Restricted Droid E4 "Baron" Battle Droid

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E4 "BARON" BATTLE DROID

AFFILIATION
Various.

MANUFACTURER
Baktoid Combat Automata.

CLASS
Battle droid.

LOCOMOTION
Legged, bipedal.POWER SUPPLY
Rechargeable power cell, 72-hour duration.

SENSORS

• 1x photoreceptor.
• 1x hologram projector/recorder.
• 2x audio receptor.

DIMENSIONS
Height - 2.4 meters.

COMPOSITION
Arcetron.

TOOLS & EQUIPMENT

• 2x twin-barrel light blaster cannon.
• 1x spotlight.
• 1x standard I/O socket.
• 1x integrated comlink.

DESCRIPTION​

The E4 Baron is a battle droid originally manufactured by Baktoid Combat Automata in the decades prior to the Clone Wars. Primarily used by the Trade Federation as a sentry and enforcer, it was developed as a more capable alternative to the ubiquitous B1 battle droid, and later served as the basis for the slightly scaled-down B2 super battle droid.

The E4 Baron is a hulking machine, standing some 2.4 meters in height, 0.49 meters taller than the B2, and armored with heavy arcetron plating, which is extremely durable and can resist light blaster fire. The droid has sophisticated cognitive circuitry - more advanced than that found in its predecessor, which was scaled back for the sake of cost - and excellent tactical subroutines, allowing it to use its armament - a pair of twin-barrel light blaster cannons - to full effect on the battlefield. In combat, the droid is a feared opponent, with several instances of a single E4 taking on an entire platoon of organic soldiers and winning being recorded.

This being said, the Baron does have its weaknesses, chief among them being its exceptionally heavy weight and resulting slow, plodding gait. The droid can also be hamstrung by well-placed shots or slashes to its joints, especially the waist, which is not nearly as heavily armored as the rest of the chassis. The Baron also lacks conventional manipulators, its arms being tipped with its integrated blaster cannons, preventing it from holding or carrying small objects.

The E4 Baron was, as mentioned, used by the Trade Federation, as well as other private operators, although not nearly to the same extent as the contemporary B1 and later B2. They typically served as guards for high-value targets, and as shock troops against dug-in enemy positions. After the outbreak of the Clone Wars, the Baron was discontinued in favor of B2 production, although squads of them still served in Separatist droid armies as special forces units. After the war, of course, the remaining Barons of the CIS were subject to the shutdown command which deactivated most battle droids; many were gathered by the Galactic Empire, and were actually used to guard Imperial facilities prior to the introduction of Imperial sentry droids.

E4 Baron droids served long after the clone wars in certain circles. They were - and are - of course a hot ticket item on the black market, being even more valuable - and significantly rarer - than some wartime models, such as the B2. Like some other Confederate droids, not all heeded the shutdown command, either; in one incident approximately 16 years after the Battle of Yavin, a squad of E4s effectively took over the sparsely populated planet Arzid, which they ruled by the "Law of the Blaster" until a band of mercenaries hired by the locals drove them out.

LEGALITY​

Illegal. Heavy infantry droids such as the E4 Baron are highly restricted under interstellar law, with personal ownership being banned. Many beings get around this restriction by reprogramming their E4s as personal attendants and bodyguards, or at least claiming to have done so.

INTENT​

To bring a droid from Legends canon into our site's fanon.

RESTRICTIONS​

An E4 Baron battle droid is an exceptionally rare and expensive piece of equipment, with individual ownership being difficult in the present day, although not impossible. Characters based on the E4 may be created, but will be subject to increased scrutiny by members of staff.