SS1155-R (Weapon)

The SS1155-R (Soul Shot Model AC1155 Rifle) is a five-shot, bolt-action, box magazine-fed military rifle pattern developed by Soulshot Firearms and manufactured in the nations of Sterlina and New Dendarin in the AC1150s up until the modern day. It is used by the militaries of both nations as well as surplus units sold to other nations.

Origins and Early Testing
In the late 1140s, the leadership of Sterlina learned a valuable secret about their nearby neighbor and rival, Zeliph. That their nation sat on top of a soulstone hotspot like the one beneath Eldrowey, a part of the world where soulstones grow at accelerated rates when compared to the rest of the world. This hotspot was deeper underground, explaining the lack of discovery beforehand. They began planning to invade and annex the country within two cycles of hearing this news.

While the leaders of Sterlina were confident their military outgunned the military of Zeliph, utilizing improved loading mechanisms in their rifles over the first Crystal Charge Firearm, the BRM956, the other nations of the world had made improvements upon 956s they had captured from fallen Purist strike squads in the later part of the 10th century AC.

Needless to say, they quickly found themselves outmatched within a year when the infantry, utilizing pump-action Type 154 rifles, were paired up with combat mages from the numerous academies of Zeliph that were capable of redirecting charge bolts, causing all of their infantry tactics to be ineffective.

Rewards went out to anyone who was willing to turn in designs for a "A simple rifle pattern that feeds from a magazine, chambered for high capacity charges, and reloading much more quickly than the current standard", the "current standard" being the single-loading internal magazine fed bolt-action SS1130-R used by Sterlina and, less publicly, the single loading Type 154 used by Zeliph.

The design that was accepted for production would come to be known as the SS1155-R. Initial testing and modifications to the design included altering the charge casings and bolt to allow the shapes of both to interlock, as before there was no mechanism to account for that in the original design.

This system was functional, but often experienced problems if the previous charge was not ejected properly, or if the weapon was moved too much or oriented improperly during cycling.

Production
Material sourcing was an issue for the first batch, produced in the last cycle of 1154. The design originally called for solid gold barrels and fixtures to withstand the rigors of the new, larger charge type, and the stock needed an extremely hard wood. Specifically, Exian Ebony. A notoriously expensive type of wood to acquire in that part of the world.

The first 100 units, or 5 crates, were built and shipped to the military academies in order for them to be distributed to the soldiers, but they refused to pay for any more as they extremely expensive and very heavy and hard to maneuver for most soldiers in combat training. These would eventually be used as keepsakes and rewards for high performance in classes. The cost was a prohibiting factor in the production of the rifle. What Sterlina wanted was the ability to mass produce cheap rifles in order to rearm their troops as quickly as possible. The first variant of the weapon would be created after several months of testing and revision which resulted in the SS1155-RA (Soul Shot Model AC1155 Rifle Alternate). The weapon featured metal fixtures made from a preexisting alloy of ~90% steel and ~10% silver as opposed to gold, and a lighter, cheaper wood sourced from the local area. The new rifle was less than half of the original weight and cost only one-fifth as much to produce, though the construction quality and longevity suffered.

Initial reaction to the weapon by soldiers was negative, as some of the first crates of weapons were hastily constructed and poorly finished. "'The piece of shit jammed up on me the first time I tried using it. The barrel bands fell off when I ran if I didn't push them back up, and the barrel burned my hands after only three shots. Yes, it kills mages like flies, but it's a shoddy piece of machinery.'""-A quote from a support unit issued an SS1155-R on the field when asked for his opinion."This would eventually go on to become the standard service rifle for the Sterlina military, much to the disdain of the soldiers, as well as seeing demand use in Denidaria as revolutionaries grew more and more violent. To reduce transport costs, the design was licensed to the New Dendarin Arms Company for production.

The rifle would serve alongside the SS1130-R in both its internal magazine and removable magazine fed variants. Sterlina and Zeliph would later sign an armistice, and no territory would change hands.

Basic Changes
The first alterations to the blueprint would come from Denidaria's production facility for the weapons, replacing their previous DAC-LM38 service rifle. The unreliability and sensitivity of the mechanical connections to the charge casing required by the bolt of the rifle was seen as unsuccessful and unacceptable.

This was remedied by lengthening the receiver, allowing for the chambered charge to be in front of a more traditionally formed bolt instead of inside of one. It was now held in place by a rubber gasket that gripped onto a trench circling the base of the charge, rather than trenches that ran the length of the casing. Minor changes included: An improved bolt handle, closed sides on the magazines, a straighter stock with a handguard, and improved iron sights. This weapon would bear the designation M1155-RND (Model AC1155 Rifle, New Model, Denidaria issue).

