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This fanfiction article, VK78 patrol rifle, was written by Distant Tide. Please do not edit this fiction without the writer's permission. |
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This is a fanon expansion of a canon element. To see the original canon article, follow the link to Halopedia: VK78 Commando. |
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The VK78 tactical rifle or Volksgewehr-78 (German: "People's Rifle, Model 78") is a military-style rifle produced by the colonial German weapons manufacturer, Vakara GesmbH. The weapon is also associated with terms "Volks Commando" or "Vakara Commando." The United Nations Space Command designated it the VK78 Commando upon entering service.
Originally adopted by the Colonial Military Administration in 2495 at the height of the Insurrection, the tactical rifle later saw use with colonial units of the UNSC after the CMA's dissolvement and by many colonial governments and Insurrectionist factions after the decline. Due to its age, conversion and reassembly kits are readily available along with various after-market parts that allow the rifle to better serve a individual's needs.
The VK78 is unusual to UNSC standard arsenal with its traditional magazine well set forward of the trigger. It also chambers the Kal. 6.5 mm, a intermediate cartridge trading energy for higher velocity compared to the Misriah Armory MA5 series in 7.62×51mm.
History
Insurrection
- "Manufactured by Vakara GesmbH, VK78 Commandos were selected by the CMA frontier forces to replace their antiquated stocks of HMG-38’s in 2495."
- ―UNSC Press Corps digest
Battle of Zeta Halo
During and after considerable fighting took place on Halo Installation 07, the VK78 Commando was in the hands and in caches held by both UNSC remnant and Banished forces on the ringworld.
Design
Standard VK78 HUD icon.
The VK78 tactical rifle and its variants are magazine-fed, gas-operated military-style rifles with fundamental features including air-cooling, select-fire settings, and housing for platform electronics. The VK78 fires the Kal 6.5mm ammunition type though caliber conversion kits do exist.
While similar in proportion to the MA5 rifle family, the VK78 shares more in common with the MA5K carbine and MA5B assault rifle due to their shorter barrel and overall length. Still, the VK78 falls into the classification of a rifle rather than a carbine due to its scale. A slower-than-average fire rate through a delayed-action design guarantees easier handling for a rifleman and better acquisition on target through sustained fire.
On the internals, the VK78 features a closed, rotating bolt design that pushes a bullet forward along the bolt and uses the gas recoil action to eject the casing once the bullet has fired. The bolt is open to both sides of the chamber with optional, ambidextrous ejection ports. The charging handle provides ambidextrous options, however the standard configuration is set to the left side.
The VK78's defining feature is the forward-swept magazine well that enshrouds standard twenty-round box magazines at an off-angle. The purported safety, bolt release, and magazine release buttons are set behind the magazine well, along with the trigger. However, because of the loading mechanism compared to contemporary bullpup models, using the VK78 and other weapons like it reportedly required greater training time for units that received the weapon; though in the same circumstance, soldiers with experience from other forward-loaded weapons like the M739 squad automatic weapon show a quicker grasp of the VK78's functions.
The VK78 standard-issue aperture set to 3x magnification.
The UNSC Ordnance Commission and UNSC Department of Doctrine and Training recommend that acquisition of new and legacy VK78 stocks be prioritized to units under the UNSC Frontier Command and troops regularly exposed to outlander human settlements on the colonial frontier.
In its standard military-issue configuration, the VK78 is equipped with a rear-ward shroud and digital bullet counter set on the left-hand side though it can be swapped with conversion kits. The standard configuration also comes with a 3x magnification Recon sight; the scope contents can be modified using dials next to the ammo counter or a HUD virtual lab. Out-of-box internals also features a left-side reciprocating charging handle, right-port case ejection, and only feature semi-automatic and automatic fire modes without modification.
Designed with customization and ergonomics in mind, the VK78 is described as a comfortable and intuitive weapon platform with generous interfacing rail space and large unobstructed grabbing surfaces to hold the weapon. Texturing to the under-barrel shroud, magazine well, and pistol grip provide further comfort through continued hours of usage. Injection points across the weapon body also encourage mounting of more rails to the user's preference.
Ammunition
The VK78 is chambered in the Kal. 6.5mm, a contemporary derivative of the 6.5mm intermediate cartridge family popularized in the mid-21st century.
