'The tools of the trade...' (Arms and equipment)

[Azazel]

First of all, I'd like to extend my thanks to BEAR and Cobalt. Their armour/weapon designs were a fantastic source of inspiration while creating and developing these.  

HLCU 'HELLSUIT' HIGH-LATENCY COMBAT FLIGHTSUIT SYSTEM

BACKGROUND:

Even if valkyrie fighters have restored the long-lost strength of infantry (even if mecha-sized) to Earth's forces, some tasks remain unsuitable for such large crafts to be used, the type requiring the valkyrie pilot to step out of the cockpit and engage the enemy face-to-face. KC-Morgan Design Bureau, a young engineering firm, rose to the challenge under ADM John A. McCabe's sponsorship and developed the HLCU as a means to provide the UN Spacy's Special Operations Forces with the means to enable pilots to take up the role of ground-pounders whenever necessary.  

Armour-wise, it is able to withstand weapons fire in a manner similar to 21st. century body armour, but its functions can deteriorate depending on the area that's hit. Needless to say, it's capable of operating in the vaccum of space, its life support being able to maintain the user for several hours prior to issuing an alarm.

Most of the technology involved on the suit's most interesting features is still on the experimental phase, but early combat trials proved the system to be able to handle real combat situations while the remaining 'quirks' are ironed out.

Needless to say, the flightsuit itself, along with the modifications required of the valkyrie fighter for it to operate at its intended capacity, make the HLCU deadly expensive.

RPG STATS
 
CLASS: High-Latency Combat Flightsuit System
MANUFACTURER: KC-Morgan Design Bureau.
CUSTOMER: United Nations Spacy
CREW: One. Each flightsuit is built to accomodate its intended user's anatomy and physical characteristics, something that is very likely to make the 'Hellsuit' unsuitable to wear for anyone other than its intended user.


STATISTICAL DATA:

CARGO: None. As the flightsuit's focus is on retaining the human body shape as much as possible, it has nothing that's even remotely analogous to a storage compartment.
POWER PLANT: Teflon-electrolyte batteries for the flightsuit's in-built systems, capable of thirty hours of continuous operation. The virtual cockpit's uplink to the valkyrie fighter provides power and recharges the HLCU's batteries while connected to an HLCU-modded fighter.

WEAPON SYSTEMS:

CONCEALED WRIST BLADE: The flightsuit's only in-built weapon, the carbon-steel made blade is mounted underneath the right wrist. It springs in and out at the user's will, and is seven inches (15 cm, approx.) long.
  

PRIMARY PURPOSE: Offensive
SECONDARY PURPOSE: Defensive
RANGE: Melee

STANDARD EQUIPMENT

• VIRTUAL COCKPIT: Considered to be one of the most promising (and cutting-edge) characteristics to the HLCU's design, its helmet is able to project and build a virtual environment of the cockpit's surroundings for its pilot, greatly surpassing the visibility provided by current fighter designs through the addition of cameras and additional sensor arrays mounted on the fighter's fuselage.
  This system is only available on HLCU-modified valkyrie fighters, and offers the pilot the possibility of increasing or decreasing the flight instruments' opacity to suit his or her tastes.
• HEALTH MONITORING: While in flight, the HLCU uses the data from its user's physiological feed input to compensate for maneuvers involving high Gs, expanding upon the role played by its less-advanced predecessors by applying varying pressure to various zones of the body so as to ensure that the pilot won't black out while in the middle of maneuvers.
  During hand-to-hand combat, the suit uses the data to maximize its user's performance, and if necessary, try and reduce the effects of wounds and/or blood loss.
  The HLCU can relay data on its user's physical condition through a remote connection.
• OPTICS: INFRARED: Range: 500 feet (160 m). The helmet's optical system projects a beam of infrared light that is invisible to the normal eye, but detectable by sensors. The system allows the user to detect hidden/concealed objects by their IR reflectiveness. The beam will be visible to anyone with IR sensitive optics, however.
• OPTICS: NIGHTVISION: Range: 600 feet (200 m). A passive light image intensifier that emits no light of its own, but relies on ambient light which is electronically amplified to produce a visible picture.
• OPTICS: THERMAL IMAGER: Range: 100 feet (30 m). A passive optical heat sensor that detects infrared radiation projected by warm objects and converts that data into a false-color visible image. The system enables the userto see in the dark, in shadows, and through smoke.
• RADIO COMMUNICATION: Medium range, directional communications system. Range: 30 miles (50 km). It interfaces directly with the fighter's comm system.

