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XM1020 Modular Assault Weapon System
Affiliation:
Alda Industries (Designer, limited manufacture)
Arakyd Industries (Primary manufacturer)
Ownership:
Miles Cardan (Justified)
Sadiir Keller-Bralor (Jiang)
Axe (Taz_104)
Vica (Bee)
Pryde (Sleven)
Caed (Sleven)
Vance (Cap'n Hobbes) Aura (Silent Wind) Reylan (Silent Wind)
Intent:
Model:
Officially, this weapon is the XM1020 Modular Assault Weapon System [M.A.W.S.]
Under Arakyd Industries manufacture, it is the AP-20 Personal Defense Weapon.
Unofficially, it is affectionately known as the "Firestorm", "Pyro's Pedigree", "Multipurpose Forestry Firestarting Device", "Flare Gun", and most misleadingly, "Novelty Lighter."
Type:
The XM1020 - or 'Firestorm' - is a compact shotgun-type slugthrower. It isn't quite a pistol, but it's not a rifle or carbine. Rather, it is a modular assault weapon system capable of being rapidly modified to fit the current combat situation, and so can be quickly modified very little effort. In its base form, it is effectively a heavy pistol. The addition of a stock makes it a compact, handy defensive weapon, while the addition of stock and extended barrel turn it into a fairly capable combat shotgun. Officially, this weapon is the XM1020 Modular Assault Weapon System [M.A.W.S.]
Under Arakyd Industries manufacture, it is the AP-20 Personal Defense Weapon.
Unofficially, it is affectionately known as the "Firestorm", "Pyro's Pedigree", "Multipurpose Forestry Firestarting Device", "Flare Gun", and most misleadingly, "Novelty Lighter."
Type:
Size:
In its pistol form, the entire weapon is about 305mm (12 inches) in length and 2.95 kilos (6.5 pounds) in weight. The barrel length in this configuration is 101.6mm (4 inches.)
In its carbine form, it makes use of a collapsible stock with a minimum length of 152.4mm (6 inches) and a maximum of 254mm (10 inches). An extended barrel measuring 305mm (12 inches) is fitted, bringing the weapon's length with the stock collapsed to 609mm (24 inches.) Its total weight in carbine form increases to 4.17 kilos (9.2 pounds.)
Composition:
Range:
In carbine form with shot ammunition, the XM has an effective range of 25 meters before the shot pattern widens to the point of uselessness. With slug, it is effective to 75.
Ammunition Capacity:
The standard magazine, sitting flush with the magazine well, holds 7 rounds of caseless telescoped 16-gauge ammunition. An extended 12-round magazine is available, but adds extra weight and bulk and so reduces the weapon's handling qualities. No larger magazines have been commercially produced.
Description:
Four years after the fall of the Alliance, Alda Industries received an unusual request from a Metellos Special Weapons and Tactics officer familiar with A.I.'s work. The officer, after a less-than-happy experience with a drug bust in an apartment complex, was searching for a compact weapon with a whole lotta bang for its size. The wish-list was small; reliability, semi-automatic fire, good stopping power, and a profile sleek enough to fit in a thigh holster or back scabbard. A.I. settled on a compact shotgun as a basis for the weapon, and set about making a prototype that could satisfy the given requirements.
After several months of development and rejected prototypes, the first XM1020 was born. It was a straightforward weapon, making extensive use of stampings and polymers in its construction to save weight and keep cost down. A short-recoil operating system was chosen for its mechanical reliability and simplicity. The receiver was of stamped steel with ribs, providing indents and grooves to take dirt and grime as well as the carbon generated by firing. Tolerances were kept fairly loose, which gave additional space for mud and grime to go without jamming up the mechanism. Dry semi-permanent lubricant film was used, which allowed for some two thousand shots to be fired before the film required touching-up. The hydrophobic dry film proved to adhere poorly to debris, and also made for an excellent barrier against rust and corrosion.
No external safeties were provided. Instead, an integrated trigger safety, firing pin safety, and drop safety were used, with all three being active at all times. The safeties disengage sequentially as the trigger is pulled, and are re-engaged immediately after firing. This system does away with the need for a traditional safety lever as the weapon is wholly safe until the trigger is squeezed. Trigger pull remains reasonably smooth and consistent, and allows for a rate of fire as fast as the user can pull the trigger.
A hold-open device is included as standard, and a speed clip guide added from the sixth prototype on and on all production weapons. This allowed for 16-gauge caseless ammunition to be rapidly refreshed through the use of a plastic speed clip, or for individual shells to be loaded into the weapon's magazine by inserting them down through the open slide. The magazine is of the detachable box type, which allows the entire magazine to be dropped and replaced with a fresh one. This system provided the user with the flexibility to carry his ammunition in whatever manner he wanted - loose, in magazines, or in speed clips, or any combination thereof.
