In an effort to capitalize on the popularity of the R-series astromech droid series, Industrial Automaton created the PG-5 gunnery droid. Programmed to not only repair and maintain weapon systems, the PG-5 was designed to take control of a starships offensive and defensive systems, freeing up vital crewmembers and increasing targeting efficiency. The line was a complete failure.

Specifically targeted for sale to the Imperial Navy, the Empire bought up the entire prototype run for field testing. The test was a disaster. The droid is a looming 2.5 meters tall, and very clunky, making cramped gunnery stations even more claustrophobic. PG-5's also had no audio communication system or display screen, and were only able to communicate if connected via a scomp link. The most major deficiency, however, was that the droid simply was not aggressive. Imperial starship captains tried reassigning the droids to be backup gunners, but still the droid lagged behind organic crewmen.

With the Empire canceling their order of PG-5s, Industrial Automaton liquidated the entire run, comprising of only a few hundred units, to the open markets. PG-5s found themselves in the hands of mercenaries, local governments and pirates. One smuggler named Frod heavily modified his PG-5, increasing its combat motivator, programming it with a more reliable combat matrix and giving it a personality matrix.

SourcesEdit

• Cynabar's Fantastic Technology: Droids
• Scavenger's Guide to Droids