CALDERA Autofire System...

[Foxiekins]

Note that this uses a multiplier I came up with for the Autofire Advantage... Defining Margin of Success as the difference between your roll and your target, for a successfull roll, then Autofire requires a Margin of Success of 2 full points for each extra shot that hits, up to the number of shots in the Autofire burst...

The multiplier's name is "Low Recoil", and changes this to a Margin of Success of 1 point for each extra shot that hits, and doubles the value of the Autofire Advantage...

***THIS IS NOT AN OFFICIAL PART OF THE HERO SYSTEM***

That said, here's what I did with it...

CALDERA Pistol: 1d6+1 RKA vs ED (3 Shot Autofire, Low Recoil; +1/2) (4 clips of 32 Charges +1/2) (40 Active), (OAF -1) (Real Weapon -1/4) (Beam -1/4); Real Cost = 16

CALDERA Carbine: 1d6+1 RKA vs ED (5 Shot Autofire, Low Recoil; +1) (4 clips of 64 Charges +3/4) (55 Active), (OAF -1) (Real Weapon -1/4) (Beam -1/4); plus 2 Range Skill Levels (6 Active), (OAF -1) (Two-Handed -1/2); Real Cost = 22 + 2 = 24

CALDERA Rifle: 1d6+1 RKA vs ED (10 Shot Autofire, Low Recoil; +2) (4 clips of 125 Charges +1) (80 Active), (OAF -1) (Real Weapon -1/4) (Beam -1/4) (Two-Handed -1/2); plus 4 Range Skill Levels (12 Active), (OAF -1) (Two-Handed -1/2); Real Cost = 27 + 5 = 32

Used by paratroopers during the 22nd Century, CALDERA is an acronym standing for Cartridge Action Laser, Directed Energy Ranger Armament. The heart of the system is its laser cartridge, developed at the end of the 21st Century by scientists of the North American Federation. It is composed of a metastable compound, held within a transparent, heat-resistant, plastic matrix shaped into cylinders 9mm across and 60mm long. Unfired cartridges are a milky-white translucent color, with reflective coatings on each end. A box magazine fits into the top of the pistol, while the carbine and rifle use drum magazines fitting underneath. None of these weapons have appreciable recoil, and all are capable of automatic fire and use the same ammo, although at differing fire rates. Cooling occurs by the ejection of spent cartridges to get rid of most of their heat, with liquid nitrogen absorbing the rest and providing gas pressure to drive the weapon's action. Cartridges are fired by a laser pulse from the rear of the chamber. This burns through a microscopic spot in the rear reflective coating, and causes the metastable compound to break down into a lasing medium. The firing laser, a low-powered semiconductor unit, is tuned to the same frequency the cartridge medium lases at. When the intensity reaches a maximum, the front reflective coating breaks down and the laser pulse emerges from the weapon.

Hmmm... Now to start on the writeup for the Plasma Blaster...

[Captain Obvious]

Pretty cool description for the way the weapon fires. It makes for easily believable laser small arms in an otherwise hard sci-fi campaign.

[Foxiekins]

The big problem with energy weapons now is cooling... In fact, cooling is a problem for some *conventional* weapons... Like the machine guns that will melt their own barrels if their cooling jackets malfunction...

The CALDERA uses a solution inspired by the hot brass that pours from current autofire and semiauto weapons...

Keep in mind that CALDERA Cartridges are semi-molten after they are fired and ejected... Take care not to step on them, for example... Although a recently fired cartridge *is* highly useful for making impressions of small heat-resistant objects, if you know what you're doing...

Ah, techno-babble... Gotta love it... The hilarious part, to me that is, is that at the time of the campaign I'm doing all this for, the CALDERA is a hundred years old or more, and is actually obsolete and no longer used by the Military... But you know how folks are with continuing to use old weapons...

[shadowcat1313]

I like this idea... traveller treats chemical lasers in a roughly similar manner although theres a problem with the waste gases from the cartridge combusting being toxic and disposal of the spent cartridges being a minor hazmat issue

[Basil]

A box magazine fits into the top of the pistol,...

