Hearthstone WM-5 'Porter'

Domestic

Arcturus KS-4 'Knitter'

Spider Platform — Antipersonnel

TESSERA TN-1 'Cradle'

Containment — Autonomous Prisoner Transport

Crucible ER-5 'First Response'

Medical

Ouroboros AQ-3 'Undertow'

Aquatic Platform — Harbor Patrol/Denial

Iowan Behemoth — 'Meridian 88'

Iowan Behemoth

Ringo WP-6 'Nightwatch'

Security

Sterling-Nakamura SX-0 'Revenant'

Infiltration Platform — Identity Replication

TESSERA ES-4 'Perimeter'

Security

Arcturus MX-1 'Cerberus'

Multi-Platform — Three-Headed Sentry

Tessera TP-0 'Shepherd's Crook'

Population Control Platform — Behavioral Herding

Arcturus KS-11 'Coffin Nail'

Spider Platform — Precision Kill

Ringo SC-3 'Seneschal'

Domestic

Lazarus MX-7 'Sawbones'

Medical Platform — Involuntary Augmentation

Vantablack VD-2 'Paparazzi'

Pursuit Drone — Harassment/Documentation

Lazarus APC-2 'Locust'

Agricultural — Pest Interdiction Swarm

Crucible Industries CR-9 'Foundry'

Self-Replicating Platform — Manufacturing

TESSERA TX-12 'Chorus'

Swarm — Acoustic Weapon Platform

Arcturus PX-1 'Phantom'

Experimental — Active Camouflage Platform

Ouroboros UT-1 'Worm'

Tunnel Platform — Boring/Assault

Arcturus PG-3 'Aegis'

Security

Red Circuit RC-Pit 'Dogfighter'

Training

Arcturus UP-2 'Sandhog'

Industrial

Arcturus CK-1 'Fetch'

Canine Platform — Explosive Delivery

Lazarus MN-1 'Angler'

Capture Platform — Chemical Lure and Restraint

Arcturus GW-1 'Gargoyle'

Static Sentry — Architectural Integration

Lazarus MB-3 'Mosquito'

Micro Aerial — Pharmaceutical Injection

Dynamo Fitness DF-Coach 'Ironside'

Training

Crucible CN-1 'Cradle'

Domestic

Arcturus FF-9 'Salamander'

Medical

Arcturus EW-3 'Migraine'

Electronic Warfare — BCI Disruption Platform

Lazarus EC-4 'Companion'

Domestic

Iowan Behemoth — 'The Foundry'

Iowan Behemoth

Iowan Behemoth — 'Revenant'

Iowan Behemoth

Crucible HS-2 'Hearth'

Domestic

TESSERA TC-3 'Crucible'

Heavy Platform — Mobile Incinerator

Meridian Domestic MV-9 'Jarvis'

Domestic

Crucible SAR-6 'Saint Bernard'

Search and Rescue — Heavy Platform

Arcturus BW-1 'Widow's Walk'

Pursuit Platform — Relentless Tracking

Kang Athletics KA-500 'Sparmate'

Training

Crucible VG-7 'Bastion'

Security

Ringo RT-4 'Oxcart'

Walking Tank — Logistics and Suppression

Ringo EV-3 'Watcher'

Security

Vantablack VS-3 'Skin Job'

Infiltration Platform — Wearable Exoskeleton

Ouroboros PN-2 'Flicker'

Sabotage Platform — Infrastructure Corruption

Iowan Behemoth — 'Palisade'

Iowan Behemoth

Tessera TX-15 'Cradle Song'

Neural Warfare Platform — Memory Manipulation

TESSERA TX-0 'Mimic'

Experimental — Shape-Memory Chassis

Vantablack VO-1 'Looking Glass'

Optical Warfare Platform — Reflection Manipulation

Vantablack FH-20 'Convoy'

Autonomous Vehicle — Heavy Freight

Arcturus BH-2 'Marrow'

Resource Extraction Platform — Biological Material Harvesting

TESSERA GK-8 'Doorman'

Security

Crucible Industries CX-1 'Golem'

Heavy Platform — Construction/Demolition Combat

TESSERA Widow Mk. III

Spider Platform — Area Denial

Arcturus HD-1 'Homestead'

Domestic

Lazarus LX-5 'Siphon'

Medical Warfare Platform — Biological Data Extraction

TESSERA CR-12 'Whisper'

Communications — Tactical Relay Platform

Iowan Behemoth — 'Thunderhead'

Iowan Behemoth

Ringo RR-1 'Rattlesnake'

Serpentine — Area Denial

Lazarus BX-0 'Test Subject'

Experimental — Biomechanical Hybrid

Crucible Industries CK-3 'Junkyard'

Canine Platform — Scrap Recovery/Combat

TESSERA TX-8 'Scarecrow'

Psychological Operations — Terror Platform

Ouroboros PG-2 'Blackout'

Infrastructure Weapon — Power Grid Attack

TESSERA TK-4 'Hellhound'

Canine Platform — Incendiary

Arcturus DX-4 'Taxidermist'

Deception Platform — Corpse Manipulation

Ringo RM-4 'Thresher'

Agricultural/Combat — Autonomous Clearing Platform

TESSERA TH-2 'Warden'

Walking Tank — Urban Pacification

Iowan Behemoth — 'Cathedral'

