Statting out the M5A2 Folsom Carbine

[ColonelAutumn9155]

Howdy all!

I'm trying to come up with stats for the M5A2 Folsom Carbine, a gun that features prominently in a sorely-overlooked game for the PS3 called Resistance: Fall of Man.

Basically, it involves some alternate history in which an alien threat emerges from Russia in the late 1940s and conquers Europe and Asia by 1951. The M5A2 is the standard infantry weapon of the US and UK forces in the game.

For my own purposes (both because I am thinking about running a campaign based on the Resistance universe, and because I just really like the gun), I'm trying to come up with stats for it. However, because I am not very knowledgeable about guns and I'm still fairly new to the system, I'm having a hard time coming up with stats aside from slapping arbitrary numbers in the blanks - and I try to avoid arbitrary slapping as much as possible.

I believe I've gotten the damage aspect down: the rifle uses a .303 round, which the wiki states is more likely to be an evolution of the .303 Savage rather than the .303 British. High-Tech Pulp Guns 2 lists the damage of the Savage model 99A in .303 Savage as 6d+2 pi. Seems reasonable to me.

Shots isn't a problem either: the mag size is a fairly ludicrous 50 shots in R:FoM, but was reduced to a more reasonable 30 in Resistance 2. I'll be using the 30 figure.

The problem lies in figuring out the other stats (Acc, Range, Weight, RoF, ST, Bulk, Rcl). As best I can figure, my best bet would be to look at the stats of similar firearms (I'm thinking either an M14 or M16) and use those stats? It looks more similar to the M14 than the M16, but it's fully automatic like M16, so I'm not sure.

Does anybody have any thoughts? Like I said, I'm not a gun guy so I don't really know what's reasonable or realistic, or even which gun is more similar to it.

Problem 2: the carbine also has an underslung 40mm grenade launcher, and I have no idea how to deal with extra attachments. Should I just treat it as a second, separate weapon mounted on the same frame?

Any and all help is appreciated, even if its just a simple "You just gotta do the research yourself," because as it stands, I'm lost.

[fula farbrorn]

I would personally probably make it into something like this

Name: M5A2 Folsom Carbine
TL: 7
Damage: 6D+2
Acc: 5
Range: 1,000/4,200
Wt.: 10.9/2.6
RoF: 5
Shots: 30+1 (3)
ST: 11†
Bulk: -6
Rcl: 3
Cost: God knows ?
LC: 1

Its Underbarrel seems to be a caseless frontloaded GL, i would just straight up use the russian VOG-25 to represent it, it seems to be the closest.

[Varyon]

Originally Posted by ColonelAutumn9155

It looks more similar to the M14 than the M16, but it's fully automatic like M16, so I'm not sure.

The M14 is (or at least is/was available as) fully automatic - Wikipedia gives it a Rate of Fire of 700-750 rounds per minute, which works out to GURPS RoF 12. It sounds like the M5A2 is basically an alternate-history version of the M14, so you could probably just use those stats and be fine (and then pick whichever underbarrel grenade launcher you prefer).

[Fred Brackin]

Originally Posted by Varyon

The M14 is (or at least is/was available as) fully automatic - Wikipedia gives it a Rate of Fire of 700-750 rounds per minute, which works out to GURPS RoF 12. It sounds like the M5A2 is basically an alternate-history version of the M14, so you could probably just use those stats and be fine (and then pick whichever underbarrel grenade launcher you prefer).

The M14 (like the very similar FN-FAL) was originally capable of full automatic fire but niether proved to be controllable when doing so. thats probably a ROF even worse than 3 (and even 3 makes full auto marginal). Both were subsequantly restricted to semi-auto.

The original AR-10 (predecessor to the AR-15/M-16) was in the same caliber and has been described as controllable in full auto from a braced position or while walking backward. Not many armies were interested in a full automatic rifle best used while walking backwards.

Probably no no c. 30 caliber ful auto rifle lighter than the BAR's original 17 lbs will be controllable in full auto fire. The later 22 lbs was probably a better choice as well.

I suppose the recoil-absorbing cam from the Kriss SMG could be invented 50 years early but if you combine that with the grenade launcher you might be up to 17 lbs anyway..

[MrFix]

Originally Posted by Fred Brackin

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GURPS understands M14 as full auto rifle, ROF 12 Rcl 3.

Originally Posted by fula farbrorn

Its Underbarrel seems to be a caseless frontloaded GL, i would just straight up use the russian VOG-25 to represent it, it seems to be the closest.

Purely visually it seems to be 1:1 copy of M203, maybe some issues with proprortions.

Otherwise, the weapon appears to be a direct copy of M14 EBR (due to all the railz), but with odd wooden stock. The 6d+2 figure and all related to the .303 caliber seem correct. Though the model used appears to have a 20-round M14 magazine, not 30.