Infantry weapons for Rebels and Imperials?

[SpaceMarine93]

I just need to know - besides the Blaster Rifles and the occasional plasma grenade, what are the armaments of your average Rebel and Imperial platoon? What about company level? What are their main tactics at offense and defense? Because i might want to write a warfic set in the Galactic Civil War (post-Endor) sometime in the future when I finished my University finals. I'm currently reading a German WWII infantry tactics guide for preliminary preparation; I want it done right.

[Vehrec]

Every Stormtrooper has a code-locked thermal detonator-It might count as a demolition charge more than a frag grenade, but they all have them. Also common in their armory is the T-21 repeating blaster, a Light machine gun type weapon, and the E-web heavy repeating blaster that they tried to set up to use against the Falcon. The E-web is more of a heavy or vehicluar machine gun that you don't move around much, since it takes so long to set it up or tear it down. The light repeating blaster, on the other hand, is used much more like, well a BAR or a SAW. After all, all three weapons are meant to be carried and used by one soldier into combat, as opposed to the much larger crew-served weapons in their arsenal. Longer, more accurate and powerful personal arms were not unknown in the Stormtroopers, as well as shorter sidearms. Sniper rifles and other specialist equipment that you would expect, round out the armory.

[The Romulan Republic]

There's also the cable that Luke used on the first Death Star to swing over that pit. Is that standard equipment?

[Jim Raynor]

What you'd really like to get your hands on is The Imperial Sourcebook. It has entire chapters stuffed full of military geek details which I'm sure went over the heads of 99% of actual roleplayers, but is exactly what you seem to be asking for here. The thing is out of print so a new copy on Amazon is ridiculous ($80.00), but a "used" copy goes for less than $10 right now. I have a copy so I'll post some details for you; I can look into it more if you ask for it.

The average Imperial Army trooper are the guys in the gray uniforms, Stormtroopers are considered a separate branch. Each trooper regardless of branch carries an E-11 blaster rifle, the short model seen throughout the movies. According to one book I've read, despite its small size it is the standard issue weapon, and it's fairly accurate and powerful due to superior technology (makes me think of the real life M4 Carbine). As seen in the movies, these are single or two-round burst weapons, but each individual shot is far more powerful than a real life assault rifle bullet. Some "veteran" troopers also carry a blaster pistol. Every trooper has a "helmet comlink" for communications.

The standard Imperial Army infantry line squad has eight men commanded by a sergeant. I assume this would break down into two four-man fire teams, although that isn't stated. This is smaller than a real life US Army squad of nine men (two four-man teams plus a separate squad leader), so the tactics and organization are different than they would be in real life. According to the sourcebook, the Imperial sergeant makes a "brevet list" that describes the line of succession in his squad by assigning each trooper a number. His #2 is automatically given the rank of corporal, everyone below him has no rank. A really dodgy system IMO, but that's what it says. The succession numbers are a big deal to the troopers, and the source of expressions like "Lower than the eight-man."

An effort was made to equip one man in each infantry squad with a light repeating blaster. Given its designation, I assume these things have full auto unlike the E-11. The T-21 that Vehrec mentioned (which is the long rifle carried by one of the Stormtroopers in ANH) has a standard power pack for only 25 shots. Because of this it's often hooked up to a continuous feed power pack which can be worn as a backpack. However, this power pack weighs in at over twenty kilograms, so the gunner would be pretty weighed down.

In contrast to a line squad, a heavy weapons squad has three 2-man "medium" repeating blasters, or two 3-man "heavy" repeating blasters (in a contradiction, the same book later describes the "heavy" E-Web as a 2-man weapon). This seems analogous to a US Army weapons squad, which is responsible for two medium M240 machine guns. Real life crew served machine guns have separate people shooting, spotting targets with binoculars, reloading the weapon, and carrying the separate ammo belts and tripod. Since Star Wars blasters have continuous power packs, there's no reloading but the other jobs remain. I assume that besides the primary gunner, the other members of the Imperial weapons squad carry E-11s just like US weapons squad members also carry M4s or M16s.

