ST-III

The Stormtrooper III, commonly referred to as the ST-III, is the new line of blaster rifles issued by BlasTech for use in the Imperial Military, specifically the Stormtrooper Corps. The ST-III's design draws back to 14 ABY: Grand Admiral Danik Kreldin proposed a new line of rifles to replace the aging ST-II as a means to modernize the Imperial Military. Warlord Vassily Korolov approved of the proposal. Kreldin would work with R&D and specialists from the Stormtrooper Corps and the Imperial Army before going to BlasTech itself with preliminary designs created by the Imperial researchers.

In 15 ABY, several months after the Sixth Battle of Coruscant, BlasTech unveiled the Stormtrooper III at a ceremony attended by ranking officials from the military. The weapon was approved after rigorous field testing by experts from across the military and entered mass-production within weeks. The ST-I has all but ceased use in the Empire, with the ST-II falling out of use as more and more ST-IIIs begin to fill the ranks of the Imperial Military.

The weapon itself looks and feels much like its predecessors, retaining the same tubular body and the foreward barrel lined in a cooling shroud. The interior of the weapon is easily accessible througha port at the butt-end of the receiver. But unlike its predecessor, the ST-II, the ST-III combines the qualities of both the ST-I and ST-II to make a highly effective, accurate and powerful rifle. The folding stock from the ST-I has returned, and an improved cooling system has been implemented to allow for virtually unlimited automatic fire. It has been provided with both a pistol grip and a vertical foregrip, the latter serving to keep the trooper's off-hand well away from the potentially hot barrel, and improved ergonomics for close-quarters situations. The scope mount has been retained, although fitted with close-combat sights. Sling swivels have also been fitted to the foregrip and butt-cap. The weapon's power pack fits into the left side of the weapon's frame at its midpoint. Just aft of it are separate safety catch and fire selector controls (with settings for single shots, short bursts, and full auto-fire). The weapon's sighting package includes both a computer-enhanced scope and simple iron sights in case the scope fails in combat.

More subtle alterations have been made to the weapon's inner workings, with the barrel, aperture, and galven coils configured to deliver a wider, high-powered bolt of terrific lethality at ranges up to 350 meters.

Name................BlasTech StormTrooper Three (aka "ST-III") Weapon Type.........Blaster Rifle           Weight..............3.5kg Damage Type.........Energy                  Stun Setting........Yes Accuracy............0D+2                    Damage..............6D Conceal Difficulty..12                      Two-Handed..........Yes