RAPID

This article, RAPID, was written by Athena32. Please do not edit this fiction without the writer's permission.

RAPID, or Reactive Armour Piercing IncenDiary, was an ammunition type used by The Royal Allegiance.

Usage

The RAPID round was designed to defeat armoured vehicles using reactive armour, which became increasingly widespread throughout the late 2500s. It saw great success against reactive armoured vehicles, though was somewhat less effective against non-reactive armoured targets. As a result, it was generally carried by tanks and other fighting vehicles with multiple ammunition feeds, allowing them to use more multirole munition types and then select RAPID on encounter with a target protected by reactive armour. The round was miniaturised for use in small arms, where it was effective against armoured and shielded targets.

Design

The RAPID round was made up of a laminated tungsten alloy, comprised of tungsten, cerium and copper carbide (altogether known as TC3). This was designed to provide similar effects of a depleted uranium round, such as self-sharpening and super dense, but without the side effects associated with a radiological material. This new generation of armour piercing sub-caliber ammunition was developed to defeat multiple layers of monobloc, composite, fifth generation armour, motion transfer, and spaced armour targets found on the battlefields of the time of its design. The flat projectile trajectory and a short flight time significantly increased the hit probability with an increased ability of the ultra low drag tungsten alloy long rod penetrator to defeat armour, even at very long angles of obliquity at extended ranges, made the RAPID type an invaluable addition to the Allegiance's ammunition types.

RAPID II

The RAPID II round attempted to tackle the round's weakness against shields, while at the same time making it more potent against armour. It featured a CVT (Chromium Vanadium Tungsten) and Austenitic Steel alloy as a primary penetrator. This was condensed using gravitational field manipulation, achieving a 82% smaller material for the same weight and allowing a denser penetrator for the same volume. Afterwards, the alloy was liquefied by ion fusers. Then, as the resulting alloy cooled, it was bombarded by charged-particle vibrating waves. This dramatically improved the bonding strength of the molecules and gave the penetrator virtually guaranteed armour piercing ability. This was used alongside a secondary TC3 core. The round was coated in an advanced polymer which acquired an electric charge while in flight, aiding in shield depletion, an effect which was more useful the further the bullet travelled, and greatly enhanced the round's use against shields.