By VinceHoffman
Sep 07, 2015
This build was finalized in April 2014. As the pics suggest, this Halo custom was based upon concept art from Ensemble Studios' cancelled Halo Worlds MMO game. Ensemble was also responsible for the awesome Halo Wars RTS Xbox 360 game and as a result, a host of other cool Halo themed vehicles. Other than the concept pics I've provided, there was no background info for it. So I dreamed up the acronym to explain its unlikely name and a proper back story as follows... Similar In size and primary intent to the M12 LRV, the AARDVark weighs a little more than twice the standard Light Reconnaissance Warthog variant's 3.25 tons. This is due to the M124's extensive use of ablative ceramic and titanium armor to protect the crew and all mission critical mechanical & electrical systems, a 6 wheel drive system and a far larger hydrogen fueled ICE motor capable of hurling the AARDVark along at speeds up to 150 kmh (90mph). Crew compliment is two, a driver and a gunner with no provision for passengers of any sort. Armament is the tri-barreled M46 LAAG firing 12.7x99mm armor-piercing rounds.
With it's massively upgraded ablative armor (comparable to that of the M808 Scorpion) the M124 can shrug off hits from all Covenant infantry and light vehicle weapons. The M124 is able to absorb multiple hits from heavy infantry weapons like the Fuel Rod Canon. In fact even a direct hit from a Wraith's heavy plasma cannon may be survivable provided the round doesn't directly impact the crew compartments. The M124 also features a substantially wider stance along with the aforementioned uprated motor generating double the horsepower to drive all six wheels to a 15% higher top speed than the Warthog. The end result is a vehicle which offers improved high speed offroad stability ( it is near impossible to have an accidental roll-over) and survivability over the M12 Warthog with only a small loss in high speed maneuverability. Of course the M124 does so at the expensive of any sort of utility or versatility. The lightly armored M12 Warthog with it's many useful variants remains the UNSC's jack of all trades while the AARDVark is a master of only one- reconnoitering hostile theater's of operation, typically at the head of a UNSC fast mechanized battalion.
In addition to it's straight forward use as an outrider picket for an attached mechanized armor group, an effective strategy has been to make use of the M124 AARDVark's capabilities as a "rabbit". The M124 is sent into the hostile theater in search of enemy mechanized armor patrols. The M124 crew purposely engages the enemy and then performs a tactical retreat being certain to remain within visual range of the enemy units in pursuit. The enemy units are thus lured into an optimal kill box where the remainder of the UNSC mechanized force lies in wait in a prearranged ambush.
With it's massively upgraded ablative armor (comparable to that of the M808 Scorpion) the M124 can shrug off hits from all Covenant infantry and light vehicle weapons. The M124 is able to absorb multiple hits from heavy infantry weapons like the Fuel Rod Canon. In fact even a direct hit from a Wraith's heavy plasma cannon may be survivable provided the round doesn't directly impact the crew compartments. The M124 also features a substantially wider stance along with the aforementioned uprated motor generating double the horsepower to drive all six wheels to a 15% higher top speed than the Warthog. The end result is a vehicle which offers improved high speed offroad stability ( it is near impossible to have an accidental roll-over) and survivability over the M12 Warthog with only a small loss in high speed maneuverability. Of course the M124 does so at the expensive of any sort of utility or versatility. The lightly armored M12 Warthog with it's many useful variants remains the UNSC's jack of all trades while the AARDVark is a master of only one- reconnoitering hostile theater's of operation, typically at the head of a UNSC fast mechanized battalion.
In addition to it's straight forward use as an outrider picket for an attached mechanized armor group, an effective strategy has been to make use of the M124 AARDVark's capabilities as a "rabbit". The M124 is sent into the hostile theater in search of enemy mechanized armor patrols. The M124 crew purposely engages the enemy and then performs a tactical retreat being certain to remain within visual range of the enemy units in pursuit. The enemy units are thus lured into an optimal kill box where the remainder of the UNSC mechanized force lies in wait in a prearranged ambush.