[Modern Firepower] Technothriller gear for secret DHS team in 2017

[Icelander]

Originally Posted by Kalzazz

HiPoint also makes carbines if you like HiPoint

Well, I don't, but gunrunners selling to uneducated, teenaged buyers seem to like the price point, as it leaves more room for their profit margin.

The contact can have his straw purchasers buy them used at around $200-$300 at gunshows or in Texas stores and resell them for about a grand a few miles over the border. Maybe a little less for the .380 ACP carbine, as the risk of smuggling it is lower (lower bribes and less potential punishment if caught).

Originally Posted by Kalzazz

Ruger Mini14 and Mini30 are popular carbines. The A.C. 556 is a selective fire Mini14 I think

Unfortunately, these are as or more expensive to acquire as AR-15 rifles or AK-type rifles, but don't have the cool black-gun 'American machine gun' or bad-boy gangster AK cachet among gangbangers and narco sicarios in Mexico. There is therefore less of a profit margin in reselling them south of the border.

From what I can tell (reported seizures, international smallarms market analysis), Ruger Minis are about an order of magnitude less common than AR-15s and AKs on the Mexican drug scene.

I suppose Agent Rubio could have her contact source some, but he would charge her extra for having to set it up, it might take a few days and in the end, she'd have a functionally equivalent rifle to most AR-15s, albeit one less familiar to people trained on an M4.

Originally Posted by Kalzazz

Ruger P95 is a semi popular service pistol

I suppose I could add it, especially if any police forces in Texas or New Mexico used to carry them. Or, even better, if any local Chihuahan police ever did.

Originally Posted by Kalzazz

Remington 700 is a popular hunting and sniper rifle
Remington 760 / 7600 are popular hunting and police rifles (they have similar feel to the 870 shotgun and were popular to put in squad cars), also slide action rifles are just cool

I suppose a few odds and ends turn up across the border, but none of these would be prefered over even a cheap 'black rifle' in nasty condition. Most of the buyers are looking for a status symbol, not a working tool.

Also, it seems very few people with the skill or temperaments to be snipers work for the cartels. Despite near-constant reports of .50 BMG rifles being sought after by cartel high-ups, these weapons seldom or ever feature in the violence there.

Gunfights there, as elsewhere in a civilian context, usually take place at conversational distances. I don't imagine any bolt-action or other manual action rifle would find much favour, especially as a higher-capacity, semi-auto rifle or carbine with less recoil is more forgiving for an inexperienced shooter.

Originally Posted by Kalzazz

Taurus Judge because it is cool

From what I can tell, the mark of a wealthy, successful narcotraficanté in Mexico is a shiny decorated M1911 with a long barrel, ideally in .38 Super.

[Kalzazz]

Quick googling suggests Remington 700s are used by police marksmen in Mexico, and apparently the Walther P99 is an existing handgun

http://www.smallarmsreview.com/displ...darticles=1384

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grup...ciales_(Mexico)

[Icelander]

Originally Posted by Kalzazz

The Kawasaki KLR 650 is an extremely popular dual sport bike that has been in service since 87, and is actually fielded (with diesel conversion) by the US military

Yamaha Super Tenere and BMW R1200GS are other popular dual sport / adventure bikes

What GURPS stats would you assign these? Particularly Stability and Hnd, as the others are mostly derived from real world units.

[Icelander]

Originally Posted by Kalzazz

Quick googling suggests Remington 700s are used by police marksmen in Mexico, and apparently the Walther P99 is an existing handgun

http://www.smallarmsreview.com/displ...darticles=1384

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grup...ciales_(Mexico)

You're absolutely right about the Walther 99 AS pistol. The Chihuahuan state police received thousands of them about ten years ago and with the rates of desertion and corruption, it's a safe bet that there are hundreds of them on the black market.

As for the specific Remington 700 rifles issued to the GOE, they are a fairly tiny elite within the large population of armed police and soldiers in Mexico. I doubt that their desertion rates are over 10% per year, as they are for regular troops, and it is probably somewhat harder to bribe them to sell their weapons on the black market.