Thereby completely farking up the sight picture. Unless there's a damned good reason for a top-feed*, I'd suggest rewriting this so it feeds in from below; up the handle, or in front of the trigger guard, for example.




*And if there's a reason, why doesn't it apply to the longarms?

[Frenchman]

Used by paratroopers during the 22nd Century, CALDERA is an acronym standing for Cartridge Action Laser, Directed Energy Ranger Armament. The heart of the system is its laser cartridge, developed at the end of the 21st Century by scientists of the North American Federation. It is composed of a metastable compound, held within a transparent, heat-resistant, plastic matrix shaped into cylinders 9mm across and 60mm long. Unfired cartridges are a milky-white translucent color, with reflective coatings on each end. A box magazine fits into the top of the pistol, while the carbine and rifle use drum magazines fitting underneath. None of these weapons have appreciable recoil, and all are capable of automatic fire and use the same ammo, although at differing fire rates. Cooling occurs by the ejection of spent cartridges to get rid of most of their heat, with liquid nitrogen absorbing the rest and providing gas pressure to drive the weapon's action. Cartridges are fired by a laser pulse from the rear of the chamber. This burns through a microscopic spot in the rear reflective coating, and causes the metastable compound to break down into a lasing medium. The firing laser, a low-powered semiconductor unit, is tuned to the same frequency the cartridge medium lases at. When the intensity reaches a maximum, the front reflective coating breaks down and the laser pulse emerges from the weapon.

*Cut*
*Paste into Character*
This is great! I just created a heavy-weapons guy for a military SF game, and the GM told me to make my own heavy laser gun (with autofire, of course). I built it in game terms and wrote it up, but I just couldn't get over lasers not having, as you say, 'hot brass.' This will be great for him.
Thanks

[Foxiekins]

Thereby completely farking up the sight picture. Unless there's a damned good reason for a top-feed*, I'd suggest rewriting this so it feeds in from below; up the handle, or in front of the trigger guard, for example.

*And if there's a reason, why doesn't it apply to the longarms?

Into the top of the pistol doesn't mean it points straight up... It's at an Angle, and thus can also be grabbed with your other hand for added stability... (See page 328 of FRED... Weapons are one-handed by default, and wielding a one-handed weapon with two hands reduces its STR Minimum by 3...) The engineers who designed the system found that some lateral vector on the cartridges as they loaded made things work better when the rest of the weapon's action is taken into account.

Cartridges feeding off the top of a drum magazine automatically have lateral motion, as they feed from the loading spiral inside the drum... With a box or stick magazine mounted straight up and down, you don't get that...

[Foxiekins]

*Cut*
*Paste into Character*
This is great! I just created a heavy-weapons guy for a military SF game, and the GM told me to make my own heavy laser gun (with autofire, of course). I built it in game terms and wrote it up, but I just couldn't get over lasers not having, as you say, 'hot brass.' This will be great for him.
Thanks

Well, I'm glad the technobabble was of use to you, if not the writeup itself...

Blammy, Blammy...

[Foxiekins]

And just to inflict mental trauma on everyone, the reason the CALDERA is old, obsolete technology is that state of the art tech lets you have this:

Cost Equipment
END Reserve (800 END, 800 REC): (880 Active Points);
OAF: Continuous Beam Laser Durable (-1);
REC: (800 Active Points); Must Replace Power Cell (-2),
Extra Time (1 Turn (Post-Segment 12), -1 1/4),
Requires A DEX Roll (-3/4)

Continuous Beam Laser: Multipower, 85-point reserve,
(85 Active Points); all slots OAF Durable (-1), Beam (-1/4)
u 1) Low: Killing Attack - Ranged 1 point, 10 Shot Autofire, Low Recoil (+2)
(15 Active Points); OAF Durable (-1), Beam (-1/4)
u 2) Medium: Killing Attack - Ranged 1d6, Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4),
15 Shot Autofire, Low Recoil (+3) (64 Active Points); OAF Durable (-1), Beam (-1/4)
u 3) High: Killing Attack - Ranged 1d6+1, Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4),
20 Shot Autofire, Low Recoil (+3) (85 Active Points); OAF Durable (-1), Beam (-1/4)
u 4) Flashlight: Sight Group Images Increased Size (32" radius; +1 1/4),
Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/2), Autofire (2 shots; +1 1/4) (40 Active Points);
OAF Durable (-1), Beam (-1/4) [Notes: This is effectively 1 END per Turn.]

