Paladin Steel Storefront

[89er]

A rifle with sticky (magnetized) grenades? Do want!

With lethal and non lethal options, for when you wan to plant a tracer or a timed plasma round.

[Veritas476]

Sweetness.

[taalismn]

Dear Paladin Steel,

We have been working on the Hardtack force rifle, you know the one that is supposed to be our venture into weaponized force-fields. I have the personal and projected shields finished, just waiting for your approval. The new guy has been no help at all, he's working on this grenade launcher that shoots out magnetized ammo. He has been coming up with specialized ammunition since our last update. It works fine, but he refuses to share it with the team. Adding to that, he builds little drones that are just in the scariest places, hoards our spices, and gets into fights with damn near everyone. I have no idea what this did did to get dropped here, but just confirm that we can send the designs.
---Mel Barnson, of Remote Testing Station SpitnPray-42

Go for it. Our own continuous stun baton launchers are behind schedule. If we can field the Hardtack, it will prime the market for the stick'n'stuns.

[abtex]

taalismn, are enjoying Superstorm part 2, the FEMA's whiteout of problems not fixed in part 1?

89er waiting to see your work. Please.

[taalismn]

taalismn, are enjoying Superstorm part 2, the FEMA's whiteout of problems not fixed in part 1?

89er waiting to see your work. Please.

Six-seven inches of snow(we were only FORECAST to get 1-2 on grass)

[abtex]

Ok, just checking. Enjoy the first 2 inches, suffer the rest.
My snow time is coming.

[taalismn]

(with thanks to Raven fo his Kera-Tech cadmium-telluride munitions)


Paladin Steel/Kera-Tech CT Cartridge Firearms
“Why buy from a faceless outsider corporation when you can buy local? We got the better product for less.”

Like many other technologies in the PS tech-pool, cadmium-telluride plasma cartridge technology is maturing, spawning a variety of new weapons. With both local and out-dimension production ramping up, and distribution networks improving, the cost of CT ammunition has steadily dropped, and ammunition supplies have become more reliable, turning what was once a niche product into a much larger market, CT-tech weapons becoming more attractive to the everyman adventurer. The variety of weapons has also increased, from small derringer weapons to giant plasma vehicle-mount gatlings, and a range of CT cartridge sizes(and power) have also appeared to serve these weapons.
The following are new CT cartridge firearms put out by Paladin Steel and Kera-Tech, obviously in response to Naruni Enterprise’s own aggressively-marketed ‘Earth Series’ plasma cartridge firearms.

Paladin Steel/ Kera-Tech PSK-PPH15 Plasma Revolver
(aka ‘Ringo’)
http://i408.photobucket.com/albums/pp164/taalismn/PPH15-12.jpg

“I don’t appreciate being bushwacked, kid. I hope I just made that clear...otherwise, I’m going to have to blow your OTHER arm off.”

This is one of the smallest plasma weapons available and takes advantage of the Kera-Tech cadmium-telluride cartridge technology to produce a small six-shooter plasma pistol. Resembling a modern revolver(and obviously part of an effort to compete with Naruni Enterprise’s ‘Slim-Line’ ‘Earth Series’ handguns), albeit with a thicker top fairing, the PPH15 is loaded with six CT power cartridges in its cylinder, and feeds them, just like a regular revolver, into the firing chamber. Construction is mainly of high density, high-temperature tolerant, megadamage ceramics
Though it is a single shot-per-trigger-pull weapon with a slow rate of fire, the PPH15’s high damage per shot and compact size make it attractive to traditional gunfighters and duelists. Marketing is pushing the PPH15 as a ‘locally made’ alternative to the Naruni plasma handguns.
Weight: 3.2 lbs
MDC: 25
Range: 500 ft
Damage: 5d6 MD per blast
Rate of Fire: Single shot, ECHH
Payload: 6 shot cylinder. It takes 1 APM per round to manually reload, or 2 APMs to reload the magazine using a prepared speedloader.
Special Features:
*Top Sight Rail---Can be fitted for a variety of sights, laser spots, and scopes.
*Corrosion-proof Construction
Cost: 9,000 credits. ‘Light’ cadmium-telluride cartridges cost 16 credits each.
Options:
*’Shotgun’ Barreling---This adds a slightly thicker barrel that permits the weapon to fire an area of effect shot that does 3d6 MD to an 8 ft wide area, at a maximum range of 200 ft. Perfect for fanning rooms and alleyways. Cost: +7,000 credits.


Paladin Steel/ Kera-Tech PSK-PPRCT-16 Plasma Repeating Rifle
(aka ‘Hot Henry’)

KER-CHAK!
“Lovely sound, a round being chambered. Now, which one of you fellahs want to be the next to taste the sun? I got plenty.”

The PSK-PPRCT-16 is a light plasma rifle using the Kera-Tech ‘light’ cadmium-telluride cartridge in a repligun-casing resembling the famous pre-Rifts Henry Repeating Rifle. Instead of firing bullets, however, the rifle fires plasma bolts, doing more damage than a laser rifle, albeit at shorter range. Just as with the original, working the ‘jack-knife’ cocking handle loads the next cartridge for firing. Adding to the versatility of the weapon is the ability, with a twist of a selection ring around the barrel, to fire shorter ranged ‘shotgun’ blasts of plasma, for area of effect.
Despite its crude manual operation, lack of autofire capability and reliance on specialized ammunition, the PSK-PPRCT-16 is a reliable, sturdy, hardhitting weapon with great appeal to ‘retrogunners’. The PPRCT-16’s obvious closest competitor is the heavier and more powerful, but also more expensive, NE-80 Slim-Line Plasma Rifle, and market competition is expected to be fierce.
Weight: 10 lbs
MDC: 45
Range:(Plasma Bolt)2,000 ft
(‘Shotgun’ Bolt) 500 ft
Damage:(Plasma Bolt) 5d6 MD per blast
(‘Shotgun’ Bolt) 3d6 MD to an 8 ft wide area
Rate of Fire: Single shot, ECHH
Payload: 16 shot tubular magazine. It takes 1 APM per round to manually reload, or 3 APMs to reload the magazine using a prepared tubular speedloader.
Special Features:
*Top Sight Rail---Can be fitted for a variety of sights, laser spots, and scopes.
*Corrosion-proof Construction
Cost: 27,000 credits. ‘Light’ cadmium-telluride cartridges cost 16 credits each.

Variants:
*PSK-PPR-16CTW ‘Winchester’----This variant, patterned after Winchester rifles, drops the cumbersome tubular magazine for a more conventional clip feed(taking only 2 APMs to reload) ahead of the trigger-guard. This is typically loaded for an easily managed 5 shot clip, but longer 16- or 32- shot box clips or 50 rd drums can be accommodated.

Paladin Steel/ Kera-Tech PSK-PPRCT-18 Plasma Rifle
(aka ‘Spazz’, ‘French Fry’, ‘Roman Candle’)
http://i408.photobucket.com/albums/pp164/taalismn/PPRCT-18-12.jpg

“Sits like a nice firm club in the hands, shoots like a cannon, kicks like a mule. Only problem is the lack of sights; the Spazz can shoot to to four hundred meters, but doesn’t have provision for a scope to allow you to accurately place your shots. The folding stock gets in the way, and you need the stock to soak up the kick-back the heavy plasma bolts give flying down range. So if you don’t mind not having a compact weapon when you’re carrying, have the stock fixed in extended positon and get a scope rail fixed to the top. Just about any will do the trick; I personally use one I took off a Coalition ‘Fire Breather’ and it works just fine. Seemed appropriate, heh!”

Looking like an even more rugged version of the pre-Rifts Franchi SPAS-12 combat shotgun(but using an autofeed rather than a pump-action), the PSK-PPRCT-18 expands on the PSK-PPRCT-16, but uses the larger cadmium-telluride cartridge as used in the PSPPR-9 TriBarrel ‘HeatWave’ Gatling Plasma Cannon. The larger cartridge does extra damage, and has slightly better range, and the PPRCT-18 shares the ‘Hot Henry’s’ variable choke dual-mode barrel adjustment, allowing for long range plasma bolts or a short range ‘shotgun’ blast.
The PPRCT-18 is competitively priced with Naruni’s own Slim-Line rifles, with a cost better than half the price of NE’s offerings, so PS expects these weapons to sell well. Several hundred of these weapons have been shipped to PS/GNE ally and trade partner the New Roman Republic where reportedly they’ve been used with considerable enthusiasm by New Rome’s Legionnaires on the Phoenix Empire’s undead hordes in the Eastern Med.
Weight: 10 lbs
MDC: 50
Range: (Plasma Bolt)1,500 ft
(‘Shotgun’ Bolt) 600 ft
Damage:(Plasma Bolt) 1d4x10 MD per blast
(‘Shotgun’ Bolt) 4d6 MD to an 8 ft wide area
Rate of Fire: Single shot, ECHH
Payload: 7 shot tubular magazine. It takes 1 APM per round to manually reload, or 3 APMs to reload the magazine using a prepared tubular speedloader.
Special Features:
*Corrosion-proof Construction
*Folding Wire Shoulder Stock
Cost: 29,000 credits. Cadmium-telluride cartridges cost 30 credits each.

Paladin Steel/ Kera-Tech PSK-PPRCT-19 Heavy Plasma Rifle
(aka ‘Papa Pyro’, ‘Firestarter’, ‘Hell-Rivet’, ‘Heat Stroke’ )
http://i408.photobucket.com/albums/pp164/taalismn/PPRCT-19-42.jpg

With a crackle and a hiss, the two sides, arms and legs, of the hulking armored warrior fell away from each other, the scalloped inner edges still glowing cherry-red, what was left of the torso that had once connected them collapsing into ashy char.
“Geez, Bert, think you overdid it any?”
“Got the job done, Sammy. You saw what it took to kill that pusball? Eight shots! EIGHT shots! And there’s hundreds just like it landing outside! Get me all the boxes of cee-tee ammo we got from downstairs, and grab yourself a gun too!”

