Gauss Slugthrowers (Firearms Skill)

Gauss weapons (also called "linear accelerators") work due to electromagnetism, or so they tell me. A metallic projectile is pushed down the barrel at a very high speed thanks to the use of a magnetic field. The stronger the field, the greater the velocity that can be achieved.

The problem with these weapons is that they require both a power cell and a supply of ammo. Often a clip contains both the ammunition and the super insulation cell. These cells can't be removed from the clip since they're an integral part of them.

Note: Most of these can use the same type of ammo as any other slugthrower. But armor-piercing and flechette rounds have to be specially produced for this kind of gun.

Weapon Type Type Fire Rate Fire Control Damage Range - S/M/L Ammo Price Ammo Price
Gauss Weapons
Kereteka HA4 Holdout 1s 0 3D+1 3-10/40/60 25 165 5
Kereteka LA2 Pistol 1s 0 4D 3-15/50/80 25 333 4
Brodie AP Pistol -- 0 4D+2 3-10/40/80 50 375 12
NetArm Defender Pistol -- 0 5D 3-10/20/50 60 208 12
Taril Assault Carbine Urban Env. -- 0 5D 3-15/ 50/150 100 750 75
Kereteka LA20 Assault Rifle -- 0 5D+2 5-40/150/500 200* 1100 25
Kereteka LA15 Hunting Rifle 1 0 6D+2 5-50/500/1500 25 1360 16

Gauss weapons (also called "linear accelerators") work due to electromagnetism, or so they tell me. A metallic projectile is pushed down the barrel at a very high speed thanks to the use of a magnetic field. The stronger the field, the greater the velocity that can be achieved.

The problem with these weapons is that they require both a power cell and a supply of ammo. Often a clip contains both the ammunition and the super insulation cell. These cells can't be removed from the clip since they're an integral part of them.

Note: Most of these can use the same type of ammo as any other slugthrower. But armor-piercing and flechette rounds have to be specially produced for this kind of gun.

Kereteka HA4 (Holdout): The Kereteka HA4 is a smaller version of their LA2 pistol. It's a small weapon, only 15cm in length, and uses a 5mm round. Like the Kereteka LA2, the HA4 can use other 5mm ferrous rounds [as with the LA2, subtract two to five points from the damage depending on the shape of the ferrous object].

Type: Gauss Slugthrower Holdout
Scale: Character
Skill: Firearms

Kereketa LA2 Linex Pistol (Pistol): One of the latest additions to weapon technology, this projectile weapon uses electromagnets to accelerate the 10mm slug down the barrel. It packs quite a punch, but requires a charged battery cell to work. The Linex is also quite bulky (attempts to Hide the weapon suffer a -2 penalty because of its size).

The biggest advantage of this weapon is that it can propel any ferrous object that is less than 10mm in diameter. Of course, using non-aerodynamic slugs will drastically affect performance. The rate of fire is also drastically reduced in this mode; it requires a round to load the weapon with the non-standard projectile. When using a non-standard round, reduce the damage value of the weapon by two to five points (gamemaster option - two points would mean a roughly bullet-shaped object, five a "lump") and cut medium and long range in half.

Type: Gauss Slugthrower Pistol
Scale: Character
Skill: Firearms

Brodie AP Pistol: Similar in design to the Linex, the Brodie AP fires a special ammo designed specifically for its use. D-SAP (Double-Shot Armor Piercing) consist of two 5mm slugs fired nearly simultaneously. The front slug is an armor-piercing round which will poke a hole in the target's armor; the second slug follows a nanosecond later to drive the first slug through. Although excellent for armor piercing, the high velocity of the second slug usually results in a pass-through against unarmored targets. The slugs are encased in the same shell and, though they fire automatically, one after another, the character using the weapon only receives the armor-piercing bonus (see "Ammunition") if the time is taken to aim the action before firing.

Type: Gauss Slugthrower Pistol
Scale: Character
Skill: Firearms
Notes: The double-shot ammo of the Brodie AP is counted in pairs (for the two slugs) and cannot be separated into single slugs.

NetArms Defender (Pistol): One of the more unusual weapon systems available on the market. Ads for the Defender bill it as one of the galaxy's more lethal weapons - while that's open to argument, there's no question it's damn dangerous in the hands of someone who knows how to use it. The barrel of the weapon is actually 10 smaller barrels, each of which can accelerate a .5mm needle to an extremely high velocity. The overall effect is much like a slugthrower firing flechette rounds. However, the Defender does so at a much higher rate of fire, producing a cloud of needles. Defenders have been know to literally shred opponents at close range. [The Defender is considered to be firing flechette ammunition and the additional damage is taken into account in the stats. The Defender cannot fire any other kind of ammo.]

Type: Gauss Slugthrower Pistol
Scale: Character
Skill: Firearms

Taril Assault Carbine (Urban Environment): Developed by the weaponsmiths on Taril, this weapon has become popular in Xenos Sector thanks to its simple but innovative design. The weapon is intended to be to be used by people a long way away from their supply bases who have to rearm on the go. The 3mm rounds used by the weapons can be manufactured using simple tools (which are provided with the weapon) and the proper size of wire. Instead of a super-insulated cell as a power source, the Taril smiths used a power pack (standard Brodie design). This was due to the fact that a power pack can be recharged after use while a cell can't. The power pack is good for three clips of ammunition. This weapon fires only full auto.

Type: Gauss Slugthrower Urban Environment
Scale: Character
Skill: Firearms

Kereteka LA20 Linear Accelerator Rifle (Assault Rifle): The LA20 is on the cutting edge of gauss technology. The most innovative feature of the design is the "variable power capacitor" ,which means a full charge is used only when firing single shots. This provides for both better range and accuracy. At full-auto, a lesser charge is used to provide greater accuracy. [Halve the range when firing full-auto.]

Type: Gauss Slugthrower Assault Rifle
Scale: Character
Skill: Firearms
*Runs off disposable power cells.

Kereteka LA15 (Civilian/Sniper): This is the gauss version of what Old Republic called an "bantha gun." Designed to take out large beasts with one shot, the LA15 can only be fired from a braced position on a bipod. This is not due to any sort of recoil of the weapon itself (which is relatively slight, given that it is firing a 10mm 100g round) but because the weapon is just under two meters in length. Despite this, the LA15 is still a popular hunting and long-range sniper weapon.

Type: Gauss Slugthrower Civilian/Sniper Rifle
Scale: Character
Skill: Firearms


PreviousNext - Misc Slugthrowers

Back to Weapons Table of Contents

Back to Shatterzone to Star Wars

Some Icons obtained from Graphics Station.