Bug Hunts

by Mark Latham

  Even rarer than exo-suits, some specialists are now taking to the field with experimental grav-packs, which allow a marine to make an anti-gravity jump and even short periods of sustained flight. When used in coordinated strikes, grav-packs have proven effective in confusing bug “hive minds,” presenting a fast-moving target that often leads attacking bugs away from their primary target. Grav-packs are able to lift considerable weight – at least double the weight of the average marine – and are thus ideal for the rapid redeployment of equipment and sentry guns in extreme battlefield conditions.

  Some SMEUs are assigned sniper teams amongst their specialists. Given the “horde” nature of most bug threats, sniper teams are rarely seen in interstellar actions. However, there have been occasions when STAR marines have been called in to assist the Terran Army in subjugating human rebellions or internal terrorist threats – in such dire circumstances, the marine snipers are rightly feared for their precision firepower.

  Surface defence facility, Lunar Regiment HQ.

  GENERAL IBRAHIM YEATS, LUNAR BASE DIVISIONAL COMMANDER, 2267-71

  One of the first marine captains ever to fight against a sentient bug, Ibrahim Yeats fought Xeno-Parasites on Io and Perdition, receiving the corps’ highest award for bravery, the purple sun. After being wounded in the Luyten campaign, the then-Colonel Yeats was pulled from active duty, where he rose to the rank of general, eventually taking control of the moon’s prestigious marine division. Yeats is notable, however, for his last memorable duty. In 2271 he spoke at a public inquiry on behalf of STAR Command in light of the Marine Corps’ previous refusal to engage bugs in the Klaatu Nebula. Deviating radically from his prepared briefing, Yeats spoke passionately about the duty of a marine to protect mankind, and how the incident at Klaatu VI had shamed him to the core. His speech was a deciding factor in the passing of the Pan-System Concordance, which signed additional powers over marine deployment to the Authority. Yeats was hailed a hero at the time by the Authority’s ruling council, but died a month later, peacefully in his sleep. He is now all but forgotten.

  Tactics

  I don’t know if these bugs got religion, and I don’t care. I say kill ’em all, and let their stupid bug gods worry about ’em.

  – Sergeant Marquez, 12th Lunar Regiment

  Cover Formation

  The most common environment for STAR marine deployments is confined complexes and tunnel networks, whether performing a surgical strike on a remote colony base, a boarding action against an infested starship or space station, or a nestbusting mission deep within the caverns of an alien hive. The organization of marine platoons into four- and eight-man squads is purely to facilitate standard marine cover formation – the most reliable method of advancing through tight confines, sweeping unexplored territory and taking ground.

  Standard sweeping formation requires that two marines take point while two others remain behind to provide covering fire. Once a new position is secure, the point men provide cover while the rearguard move forward, and the process repeats. Eight-man teams follow the same procedure, but simply alternate more frequently – the main advantage of the larger team being that more marines are on hand to sweep rooms or side-tunnels, or hold positions while the remainder continue the sweep.

  Surgical Strikes

  Against planet-based complexes, marine platoons excel at surgical strikes, operating in a traditional “air cavalry” role. Dropsuit teams hit the site from Seraphim dropships, while the remaining marines usually deploy in Timberwolf APCs which grav-chute in from the air. The priorities of any surgical strike are to (a) secure a field HQ, (b) secure a perimeter and access the combat zone, (c) neutralize hostiles, and (d) rescue survivors. Additional objectives may be prioritized by regimental command on a case-by-case basis.

  Draper’s World bugs are not to be engaged at close quarters – unless you’re equipped with a Phalanx Exo-Suit.

  Boarding Actions

  STAR marines are trained in anti-grav combat from day one at the academy, and this is primarily so that they can maintain discipline and combat effectiveness while performing boarding actions. When a spacebound ship or facility is infested with bugs, essential systems are usually damaged, leading to a complete loss of artificial gravity and atmosphere. Fireteams, therefore, must often engage the enemy in zero-G conditions, whilst wearing sealed environment armor. Railgun teams invariably lead the way in these operations.