That being said, obtaining a Remington 700 on the other side of the border would be easy enough to do, if somebody wanted one. A random roll indicates that Agent Rubio's contact knows a guy who sourced one for a local farmer, but hasn't been paid yet and is willing to sell it to someone else at the same price. It's chambered in .243 Winchester, which is technically legal for civilians willing to jump through requisite hoops, and therefore less troublesome to keep in ammo and less of a risk if he were caught with it.

If Agent Rubio really wants a precision rifle, Remington 700 or a different model, in a different chambering, her contact could get one within a couple of days, for a few hundred dollars more. But given that any weapons would be for self-defence purposes from a kidnapping attempt or ambush and would need to be somewhat concealable, either on our persons or in our vehicles, I doubt bolt-action rifles are something she'll be looking to buy.

I've incorporated all suggestions and some more weapons into the original post.

Edit: Any readers of the Project Jade Serenity, Season 1 thread, by all means speculate what weapons would be suitable for characters in the campaign.

Dr. Michael Anderson seems to dislike firearms and is unlikely to agree to carry one. OOC, I've suggested that he might want to look into a stun gun or a TASER. Any suggestions as to brands and models? Something else he needs for self-defence?

Sherilyn 'Cherry' Bell is obviously not going to be allowed to carry a weapon. On the other hand, once over the border, the only people available to enforce that rule will be Agent O'Toole and Agent Rubio. Assuming they, for some unfathomable reason, were to allow her to be armed, which of the weapons available on the black market would suit her?

What do you reckon Agent O'Toole would want to carry?

How about Chase Taylor?

[Kalzazz]

Would Smith and Wesson Model 65s exist?

[evileeyore]

Originally Posted by Icelander

Dr. Michael Anderson seems to dislike firearms and is unlikely to agree to carry one. OOC, I've suggested that he might want to look into a stun gun or a TASER. Any suggestions as to brands and models? Something else he needs for self-defence?

Pepper Spray as well. It's really the first step, it's far less lethal and just as debilitating to most people.

What do you reckon Agent O'Toole would want to carry?

O'Toole obviously either needs compensate for shortcomings and thus would require a massive honking hand cannon, or he'd prefer to be able to ultra-conceal and carry and would prefer something small and compact, but deadly.

How about Chase Taylor?

Chase strikes me as the type to not really be a "brand fanatic", he might eventually settle on preferred favorite, but he really strikes me as the type to use whatever comes to hand as long as it's a reliable piece, and not all tacti-kewled out. Simple, durable, reliable, and ubiquitous.

[Icelander]

Originally Posted by evileeyore

Pepper Spray as well. It's really the first step, it's far less lethal and just as debilitating to most people.

Fair enough.

Originally Posted by evileeyore

O'Toole obviously either needs compensate for shortcomings and thus would require a massive honking hand cannon, or he'd prefer to be able to ultra-conceal and carry and would prefer something small and compact, but deadly.

Good read. In his actual law enforcement career, Agent O'Toole did indeed opt for the smallest and least inconvenient weapon he was allowed as a service pistol, a H&K P2000 SK in .40 S&W.

Practically speaking, O'Toole is really only familiar with that pistol, M16/M4/AR-15 rifles from his basic training and the Beretta M9/92. He's not a gun person and has never fired a weapon (or even thought much about it) outside training and yearly qualification.

Now, however, he's impersonating an Iron Order biker who is stationed at Fort Bliss and has been hired as a bodyguard. He needs to look the part. Preferably with a pistol for daily carry and a longarm that fits in the saddlebags of a Harley (around 27" OAL folded/retracted or otherwise prepared for storage).

And sadly, there is a chance he might have to actually function as a bodyguard, for example if Vargas and his Knights Templars don't welcome our presence, if a rival cartel doesn't buy the cover story (or decides to kidnap us anyway) or we're caught in random violence in a place which has been named a strong contender for 'Murder Capital of the World' in the 21st century.

