Ruger Thunderbolts, Barrel Mounted Accessories Options

[SRFinn]

A Ruger Thunderbolt is a burst fire only heavy pistol with a distinctive sound and some built in recoil compensation.

With that in mind, is there anything by the rules preventing a weaponsmith from putting a gas vent or sound suppressor on one? I can't find anything that disallows it... but the fact that they have that built in recoil reduction and the distinctive sound make those two accessories, in particular, sound a bit odd to me.

[TinkerGnome]

It doesn't have built in recoil compensation. It simply fires so quickly that you don't get barrel rise until after the third bullet is out of the barrel. By the rules, you could add barren accesories (since it doesn't specificly say you can't, or even imply it). By the flavor... don't know.

[Ed_209a]

It's entirely possible that the Thunderbolt is the only machine pistol on the market in it's caliber, thus the distinctive noise.

[TinkerGnome]

It also fires faster than any other weapon of a similar calibur. I'd say the HV weapons have similarly distinctive sounds.

[Arethusa]

As far as the rules go, there's nothing stopping you. In real life, you'd have trouble getting those to work with a gun that essentially performs like a caseless machine pistol.

[El_Machinae]

One player in our group put vents and a silencer on her Thunderbolt. I felt kinda ripped off, it didn't feel like the gun should be modifiable like that.

But, an even better question is ... how many shots does the freaking thing fire per pull of the trigger? It's got a clip of 12, but the second shot adds more than 3 recoil. 3 bursts per clip? 4? 12????

PLUS, how much does hardened armor affect it? Since they don't tell you the bullets fired, but scale the damage for you, you can't determine the base damage per bullet.

Urg.

[Person 404]

Erm... the Thunderbolt fires normal, 3-round bursts, as do almost all burst-firing weapons in the game. This makes for 4 bursts per clip, and individual bullets doing 9M, same as most other heavy pistols.

[Kurb]

[Arethusa]

She got it by breaking the rules, I imagine. You either get the compensator or the suppressor, but you don't get both. That would make no sense in real life and breaks rules ingame.

[Tziluthi]

Although, technically, silencers would both quiet the weapon and counter the barrel lift. Of course, for that information, I credit Raygun.

[Arethusa]

Careful. We gots rules and don't like you real life talk 'round here.

Seriously, whether a suppressor will absorb recoil energy or not, there is no way you can attach a compensator and a suppressor at the same time. They both get attached to the barrel, they both channel gas, and they both work differently. There's only so much room on a gun.

[Stonecougar]

And, to be perfectly honest, a compensator will, if anything, make the damn thing *louder* than before.

And it's not hard to get a Thunderbolt. Level 2 contacts at Lone Star should do it.

[Kurb]

[Halbmetallmensch]

[Drain Brain]

But they'd still be more common there. Also I'd be willing to bet that Ruger makes far more efficient versions for LoneStar.

Think about it - one "official" version and one for the mass market.

Like the HK VP-70. The VP-70Z ("Zivilversion") was for civilians, and single shot. The VP-70M ("Militar") was for the military and came with a detachable stock and 3-round burst fire mode with a stupidly high cyclic rate of 2200 rpm.*

My advice to GM's - let them have what they want, but make their toys the "scaled down version" or the "cheap Made-In-Taiwan knock off version."





*Source

[Siege]

If your character has such a hard on to have one, ambush a 'Star.

Of course, be very very clear in what you cover and how you bury your tracks because Lone Star will be _very_ interested in finding all involved parties.

Or be a little more creative and raid the supply stores of Lone Star.

Given the degree of attention paid to these weapons, very few NPCs will want to be even peripherally involved in a stunt like either of the above.

-Siege

Edit: HK Mark 23 versus the Tactical.

[Fresno Bob]

I think of Ruger Thunderbolts like the Police Interceptors. They're both made specifically for cops, but after a while they take them out of commission and sell them to the public.

[Siege]

Probably not. Vehicles are one thing. Weapons systems are another. I have _yet_ to see an auction of old police weaponry, body armor and gas masks.

-Siege

[Kagetenshi]

If you do, let me know?

~J

[El_Machinae]

The best way to get them is to steal them from someone who stole it from a Lone Star. All the benefit, less risk!

[Siege]

I'll just point out that if the character in question is good (or crazy) enough to successfully lift one of these from a 'Star, you probably don't want to try your luck.

Just a thought.

-Siege

[Stonecougar]

Y'know, I've never understood what was so great about this gun anyway... I mean, it's only got effectively 4 shots, it's a cop magnet... I've never seen the need to have one.

[BitBasher]

[Person 404]

[Fresno Bob]

I can get a police interceptor new? Does it come standard with that cool bumper thing on the front?