The book claims that the E-web can be set up in "15 minutes" by a good crew, which seems ridiculous given the fact that the Stormtroopers were attempting to use the thing against the fleeing Falcon in ANH. The E-Web (slang for EWHB, or "Emplacement Weapon, Heavy Blaster") system includes the weapon, a tripod, and a continuous "Eksoan" power pack. The weapon is fitted with a Gk3 cryocooler to keep it from overheating and possibly exploding (the book says that it's extremely "dangerous" if the cryocooler gets taken out), as well as a limited fire control system with night vision/infrared optics. There's also a built-in communications system for coordinating fire with other nearby E-Web units in case the normal command and comms channels are taken out. The book includes an excerpt by an E-Web gunner, who describes the weapon as extremely difficult to operate alone: "There's no fire control, you can't nurse the power or watch the cooler, and the gun is awkwad to aim. My shooting accuracy was cut in half."

An artillery section consists of one 8-man medium/heavy artillery piece, or two 4-man light artillery pieces. Self-propelled laser and ion cannons mounted on repulsorlift vehicles are the standard, with an example being a mobile version of the DF .9 laser towers used by the Rebels on Hoth (the self-propelled version used by the Empire is designated SP .9). The book also has an example of mobile missile artillery, and passingly mentions indirect fire projectile artillery. Imperial projectile artillery is one of the most neglected areas in the EU, with two of the few examples existing in the game Galactic Battlegrounds.

Platoons consist of four squads, along with a platoon commander (lieutenant) and a sergeant major acting as his right hand. The book describes numerous types of squads, platoons, companies, etc. in detail, each with different compositions depending on role. For example, line platoons are made up of four line squads, while an assault (also called "heavy weapons") platoon has two line squads and two heavy weapons squads. The platoon is the smallest unit that may request supporting fire from another unit, and some platoons may have an artillery section assigned to them. An artillery platoon is made up of four artillery sections. A repulsorlift squad has 56 men in 4 speeders, along with a command element in 2 command speeders. Armor platoons have 34-42 men in 4 repulsortanks along with a fifth command repulsortank that's less well armed but has superior visibility (look up the 1-H and 1-M models on Wookieepedia).

Companies consist of four platoons, and there are different types with various combinations of the above platoons.

[Eleventh Century Remnant]

That reminds me of a question overheard asked on ARRSE-
Q; what were late- war, Normandy and NW Europe, British tank crews armed with? (Meaning personal defence weapons, of course.)
That place being what it is, somebody did post the inevitable answer; a tank.

Anyway, the E-11 carbine is standard issue, being shorter, lighter and handier than the alternatives; the rebels, interestingly, seem to use a heavier basic weapon when they can get it- the obsolescent BlasTech A-280, which is what the defence line at Hoth had- not sure what real world gun was used as a basis for the prop.
Supposedly withdrawn from Imperial service (this may need to be retconned,) the A280 fired a more powerful bolt further- which helps establish a trend.

The Clone Troopers had a remarkably toyetic range of special weapons, but the standard was the DC-15, a very heavy rifle by later standards, capable of throwing a bolt most of the way to the horizon and with enough zap to act as an anti- materiel rifle at full power.

That was replaced presumably by the A280, at least in some parts of the galaxy, which was later replaced by the familiar (Sterling SMG based) E-11 Carbine. The trend in infantry weapons seems to be away from open battlefield to greater utility in close assault, with support weapons left to fill what seems to be a diminishing need for long range fire.

The best shot in the squad or platoon (depending on what has been authorised) may get a DLT-20A, the prop for which was based on an MG42, and is the current sniper weapon- possibly similar performance to the old DC-15 but rather more accurate, the old battle rifle having a reputation as too heavy and clumsy to make full use of it's reach in most hands.

The rebels use whatever they can steal or scavenge, of course, some of it probably leftovers from the Clone Wars or earlier.


Oh, one bit of advice- don't get the tactics right. Neither side is really capable of it.

The rebels are amateurs, freedom fighters, who may have the odd expert and person who's lived long enough to get savvy, but by and large they are untrained, undrilled and unhardened, not necessarily very good at discipline and staff work, trying to follow a doctrine that, insofar as they understand it at all, was written for an entirely different age- what's left of the probably pre Clone War republic system.

