Blaster Rifles Course Notes {BR}

Welcome to the blaster rifles course, one in a series of courses intended to better familiarize you with the arms you will come across and perhaps use yourself. Each course will cover a sub set of weapons. These are by no means ALL weapons in that category simply those you are most likely to come across. Along with some of the more Interesting pieces or those with historical merit, further courses are likely to cover more of each weapon type.

Blaster Rifle is a designation given to certain types of offensive blaster weaponry. The blaster rifle was the staple infantry weapon since before the formation of the Galactic Republic Rifles were heavy duty blaster variants, much more powerful than a pistol, although heavy weapons were more powerful than rifles. The rifle was usually a soldier's weapon of choice, and many variants were seen. Most rifles came equipped with a stun setting, used to temporarily disable an opponent.

Rifles can be divided into two primary category the full size rifle, and the shorter carbine are included in one category as there is relitivly little difference in most cases with these,a lot of your primary blaster rifles could honestly be considered carbines due to there small maneuverable size..the carbine normally only differers in actual size shorter barrels lack of stocks but retains the power of the full size version, in some cases giving up some accuracy and control for the better maneuverability, and Heavy blast rifles, heavier far less maneuverable but pack a much greater punch.normally there's are the last step before a crew served weapon (which we will cover in a later course).

Some of the common or notable Blaster rifles
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The E-11 blaster rifle was a blaster rifle manufactured by BlasTech Industries during the Galactic Civil War. It was the standard blaster rifle of the Imperial stormtroopers. A powerful, light and compact weapon, the E-11 was used widely through the galaxy.The E-11 rifle proved to be a highly versatile design, spawning a wide number of variations. To make up for the high demand for these weapons, BlasTech authorized SoroSuub and Merr-Sonn to manufacture them under license. These three manufacturers were found mixed indiscriminately across the Empire in Imperial stocks Stormtroopers carried E-11 rifles throughout the Galactic Civil War. The design was based on that of the DC-15 series of blaster rifles, carbines, and pistols favored by the Republic clone troopers.

The basic E-11 was 438 mm long when folded and weighed 2.6 kilograms. The power cell housing opened on the left side of the action housing, above the trigger, giving the E-11 a very low profile (useful when shooting prone or from a barricade). The E-11's plasma gas cartridges allowed for over 500 shots while the power cells lasted for about 100 shots, depending on the setting. All moving and/or metal parts were fitted with a corrosion-proof, vacuum-rated, dry lubricant. The top of the receiver had a universal, quick-detach sight rail, which came from the factory, mounted with a ring reticule 2x optical scope. The basic three piece folding stock rode along the left side, under the power cell. When the stock was collapsed, the weapon could be fired one-handed The power settings ranged from stun to kill. The rifle also had a rapid-fire mode with an expanded fire area, at the cost of poor accuracy.

Modified versions of the rifle had also been produced. The E-11b was capable of higher rates of fire, but was prone to overheating. A carbine version of this weapon was also produced—the E11 carbine, as well as the smaller E-11A and E-11A1, capable of fitting a pistol holster, largely due to the fact that the extendable stock had been removed. There also was an additional scope that could be added on to make the E-11 into a small scale sniper rifle, with a max range of about 8x zoom. While effective, it was not as effective as the E-11s sniper rifle.

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The Stormtrooper One was a blaster rifle manufactured by the SoroSuub Corporation. . The Stormtrooper One was a clone of the BlasTech E-11 rifle, and saw far less use than that weapon, though the Imperial war machine did use both products. Its frame was a simple tubular design, with most of the internal components having been designed to wrap around the barrel. As such, the barrel runs more or less the entire length of the weapon. As a result, it had good long range accuracy in spite of its compactness, and packed a powerful punch, though not nearly as much as BlasTech's A280. There were three settings for the Stormtrooper One: single fire, short bursts, and potentially barrel-damaging full auto-fire. The weapon's sighting package included a computer-enhanced scope, and simple iron sights in case the scope fails in combat. The most apparent weakness of the rifle was the flimsiness of the folding wire-frame shoulder stock.

