Mag-Rifles in Rifts

[ShadowLogan]

Are there any mag-rifles (aka gauss rifles or coilguns) in Rifts? For some reason a player in my campaign thinks it would be cool to build one (as if lasers, ion blasters, plasma guns, and rail guns weren't enough). I'm pretty sure I've seen stats for them before but I don't recall where. Could you help a GM out?

I think Palladium lumps coilguns in with rail guns. That being said there are man portable rail guns in "New West" and "Japan", they require a high PS (normal) to operate without penalty. I'm not sure if other manufactures produce them off the top of my head.

[Colt47]

Considering the power sources it is definitely possible to make a light weight single shot EM rifle. I don't think it would be very efficient though, since the gunner would have to buy up both hard ammo and recharge the energy magazine.

[Starmage21]

Are there any mag-rifles (aka gauss rifles or coilguns) in Rifts? For some reason a player in my campaign thinks it would be cool to build one (as if lasers, ion blasters, plasma guns, and rail guns weren't enough). I'm pretty sure I've seen stats for them before but I don't recall where. Could you help a GM out?

I think Palladium lumps coilguns in with rail guns. That being said there are man portable rail guns in "New West" and "Japan", they require a high PS (normal) to operate without penalty. I'm not sure if other manufactures produce them off the top of my head.

Agreed. Coilguns would be lumped in there with railguns. they can probobly build them, they just like railguns more.

[drewkitty ~..~]

Are there any mag-rifles (aka gauss rifles or coilguns) in Rifts? For some reason a player in my campaign thinks it would be cool to build one (as if lasers, ion blasters, plasma guns, and rail guns weren't enough). I'm pretty sure I've seen stats for them before but I don't recall where. Could you help a GM out?

I think Palladium lumps coilguns in with rail guns. That being said there are man portable rail guns in "New West" and "Japan", they require a high PS (normal) to operate without penalty. I'm not sure if other manufactures produce them off the top of my head.

Bandito arms (new west) and H-Brand and ArmaTech (japan). The japan small arms are lump together in one heading, "Japanese Weapons", in the RGMG.

[Talavar]

A single-shot mag-gun/coil gun - isn't that essentially what the Boom Gun & the Shemarrian rifle are?

[glitterboy2098]

A single-shot mag-gun/coil gun - isn't that essentially what the Boom Gun & the Shemarrian rifle are?

pretty much. they use electromagnets to move the projectile down the barrel.

personally, given the descriptions of most rifts 'railguns', i'd say the majority are actually coilguns. the only ones i'd say could be actual rail guns would be the "gatling" ones, which given the issues with rail deterioration, it would actually make sense to have many barrels firing. allows a higher rate of fire, with less wear on each set of rails. since actual rail guns would use less power than coilguns, this would even have some reasons for use, even if the coilgun types dominate the infantry based systems.

[taalismn]

Go versatile...combination weapon that allows you to vary the muzzle velocity by altering the propelling field strength and power-draw...so you can go hypervelocity for small projectiles, or slower for lofting bigger shells...

[Prince Artemis]

That being the case, the one Banditio arms uses would definately be a gaus rifle than. It fires single shots but is meant for knocking people down, not blowing through them.

[taalismn]

I generally regard coil guns, gauss gins, and the like to be generic terms bandied about to describe many of the same weapons using the same principles...with MASSDRIVERS being the larger artillery-style weapons and commercial launch systems..

[Rimmerdal]

Check out Merc Ops. Wellington or Northerngun...has light 'Infantry' Railguns they shpuld be a good range to start at.

[rat_bastard]

In merc opps there is indeed a single shot infantry rail gun in the Northern gun section.

[Colt47]

In response to the above post, yes Northern gun does have a single shot infantry sized rail gun. Now imagine how much lighter and better one of those would be if they were manufactured by Triax. Actually, maybe the weight issue is the main reason Triax doesn't try knocking it off.

[Rimmerdal]

In response to the above post, yes Northern gun does have a single shot infantry sized rail gun. Now imagine how much lighter and better one of those would be if they were manufactured by Triax. Actually, maybe the weight issue is the main reason Triax doesn't try knocking it off.