The Imperials have their own internal problems, one of them being a ferocious internal discipline code that on most posts kills more men than the enemy, and their own version of political correctness that makes mutual denunciation the chief hobby and backstabbing the primary survival skill, initiative a suicide attempt and keeping one's nose clean the only way to survive.

Both sides are hobbled by their internal problems- the Imperials arguably more so.

[Simon_Jester]

...the rebels, interestingly, seem to use a heavier basic weapon when they can get it- the obsolescent BlasTech A-280, which is what the defence line at Hoth had- not sure what real world gun was used as a basis for the prop.

They're fighting stormtroopers a lot. Stormtrooper armor might (for instance) be reasonably effective against the lighter bolt from the E-11 but not against bigger guns. One problem of fighting armored enemies (this comes up in Iraq for the insurgents) is that often they don't die when shot in ambushes- say, three rounds into the center of mass of the first round through the door.

This encourages the enemy to act more boldly and fight more aggressively than if your basic infantry weapon can reliably put them down on a solid hit.

[Purple]

Another thing to consider is that a lot of the time stormtroopers seem to be about guarding or boarding and generally fighting on starships. And while this may or may not (I have no clue honestly) be a major part of their role it certainly is in their job description. And when fighting in a starship with the possibility of tight corridors a shorter carbine/SMG like weapon starts making a lot of sense. IIRC the times we see storm troopers in the open in the movies they had those bigger guns anyway (think those patrols on Tatooine and the troops seen advancing on Echo Base).

[Simon_Jester]

Also, giant anti-materiel rifles are bad on starships, or can be. Because they're very good at overpenetrating soft targets (like the enemy bridge crew) and destroying things you didn't want broken (like the enemy bridge computer).

[Panzersharkcat]

Anyway, the E-11 carbine is standard issue, being shorter, lighter and handier than the alternatives; the rebels, interestingly, seem to use a heavier basic weapon when they can get it- the obsolescent BlasTech A-280, which is what the defence line at Hoth had- not sure what real world gun was used as a basis for the prop.

It was built from old Sturmgewehr-44s and M-16s.
EDIT: Searching Wookieepedia, it was apparently retconned that the ones on Hoth were A295s. Those were built from StG-44s. The ones used in ROTJ are A280s, built from AR-15s.

[Jim Raynor]

There's two examples of shoulder fired rocket/missile launchers:

The Equalizer is a four-tube weapon that fires "ion bolts," the missile equivalent of an ion cannon. It has a sensor unit on the side that a trooper can line up with enemy vehicles in order to guide his ion bolt. This sounds a lot like command line-of-sight weapons like TOW, which require the user to keep aiming at the target throughout the missile's flight. The Equalizer is said to be effective against both armored vehicles, as well as slow and low-flying fighters. Despite having an integrated sensor unit, it's supposed to be a disposable weapon that the trooper just discards after using.

The PLX-2 (pronounced "Plex") missile launcher holds one round in the chamber, and another in reserve. It can fire either unguided line-of-sight rockets, or guided missiles. The guided missiles can be programmed for one of two modes: infrared seeking, or "Gravity-Activated Mode" (GAM). GAM first chases after an image of the target (like a real life Maverick missile). Once close enough, the missile switches guidance systems so that it chases after the gravity-wave anomalies specific to repulsorcraft. The missile can keep flying for 40 km. It's supposed to be very effective, but the targeting system is fragile. Also, there is an issue with the firing stud, which has to be pressed twice (once to select the guidance mode, another time to actually fire). Some noob troopers screw up by only pressing it once.

Neither of these weapons are listed as standard issue for units, so I would just have one man in a squad carry one if the mission anticipates anti-vehicle combat. Hope all this helps.

[Jedi Commisar]

.

BlasTech A-280, which is what the defence line at Hoth had- not sure what real world gun was used as a basis for the prop.

If you go to the Internet Movie Firearms database and search Star Wars they do have a list of which real world guns the props where built around

[Eleventh Century Remnant]

The question already got answered up- thread, by Panzersharkcat. The T-21 was famously based on the Lewis gun, of course.

[Ahriman238]

Summarized from EGWT.