A fully automatic drum-fed version of the PSK-PPRCT-18, with a revised magazine feed, and thicker barrel with improved cooling and insulation. The weapon may not have the range of other plasma weapons, but it does more damage, and has the ability to fire truly devastating bursts.
Weight: 12 lbs
MDC: 55
Range: (Plasma Bolt)1,500 ft
(‘Shotgun’ Bolt) 600 ft
Damage:(Plasma Bolt) 1d4x10 MD per blast
4d4x10 MD for a four-shot burst
(‘Shotgun’ Bolt) 4d6 MD to an 8 ft wide area
1d6x10 MD to a 10 ft wide area for a four-shot burst
Note that the weapon is -1 to strike with a burst unless braced or held by a P.S. of at least 18.
Rate of Fire: Single shot, ECHH
Payload: 10 shot box or 20- or 32-shot drum magazine.
Special Features:
*Corrosion-proof Construction
*Folding Wire Shoulder Stock
*Vehicular Pintle Mount
*Optional Forward Handgrip
Cost: 31,000 credits. Cadmium-telluride cartridges cost 30 credits each.
Options:
*Mercury Bead Recoil Control----Many buyers go with a locked-position buttstock, and add an advanced mercury-bead recoil control system to provide more accurate burst fire. Absorbs recoil from rapid fire bursts, and provides a +1 to strike with four-shot bursts. Cost: 2,000 credits.
http://i408.photobucket.com/albums/pp164/taalismn/PPRCT-19-43.jpg


Paladin Steel/ Kera-Tech PSK-PPRCT-21 Combination Plasma Rifle
http://i408.photobucket.com/albums/pp164/taalismn/PPRCT-21-36.jpg

“You are SO not bringing your ugly alien brain-eating $#!+ to MY neighborhood! Hose’em, kids! And here’s a forty-millimeter money shot right in your eye!!! YYYYEEEEEE-HHHAAAAHHHHH!!!”

Inspired by the design of the pre-Rifts Australian Advanced Infantry Combat Weapon(AICW), the PSK-PPRCT-21 Combination Plasma Rifle is a new ‘combi-weapon’ combining a light rapid-fire plasma cartridge weapon with a multi-shot grenade launcher in a compact package. The plasma weapon component is a ‘bullpup’ configuration weapon using the ‘light’ plasma cartridges used by the PSKT plasma handguns, while the grenade launcher is a ‘heavy’ 40mm launcher using ‘Metal Storm’ technology to stack multiple rounds end-to-end.
Because of its relatively short range, the PPRCT-21 is being marketed as an ‘urban assault tifle’ for combat in built-up areas where long range is not a critical issue. The addition of a grenade launcher adds versatility and ballistic artillery to the weapon. Further increasing its attraction for urban assault troops(or defenders) are accessories that add accuracy and sweep fire capabilities.
Weight:12.5 lbs
MDC: 45
Range:(Plasma)1,700 ft
(40mm Grenade)1,300 ft
Damage:(Plasma) 6d6 MD per shot
1d6x10+10 MD for a three-shot burst
(40mm Grenade)Varies:
Frag rounds do 4d6 MD to a 12-foot radius.
AP rounds do 1d4x10 to a 3-foot blast radius,
Plasma rounds do 1d4x10+10 to a 5-foot radius.
Other grenade types are also available, in the 40mm format.
Rate of Fire:(Plasma)Standard
(40mm Grenade) Single shot
Payload:(Plasma)30 rd box magazine
(40mm Grenade)3
Special Features:
*Corrosion-proof Construction
*Optional Forward Handgrip
*Top Sight Rail. Though various sensor packages are available, the standard-issue scope package is the same as that mounted on the PS OICW: computerized scope with micro-chip targeting computer, laser rangefinder, x6 telescopic scope w/ passive nightvision/light amplification, and micro-chip video camera( 12 photo/images/3 minutes video....for recon or kill-trophy verification).

Bonuses: +1 to strike from the targeting sight, +1 to strike from the targeting computer using active sensors(for a total of +2 to strike on a called shot).

Cost: 39,000 credits. ‘Light’ cadmium-telluride cartridges cost 16 credits each.
Options:
*Mercury Bead Recoil Control----Absorbs recoil from rapid fire bursts, and provides a +1 to strike with three-shot bursts. Cost: 2,000 credits.

*SprayFire Barrel Modification Kit---PS weapons engineers seem to have discovered a fetish for area of effect shotgun-style weaponry, because just about every weapon they’ve put out has subsequently been modified for such; the PPRCT-21 is no exception. This mod mounts a ‘watering can’ of multiple short projection coils on the barrel, splitting the plasma discharge into a dozen smaller plasma mini-bolts. Range drops to 500 ft, but the bolts do 3d6 MD to a 20 ft wide area.
Cost: 9,000 credits

Variants:
*PPRCT-211---This is simply the plasma rifle component of the PPRCT-21 sold without the grenade launcher, weighs only 10.3 lbs, and sells for 36,000 credits. The PPRCT-211 is considered to be direct competition for the Naruni NE-350 ‘Thumper’ plasma cartridge submachine gun.

[Veritas476]

Hooray for MD cartridge weaponry.

[taalismn]

Hooray for MD cartridge weaponry.

I'll be making liberal use of the Pimpmygun website to do some of them up proper.

[taalismn]

BUNNY BLUE Augmentation Package:
(PU2 budget of 2,310,000 credits per operative)

“Let’s go at it like rabbits!”
“Like we’re near the bottom of the food chain?”
“Hey, if mortal desperation sweetens it for you, go right ahead!”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Look, as long as you pay up front, I don’t care what sort of social experiment in furrydom you hicks practice here. As long as your money isn’t funny....hey, where the hell did all the hayseeds go? What the hell do you think you’re trying to---”
---Last words of Captain ‘Angry’ Dolson, Independent Freighter ‘Caterer to Dirtsuckers’, on Rullof’s World, Thundercloud Galaxy, immediately prior to him making the acquaintance of Rullof’s Crested Roc.

“Don’t touch the poffball unless you want the lady’s stilleto heel lodged in your sinuses. Those legs ain’t just for looking at; they can KICK.”
----Overheard in a New Seattle bar.

BUNNY BLUE is another ‘unsanctioned’* bio-mod package available from PS-affiliated bio-mod shops. The intent of BUNNY BLUE seems to be to makeover the recipient into an anthromorphed lupine form of themselves. Paladin Steel marketing analysts are still unsure of where this affectation for turning oneself into the personification of a prey species comes from, although on Rifts Earth part of it is attributed to a desire to emulate the ferocious Nomansers.
BUNNY BLUE’s most obvious changes are cosmetic; long rabbit ears on the head, a restructured ‘hare lip’ and whiskers to the face, slightly more muscular hips and legs, and a cottonball tail. Some recipients go a step farther and spring for a coat of short fur all over the body. Still others go for more extensive packages, including mental/genetic infusion of instinctive tunneling abilities, allowing them to ‘rough it’ by digging their own subterranean warrens and hutches.
However cosmetically frivoulous BUNNY BLUE seems, however, it does confer a few potent bonus abilities to the recipient. Also, some claim the fertility of recipients has been upped, and that the wider and more muscular hips make for easier childbirths. This, combined with the digestive and sensory mods, has interestingly enough worked to make the bio-mod popular with colonization efforts that don’t have any restrictions on ‘gene-tweaking’ in the colonists. Thus, while the ‘bunny mod’ has most often been publicly regarded as a ‘bedroom bio-powerup’ of the rich and decadent, the biomod is really selling most with first-gen extraplanetary/extradimensional colonial developers. This has led to a number of derogatory nicknames from spacers about ‘bunny plantations’, ‘Jacks’, ‘Jessies’, colonial ‘bunnygirls’, and ‘hoptowns’ with regards to settlements using this bio-mod in the initial establishment stages. The popularity and usefulness of BUNNY BLUE amongst colonials may change Paladin Steel’s mind about its ‘unsanctioned status’ and get it official approval from the government, clearing the way for greater availability of the bio-mod.
The bio-mod is less popular on Rifts Earth(outside secure urban enclaves) where there’s still a lot of stigma attached to appearing ‘d-bee’ or ‘mutant’ outside civilized and tolerant regions like the GNE, and where humanoids are still very much on the menu for local predators.

*’Unsanctioned’ means that the company does not, as of that time, OFFICIALLY authorize or offer the bio-mod/product, usually because it is experimental or controversially disfiguring. Individual shops may offer the product, as long as both shop and customer acknowledge that the shop owners take full responsibility and that PS will not offer support or legal defense for the product. In general, unsanctioned bio-mods are also not accepted into GNE government or military service without extensive legal/medical approvals. Some legal analysts regard this as a ‘wink-wink, nudge-nudge’ dodge by the company.

Powers/Abilities:
-Mental Affinity: ---A combination of minor cosmetic surgery and body language training to improve the trust/intimidate factor; +1 to M.A.

-Heightened Sense of Awareness---+2 initiative, +1 roll, +2 save vs Horror Factor.

-Whiskers(Face)--+2 initiative, parry, and dodge.

-Heightened Sense of Smell---100 ft range, Recognize specific odors: 70%+4% per level of experience, recognize poisons/chemicals by smell: 50%+4% per level of experience, recognize specific person: 50%+3% per level of experience, track by scent: 40%+3% per level of experience every 200 yards. In circumstances where smell can come into play: +1 dodge, +1 initiative.

-Heightened Sense of Hearing--360 ft range, +6 to initiative, +1 parry, +2 dodge(where applicable). Estimate sound distance(60%+5% per level of experience), estimate speed and direction(50%+5% per level of experience), recognize voice/sound(40%+5% per level of experience), and can hear very soft sounds(under one decibel) under 75 ft away, under 10 decibels up to 150 ft away.

