The R1 was launched immediately after the P2 was pulled from the market. Following the P2 lawsuit, Industrial Automation's funds were low, so IA used leftover hull casings from their Mark II Reactor Drone series to encase the R1 astro-droid instead of developing and producing a new shell for it.
Although (much like the P2) the R1 was generally filled the roles of technician and repair droid, they had one great improvement over their predecessors. While a P2 unit could only remember the direct hyperroute between two systems, the R1 could be given a new set of coordinates and calculate the course itself. Although this detail seemed trifling at first, it quickly becomes important when one is trying to find a data-base containing droid ready data on less frequently use hyperroute. It might take several hours to find hyperroute information on travelling from Naboo to Kiffex so that a P2 could make the trip. An R1 would only need around twenty standard minutes to calculate the path. This was largely due to the Intellex III computer that served as the droid's CPU.
The R1 was still very large for an astromech, standing two meters tall, and nearly twice as broad as later IA astro droids. In order to fit the R1 into the Mark II reactor drone's shell, the R1 was given a single leg with tracks on the bottom to allow movement instead on the three legged format of the P2. This treaded unipod was prone to failure, stranding the droid in one spot.
R1 Series: Tracked astromech droid, Expert 2; Init -1 (DEX); Defense 14 (-1 DEX, +5 armor); Spd 2m ; VP/WP -/14; Atk +1 melee (1d2, clamp or 1d3, claw); SV Fort +2, Ref -1, Will +3; SZ M; Rep 0; Str 12, Dex 8, Con 14, Int 14, Wis 10, Cha 10.Equipment: Heuristic processor, standard sensor package, diagnostics package, infrared vision, tool mounts (X2), telescopic appendage, comlink antenna.
Skills: Astrogate +5, Computer Use +5, Disable Device +5, Knowledge (astronomy) +5, Pilot +5, Repair +5.
Unspent Skill Points: 10.
Feats: Skill Emphasis (Repair)
Cost: 3,500 credits
