EXCALIBER Powered Assault Armor/Mark V

The EXCALIBER Powered Assault Armor/Mark V was the second major version of the EXCALIBER Powered Assault Armor series-2. The initial version of the Mark V powered exoskeleton, designated as Mark V[B], was issued to the TODTs and several TODT commandos on June 20, 2608, The Mark V armor was in service until December 2619, when it was replaced by the EXCALIBER Mark VI. It could still be requisitioned by TODT personnel as late as May 2621, albeit upgraded to function with the EXCALIBER [GEN2] suite.

Development history and design

In 2598, six years after the EXCALIBER Mark IV entered service, production began on the next generation of EXCALIBER armor. A team under the leadership of Chief Scientist Dr. Isabel Collins would spend the next ten years developing the suit. Using data collected from the Mark IV, hundreds of minor technical improvements and several major changes were made to the Mark V; most notably, the suit's armor plating underwent a total redesign and better materials were developed for its use. Separating the Mark V from the previous version of the system were two major breakthroughs in the ways in which the suit improves its wearer's combat effectiveness.
The first major breakthrough, which was introduced with the first generation of the Mark V, was the addition of a self-recharging energy shield system, reverse-engineered point defense gauntlets discovered on Washington, which repel objects and energy bursts, plus any other hazardous elemental energies. While impacts on the shield place a substantial drain on the system's power supply, the system's energy regenerates once the user is no longer under fire. However, the adaptation of the shield covering the entire body weakens the magnetic field, making the Mark V's shield system vulnerable to sustained fire. Energy shield technology was first tested on the Mark IV, though such tests were not especially successful.
The second major advancement, which was not implemented until the second generation of the suit, was the addition of a layer of computer memory superconductor that would allow an artificial intelligence to piggyback into the field with the operator to both provide and gather real-time intelligence. The synthesis of an artificial intelligence with a human brain is not possible without an upgrade to the user's already-specialized neural interface. Like the standard neural interface, the specialized neural lace translates electrochemical signals to digital code and routes them through an interface connection at the rear of the skull. Through this interface, the user's thoughts command the armor's movement and weapons, and input from the on-board sensors is fed directly to the user's mind. In addition, an AI personality and processing matrix can be carried by the armor and delivered to the suit via the specialized neural lace and on-board storage in a crystal data chip no larger than a personal credit card. Without the armor, a TODT's reaction time is charted at twenty milliseconds; with the Mark V, and an AI on-board, the time required to translate thought into motion is rendered almost instantaneous.
The suit also possesses other upgraded features that enhance its wearer's abilities. It has an upgraded heads-up display linked to sensors that project shield strength and an improved motion detecting system in addition to providing other numerous readouts, including allies' vitality and shield status. These features are maintained and initialized by the Mark V BIOS firmware.
In its second phase, the Mark V EXCALIBER battle armor weighs a quarter ton (226,8 kilograms), and with its TODT wearer. The TODT/EXCALIBER combination is designed to be the most devastating intelligence tool ever created, as the AI can greatly increase the wearer's reaction time and vastly improve intelligence gathering capacity.

Armor variants

GEN1

[coming soon]

Known variants

[coming soon]

Mark VI prototype

[coming soon]

Supplemental armor and accessories

Assault - For close to medium distance combat.

Collar - Armor that covers the back of the neck.

HP (Hard Point) - Additional armor plating and hard points for missions involving High-Altitude Low Opening jumps.

Jump Jet - Safety restraints for use with a jetpack.

Sniper - Shoulder armor attachment designed for carrying sniper rifle ammunition.

Tactical - Various pouches, webbing and electronics accessories.

UA (Up-Armor) - Supplemental armor attachments.

Attachments

External Command Network Module - CNM

CBRN Hardened Uplink Module - CBRN/HUL

External Hardened Uplink - HUL

Production overview

Manufacturer(s): Mars Corps Armory
Testing site(s): Mars Testing Facility
Type: EXCALIBER Powered Assault Armor GEN1
Role(s): General combat

Technical specifications

Feature(s): Energy shielding, Memory-processor superconductor layer