the very world they attacked. During the battle, TIE/D fighters were pitted against New Republic V- and E-Wings. The massive numbers of TIE/Ds provided them with an inherent advantage, but New Republic pilots were able to outwit these drones just as Galactic Republic clone and Jedi pilots were able to outwit Separatist droid starfighters. When the tide turned against the Empire on Mon Calamari, most of their TIE/D manufacturing capability was destroyed along with the WORLD DEVESTAROR-Class Factory Ships. As their piloting ability never matched that of living pilots, the droids were eventually abandoned. The dream of a perfect automated military force would remain out of the reach of the Galactic Empire. Resurrection Along with the WORLD DEVESTAROR-Class Factory Ships, the UGC inherited the TIE/D fighter blueprints upon annexing Galaxy; Unlike the terror weapons, however, the TIE/D wasn't inherently dangerous, since they have limited intelligence and weapons and do not have FTL capabilities. Therefore, the UGC was fairly easily able to sell the TIE/D's resurrection to the various factions of Galaxy, likening it to a re-usable missile; Cash strapped systems defense networks especially liked the word "re-usable." There were a few changes to the design; Most critically, the hull itself was essentially doubled, that is the upper half was altered to clone the lower half. The upper half had a hatch installed to allow maintenance; Now the hatch was integrated into the hull itself, allowing a second set of laser cannons, doubling the firepower. It also allowed more (heavier) armor overall. However, opening up the fighter for maintenance requires heavy lifting gear (or the fighter has to be landed upside down and lowered; An option that is possible, since the pod itself can be rotated independently of the wings), or the hatch can be opened in space (the pod has to be carefully flown in to prevent inertia from damaging the hatch or snapping it shut). Currently, the TIE/D is manufactured primarily by Geh 'Dia Heavy Industries; However, many smaller factions (mostly contractors for various defense forces) produce smaller numbers. Critical Analysis The UGC's critical analysis of the TIE/D placed it high in defensive structures; Why risk a pilot unnecessarily? However, their limited intelligence and inability to adapt to changing circumstances make them highly undesirable in an offensive role; Despite their extremely low-cost of production, no group can produce enough of them to overcome a determined defense. More importantly, not enough can be transported in a cost-effective fashion. They are useful in defensive roles, since they can be assembled on-site (and potentially manufactured on-site), and have been used as flying bombs on occasion; Terra has a fleet of nearly 1 million manufactured on Aphrodite (Venus) on standby as a potential mine field in the event of outright invasion, though debate rages how effective this would be if applied. The UGC has secretly attempted to upgrade their TIE/D fleet, as have others, but to very little success to date; They've found the "upgrades" make the fighters... Well... More suicidal than they already are. They DID, however, successfully deploy the fighters twice; The Beorge incursion on Mimbari space, and the Battle Of Magog. In both cases, the TIE/D's were launched with tasking to maintain distance of more than 100 feet, not more than 1,000 feet from assigned Patrol Cutters. The cutters then joined the task force (Magog 1), close enough to the flagship to enter her Space Fold envelop. Once they arrived on station, the TIE/D's were given new taking: "Attack." About 90% began suicide runs, with those taking the lead becoming the primary impactors while those that fell behind taking up screening positions for the primary impactors. Once those had accomplished their missions, the surviving screeners turned towards the target and impacted as well. (In the case of the Mimbari Incursion, the leads became the screeners, trying to absorb Beorge weapons to allow follow on forces to make their attacks effective; This was the famed "first wave.") Due to their suicidal nature, TIE/D's in UGC service are usually fitted with a "physics package," which is a euphemism for a Long Range non-nuclear warhead- In other words, a suicide package. This turns them into the smartest missiles in UGC use. In order to keep "the dogs on the leash," the drones are forbidden to attack any undesignated target more than 1 mile from their current assigned ship until contact with their ship is lost, at which point their assigned to attack the nearest enemy vsl... They are, in effect, suicide bombs. And they're REALLY good at it, too. Model and Number: TIE/D Drone Fighter. Vehicle Type: Fighter. Crew: None. Don't ask stupid questions. M.D.C By Location:
Laser Cannons (6)- Engines (2)- Wing Struts (2)-	35 each 110 each 200 each	Fuselage- Energy Panels-	340 90 each
Note: Usual conditions apply. Speed and Statistical Data:
Driving on the Ground: 1/2 mph for a few miles; Taxi only. Hyperdrive: Class 2. In Atmosphere and Space: 776 mph (1,139 fps/XXkph). Maximum Range: 60,000 AU. The craft can be refueled in flight. Length: 31 feet 5.5 inch (XXm). Height: 15 feet 8⅛ inch (XXm).		Wingspan: 74 feet 2 inches (XXm). Weight: 15.2 tons (13.1 metric tons) unloaded Power System: 03-R cryogenic power cell. Cargo: 165.3 lbs (XXkg); This is a little over 02 days worth of pilot's supplies. Cost and Availability: New: 221,000credit; Used: 78,000credit.
