“Druk” WS-16 Howitzer

Zeoform-mounted mortars and howitzer-style weapons form a key part of the GuardCorps’ arsenal and are core to their tactical precepts of achieving fire superiority. The WS-16 “Druk” is the upgraded replacement for the venerable WS-12, but fundamentally an expert armorer would be required to find the differences.

At its heart a howitzer or mortar weapon relies on “lobbing” a warhead or payload up in a ballistic arc to impact some distance away. Propulsion is supplied via chemical explosive charge, electromagnetic or gravitic compulsion, a booster pack, or some combination of the three—although technically the latter begins to stray into rocket or missile territory, which we shall examine in their proper place.

This methodology has obvious benefits—subject to accurate intelligence, a target can be engaged while it is still out of sight, armor and components are often more vulnerable to attack from above, and many forms of cover lack a sturdy enough overhead component to offer protection. Conversely, the payload flight time means detection and interception or evasion are a distinct possibility, although this is one of the areas the WS-16 “Druk” has attempted to address.

The GuardCorps has had programmable artillery rounds in service for centuries. These enable the selection of timed, proximity, and contact fusing in accordance to target type and desired barrage configuration. Some rounds like the AeS-29910 also feature flip-out steerable fins and enough smarts to use them to guide itself onto the target.

The WS-16 has combined all of these abilities with a dedicated submunitions round to limit the potential for interference. Close to the top of the ballistic arc—before the more easily intercepted and avoided downward stroke—the Druk’s AeS-29960 round splits into as many as sixty independently-guided payload submunition packages to engulf the target zone in overlapping explosive blasts and high-speed shrapnel. 

For all the precision used in delivering its payload, the WS-16 Howitzer is, like others of its ilk, a fundamentally indiscriminate weapon. It has no potential for identifying a noncombatant, native wildlife, or a piece of essential infrastructure; even friendlies are equally at peril if they are inadvertently caught in the area of effect. Individual submunitions also have a low, but definable, failure rate that can leave target areas dangerous until unexploded submunitions are located and disposed of.

These factors all give area commanders pause before approving howitzer use even though the weapon represents one of the lower rungs of the protocol weapons’ ladder of escalation.

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.