A magazine cutoff was installed on the seventh prototype on, and all production models following. The cutoff allowed the user to clear the chamber and singly load specialty rounds, from flares to stun shells to cartridges containing compressed metal powder for door breaching. The magazine cutoff was a simple steel knob with a knurled surface in front of the magazine well; a clockwise twist unlocks it and allows it to be pulled down, which brings the mag cutoff into play. To re-lock it, it has to be pushed back up - no twisting necessary, and as the knob projects out a short distance when the cutoff is active it provides a very visual and tactile indicator as to the cutoff's status.
The sights are minimal; a V-notch rear sight with no adjustments and a simple post for the front sight. Both are treated with tritium paint, allowing for use in dark environments. A length of rail is available for mounting a reflex sight or other optic, and it is possible to mount a laser optic, tactical light, or a combination of both under or over the barrel as desired.
A collapsible stock was engineered to rapidly lock and release from an extension at the rear of the receiver, just below the travel of the slide, and a rapid barrel replacement system was devised that allowed for the weapon's barrel to be quickly swapped out for a carbine-length version without tools in under a minute in low lighting conditions. The extended barrel - with distinctive rectangular heat shroud and polymer furniture - lock rigidly to the body of the weapon through the use of a locking lug that extends back into the body some distance. A drop-in choke system was devised, but only marginal improvements to pellet spread were noted and the system was quickly abandoned in favor of the use of rounds combining a solid lead-alloy rifled slug with three pellets, combining a small but effective shot pattern at close range while the slug could reach out to a modest distance and retain considerable hitting power and accuracy.
Preliminary testing of the prototype proved the system to be plenty reliable. Recoil was heavy, but manageable, with reasonable accuracy at combat ranges. Rifled slug and buck ammunition alike were tested in the weapon's hammer-forged smoothbore barrel to good effects. An endurance test of 10,000 rounds was conducted on eight prototypes, with a mean rounds between stoppage (MRBS) of 9,000 rounds, and a projected mean rounds between failure of 18,000. A minor stoppage occurred when a caseless round failed to fire, prompting the design team to modify the caseless telescoped ammunition to include an extractor groove at the base of the round made of a clean-igniting combustible polymer, which left a negligible amount of residue upon firing and allowed a simple extractor claw to be included in the weapon's bolt. This allowed stoppages to be easily cleared just by working the slide.
Once satisfied that the weapon would not fail, a batch of ten, their accessories, and several thousand rounds of ammunition were sent to Metellos. The weapon was a hit with its commissioner, and while expensive it saw limited popularity with the local law enforcement. Unfortunately, the profits from sales to Metellos law enforcement were only enough to recoup the development and initial manufacture cost, and there was little interest on A.I.'s home market.
A manufacturing license was sold to Arakyd Industries, among other concerns, and those companies took to producing it for the galactic market. Arakyd was content to leave the weapon untouched, though they did add an oxidizing compound to the basic ammunition's propellant that allowed it to be fired in vacuum. They also saw fit to introduce two patterns of incendiary ammunition that made heavy use of white phosphorous. High-density alloy buckshot was plated with a white phosphorous compound and encased within a combustible sabot that burned up completely by the time it was a few centimeters past the muzzle, leaving the shot to carry on its merry way without posing too much risk to the shooter.
The burning of the incendiary casing produced erratic flight and dispersal patterns for the pellets, and caused the pellets to possess a distinctive screech on travel. They left a noxious white haze in their trail and, on impact, created a puff of glowing white smoke. The casing tended to shatter on impact, which had the effect of scattering tiny particles of burning phosphorous across the impact site. The round made for an excellent incendiary and was noted for its psychological impact - the prospect of being burnt alive is, after all, frightening to most races.
The incendiary buckshot round was a success, albeit shorter-ranged than the standard 16-gauge shot shell, and so a slug-and-buck concept was tried. A high-density rifled slug was used, with a cup in the base containing white phosphorous and a core of powdered magnesium. A pyramid-shaped steel splitter was installed upside-down in the nose of the round; on impact, it caused the slug to shatter and disperse its incendiary contents. Three pellets of phosphorous-plated alloy shot was placed atop the slug, which were propelled out in fairly uniform pattern along with the slug on firing. The pellets were very short-ranged, though the slug could travel accurately for some distance. The slug, like the incendiary pellets, was incapable of penetrating armor; even pistol-proof armor tended to stop it. Whether or not the armor stopped the subsequent spray of chemical hellfire was another matter entirely.
Unsurprisingly, the XM1020 has picked up a reputation as fearsome hand-cannons when used with Arakyd's incendiary ammunition. They have passed into use as a compact, easy-to-maintain gun favored by criminal elements and rogues across the galaxy. It has also found popularity with paramilitary organizations, police forces, and professional armies the 'verse over due to its ruggedness, reliability, and compact size. A superb room-clearing and door-knocking weapon for police, and an excellent street-sweeper and terror gun for crooks, the MAWS has seen a lot of use in the years since its introduction.
The going price for a brand new XM1020 is 350cR, with an additional 100 credits for an upgrade pack containing long barrel and collapsible stock. Ammunition is cheap, with various corporations selling 28, 49, and 70 round packs with ammunition pre-loaded into speed clips, though 700 round bulk boxes - again in speed clips - are available. On average, a single speed clip will run for 4 to 5 cR.
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