Pinstripe Punisher
'Pinstripe punisher' is a slang term for a suit dieseltech auto-armor - often a surplus model or one originally meant for construction, though sometimes a custom-built experimental - used to support organized crime. The term derives from the old tendency of Voxelian gangsters to insist on stylish pinstripe suits when conducting 'legitimate business,' but has since spread to all regions of the Manifold Sky as the number of auto-armor suits in civilian hands has grown.
Power Generation
Pinstripe punishers' power plants, in particular, tend to take a lot of damage that would be difficult to explain to legitimate mechanics, making maintenance on them a full-time vocation for one or more (un)lucky criminal underlings. The frequent need to aquire parts surreptitiously to avoid detection by authorities leads to a lack of standardization and a greater risk overall of catastrophic engine failure. More than one mobster has gone up on a plume of burning biodiesel and melting suit material as their poorly-maintained - or even sabotaged - pinstripe punisher undergoes dieseltech runaway at the first sign of opponents who can shoot back. Indeed, for a brief period, finding the charred remnants of pinstripe punishers in nondescript warehouses was something of a calling card for the Duke of Drones, who took great delight in making these suits explode just as their owners were arriving to take possession of them.
Weapons & Armament
Simple grease guns in both 9mm and 18mm crew-served calibers are by far the most common ranged weapons carried by pinstrip punisher operators, as these are both ubiquitous and inexpensive. The real variety among pinstripe punisher loadouts is in the selection of melee weapons, with cultural context, expedience of use and training, and availability being the determining factors here. Union-backed mobsters, such as Vale Toil Front, tend towards using construction (i.e. the JH-AA "Lance" Heavy Jackhammer) and farming (i.e. the vale gaff) implements. Operators from urban environments often improvise, grabbing lengths of steel pipe to batter opponents or heavy debris to pitch at them with super-human force. Pinstripe punisher pilots who percieve themselves as men of culture might opt for more traditional weaponry, such as a broken fighting oar for Rostrans or the elledjet for Voxelians. Concealment is sometimes a consideration with regards to weapons, as pinstripe punishers might need to be 'hidden in plain sight' on work sites, docks, or civil defense yards, though more custom units are ostentatious by design and can thus affort to use more ostentatious weaponry.
Armor and defense
Pinstripe punishers tend to be lightly-armored. While surplus auto-armors often go into the civilian market unchanged, they may be stripped for equipment in support of the war effort. Even should they retain their armor, however, it will only last until it becomes damaged and has to be replaced. Armor plating beyond monolithic steel or aluminum rarely enter surplus stores, as they are needed constantly on the front lines, an no faction wants to accidentally share their armor technology with neer-peer enemies by offering it for sale. As such, pinstripe punishers often feature voluminous carapaces comprised of thin, painted metal, the goal being to make the operator more intimidating and harder to locate within that carapace rather than fully protecting them from bullets.
Class
Price
Varies
Rarity
Uncommon
Height
Varies
Weight
Varies, but light in comparison to combat auto-armor
Complement / Crew
Usually one operator
Cargo & Passenger Capacity
Many pinstripe punishers contain lockable compartments for smuggling, concealed carry of weapons, or protecting valuables taken in the commission of a crime.
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