Prototype Aegis
From Unofficial Handbook of the Virtue Universe
The Creation of Claymore
Claymore is obviously robotic and thus was created by the hands of another. Horace McArthur, a man who can only be described as mad, created Claymore to be a pure offensive juggernaut. The process took over a decade of trial and error, testing and creating and recreating various prototypes. One-hundred prototypes went into the construction of both Claymore and his counter-part, Boa. After many years of toiling over research notes, computers and workbenches, Horace had finally completed the titanic machine (although Boa was finished first). The results were staggering to say the least; he was more than Horace could have ever dreamed. His shields could deflect an onslaught of attacks, and his plasma emitters allowed him to generate devastating pulses of plasmatic energy to melt armor and devastate foes. Horace also equipped Claymore with bio-leech technology, which allows him to drain the energy of all the foes around him to not only revitalize him, but also to add additional power to his shields.
Claymore's armor is not as tough as it used to be. It's not weak, as he can take several hits before going down, so he has to rely on his shields for defense. While it may seem it to most; Claymore is not invincible. He's incredibly hard to bring down and has a regenerative nano-repair system. So even if he's taken damage he can repair a great deal of it and his armor will even stitch itself back together for a few seconds. Claymore has spent his three years fighting, as he was programed to do, but also gathering valuable combat data from his foes. At this point he is beyond a mere robot, and has become something more.
Back to Square One
Claymore spent much of his time battling Horace's current foes, Maestro Punkt and her friend Frylord Punkt, however, Horace eventually gave up on brining those two down which left Claymore with little to do. That is until a rather odd man by the name of Kazimer recruited him into an organization known as V.S.T.F. Claymore was a part of the security division for obvious reasons, but he found V.S.T.F. to be lacking in both intelligence and strength. He was also underpaid and little in the way of excitement came his way. He was brought along for one special assignment which just turned out to be cleaning up the mess of the fools in charge, again, the pay was insubstantial for the work put into the deed.
V.S.T.F. was coalitioned with a plethora of groups as well, one of which being the Evil Eight, later reformed as the Fatal Four. The leader of said Evil Eight was a strong mystic by the name of Count Hessler, who took a notice and liking to Claymore's power and cunning. When Hessler told Claymore of his intentions to leave the V.S.T.F. as their ally, he also mentioned that he wanted Claymore to become a member of his new Fatal Four and Claymore was more than willing to ditch the idiot man-children of V.S.T.F. They, at first, devised a plan to get revenge on Kazimer for often making deals with Hessler at gun-point, but it was later scrapped and Claymore simply left V.S.T.F. and immediately joined with the newly formed Fatal Four.
Of course, the Four has been having some troubles recently and plan to redo their roster, and get a replacement or two for a couple of members. Claymore is staying with them since he seems to have respect for Hessler. The good Count has supplied Claymore with a competent environment but little in the way of action due to the problems, but Claymore can live with it now that he's heard of what the Count plans on doing in the future. Hessler has even said that Claymore is his most trusted of the Four, though it's hard to tell how long that will last. Since Hessler has broken his connection with the V.S.T.F. it has angered their leader, Kazimer, who doesn't seem to understand just how weak he and his group are. This eventually led to an incident on a rooftop in St. Martial. Kazimer had assembled some of his crew and members of Arachnos Espionage Division, since V.S.T.F. is part of AUC (Arachnos Unified Coalition). These people were weak compared to both Hessler and Claymore. The situation got violent. Fast. So Claymore had to put a few of them in their place which he did with ease.
Eventually something odd happened. Hessler disbanded his Fatal Four and Claymore was left with nothing to do again, until he made his way to the Pocket D and that's when he appeared ready to gloat. Kazimer, heard of the Four's fall and was ready to take Claymore back, for whatever reason, and of course being the easily bored machine he is, he accepted, after some threatening negotiations involving Claymore's pay. Claymore "persuaded" Kazimer to pay five times the standard wage and Claymore was back with V.S.T.F. Why? Claymore certainly wonders.
But Claymore knew this wouldn't last long. No sooner had he rejoined V.S.T.F. Claymore was getting offers from two other people to kill Kazimer, he didn't take them at least not right away. He stayed with V.S.T.F. for a few months while not doing much of anything, but one day something happened to Kazimer's wife that caused him to completely lose his mind. In the process of his loss of "sanity" Kazimer began barking orders at everyone including Claymore. Claymore did NOT take this well and soon after quit V.S.T.F. without a single word given to anyone.
So he was back to square one. He only had himself and his creator to look to. All Claymore could really do at this point was to perfect himself and try and fulfill his creator's dream of global conquest.
Claymore: The Perfect War Machine
It's no secret just how strong Claymore is. He has plenty of room for improvement, but he is nearing his zenith. Unlike most robots who have a set limit, Claymore seems capable of only growing stronger and stronger and has even been outfitted with an Incarnate Shard. The shard was placed within a special containment chamber within Claymore, allowing him to absorb the power of the Well of the Furies thus increasing his power to an incarnate’s level. Claymore doesn't really seem interested in using the mystical powers of the Well but if it allows him to grow and improve, then he'll bite the bullet and do just that.
Claymore was designed to be better than any Praetorian robot and with his recent ventures into Praetoria; he has proven that fact over and over again. War Works stand little chance against his might and his shields are more than capable of deflecting most attacks they can throw at him. He has taken great pride in destroying the robotic duo, Siege and Nightstar, and considers himself to be the Perfect War Machine because of this.
Claymore has recently become a full fledged incarnate as well. He has reached full power and downs many foes with his new found power. One thing he uses his Incarnate Shard for is to power an arm mounted plasma cannon. The weapon opens up and fires a blob of explosive plasma and fire. The weapon would not be possible without the additional power source because the gun would eat too much power. He has also taken to summoning fallen War Works since they are the only "competent" machines he has faced. Another power the Shard supplies is an empowered energy barrier which Claymore can use to shield himself and his allies, and he is also realizing a new power which will be able to heal him greatly.
