Gepard M-1

Notes: The Gepard M-1 is rather large single-shot heavy rifle with a very long 42.4-inch barrel made from heavy steel, and tipped with a small but very effective muzzle brake (which unfortunately also produces a great deal of muzzle flash). The Gepard M-1 is largely built of tubular steel, including most of the stock, which is basically skeletonized with a heavily-padded buttplate and a padded cheekpiece which looks like an afterthought on the part of the designers, though it is in fact quite comfortable. The entire rifle is quite simple and reportedly easy to manufacture and maintain.

The Gepard M-1 has a low rate of fire, but a satisfying long range and damage rating. Reloading can be slow in the hands of an unpracticed firer; to reload, the pistol grip/bolt carrier combination must be rotated, pulled back, and removed; the cartridge is then inserted, and the grip/block combination re-inserted. The Gepard M-1 comes with an adjustable bipod is normally provided, but the bipod or a tripod from a PK machinegun may also be used. For the M-1A1, there is a backpack frame that allows for easier cross-country carrying and works as a soft mount. Though the normal cartridge for the Gepard M-1 is the 12.7mm Russian cartridge, small amounts of them are built to fire .50 Browning Machinegun ammunition; this is usually done at the request of certain customers; it has been speculated, however, that more Gepard M-1s may be built in .50 Browning Machinegun with Hungary’s entrance into NATO.

The M-1A1 version is basically identical, but the rifle is mounted on a backpack frame which doubles as a firing platform/soft mount. The M-1A1 can be removed from the firing platform/backpack, but it has no mounts for either a bipod or tripod.

Twilight 2000 Notes: Almost no M-1s and M-1A1s were built for .50 Browning Machinegun ammunition in the Twilight 2000 timeline.

Weapon

Ammunition

Weight

Magazines

Price

Gepard M-1

12.7mm Russian

19 kg

1 Internal

$5353

Gepard M-1

.50 Browning Machinegun

18.56 kg

1 Internal

$5140

Gepard M-1A1

12.7mm Russian

22 kg

1 Internal

$5403

Gepard M-1A1

.50 Browning Machinegun

21.56 kg

1 Internal

$5190

Weapon

ROF

Damage

Pen

Bulk

SS

Burst

Range

Gepard M-1 (12.7mm)

1/2

10

2-2-3

13

4

Nil

194

(With Bipod)

1/2

10

2-2-3

13

2

Nil

253

(With Tripod)

1/2

10

2-2-3

13

1

Nil

389

Gepard M-1 (.50)

1/2

9

2-3-4

13

3

Nil

207

(With Bipod)

1/2

9

2-3-4

13

2

Nil

270

(With Tripod)

1/2

9

2-3-4

13

1

Nil

415

Gepard M-1A1 (12.7mm)

1/2

10

2-2-3

13

4

Nil

194

(With Firing Platform)

1/2

10

2-2-3

13

1

Nil

389

Gepard M-1A1 (.50)

1/2

9

2-3-4

13

3

Nil

207

(With Firing Platform)

1/2

9

2-3-4

13

1

Nil

415

Gepard M-2

Notes: Though the Gepard M-2 is based on the M-1, it is externally different and internally quite different than the M-1. This is because the M-2 is a semiautomatic magazine-fed rifle instead of a single-shot weapon. Though cocking is done with the same rotating pistol grip, this is basically where the similarity in operation ends; the M-2 is a repeating rifle using long-recoil operation. The barrel of the M-2 is of the same construction as that of the M-1, but almost an inch longer at 43.2 inches (and tipped by a different muzzle brake which reduces muzzle flash somewhat); however, the design of the M-2 is a semi-bullpup type and the rifle itself is actually some 13.2 inches shorter than the M-1. The M-2 is also intended to be more of an antimateriel weapon, as opposed to the M-1 which is meant more for antipersonnel work. The scope mount is uses a somewhat different elevated mount which allows more flexibility is scope choice; it can use Western European telescopic sights (but not night vision equipment), in addition to those used by the M-1. There are no iron sights on the M-2 either. (The standard scope is a Romanian-built 6x42 model with an illuminated reticle.) The magazine feed is just above the pistol grip on the left, with an ejection port on the other side; the magazine is inserted at about a 45-degree angle downward from the receiver. Unlike the M-1, the M-2 cannot be mounted on a tripod. A different bipod is also used, but it is lighter and stronger (but still not adjustable, except by locking it at different angles).

