Cyborg Soldiers

[Note: While over 70% of the Immortal Empire’s population are considered cyborgs, here the word cyborg refers specifically to a hybrid of man and machine with no or limited free will.]

Since its inception the Immortal Empire has used cyborgs as a cheap, expendable unit. Originally the empire would take mortally wounded soldiers and implant life support systems. Then the brain, provided it wasn’t too badly damaged, would be integrated with a computer. This removed any free will and made them into little more than machines. It didn’t take long before the Immortal Empire started doing this to captured enemy soldiers as well. This practice is one of the leading factors that led to all the nations surrounding the Immortal Empire uniting. These initial cyborgs were crude to the point of frustration. Without someone to order them, they would simply stand even as an enemy swept past them. But when used properly they proved devastating. A soldier that feels no fear, no pain, and no remorse is a dangerous thing.

Since the Immortal Empire left Earth, the technology used in creating cyborgs has steadily improved. The empire no longer uses the critically injured in the creation of cyborgs, except in emergency situations. Instead they use clones and on occasion those charged with a capital offense. This allows for precision production, where as before production was based on the number injured. The way cyborgs are used has also improved over the years. In the beginning they were used as suicidal shock troops that could hit an enemy hard and not worry about casualties. Now they fill multiple roles.

Level 1: Servitor
These cyborgs have had all their free will taken away. They are neither armored nor armed. They instead mostly man static defenses, drive vehicles, load weapons, and hand out supplies.

Level 2: Soldier
Equiped with minimal weapons and armor, these cyborgs are used to provide assistance to squads that are either pinned down or have had their numbers depleted. They travel to the places with the heaviest fighting to lend their strength to those already fighting. Instead of using a transport to travel long distances they run at high speeds. Over smooth terrain a cyborg is able to reach 70 mph.
Shield Rating: 1
Armament:
Dual Laser Rifle: Weaker than a pulse rifle this weapon makes up for it in rate of fire. The dual laser rifle fires 1000 laser pulses per minute. The only problem is the tendency to overheat.
Flamethrower: Cyborgs equipped with this weapon tend to be avoided by soldiers. This is wise considering their tendency to violently explode under enemy fire.
Disruptor Resonance Cannon: Due to the short range, this weapon is used in enclosed environments, such as tunnels or when boarding a ship.
Claw: No disruptor field here. Instead the cyborg uses raw mechanical might and precision to drive these foot and a half long spikes into soft spots on enemy armor.

Level 3: Heavy Support
With heavier armor and weapons, these cyborgs assist foot soldiers by taking down enemy armor or by pining an enemy in cover while the soldiers advance. Their four legs lend stability when firing their heavy weapons and allow them to cross rough terrain at high speed. Their clawed feet allow them to climb walls and walk along the ceiling. Because of this ability to hang from the ceiling and rain fire down on an unsuspecting foe, these heavy support cyborgs are often found roaming the tunnels of an Iron Bastion and the hallways of capital ships.
Shield Rating: 15
Armament: Can have one heavy weapon and three regular weapons.
Particle Cannon [Heavy]: The particle cannon fires a continuous beam. This is effective at popping shields and melting through armor. There is a charge up time before it can fire but once it starts it doesn’t have to stop.
Quad Heavy Pulse Rifles [Heavy]: These two weapons are linked to fire a near unending stream of deadly pulses. Overheat is a problem and it takes quite some time before it can cool down enough to safely fire again.
Disruptor Cannon [Heavy]: Fires a powerful energy beam that can bypass most shielding. A long recharge time renders this only effective against enemy armor.
Dual Laser Rifle: Weaker than the one detailed above this still has more than enough power to kill.
Flamethrower: Weaker than the one detailed above it also doesn’t explode as violently either. It can still prove lethal at close range.
Cutting Laser: Only useful at fifteen feet or less, this is a powerful weapon, easily capable of cutting through tank armor.
Claw: No disruptor field means that it has to rely on mechanical might to cleave through a foe.
Pile Driver: A metal spike that is accelerated to punch through an enemy and any protection they may be wearing.

Level 4: The Titan
Unlike the previous cyborgs, this version maintains a limited form of free will. Where the others are little more than cannon fodder to support soldiers, the titan is more of an elite force. They run the gambit of roles, anything from defending the halls of an Iron Bastion to covert operations behind enemy lines. Though it is hard to be covert when they stand 7’6” tall. Their most feared role is that of boarding party. Their heavy armor, shielding, and weaponry combined with the enclosed space of a space vessel makes them a truly fearsome force. They have powerful thrust packs that can accelerate them over impassible terrain or out of an enemy ambush. The bottom of their feet are capable of using a disruptor field to fuse to any material. This lets them scale walls and walk across ceilings, provided they are capable of support its immense weight. They can use this ability to affix themselves to the tops of vehicles, ensuring a stable platform while they blast giant holes in it.
Shield Rating: 50
Armaments: The titan can equip either one heavy weapon and two regular weapons or three regular weapons on its right arm, as well as a melee weapon on its left arm.
Disruptor Cannon [Heavy]: See above.
Particle Cannon [Heavy]: See above.
Disruptor Resonance Cannon [Heavy]: See above.
Plasma Cannon [Heavy]: The fury of a star sent flying at several thousand miles per second at an enemies face is always lethal. A slow rate of fire and the possibility to catastrophically overheat prevents it from being perfect.
Quad Pulse Heavy Rifle: The titan can have up to three of these weapons. The sheer power that is sent out is enough to keep any sane soldier in cover.
Multi-Laser: Ten lasers are combined into a single weapon. The lasers then fire in a sequence that allows for the first set to cool down and recharge by the time the last set fires. These lasers are more powerful than the ones mentioned above. Much more powerful. Each individual laser is roughly the equivalent of a standard pulse rifle. This weapon does have a massive power draw though.
Claw: A disruptor field surrounds the claw, allowing it to tear through even the toughest of material.
Bludgeon: A large chunk of metal coated in a disruptor field. With this the titan can smash any opposition into pancakes.

Now for a short story that shows how super awesome the titans are.
In battle 21-192-303 the Immortal Empire found itself facing a well entrenched foe. So the titans were unleashed, in an attempt to break the enemy line. Once they hit the battlefield they turned and head straight for the Giga-punch Missile launchers. Each titan fastened itself to a missile. Fired into the night, strapped to a missile ignited they descended upon the enemy. That’s right, they surfed a missile into the enemy line. Just before impact they detached themselves from the missile and used their thrust packs to clear the explosion. To the enemy it seemed as if giant avatars of war had been born from the great explosions. The titans made good use of the confusion their odd assault had cause and killed a great many of the foul aliens.