Enfield L-85
Notes: This
weapon was initially conceived during the British Government’s Small Arms 80
competition to design a new weapon to replace the L-1A1 version of the FN FAL
then used by the British Army. (The
weapon is thus often called the SA-80.)
It became one of the first bullpup-design weapons to be used by any army
in large numbers. The L-85A1’s
predecessors were initially designed to use a 6.25x43mm cartridge, then a
4.85x49mm round, but this was changed to the NATO standard 5.56x45mm round.
Also known as the IW (Individual Weapon), the L-85A1 is made from mostly
steel using modern machining and pressing processes, and was also one of the
first weapons designed using a CAD program. The weapon can be issued with a
conventional sight in a carrying handle; however, combat arms and special
operations troops are normally issued the L-85A1 with a robust 4x sight known as
the SUSAT (Small Unit Small Arms Trilux) L-9A1.
This sight allows for better range and more precise sighting.
The SUSAT’s base can also accommodate other NATO-standard optical
equipment. The standard barrel
length is 21.4 inches. The IW is simple to strip and clean --- and that is good,
since it is very finicky about dirt failing in dirty environments with
distressing regularity. In
addition, the L-85A1 tends to just sort of fall apart, without provocation, and
tends to jam even more if it is not fed with Royal Ordnance-made ammunition.
The L-85A1 uses standard US/NATO magazines; it can use the 100-round
C-Mag and the 90-round MWG, though the MWG makes the weapon very clumsy.
The L-85 includes a special gas bleed cutoff setting for the firing of
rifle grenades. The bayonet
designed for the L-85 is unusual; the handle is hollow, and the handle fits
around the barrel with the rifle firing down the axis of the bayonet when it is
mounted. (In practice, this has
resulted in the handle in some cases getting too hot to handle when a lot of
shooting is done while the bayonet is mounted; a solution has yet to be found to
this problem.)
As stated above,
the SUSAT is not issued to all troops; rear-area troops, in particular, have
L-85s with a carrying handle attached in place of the SUSAT.
These versions are for the most part identical to standard L-85s, but
subtract $200 from the price and 0.4 kg from the weight.
The SUSAT is
also used on the L-86 LSW, and modified forms are used on some L-1A1s and L-7A1
(MAG) machineguns.
The L-85A2
addresses the faults of the L-85A1; the weapon does not fall apart
spontaneously, like the L-85A1, and is said to have acquired a reputation for
reliability, as well as being more tolerant of ammunition of other makes.
I say “said to” because reviews are mixed on the L-85A2; some say that it
is utterly reliable, while others claim it is just as much a dog,
reliability-wise, as the L-85A1.
Only time will tell. Apart from
addressing these problems, it is basically the same weapon as the L-85A1 and is
not given a line in the tables below.
The L-85 Carbine
is a short-barreled version of the L-85 assault rifle, roughly equivalent in
performance and purpose to the US M-4 Carbine. The L-85 Carbine also has a
foregrip to help control the greater barrel climb. It can still fire rifle
grenades. This weapon is largely
unknown; production stopped in 1994 when the problems with the standard L-85A1
rifle came to light, and production was not picked up again until 2001.
At any rate, only very small numbers of the weapon were produced,
primarily for British special operations troops, with two barrel lengths.
Normal issue does not include the SUSAT, but the SUSAT can be fitted to
the L-85 Carbine.
The L-98A1 Cadet
GP is a version of the L-85A1 designed for training new troops.
It fires 5.56mm NATO ammunition, but it is not designed for repeating
fire – the charging handle must be cycled by hand between shots. Though it is
not technically a bolt-action rifle, for game purposes the L-98A1 effectively
has the same fire rate as a bolt-action rifle, which is why under ROF below it
is listed as “BA.” However, the
shooter may also use a trick in which he keeps the trigger held down, and cycles
the bolt repeatedly; this essentially means that the L-98A1 fires a shot every
time the charging handle is cycled.
