MH-2 "Monarch" Mellification Cannon

The MH-2 "Monarch" Mellification Cannon is a weapon designed and perfected by Silkenvault Combat Solutions, Ltd. as an extension of Voxelia's prodigious trade in apiary products. The Monarch is a close-range weapon designed to utilize the waste heat of dieseltech auto-armor to propel it's projectiles. The mass, recoil, and potentially disfiguring backwash of the weapon make it impractical and dangerous for unprotected infantry crews, but it's tendency to leave heavy equipment unscathed make it ideal in anti-infantry or airship boarding roles.
The Monarch fires a specialized, large caliber projectile composed of a waxy outer shell containing a small volume of honey which would otherwise not be deemed suitable for human consumption. In this way, the product of diseased beehives can still find use as ammunition. When fired, the hot exhaust gasses and coolant flow created by the dieseltech auto-armor to which the weapon is attached forces the projectile out the barrel, turning it into a bolus of scalding, sticky liquid which burns and disfigures opponents even as the impact injures or kills them.

Mechanics & Inner Workings

The Monarch features a dual-layered barrel assembly, with the space between barrels injected with water mist on firing. The mist turns to steam and passes through the tiny, forward-angled pores of the inner barrel to prevent (via the Leydenfrost effect) the specialized projectiles used by the Monarch from getting stuck when used at range. By varying the timing of steam injection via standard- and alternate-fire triggers, the projectile can either be launched whole from the barrel or allowed to catch near the end, creating a concussive blast of boiling adhesive fluid and pressurized steam for use against melee attackers.

Manufacturing process

Monarchs are forged and assembled in Silkenvault Combat Solutions factory facilities in Voxelia, with many processes (such as the boring of the steam jets) controlled precisely by dieseltech automation.

Item type

Weapon, Other

Subtype / Model

Crew-Served Weapon

Manufacturer

Silkenvault Combat Solutions, Ltd.

Related Technologies

• Dieseltech

Related ethnicities

• New Voxelian
• Vale Verdial

Rarity

The Monarch is an uncommon weapon, generally employed only by members of the Grand Army of Voxelia - or, occasionally, military units from Petalcap Vale - due to the uneconomical nature of the specialized ammunition in other states. When employed by Verdials, the wax and honey can sometimes be substituted with resin and sap, though doing so requires additional maintenance due to the risk of the barrel gumming up.

Weight

50 lbs (plus up to 25 lbs per ammunition magazine)

Raw materials & Components

The barrel and firing mechanism of the Monarch must be manufactured out of hardened steel alloys to resist the intense heat and pressure built up during firing, with surfaces treated with corrosion-resistant oil or coatings to further resist corrosion from the high-pressure water vapor forced through the outer barrel during firing.