Due to a smaller cartridge than the ubiquitous M118 Full Metal Jacket Armor-Piercing used in the Misriah MA5 series and M392/M395 marksman rifles, the Kal. 6.5mm packs less powder and less mass in a smaller package to produce a faster velocity but generating less energy and poorer penetration as a tradeoff. As such, Kal. 6.5mm is recommended, along with the VK78, against softer, non-shielded targets such as human, Unggoy, and Kig-Yar foes. However, the VK78 is more than adequate against shielded and reinforced threats like Sangheili, and Jiralhanae.
Spartan Usage
The VK78 has proven more than sufficient against soft-body, non-shielded targets. Given the generally minute difference in cartridge between the Kal. 6.5mm and M118 ammunition, performance per shot are generally consistent between close to medium range.
When handling the VK78, riflemen are encouraged to use the weapon in the traditional single-fire configuration with a focus on accuracy and consistent strikes on center mass. Critical hits are encouraged when possible, using weapon aim-assist to keep on target. Hitting headshots and key exposure points in armor will produce similar kill results as with other ballistic/kinetic weapons in the UNSC and Covenant arsenals.
For Spartan operators, similar tactics developed for the MA5 series are recommended against Covenant-derived foes when using the VK78. Only when considering the differences in the VK78 and the MA5 does a varied strategy begin to emerge. With a smaller magazine of only twenty rounds, the rate of fire is delayed to assist with follow-up shot accuracy. Under these circumstances, Spartans employing the VK78 are encouraged to use the weapon in a similar manner to UNSC battle rifles to target critical weak points such as headshots and exposed areas in body armor.
It also goes recommended that the VK78 be used as a primary and be paired with another precision weapon or weapon with a higher rate of fire. The VK78 is an excellent armor-breaker, picking off the helmets of enemies or bleeding their shields around the head area. A follow-up weapon or melee attack is necessary, rather than taking extra time reloading, to finish off a larger target. Based on performance assessments, the ideal scenario for VK78 usage is in an open, level environment without cover and with a respectable distance between the rifleman and an adversary.
When firing, the VK78 can be reliably controlled in single-fire, burst, and automatic handling due to the weapon's slower and forgiving fire rate. The advantageous position to take when using the VK78 is to focus on said critical hit spots and maintain fire on target to maximize damage dealt. Due to this nature of the weapon, the VK78 will do more damage per shot than the MA5 assault rifle family. In this role, the VK78 sits in a comfortable niche between the dedicated automatic ballistics in the UNSC arsenal: submachine guns and assault rifles, and the close-in precision weapons: battle and designated marksman rifles.
However, the weapon's advantages also present disadvantages, especially with the VK78's small 20-round magazine. Due to the low bullet count, reloading proves to be a more common occurrence and riflemen have reported a greater number of virtual deaths during training simulations while reloading. To compensate, it is highly recommended that a secondary weapon be used when a VK78's magazine is spent. The reload time for a VK78 is by no means slow but the greater occurrence of the action presents a risk in drawn-out combat exchanges. Using the VK78 against multiple enemies in the same engagement is not recommended.
When against an opponent using a VK78 tactical rifle, the response to a standard-configuration variant is to focus on outmaneuvering the user and force them to expend bullets trying to keep on target. Coming at the cost of the short magazine, an enemy can be forced to reload in a premature state that will end in death for them. Bringing a higher-damage precision weapon, or a weapon with a higher fire rate is recommended against VK78 users. Because of the VK78's place in a small niche between dedicated precision and automatic weaponry, it's worse off against both weapon types.
Accessories
A modified VK78 mockup dressed with a skeletal handguard, adjustable stock, vertical grip, and magnified scope.
The VK78 can accept a wide variety of customization options and kit conversions. Insertion points assure ample space to bolt many rail interface panels on the VK78's handguard including spaces on the sides, grasp-area, and bottom. These rails will accept all general modification options available in the human marketplace and the UNSC arsenal, along with alien-designed pieces meant for human parts compatibility.
Other changes are more comprehensive such as removal of the standard handguard grip-space in favor of a more skeletal rail section that will take any number of under-barrel attachments including a multitude of launchers, lights, and grips.
The forward and upper portions of the firearm are considered a single piece but can be broken down into three sections. From there multiple varieties of handguards and can be implemented and swapped out to user preference and come in many different after-market kits, often to the point of changing the look of the weapon entirely. The entire rear receiver can also be exchanged which includes parts from the grip, the trigger guard, and stock. Some variants of the rear receiver come in a single aperture while others split the parts into interchangeable sections.
