SEK 13

The SEK 13 is a tripedal ground combat walker of the Hierarchy.

Developed in the midst of the Koshviri Integration, the SEK 13's design was informed by the bitter urban campaigns of the war - one of first in the Hierarchy's centuries long history where it had encountered advanced indigenous resistance. It was to be a flexible vehicle, capable of occupation/internal security duties as well as high intensity combat. The S-2 heat ray-type laser unit was adjustable in its output, only enough to blind or cause minor blistering at low output, while sufficient usage against light air or armoured units at high output. The T-2 multifuel combustion turbine, designed for aviation, provided a onboard power source, while the SEK was also compatible with orbital microwave power transmitters.

After its introduction in 233, the SEK 13 quickly proved to be popular with Direct Force crews in high security regions. 200,000 were deployed to the Koshviri frontier by 238, and more than half of these participated in the 241 landings on Koshvir 2. Almost a million SEK 13s would later be used during the 251 Taksek and 253 Keliei revolts. The walker was prized in the anti-insurgency role for its intimidating profile, agility and operational flexibility.

By the time of contact with the Empire, there were over 3 million SEK 13s in Integratoriate service, making them the most widely produced combat vehicles in Hierarchy history. They were deployed in massive numbers during the 277 war, but the shortcomings of the trusty old design became readily apparent when the SEKs faced Imperial forces for the first time. Designed for engagements against insurgents and much more primitive adversaries, the tripods were critically underarmoured compared to adversaries such as the Imperial Type-65, and were also vulnerable to artillery and concentrated infantry attacks. Hierarchy armoured tactics in the 270s were also poorly adapted for high intensity warfare - unlike the small, mobile strike groups that SEK 13s had been organised in during the Koshviri conflicts, most non-special forces walker units during the early months of the war were often very large and had little effective training for mobile offensives. 250,000 SEK 13s were captured during the war, and 360,000 destroyed in combat, with another million lost to mechanical failures, rearline bombardments or transport intercepts.

Though by the closing months of the war the tripod units had seen massive overhauls in their training and tactics which allowed them to far more effectively utilise their mobility and firepower against the humans, it became immediately clear that the SEK 13 had been decisively proved obsolete. Development of the succeeding K-24 Lo-Żssazrobar walker began immediately after the war's conclusion, and SEK 13s were rapidly retired from frontline service. By 295, the K-24 was fully established as the Hierarchy's new primary combat walker, with the SEK 13 retained only for rearline patrols and occupation duties. It was also soon replaced in the latter role by the K-20.

The last frontline deployment of SEK 13s was by rebel forces during the 299 Lunar Rebellion, and only a few thousand remain in service today on frontier worlds and outposts. These are due to be retired by 312.