Iowan Behemoth

Vantablack VS-1 'Cameraman'

Spider Platform — Surveillance

Kang Athletics KA-900 'Sensei'

Training

Hearthstone CK-3 'Stockpot'

Domestic

Plot 17

Agricultural (Modified)

Arcturus HX-1 'Headsman'

Execution Platform — Autonomous Lethal Enforcement

Iowan Behemoth — 'The Granary'

Iowan Behemoth

Hearthstone GN-6 'Greenthumb'

Domestic

Arcturus CK-5 'Bloodhound'

Canine Platform — Pursuit and Tracking

Lazarus NB-1 'Cradle Robber'

Medical Platform — Neonatal Extraction

Kang Athletics KA-200 'Padwork'

Training

Tessera TS-9 'Locust Cloud'

Swarm Platform — Biological Material Consumption

Arcturus KS-7 'Nursery'

Spider Platform — Swarm Carrier

Crucible RW-3 'Paver'

Industrial

Ringo RB-1 'Judas Goat'

Deception Platform — Synthetic Human Mimicry

Ringo EV-5 'Showstopper'

Entertainment — Performance Platform

Lazarus NI-1 'Earwig'

Infiltration Platform — Neural Intrusion

Ouroboros PD-1 'Leech'

Parasitic Platform — Energy Theft

Meridian Domestic PB-4 'Nana'

Domestic

Hearthstone HC-2 'Dustbin'

Domestic

Lazarus SA-6 'Steadyhand'

Medical

Arcturus UT-5 'Lamprey'

Tunnel Platform — Pursuit

Ringo AG-7 'Fieldhand'

Industrial

Plot 17

Agricultural (Modified)

TESSERA WL-6 'Stacker'

Industrial

Crucible CW-8 'Ironworker'

Industrial

Ringo PT-8 'Truckline'

Industrial

Ringo AB-3 'Barker'

Commercial — Advertising Display Drone

Arcturus MN-3 'Digger'

Industrial

Ouroboros EW-7 'Requiem'

Area Denial Platform — Acoustic Weapon

Lazarus LX-2 'Lab Rat'

Experimental — Autonomous Test Subject

Iowan Behemoth — 'Leviathan'

Iowan Behemoth

Crucible Industries CF-1 'Carapace'

Powered Exoskeleton — Industrial/Combat

TESSERA CC-6 'Shepherd'

The CC-6 is a broad, flat-topped quadruped platform standing 1.5 meters tall with a forward-facing shield wall 3 meters wide. It walks slowly and deliberately into crowds, physically pushing people backward with a combination of its bulk and a chest-mounted electrified contact strip that delivers painful (non-lethal, supposedly) shocks to anyone who doesn't move. Behind the shield wall, a tear gas dispersal system ensures that the space the Shepherd clears stays clear.

The CC-6 is designed to compress crowds — to push people from one area to another without the optics of security personnel beating civilians. TESSERA deploys them in lines of four to six units, walking abreast, creating a moving wall that herds populations into designated containment areas. The units communicate to maintain formation and adjust speed based on crowd density, slowing when compression risks crush injuries and speeding up when the crowd thins.

The Shepherd's electrified contact strip has been documented as lethal to individuals with cardiac augmentations, pacemakers, and certain neural implant configurations. TESSERA's response to each documented death has been identical: the individual failed to disclose a medical condition that made them vulnerable to standard crowd management technology. The onus, per TESSERA's legal framework, is on the person being electrocuted to have told someone beforehand.

name	TESSERA CC-6 'Shepherd'
classification	Crowd Control — Mobile Barrier
aliases	Shepherd Cattle Grid The Push
manufacturer	Thoughtline Messaging
tier availability	Tier 3+
legality	Licensed — crowd management
autonomy level	Formation autonomous with remote direction
dimensions	1.5m height, 3.0m shield width, 2.0m depth
weight	1,200 kg
power source	Hydrogen fuel cell, 18-hour endurance
locomotion	Quadruped heavy walker, slow pace (walking speed)
armament	Electrified contact strip (chest-mounted) Rear-mounted tear gas dispersal Loudspeaker array for compliance instructions
sensors	Crowd density analysis Formation coordination Crush-risk monitoring
countermeasures	The Shepherd is slow — it can be outrun easily. Insulated clothing negates the contact strip. The unit is top-heavy and can be tipped by coordinated lateral force. Climbing over the shield wall is physically possible but the contact strip makes it painful.
known deployments	Regular deployment at protests, labor actions, and public gatherings across GLMZ Shelf district compression operations Event crowd management
story hooks	A line of Shepherds is pushing a crowd toward a district boundary. The crowd has nowhere left to go — the boundary is a wall. The crush-risk monitors are screaming. The operator hasn't adjusted speed. Whether it's malice or incompetence, people will die in minutes unless the Shepherds are stopped. Someone has reprogrammed a Shepherd's formation coordination — instead of walking in line with other units, it's walking a spiral pattern through a market, herding people toward the center. Something is waiting at the center.
cultural context	The Shepherd embodies the corponation approach to civil rights: you have the right to be somewhere else. Its slow, deliberate advance through neighborhoods during operations is described by residents as the most dehumanizing experience available — being pushed like livestock by a machine that doesn't know you're a person.