  Access to stricken ships is usually provided by eight-man assault boats, which are fired from SMEU cruisers. These boats clamp to any available hatch on the target vessel, and either override the airlock controls or utilize controlled detonations to provide access.

  Open War

  Often called the worst case scenario or last resort, it is a common marine maxim that warfare against bugs on open ground is an admission of failure. Of course, there have been several successful actions fought in this manner – the first ever campaign against Hive-Beasts on Klaatu VI most notable amongst them. However, the “acceptable” casualty rate during these actions is much higher than normal, given the huge potential for marines to be overrun. On the open battlefield, marines are often forced to fight from defensive positions – a role far more suited to the mass manpower solutions of the Terran Army. Although every marine platoon has access to a small mobile firebase, these are usually used as remote field HQs rather than defensible positions. Where open war is known in advance to be the only logical outcome of a campaign, larger firebases and pre-fab fortifications are dropped from orbit using grav-chutes, and quickly assembled on an advantageous position. From there, marines tend to adopt sniper and long-range tactics, resorting to “firing by ranks” when the enemy waves get closer. This form of warfare had not been used for over 250 years, before the first bugs were discovered – yet it has proven effective once again.

  Weapons & Equipment

  The following section details the main arms, equipment, and uniform options available to STAR marine fireteams in the field.

  SI-160 Assault Carbine

  SI-160 Assault Carbine.

  Developed from the much heavier MI-G60 assault rifle used by the Terran Army, the SI-160 is a compact, lightweight, semi-automatic carbine, and has become the standard issue weapon of STAR Marine Corps rifleman fireteams. It is light but incredibly rugged, being constructed from lightweight metal alloys and shock-resistant poly-plastic compounds. The weapon was designed for portability and efficient function in any environment and in any extreme of pressure or temperature. Though it lacks the sheer power of the MI-G60, this is compensated for by the carbine’s rate of fire and reliability, and the superior penetration of the enervated 4.73 x 33mm caseless ammunition.

  The SI-160 was designed with hordes of fast-moving bugs in mind, fulfilling the need to increase target hit probability by firing high-rate multi-round salvos. Even on the move, the carbine can be fired with remarkable accuracy. Recoil is amongst the lowest for a military-grade weapon of its size category, while jamming and overheating are virtually unheard of. Rounds are fed into the weapon from a magazine that lies below and parallel with the barrel. The rounds are oriented vertically (at 90 degrees to the bore) and are fed upwards into the rotary chamber where they are rotated 90 degrees for firing. This electronic process is powered by an arc-stabilized plasma core and, coupled with a cyclical multi-round breech, results in efficiency unmatched by traditional loading mechanisms. The weapon achieves optimal accuracy in semi-automatic fire mode, firing 3-round bursts. On full-auto mode, the 80-round magazine can be emptied in 4.2 seconds. The ammunition itself contains a charged plasma core, activated via an explosive tip, which causes massive internal damage due to a targeted energy release system without compromising armor penetration.

  The SI-160 carbine is fitted as standard with a simple reflector sight. However, for extreme battlefield conditions every marine also carries a snap-fit optical sight with low-power magnification and thermal reticule display.

  In addition, every marine carries
an underslung grenade launcher, which snaps to the underside of the SI-160’s barrel, and carries six 28mm fragmentation grenades, with an effective launch range of 220m. It is unusual in practice for a marine to carry additional grenades, as the reloading procedure is tricky and time-consuming. Accordingly, the grenade launchers are usually prepped and readied before entering the combat zone, even though the fitting of the launcher results in a minor reduction in accuracy.

  SI-200 Combi-carbine

  Crossfire Model 32 Frag Pistol.

  Taking the basic workings of the SI-160, the combi-carbine is a tougher, heavier assault carbine, featuring an underslung secondary weapon housed in a reinforced titanium casing. The standard loadout features a personal flamethrower (see the Model 995 flamethrower, below), with a gel-cartridge good for six bursts. Alternatively, the combi-carbine can be fitted with a pump-action 12-gauge shotgun as a secondary weapon, containing six shells in a hard-fit magazine. Standard scatter ammunition for the shotgun attachment can be replaced with solid slug or anti-chitin capped rounds.

  Crossfire Model 32 “Mauler” Frag Pistol

  Combi-carbine.

