Fortress
“Shoot me again, I ain't dead yet.”
A Jagdtiger 88 who rolls with the punches. His demeanor is calm and quiet; he seems reserved and aloof, even intimidating. He generally doesn't approach strangers, which gives the impression that he doesn't want to make friends. People therefore avoid him or just leave him alone unless they have a reason to interact. These interactions tend to be brief - Fortress is usually not talkative. The only thing that most know about him is that he is a good fighter but never brags about it. Other than that, they are clueless about his past or what goes on inside his mind.
They generally just assume that he perfectly fits the stereotype of a heavy tank - slow, quiet, ponderous, without ambitions and somewhat dense. Nothing that he shows to others contradicts that impression.
Behind the unapproachable front, there is a friendly and gregarious tank who enjoys being around others. Fortress hardly ever shows this other side, but only because he wants to avoid people getting attached to him. He doesn't want to start caring about anyone, since they have the habit of dying around him. He doesn't achieve this by being rude or cold; generally, he acts polite but distant, which is usually enough to keep people from developing a serious interest in him. It's best in his opinion to keep this distance, even though he wishes that he could open up and be himself. He did that in the past, but quickly learned that he was only going to be hurt over and over again when the people he cared about got killed in battles or had to leave for other reasons.
It's true that he isn't the fastest thinker, but he isn't as simple as people assume. It's easy for him to outsmart enemies, if there is enough time. But even if things get hectic, he can usually rely on the inherent aptitude that his kin possesses - a sort of instinctive knowledge what to do in a fight. His experience in addition to that makes him a dangerous enemy. He enjoys using these skills to be useful to teams. Being someone who wants to help and support everyone the best he can, this is his way of showing at least a little bit of his true self.
Very seldom, someone actually gets past his mental defences. It happens on occasion; sometimes Fortress can't keep up the act. There's tanks that simply worm their way into his heart somehow, either by trying really hard despite his efforts to scare everyone away or by triggering his mother hen complex. To these tanks, he is very kind and caring, even protective. Usually, it just ends like it always does, however.
Physical Description
General Physical Condition
Grey and brown striped camo, worn armour. Many scratches, and chips around the edges.
Special abilities
He is more mobile than other Jagdtiger 8.8s, because he switched his engine for a more powerful on e long ago. He uses that additional mobility to trick enemies into believing they can outmaneuvre him, only to move much faster than they anticipated. There were many chances for him to also swap his cannon for the 12.8cm the regular Jagdtigers use, but he thinks that his 8.8cm is more reliable and prefers the easier handling, even if its firepower isn't as devastating.
Apparel & Accessories
Spare tracks on the sides of his superstructure. Fuel cans and bags.
Mental characteristics
Personal history
Fortress was built in a factory like all the other tanks. His factory used to produce only Jagdtigers, but at some point long ago, due to a lack of ressources, it started using different parts to construct them. The result was Jagdtigers with less powerful engines and 8.8cm cannons. Recently, the factory stopped producing new tanks altogether, although it is said that sometimes, new ones appear nevertheless.
Starting out as a fairly powerful tank, Fortress had a rougher start than those who left the factory as low tiers. His enemies were powerful and experienced. Luckily, he quickly found teams that took him in and taught him how to be a good fighter. He also seemed to have a natural talent. But being good at what he does, he ended up being the lone survivor of those teams a lot of times. Even if he wasn't the last one, there usually weren't enough left to remain a proper team, or the defeat lead to infighting and they got disbanded, which forced Fortress to find new teams anyway.
He got used to this life, however. He still joins teams when his old ones get wiped out or when he has to leave for different reasons, instead of joining a platoon and trying his luck at surviving with only a handful of other tanks on his side.
Gender Identity
male
Accomplishments & Achievements
Killed an Ikv 90 B with his butt once by backing up into it while it was behind him.
Morality & Philosophy
His opinion of the classes is a neutral one. One would think that he'd dislike artillery and fast enemies like light tanks who can pose a great danger to him, but he doesn't hold grudges and would never be rude to them for doing what they were built to do. He believes that every class has its purpose and therefore a right to exist.
Personality Characteristics
Likes & Dislikes
Super Pershings are his favourite prey, but he doesn't like fighting IS-6s and T34s.
Social
Contacts & Relations
Love was never really a priority for him. He had admirers in the past but doesn't want a relationship.
In Battle
Generally cautious, Fortress prefers making his impressive armour work for him. He uses all available cover to hide his weak spots by going hull down (aka hiding the lower parts of his frontal armour) and chooses his position carefully to prevent getting flanked and showing his weaker side and rear to the enemy. He avoids open spaces and tries to engage in narrow streets or other corridor-like terrain. Once he set up, it's basically impossible to get past him without exposing oneself to his cannon. Most are hesitant to even try, resulting in them getting caught up in a stalemate that causes them to waste precious time. However, he also occasionally uses more aggressive tactics, if the situation allows it. Being able to reload faster than most tanks he meets, he uses this to his advantage to disable and kill enemies before they can cause a substantial amount of damage to him in return. When he has no other choice than to expose himself or when the enemy is weakened, he tries to rush them. The psychological effect of a 75 ton heavily armoured machine with a frighteningly quick rate of fire charging at you plays a big role here. The sight of it makes many enemies panic and scramble to remember where to shoot him.
Strengths
His greatest asset is his armour, and he knows how to use it. The superstructure is impenetrable to many cannons, and even to some higher tiered tanks. Combined with his fast firing gun, getting into a brawl with him is usually deadly. But even if the situation gets tricky, he doesn't lose his cool and makes deliberate decisions.Weaknesses
As strong as his superstructure is, his glacis and side/rear armour are very weak. Some guns he meets can't penetrate the glacis armour, but most can. Also, as soon as someone manages to get to his side or behind him, he's in serious trouble. Lacking a turret, he can only shoot targets in front of him, which makes these situations even more dangerous - if someone can circle him, he is basically helpless. Especially when fighting particularly well-armoured enemies, his cannon's shell penetration is insufficient at times. Another weakness is that sometimes, things happen too fast for him to follow and react to.
Species
Ethnicity
Children
Height
2.92 m
Weight
70 t
Appears in...
I didn't realize how apt a name Fortress was for him until just now. He's impenetrable, both in armor and emotionally. It's a shame about his track record with friendships, but I don't blame him for not reaching out to any more people. I like that he's smart, but not necessarily a quick thinker, and also how his fighting style utilizes his faster cannon.
A fun fact about him: He's based on a tank I own in World of Tanks! After playing 600+ battles with it, I basically sat down and thought "how can I make a personality from its playstyle and stats"? That's how Fortress came to be. Another fun fact: Even though he only appeared in one very short story so far, he's got the most fleshed out profile of all my tank characters.
Check out The Hummelverse, a post-apocalyptic utopia... with talking tanks!
Oh, neat! You personified him really well. It seems like he comes easy to you!