HOME | DD

Description
Manufacturer: Zenith Station Arms Company
User: Terran Federal Union Exploratory Corps, various
Cartridge: 8mm 'Rosebud' fragmenting rounds
Feed System: 15-round detachable box magazine standard, higher-capacity magazines on special order
Sights: integrated 3-15x rapid-adapting red-dot smartscope

--------------------

The penultimate edition of the venerable E-51 series, the E-51p was itself the end result of more than a century of fine-tuning to create a research tool that could aid Exploratory Corps research teams both in specimen acquisition and in self-defense against accidentally-provoked alien megafauna.

While not as outright lethal as even a low-intensity plasma weapon or a railgun, an E-51's chemically propelled cartridges will actually leave a carcass intact after impact, able to be dissected for research or used for food in a survival setting. The weapon's 'Rosebud' cartridge was developed with off-world use in mind, designed as a fragmenting trocar round - as opposed to the hollowpoints preferred by Terran big-game hunters before that practice was banned in Union member-states - with the idea that at least one trocar would be able to strike a critical organ in a species with unmapped anatomy. This also fed into the choice to use an 8mm diameter for the round, in order to make each individual trocar as large as possible and to possess as much penetrating power as possible.

Continuing the E-51 series' reputation of durability and reliability first begun in the 'j' model, the E-51p is remarkably durable and tolerant of fouling. This design philosophy also extended into the decision to directly integrate the scope into the 'p' model's frame, sacrificing modularity and ease of maintenance for even more resistance to damage.

Though primarily intended as a research tool for the Exploratory Corps, the E-51 series as a whole was also favored by pre-Impact law enforcement and personal/event security Subcontractors, as its fragmenting rounds are unlikely to overpenetrate a target unless fired in a contact shot.

As the newer 'q' model was still in development on Earth at the time of the Great Impact, the E-51p remains one of the most common weapons in the post-Impact galaxy, having spawned its own multitude of local variants and derivatives. The Sacred Republic's Law Enforcement Responders use a shortened variant of the E-51p in cramped Flock housing, while the Alliance commonly arms Shareholder Levies with a simplified model. Other Petty Unions that lack the resources or technology base to manufacture plasma weaponry also use the E-51p or previous variants as a stopgap weapon to arm their own militaries.

-------------------------------------------------------

A brief look at some of the hardware of my ongoing science fiction universe, this time depicted by the ever-honorable Herckeim(www.deviantart.com/herckeim ). Not really the standard 'future assault rifle' so much as it is an AK-analog - cheap, durable, and it's everywhere. Enjoy.

Description
Manufacturer: Zenith Station Arms Company
User: Terran Federal Union Exploratory Corps, various
Cartridge: 8mm 'Rosebud' fragmenting rounds
Feed System: 15-round detachable box magazine standard, higher-capacity magazines on special order
Sights: integrated 3-15x rapid-adapting red-dot smartscope

--------------------

The penultimate edition of the venerable E-51 series, the E-51p was itself the end result of more than a century of fine-tuning to create a research tool that could aid Exploratory Corps research teams both in specimen acquisition and in self-defense against accidentally-provoked alien megafauna.

While not as outright lethal as even a low-intensity plasma weapon or a railgun, an E-51's chemically propelled cartridges will actually leave a carcass intact after impact, able to be dissected for research or used for food in a survival setting. The weapon's 'Rosebud' cartridge was developed with off-world use in mind, designed as a fragmenting trocar round - as opposed to the hollowpoints preferred by Terran big-game hunters before that practice was banned in Union member-states - with the idea that at least one trocar would be able to strike a critical organ in a species with unmapped anatomy. This also fed into the choice to use an 8mm diameter for the round, in order to make each individual trocar as large as possible and to possess as much penetrating power as possible.

Continuing the E-51 series' reputation of durability and reliability first begun in the 'j' model, the E-51p is remarkably durable and tolerant of fouling. This design philosophy also extended into the decision to directly integrate the scope into the 'p' model's frame, sacrificing modularity and ease of maintenance for even more resistance to damage.

Though primarily intended as a research tool for the Exploratory Corps, the E-51 series as a whole was also favored by pre-Impact law enforcement and personal/event security Subcontractors, as its fragmenting rounds are unlikely to overpenetrate a target unless fired in a contact shot.

As the newer 'q' model was still in development on Earth at the time of the Great Impact, the E-51p remains one of the most common weapons in the post-Impact galaxy, having spawned its own multitude of local variants and derivatives. The Sacred Republic's Law Enforcement Responders use a shortened variant of the E-51p in cramped Flock housing, while the Alliance commonly arms Shareholder Levies with a simplified model. Other Petty Unions that lack the resources or technology base to manufacture plasma weaponry also use the E-51p or previous variants as a stopgap weapon to arm their own militaries.

-------------------------------------------------------

A brief look at some of the hardware of my ongoing science fiction universe, this time depicted by the ever-honorable Herckeim(www.deviantart.com/herckeim ). Not really the standard 'future assault rifle' so much as it is an AK-analog - cheap, durable, and it's everywhere. Enjoy.