The Imperial Special Service Population Compliance Department possesses many tools and equipment in order to maintain compliance among the populations of ATIS worlds and installations. One such tool is the SCAR-D1-CE (Self-Contained, Autonomous, Robotics - Drone Variant 1, Civic Enforcement), a fully autonomous Civic Law Enforcement/surveillance drone with remote or independent logic-driven operation designed for a wide variety of law-enforcement and Population Compliance related tasks.
The SCAR-D platform was originally designed and built for the ATIS Imperial Planetary Forces for use as an autonomous infantry-support combat drone and mobile remote weapons platform for IPF infantry divisions. In IPF service, the unit has the SCAR-D1-PF designation; with the suffix denoting "Planetary Forces". Other variants exist, such as the SCAR-D1-MC version for the Imperial Marine Corps, with modified equipment support to suit their operations.
Being a military platform, the SCAR-D1 unit is rugged, heavily protected and can carry a wide variety of heavy weapons systems and other equipment; making it ideal for heavy compliance operations such as riot control or civic unrest suppression. The PCD primarily operate the SCAR-D1-CE (sometimes nicknamed "Scar Dice" by operators and private citizens) as a heavy enforcement platform for riot control and armed response, counter-terrorism duties on Imperial controlled worlds and installations.
Typically, multiple SCAR-D1-CE units are assigned to a given locale, such as a residential street on a civic tier of the Lorentian Tiered Mega-City; whereby the street (or district) PCD Headquarters will have several dozen SCAR-D1-CE units in a high-readiness status for rapid response to emerging threats to civic peace. On non-core worlds or installations, the UAS Civic Federal Police are responsible for both law-enforcement and policing in a first-response capacity, but do not typically operate the heavier SCAR-D1-CE units; instead operating the SCAR-DL2-CE compact version which can access any human-accessible traversal ways, as the larger SCAR-D1 is too big to fit in most doorways.
Instead, the SCAR-D1-CE units act as heavy-support, called in when smaller Law Enforcement units request backup, or as the first-response on core worlds, especially the Capital world of ATIS, Lorentis. There, SCAR-D1-CE units are primarily used as active-patrol and high-readiness first response to almost any threat, providing the unit is able to access the location easily. This reflects the extreme high-security nature of policing on Lorentis.
The SCAR-D1-CE is able to carry the smaller DL2-CE drone in an under-side (ventral) harness; being able to deploy it and operate it remotely or with its own onboard logic system Sub-AI; this allows the D1-CE to neutralise threats enclosed in buildings or compartments too small to fit the heavier drone.
The SCAR-D1-CE is equipped with four primary equipment hardpoints located on each "corner" of the chassis, providing 360 degree traversal coverage for engaging or surveying multiple targets/points of interest. In addition, each retractable hardpoint arm is equipped with an independent traversable optics system with wide-spectrum visual enhancement including thermal and electromagnetic systems. The optics rotate on their own swivels, independent of the equipment turret, allowing faster and more dynamic surveillance or target acquisition.
Each hardpoint is equipped, as standard, with a high-power multi-wavelength search-light with modes operating in visible light, Infrared and Ultra-violet. Searchlights are useful for highlighting private citizens to ensure they are aware the drone has them in its attention (in a civic enforcement capability) or illuminating very dark areas where there is insufficient ambient light for light amplification optics, or very few thermal sources. The hardpoint is also equipped with a multi-purpose anti-personnel weapon using Magnetic Acceleration ("coil gun") with a variety of operational modes and ammunition types ranging from low-velocity stun (neuro-pulse or muscle inhibitors) darts to extreme high velocity, armour-piercing penetrators able to defeat most body armour with a high lethality.
However, like the SCAR-D1-PF and MC variants, the D1-CE is able to mount almost any infantry-scale drone weapon system to each hardpoint; including the military-grade FIMD-12 guns used on the Infantry-Support variants. In addition to weapons, the equipment arms can also carry a multitude of other equipment types from additional sensors to loudpseakers allowing for a variety of roles to be performed as required. In addition to the equipment arms, the drone platform is equipped with a quartet of triple-launch grenade projectors arranged in a 360 degree coverage pattern around the unit, able to project a variety of utility grenades such as anti-personnel "tear" gas grenades or sensor-blocking smoke grenades and stun-grenades.
Furthermore, the D1-CE has two additional hardpoints on either side of the main chassis for optional robotic actuator arms to allow the drone to interact with objects and manipulate the environment. In this configuration, the D1-CE is, as standard, equipped with a triple-function multi-tool with Laser and Plasma cutters and a universal Interface for electronic systems; allowing the drone to bypass low-density obstructions and remotely interface with almost any human-built electronic system.
The D1-CE is propelled by four Helium-Fusion-Plasma Pulse-Burst thrusters running off an independent Hydrogen-Fuel cell contained within each engine nacelle; the primary uplift of the drone is provided by an internal Anti-Gravimetric Gyro Stabiliser operating at, typically, 0.9G repulsion (negates 90% of Earth-gravity). As such, the drone fires its thrusters downward in a pulse mode to maintain level flight, adjusting the frequency of the pulses to control altitude - this method is more efficient due to the non-linear, exponential scaling of the power requirements of the AG-GS system when reaching full gravimetric negation. The engine nacelles are rotatable and also handle lateral movement such as rotation and forward/reverse thrust. While the drone is space-capable, it was primarily designed for operation on earth-like planets.
The D1-CE has heavy protection; external suspended armour pylons shield the core superstructure of the unit with weight-optimised nano-polymer (LMNPA) armour similar in composition to external panelling used on IPF armoured vehicles or heavier mechanised exo-suits. These external panels are suspended on actuated shock-absorbers designed to reduce or nullify impact force delivered to the platform from larger, non-penetrating projectiles. This allows the drone to remain stable even under heavy fire. The panels are adjustable and utilise a threat-response adaptive harmonics system linked to the drone's sensors to maximise coverage against incoming threats.
Perhaps the most iconic use of the D1-CE unit, is by the ISS's Eridonia Task Force, operating in the depths of the planet-wide city ruins of the Old Federation's former capital world, Eridonia. The ETF is responsible for handling security and high-hazard recovery operations within the ruins, using D1-CE units almost exclusively for deep missions in the lower tiers; where their ruggedness and heavy equipment capabilities prove invaluable.