[Azazel]

HECKLER AND KOCH KR-5 'RIPPER' ASSAULT RIFLE

The newest Heckler and Koch's design in assault rifles built around the concept of caseless ammunition, the KR-5 is a 5.56 caliber weapon highly favoured by the members of Special Operations due to its light weight, durability and ease of maintenance.

The KR-5 features a 3-round burst firing mode, which is very effective at close and medium range. It is also equipped for semi-auto fire, allowing the wielder to use it as a decent long-range weapon to pick off enemies from afar, especially if equipped with a scope. While the KR-5 is the most accurate of the assault rifles in its class, it suffers from a reduction in damage per shot compared to older models such as the venerable AK-101 or AK-47. The lower damage of the KR-5 is partially offset, however, by its higher rate of fire. It is capable of firing a three-shot burst 50% faster than its counterparts, an favourable trait when firing at a moving target.

SPECIFICATIONS:
  
Manufacturer: Heckler and Koch
Magazine Capacity (mounted on top of the weapon): 60
Weight: 2.5 kg (6 lb)  
Length: 87 cm (34 in)  
Cartridge: 5.56 x 45 mm (Caseless)
Rate of fire: 1,100 round/min, cyclic  
Effective range: 450 m (480 yds.)

[Azazel]

STEYR MANNLICHER 'CX' SERIES SNIPER RIFLES

The CX series rifles are direct descendants from Steyr Mannlicher's original Steyr HS designs. With the addition of newer, more durable (and lightweight) materials, the CX series riles were developed to provide the UN Spacy with weapons capable of better performance and increased mobility than those of older weapon designs. They were also built around the concept of caseless ammunition, which spares the soldier from carrying the added weight of the rounds' encasing and reduces the possibility of a mis-fire or weapon jamming.

The CX-7 is semi-automatic sniper rifle currently in use by the UN Spacy and the better-equipped colonial defense forces all over the galaxy for sniping duty.

SPECIFICATIONS:
 
Manufacturer: Steyr Mannlicher
Magazine Capacity: 12
Weight: 4.8 kg (approx. 10 lb) 
Length: 100cm (40 in) 
Cartridge: 7.62 x 39mm (Caseless)
Rate of fire: 1,200 round/min 
Effective range: 1,500 meters (.9 mi)

The CX-50 is an anti-material sniper rifle used by the UN Spacy and the better-equipped colonial defense forces all over the galaxy for explosive ordinance disposal (EOD), attacks on military hardware or soft targets sitting behind cover. Despite the massive size of its ammunition (and the rifle itself) the CX-50 rifle offers the possibility of semi-automatic fire to its wielder and better mobility than its counterparts due to its lighter weight.

SPECIFICATIONS:
 
Manufacturer: Steyr Mannlicher
Magazine Capacity: 8
Weight: 10 kg (22.09 lb) 
Length: 127cm (60 in) 
Cartridge: .50 BMG (Caseless)
Rate of fire: 700 round/min 
Effective range: 2,100 meters (1.2 mi)

[Azazel]

GLOCK OHWS G-27 HANDGUN

The newest incarnation of the United Nations Spacy' Offensive Handgun Weapon System (OHWS) program, and one of the first mass-produced handguns meant to utilize caseless ammunition, the Glock G-27 model provides the wielder with a semi-automatic weapon of exceptional accuracy without the need for hand-fitted parts commonly found in custom-built match pistols.

The "OHWS" consists of three components: a 9 milimeter caliber pistol, a laser aiming module (LAM), mounted under the pistol's frame and a removable sound and flash suppressor.

The G-27, equipped with its sound/flash supressor.

