Thursday 24 December 2015

Weapons: Shotguns and 5.6mm Rifles

Version 2
Shotguns.
            Shotguns are relatively common weapons and ammunition is often readily available, particularly in rural areas. Ammunition can be mini-factured or even can be handmade. Tube magazine or even double-barrelled guns are still popular with the more conservative hunters. Military and police use shotguns for firing both lethal and less-lethal ammunition. For combat roles self-loading weapons with detachable box magazines are preferred. The “riot gun” profile below is for a typical combat self-loader fitted with a folding stock. There is a pump-action override for firing low-impulse specialist ammunition, which reduces RoF to 2.

Guns (Shotgun) (DX-4 or most other Guns at -2)

Weapon
Damage
Acc
Range
Weight
RoF
Shots
ST
Bulk
Rcl
Notes
Double Barrel 12 gauge.
1d+1 pi
3
40/800
6.7/0.3
2x9
2(4i)
10†
-6
1/5
Whippet 20 gauge
1d pi
2
40/800
3.8/0.2
2x7
2(3i)
9†
-3
1/5
[1, 2]
Pump gun 12 gauge
1d+1 pi
3
40/800
7/0.8
2x9
7+1 (2i)
10†
-5
1/5
[3]
Auto 12 gauge
1d+1 pi
3
40/800
7/0.8
3x9
7+1(2i)
10†
-5
1/5
[3]
“Auto-stakeout” 20 gauge
1d pi
2
40/800
4/0.35
3x7
4+1(2i)
11†
-3
1/6
[1, 2, 3]
“Supershort Auto-stakeout” 20 gauge
1d pi
2
40/800
3/0.2
3x7
2+1(2i)
12†
-2
1/6
[1, 2 ,3]
Police Riot gun 12 gauge
1d+1 pi
3
40/800
6/0.8
3x9
10(3)
10†
-5*
1/5
[4]
Compact Riot gun 12 gauge
1d+1 pi
2
40/800
5.25/0.8
3x9
10(3)
12†
-4*
1/6
[1,2]

[1] Increased muzzle blast. +1 to Hearing and Vision to locate firer in the dark.
[2] ST+2 if fired one handed.
[3] Tube magazine.
[4] Rof =2 when operated as a pump action.

5.6mm Caseless Rifle.
            The 5.6mm Caseless round was developed for end users who wished to minimise the resources needed to train personnel to shoot. Low ammunition weight, large magazine capacity and mild recoil favours shooters more inclined to “spray and pray” or quantity over accuracy. Most military 5.6mm rifles also mount 30mm mini-missile launchers.

            The first 5.6mm Caseless weapons were marketed at the same time that many organisations were looking into adopting the 6.6mm and the 5.6mm succeeded in gaining a larger proportion of the market. Some countries only use the 5.6mm or 6.6mm while in others the different rounds are used by different agencies. As a rule of thumb the 5.6mm is preferred by forces where much of the personnel have only a modicum of training. The 6.6mm is the preference of more highly trained units.

Guns (Rifle) (DX-4, or most other Guns at -2) &
Guns (Gyroc) (DX-4, or most other Guns at -4)

Weapon
Damage
Acc
Range
Weight
RoF
Shots
ST
Bulk
Rcl
LC
Notes
5.6mm Battle Rifle
5d pi
4
530/3,300
11/1.6
12
100(5)
10
-4
2
1
 [1, 2]
30mm Missile
12d-1 pi++
2
500
0.8
3
3(3i)
5†
1
1
 [1, 2]
Xuan Feng 5.6mm Rifle
5d pi
4
440/3,200
12/0.5
16
40(3)
9†
-4
2
1
[1, 2, 3]
Xuan Feng 30mm missile
12d-1 pi++
2
500
3
3(3i)
5†
1
1
[1, 2, 3]


[1] TS Changing Times gives slugthrowers a low Acc. Acc has been increased so it is consistent with similar TL7-8 weapons in 4e High Tech.
[2] Weight is for a rifle fully loaded and with a loaded 30mm pod. A loaded pod weighs 3.8 lb and an individual mini-missile 0.8 lb. (TS 3e p.156)
[3] The Chinese made Xuan Feng is a simple to produce and operate alternative to the Fifth Wave battle rifle. The main difference is that it cannot use smart ammunition. Usual load is a 40 round magazine of unguided APDS (p.B280) rounds and unguided HE grenades or mini-missiles. The Xuan Feng does not have or require a virtual or heads up display but can be fitted with these at extra cost. $600.
The Xuan Feng is from TS Broken Dreams 3e p.137-6 and the description given is confusing. The text describes a weapon with a 40 round magazine and a 30mm grenade launcher with a two round magazine. The table gives the profile for a standard three-shot 30mm mini-missile. The Xuan Feng is also a pound heavier than the generic battle rifle, even though it carries 60 less rounds. Treat the Xuan Feng as a battle rifle that can only fire 5.6mm smart rounds and mini-missiles in dumb mode. A grenade launcher that can be fitted instead of a mini-missile pod will be featured in a later post.