RH-ALAN MACS-M2A
Notes: This
Croatian weapon is the standard heavy sniper rifle of that country.
It is a single-shot, bolt-action weapon with an adjustable buttstock,
cheekpiece, and trigger. The
31.1-inch barrel is tipped with a large multi-baffle muzzle brake.
The bipod is fairly simple and of inexpensive construction, but is
adjustable for height. The standard
sight for this weapon is a Kahles ZF 10x42.
It is reminiscent in appearance to the AMAC 50.
These weapons have literally turned up everywhere, including the former
Yugoslavia, Africa, Afghanistan, and Southeast Asia (usually in the hands of bad
guys).
The MACS-M3 is
the MACS-M2A reconfigured into a bullpup design.
The bolt action protrudes over the shoulder of the firer.
It is otherwise the same weapon as the MACS-M2A, though the barrel length
is reduced slightly to 29.9 inches.
It is used on a limited basis by the Croatian Army, but most firers find it
unwieldy and clumsy, especially when reloading.
Twilight 2000
Notes: Like many Croatian weapons, the MACS-M2A is used mostly by Croatian and
Slovenian snipers, but can also be found in Serbia, Bosnia, and Romania.
A small amount have also turned up in Italian hands.
The MACS-M3 is an uncommon modification of the MACS-M2A in the Twilight
2000 World.
Merc 2000 Notes:
Like many weapons of the former Yugoslavian republics, these rifles were widely
sold on the export market. However, the MACS-M3 was never really popular.
Weapon |
Ammunition |
Weight |
Magazines |
Price |
MACS-M2A |
.50 Browning Machinegun |
12.38 kg |
1 Internal |
$4690 |
MACS-M3 |
.50 Browning Machinegun |
8.8 kg |
1 Internal |
$4641 |
Weapon |
ROF |
Damage |
Pen |
Bulk |
SS |
Burst |
Range |
MACS-M-2A |
SS |
9 |
2-3-4 |
9 |
4 |
Nil |
131 |
MACS-M2A (Bipod) |
SS |
9 |
2-3-4 |
9 |
2 |
Nil |
170 |
MACS-M3 |
SS |
9 |
2-3-4 |
7 |
4 |
Nil |
111 |
MACS-M3 (Bipod) |
SS |
9 |
2-3-4 |
7 |
2 |
Nil |
144 |
RH-ALAN RT-20
Notes: The RT-20
(Rucini Top, 20mm, or “Hand Cannon”)
is an antimateriel rifle, normally used to destroy equipment and light vehicles
instead of personnel. It is
described by the Croatians as a "hand cannon."
The RT-20 is also a rather complicated (though easy to build) Weapon; it
is also impractical weapon in many respects due to its configuration, weight,
size (over 5.5 feet long), the huge firing signature (more akin to a rocket
launcher than that of a rifle), and restrictions on what kind of cover it may be
fired from. Despite this, the RT-20
has been wildly popular; it can be found almost anywhere in the world, and a lot
of factories that don’t have a license are simply copying it illegally.
The idea of the
RT-20 started during the breakup of the former Yugoslavia and the wars which
followed it. The Serbs had as part
of their tank forces the M-84, which is in fact a rather good tank compared to
the average tank in the region, with excellent night vision that could easily
pick out Croatian armor and infantry at long distances.
The RT-20 was designed to take out the external parts of the thermal
cameras of the M-84 (and the optics and vision blocks of other vehicles as
well). It was, in fact, quite good
at doing this (enough that the Serb military put a bounty on the RT-20 and their
gunners), and the mission of the RT-20 was quickly expanded.
That said, the
RT-20 can be a bitch to operate.
One of the biggest problems is the bullpup/single-shot bolt-action
configuration. The bolt and action
of the weapon are largely above and behind the shoulder of the gunner when he
has the RT-20 on his shoulder; this means that to reload and cock the weapon,
the gunner must take it off his shoulder, and then either shove it forward,
scoot back, or sit up. (Of course,
you don’t want to really sit up when you are in a hide spot…)
After that, he has to remove the entire bolt and clip a round to it, then
re-insert it into the rifle. And while the RT-20 does have a truly massive
multi-baffle muzzle brake, thick rubber pads around the shoulder areas of the
rifle, and a heavy recoil spring-type absorber, even these did not prove
effective enough in absorbing the recoil of what is normally an aircraft and
naval cannon cartridge.
The Croatians
therefore turned the RT-20 into sort of a mini-recoilless rifle; the RT-20 has a
complex gas system reduces the recoil of shots to manageable levels, one that
basically exhausts most of the excess gas from the cartridge through a gas tube
and out the rear of the rifle. One
result of this system is that the RT-20 has a backblast, and persons behind the
weapon are in danger from the escaping gasses. For the same reason, the RT-20
cannot be fired within 2 meters in front of a wall.