-Parabolic Hearing---Can focus on a single noise or voice to the exception of all others. 50%+4% per level of experience. Also good for hearing those safe tumblers moving. n the case of BUNNY BLUE, the ears are large, elongated, and very obvious.

-Enhanced Physical Prowess---+1 P.P., +1 pull punch

-Enhanced Leaping---P.S. x25 ft across, can fall twice horizontal leaping distance without harm, +15 SDC, +6 Spd., +1 roll, +1d6 to kick attacks.

-Built for Speed---Speed attribute x4, +1 dodge, +3 roll with punch, fall, or impact, plus climb and swim at HALF running speed. )

-Prestomach----This allows BUNNY BLUE biomods to digest a wider variety of plants.

-Heightened Sense of Taste----Can discriminate between and identify common substances with 70%+5% per level of experience proficiency, and can identify exotic tastes and poisons at 30%+5% per level of experience. +10% to cooking ability.

Total bonuses:
+4 initiative
+2 parry
+3 dodge
+5 roll with punch, fall, or impact
+1 pull punch
+1 to M.A.
+1 P.P.
+6 Spd + Speed x4
+15 SDC

Options:
-Fur---Short, lustrous fur all over the body, but thickest on the head and back. Not as thick or protective as thicker fur pelts, but the short hairs do offer some extra protection from the elements; Temperatures below freezing do HALF damage. Magic cold and super-cold attacks do 25% less damage. (60,000)

-Pheromone Package
a) Attract Opposite Sex---Twice per day the recipient can affect an area of 100 ft per point of the person’s M.A., raising their M.A. and P.B. by +10 when dealing with the opposite gender, and adding +10% to Seduction rolls.
b) Scent Marker(marks presence for 2-4 hours). Let ‘em know this is YOURS or else that you’ve been here recently.
c) Territorial/Warning---Members of the same gender as the recipient will either challenge or back down from this phermonal cue, but even if they attack, they’ll be -1 on Initiative due to the subconscious feeling that they don’t have the home ground advantage.
(1,000,000)

-Double-Jointed---+10% to Escape Artist, +1 roll with punch, fall, or impact. (100,000)

-Hibernation---The bio-mod recipient can fall into a deep sleep torpor that conserves food and oxygen, as well as body heat. Can drop body temperature down to 40 degrees F(4 C), heart rate drops to one beat per minute, and takes only 1 breath per minute. This state can be entered at a rate of 1 minute per degree dropped of body temperature, and takes 2d6 melees to rouse from. (80,000)

-Digging----- This modifies both mind and body to have an instinctive ability to dig barehanded at a great rate of speed. The mod also addresses claustrophobia and anyfear of being buried alive. The character can dig as follows: P.S. 10 of less move at 3 ft per melee through loose earth, P.S. 13-18 at 4 ft per melee, P.S. 19-24 at 5 ft per melee, and P.S. of 25 or greater at 6 ft per melee. (500,000 credits)

-Tunneling----- This mod takes the digging ability further, inculcating the recipient with an instinctive ability to tunnel, leaving a reusable open way behind them. This ability can be done at HALF the speed of Digging(above). (600,000 credits)

-Excavation---- This makes the BUNNY BLUE bio-mod an instinctive master underground architect, able to excavate underground chambers in loose soil or packed earth. The bio-mod can move about 5 cubic feet of earth a minute. Also gets a +5% to any Mining skill the bio-mod recipient may take/have. (1.2 million credits)

-Fertility Enhancements---Though the BUNNY BLUE biomod in general is said to increase certain aspects of sexuality, the biomod can be deliberately tweaked to improve fertility. The chances of conception in female BUNNY BLUE recipients can be increased as much as 50%, and the chances of multiple births increases by that as well. Due to the wider hips and musculature, natural births are easier and take 25% less time. Note that NONE of the biomod enhancements are passed on to the children. (600,000 credits)

[abtex]

Nice, upgrading humans to rabbits.

What next working on your squirrel problem in some strange way?

Have a good holiday.

[taalismn]

(with thanks to Raven fo his Kera-Tech cadmium-telluride munitions)

Paladin Steel/ Kera-Tech PPSMG-01 ‘Hotspur’ Plasma Submachine Gun
http://i408.photobucket.com/albums/pp164/taalismn/PPSMG-01Hotspur.jpg

“Paladin Steel is taking plasma weaponry in two directions; bigger and meaner, and SMALLER and meaner. The Hotspur’s a good example of the latter; compact and light enough to hide under a trenchcoat or in a vehicle cab, handy enough to heft about in close quarters, with enough firepower to CREMATE a skelebot or full conversion combat cyborg at close range. This weapon’s nightmare fuel for anybody planning an urban assault against somebody packing these guns.”
Be careful though if you’re planning on using this little thing like a firehose. Part of the way they shaved weight off was on a full muzzle cooling jacket. Even with the advanced materials and superconductor wicking, it’s still trying to dissipate serious waste heat over a small frame. And with the forward handhold just under the muzzle, even with the insulation on the ‘grip, I’d suggest wearing a glove or gauntlet to prevent burning your knuckles and palms when you’re going full-auto.”
----Chesapeake Brandon, Headhunter.

The PPSMG-01 is an attempt to make an even lighter high-powered plasma weapon using cadmium-telluride cartridge technology, for a compact, short-range weapon with a high rate of fire. Looking like a slightly heavier version of the pre-Rifts Italian ‘Spectre’ submachine gun, the ‘Hotspur’ uses the same ‘light’ cadmium-telluride cartridges as used in the PPSH-15 pistols and PPRCT-16 rifle, but also introduces an autofire burst capability. Full autofire imposes some recoil problems, however, so the ‘Hotspur’ comes with a foregrip that allows the weapon to be more easily stabilized and held on target while the clip is being emptied.
The main disadvantages of the Hotspur are its short range(though it has superior range to most pre-Rifts projectile SMGs) and its reliance on specialized CT-cartridge ammunition.
Weight: 6.5 lbs
MDC: 35
Range: 500 ft
Damage: 5d6 MD single shot,
2d6x10+15(!) MD for a five-shot burst
Note that the weapon is -1 to strike with a burst unless braced two-handed or held by a P.S. of at least 15.
Rate of Fire: Standard; single shot or five-shot burst
Payload: 20- or 30-shot box magazine
Special Features:
*Corrosion-proof Construction
*Folding Wire Shoulder Stock
*Forward Handgrip
Cost: 16,000 credits. ‘Light’ cadmium-telluride cartridges cost 16 credits each.



Paladin Steel PPSMG-02 ‘Salamander’ Plasma Submachine Gun
http://i408.photobucket.com/albums/pp164/taalismn/PPSMG-02Salamander.jpg

“You’re asking for one serious sun-tanning if you don’t give these smaller plasma weapons the respect they deserve. The Salamander lives up to its name in short range combat; it can FRY you in one burst. I once saw a cyberhuman-conversion packing one of these take out three Que enforcers faster than a Larmak scarfing down a donut, and ripped up their reinforcements bad enough she was able to make her escape. These days she’s packing TWO.”
----Chesapeake Brandon, Headhunter.

Though often confused with the PPSMG-01, the PPSMG-02 ‘Salamander’ is actually a different weapon, though it shares many components, especially many parts of the frame(thus speeding production) as the other weapon, and bears a superficial resemblance(only slightly longer and more streamlined). The PPSMG-02 in fact is an outgrowth of the PSPPH-12 ‘Incendii’ Plasma Pistol, modified for rapid-fire. This results in a lower damage spread per individual shot, but an increased payload, and more devastating ‘burst’ mode-fire.
The PPSMG-02’s main advantages over the PPSMG-01 are the ability to use e-clips, which are much more readily available(and rechargeable) than the expendable CT cartridges, and a more controllable recoil on burst mode. Both weapons are compact, concealable, and reliable, and are gaining popularity with urban warriors, vehicle drivers and garrison troops.
Weight: 6.5 lbs
Range: 500 ft
Damage: 4d6 MD per blast
2d4x10 MD per three-shot burst
Rate of Fire: Standard
Payload: 18 shots standard e-clip, 32 per long e-clip
Special Features:
*Laser Spot Sight(+1 to strike)
*Corrosion-proof Construction
*Forward Handgrip
*Optional Wire Shoulder Brace-Stock
Cost: 17,000 credits
Options:
*Scatter-Fire---This modifies the muzzle plasma ejector mechanism to fire a dozen or so smaller plasma bolts at shorter range and with less individual damage, but with a scatter effect like a shotgun---ideal for clearing out rooms and compartments.
Reduce range by 1/3, and mini-plasma bolts do 2d4 MD each, but now covers a 30-degree arc(or rougly 15 ft wide area)
Cost: +4,000 credits

[The Raven]

(with thanks to Raven fo his Kera-Tech cadmium-telluride munitions)

Have you ever explained how the C-T Plasma Pellet system works or should I jump in on this?

Edit: May as well just drop this in here anyway.

Consisting of a low powered laser and an ammunition feed system, a Cadmium-Telluride plasma cannon differs from most plasma weapon designs. The weapon first fires a high temperature ionizing pulse laser at the target at which point a 50gr pellet of Cadmium-Telluride is inserted into the firing chamber. The heat from the laser vaporizes the pellet, and sends the resulting plasma down the ionized channel in the air formed by the laser’s firing. The resulting plasma has a higher mass then that of a normal plasma weapon, which in turn results in a higher damage curve.

[taalismn]

Thanks, Raven, that certainly does explain it. And gives me ideas for further products in the line.

And because there were questions about ammunition prices:

Paladin Steel Ammunition Costs:

“Damn it! I’m low on twenty millimeter ammo! Say, Balgar, can we cut a few miles off course to that little town there on the map? There’s a Paladin Steel outlet there and I wanna just run in and get some more airburst rounds. It’s okay, I got my discount club card.”