The M-2A1 version of the Gepard is intended primarily for use by airborne and special operations troops; the main difference from the M-2 is the reduced-length 32.7-inch barrel, and a sight mount which cannot mount any known night vision device.

Again, with the M-2 and M-2A1 there is speculation that the rifles may in the future be chambered for .50 Browning Machinegun rounds for further integration with NATO. In addition, the Hungarians may also be considering replacing their proprietary sight mounts with MIL-STD-1913 rails for the M-2 and M-2A1 (and later versions of the Gepard).

The Hungarians are known to have sold the M-2 and M-2A1 (and pretty much the entire Gepard series) in many "unnamed" places. There have even been persistent rumors that a few Taliban and Al Qaida personnel captured in Afghanistan were armed with the Gepard M-2 and M-2A1.

Twilight 2000 Notes: As the Twilight 2000 Notes for the M-1/M-1A1. In mid-1997, a Luftwaffe base near the Polish border would lose about one aircraft a week (or have one forced to make an emergency return to base) to a mysterious sniper; after 17 such incidents, this was traced to a Hungarian sniper, on loan to the Poles, who was armed with a Gepard M-2. (He also killed 31 base personnel or pilots and wounded twice that many; included in this was a young German private, who had his arm nearly severed after a round from the sniper killed the puppy he was holding.)

Weapon

Ammunition

Weight

Magazines

Price

Gepard M-2

12.7mm Russian

16.01 kg

5, 10

$6486

Gepard M-2

.50 Browning Machinegun

15.26 kg

5, 10

$6202

Gepard M-2A1

12.7mm Russian

15.01 kg

5, 10

$6138

Gepard M-2A1

.50 Browning Machinegun

14.26 kg

5, 10

$5854

Weapon

ROF

Damage

Pen

Bulk

SS

Burst

Range

Gepard M-2 (12.7mm)

SA

10

2-2-3

10

3

Nil

163

(With Bipod)

SA

10

2-2-3

10

1

Nil

212

Gepard M-2 (.50)

SA

9

2-2-3

10

3

Nil

174

(With Bipod)

SA

9

2-2-3

10

2

Nil

227

Gepard M-2A1 (12.7mm)

SA

9

2-3-4

9

3

Nil

108

(With Bipod)

SA

9

2-3-4

9

1

Nil

140

Gepard M-2A1 (.50)

SA

9

2-3-4

9

3

Nil

115

(With Bipod)

SA

9

2-3-4

9

1

Nil

150

Gepard M-3

Notes: After designing the Gepard M-1 and M-2 series rifles, Istvan Fellegi (the designer of the Gepard series) began to wonder what you would end up with if you designed a rifle around a "truly powerful cartridge" (something he apparently did not consider the 12.7mm Russian or the .50 Browning Machinegun rounds to be). After rejecting several Bloc and Yugoslavian 20mm rounds (and even, reportedly, a few 23mm rounds) due to extreme recoil, he decided to go with the 14.5mm KPV round. The Gepard M-3 is perhaps better known by the name "Destroyer," though this was never an official name given to the rifle; the origins of the name are unknown. The M-3 is designed to engage light aircraft and other targets at longer ranges than the M-2; of course, it can surely make a mess of a person as well. The M-3 is perhaps the most-common and best-known of the Gepard series.

The appearance of the M-3 is quite similar to the standard M-2; however, at 74.4 inches long and with a 63.6-inch barrel tipped with compact (but very efficient) muzzle brake, the M-3 is an absolutely huge rifle; of course, it also has a weight to match. The action is essentially identical (but larger), and also incorporates a hydraulic buffer to further attenuate recoil. The standard telescopic sight for the M-3 is a 12x60 scope of Hungarian make; no iron sights are provided.