The firing position is unorthodox, with the firer lying at an angle to
the weapon to avoid having his legs burned, similar to prone firing of a rocket
launcher. (To help solve the
reloading and cocking problem, the spotter on an RT-20 team normally will cock
and load the weapon, while the RT-20 remains on the shooter’s shoulder; however,
he must move 2-3 meters away during the actual shot, creating its own
concealment problems.) The result
is that while the RT-20 may require some unusual contortions to use, the recoil
is far less than one would expect from a rifle firing this sort of cartridge.
(It also means that the term “antimateriel rifle” for this weapon is
regarded by many as inaccurate, with some experts calling it an “antimateriel
launcher” or something like that.)
The combination of large muzzle blast and backblast will almost certainly give
away the shooter’s position, making it unsuitable as a sniper’s weapon for most
purposes.
The RT-20 has no
iron sights; the scope mount is on the side of the weapon and normally is
equipped with a Kahles ZF 6x42 scope.
The mount is positioned so that is provides a large amount of eye relief,
preventing the scope from hitting the shooter during firing and giving him a
black eye or other eye damage. The
RT-20 is equipped with a lightweight bipod adjustable for height, and to a
lesser extent, cant. The RT-20 is
also issued with a pair of special backpacks; either pack may carry the entire
weapon (broken down), or the RT-20 may be split between the two backpacks.
Originally, the RT-20 was an incredibly heavy weapon, later production
brought the weight down considerably due to the use of lighter materials, and
the latest variant, the RT-20M1 is significantly lighter, and also has a better
muzzle brake, a lesser firing signature, and a lighter yet stronger barrel.
Twilight 2000
Notes: This weapon has proliferated from Spain to Iraq.
Merc 2000 Notes:
This is one of Croatia’s big sellers; they make a lot of money off of it,
and will sell it to just about anyone.
Weapon |
Ammunition |
Weight |
Magazines |
Price |
RT-20 (Early) |
20mm Hispano-Suiza HS-404 |
25.86 kg |
1 Internal |
$10223 |
RT-20 (Late) |
20mm Hispano-Suiza HS-404 |
19.05 kg |
1 Internal |
$10259 |
RT-20M1 |
20mm Hispano-Suiza HS-404 |
15.88 kg |
1 Internal |
$10301 |
Weapon |
ROF |
Damage |
Pen |
Bulk |
SS |
Burst |
Range |
RT-20 (Early, API) |
½ |
14 |
3/-2/-5 |
9 |
2 |
Nil |
194 |
(With Bipod) |
½ |
14 |
3/-2/-5 |
9 |
1 |
Nil |
252 |
RT-20 (Early, HE) |
½ |
C1 B5 |
-4C |
9 |
2 |
Nil |
161 |
(With Bipod) |
½ |
C1 B5 |
-4C |
9 |
1 |
Nil |
210 |
RT-20 (Early, FRAG) |
½ |
C0 B6 |
-6C |
9 |
2 |
Nil |
161 |
(With Bipod) |
½ |
C0 B6 |
-6C |
9 |
1 |
Nil |
210 |
RT-20 (Late, API) |
½ |
14 |
3/-2/-5 |
9 |
2 |
Nil |
194 |
(With Bipod) |
½ |
14 |
3/-2/-5 |
9 |
1 |
Nil |
252 |
RT-20 (Late, HE) |
½ |
C1 B5 |
-4C |
9 |
2 |
Nil |
161 |
(With Bipod) |
½ |
C1 B5 |
-4C |
9 |
1 |
Nil |
210 |
RT-20 (Late, FRAG) |
½ |
C0 B6 |
-6C |
9 |
2 |
Nil |
161 |
(With Bipod) |
½ |
C0 B6 |
-6C |
9 |
1 |
Nil |
210 |
RT-20M1 (API) |
½ |
14 |
3/-2/-5 |
9 |
2 |
Nil |
147 |
(With Bipod) |
½ |
14 |
3/-2/-5 |
9 |
1 |
Nil |
191 |
RT-20M1 (HE) |
½ |
C1 B5 |
-4C |
9 |
2 |
Nil |
106 |
(With Bipod) |
½ |
C1 B5 |
-4C |
9 |
1 |
Nil |
139 |
RT-20M1 (FRAG) |
½ |
C0 B6 |
-6C |
9 |
2 |
Nil |
106 |
(With Bipod) |
½ |
C0 B6 |
-6C |
9 |
1 |
Nil |
139 |