In this case, the shooter may fire up to three shots per round – but accuracy is
seriously degraded, with the range being reduced to 38.
In addition, aimed fire is not possible when using this technique, and if
the L-98A1 is equipped with a SUSAT, that sight will also be impossible to use.
(The L-98A1 is not normally equipped with a SUSAT, and this is reflected
in the stats below.
The L-98A1 can
otherwise use the same accessories as the L-85.
It can be converted to semiautomatic fire, or even into a full L-85A1, by
adding the appropriate parts, such as in the gas system and the cocking handle.
(Note that the weight below is estimated.)
There is a newer version of this rifle, the L-98A2; this version is
basically a semiautomatic version of the L-85A2, and for game purposes may be
treated as a semiautomatic-only version of the standard L-85A2. It too is
typically not equipped with a SUSAT, and like the non-SUSAT version listed
above, costs $200 less and is 0.4 kg lighter than the L-85A1/A2.
The newest
iteration of the L-85 is the L-85A2E. This
version has a fore-end with MIL-STD-1913 rails at 3, 9, and 6-o’clock; online
British Army friends of mine this was done primarily to allow the addition of a
vertical foregrip under the handguard and the use of items like laser pointing
devices. A MIL-STD-1913 rail is not
normally included above the receiver, but the L-85 does have a STANAG optics
mount above the receiver, and a STANAG-to-MIL-STD-1913 rail adapter kit does
exist which allows the L-85A2E (or any other L-85) to mount a rail above the
receiver. This does, however,
appear to be little-used. The
L-85A2E modifications are done by Daniel Defense and are applied to already
existing L-85A2s, as they primarily consist of replacing the handguards.
The L-85A2E is identical to the L-85A2, but the weapon weighs 0.05 kg
more and costs 1% more.
Law Enforcement
International (LEI) makes a rimfire-firing variant of the L-85 called the LEI
SA-80. It is virtually identical to
the L-85A1, except that it is semiautomatic-only, chambered for the .22 Long
Rifle cartridge and feeds from curved magazines or various capacities. The
magazine well is externally nearly identical to that of a standard L-85A1, but
is adapted for the much smaller-width .22 Long Rifle magazines.
The barrel and internal parts are likewise altered to suit the new
chambering.
Twilight 2000
Notes: Many of these weapons have been ditched by 2000 by British troops in
favor of both allied and enemy weapons that are more reliable and don’t fall
apart. Except for a very small
number in the hands of British special operations troops, the L-85A2 is unknown
in the Twilight 2000 world. Very small numbers of the L-85 Carbine were
produced, mostly in the 290mm barrel version.
They have most of the same problems as the L-85A1.
The L-85A2 does not exist in the Twilight 2000 timeline, nor does the
L-98A2. Most L-98A1’s have been
converted into L-85A1’s or to semiautomatic fire, and issued to home-defense
troops.
Merc 2000 Notes:
British special operations prefer the M-16 series and its variants to the
L-85A1; other than that, most British troops are still using the IW.
It is almost unknown anywhere else in the world, except with the Gurkhas
and Jamaican armed forces. There are about equal numbers of both versions of the
L-85 Carbine; numbers of both versions are small.
The short-barreled versions have the same problems as the L-85A1, while
longer-barreled versions are more similar to the L-85A2.
