Peace Through Superior Firepower pt 2

Continuing my series of posts featuring weapons from the world of Oort Cloud, I present you with the Arcus Multistage coilgun. Originally designed by Phobosian Arms, a Cydonian research firm working on behalf of the Colonial Defense Force. The weapon was designed to fill the need for a single, versitile rifle that could function on both the surface of Mars and in the vacuum of space.

Though coilguns have been around since the 21st century, the Arcus was

the first to be adopted as the official standard issue weapon of a military or

police force. The Arcus proved its

worth very quickly, and demand grew for the weapon on

Earth and the Moon. By the 2160s, the weapon had become standard issue for the North

American Colonial Marines

Central to the design of the Arcus is an linear electric motor, which relies

on alternating current to create linear force. This design has several practical advantages over conventional firearms. Chemical explosive weapons have a maximum muzzle velocity much lower than what is possible with electrically fired weaponry.

Also, since chemical propellant doesn't need to be attached to each round, the ordinance can be caseless, making the ammunition lighter and more compact. The Arcus fires 1.8 x 82,55 mm fléchettes, and each clip holds 64 shots, giving a weapon a total capacity of 128. This is especially important on the surface of Mars where metallic dust and bulky environment suits make reloading difficult.

The dual clip design features a switch that turns each of the clips away from each other at a 45 degree angle. This allows the weapon to have an impromptu bipod for use in cover situations, without increasing the size or bulk of the weapon. Much of the Arcus' stock is made out of high impact plastics, and comes in a variety of colors. Some of the versions of the weapon feature full tube reflex sights, such as the one with the green trim featured above, while other versions have a powerful digital camera near the rifle barrel, which transmits optical information to the operator via a side mounted viewing screen, like the red rifle above.