Variants
Pre-Created Configurations
Before the Created conflict, the UNSC fielded a number of variations on the VK78 platform for its frontier troops. The default UNSC configuration included an integrated handguard grip-space, recon sight, ammo counter with integrated shroud, and an integrated rear assembly.
UNSC trooper Bo Konig hoisting a VK78 Commando.
- COG VK78: VK78 Commando with COG sight. Favored by ONI remote contact teams while operating in distant, hostile environments.
- Classic VK78: VK78 Commando with Classic sight. This variant is favored by the Battle of Earth survivors who transitioned into Spartan Operations.
- Hybrid VK78: VK78 Commando with Hybrid sight. Commonplace on the frontier as alien and human design philosophies intersect.
- Longshot VK78: VK78 Commando with Longshot sight. Examination by Army Ranger recon teams suggests a need for a higher magnification rifle.
- Morph VK78: VK78 Commando with Morph sight. It is said that patrols carrying this configuration have a greater chance of encountering Forerunner crypts.
Users
- Colonial Military Administration: The original owners of the VK78 Commando. As the Insurrection exploded before their eyes, they modernized their arsenal in hopes of keeping up and ahead of those violent decades. Out went the HMG-38, in came the VK78. Unfortunately, the Insurrection was more than a war of metal and man. It was a conflict of charisma and ideology, and the Insurrectionist dogma seeped quickly into the CMA ranks. Nothing could be done but a quiet purge as the UNSC absorbed and dissolved their colonial counterpart. The VK78 traded hands, from CMA armories to UNSC storehouses and Insurrectionist dens.
- Far Harvest Legion: One of the many post-Created human factions to emerge in the newly balkanized galaxy, the rogue pirate state makes use of many weapons from both UNSC and non-UNSC weapon caches. Through violent and thrifty acquisition, the VK78 Commando has become a prominent piece alongside the MA5 service rifle as mainstays in the Far Harvest Legion's arsenal.
- UNSC Army Rangers: Deployments far from home, beyond the pale, and behind enemy lines require the unique UNSC Army Rangers to adapt to their hostile environments quickly or fall victim to enemies with home field advantage. The VK78 Commando has become a part of that simple methodology and leading the way for other UNSC special forces to do the same. Rumor has it that UNSC Air Force special forces are running their own modified VK78 but not much is known.[1]
- UNSC Frontier Command: Forward-facing and always toward the enemies and unknown, the UNSC Frontier Command (FRONTCOM) was and still is responsible for securing the frontier and beyond against all manner of threats to the Unified Earth Government. Their adoption of the VK78 Commando is a matter of subdued pragmatism born from the last conflict, employing the same weapons used by their enemies, against their enemies. The VK78 holds a ever-relevant and unique place in the UNSC frontier arsenal; no one intends to let the VK78 acquisition go to waste.
- UNSC Spartan Operations: If someone else has them, the Spartans must have them too. Masters of the battlefield, all manner of weapons and warfare, the UNSC's Spartan Branch is often among the first forces to acquire, study, and implement enemy weapons into their forces' arsenal with a 'adapt-or-die' mentality. They did it with the Covenant, the Forerunners. It isn't so hard to believe they did it with the Insurrectionists too.
- Task Force Phoenix: A prominent UNSC remnant faction in the shadow of the former Covenant organ, the Cleansing Blade. They fight at the side of Shinsu 'Refum, but at the say of Ryder Kedar. Their lack of forces and material require them to turn to piracy like the rest of the Cleansing Blade and fight for table scraps. The occasional UNSC or Insurrectionist colony or cache has become a boon to their continued anti-Created campaigns as the VK78 and other weapons join their cash-strapped arsenal.
- Venezian Militia: One of the major freeports through the Human-Covenant War and the Post-War era, their regimented defense force makes use of all manner of firepower sold on the frontier bazaars and black markets. Raids and combat operations against their number often reveal the VK78 Commando among their acquired stocks following the Colonial Military Administration's dissolution.
Trivia
- Due to hints towards a Germanic origin, the VK78's initials could stand for Volkskarabiner or "the people's carbine" in German.[2] Given its unusual designation and architectural separation from the traditional UNSC small arms, the weapon could very well have a non-UNSC origin, possibly Insurrectionists.