This is an attempt to create a comprehensive list of ammunition prices for PS munitions, and to correct prices. If you find it for less in earlier posts, ascribe it to what PS charges the GNEAS and its own security forces(healthy discount) or misinformation through the MercTown grapevine. Also, since the original postings were made, prices may have dropped, due to greater mass production and distribution.
In general, PS is using its wider factory network, upgraded production technology, and extradimensional outsourcing to produce their own versions of such ammunition types as Wellington Exploders and Ramjets at 20-30% below canonical listed price, in part due to the larger production base and deliberate market strategy to undercut the competition.

“Tazer’ Shock-Bead: 10 credits each

9/6mm Squeezebore Ammunition: 180 credits per 10 rds
13/9mm Squeezebore Ammunition: 160 credits per round

PS Ramjet Ammunition: 5-10 credits per round for standard, 1-15 credits per round for heavy
PSX-1 Ammunition: Increase base cost of the ammunition by x2
PSX-2 Ammunition: Increase base cost of the ammunition by x4

13mm GyroJet Rounds:
1,000 credits per case of 50 Penetrator rounds,
2,000 credits for explosive.

20mm Ammunition:
A box of 100 20 mm ‘smart’ (SD)rds costs 800 credits
A box of 100 20 mm ‘smart’ (MD)PSX-1 rds costs 3,000 credits(after 110 PA, this drops to 2,000 credits)
A box of 100 20 mm ‘smart’ PSX-2 rds costs 3,200 credits

20mm PSX-1xp(Pistol) Ammunition: 100 credits per PSX-1xp round(or 9,500 credits for a box of 100)

25mm Ammunition:
Shells cost 10(SDC Fragmentation)
20(High Explosive)
28 (SDC Armor Piercing)
100 (MD Fragmentation)
200 ( MD High Explosive)
350(MD Armor Piercing) credits each

30mm Cannon Ammunition:
380 credits each
30mm Series-II Ramjet Shells:
400 credits each

PS/FA-A9 2-pounder (40mm) Ammunition:
High Velocity(Fragmentation) shells cost 200 credits apiece, 245 credits for HE
Low Velocity(Fragmentation) shells cost 180 credits apiece, 200 credits for HE


40mm “Short”Underwater Dart: 36 credits per 100 rounds

5.56mm “Long” Underwater Dart: 70 credits per 100 rounds


HydroCavitation Rounds:
Cost: Adds 15% to cost of the shell/projectile

12-gauge Shotgun Ammunition:
A box of 100 shotgun slug rds costs 60 credits
A box of 100 baton rds costs 45 credits
A box of 100 tear gas rds costs 80 credits
A box of 100 S-9Dex Incapacitation Munition rds costs 360 credits
A box of 100 Mini-Grenade rds costs 2,000 credits
A box of 100 Mini-Grenade(Plasma) rds costs 3,000 credits
A box of 100 Mini-Grenade(HESH) rds costs 2,500 credits

15mm Fletcher Flechette Shells: 25 credits apiece

23mm Rifle Grenades:
HE Shells cost 400 each
Incendiary 450 each
Flare rounds 30 each.

30mm Rifle Grenades:
SDC rounds cost 40-60 credits each,
Crowd Control rounds cost 20 credits each
HE grenades cost 400 credits each
Armor-piercing cost 550 credits each
Micro-fusion(rarely available on the open market) cost 1,500 credits each
Incendiary cost 600 credits each

40mm Rifle Grenades
Fragmentation: 360 credits each
Armor Piercing: 400 credits each
Plasma: 600 credits each

50mm RAP shells---500 credits each
140mm RAP Grenades--- 2,000 credits each

35-60mm Rifle Grenades:
(Riot)(cost: 80 credits)
(Fragmentation-SDC)(cost: 100 credits)
(Fragmentation-MD)(cost: 280 credits)
(High Explosive)(cost: 360 credits)
(Anti-Armor HEAT) (cost: 800 credits)
(Plasma/Micro-Fusion) (cost: 800 credits)
(Incendiary)(cost: 350 credits)
(Acid)(cost: 450 credits)
(Chemical) (cost: 10-300 credits depending on chemical filling)
(Illumination)(cost: 15 credits)

150mm Rifle Grenade
(High Explosive) 1,200 credits
(High Explosive Anti-Tank-HEAT) 2,000 credits

80mm ‘Pulverizer’ Ammunition
(Solid Slug)400 credits
(Fragmentation) 600 credits
(Fletchette) 800 credits
(High Explosive) 950 credits
(High Explosive Anti-Tank(HEAT)) 1,000 credits
(Plasma) 1,500 credits
(HESH )(High Explosive Squash Head) -1,500 credits

52mm Mortar Ammunition:
(PSX-II High Explosive) Cost per shell: 800 credits
(Fragmentation) Cost per shell: 600 credits
(Incendiary) Cost per shell: 700 credits
(Armor-Piercing Self-Forging) Cost per shell: 4,000 credits
(Plasma) Cost per shell: 3,000 credits
(Smoke/Chemical) Basic smoke shells cost 100 credits apiece
(Illumination) Cost per shell: 500 credits
(Sensor Decoys) Cost per shell: 700 credits
(Noisemaker Decoys) Cost per shell: 400 credits
(TW Sandstorm) Cost per shell: 4,000 credits
(TW Chasm) Cost per shell: 7,000 credits
(TW Lava Pool)Cost per shell: 9,000 credits
(TW Air Burst) Cost per shell: 8,000 credits
(TW Storm Shell)Cost per shell: 3,000 credits
(TW SunBomb) Cost per shell: 2,000 credits

120mm Mortar Ammunition
(Standard Shell) Fragmentation: 320 credits per shell
High Explosive: 360 credits per shell
Plasma: 390 credits per shell
(Heavy Shell)Fragmentation: 440 credits per shell
High Explosive: 460 credits per shell
Plasma: 500 credits per shell

(*Yes, the 120mm mortar rounds are CHEAPER than the 81mm rounds; when originally posted, the 81mm was a specialist commando weapon with the shells disproportionately more powerful than the larger weapons)


MicroMissiles:
(15mm)
Pattern-1A 25 credits per McM
Pattern-1B 32 credits per McM
Pattern-1C 60 credits per McM
Pattern-1D 95 credits per McM
Pattern-1E 220 credits per McM
(20mm)
(Pattern-2a) 90 credits each
(Pattern-2b)130 credits each
(Pattern-2c)150 credits each
(30mm)
(Pattern-3a) 110 credits each
(Pattern-3b)180 credits each
(Pattern-3c) 220 credits each

Micro-Torpedoes:
(Pattern-MT1A)250 credits
(Pattern-MT1B) 220 credits
(Pattern-MT1C) 360 credits
(Pattern-MT1D) 400 credits

‘Black Talon’ L-SAM:
10,000 credits

45mm ‘Hellshot’ Rail Gun Rounds: 800 credits per penetrator round

Cadmium-Telluride Ammunition
‘Light’ (Plasma Weapon) cartridges: 16 credits each
‘Medium’(Plasma Weapon) cartridges: 35 credits each
40mm (Heavy Plasma Weapon) cartridges: 95 credits each

[abtex]

(with thanks to Raven fo his Kera-Tech cadmium-telluride munitions)

Have you ever explained how the C-T Plasma Pellet system works or should I jump in on this?

Edit: May as well just drop this in here anyway.

Consisting of a low powered laser and an ammunition feed system, a Cadmium-Telluride plasma cannon differs from most plasma weapon designs. The weapon first fires a high temperature ionizing pulse laser at the target at which point a 50gr pellet of Cadmium-Telluride is inserted into the firing chamber. The heat from the laser vaporizes the pellet, and sends the resulting plasma down the ionized channel in the air formed by the laser’s firing. The resulting plasma has a higher mass then that of a normal plasma weapon, which in turn results in a higher damage curve.

Thank you Raven.

[taalismn]

Okay....here's the results of a little collaboration between me and 89er:

PPS/PP-LMT01 Land Micro Torpedo Launcher
(aka ‘Mole Missile’)

“I HATE ambush predators that burrow under sand and soil. Let’s see how they like being on the receiving end for once!”

“Just keep those ####ers pinned down a little longer behind cover. They’re about to get a real surprise any momeNOW!”

Designed initially as more of a dare(after hearing of Naruni Enterprises’ NE-TT07 ‘Sneaker’ MLM) than a practical weapon, this launcher shoots out a torpedo that is covered with a vibratory field to allow for easier access through loose earth or asphalt. When it has reached the intended target underneath, it explodes. It is in the experimental stages, but some have taken it as a “swimming landmine” with pride.
The LMT is often regarded as an expansion of the concept of a burrowing munition as introduced by the ‘Badger’ grenade, but with greater range underground. The weapon has a roughly flat and triangular forebody, followed by a rotary cutter and battery/warhead pack, giving it a similar shape to the TW Burrowing Stake also available from PS.
Accurately aiming the LMT remains the biggest problem, as it is almost impossible to effectively hit a moving target with a LMT. It is best used against stationary targets, such as bunkers, entrenchments, and underground infrastructure(such as communications cables and water pipes). It is also most effective when traveling close to the surface, through loose soil, sand and surface cover, although this can lead to the weapon producing a detectable ‘mole track’ on the surface that can be dodged.
The ‘standard’ launcher for the LMT is currently a three-shot box launcher, looking something like an animal travel cage. It is also a strictly ‘point and shoot’ weapon, relying on an internal gyroscope to keep it on course and angle of descent. The weapon can also be programmed to travel on simple courses, such as ‘descend to -x-meters depth over a distance of -v- feet, then ascend at -u- angle and detonate’, allowing it to be used to ‘porpoise’ under walls and barriers.
Weight: 12 pounds
Each LMT is roughly 2 ft long, 5 inches wide, and weighs 5 lbs.
Range: 2,500 feet. Travels through loose soil and sand at a speed of 15 MPH( equivalent running speed of 22).
In an emergency, the LMTs can be launched through the air, using their launch compressed gas ‘rams’, but range is a paltry 100 ft and they are -1 to strike.
Damage: 5d6 MD to target and 2d6 MD to all in a ten foot radius. Used in loose soil, this can cause a ‘blow’ and subsequent ‘deadman’s drop’ that can seriously damage structures. The cutting vibroblade itself does 1d4 MD per melee. The battery powering the LMT lasts approximately fifteen minutes, after which the LMT can be set to either self-destruct, command-detonate, or lie in place as a land mine.
Rate of Fire: Standard
Note: Use W.P. Heavy Military Weapons for any applicable bonuses.
Payload: 3 micro-torpedoes per clip
Special Features:
None currently. Paladin Steel is working on a ‘ground-thumper’ ground-radar/sonar system, possibly using a short tunneling sensor spike that would allow the launcher to scan soil/ground density ahead of the projectile before firing.
Similarly efforts are underway to incorporate active sensors into the LMTs themselves.
Cost: Still experimental. Projectiles are projected to cost 500 credits each.

