Rifts Up Close: C-10 Laser Rifle

By Tim Willard

The C-10 Laser Rifle is an older laser rifle, one of the first fielded by the CS Army, even back during the Second Dark Ages when the CS consisted of the fledgling Chi-Town.

Currently no C-10 Laser Rifles are being manufactured in the Coalition States (as of 101 PA), nor are there plans to remanufacture the weapon. Till 12 PA this weapon was only manufactured in Chi-Town, with Iron Heart producing the weapon in 25 PA, Free Quebec in 43 PA, and Lone Star in 72 PA. However, Free Quebec and Iron Heart still manufacture spare parts and the civilian versions of this weapon.

Built off of the old LS-250 design specifications, the CS was not able to put into production an exact copy of the weapon due to material limitations. Design problems plagued the C-10 from its inception to when it was eventually pulled from the infantry and military and issued to ISS troops and Dog Pack recon teams. However, most Dog Pack and ISS soldiers will get rid of this weapon as soon as possible, often confiscating a more reliable weapon from an "undesirable" and tossing the C-10 in an alley and reporting it stolen. To be honest, nobody really cared if the C-10 was stolen, had vanished into thin air, or was captured by D-bees, since the weapon was considered the worst boondoggle of CS R&D.

The C-10's initial run suffered from corrosion problems on the power leads that mated with the eclips, resulting in sporadic firing and eventually failure as the corrosion ate into the internal power leads. However, the C-10A fixed this problem in 9 PA, and another problem surfaced. The C-10A versions of the rifle had a problem with alignment and the scope was often off target, resulting in a 3 micron error in the scope, which made it useless at ranges over 600m. Despite this problem being corrected in 19 PA, the maximum effective range of 600m was erroneously left in the doctrine even to this day.

In 24 PA the C-10B made its appearance. The energy canister was removed, as was the power conduit allowing an external power pack to be used with the weapon, despite the protest of troops in the field. (Many unit level armorers replace the power conduit feeds, as could Black Market armorers. Typical Cost: 2,000 Cr) The C-10B suffered from serious production flaws in the crystal lazing matrix, resulting in the crystal shattering after less than 2000 shots fired, and frequently as early as 100 shots. This problem was found to be inherent in the focusing device, not the matrix as thought, in 32 PA. However, the weapon would often discharge at random times, even if unloaded. Capacitance gel saturation was blamed for this, but many soldiers believed the C-10 series was cursed.

38 PA saw the introduction of the C-10C, which had no built in scope, no picatinny rail systems, and a solid buttstock, along with a bayonet lug, which made no apparent sense as vibro-blades were a thing of legend, and no standard material could penetrate supernatural skin or military grade armor. The weapon's weight increased to 16 pounds without any noticeable change in the weapons performance.

63 PA saw the C-10D arrive. This weapon was lighter than the C-10C, had a built in scope, a collapsible buttstock, a built in illumination light, a laser targeter, and the ability to use energy canisters. However, in the next 2 years, over 200 soldiers were injured when the weapon would mysteriously detonate, sometimes while in the storage racks.

63 PA saw the introduction of the C-10E, which no longer blew up, but no longer contained the illumination light, the laser sight, or the energy canister. However, the range was extended to a remarkable 4000m (12000 feet), but the payload dropped by half and did not increase in damage. To top it off, occasionally a freshly inserted eclip would discharge all of it's energy into the weapon at once, slagging the electronics.

65 PA saw the introduction of the C-10F, which had decent range, decent payload, good damage, a built in targeting system, and had the return of the solid stock. However, the built in targeting system was prone to failure under combat condition (some are reported as failing during shipping to the receiving unit) and occasionally exploded when given power.

69 PA was when the C-10G was introduced, and is considered the standard C-10 Light Assault Laser Rifle. It featured a standard passive nightvision scope with 1X/2X/3X/5X/10X magnification, and everything else left the same.

Most of the old weapons were sold to trusted corporations, given to authorized mercenaries, and in the case of the C-10D, destroyed enmasse before they killed everyone in sight.

In 99 PA the decision to phase out the C-10 series of light laser rifles was made, citing too many problems with the design, as well as the dislike of the series by troops familiar with the problems. With the introduction of the C-12 laser rifle, the CS military couldn't get rid of the C-10's fast enough, often stacking all of the C-10's available on post in a pit and firing missiles into the pit while everyone stood around cheering.

In 99 PA, when the C-12 was made available, terrorist bombings on CS armories rose by an astounding 1250%, forcing the CS to replace the C-10 Laser Rifles quickly.

Even with all the problems, analysis of the weapon's schematic, or even of a faultly weapon itself revealed no problem. According to the paperwork and diagnostics and design specifications, the weapon should have worked, and worked wonderfully. But it didn't, leading some people muttering that the design itself was cursed.

Between 14 PA and 65 PA this weapon was often sold on the open market to licensed civilians, however the multitude of unexplained detonations and the ensuing lawsuits pulled this weapon off the shelves. The damage had been done to the weapons reputation, and when it was reoffered to the civilian market in 85 PA, less than 1000 were sold in 5 years.

Most Black Market and civilian armorers absolutely refuse to work on the weapon what so ever, often threatening the owner with lethal force if they don't "get that hunk of crap out of here."

Even if caught with it in the Burb's, many ISS officers leave with a chuckle, letting the confused visitor carrying the weapon.

Weight: 5 Lbs
Length: 39.6"
Caliber: 2.25 cm
Maximum Range: 2000m (6000 ft)
Maximum Effective Range: 700m (2100 ft)
Typical Combat Range: 350m (1050 ft)
Magazine Capacity: 20 shots from a standard eclip, 30 for a long clip; 150 from a hip-pack
Manufacturer's Cost: 4,200 Cr
Wholesale Cost: 9,000 Cr.
Manufacturer's Recommended Price: 16,000 Cr
Black Market Price: Will try to get 20,000, but will sometimes give it away with other purchases and mark the purchaser as a sucker.
Wilderness Price: "Get that thing away from me before it blows up me house!"