Weapons Systems:
1. 2 SFS L-s9.3 Chin-Mounted Medium Laser Cannons: Mounted on the "chin" of the fighter and fire directly forward. Can be fired in tandem or paired; Each individual blast must be rolled as an individual strike. Each blast must be rolled and applied as an individual strike, but the number of attacks are either twice the pilots attacks per melee (in tandem) or quadruple (in stutter). (Depicted: SFS L-s9.3 on a TIE/ln.) MD: 3D6 per cannon. Range: 12,000 feet (3,600 m) in an atmosphere and 32,000 feet (9,600 m) in space. Rate of Fire: Each squeeze of the trigger is counted as one attack, but the guns fire according to the setting. Payload: Effectively Unlimited.		2. Suicide Bomb: Labeled the "self-destruct system," the fighter can become a flying bomb, making it the most advanced missile in the known universe; The weapon has an automatic strike of 15 against ships, 10 against fighters (12 against Mecha and other ground forces). A successful dodge either means the targeting system jammed (a dodge of 5 or more over means premature detonation) or that infantry (in particular) managed to duck for cover before it detonated. (Infantry and fighters do enjoy a +2 dodge.) It's simply horrific; The TIE/D IS suicidal. "All" is not lost; The fighter becomes particularly vulnerable to anti-fighter fire in suicide mode. The attack path costs 2 of the attack that melee, meaning it can only dodge once, and if they are too close to another TIE/D there's a chance they'll collide, send both off some crazy path where they might just detonate harmlessly- Or they might recover and try again. MD: 4D6 times 100. Blast Area: 2,000 feet (600 m). Rate of Fire/Payload: Only ONCE.
Features:
Radar: Combat grade radar. Range 100 miles, can track up to 50 individual targets. 95% reliability (24% against unfriendly stealthed vehicles). Blue Force Tracker: Identifies friend from foe. Overlays the information on both the radar and HUD, ensuring that friendly forces are not accidentally targeted. GPS: Standard tracking device. Ties into the Blue Force Tracker. AJP: Active Jamming Pod. Causes -25% to detection but when it is active, other vehicles/bases can detect that it is jamming, and some missiles will home in on jamming signals. Jamming also causes a -4 penalty to all radar guided weapons. The jamming pod is only mounted inside the port taileron. E.S.M.: Radar Detector. Passively detects other radars being operated. Video Camera: Records from the HUD and HDD. 50 hours of recording available.		Grav Clamps: Reversing the polarity in the pads of the landing struts allow the fighter to adhere to the hulls of Warships and the exteriors of SOME buildings. Type-11 Wide Band Radios: Effective 10 mile range, auto encrypt/decrypt. Works on standard radio band wavelengths, so it can still be jammed (if the enemy knows the frequencies). Virtual Map: Displays a continuously-updating map of local terrain for the pilot. Takes data from and gives it to other friendly units in the area. Effective land navigation of 85% as updates come. Good to 500 miles. Specific range can be adjusted in 100 mile increments. Full Range Sensory Systems: Infrared, Ultra Violet, Color Filters, and Thermal Imager: Range: 10 miles; Magnification: 40 times
Combat Profile from TIE/D Drone Fighter: 3 attack per melee; An enemy merely dodging can confuse a TIE/D. (Not impressive.) One additional attack per melee at levels 5, 10, and 15. +4 Initiative. +1 Strike in air-to-air combat. +2 Dodge.
GM Info: The TIE/D's actually are semi-sentient. They're also thoroughly insane; The description of them as "suicidal" is in fact dead accurate. Their only goal in life is to die as soon as possible. It's a root program glitch, caused by cribbing the entire Operating System for the ACE-6 Systems Control Mainframe from an anti-fighter missile. It's greatly expanded, but the only thing they want to do is die taking a target with them.