Another armor set for Zarla, art by hanazawa. Overview written by mikakyubi.

Overview

The Varju-class stealth armor came into use for Technocracy Eriteenused (Special Forces) units approximately 4 years ago as a product of Skorseen Industrial Group, the same group that has provided now six generations of advanced combat armors for Eriteenused use.

Characterized by its' low-energy systems and the notable full-fibre wired cyberlink, the Varju trades off armor protection and servo strength for a drastically-reduced IR plume and significant reduction in the millimeter radar and lidar detection regimes, as well as significant sound dampening primarily through passive engineering techniques to minimize active electronic or optronic systems.

It is speculated that the Varju uses the recent MM-214a optically contractile myomer system as its' primary musculature. Developed by Zargu-Ames Research Collective, the MM-214a was classified a mere week after the Collective made an announcement of its' breakthrough, with most information scrubbed from the mesh. As tends to be true, some intrepid divers kept the information alive in the form of screenshots, and these are our only real look into the -214a's capabilities. Whether since that announcement there have been changes remains speculation.

According to those leaked specifications, the -214a is notable for using a ultraviolet-contractile polymer in a dense weave layout, with the fibers laid out in a dense spiral canted 45 degrees off the pull axis, thus maximizing thread length and contractile distance while maintaining a similar profile to prior myomer systems. Also notable is the significant reduction in triggering power, supposedly under 0.1 Watt per square centimeter, and a sustainer light strength of one fifth this. The trade-off, though, is that the contractile force, even with dense weave, is less than half that of a comparable Marine-style strike armor, relegating anything using this pack to either the civilian market (which seems less and less likely seeing how the -214a remains classified at fairly high levels) and operation suits needing a drastically reduced power profile.

Like all armors in use, it is estimated that the Varju carries the standard suite of passive camera systems including thermal and night vision optics operating in a sensor-fusion visual display or through direct neural feed, something which a full-fibre hardlink would excel at. Aside from a passive millimetre-wave radar system and some smart fire-link specific ballistics computing, it is likely that these optics have few if any enhancements past the basic ones outlined above, though there has been rampant speculation among the armor enthusiast community about the Varju possibly being equipped with a Passive X-Ray Backscatter imaging system, which, if true, would be a first for such a system to be mounted outside of medical and laboratory conditions. However, if true, it would drastically increase the reconaissance platform capability of the Varju.

Armoring is thought to be a composite carbon weave with small Adamant-grade armor diamondoid in an overlapping, flexible-scale layout between multiple anti-ballistic weave carbon fibre, possibly backed by whatever skin-armor the wearer possesses already, a not-uncommon body alteration seen in many military personnel. Over this is thought to be a weave incorporating specialized ceramics able to selectively reflect or transmit thermal and infrared EM under digital optical control, thus allowing such to be bled off in a pattern designed to minimize signature identification. Above this would likely be a layer of specialized RAM/LAM meant to passively baffle and absorb radar and lidar energies.

Our best analysis of the likely control computer system points to a mix of distributed optronic computing elements providing highly-efficient local systems control backed by a small central "strategy computer" unit which also operates as a major command hub for the fibre-optic optical "nervous system" that operates the myomer musculature of the armor. With the legs as calf-heavy as has been shown, it is estimated that each likely holds a fully-redundant power supply. Considering the armor's needs and mission profile, it is likely that the Varju suit relies upon a superconducting capacitor loop system to provide it energy, likely with inductive charging. While not able to provide the same deep-draw power seen in strike suits and their hotter-burning power systems relying upon either microfusion and/or plasma induction, the loop-style powerplant has a drastically reduced sensor signature across the infrared, thermal, and electromagnetic spectrum, and can be shielded further with greater effect than the active systems seen in heavier suits.

Notably absent, but assumed to be available and even included in the finished design is a environmental faceplate system providing breathable air to the wearer, ear protection, and vacuum protection. It is also reasonable to assume that there exists a tailbag. If the leaked image, though, is accurate, then it points to a suit meant for stealth-strike regimes of operation, fast-in to extract a high-value target (possibly only their mind-data) and fast-out to minimize encounters with guards or hostiles.

At this time, we have no solid information as to the deployment and mission history of the Varju suit, and the government has been notably tight-lipped about the capabilities.