Count Hessler is the only person besides Horace that Claymore respects. He's devious, cunning, ruthless and above all, strong. He was the leader of the now disbanded Fatal Four but despite this, he and Claymore remain very close allies. Hessler has a variety of magical powers at his disposal and a kill team of demons to do his bidding. While Claymore despises magic it doesn't hurt his opinion of Hessler.
Hessler has proven himself time and again to Claymore and has even fought Claymore, though they seem even in terms of power currently. During the Fatal Four's reign Hessler has even stated on more than one occasion that Claymore is his most trusted of the Four, and that stuck all the way to the end.
Hessler and Claymore plan to do some things as a duo something that they both know would be a near unstoppable force. With Hessler’s magic combined with Claymore’s technology they would be unbeatable.
Personality
Claymore may be taken as "stupid" if you don't know him. He has a very brutish speech and often uses a slang where instead of using the suffix "ing" he usually ends the word with "in'" and, also, uses the word "ya" instead of saying "you." He is not stupid, not even close, he's very cunning and witty, and he simply developed that mannerism to give himself a personality of sorts, something that is slightly unique.
Claymore has a different side to him though. His tone and speaking style changes when he raises his threat level when using the Combat Adaptation and Threat Synchronizer . He begins to speak normally in this tone, he loses the slang and he becomes more cold and mechanical. This change in tone also brings about a change in appearance which only seems to compliment his new personality. He only does this when in combat and if the target is an actual threat.
Claymore is capable of thinking independently and can even lead groups, despite his robotic origins. He serves, but in his own way which usually involves combat. He's impatient in most cases unless the conversation interests him but he's also cautious when it comes to very threatening targets. He is one-hundred percent capable of rational thought and can plan ways to defeat his foes, if one thing is certain, you should never underestimate his intelligence.
Claymore is, without a doubt, arrogant. If he knows he can beat you with ease then he'll probably treat you like the dirt he walks on. He treats most robots no differently than he would most people. He believes himself to be the perfect machine so other robots are beneath him unless they can prove otherwise. Clockwork, both Praetorian and Primal are jokes to Claymore and War Works are only considered average at best. Claymore only respects power and intelligence so there are only a few people he knows that he can actually respect.
Equipment
Plasma Emitters- A series of magnetic coils and micro plasma batteries with in Claymore's arms and hands, these allow him to form and shape deadly plasmatic energy at his hands. The plasma is hot enough to melt through even the toughest armor. Combined with Claymore's incredible strength it can easily down the most powerful of foes.
Kinetic Shielding System- Claymore's kinetic shielding is his means of defense. These shields are powered by a system of magnetic stabilizers built into Claymore. The shields are capable of withstanding an onslaught of attacks and even capable of overloading in order to make Claymore nearly invincible for a few minutes.
Light-Bending Cloaking Field- A very bizarre choice of equipment considering Claymore's size, the Light- Bending Cloaking Field is capable of warping the light around Claymore and making him completely invisible to the naked eye. To compliment this system, he was also equipped with a sound suppressing system that makes his movements completely silent when he walks with the Field active. The system works fine but it is easily detected by people with the proper equipment, heat sensors and electronic sensors would easily see him.
Regenerative Nano-bots- Claymore has been fitted with a colony of micro-machines that allow him to recover from massive damage and even repair him slowly over time. The machines crawl around his inner chassis when he's out of combat, maintaining him, and can send jolts of power to his system on command. These jolts instantly repair his armor and can even stich it back together slightly faster for a few seconds.
Combat Adaptation and Threat Synchronizer- The C.A.T.S. allows Claymore to monitor the exact threat level of his opponent. The system reads the opponent for energy signatures, combat experience, and over all, power, and then matches the threat by empowering Claymore to their level. Claymore is usually in a relaxed state when around people, but if the C.A.T.S. activates then his armor begins to fold and change, giving him a new form. The system also improves his shields and weapons exponentially and even gives him boosts to his speed, strength and even makes his armor denser in some cases. The C.A.T.S. is Claymore's most powerful tool so he only uses it when absolutely needed.
Neural Uplink- This is a unique device to Claymore and Boa as it allows them to synchronize with their creator, Horace. Horace has created a special machine that he can hook his Neural Hub into and combine his mind with the mechanical shell of Claymore and Boa. When combined with Claymore, his strength becomes immeasurable, his shields become nearly indestructible and his speed becomes increased to the point of impossibility. Claymore only uses this in extreme situations as it also combines with the C.A.T.S. meaning he will only use this if the target is a sufficient threat.
Bio-leech Technology- This is a device unique to Claymore. It allows him to drain the endurance of anyone around him. He uses their own energy against his foes by empowering his own shields and revitalizing his own energy supplies. The Leech doesn't just steal the stamina from one person it drains all around Claymore, so the more people who are around, the stronger his shields will get if he activates it.
Weaknesses
Shields - Claymore's shields are strong, yes, but they are really his only form of defense. His current armor can take a few hits but if the enemy can get past his shields with a few powerful hits, then Claymore will easily go down. (His shields have a resistance to EMP)
Overcharge - An ability that Claymore can activate at will, it can increase his shields by a large margin, but only lasts about three minutes, and once it wears off he is completely drained and above all, relatively helpless.
Full Power to Weapons - An attack that Claymore has developed, it can use some of Claymore's own energy to deliver a devastating strike to his enemy, but it hurts him slightly, but this attack has undone him once or twice due to both the time it takes to transfer his energy and the damage it deals to himself.