Triax could, but has what it needs.

And NG's little railgun is a bute....if you can take the kick back.

[rat_bastard]

There are NO railguns in Rifts. Just to be techincal there just aren't any railguns in rifts. Railguns use a pair of EM rails to shoot a slug. You can tell by the art that all so-called railguns in rifts aree in fact gauss or tube guns. Its really no big deal, but its really just one of my little pet peaves with palladium.

:sigh:

art is not cannon

[Rimmerdal]

There are NO railguns in Rifts. Just to be techincal there just aren't any railguns in rifts. Railguns use a pair of EM rails to shoot a slug. You can tell by the art that all so-called railguns in rifts aree in fact gauss or tube guns. Its really no big deal, but its really just one of my little pet peaves with palladium.

:sigh:

art is not cannon

[Qev]

There are NO railguns in Rifts. Just to be techincal there just aren't any railguns in rifts. Railguns use a pair of EM rails to shoot a slug. You can tell by the art that all so-called railguns in rifts aree in fact gauss or tube guns. Its really no big deal, but its really just one of my little pet peaves with palladium.

:sigh:

art is not cannon

"Ceci n'est pas un Boom Gun"?

Ignoring the artwork, I'd imagine they are railguns, for their power and technical simplicity if nothing else. Coilguns would be more versatile (and you don't need an armature for each projectile), but if all you're doing is throwing chunks of metal, why not keep it simple? I don't think rail erosion is much of a worry with MDC materials anyway.

Say, I wonder if Rifts railguns use physical or plasma armatures for each projectile? I can see benefits and drawbacks to either...

[Starmage21]

Wait a second, isn't the weapon Bert Gummer uses in the second tremors movie a rail gun? It did go through a shreker, a concrete wall, and a barrel after all. Everytime I think Rail gun, that's kinda what I imagine. And then there's the fact that I can see Chipwell making them...

Signed,
Harry Leferts

No that was a .50BMG round fired from a large-bore rifle.

[Crazy Lou]

Considering the power sources it is definitely possible to make a light weight single shot EM rifle. I don't think it would be very efficient though, since the gunner would have to buy up both hard ammo and recharge the energy magazine.

why is there this talk about single shot coilguns? Why would we use only a single shot version? They can be used to have a tremendous rate of fire (at least theoretically) if the coil series are set to time and power settings correctly. And with rifts earth, it's not like available energy is really a question in consideration...

Also, about having to deal with energy for the coilgun: yeah, that's actually an issue with railguns too, especially portable ones (not to mention explaining how portable ones are even possible at all... but let's just ignore that one, lol). It's just not addressed in the books. (and ignoring that is rather convenient/much easier too...)

[Colt47]

The reason why is quite simple really: People would rather have a gun that fires a nice powerful slug into an enemy instead of a machinegun that pelts people with the equivalent of Mega damage bb's.

[Crazy Lou]

The reason why is quite simple really: People would rather have a gun that fires a nice powerful slug into an enemy instead of a machinegun that pelts people with the equivalent of Mega damage bb's.

What? Why? > # projectiles at = ROF --> > Damage. Plus you could take a high ROF one and set it to single shot, but not the other way around. And with a coilgun it's not really much louder even.

BTW, that's something worth noting: coilguns are quieter than railguns because the projectile doesn't even have to come into contact with the barrel.

[Colt47]

If you look at the damage per shot of most of rifts rapid fire weapons, the only reason they do decent damage is because they fire large volleys of the munition at the enemy. The C-40R's rounds do 1d4 damage each. It would be more ammo efficient to just use a larger round and shoot. At least that is how I feel with those fancy pellet shooters. Get a solid metal slug the size of a railway spike and shoot. If it's pointy that is a plus!

[Crazy Lou]

Consider... Apply the concept behind ramjet rounds to single-shot gauss rifles.

Also, Warlords of Russia and Australia both have some pretty compact railguns.

While that would be really hard to figure out without some numbers to crunch (at least for my brain right now -- semi-mush as it is from all this mind-crushing homework this weekend), I'm not entirely sure that this would help improve the damage or range to a significant degree. I could be completely wrong, but for now I'm thinking not.