Directorate Officer
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
- Intent: To create a chemical thrower in Lucerne Personal Defense's catalogue
- Image Source: here modified by yours truly
- Canon Link: N/A
- Permissions: N/A
- Primary Source: N/A
- Manufacturer: Lucerne Personal Defense
- Affiliation: Directorate, Silver Jedi Concord, Lucerne Personal Defense Customers
- Market Status: Closed-Market
- Model: LPD-67 OmniStorm Chemical Thrower
- Modularity: rail attachments (sights/scopes, underbarrel weapons, etc); chemicals
- Production: Mass-Produced
- Material: durasteel frame with hadrium barrel and internals, permex furniture, Magnatomic Grip Panel, repulsor coil, typical flamethrower components
- Classification: chemical thrower
- Size: Average
- Weight: Average
- Ammunition Type: chemical / power pack
| Standard Sprayer Configuration | Precision Long Range Mode | Single Shot Mode | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition Capacity: | Average (30 shots) | Small (15 shots) | Extremely Small (1 shot) |
| Effective Range: | Average | Long Range | Average |
| Rate of Fire: | Average | Low | Average |
| Damage Output: | Average | High | Extreme |
| Recoil: | Average | Average | Average |
SPECIAL FEATURES
- Chemical Thrower: The OmniStorm, as it name suggests, throws out different types of chemicals, whether its searing napalm, chilling cryoban, hardening carbonite, or corrosive acids. To do this, it has two reserviors, both of which are located just in front of the trigger guard. The primary and larger reservoir feeds the upper tube, while the secondary tank feeds the lower tube. This secondary tube is designed to feed into the primary stream, allowing compounds to be mixed in air during deployment - this is particularly important for some more reactive chemicals that might be considerable more dangerous to the user if stored as a mixed solution, rather than as two less reactive liquids. However, in case of simple solutions, this could theoretically allow the OmniStorm to fire unusual combination attacks - such as carbonite and acid - with a single pull of the trigger. Chemical reservoirs are typically changed out just like classic magazines on a slugthrower.
- Repulsor Coil Operation: Omnistorm is unusual in that it uses a repulsor coil to provide the force to expel the payload out of the weapon. This has a number of obvious benefits- the first being that it doesn't have to be physically calibrated for a specific liquid and its viscosity. The second is that the amount of force and length of time it's being exerted can be controlled by simple pre-programmed settings: Standard mode largely duplicates classic flamethrower and cryoban projectors in delivery performance, but the other two are more interesting. Long-Range is a small amount of chemical, but delivered with a high amount of repulsive force, allowing the OmniStorm to act almost like a sniper rifle in terms of its delivery range, and with extra kinetic force behind each shot. In single shot mode, the OmniStorm empties its entire chemical reservoir in a short burst - leading to horrific damage on targets very quickly.
- Picatinny Rails: The OmniStorm has a full-length Picatinny rail on the top, which is typically fitted with a Zolta-series Targeting Scope or a TruSight-series Multi-Optic Sight. Optional picatinny rails can be fitted on to the sides and underneath the second tube, which allow it to accept aftermarket attachments such as underbarrel weapons, grappling hook guns, and tactical lights.
- Versatile: The OmniStorm is exceptionally versatile, capable of firing a wide variety of payloads in different modes.
- Heavy Hitting (Single Shot Mode): Dispensing two reservoirs of chemicals in a single burst makes an extremely powerful attack, which is usually capable of entirely engulfing and saturating an individual or two.
- Slow Reload: Unlike a typical gun, the OmniStorm takes a little bit longer to reload: not one, but two cannisters need to be secured into the weapon.
- Single Shot (Single Shot mode): While powerful, dispensing both reservoirs in this mode requires the weapon to be reloaded. Since cannisters are not very small, this practically limits this mode to only several instances within most engagements.
