Qbicle 109 Posted February 11 Source: https://armoredwarfare.com/en/news/general/development-borsuk Quote With February in full swing, we’d like to start telling you about an upcoming Battle Path called Shadow Protocol and its vehicles, the first of which to be unveiled will be the Borsuk Armored Fighting Vehicle. Borsuk IFV, 2022 The Shadow Protocol Battle Path has two themes – the main one is mercenaries and their history. The second one is the past, the present and the future of warfare with Borsuk representing the contemporary vehicles. But, as usual, a bit of history first. The Borsuk (“badger”) is a brand-new Polish Infantry Fighting Vehicle, designed to replace the now utterly obsolete BWP-1 (Polish version of the BMP-1) from the 1970s with earlier attempts to produce a universal platform (such as the Anders) or upgrading it (the Puma program) falling short. Towards the end of 2014, the Poles launched another project to modernize their IFVs. The first public information about the new IFV was unveiled in 2016 and included two important pieces of info – the turret was supposed to be unmanned and capable of launching Spike ATGMs. Borsuk demonstrator, 2017 The vehicle was also supposed to be amphibious – an important requirement for the Polish military, as Poland is a country full of rivers. Initially, two versions were envisaged – a light one (25 tons, amphibious) and a heavy one (40 tons, not amphibious). The idea was to produce at least 1000 vehicles in order to completely replace the BWP-1. Initially, it was also considered to co-develop (and co-finance) the vehicle with the Czech Republic, but that plan collapsed very quickly. A technological proof of concept was exhibited in Kielce during the MSPO 2017 expo. From there, refinements were made, and the chassis was mated with a remote-controlled (unmanned) ZSSW-30 turret (armed with Spikes and 30mm Mk.44S autocannon with -9/+60 depression and elevation and 120 RPM rate of fire). It also gained additional armor and new tracks. This more advanced Borsuk prototype was displayed a year later, again during the MSPO expo. Borsuk IFV, 2023 At that point, the Borsuk requirements for “heavy” and “light” variants merged into a single 25 ton amphibious vehicle (although additional modular armor is also supported, increasing the weight to 28 tons). The vehicle was powered by a MTU engine producing some 720hp. Further work on the design included various modifications based on initial testing feedback such as changing how the splash board works, and the locations of cameras. The final version of the prototype was wheeled out in 2019. Military trials then followed and were completed in 2022 with additional four prototypes being manufactured during this time (bringing the total to five prototypes). At the beginning of 2023, an order was placed for 1400 units (1000 basic Borsuk IFVs, 400 specialized variants), the first of which due to be delivered in 2025. Borsuk is also available for export with various versions being offered to Romania and even Brazil. However, it’s unlikely to be a widely successful export article for now, first due to the lack of service experience and, secondly, due to the Polish Army likely gobbling up all produced units. In Armored Warfare, the Borsuk will be a Tier 10 Premium AFV. All in all, the vehicle itself is not very remarkable, but comes with a major twist. The armor is in concept somewhat similar to that of the Ajax – basic hull covered with modular composite plates. Compared to the Ajax, the vehicle is less armored and has fewer hitpoints (as it is considerably lighter) but it is protected from autocannons. The firepower is also decent and consists of 40mm autocannon and a Spike ATGM launcher in an unmanned turret (the Spike launcher is unlocked via Battle Path progression). As for the mobility, the vehicle is considerably more agile than the Ajax thanks to its lower weight. 720hp for 28 tons is not a bad value, after all. The vehicle can naturally also deploy Mechanized Infantry. So, now you might be thinking that we made a decent (if bland) IFV suitable for all kinds of players. But here comes the promised twist. The Borsuk will also come with a unique ability called Repair Zone. Simply put, when activated, it deploys a repair team. In game terms, it spawns a circle behind it and staying in the circle will slowly restore your hitpoints. The restoration speed and the maximum amount of restored hitpoints are still being tuned, but the base will also have a physical object with hitpoints inside it (a pile of boxes). Destroying that object will remove the base. This ability is sure to come in handy in both PvP and difficult PvE modes where a strategically placed Repair Zone can save the entire mission. Comments from SS: The repair zone can also repair the parent vehicle (i.e. the Borsuk that deploys the structure itself) as well as other teammate vehicles, but it won't be usable by enemies As an entity it will behave similarly to VN20's turret, and it can be spotted by anyone It will disappear upon destruction or when the parent vehicle respawns Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Qbicle 109 Posted February 19 Since the Repair Zone is closely related to the Borsuk, I decide to put its content here instead of making another thread for it. Source: https://armoredwarfare.com/en/news/general/developer-diary-repair-zone Quote In our previous Borsuk article, we revealed the upcoming Repair Zone active ability and today we’d like to tell you more about how it works. As was mentioned before, the ability, simply put, slowly restores the hitpoints of friendly vehicles inside it, including your own. The zone consists of a circle and an object (a pile of parts). The circle itself is invulnerable but the pile of parts has 1000 hitpoints (and some light armor). It’s worth noting that it cannot be destroyed instantly by ramming into it (unlike the VN20’s deployable turret or infantry troopers) in order to prevent its accidental destruction since player vehicles will have to drive near it. The center of the vehicle has to be present within the repair circle and stop for the repair process to trigger. The repair process stops as soon as you move (even within the zone). The number of friendly vehicles inside the zone is not limited by anything but the circle’s size. Effectively, this means two or three vehicles will be able to use it at the same time. The repair speed is the same for every vehicle within the zone and doesn’t decrease with more vehicles present. Deploying the Repair Zone works much like with other infantry. You have a single Repair Zone charge. If it gets destroyed – well, that’s it. You can “pick up” the Repair Zone with your Borsuk and move it elsewhere at any point, as long as it is not destroyed. However, the deployment takes some time, during which you must remain stationary. In a match, Repair Zone is not limited by duration – it stays until picked up or destroyed. The zone isn’t spotted automatically. It has a camouflage value (tied to the pile of parts) and if that’s hidden behind a hill, you won’t be able to see an enemy zone at all. Unlike infantry, however, the zone cannot spot things on its own, nor it has any armament – it remains completely passive. In short: Repair Zone has an object (boxes + piles of parts) with 1000 HP but cannot be instantly destroyed via ramming Vehicles need to stay still inside the circle for repair to work Aside from restoring HP, other aspects such as repair speed or module repair are still TBD Repair Zone has no spotting range (i.e. cannot spot), but it has own camouflage value Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
