After your week of fun in the sun and bombs at the range, you got right back into the pencil-pushing groove. First up was a list of design suggestions for Reindhart, consisting mostly of more ventilation to prevent the heatstroke cases that had been the GK-1's main point of failure, as well as some plate samples for weapons testing. The return mail a few days later was very positive, and stated that plate would be shipped out to the Ulm Testing Grounds postehaste, along with a bill of matierals and a quote for the test materials coming out to eighty five thalers, to be waived express if an order for more than twenty breakthrough vehicles were ordered.
Wanderer, as usual, cornered you for a business lunch for the results of the live fire testing. Between the apertif and salads, you discussed the majority of the improvements to the tracks and drive sockets. Aside from looking terribly embarresed, Wanderer took your suggestions to paper and quized you back on how the other entrants had done. Once the real eating was done and you were sipping coffee, you brought up the sample plates. Unfortunately, the original preproduction model casting center had been hit in a zeppelins bombing raid, and their proprietary family methodology had gone down with it. Fortunately, according to Wanderer, he'd lined up a few backup facilities and would have them send you plates for a measily thirty thalers apiece.
Then there was Thryssen. Once you'd beat past the initial walls of bullshit, accomplished by spending two days talking to the Werser military attache, you got down to the meat of it. The ventilation changes were grudgingly accepted, mostly because they'd been worked into the AV-4B model that the Wersers had been happy to collaborate with you on (their Developerbraus being as in the dark as you were) but the test plates were harder. Thryssen's own internal testing apparatus had numbers for you, thank you very much, and you spent as much time getting your plates for independent testing as the improvements through. Finally, after a net expense of a hundred and twenty thalers, your tests could go through.
The GK-1 mod. 1 erstraz took a few days to get to Ulm, but once it was put through its paces the results were much better than before, making it a full two hours of run time with only two heatstroke incidents, eight detrackings two of which were due to roadwheels shattering, six clutch failures, one throttle failure, and two Acts of God- one being the tank failing to cross a trench and flipping on its side, and the other a simultaneous throttle failure, leading to the powered clutches seizing, resulting in a sharp left turn that broke both tracks. In all other areas, it was the same as before, including crew fatality rate as one conscript was crushed by a falling portion of the engine mounting and two others suffered concussions and drowned from leaking fuel in the rollover.
The W-2 was an onsite modification of one of the boilerplate prototypes of the W-1, and was much better performing than the W-1. The test lasted an hour and forty minutes, stopping due to fuel exhaustion. The breakdowns were five detracking incidents, four cases of heatstroke, four engine or transmission failures, one case of getting bodily stuck in a crater (the original drive team having gone home), two cases of crew injury from abrupt maneuvers and not wearing their tanker armor or being belted in, one engine fire, and one UXO incident of running over a 75mm shell responsible for flipping the tank on its back and concussing the crew.
The penetration tests were a whole 'nother headache. The Thryssen plates were generally the worst under standard rifle fire, with the 6mm plate spalling at two hundred meters and shattering after forty rounds at spalling range, while penetrations were achieved at sixty meters. The 12mm plate was hardly better, suffering spallings at one hundred and fifty meters and shattering after one hundred and twelve rounds, and penetrations at forty meters. The Reinhardt plates were better, the 8mm plate spalling at one hundred sixty meters and shattering at twenty-five rounds, while penetrations were at fifty-five meters. The 16mm plate was surprisingly better, with spalling at ninety meters and shattering after seventy rounds, while penetration happened at thirty five meters. Wanderer's cast hull front (he used Thryssen plates for the sides) held up to spalling from ninety meters requiring a hundred and fifteen rounds to finally shatter, and penetration requiring an awe-inspiring twenty-five meters to finally get through it.
You couldn't be in Ulm for the weapons testing, though, or even get through the mess of ballistic-esse, because High Command had just called, and said that the Kubachin Free State had managed to commit to a naval landing at Marienburg. With the 12 Gardecorops sent in with the Landwere to contain the damage and the Kubachain were fortifying fast. While the Gardecorps might be able to dig them out alone, doing it without wrecking the city was unlikely. As such, it was time for your screwballs to get ready to roll.
((This is a SINGLE ITEM vote, and a panic buy on High Command's part. NO PLANS.))
[] 100x Wanderer 2 tanks, to be procured through Wanderer GmbH
[] 85x Großekreuzer tanks, to be procured through Reindhardt AG
[] 65x AV-4 tanks, to be procured through Thryssen AT