[glitterboy2098]

(with thanks to Raven fo his Kera-Tech cadmium-telluride munitions)

Have you ever explained how the C-T Plasma Pellet system works or should I jump in on this?

Edit: May as well just drop this in here anyway.

Consisting of a low powered laser and an ammunition feed system, a Cadmium-Telluride plasma cannon differs from most plasma weapon designs. The weapon first fires a high temperature ionizing pulse laser at the target at which point a 50gr pellet of Cadmium-Telluride is inserted into the firing chamber. The heat from the laser vaporizes the pellet, and sends the resulting plasma down the ionized channel in the air formed by the laser’s firing. The resulting plasma has a higher mass then that of a normal plasma weapon, which in turn results in a higher damage curve.

ah, micro-hellbore weaponry.

[taalismn]

(with thanks to Raven fo his Kera-Tech cadmium-telluride munitions)

Have you ever explained how the C-T Plasma Pellet system works or should I jump in on this?

Edit: May as well just drop this in here anyway.

Consisting of a low powered laser and an ammunition feed system, a Cadmium-Telluride plasma cannon differs from most plasma weapon designs. The weapon first fires a high temperature ionizing pulse laser at the target at which point a 50gr pellet of Cadmium-Telluride is inserted into the firing chamber. The heat from the laser vaporizes the pellet, and sends the resulting plasma down the ionized channel in the air formed by the laser’s firing. The resulting plasma has a higher mass then that of a normal plasma weapon, which in turn results in a higher damage curve.

ah, micro-hellbore weaponry.

Now you have me thinking of putting a CT-Cartridge machine gun on a HandiTrac and calling it a 'Bolette'.

[abtex]

a Cadmium-Telluride plasma cannon ... at which point a 50gr pellet of Cadmium-Telluride is inserted into the firing chamber.

1.76 oz. = 50 gr
Raven, how small did your C-T weapons get?
Did you even make grenades with the concept?

- WW2 style stick grenade - thrown as a single unit; C-T pellet in can and laser to vaporize pellet in handle
- laser mounted on body armor, tracking grenade as its thrown; zapping it at the right range [safely from thrower or at target] or
- grenade comes off laser stick and is zapped

Cadmium-Telluride Ammunition

‘Light’ (Plasma Weapon) cartridges: 16 credits each
‘Medium’(Plasma Weapon) cartridges: 35 credits each
40mm (Heavy Plasma Weapon) cartridges: 95 credits each

What is the weight of C-T catridges?
What are PS C-T catridges made of or they just pellets?

[abtex]

Now you have me thinking of putting a CT-Cartridge machine gun on a HandiTrac and calling it a 'Bolette'.

(not wanting to waste a good source of ideas, 'Black Friday sales ads and other mailed to me ads')
would these make good to very bad C-T weapon "want to be s" concepts; more for shape of weapons
Cordless Drill/Driver
Screwdrivers
Hand Cannon

[taalismn]

a Cadmium-Telluride plasma cannon ... at which point a 50gr pellet of Cadmium-Telluride is inserted into the firing chamber.

1.76 oz. = 50 gr
Raven, how small did your C-T weapons get?
Did you even make grenades with the concept?

- WW2 style stick grenade - thrown as a single unit; C-T pellet in can and laser to vaporize pellet in handle
- laser mounted on body armor, tracking grenade as its thrown; zapping it at the right range [safely from thrower or at target] or
- grenade comes off laser stick and is zapped?

Raven, Abtex is thinking dangerous thoughts......

[taalismn]

[What is the weight of C-T catridges?
What are PS C-T catridges made of or they just pellets?

Well, a 9mm bullet weighs in at about 115 to 147 gr (7.5 to 9.5 g).
The PS cartridges have a cadmium-telluride 'pellet' with a small expendable battery crystal(based on 'tazer bead' technology) that acts like a flashbulb, powering the gun's ignition and ionization laser long enough to generate a single blast of plasma(the intense heat of the plasma ejection vaporizes the bead and most of the cartridge casing in a puff of vapor), removing the need for a separate e-clip to power the laser.

[glitterboy2098]

it's basically weaponized Inertial confinement fusion.

pellets would looks something like this, but they'd be surrounded by a hohlraum used to focus the laser to ignite the reaction. note that both would likely be bigger than that (the images are of a 10millligram pellet assembly of tritium and deuterium)

interestinyl enough, if you confined the explosion you could (using rifts type tech) use the Hohlrum to focus a stream of Xrays and make an X-ray laser..

[kronos]

And who says role playing games are evil.. they teach us many things.. creative thinking, social skills, and SCIENCE! Have fun blowing away your character's enemies and learn cool science facts in the process.

[taalismn]

And who says role playing games are evil.. they teach us many things.. creative thinking, social skills, and SCIENCE! Have fun blowing away your character's enemies and learn cool science facts in the process.

Plus business management, accounting, and creative writing. That is, if you're writing a business prospectus for expanding sales extradimensionally.

And again, we get new ideas for new products!

[The Raven]

it's basically weaponized Inertial confinement fusion.

pellets would looks something like this, but they'd be surrounded by a hohlraum used to focus the laser to ignite the reaction. note that both would likely be bigger than that (the images are of a 10millligram pellet assembly of tritium and deuterium)

interestinyl enough, if you confined the explosion you could (using rifts type tech) use the Hohlrum to focus a stream of Xrays and make an X-ray laser..

And ya hit it right on the head.

I've been doing the math though on the 50gr size I had on the original C-T plasma cannon and I may have put the decimal on the wrong spot somewhere. Oh the fun of dragging out notes from high-energy physics classes from over a decade ago...

[abtex]

a Cadmium-Telluride plasma cannon ... at which point a 50gr pellet of Cadmium-Telluride is inserted into the firing chamber.

1.76 oz. = 50 gr
Raven, how small did your C-T weapons get?
Did you even make grenades with the concept?

- WW2 style stick grenade - thrown as a single unit; C-T pellet in can and laser to vaporize pellet in handle
- laser mounted on body armor, tracking grenade as its thrown; zapping it at the right range [safely from thrower or at target] or
- grenade comes off laser stick and is zapped?

Raven, abtex is thinking dangerous thoughts......

Me.

Only when given something dangerous or not, before I start to think about it.

[taalismn]

[q

Only when given something dangerous or not, before I start to think about it.

Which is everything....Give some people ANYTHING and suggest that it might be dangerous, and they'll figure out how to do it....

The less said about weaponized Cheerios, the better.

[The Raven]

a Cadmium-Telluride plasma cannon ... at which point a 50gr pellet of Cadmium-Telluride is inserted into the firing chamber.

1.76 oz. = 50 gr
Raven, how small did your C-T weapons get?
Did you even make grenades with the concept?

- WW2 style stick grenade - thrown as a single unit; C-T pellet in can and laser to vaporize pellet in handle
- laser mounted on body armor, tracking grenade as its thrown; zapping it at the right range [safely from thrower or at target] or
- grenade comes off laser stick and is zapped

The 50gr isn't right after I looked over the math. But grenade wouldn't be the best use, stil it have to be directional.

[taalismn]

[
The 50gr isn't right after I looked over the math. But grenade wouldn't be the best use, stil it have to be directional.

Let me know what figures you settle on.
But yeah, I figured there's effective enough plasma grenades, and a plasma claymore would be too sophisticated for a one-shot weapon. Plasma sniper weapons, on the other hand, however, with the improved range.

[abtex]

[
The 50gr isn't right after I looked over the math. But grenade wouldn't be the best use, still it have to be directional.

Let me know what figures you settle on.
But yeah, I figured there's effective enough plasma grenades, and a plasma claymore would be too sophisticated for a one-shot weapon. Plasma sniper weapons, on the other hand, however, with the improved range.

Let me know too. On the weight.

taalismn, your C-T cartridges are each one-shot weapons just in a weapon housing.

On Claymore and grenades. You are using second rate/cheap parts, not top of the line stuff, to make cheap kill weapons. I think that you are just putting the pellet at the target area, then zapping with the laser. Or does that not work?

[taalismn]

Okay, most of the new Plasma Weapons have pictures up now, courtesy of Pimpmygun. As for the 'Hot Henry'...it looks pretty much like the classic Henry repeating rifle(or ithe later Winchester).

[The Raven]

On Claymore and grenades. You are using second rate/cheap parts, not top of the line stuff, to make cheap kill weapons. I think that you are just putting the pellet at the target area, then zapping with the laser. Or does that not work?

Its the confinement of plasma beam that produces the heavier damage. For example, blowing up 1kg of High-Explosive is good, compressing that explosion down that all the force is going out through a 1-inch diameter tube is going to do a lot more damage to whatever is at the other end of the tube. C-T (or a variation on a similar process) is probably the core of plasma explosives in Rifts, while plasma weapons are for the most part 'free-range', to use the term I was taught in college, plasma weapons which use the air around them to produce the plasma.

This does beg the idea of C-T limpet mines... Perhaps that is what I need on one of the Kera-Tech designs.

[The Raven]

taalismn, your C-T cartridges are each one-shot weapons just in a weapon housing.

