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The original Cobra H.I.S.S. was the second attempt built by MARS at an all-terrain armored vehicle capable of deployment for any combat environment. The first attempt, the Char D'Assaut (translated as "Assault Tank" or a.k.a. Cobra Motorized Tank), was dismissed by Cobra for exposing the operator and M.A.R.S.* instead sold the design to the United States. With rugged armor and 90mm twin cannons, the H.I.S.S. driven by a H.I.S.S. Driver is a high speed strike-and-dispersal sentry vehicle. While only requiring a driver and gunner to operate, it can also carry two to three additional passengers that can be dropped off from the rear personnel platform.
The H.I.S.S. was Cobra's primary battlefield armored vehicle from 1983 until 1989. With the advent of the Stinger Night Attack Jeep in 1984, the H.I.S.S. also shared a dual role as towing point for the A.S.P. in Cobra's early years. That same year, the Europe-based Red Shadows
deployed an alternative version of the H.I.S.S. called the Hyena, colored in red or black depending on the mission role. The Hyena's front was designed for ramming large vehicles and crushing smaller ones in its path.
In 1991, Adder mobile missile launchers, H.I.S.S. tanks, and W.O.L.F. tanks were notably deployed in the Terror on the Tundra mission in a plan to contaminate the world's ozone layer. With the missile attack in jeopardy of being scrubbed, H.I.S.S. tanks were called in to smash a G.I. Joe counterattack at an Arctic missile launch site.
The H.I.S.S.'s compact size made it ideal for urban operations and had much success in urban engagements. In fact, the H.I.S.S. has maintained so much success as a combat vehicle that its design was reused in the upgraded Crimson Sentry Missile System deployed in 1985, the 1991 experimental Septic Tank, the upgraded 2000 H.I.S.S. III deployment, perhaps as the combat vehicle of choice for the rumored Crimson Strike Team in 2002, and as the primary vehicle of the Operation Crimson Sabotage mission group.
The H.I.S.S. was the first of Cobra's vehicles that required a specialized driver, the H.I.S.S. Driver. H.I.S.S. Drivers were selected from the best of Cobra's Soldiers and Officers. They were required to maintain good physical stamina to withstand the H.I.S.S. cockpit's loud noise and constant vibration. The only Cobra trooper
assigned an individual codename from the H.I.S.S. Driver ranks is Rip-It.
* Military Armaments Research
Systems
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