Method Mask

The GH-01MSK 'Method Mask', AKA "Mask" or "Method Mask" is a heavy refit of a USAF-15 Type 15 MBF 'Kestrel' Armor Frame. It is owned and operated by CINO Ketaminé, who customized it with the assistance of Dux.

Unit Description & Combat Characteristics
The Method Mask is an AF designed primarily to support CINO during infiltration operations, using its ECM/ECCM Suite to scramble communications and create diversions while CINO commences his mission from outside of the AF itself. It would not be out of place to consider the Method Mask to be a mobile electronics warfare platform. The Method Mask's weapon loadout is otherwise light, making the AF generally not suited for direct combat engagements.

Armaments & Features

 * "THOR-II" Anodized Electroconductive Combat Knives
 * Anti-armor penetrator blades containing rechargeable capacitors, which electrify the edge in to deliver powerful shocks that can temporarily disable portions of an Armor Frame or cause broader system failures if used to strike a vulnerable area. Hand-carried in use, they receive power through couplings built into the palm of an AF's hand.


 * Model F-38 Anti-Armor Magnum Sidearm
 * A solid-munitions handgun typically used as a holdout weapon. It fires armor-piercing 80mm FMJ rounds but is limited to a short effective range.


 * TEK-B-ML Smoke Grenade Launchers
 * Multiple launchers affixed to the sides of the Armor Frame's torso, loaded with and calibrated to launch smoke grenades. As they are on the torso, they can be used even when both hands are occupied. The smoke is useful for obscuring optical sensors and direct line of sight for an ambush strike or tactical retreat.


 * "SHOWSTOPPER" ECM/ECCM (Electronic Counter-Measure/Electronic Counter-Counter-Measure) Suite
 * Special hardware for electronic warfare, the ECM/ECCM Suite is designed to jam enemy communications and electronic detection systems while providing protection against similar attacks for the pilot's allies. The primary system radome is mounted on an articulating arm to pull it behind the Method Mask's body when not in use.

Unit History
Prior to the events of Dust & Argon, Dux and CINO developed the Method Mask while associates in the Bonanno family. The Mask would be instrumental in CINO's espionage work both independently and during assignments presented by the family. Due to the sensitive and specialized equipment onboard, CINO would have routine repair and maintenance done by La Cosa Nostra technicians using Dux's design schematics. Because the Mask rarely sees direct combat, minimal maintenance is actually required, and it is typically in near-pristine condition.

The first time the Method Mask is seen onscreen in Dust & Argon, CINO arrives flanked by a pair of Bonanno family Neros to escort Dux back to Sicily in the epilogue of Session 4 - "Más Vale Tarde Que Nunca".

The Mask would later be seen in Session 5 - The Sons of Sicily, piloted by Knight. Due to CINO joining Ollie on-foot to infiltrate and secure the mission target, CINO gave Knight a crash course in the Mask's operation, where it would sortie alongside Dux in the Chiron and Toni in the La Mancha in AF-versus-AF combat. This would also be the first combat the Mask would participate in onscreen.

The Method Mask would receive its highest exposure to date in Session 6 - From the Stone, to the Sky, piloted by CINO. In its first sortie of the session, the Mask crashed in a matter of minutes into an AF-sized sinkhole, necessitating a rescue by Toni and the Hoopti, though the Mask was undamaged. A short time later, the La Mancha and the Mask deployed together in pursuit of an unknown target, with the La Mancha delivering a fatal blow to an unidentified combat drone and the Mask carrying it back to the airship. After some investigation and analysis, CINO would outfit the Mask with legacy hardware to interface with and disable the drones. During the next sortie into the facility where the drones were believed to be originating from, the AFs of the party would engage three members of the Aviary in AF-versus-AF combat. The party's AFs would later be uniformly destroyed by catastrophic environmental damage caused by the activation of the autonomous superweapon Tyrannenflugel.

In the epilogue to Session 7 - The East is Burning Red, Dux would confirm that the wreckage of the Method Mask was salvaged by KoBar forces, along with the remains of the Chiron, La Mancha, and the Your Majesty.

Trivia

 * The Method Mask is named for CINO's use of method acting while incognito, CINO's signature adornment, and Method Man of the American hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan.
 * The design of the AF itself is influenced by the AV-98 Ingram of Mobile Police Patlabor.
 * Prior to the destruction of the team's AFs by the Tyrannenflugel, the Method Mask had taken 0 Harm throughout its sorties.