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C18E5 "Erebus" Main Battle Tank | Nivalen Defence Force

Nivalen Defence Force Collection


With western nations continuing the development of main battle tanks, a new tank would need to be created to keep up with the ever evolving threats of the modern era, thus the C18 "Erebus" was born.

The first production variants began in 1985 with the C18E1. This new tank would incorporate strong composite armor and a potent 120mm main gun. The Erebus was capable of firing a multitude of ammunition such as APFSDS-T and HEATFS-T which were extremely deadly with the assistance of a laser rangefinder. By 1989 the armor of the C18E1 was already lacking, leading to the C18E2 with improved composite armor using new tungsten alloys capable of stopping most threats frontally. However, the C18E2 only had a 30 liter V10 turbo charged engine producing 1200 horsepower at 2,200 RPM. With this extra armor the tanks mobility was significantly reduced due to the extra weight.

In 1992, the C18E3 was introduced with improvements to the fire control system such as Hunter-Killer and an enclosed weapons station for the commander. It would take almost a decade for the lack of engine power to be addressed in 2001. The C18E4 would finally bring with it a new powerpack, a 30 liter V12 twin-turbo charged engine producing 1600 horsepower at 2,600 RPM propelling the tank at speeds of up to 71 km/h. In addition to this new mobility, even more improvements were made to the fire control system allowing for the commander to completely override the gunner in the event they cannot complete their duties.

Finally, in 2008 the C18E4 would be upgraded to the C18E5. The new E5 variant would bring crew survivability upgrades such as automatic fire suppression and wet hull ammo storage. The new 120mm L/44 S5-1 cannon would also be fitted into this variant, allowing the Erebus to fire more modern ammunition such as MPAT. Armor would be further improved with new depleted uranium inserts.

• Advanced and realistic fire control system
  
• Complete interior
  
• 4 crew, can be used by 1 crew (gunner)
  
• Good mobility
  
• Hunter killer and commander-gunner override
  
• Simulated fire control failures

• Turn on the Battery Relay switch
  
• Turn on the Engine Start switch
  
• Release the parking brake
  
• Use up/down to shift

Legend:
1 - Turret Power
2 - Master Arm
3 - Auxiliary Sight Switch
4 - Brightness Contrast
5 - Horizontal Stabilizer
6 - Vertical Stabilizer
7 - Sight Infrared
8 - Azimuth Indicator Power
9 - Gunner's Primary Sight (GPS)
10 - Normal / Emergency Operation
11 - Battlesight Range Up
12 - Selected Battlesight Range
13 - Emergency Mode Indicator
14 - Battlesight Range Down
15 - Input Range
16 - Turret Azimuth Indicator
17 - Unlock Sight from Turret
18 - FCS Fault

Normal Operation
Turn on the Turret Power and Master Arm. Activate the stabilizers as necessary.

Emergency Operation
In the event that the laser rangefinder is destroyed or you suffer a catastrophic FCS fault, switch to Emergency Mode. This will disable most aspects of the Fire Control System. Range must be manually input with the Battlesight Range Up/Down button and input on the control panel. If the GPS is also destroyed, use the Auxiliary Sight Switch to use the auxiliary sight. This sight is coupled directly to the gun and cannot be utilized in conjunction with the FCS.

Reading the GPS

1 - Ready Indicator
2 - Return Bar Solid = No laser return, Flashing = Multiple returns
3 - Selected Range
4 - Selected Ammo A = APFSDS, B = HEATFS, C = Coax


Legend:
1 - CWS Sight
2 - CITV
3 - CITV Power
4 - CWS Power
5 - Switch to Gunner View
6 - CWS Arm
7 - Horizontal Stabilizer
8 - Vertical Stabilizer
9 - Commander-Gunner Override Switch
10 - Sight Infrared

CITV and Hunter-Killer
The Commander's Independent Thermal Viewer allows the commander to scan and designate targets for the gunner to engage with the use of hunter-killer. If the gunner is unable to perform their duty, the commander can use the Commander-Gunner Override Switch to take complete control of the turret, this is NOT the Switch to Gunner View. The Turret Power and Master Arm must be on in the gunner's position.

Using the tank with commander-gunner is functionally identical to the gunner's position.

In the front of the turret basket is the Arcade Mode switch. This switch allows full operation of the tank from the gunner's position. Useful if you want to 1 man a tank. The battery and engine must be on and the parking brake released from the driver's position.