There is a good reason to put Cadmium-Telluride in a housing, as its toxic and can be absorbed through the skin. Which is worse, dying from the hideous hybrid horror which just crawled out of the ruins to eat you or dying from heavy-metal poisoning a few years down the line?

And as to the weight of the C-T cartridges, I might have that worked out tonight for a specific MD value (namely the 'Howler' cannon that I first did the C-T weapon for) by later tonight. I've been running the math while I am at work and now I see why I didn't go into aerospace engineering like I had planned and instead went over to computer science.

[taalismn]

taalismn, your C-T cartridges are each one-shot weapons just in a weapon housing.

There is a good reason to put Cadmium-Telluride in a housing, as its toxic and can be absorbed through the skin. Which is worse, dying from the hideous hybrid horror which just crawled out of the ruins to eat you or dying from heavy-metal poisoning a few years down the line?

And as to the weight of the C-T cartridges, I might have that worked out tonight for a specific MD value (namely the 'Howler' cannon that I first did the C-T weapon for) by later tonight. I've been running the math while I am at work and now I see why I didn't go into aerospace engineering like I had planned and instead went over to computer science.

Aerospace's loss, then....

[DhAkael]

-ahem-
MEEP!
People using science and maths and stuff, and it's NOT bogging down game-play / ability to have fun.
Yeah, the world has gone strange alright.

Seriously though, I am glad to see the slide-rule brigade actualy doing something FUN with math and chemisty, instead of trying to bogg down the game with useless tables of calculations so your character can take one step after another to the toilet in the morning .

Note; not naming names, and I use hyperbole in the above example, but there are a few who really really really just can't let things slide and just enjoy the game.

[taalismn]

-ahem-
MEEP!
People using science and maths and stuff, and it's NOT bogging down game-play / ability to have fun.
Yeah, the world has gone strange alright.

Seriously though, I am glad to see the slide-rule brigade actualy doing something FUN with math and chemisty, instead of trying to bogg down the game with useless tables of calculations so your character can take one step after another to the toilet in the morning .

Note; not naming names, and I use hyperbole in the above example, but there are a few who really really really just can't let things slide and just enjoy the game.

It's when you're using the maths and doing even simple figuring from real life examples, then apply them to the game, and realize that, in the translation, you're just just discovered the means to serious RAMP UP the lethality or just plain coolness of something that one can reach one of the levels of nerdvana...

[The Raven]

-ahem-
MEEP!
People using science and maths and stuff, and it's NOT bogging down game-play / ability to have fun.
Yeah, the world has gone strange alright.

Seriously though, I am glad to see the slide-rule brigade actualy doing something FUN with math and chemisty, instead of trying to bogg down the game with useless tables of calculations so your character can take one step after another to the toilet in the morning .

Note; not naming names, and I use hyperbole in the above example, but there are a few who really really really just can't let things slide and just enjoy the game.

Most sci-gamers (as I call that type) can't let go of absolutes and deal with the level of abstraction required for an RPG. Gaming is not simulating, thats their problem. I do the simulating well before and then boil-down the result into an abstract version for use in game. And when you consider just how deadly theoretical weapons are in the real world compared to stuff that is already in-game, then you come up with some very nasty ideas.

[taalismn]

[Most sci-gamers (as I call that type) can't let go of absolutes and deal with the level of abstraction required for an RPG. Gaming is not simulating, thats their problem. I do the simulating well before and then boil-down the result into an abstract version for use in game. And when you consider just how deadly theoretical weapons are in the real world compared to stuff that is already in-game, then you come up with some very nasty ideas.

Yeah...I WAS going to use the Soviet PTRS anti-armor rifle as the basis of yet another 'smart bullet' launcher, but seeing teh comment about using the CT-cartridges as the beginnings of an x-ray laser now has me thinking big anti-Glitterboy sniper rifle.

[DhAkael]

the "OTHER" universal RPG (no names), for their super-mega-uber-tech source book have gama-ray or 'GRASER' infantry RIFLES
How's that for nasty?
The main problem is how to fit a cyclotron into something the size of an M-14 or M-60 OR how to safely shield the exteremly dangerous cobalt isoptopes.

[taalismn]

the "OTHER" universal RPG (no names), for their super-mega-uber-tech source book have gama-ray or 'GRASER' infantry RIFLES
How's that for nasty?
The main problem is how to fit a cyclotron into something the size of an M-14 or M-60 OR how to safely shield the exteremly dangerous cobalt isoptopes.

This is where we bring out the handwavium supplies we've acquired via dimensional rifts mining operations.

[taalismn]

THIS...looks just so Paladin Steel....
http://www.darkroastedblend.com/2012/11/huge-off-highway-road-trains.html

[Veritas476]

THIS...looks just so Paladin Steel....
http://www.darkroastedblend.com/2012/11/huge-off-highway-road-trains.html

Wow. That would be WI's Long Haul Road Train if it were that kind of vehicle and not a semi-truck.

[taalismn]

THIS...looks just so Paladin Steel....
http://www.darkroastedblend.com/2012/11/huge-off-highway-road-trains.html

Wow. That would be WI's Long Haul Road Train if it were that kind of vehicle and not a semi-truck.

We gotta work on these....serious hauling(I know my Walking Trucks can do this, but they're relatively small compared to these giants...)

[abtex]

This is where we bring out the handwavium supplies we've acquired via dimensional rifts mining operations.

THIS...looks just so Paladin Steel....
http://www.darkroastedblend.com/2012/11/huge-off-highway-road-trains.html

So that is how you get the handwavium from the dimensional rifts mining operations.

Wow. That would be WI's Long Haul Road Train if it were that kind of vehicle and not a semi-truck.

That is can be fixed, with a little upgrading or producing a second line of vehicles.

We gotta work on these.... serious hauling (I know my Walking Trucks can do this, but they're relatively small compared to these giants...)

Waiting. Walking Trucks can in different sizes from large pickups to healthy size vehicles.

[abtex]

Have a good holiday.

[taalismn]

Have a good holiday.

Same here, folks. Even if you don't live in America, take a moment to be thankful for something...good food, good company, a good day, the freedom to travel or speak your mind...you know, the good things.

[taalismn]

(Original concept, base stats, and description-first paragraph- by 89er)



PS/PP-SFR-02 Hardtack Force Rifle
(aka ‘Waller’, ‘Spaulding’)
http://i408.photobucket.com/albums/pp164/taalismn/PS-PP-SFR-02Hardtack.jpg

They’d had little warning. Little enough to know that something was about to go VERY wrong and to start emergency procedures, including dispatching several of their own to warn their nearest neighbors.
Their neighbors had even less warning when several of the ‘foreign wizards’ from the strange villa just up the hill burst in, shouting orders to come with them. Those surprised in the bathhouse were even more shocked and frightened, especially when the foreigners began grabbing them and pulling them out of the hotspring-warmed waters. then bodily shoving them towards the door, without even giving them a chance to grab their garments or other covering. A few, fearing the worst, had attempted to resist, only to be stunned senseless by some unexpected magic of the invaders, then slung over a shoulder and carried bodily outside.
When the massive tremors, more powerful than any who had lived in the region could ever recall, hit, there was even more panic, but the foreigners refused to allow any of them to break ranks, shepherding them in all haste to the doors, even as timbers groaned, stonework creaked, and tile roofs slid. When the dozen or so naked and still dripping wet people came shambling out of the bathhouse, they emerged into even more chaos. Screams of panic, yells of protest, and the harshly-accented commands of the foreign wizards urging them on rang through the villa complex. Above the cacophony, a low rumble could be heard, the source of which could be seen on the horizon, the smoke- and fire-belching volcanic mount readily visible. The sky’s light was already growing dim, as the bowl of the heavens was filling with a giant black cloud, and a dark rain was descending.
They didn’t have much time to gawk; the foreigners refused to let them stop, urging them in the direction of their enclave. There were more cries of panic and protest, as several more of the locals, dressed as they were when they were so discourteously ousted from their homes or places of business, joined the group on the run, shepherded by more of the oddly-dressed foreigners.
Then the first lava bombs began falling.
The nude evacuees almost skidded to a screaming halt as the bombardment descended around them, flaming, hissing meteors of airborne magma slamming into the ground like the anger of an enraged deity.
“MOVE! KEEP MOVING!”
The foreign wizards raised their weapons and suddenly bright arcs appeared above the group. Several heavy chunks of lava thudded and sparked as they hit and rebounded off the umbrellas of force.
“MOVE IT! MOVE IT! COVER YOUR MOUTHS, BUT -KEEP MOVING-!”
The foreigners kept running, urging their charges on through the landscape that were now seeing a drizzle of ash chunks and the occasional lava bomb. Several farm buildings were already aflame, the thatch of their roofs ignited. The foreign wizards took turns maintaining the shield protecting the running group while others swapped out smaller objects into their strange devices before they would again raise the glowing barriers. Others hastily pressed filter-cloth breathing masks to the running refugees’ mouths or quickly grabbed those who stumbled and fell.
It may have only been minutes, but it felt like an eternity before the running group reached the wizards’ villa and the open doors there, more foreign wizards darting inside. Faced with the unknown, some of the involuntary refugees hesitated and refused to cross the threshold, before hard shoves from behind pitched them squalling through the opening. The last of the group raced inside as the rumbling behind grew louder and louder.
“That’s everybody accounted for! Nobody else is out!”
Sparing a last glance in the direction of the local settlement now all but obscured by the thickening ash fall, the lead geologist could only shake her head. They’d done what they could to warn them before and now. She hoped that a few more might make it out along the coast or out to sea. Now, they could only see to their own survival, and she swung the bunker hatch closed and dogged it shut.
“Think that will hold?” The outpost’s head security man was nervously fingering the selector on his force-rifle. They likely wouldn't have been able to get the unarmored local civilians back to the relative safety of the outpost without casualties of not for the force projectors. Now he was clearly wondering if they'd need them in event of an environmental breach.
Another sharp earth tremor struck and the worried glance told it all. “Only long enough for us to get everybody into the survival pods. This is going to get worse before it gets better.”
“Bad?” The security trooper was already heading for where the last-resort survival capsules were stored.
“Remember what we told everybody about a little town called Herculaneum?”
Another shudder ran through the bunker. The geologist and the security man hurried. The volcano wasn't going to wait for them.

