The Steel Ronin


Designation: Anti-Armour Robot
Manufacturer: Ten-Shi Zaibatsu
Country of origin: Japan
Mass-produced at: Imperial Weapons Factory

Key features:

• Shock Blade
• Biometric Regulators
• Subdermal Neuro-Interface
• Violence Inhibitors
• Fear-inducing DevilCoat suit



The warriors of the Empire of the Rising Sun are renowned for their devotion and ferocity, and when they descended upon the shores of the Soviet Union, the world was plunged into terror. Nevertheless, their Emperor failed to accurately gauge the scale of his ambitious plan, and the incredible momentum of his army eventually faltered. Even so, this did not dampen the fervour in the hearts of the Empire’s armed forces. When the Empire’s hour grew dark, a small percentage of Imperial Warriors became uncontrollably restless, refusing orders to retreat and channelling immense anger into their bloody work. The last Emperor, Yoshiro, had no tolerance for this, as he insisted on strict adherence to a rigorous and disciplined warrior’s code. Thus, punishment fell swiftly (and almost exclusively) upon those who brazenly disobeyed orders within the ranks of the Rising Sun’s army. Rank-and-file infantry who refused or disobeyed orders were simply put to the sword. However, experienced veterans who cracked under pressure or otherwise displayed exceptionally violent tendencies met a different fate: They were encased in terrifying DevilCoat Suits, which contain complex medical systems and biometric regulators designed to keep a man indefinitely in a barely conscious, vegetative state. The accused would serve life sentences in complete isolation, appearing indiscriminately at significant Imperial landmarks as half-dead statues.


Steel Ronins are fast, anti-armour assault robots built to serve the Empire of the Rising Sun until death, even in the darkest of times.

It transpired that this ritualistic punishment was built on a further premise, which may begin to explain a complex and undoubtedly costly process. The DevilCoats are all linked to the central command network of Ten-Shi Zaibatsui, the company formed from the merger of two leading military manufacturers of the Land of the Rising Sun. The leaders of this conglomerate could literally flick a switch to activate every DevilCoat suit, awakening the men inside. Indeed, the DevilCoats are anything but ceremonial – they are assault suits, and the same systems are designed to keep the men inside in a trance-like state that can also heighten their senses, making them faster and more powerful than ever before. The DevilCoats were activated following the death of Emperor Yoshiro, suggesting that Ten-Shi Zaibatsu conspired against the Emperor in the creation of these weapons. In any case, once the DevilCoats are brought to life, the men piloting them are known as Steel Ronin. After all, these half-men had no master – only an impulse to fight the Empire’s enemies to the death. Now, they threaten any fragile sense of peace in their nation.


A single strike from the Steel Ronin’s Shock Sword is powerful enough to cleave a main battle tank in two.

The Steel Ronin appears to be a sort of ornamental, humanoid Guardian, wielding a sword approximately nine metres in length. Once activated, the true nature of both the sword and its Carryall quickly becomes apparent. The Steel Ronin is a highly manoeuvrable, fully articulated mechanical beast. The human pilot inside is linked via a complex subdermal interface wired directly to the electrical impulses from their brain, enabling the Steel Ronins to move and react at the speed of thought… even faster, in fact, due to the interface’s enhancing properties. The DevilSuit itself has a one-to-one locomotion system, such that the Pilot’s thoughts and actions result in corresponding movements of the suit. Thus, pilots are able to manoeuvre the suit or wield its powerful weapon almost instinctively. As for the weapon, the blade is powered by a localised Force Shield capable of severing even the toughest molecular bonds (such as those found in the armour of Allied battle tanks) with relative ease.

Allied tacticians speculate that the Steel Ronin was created in secret as an absolute last resort, should the homeland ever be invaded. When the late Emperor Yoshiro fundamentally rejected the possibility of such an outcome, some of his most pragmatic agents likely collaborated on the initiative without the Emperor’s prior knowledge, and carried out their plan only after his death. The notion of violent criminals spending their final days inside assault suits is disturbing. Yet there is a certain calculated pragmatism behind it – the same sort of thinking that probably led the Empire of the Rising Sun to crush the Soviet Union so easily in the first place. Even in defeat, it seems the Empire of the Rising Sun will continue to fight until its very last breath.


Reconnaissance on the battlefield has at least revealed the following facts about the Steel Ronins:

• The Shock Blade– The Steel Ronin differs significantly from other Imperial forces in that it specialises in close-quarters combat. This pilot-assisted robot is highly effective against enemy armoured divisions, but must first close the distance to destroy them with its energy weapon. A single strike from the Shock Blade can inflict severe damage on enemy groups.

-At Range- The Steel Ronin is not incapable of attacking from a distance. The Shock Sword contains an energy reservoir that can be released when the hilt of the weapon is struck firmly enough against the ground. This sends a powerful wave of energy directly in front of the Steel Ronin, damaging everything in its path.

-Light on its feet- Although the Steel Ronin is second only to the monstrous King Oni battle walker in terms of sheer size, it is remarkably quick on its feet. Armoured divisions attempting to capitalise on their superior range would do well to make the most of their first shots.

-Crowd Control - The Armoured Ronin’s Shock Sword is so large that it is ineffective against smaller targets such as groups of infantry. However, the weapon’s sheer force can knock down any Soldiers in the vicinity of the attack, leaving them helpless and exposed.