Chemical weapons have been around the galaxy for many ages in untold numbers of cultures -even those that never developed slugthrowers or blaster rifles- in some sort of variety. This diversity is both their greatest strength and their greatest weakness. Many of them are exceptionally powerful, but only in certain niches. As an example, a flamethrower can be extremely effective in clearing out an underground base or engaging in psychological warfare, especially against more primitive or bestial foes. It is also nearly next to useless against many armored vehicles and tends to attract a lot of enemy attention on the battlefield. Since these are largely niche weapons, not much develop has frequently been put into them: small production runs typically have high tool up costs for the small number produced, leading to reduced profit margins, and with that, little corporate interest.
Trying to break that basic paradigm, Lucerne Personal Defense decided that rather than trying to make a separate flamethrower, cryoban projector, and so forth, they would design a single platform that could be easily configured to project all such chemicals. Such as a design would then not avoid the tooling up costs that usually ensured low profit margins, but also make a more versatile weapon to market to militaries, who themselves are frequently cost conscious. To that end, they had to figure out a more universal delivery system, which led them to a surprisingly common technology: repulsorlift coils. Rather than deal with a bunch of different compressed air systems and radically different valves for each type of chemical payload , a user friendly repulsorlift coil can simply be programmed to the exert the right amount of force. Not only is selecting the chemical payload mode easy within the OmniStorm itself, but the same digital nature of this modularity also means that it can be configured to launch this payload in different ways. But the sheer diversity of available chemical payloads is still the OmniStorm's greatest selling strength - while almost any sort of liquid, gas, or even powdered material can be loaded into Omnistorm with the proper calibration - the following come supported directly by LPD:
Hanpat & Plasticene Thermite Mix: This proprietary mixture is an advanced incendiary weapon. Hanpat causes the mixture to near-instantly ignite in the presence of air, while the plasticene gel within the mixture burns at around 500 degrees centigrade. Not only does it cause horrific and often fatal burns on organic targets, but sustained fire allows it to melt through metal much like plasticene thermite cubes, making it also a useful breaching weapon against buildings and vehicles.
Cryoban: Infamous for "freezing" targets, Cryoban can not only be used offensively, but it is also often used to fight fires.
DX-343: This substance when sprayed onto a target causes electronic malfunctions, making it ideal for taking battle droids, advanced personal armors, vehicles, and other targets with electronic components.
3-5-7 trichloroheptane: This substance not only turns into poisonous gas, but it also forms a corrosive mist, making even dangerous to those wearing protective gear. LPD officially markets this for use against particularly dangerous, non-sentient life that is highly resistant to normal types of damage.
Plank gas with Xenoboric Acid: This acid payload is extremely corrosive, capable of dissolving many metals entirely within seconds. It is frequently used to soften up heavily armored targets before other attacks.
Shockstun mist with spraynet: This classic combination is used to capture organic beings alive. Shockstun mist quickly paralyzes the being while spraynet solidifies and physically ensnares the patient. A favorite of security personnel and special forces looking to capture targets alive and unharmed.
Chem Lure with instant adhesive: An unusual combination, this is supposedly designed to act as a sort of "targeting designator" for training predatory beasts to attack certain objects. Of course, it can very easily be used to turn local wildlife against the target with the right lure. With instant adhesive holding the scent onto the target, it is usually very hard to get off.
Malodorant (Dinko pheromones mixed with dung worm remains): This liquid smells positively horrendous. Designed to disperse unruly crowds in a nonlethal and nontraumatic method, it also has the benefit of making it very easy to track anyone who's hit by it.
OmniStorms are obviously specialized weapons that typically require specialized training to use with each payload. Consequently, they are not commonly fielded en mass except for riot control situations with nonlethal payloads. Security forces are probably the greatest user of these weapons for this very reason, but they are also reasonably common in Silver Jedi Concord armories, especially in areas where the Bryn'adul remnants are still active - where the incendiary and cryoban payloads are especially effective against several of their species. Lucerne Personal Defense plans on making these in small but consistent batches until a real need arises to make them in large numbers.