I'm thinking that O'Toole is probably not going to spend a day or two at a firing range, so that restricts him to Beretta 92 or a copy and an AR-15 of some sort.

Originally Posted by evileeyore

Chase strikes me as the type to not really be a "brand fanatic", he might eventually settle on preferred favorite, but he really strikes me as the type to use whatever comes to hand as long as it's a reliable piece, and not all tacti-kewled out. Simple, durable, reliable, and ubiquitous.

That's right. Taylor would agree with Sam from Ronin if asked about his favourite weapon: "You know, it's a toolbox".

Mind you, Taylor is a brand fanatic about a lot of things. It's apparently a Southern thing. Households are loyal to the point of exclusivity to a brand of car, ketchup, coke, cookies and even baking soda. Taylor wouldn't knowingly drink Pepsi, use Hunts, drive a Dodge or visit McDonalds without dire need. However, those are all examples from his childhood and types of things he genuinely likes.

He just doesn't feel that strongly about guns. Except maybe the Marlin 60 he learned to shoot on, with his maternal grandpa. Other than that, guns and wrenches fall into much the same category for him. Tools where the intended task dictates the type you need. Taylor was an 18B (SF Weapons Sergeant) for 11 years and is a highly qualified armourer, so he'll be able to pick out a functioning weapon of any type and fix any problem that doesn't require entirely new parts.

For the current mission, he needs to be able to defend his team mates from any potential threats in Mexico, from gangbagers and cartel sicarios, up to and including a full twelve man A-team / ODA of rogue Green Berets who share not only his training, but are all former Project Jade Serenity test subjects as well.

The weapons also have to fit a persona, C.J. Everett, a young Iron Order biker who used to be stationed at Fort Bliss. Taylor isn't trained for undercover work, so his handlers would suggest he incorporate as much of himself into the role as possible. So he'll still be a 'Bama boy who joined the Army right out of high school. That being said, C.J. needs to be plausible as someone making a living doing quasi-legal to illegal things.

So, I guess the question should be, what should C.J. carry?

[Icelander]

Originally Posted by Kalzazz

Would Smith and Wesson Model 65s exist?

Sure. They are the handguns used by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, where many guests of the state would have seen them. I guess that's sort of advertising.

Of course, being marked .357 Magnum instead of .38 Special makes smuggling them riskier, as the potential punishment is more severe. So they would be significantly more expensive than comparable revolvers in .38 Special across the border.

Demand for any kind of revolver is likely to be a lot lower than demand for semi-automatic pistols like the Beretta 92s, Colt 1911s, S&W pistols and Glocks.

[evileeyore]

Originally Posted by Icelander

Now, however, he's impersonating an Iron Order biker who is stationed at Fort Bliss and has been hired as a bodyguard. He needs to look the part. Preferably with a pistol for daily carry and a longarm that fits in the saddlebags of a Harley (around 27" OAL folded/retracted or otherwise prepared for storage).

Then he'll need a cannon and a concealed holdout.

Mind you, Taylor is a brand fanatic about a lot of things. It's apparently a Southern thing. Households are loyal to the point of exclusivity to a brand of car, ketchup, coke, cookies and even baking soda. Taylor wouldn't knowingly drink Pepsi, use Hunts, drive a Dodge or visit McDonalds without dire need. However, those are all examples from his childhood and types of things he genuinely likes.

So is he a Snap-On man? That's a big thing in the south, either he loves or hates Snap-On. It's just a thing with with good ole boys (and if he hates Snap-On, then he's Sears loyal and and is likely sad to see the "institution" go, "This [tool] was my Dad's, my grand-dad's, and my great-grand-dad's, an Sears always done right by 'em. Don't make tools like they used to").



I don't know guns, so I'm not really capable of commenting on what pieces they should carry.

[Kalzazz]

http://www.chuckhawks.com/motorcycle_firearms.htm

I found that interesting on motorcycles and guns