Fanwank:The Piranha P.666 v.Prototype
I was playing WipEout XL on an emulator. Played with the weapon that needed a key combination to activate. Also,I activated the team cheat to play with the unlockable team. Guess they weren't as 'weapon-less' as they said they were...
This fanwank delves into the the secrets of the 'weapon-less' Prototype.
The Piranha P.666 v.Prototype
Piranha,formerly Pir-Hana before it's name change and move to China, learnt quite a bit from their Pir-Hana Prototype of the AGRC. One was that trading the acceleration module and steering rack for a weapon bay was not a really good idea. With this in mind,they redid the prototype. They entered the F5000 with what they called a 'weapon-less' craft,the Piranha P.666 v.Prototype. No weapon bay. Just perfect stats. Their rationale:Who needs weapons when you can beat them on pure speed and skill?
This is where the bullshit comes in. Flipping through the regulations and specifications book for the F5000 Anti-Gravity Racing League, one can see,under 'Craft Specifications',that an "Automatic Minigun" is a mandatory fixture on the racecraft.Close inspection will reveal that,on the underside of the craft,there is an orifice. The Piranha team once explained that it was for 'aerodynamic purposes',then explaining that it was for 'exhaust'. People did not fall for the second explaination. In reality,it is actually the barrel of...the mandatory Minigun.
Minigun story coming up...
Fanwank: The F7200 Drag Prototype
The F7200 saw the entrance of Icaras,the team which had a craft built with only one thing in mind:Speed. The craft had the highest speed rating of all ships. Not even Qirex or Piranha can match that speed. The trade off was that other stats suffered,like it's poor shield,thrust and handling. It had the worst handling until slightly later where the team managed to improve the handling. Still,it handled like a...brick.
Following the introduction of the F3600 and F5000 league tracks into the F7200 Race calendar due to fans complaining that "Eight tracks are not enough", two high speed Oval Prototype tracks were also introduced. The tracks were set in the outskirts and a park. The race distance meant that conventional ships were not fast enough. A separate constructor was contracted to design the F7200 Drag Prototype.
The constructor took design cues from Icaras. The constructor took the ship design and ran with it,turning the speed stat up to 10(for reference,normal F7200 racecraft have ratings that top out at five),which shames the ship it was inspired by.Also,it handled better than the SunGod XVi,could take more damage than the SunGod XVi,and was faster off the line than the SunGod XVi,further shaming it.
With such high speeds,only the best pilots from the competing teams could fly such ships.
Also,the F7200 Regulations Guidebook directs that the Drag Prototype cannot be used on normal tracks. They have to be used on the Ovals. Also,the teams are not allowed to make modifications other than those that were aesthetic in nature(the only modifications teams could do was to add their livery). Even then,the aesthetic modifications were severely limited. Specifications only allowed teams to give the Drag Prototype a colour and the teams logo. Nothing more than that.
Teams that tried to install the Drag Prototype's engines and generators met with failure. Even when Icaras tried, they could not do it.
Next:How Overtel Took Over the Anti-Gravity Race Commission
Fanwank:The Fall of the Race Commission to Overtel
Assassinating Chuck Hoffman failed to get Overtel the Race Commission.Having an Overtel plant who suggested the Minigun for use in the F5000(thankfully,it was relegated to the role of FEISAR's super-weapon in the Mini-Leagues) was not disruptive enough. Time and again, Overtel tried to wrestle control of the Race Commission away from Belmondo and the Belmondo Foundation(and his ideals). Alas,they failed. However,the few hours after Belmondo witnessing the birth of his great-great-granddaughter would mark the start of the darkest period for the Race Commission.
Belmondo died peacefully a few hours after declaring Natasha a future title-winning pilot. As the Father of modern Anti-Gravity Racing,his death was well-publicised. Sports commentators were already seeing signs of fissure resulting from the standoffs between Overtel and the F7200 Race Commission. Many wondered if the death of Belmondo would mean the death of his ideals of Anti-Gravity Racing. Internal struggles would follow from his death to 2132,when Overtel took over the Race Commission.
Hours after the announcement of Belmondo's death, Overtel was already hard at work trying to wrestle control of the Race Commission from the Belmondo Foundation. Defections and apathy on the part of some of the Belmondo Foundation's Race Commission members certainly did not make things any better. Overtel sought to persuade,pressure,and even murder,their way to control. The shills planted by Overtel who escaped scrutiny while Belmondo was alive and still leading the Foundation immediately switched sides. The shills tried to convince and coax neutral Race Commission members to join their ranks. Those who were staunch supporters of Belmondo's vision were pressured through blackmail,violence,threats of demotion,threats of kidnap and death threats to either resign or join their ranks.
The Foundation's hold of the Race Commission was severely weakened by the defections. Throughout the 4 to 5 years leading up to 2132, Overtel subverted the Foundation multiple times. Policy changes that the Race Commission aimed to bring about for the F7200 were quickly vetoed and quashed by the growing influence of Overtel. Race Commission members of the Foundation started to go missing,especially the staunch supporters of Belmondo's vision. Since 2129,the Foundation alleged that Overtel murdered them,but Overtel would vehemently deny,giving various excuses and blaming the Foundation for not keeping a close watch on its members.
Things would come to a head in 2132. Staunch supporters were either picked off or pressured into either resigning or joining the ranks of Overtel. An Overtel administrator kidnapped the last of staunch supporters of Belmondo's vision in the Race Commission. After several gunshots,the takeover was complete. The grip by the Belmondo Foundation was no more. The F7200 Race Commission had fallen to Overtel.
Next: A (non-canon) Microcosm-WipEout crossover featuring EG-R's pilots.