[gewing]

Thereby completely farking up the sight picture. Unless there's a damned good reason for a top-feed*, I'd suggest rewriting this so it feeds in from below; up the handle, or in front of the trigger guard, for example.




*And if there's a reason, why doesn't it apply to the longarms?

the cartridges are 60mm long. Therefore they won't fit into a standard pistol grip box location. I suppose you could set the magazine in front of the grip like a Mauser Broomhandle or the rapid fire match pistols, though.

Is there any significant advantage to lengthening the "barrel" with this system? Other than sight radius on the backup (?i guess?) iron sights?

For a more conventional cartridge firearm, I have been thinking about bullpup pistol designs somewhat like the "Bushmaster" .223 "submachine gun" or the Colt Imp and Scamp PDW designs.

In order to fit a SLIGHTLY longer cartridge into the pistol grip, what if you eschewed the use of a true detachable box magazine, and loaded via something like a stripper clip from the top. By not needing multiple layers inside the grip, you MIGHT be able to fit a longer round, say the length of a .44 magnum or .50 AE into a pistol grip that a NORMAL person can use in one hand. Or if you are allowing oversized aliens, mutants, etc, you might make a "pistol" using 12 gauge shells. Depending on the actual size of the operator you might be able to use either the Aquila mini shells or a full length shotgun shell. Even the "mini shell" throws about a 380 gr slug at iirc 1100+ fps...
if the mv is only 1100, that is 1000 ft lbs of energy, about like a hot .44 magnum, with a heavier/broader slug.

[Foxiekins]

Um... This is a LASER...

Not a slugthrower... The cartridge is a disposable lasing chamber that gets thrown away after it discharges... Compare 60mm to the length of a convential round and cartridge *together*...

60mm is just a bit over 2 inches...

[gewing]

Um... This is a LASER...

Not a slugthrower... The cartridge is a disposable lasing chamber that gets thrown away after it discharges... Compare 60mm to the length of a convential round and cartridge *together*...

60mm is just a bit over 2 inches...

I know. That is why I asked whether "barrel length" mattered at all.

though 60mm is in the length of rifle cartridges, not pistol cartridges. IIRC a little longer than a 5.56 Nato loaded cartridge, and it is just over 9mm in outer diameter.



I did specify "if working with more conventional cartridge firearmes" or something like that...

[Foxiekins]

I know. That is why I asked whether "barrel length" mattered at all.

though 60mm is in the length of rifle cartridges, not pistol cartridges. IIRC a little longer than a 5.56 Nato loaded cartridge, and it is just over 9mm in outer diameter.

I did specify "if working with more conventional cartridge firearmes" or something like that...

Barrel length has nothing to do with it, other than making the weapon easier to aim... CALDERA cartridges are *not* a hollow brass cylinder filled with propellant and primer, and with a bullet stuck into the end, they are a solid plastic cylinder with mirrored coatings on each end... The CALDERA is not a conventional weapon, so asking about them has nothing to do with it...

[Captain Obvious]

As far as loading through the pistol grip, cartridge length matters, regardless of how the weapon is fired. If the laser loads go in some other way, it's a moot point.

[Foxiekins]

As far as loading through the pistol grip, cartridge length matters, regardless of how the weapon is fired. If the laser loads go in some other way, it's a moot point.

True... Which is why the box magazine fits into the top portion of the Pistol, as it notes in the weapon description above at the top of this thread...