Developed by the folks at Outpost Hedoro, this rifle is part of Paladin Steel’s foray into alternative directed energy weapons. Extensive studies of Naruni forcefield technology were combined with PS’s own work in EM field manipulation to produce a multimode projector system. Capable of spitting out force bolts, the real feature that stands out is the projector that can cover an object in a three dimensional force shape, acting as a shield. Many grenades have been thwarted and civilians escorted through dangerous conditions thanks to this tool.
The Hardtack, as it has been finalized for field-use from the earlier and underpowered SFR-01, has a rugged construction, a decidedly front-heavy appearance to hold the field emitter bulbs, fore grip to help stabilize the projector, and bullpup configuration with e-clip slotting in the rear buttstock. Basic sighting is provided, and an LED readout in the side tracks and displays function mode and power consumption. The buttstock features special shock-absorbing and stabilization articulation that allow the projector to be braced upright in place as a fixed installation.
The Hardtack is a multimode device, in keeping with Paladin Steel’s love of versatility. In its weapon mode, the SFR-02 fires invisible bolts of force. Though short ranged(virtually point blank compared to other equivalently-sized energy weapons) and doing light damage, the bolts still hit with considerable force, powerful enough to bowl over opponents and even flip over light vehicles and robots. A Force Shield mode can be activated that uses one emission bulb to project a directional forcefield protecting the SFR-02’s operator while still allowing them to shoot, albeit at reduced range and damage. The next mode is Force Barrier , which projects a directional forcefield barrier that can be used to shield a small area or group of people. The force barrier can be moved, allowing the operator to provide running cover. Finally is Force Cocoon, which projects a spherical forcefield around a target, either providing all-around protection or containment. The SFR-02 is also built tough enough to use as a club; the large heavy muzzle ‘barrel’ is particularly good at delivering a good hard whack without damaging the emission bulbs of the force projector(earning it the nickname ‘Spaulding’).
The main drawbacks of the Hardtack are power consumption; the weapon eats energy at a prodigious rate, especially in forcefield projection mode(compared to Naruni’s efficiency). As an offensive weapon, it’s something of a bust, with poor range, damage, and armor penetration, but as a defensive device, it’s extremely versatile. The SFR-02 has thus been adopted by engineering units, science expeditions, and domestic security(especially urban) organizations.

Weight: 9 pounds

MDC: 45

Range: (Force Bolt) 900 ft, 400 feet when the Force Shield is active.
(Force Shield) Immediate vicinity of the weapon
(Force Barrier) 200 ft, line of sight.
(Force Cocoon) 100 ft, line of sight.

Damage: (Force Bolt) 4d6 MD, 2D6 MD when the Force Shield is active.
Plus 80% chance of knock-down(lose 1 APM and Initiative), 65% chance of being stunned(-10 to strike, dodge, parry, and roll, NO Initiative, HALF speed and APMs for 1d4 melees). Chance of successful knockdown drops to 65% if the Force Shield is active.
(Force Shield) A rounded square(roughly 6 ft in diameter and covering a 180-degree hemispherical arc) of force is shaped and appears in front of the sights, giving protection for the shooter. The Force Shield CAN move with the user/operator. The SFR-02 can still shoot force bolts in this mode. MDC: 80
(Force Barrier)The Hardtack can project a roughly hemispherical force field (about 12 ft wide) around a target to protect or contain it. The Force Barrier CAN be moved like a searchlight, allowing for moving cover. The SFR-02 CANNOT shoot force bolts in this mode. The Barrier has 100 MDC.
(Force Cocoon) This mode produces a spherical forcefield(about 10 ft in diameter) around the target. Unlike the Force Barrier, the Force Cocoon CANNOT be moved, but is stuck in place, even if the projecting generator is moved around. Handy in containing explosives and protecting civilians(or confining them). The SFR-02 CANNOT shoot force bolts in this mode. The Force Cocoon has 150 MDC.

Rate of Fire:(Force Bolt) Standard
(Force Shield) 60 minutes of operation per activation. Note that the e-clip MUST still be in the projector for the field to be maintained(so it’s entirely possible to shoot the clip dry with half-force bolts, save for the charge maintaining the forcefield).
(Force Barrier) 30 minutes of operation per activation. Same rule for e-clip applies. Only one Force Barrier can be generated at a time.
(Force Cocoon) 20 minutes of operation per activation. Same rule for e-clip applies. Only one Force Cocoon can be generated at a time.

Payload: (Force Bolt)10 shots per standard e-clip, 30 shots long e-clip
(Force Shield) Consumes 1 e-clip shot per 60 minutes of operation
(Force Barrier)Consumes 1 e-clip shot per 30 minutes of operation
(Force Cocoon)Consumes 1 e-clip shot per 20 minutes of operation

Special Features:
*Top Rail---For mounting sight and scopes.
*Tripod Buttstock---The buttstock can be unfolded into a tripod for mounting the projector in an upright position, allowing it to be used as a fixed-position forcefield installation.

Cost: 65,000 credits

Options:
*Step-Down Mode---This modification reduces power to the force bolt mode to the SDC range(so bolts do 4d6 SD and 2d6 SD), while still retaining the hard concussive shock. This also increases the shot payload per e-clip by x10(MDC forcefield duration is unchanged). This makes it possible to use the SFR-02 as a reduced-lethality crowd-control weapon. Cost: +1,000 credits

*Force Razor Modulator---This mod shapes the force fields into two dimensional rectangles that can cut at the molecular level when fired. Best used to cut off something such as a limb or tubing. The ‘razor’ is effectively 4 ft wide, and does 6d6 MD(3d6 MD if the Force Shield is active), but does CRITICAL damage on an unmodified roll of 18-20. Range is also HALVED in this mode. Cost: +7,000 credits

* Force Scattershot Modulator---This barrel mod splits the force field into smaller shots, and fired like a shotgun. Does 5d6 MD to an 8 ft wide area, 4d6 MD to a 6 ft wide area if the Force Shield is active. Chance of knockdown is HALVED in this mode. Range is also HALVED in this mode. Cost: + 7,000 credits

*Expanding Force Shot Modulator--- Allows for the bolt to rapidly expand at a distance, shoving and harming those in the expansion’s range similar to the Scattershot mode, but WITHOUT diminishing the knockdown factor. Similar to the EE: Force Blast superpower in that the area of effect is 12 ft wide(8 ft if the Force Shield is active) and has an 88% chance of knocking over people(effects similar to the standard force bolt). Damage is 4d6 MD for both emitters, 2d6 MD if the Force Shield is active. Similarly, range is also HALVED in this mode. Cost: + 9,000 credits

*Barrier Expander---This permits the size of the Force Barrier to be roughly DOUBLED(to 25 ft diameter), offering greater protective protection(or blocking power) but at HALF the range. Cost: + 7,000 credits

*Regenerating Power Pack---PS introduces its own version of the NG Regenerating Power Pack in 111 P.A., using more advanced d-bee-donated engineering and synthetic power matrix-crystals. This 10 lb unit fits on the buttstock and provides the weapon with 72 single shots, and regenerates 4 shots per hour, up to seven times. The technology is still fairly expensive, though; a single PS RPP costs 40,000 credits.



Variants:
*SFR-01(X)---The prototype of the SFR-02, the -01 was a much cruder-looking device, with only one emission bulb, an e-clip slot ahead of the trigger guard, and much weaker performance(protective forcefield was only 1d6x10 MD), with many of the standard features of the SFR-02(such as the concussive factor of the forcebolts) being option modifications. Despite being issued a service number, the SFR-01 was strictly experimental equipment, seeing limited issuance with engineering teams for field testing. The SFR-01 was not approved for production and sale, as the SFR-02 configuration was already being finalized.

[taalismn]

Paladin Steel PSEP-02 ‘ShocPlug’ Pistol
http://i408.photobucket.com/albums/pp164/taalismn/PSEP-02ShocPlugPistol.jpg

“Dang, Zoll! You look like a big glow-inna-dark porkypine!”
“AHH*zik!*YOW! SHUDDUP and *ZARK!*HACK DESE *popsizzle!*GAAAHHH!!!--TINGS OFFAME*BBBzzzyyytttt!*EYOW!!!”
“You’s smokin, Zoll! I means really smokin!”
“An’ that’s a cute tap dance numba you’doin’!”
“Wait! That’s ‘Saint Citrus’s Dance’ right!?”
“That’s ‘Saint Vitreus’s Dance’, moron!”
*VVVAARRRCCC*”EEEEEEE!!!!GETTA DESE TINGS OFFAME NNNOOOWWW!!!”
“Man...why’d I have to join ‘Da Gang That Couldn’t Think Straight’?”