  Essentially a semi-automatic pistol shotgun, the Mauler was developed as an effective all-purpose sidearm against chitin-armored bug swarms in close confines. Where a combat shotgun often proves too bulky to form part of a fire support trooper’s standard kit, the Model 32 is a good compromise, offering effective stopping power across a “scattergun”-type spread.

  The Mauler’s underslung clip contains eight 16-gauge shells, with enervated shot designed for splintering bone and chitin exo-skeletons. Where carrying capacity allows, some marines also carry secondary clips of solid or nitrogen-infused shot; these provide maximum lethality and internal trauma but reduce the area of effect to a single target. Incendiary shot has also been field-tested, but has so far proved ineffective against most types of infestation due to the poor range, accuracy, and burn time.

  Crossfire MC12 Combat Shotgun

  MC12 Combat Shotgun.

  One of the oldest weapon patterns in the Crossfire arms company’s repository, the MC12 has stood the test of time due to its simple design and battlefield effectiveness. A rugged, semi-automatic 12-gauge shotgun, the MC12 is often carried by specialists, fire support troopers, and NCOs as a backup weapon, and is frequently carried aboard APCs for close-quarter assault actions.

  The MC12 is a versatile weapon with a variety of ammunition, which can be interchangeably loaded into its 9-shot chamber. It can fire 76 mm shells of differing power levels without any operator adjustments and in any combination. Standard ammo carried on marine operations includes canister (scatter), solid slug, rocket-assisted, high-ex, nitrogen, and anti-chitin capped rounds.

  SI-66X Heavy Auto-carbine

  SI-66X Heavy Auto-carbine.

  Dubbed “Frankenstein” by the troops, this heavy-caliber machine gun is an ugly hybrid of the Terran Army’s MX250 chaingun and the STAR Marine Corps SI-160 standard-issue carbine. By replacing most of the titanium casing with composite plastics the SI-66X is a much lighter – though still unwieldy – weapon than its groundhog counterpart.

  Firing 6.6mm enervated caseless plasma rounds at a rate of 400 rounds per minute, the heavy auto-carbine has to be mounted on a personal harness and suspension system in order to fire with any degree of accuracy. Its ammo hoppers each contain 500 rounds at full capacity. Many fire support troopers use a 900-round belt-feed instead to reduce weight and bulk – however, the removal of the electric drum feed sacrifices rate of fire. The fire support trooper is always assigned a backup marine to carry additional ammunition and assist with maintenance and clearing jams.

  The “Frankenstein” is not ideal for bug infestations in close quarters, although standard operating procedure dictates that at least two such weapons are present in any platoon organization. The fire support trooper who carries the SI-66X thus usually carries a secondary firearm for when the sheer size of the Frankenstein is counterproductive.

  Model 995 “Snapdragon” Flamethrower

  Snapdragon Flamethrower.

  Before mankind encountered dangerous bug strains, the flamethrower had long since been abandoned as a weapon of war, considered too barbaric and inhumane to use on the battlefield. Now, however, it has become a powerful weapon in the war on bugs, especially Araknyds and Hive-Beasts.

  Discarding 21st-century thermobaric technology, which is mostly useless in alien atmospheres, the snapdragon instead uses a hydrocarbon gel-pack, which is liquefied and pressurized when the trigger is depressed, and ignited by an external flame as it leaves the barrel. The gel burns with an intense heat, producing its own oxygen to feed the flames as it does so. The burning liquid is incredibly viscous, and sticks to the target, ensuring that it is almost impossible to extinguish the flames until the gel has burned up.

  Grenades

  The Marine Corps utilizes a variety of specialist hand grenades – a highly effective, if often low-tech, solution to 23rd-century battlefield problems.

  The standard-issue grenade belt contains two M62 fragmentation grenades and one baffler grenade. The baffler grenade releases a cloud of dense smoke, thermal particles, and an electromagnetic scrambler screen, essentially making visual and scan-assisted targeting impossible. Against some species of bug – especially Araknyds – the electromagnetic screen seems to interfere with synaptic relays as well as messing up their vision, temporarily confusing the beasts.