Merr-Sonn C-24 Flame Rifle- flamethrower type weapon. Max range of 10 meters, optimum range half that. Fuel for 2.5 minutes of continous fire in the rifle itself, can connect to external fuel tanks for greater duration. There is a belt-clip tank that holds fuel for a minute, and a backpack tank of unknown capacity. Imperial troopers and "Espos: (thug-police of the CSA) frequently use flame projectors to break up civilian demonstrations and enforce martial law on rebellious worlds. Such incidents are invariably reported as "Rebel-orchestrated revolutionary movements" to justify the extensive casulties. Imperial soldiers often use flame projectors to sweep through Rebel installations in efforts to force Rebel soldiers out of hiding.

Merr-Sonn MM-s3 Grenade Mortar- Man-portable high-volume grenade launcher. Fires standard C-22 frag grenades used by stormtroopers, but can fire any grenade that fits in a C-22 shell. Max range 1 kilometer, optimum range half that. 12 grenades to a clip, fires one shot every 1.2 seconds, can also be hooked up to external source of ammo, one auto-loading backpack feature adds 100 rounds. The scope has a targeting computer that provides range and fire-vector data, as well as night-vision and seeing through smoke or fog, but the scope is in a very akward position so most gunners learn to eyeball it unless absolutely necessary. The MM-s3 is designed to mount easily on Merr-Sonn's WW-676 repulsorlift sled. Built to carry one gunner and one pilot, the sled has a flight ceiling of 30 meters, a top speed of 250 kph and a 500 round grenade locker that can be attached to the mortar with a hose. The sled is exceptionally agile, but offers zero armor or other protection. A variant exists for the E-Web that replaces the grenade locker with a power generator.

Mortar units are assigned to army platoons as support, or four of the sleds may constitute a light mechanized infantry. Pilots and gunners are either army specialists or biker scouts.

[Irbis]

What you'd really like to get your hands on is The Imperial Sourcebook. It has entire chapters stuffed full of military geek details which I'm sure went over the heads of 99% of actual roleplayers, but is exactly what you seem to be asking for here. The thing is out of print so a new copy on Amazon is ridiculous ($80.00), but a "used" copy goes for less than $10 right now. I have a copy so I'll post some details for you; I can look into it more if you ask for it.

Are we talking about WEG RPG book? If so, that thing is fine to use in role-play, but it's virtually worthless as source concerning Imperial military seeing most of things there are either obsolete/superseded, written by minimalists, and, worst of all, apparently written by someone who had no idea how military/economy/logistics/command work, as it's full of things that don't make any sense when you stop to think about them, and that's without lines where they contradict themselves in the very same sentence.

Take such little and "unimportant" thing as a torpedo sphere, warship more massive than virtually anything in Imperial arsenal. Are these rare and big deal things, like one line suggests, or are there thousands of them (inventory stated as 2 per sector) and there should be 1-2 per 10-12 ISDs given ridiculously tiny number of ISDs the sourcebook gives?

[Jim Raynor]

Oh, I agree that WEG's scale and numbers are utterly screwed up. I was complained with all the tech fans on this forum back in the day. When it comes to big picture stuff like the size of a sector army, or the size of the Empire's military as a whole, it's useless. I think it's somewhere in the ball park of a couple million troops per sector. And its capital ship section is what solidified all those ugly non-dagger capital ships in EU lore.

The book's usefulness is in its details on small ground units, like squad, platoon, company, etc. It's surprisingly detailed and organized when it comes to that, with analogues for real life equipment described in detail or at least implied. For example, Imperial automatic and crew served weapons come with all sorts nuances and drawbacks that make it a pain in the ass for troopers to use, which could be interesting if SpaceMarine93 wants to write his story from a grunt's perspective. The ergonomics actually seem downright terrible for some of this stuff. I wonder how Stromtroopers are supposed to lug around the E-web's big boxy power generator for any significant distance, a problem that originated from the movies themselves. Something like that could be used in the story, if the troopers' repulsorlift transport vehicles get taken out or something.

[aussiemuscle308]

carries an E-11 blaster rifle, the short model seen throughout the movies. According to one book I've read, despite its small size it is the standard issue weapon, and it's fairly accurate* and powerful

*except in SW computer games, where it shoots as accurately and powerful as a medieval short bow.

[Jim Raynor]

Talking about Dark Forces and Jedi Knight? Ha, I hated the E-11 portrayed in those games too.