This is a large caliber pistol that fires what look to be classic suction cup-tipped mini-plungers that stick to a target. In this case, though, the ‘plungers’ are powerful electrochemical batteries(based on research into certain ‘electrobeasts’ of the Cambridge Jungle) that discharge a powerful stun charge through the adhesive head, when attached to bare skin/hide. Unlike the ‘stun-beads’ used in other PS stun weapons, the stun-plugs are more durable and can meter out a sustained shock to the victim it’s attached to, distracting and wearing down the victim, even if the initial shock-touch didn’t knock them out. Furthermore, the stun-plug is self-illuminating(they glow a bright green, red, or yellow), and contains a tracking chip, allowing the tagged target to be tracked.
Removing the stun-plug isn’t as easy as one would think; touching the stun-plug with an unprotected hand incurs an electrical shock (1d6 SDC) to the grasper, and risks (75% chance) discharging the entire battery load into the victim. Furthermore, the adhesive head uses a molecular ‘flesh glue’ binder, so simply yanking hard on the plug will take off a swath of skin(1d4 SDC or 1 MD damage, depending on the constitution of the tagee). Trying to blast or cut the plug off behind the adhesive head also risks the same chance of discharging the full shock load into the victim(note: the tough plastic plug has 15 SDC). Safe removal of the plug requires either deft work with an insulated scalpel(1d4 SDC damage, no damage on a successful Field Surgery roll) or application of a special solvent(allows for safe removal in 1d4 minutes).
Note that it IS possible to kill targets with this weapon if not used carefully(or used sadistically), if a struck target is knocked unconscious and unable to be helped(being subjected to repeated shocks in the meantime).
The PSEP-02 is being marketed to security forces that anticipate taking down large, resistant, opponents like ogres, trolls, and Juicers, who often need wearing down to be subdued without major bloodshed.
Weight: 3 lbs
Range: 500 ft
Damage: None against inorganic targets.
Against organic targets, the stun-plug inflicts an electrical shock that does 1d6 SDC/HP per jolt. However, this is STUN damage and not tissue-damage. Being shocked five or more times, or with less than HALF hit points remaining, and failing a roll of 15 or better means falling unconscious for 2d4 melee rounds, and suffering stun penalties for a minute(4 melees) afterwards. Stunned victims are -6 to strike, parry, dodge and reduce Speed and APMs by HALF.
The Stun Plug has enough capacity for 60 charges. Depending on the situation and intended target, the Stun Plug can be set to discharge at rates of 1-5 shocks per melee until they run dry or the target falls unconscious, whichever comes first. If the person regains consciousness with the Stun Plug still attached(and with remaining charges in it), there’s a 60% chance of the Stun Plug re-activating and proceeding to discharge.
Note that even if/when the Plug runs out of electrical charge, it may still be attached and the tracker chip will still be active for up to 4 hours.
Effects from multiple stun-plugs are cumulative.
A full charge discharge(as can occur when tampering) does 4d6 SDC/HP damage. Unlike the stun-shock, this IS tissue damage, and at 8 or less hit points remaining, there’s a 01-60% chance of cardiac arrest and death within 1d4 minutes unless CPR is administered or a successful save versus coma/death is made. Recovery from such will leave the victim feeling stunned(same penalties) for 2d4x10 minutes.
Rate of Fire: ECHH
Payload: 5 stun-plugs
Special Features:
*Targeting Laser: +1 to strike on an aimed shot
*Insulated Grip
*Fold-out LED Screen w/ Chip Tracker
Cost: 1,000 credits for the gun, 8 credits per stun plug.

[taalismn]

Paladin Steel/Paragon Progress SC-08(S) Survival Stasis Capsule
(aka ‘Snug-Pod’)

“The good news is we’re getting about three dozen beacons coming through strong and clear. Life signs are clean and steady from all of them, so it looks like the science team got themselves and their local assistants buttoned up in time before they got rolled over. Bad news is they’re under about twenty feet of newly cooled pyroklastic flow, which means we’re going to need heavy cutters to pull them out.”

“Sure, Snug-pods are expensive, but if you REALLY care about life, what’s a few million compared to the value of somebody’s life?”

With a liquid rushing sound the limp body slid out of the survival pod and on to the awaiting gurney, trailing strands of congealed biogel, and the catheters and air tubing still connected to the pod’s life support. The attending medtechs pulled off a layer of thickened biogel from around the wet and weakly moving sapient, like splitting open a placental sac on a newborn, an analogy not lost on the paramedics as they moved to unhook the umbilicals and clean off the semi-conscious rescuee.
“Like a second birth, no?”
“Looks pretty fresh for seven years in the can, doesn’t she?”
“Better than the alternative. Airway sucker please. I’ve been in one of these. Good thing these pods put you right out, because they aren’t set up for leisurely waiting. I’d go mad if I was still conscious for more than a hour in one of these things. Okay, ease that out.”
“Well, these folks are still in for some adjustment waking up. Seven years down there? They’re going to have some serious catching up to do. Sponge.”
“Again, beats the alternative. That place got GLASSED. Rinse. Okay, vitals looking good, patient already coming to. Let’s move her on to a bed. We got three more to ‘rebirth’. “

The SC-08S is a catastrophic scenario armored survival capsule marketed for both terrestrial and extraterrestrial use. Performance requirements for the capsule included the ability to withstand intense heat, cold, pressure, corrosive chemicals and radiation, as well as heavy buffeting and mechanical abuse.
The SC-08S resembles a large propane tank or armored pod, with an easily-reached hatch. The current SC-08S can handle pressures of up to 25 tons per square inch, and long-term exposure to temperatures as hot as 1,600 degrees celsius. The capsule has survived being submerged in pools of lava, being burned in lakes of jet fuel, and being stuck in the sediments at the bottom of deep ocean trenches.
The secret of the SC-08S’s seeming invulnerability to heat is a special alloy developed with Paragon Progress, and which is bonded to the armor of the pod. When the capsule is closed, the hatch molecularly seals, making the outside of the pod one large single molecule resistant to heat. Only coherent energy, such as directed plasma or lasers have a chance of cutting through the thermal protection. The downside of this miracle metal is that it can only be applied to static structures such as protective capsules that lack joints and other moving parts that would interrupt the single-crystal structure of the material. This makes the thermal protection material unusable on power armors and vehicles that require moving parts and propulsion.
Once inside, the rescuee finds themselves inside a close-fitting sleeping bag-like cocoon that serves to cushion them against injury if the pod is jostled about. Inside the pod a life support system provides further protection for the rescuee, an AI autodoc ‘expert system’ quickly assessing the overall health of the occupant and applying emergency treatment. Catheter and biometric connections, based on the same nano-tendril technology used in the PS Injection Master 2000, can quickly snake through clothing and even body armor(no greater than 60 MDC, though) to connect to the occupant. An automated suspended animation system puts the occupant into a state of stasis-torpor, reducing the life support overhead as well as keeping the rescuee calm under what can be a long duration stay. The system uses a special biogel concocted by the bio-alchemists of the Cambridge Jungle. In addition to medicating the occupant, the biogel also serves to cushion them against any turbulence and violence as the pod is thrown around in a catastrophe.
The main shortcoming of the SC-08S is that it is an ‘all-or-nothing’ design, meaning it has little provision for sustaining the occupant in a conscious state for very long, and permiting the person to exit and self-rescue if the catastrophe conditions quickly abate. The conditions that necessitate the use of an SC-08S are considered so dangerous that the occupants will require outside assistance to escape and be extracted.
While certified and certainly capable of acting as a survival pod for spacecraft, the SC-08S is intended for installation use, such as research posts and remote resource development sites. Such was the case with the Geological Observatory on Outstep Terrestrial Site #281 Mangea, where a group of Paladin Steel and University of Lazlo scientists were studying interactions between the local volcanic region and particularly active leyline nexi. When readings both technological and magical forecast an imminent Vesuvius-style eruption event sometime in the next few weeks(but not EXACTLY when), the majority of the science staff pulled out, but for a few diehards unwilling to abandon their studies or leave the local iron-age humans(who ignored the ‘foreign sorcerors’ warnings to evacuate the area). Instead, the stay-behinds asked for, and got, as many SC-08S survival pods as could be shipped to them. Contact with the outpost was abruptly cut off shortly afterwards, as a result of an unexpectedly energetic interaction between solstice nexi activity and the nearby ‘super-caldera’, the outburst of which scrambled Rift activity and prevented the outpost from being immediately reached by PS rescuers. When a rescue party FINALLY made it to the region/planet via spacecraft from an extraterrestrial rift three years later, they found the area of the research outpost and the nearby fertile valley with its several villages buried under a massive solidified lava flow from the nearby exploded super-caldera. Amazingly enough, though, the rescue expedition was able to find the signals from the outpost’s survival capsules, all buried and all occupied, by both the original science team and by whatever locals they had managed to grab and stuff into the extra survival pods in the moments before the volcano flows reached and collapsed the research post’s bunkers. Despite being immersed in magma, and pushed down a valley, then buried under cooling volcanic rock for three years, all those who had taken refuge in the survival pods survived in good health, if a little mentally shaken for the close call.

Weight: 900 lbs
Size: 8 ft long, 3.5 ft in diameter
MDC: 600
Occupancy Capacity: One
Life Support:
Suspended Animation is rated at 5 +1d6 years safe duration. Biological aging ratio is about 1 month for every year in stasis.
Special Features:
*Molecular-Seal Hatch---When activated, the hatch uses molecular bond technology to thoroughly seal the capsule. Once sealed, only a command from inside(unlikely if the occupant is in stasis) or a close-ranged coded command signal from outside will unseal it.
*Emergency Beacon-----A high-powered rescue beacon activates when the pod is activated. In the alternative, this system can be set to a ‘passive’ mode, only switching on when hit by a special frequency signal from outside.
*Thermal Resistance----When buttoned up, the SC-08 effectively becomes IMMUNE to extremes of heat. Only coherent radiation, like a directed plasma blast or laser, will damage the pod, and even then they only do 1/4 their normal damage.
*AutoDoc---Derived from the Juicer Harness, this mini-comp-controlled system is compatible with 25 different humanoid species, and uses a combination of compu-drug injectors, RMK/IRMSS dispensers, and a system of inflatible bladders in the limbs, tied to a biomonitor, to monitor the wearer’s health, dispense needed medications(including stimulants) as needed or requested, selectively apply pressure to punctures and wounds, treat external and internal injuries, and immobilize broken limbs. It has Paramedic programming equivalent to a skill of 90%.
-Auto-don---The pod actively assists the occupant in settling in, attaching drug injectors, biosensors, and catheters automatically. Typically, suiting up with this pod will take 15 seconds. The system will also use positive overpressure to flush residual gases, liquids, and atmospheric contaminants out of the pod before sealing.

Cost: 800,000 credits