Twilight 2000 Notes: Though troops may have liked the firepower, they did not like the fact that it is quite simply a huge weapon. It does have the distinction of being a weapon used in almost equal numbers in the West and East.

Weapon

Ammunition

Weight

Magazines

Price

Gepard M-3

14.5mm KPV

21 kg

5, 10

$8776

Weapon

ROF

Damage

Pen

Bulk

SS

Burst

Range

Gepard M-3

SA

12

2-2-3

13

3

Nil

278

Gepard M-3 (Bipod)

SA

12

2-2-3

13

2

Nil

362

Gepard M-4 SA1

Notes: This may be considered a highly-evolved version of the Gepard M-2. Unlike the M-2, the M-4 SA1 was meant from the outset to have both 12.7mm Russian-firing and .50 Browning Machinegun-firing versions. Though development was listed as complete in 1997, sales figures of the M-4 have never been released.

The entire weapon is of more beefy construction, with a heavy fluted barrel, huge muzzle brake, and a mount for virtually any sort of Western or Eastern optics. It appears to be an M-2 built to a better, more solid standard (one of the complaints of snipers using the M-2 and M-3 was its fragility, especially in the long barrels). Through use of better design, construction, and materials, the strength of the M-4 was increased without greatly increasing the weight of the weapon. Most of the rest of the improvements are in the area of ergonomics, and replacement of the issue scope with one of double the magnification of that normally issued with the M-2 (now normally a 12x60 scope). The magazine well has been moved to the bottom of the weapon; though the M-4 can use 5-round M-2 magazines, it cannot use the 10-round box magazine, using a drum instead. The action is more "normal," using a charging handle on the right side of the receiver; this handle folds when not in use. The action is of the long recoil type, and also reciprocates to an extent to further absorb recoil. The barrel is 31.6 inches long and tipped with a large, multi-baffle muzzle brake which helps with felt recoil and muzzle flash. The bipod is still not adjustable except by varying the angle, but the stock is adjustable for length of pull, and the cheekpiece is adjustable for height and position along the stock. The stock also has a retractable monopod to relieve stress upon the sniper during long hides. A folding carrying handle is mounted above the receiver, and the stock and barrel can telescope for transport (but not be fired in this collapsed state), with a sling being supplied to help this.

The Gepard M-5 SA1 is a version of the M-4 with a much longer 43.3-inch barrel. Though the M-5 SA1 is currently contemplated to be chambered only in 12.7mm Russian, it is quite possible that a .50 Browning Machinegun version will be built in the future. However, the M-5 SA1 currently exists only as advanced prototypes, despite having been in development for almost a decade; this is the fault more of economics than anything else. Considering that the M-4 SA1 is already almost 5 feet long, the M-5 SA1 may well receive the same complaints about size, weight, and clumsiness as other Gepard long-barreled rifles.

Twilight 2000 Notes: The M-4 SA1 was the final member of the Gepard line produced before the Twilight War. The M-5 SA1 was apparently on the drawing boards, but never manufactured.

Weapon

Ammunition

Weight

Magazines

Price

Gepard M-4 SA1

12.7mm Russian

17.01 kg

5, 10D

$6098

Gepard M-4 SA1

.50 Browning Machinegun

16.57 kg

5, 10D

$5815

Gepard M-5 SA1

12.7mm Russian

19.1 kg

5, 10D

$6499

Gepard M-5 SA1

.50 Browning Machinegun

18.66 kg

5, 10D

$6206

Weapon

ROF

Damage

Pen

Bulk

SS

Burst

Range

Gepard M-4 (12.7mm)

SA

9

2-3-4

10

2

Nil

102

(With Bipod)

SA

9

2-3-4

10

1

Nil

132

Gepard M-4 (.50)

SA

9

2-3-4

10

2

Nil

109

(With Bipod)

SA

9

2-3-4

10

1

Nil

142

Gepard M-5 (12.7mm)

SA

10

2-2-3

13

3

Nil

164

(With Bipod)

SA

10

2-2-3

13

1

Nil

213

Gepard M-5 (.50)

SA

9

2-2-3

12

3

Nil

175

(With Bipod)

SA

9

2-2-3

12

1

Nil

228