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MLR-33 Mjolnir Launcher System
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
Intent: To create a new vehicle-borne weapons system for future submissions and role-playing.
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PRODUCTION INFORMATION
Manufacturer: Visanj T’shkali
Affiliation: Closed-Market
Model: MLR-33 Mjolnir Launcher System
Modularity: None
Production: Minor Production
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
Classification: Grenade Launcher
Size: Average
Weight: Average
Ammunition Type: Grenades
Ammunition Capacity: Average (120-round drum)
Effective Range: Average
- Max. Range: 2,212m
- Max. Effective Range: 1,500m
Rate of Fire: Average
- Cyclic Fire Rate: 360-390 rpm
- Sustained Fire Rate: 40 rpm
- Rapid Fire Rate: 60 rpm
Stopping Power: Very High
Recoil: High
SPECIAL FEATURES:
- Servo-mounted system has 360-degree firing parameters, and is capable of angling fire up to 45-degrees.
- Shielded ordinance drum and launcher system are highly-resistant to EMP/Ion weaponry, kinetic damage, blaster fire, and thermal energy, making it very difficult to ‘knock out’.
- Can be mounted ventrally, dorsally, or laterally on most any vehicle types and is remote-controlled and wired to the main targeting computer, allowing for precision targeting and accuracy.
STRENGTHS:
- Powerful launcher system combines precision accuracy, exceptional range, and superior stopping power to become a potent asset against a variety of target types.
- Shielded system is resistant against most infantry / crew-serve weapons and a wide variety of moderate-to-low damage types.
WEAKNESSES:
- Magazine drums require technicians to change them, meaning once expended these weapons cannot be reloaded until they can be refit by crews making replenishment during combat virtually impossible.
- The MLR-33 draws upon the vehicle’s power system to operate, meaning that the weapon cannot fire if the power system is shut down or damaged.
DESCRIPTION:
Micro-grenade launchers have been around a long, long time. From bounty hunters to specialized military units, the concept of a lightweight, super accurate, and potent weapon system has always had an appeal. Likewise, vehicles since the Jedi-Sith Wars have had portable mounted grenade launchers and mortar systems, giving light vehicles the means to counter heavy tanks and walkers, to breach enemy fortifications, and to rain hell down on their foes’ infantry forces. So, why not combine these notions? A micro-grenade launcher magazine traditionally held roughly 30-40 rounds, but mounted on a vehicle this could be doubled, almost tripled, giving friendly forces an increased ordinance load-out capable of sustaining them through longer pitched battles and extended engagements. Slightly lowered range and slightly increased recoil was traded for terrific stopping power, elevating the potency of the munitions fired to elevate their effects against their targets. Using direct power feed from a vehicle’s main power system would alleviate the need for independent power packs or gas canisters, and so as long as the vehicle’s power system worked the weapon could remain in use and the size of the system could be kept to an average level even with the increased munitions storage size. Of course, this would still leave a slightly higher than usual recoil level, even for micro-grenades, but being vehicle-borne, this was not too serious of a drawback. The only real weaknesses this new weapon system held then were the aforementioned dependency on the vehicle’s power supply to operate and the design specifications of the shielded munitions drum which – while it allowed a much greater capacity – required a skilled technician with specialized tools to replace once it becomes exhausted, thereby making ‘fast-change’ combat reloading difficult. Instead, vehicles using this system would have to wait for a lull in the fighting or retreat to a rear position to get the drum(s) swapped out before continuing to use their launchers further. Thus, this weapon could, or rather should, not be used as the vehicle’s only weapon, as once it became exhausted it would leave the vehicle vulnerable.
Servo-mounted remote-controlled systems allowed for crews to operate these weapons from inside their vehicles, lowering exposure to enemy fire, and provided exceptional directional versatility for firing, while the range (1,500m maximum effective range) gave them an impressive reach. Hard-wired connections to onboard targeting systems made precision accuracy optimal, and the entire system was well shielded against enemy small arms, crew-serve and vehicle-borne weaponry, making them difficult to ‘take out’ even with EMP/Ion weapons. The machine-assisted gravity-fed munitions allowed the system to be mounted on a vehicle virtually anywhere after-market, or integrated anywhere into the initial design, a quality of versatility that technicians and engineer-designers greatly appreciated.
Munitions could be any of a variety of types, including for example:
- High-Explosive (HE)
- High-Explosive Dual-Purpose (HEDP)
- High-Explosive Anti-Armor (HEAA/HEAT)
- Air-Burst (Incl. Smart Programmable Types)
- Smoke/Gas/Flash-Bang-type
- Infra-Red Illumination
- Thermobaric
- Incendiary/Acid (Impact or Air-Burst variants)
Thus, the Mjolnir Launcher System represents a highly-versatile, potent, and resilient weapons system which could augment the offensive power of many vehicle types and designs, better enabling ground forces to bring to bear an awesome level of light artillery when and where it was needed on the battlefield.
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