Weapon |
Ammunition |
Weight |
Magazines |
Price |
L-85A1/A2 |
5.56mm NATO |
3.8 kg |
20, 30 |
$800 |
L-85 Carbine (290mm
Barrel) |
5.56mm NATO |
2.99 kg |
20, 30 |
$498 |
L-85 Carbine (442mm
Barrel) |
5.56mm NATO |
3.71 kg |
20, 30 |
$559 |
L-98A1 GP Cadet |
5.56mm NATO |
3.68 kg |
20, 30 |
$568 |
LEI SA-80 |
.22 Long Rifle |
3.6 kg |
10, 20, 25 |
$256 |
Weapon |
ROF |
Damage |
Pen |
Bulk |
SS |
Burst |
Range |
L-85A1/A2 |
5 |
3 |
1-Nil |
5 |
2 |
6 |
55 |
L-85 Carbine (290mm) |
5 |
2 |
1-Nil |
3 |
2 |
6 |
21 |
L-85 Carbine (442mm) |
5 |
3 |
1-Nil |
4 |
2 |
6 |
41 |
L-98A1 GP Cadet |
BA* |
3 |
1-Nil |
5 |
2 |
Nil |
55 |
LEI SA-80 |
SA |
1 |
Nil |
5 |
1 |
Nil |
39 |
*See Notes above for a
“firing trick” which may be done with the L-98A1 to increase the rate of fire.
Royal Ordnance MC-51
Notes: The MC-51
was designed from the G-3 but scaled down along the same lines that a HK-54 is a
scaled down HK-33. This model was
first designed by H&K itself (after the Royal Ordinance buyout) in the early
1990s. It has since been
manufactured by Class III dealers in the US using stock G-3 rifles.
In both versions, the weapon is equipped with a muzzle brake on the end
of the barrel, which helps reduce recoil and flash from the weapon when fired.
Twilight 2000
Notes: Very few factory-made
examples of this weapon exist, but a similar weapon is easily made by cutting
down a G-3, and some were made in such a fashion.
Merc 2000 Notes:
Though handy for special operations needing a weapon with high power and small
size, there are weapons with less muzzle blast and recoil that also fit the
bill. The MC-51 is thus more a
curiosity than anything else.
Weapon |
Ammunition |
Weight |
Magazines |
Price |
MC-51 |
7.62mm NATO |
4.4 kg |
20 |
$983 |
Weapon |
ROF |
Damage |
Pen |
Bulk |
SS |
Burst |
Range |
MC-51 |
5 |
3 |
2-Nil |
2/4 |
2 |
6 |
17 |
SAR-87
Notes:
Originally designed for the SA-80 competition, this design eventually fell to
the wayside. It was re-introduced
in the late 1980s using new construction materials, but still had no success on
the military market. A
semiautomatic civilian version was also sold, but withdrawn from production
shortly after it was introduced in the early 1990s.
With a barrel, bolt, and magazine change, it can fire 9mm Parabellum
ammunition, though the normal caliber is 5.56N.
The operating controls are ambidextrous, which is unusual for an assault
rifle. It is largely built of light
alloy, and it can fire rifle grenades.
The prices listed below are if the weapon is issued/bought in that
caliber; if a SAR-87 is bought with a conversion kit, use the 9mm Parabellum
price, then add the cost of a conversion kit.
Twilight 2000
Notes: During the Twilight War, one of its largest users was British postwar
militia forces; the British government sometimes issued the SAR-87 in the same
manner that militia forces in the US were issued the M-16EZ (though the SAR-87
is a decidedly better weapon).
Merc 2000 Notes:
This is one of those odd sorts of weapons that, though never officially adopted
by any country’s military or police forces, nor sold on the civilian market,
nevertheless showed up on a regular basis, in some of the strangest places, in
the hands of regular military, special operations, and police forces.
Weapon |
Ammunition |
Weight |
Magazines |
Price |
SAR-87 |
5.56mm NATO |
3.08 kg |
20, 30 |
$585 |
SAR-87 |
9mm Parabellum |
3.08 kg |
20, 30, 40 |
$302 |
Conversion Kit |
NA |
1.285 kg |
NA |
$270 |
Weapon |
ROF |
Damage |
Pen |
Bulk |
SS |
Burst |
Range |
SAR-87 (5.56N) |
5 |
3 |
1-Nil |
5 |
2 |
6 |
47 |
SAR-87 (9mmP) |
5 |
2 |
1-Nil |
5 |
1 |
3 |
41 |