SPECIFICATIONS:
 
Manufacturer: Glock, GmBH
Magazine Capacity: 10
Weight: 1.3 kg (3 lb)  -Fully loaded-
Length: 24cm (10 in) 
Cartridge: 9mm (Caseless)
Rate of fire: 700 round/min 
Effective range: 100 yds

[Azazel]

'INTERCEPTOR IV' OUTER TACTICAL BODY ARMOUR SYSTEM

The Interceptor IV Outer Tactical Body Armour System, or OTAS IV, is a replacement to the older Interceptor body armor designs used by the United Nations Spacy's military Special Forces. It should be noted that it's the first body armour design able to withstand the vaccum of space or highly-hazardous environments, as the Interceptor IV is equipped with a built-in life support system. The latter, however, does only offer up to twenty (20) minutes of breathable air without the addition of an EVA 'scrubber' module, strapped to the soldier's back.
The EVA module is only issued whenever the mission's parameters require for it to be used, given the module's own weight and the fact that it reduces the amount of gear a Special Forces soldier can carry while on assignment.

The Interceptor IV is compatible with the CC-SAPI (Compact Ceramic Small Arms Protective Insert) and standard Side SAPI plates, which offer additional protection to the wearer.

A UN Special Forces soldier donning the Interceptor IV Body Armour System.

The chest/torso portion to the Interceptor IV body armor system consists of an Outer Tactical Vest (OTV) and two Small Arms Protective Inserts (SAPI). These two parts of the vest are both bullet and heat resistant. The vest can stop a 9 mm full metal jacket round flying at 1,400 ft/s (426 m/s) with minimal deformation, and while it can't be labeled as Level III-A armour, given that the UN military standard does not require protection against heavy .44 Magnum ammunition, not to mention the added weight that would result from the added protection to protect the wearer from such heavy calibers, this means that the bullet has to be traveling faster than 1,525 ft/s for it to have more than a 50% chance of breaking through the armor panel.

The vest will stop other, slower-moving fragments and the suit is also equipped with neck, throat, shoulder and groin protection.

A key design feature for the IOTV that was taken from its predecessors is that the chest/torso area armor system is able to be released with the pull of a hidden lanyard. The vest's armor then falls apart into its component pieces, providing a means for escape in case the wearer falls into water after the suit has become breached and thus not allowing the suit's limited life support system to be used, or becomes trapped in a hazardous environment. The hidden release lanyard also allows medical personnel easier access to the wearer should he/she become injured.

There are various camouflage/colour patterns available to the Interceptor IV, depending on the kind of terrain it will be used on.

In addition to offering slightly improved impact protection to that of the vest, the Interceptor IV's helmet is equipped with filters designed to scrub biological and chemical agents out of the air, and thus protecting the wearer from the effects of such an attack without engaging the life-support system.
The helmet is also equipped with a bullet-resistant visor. In addition to maintaining pressure within the suit, it also offers certain characteristics that required soldiers to carry additional gear in the past.

OPTICS: INFRARED: Range: 150 feet (50 m). The helmet's optical system projects a beam of infrared light that is invisible to the normal eye, but detectable by sensors. The system allows the user to detect hidden/concealed objects by their IR reflectiveness. The beam will be visible to anyone with IR sensitive optics, however.
OPTICS: NIGHTVISION: Range: 400 feet (170 m). A passive light image intensifier that emits no light of its own, but relies on ambient light which is electronically amplified to produce a visible picture.
OPTICS: THERMAL IMAGER: Range: 60 feet (20 m). A passive optical heat sensor that detects infrared radiation projected by warm objects and converts that data into a false-color visible image. The system enables the userto see in the dark, in shadows, and through smoke.
RADIO COMMUNICATION: Medium range, directional communications system. Range: 20 miles (32 km).


The weight of the full Interceptor suit (helmet included) ranges between 35-45 pounds, depending on the wearer's body size.

[Azazel]

'DRAGON SCALES' REACTIVE TACTICAL BODY ARMOUR

A familiar sight within the United Nations military bases and outposts, the Dragon Scales Reactive Tactical Body Armour, or DSRT, is the current standard for UN Marines and infantry.

**More info to be added later.**

A UN marine donning the DSRT

[Azazel]

LANCASTER/TELECOMM PERSONAL DATA ASSISTANT ('R' MODEL)

The standard Personal Data Assistant (PDA) issued to the United Nations Spacy military personnel, the 'R' model includes a built-in fingerprint sensor on the lower portion of its frame as an additional security measure to keep third parties from accessing any restricted content that may have been stored within its memory. It's designed to be durable and impact-resistant.

In addition to data management (e-mail and SMS messaging), this PDA is also able to work as a mobile phone.