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SoroSuub GLX - This was a model of SoroSuub blaster rifle. It was unmarked, lacking any form of corporate or governmental markings, which allowed the weapon to be untraceable if lost. It was also a very effective weapon when used in stun mode, which was something of a rarity among blaster rifles. While the Firelance was marketed as "the most effective weapon available for freelance enforcement officials", it was specifically built for use by bounty hunters.

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WESTAR-M5 - A blaster rifle used during the Clone Wars. They were mainly used by Advanced Recon Commandos and Galactic Marines during the later years of the conflict. They were very efficient and deadly weapons. The blaster rifle could be calibrated to fire in semi-automatic, automatic, and burst-fire modes, and could be equipped with a variety of attachments, including a Merr-Sonn PLX-1m micro-rocket launcher that could be used against armored enemies.This blaster improved on the DC-15 design, making it easier to aim. It featured an extendable stock and a larger ammunition magazine. The WESTAR-M5 used the same plasma/EMP hybrid ammunition as all clone trooper weapons, and was also more powerful than the DC-15, combining power and accuracy into a small weapon.

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The standard blaster rifle of the OOM and B1 battle droids, the E-5 blaster rifle was a powerful, light, but somewhat inaccurate weapon.The E-5 blaster rifle was manufactured by Baktoid Armor Workshop on order from the Trade Federation for their Droid Army. The weapon had a large gas chamber that allowed for powerful blasts.

During the Clone Wars, E-5 blaster rifles were still used by B1 battle droids, but they were rivaled by the B2 super battle droids, which had a wrist blaster instead of a rifle, something that proved to be a more effective and versatile weapon.Surprisingly, the E-5 carried the same firepower as the clone trooper DC-17m Interchangeable Weapon System, which was used by clone commandos and other elite units within the Grand Army of the Republic.

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Heavy blaster rifle

Some of the common or notable heavy blast rifles these are based on designation as well as size/power meaning in some cases the placement is subjective for this category:

DC-15A - This blaster rifle was the weapon of choice for the Republic's clone troopers in the Grand Army of the Republic. It was a larger, more powerful long-range alternative to the DC-15S blaster.Manufactured by BlasTech Industries, the DC-15-series was a range of plasma weapons used during the Clone Wars. the inherent instability of plasma gas meant the DC-15A was notoriously difficult to aim. The rifle also sported a telescopic sight, normally stored under the rifle, but could be mounted on top for long range shots.

The weapon's tibanna gas cartridge carried enough gas for approximately 500 shots, depending on the power settings of the weapon (The highest power setting shot 50 rounds per clip). It fired blue plasma bolts that could destroy enemy infantry units.

The DC-15 could interface with the helmets of clones to provide a video gunsight on the clone troopers helmet display. Mounted on a tripod, the maximum effective range of a DC-15A was 10 kilometers. On maximum power, a shot from a DC-15A could leave a 0.5 meter hole in any ferroconcrete wall.

DLT-19 - This heavy blaster rifle was a popular weapon produced by BlasTech Industries that saw use during the time of the Galactic Empire. It was commonly carried by Imperial stormtroopers and army troopers.

The DLT-19 was not as popular or as well-known as the standard-issue E-11 blaster rifle, because it took longer to assemble and load. However the DLT-19 was much more powerful and had a much greater range than the E-11 model, and was sometimes modified for use as a sniper rifle. In this configuration it could shoot down swoops, or even light airspeeders.

A280 - This was a blaster rifle produced by BlasTech Industries, and was considered to be one of the best armor-piercing blasters produced during the Galactic Civil War. Though much heavier than Imperial-issue rifles such as the E-11, the A280 was a sturdy weapon and was reputed to be able to cut a fully-armored stormtrooper in half at medium range. This weapon, along with its predecessor, the DLT-20A, were marketed as Longblasters. The A280 was different from the DLT-20A in that its galven circuits were clustered near the focusing crystal, giving the weapon a slight bulge at the midsection. This also provided the A280 with more power over a longer range.