  Any of the grenades may be replaced with anti-chitin or nitrogen grenades at the behest of a platoon’s commanding officer. Developed from anti-armor charges, anti-chitin grenades work much like an old-fashioned “nail bomb,” discharging a cloud of armor-piercing high-explosive shells into the midst of an enemy formation. These shells can penetrate or embed themselves in chitinous armor up to 2 inches thick, whereupon they explode with some force, ripping chunks out of bug hides. Nitrogen grenades, on the other hand, release an expanding core of enervated liquid nitrogen, instantly freezing anything they touch. These are tailored for combat against the Draper’s World Xeno-Parasite – although it cannot kill them outright, it does make them extremely sluggish for vital seconds or even minutes.

  Thermal detonators are not standard issue, and are usually carried in addition to the regulation grenade pack. They are based on the Terran Army’s incendiary grenades, but are larger to accommodate a greater amount of thermate and an increased charge for wider dispersion. These grenades spread a flaming chemical compound around the detonation point, burning in excess of 3,992°F (2,200°C), in almost any atmosphere as no external oxygen source is required. After seeing the effectiveness of incendiary grenades against Araknyds during the Earth invasion, these larger packs were developed hastily for marine patrols taking the fight to the enemy.

  “Nestbuster” Smart Nuke

  Despite its name, the smart nuke is not a nuclear weapon in the old-fashioned sense, in that it does not require fission-fusion or fissile materials such as plutonium or uranium. Instead, the smart nuke uses a low-yield pure fusion core, which explodes with incredible power, but creates no nuclear fallout.

  The smart nuke was originally developed to combat Araknyd nests, but has also proven invaluable against Hive-Beast colonies. It is a man-portable device, resembling a heavy sphere some 9 inches in diameter. Once activated, the sphere separates, and its central gravitic drive propels it upwards to a height of around 61/2 feet. The on-board guidance system follows trace chemical signatures emitted by the bugs, gliding through subterranean tunnels, maintenance shafts, and corridors, eventually detonating when the concentration of those signatures reaches a critical point – this is usually an indicator that a bug nest has been discovered.

  The power of the smart nuke is usually enough to eradicate all but the largest nests, and recent trials using the on-board sensors to detect hive-beast and Xeno-Parasite trace signatures have proven moderately successful. However, the weapon is bulky before it is activated, has a limited range (of aroun
d 550 yards), and is incredibly expensive to manufacture. Marine doctrine forbids the use of smart nukes unless thorough battlefield surveys have first been conducted. Pre-emptive use – and therefore wastage – of these valuable weapons is punishable by court martial.

  TGL-40 Lockdown, 40mm Tactical Grenade Launcher

  40mm Tactical Grenade Launcher.

  The TGL-40 is a robust multi-shot grenade launcher, featuring a semi-automatic launcher fed by a 9-shot rotary magazine. The TGL-40 is a bulky weapon, weighing over 60 pounds unloaded, and is therefore usually mounted on a suspension harness in much the same way as a heavy auto-carbine. The TGL-40 can also be tripod-mounted or emplaced on the cupola mount of a Timberwolf APC. It fires specially designed 40x50mm frag, incendiary, or anti-chitin cartridges. Occasionally, spare hoppers of baffler grenades are carried by the fire support troopers, but against many bug species these often prove ineffective.

  The TGL-40 also contains an on-board X5 smart processor, a computerized targeting system that automatically calculates the angle of fire to attack enemies behind cover, priming frag grenades so that they detonate in an airburst above emplaced positions. This fire mode can also be combined with anti-chitin grenades, utilizing a short-ranged homing system to “pursue” bugs into warrens and tunnels before detonating.

  Firestorm Launcher Harness

  A bulky weapon usually confined to use by exo-suit specialists, the Firestorm is a personal grenade launcher harness, which mounts six 28mm frag grenades upon a chest-mounted strap. The delivery system is activated by pulling the safety cord and slapping a trigger mechanism on the marine’s shoulder. After a five-second delay, the launcher then fires its full payload, one at a time, creating a storm of shrapnel from which the harness derives its name. Exo-suits usually mount two of these harnesses, controlled via the suit’s neuro-link.