These changes were so successful that Soulshot, producing them in Sterlina, had to start making the same changes to their production lines, as their military had threatened to go to the Denidarian Arms Company for their infantry service rifles. It was identical to the M1155-RND in every way aside from the stock material, which was now stained as opposed to just having been glossed. This model would be designated as the SS1155-RB (Soul Shot Model AC1155 Rifle, Version B).

A Change in Roles
The innovation of blowback operation would be realized by Soulshot Firearms in AC1168 with the SS1168-SR (Soul Shot Model AC1168 Scout Rifle). The SS1168 would be a large change for militaries over the entire world. Technological innovations that allowed faster firing than was previously available was spreading, and ranges of engagement were getting longer. The sights on the SS1168 were a pair of adjustable rings rather than the crown and loop used in previous iterations of the weapon that allowed for greater accuracy at longer ranges. The barrel was also lengthened to increase the range at which the energy released by the charge would remain coherent.

The newly renamed New Dendarin Arms Company made their own take on the design with the M1168-SRND (Model AC1168 Scout Rifle, New Dendarin issue). It featured the original, fixed iron sights, as well as an offset optic mount on the offhand side to allow for more range than was possible with the ring sights found on its Sterlinian counterpart.

Diverging Paths
In AC1175, Soulshot announced it would no longer be producing any more variants of the SS1155-R. The patents had been sold to New Dendarin Arms, and the company would look ahead to their next project, later coming to be known as the SS1181-R.

The most recent variant of the SS1155-R came from New Dendarin Arms in the form of an M1168 Carbine. The M1168-CND (Model AC1168 Carbine, New Dendarin issue) would become the preferred infantry weapon of the New Dendarin Military. it was commonly fitted with ten charge box magazines as opposed to the usual five, was six inches shorter than the scout variant it was based on, and four inches shorter than the original weapon. The original Bolt-Action M1155-RND would return as the Model AC1155/75, now fitted with a slightly modified receiver, a full scope in place of any iron sights, and an angled bolt handle. This variant would be used in sniper and designated marksman roles, with long and short range scopes available for both. The serial number and branding rests on a rounded steel plate on the side of the stock. While the straight wristed stock had served honorably for nearly thirty years, even longer on other rifles, it was beginning to show its age, with many soldiers preferring to personally purchase foreign weapons with semi-pistol grip stocks. The most notable "offender" of this was the Kobeula Model AC1182. The Model 1168/83 was a response to attempt to get soldiers to purchase domestically produced weapons.

The weapon took up a semi-pistol grip stock with a thick butt plate, as well as a forward mounted charging handle to prevent the recoil spring from being exposed to the open air. This, however, was not ambidextrous as the Kobeula was, but production of both left and right handed variants was seen as sufficient.

The magazine well was modified to accept staggered 9-charge box magazines that were intended to fire new C8.81x11mm charges rather than C8.81x14.5mm. This change was intended to delay the blowback long enough for the charge to empty.

Soldiers disliked the rifle mostly for its appearance, finding the stock easy to break. This design was quickly quickly replaced by the NDAC-LM83, having been developed in secret for several years before this design was even released.

The rifle series was never popular among civilians due to its intense recoil and build quality, instead losing out to the DAC-LM38 series in New Dendarin and the SS1130-R in Sterlina. Some surplus was made available following adoption of the NDAC-LM83 and SS1181-R alongside reduced power C8.81x14.5 charges.

The First Sterlina-Zeliph War
The 1155-R was introduced to decrease the disadvantage Sterlina had against Zeliph's combat mages. While their infantry was roughly of equivalent strength, the mages tipped the scales in their favor enough to prevent several attempted invasions by sea. Despite the first 1000 being rejected by the military of Sterlina due to weight and cost, the second model was accepted and produced in large numbers.

The number of 1155-R and 1155-RA rifles produced was around 24 thousand, with only the RA model seeing widespread use in combat. The high-capacity charges used in the weapon were uncounterable for even the most skilled defensive mages, causing heavy losses on the side of Zeliph. It was during this time that the weapon obtained it's most well known moniker, "The Thunderbolt", after it's loud cracks when fired caused by an increase in charge volume.

Its introduction was eventually enough to stall the war, causing an armistice to be drawn up and signed.

Interwar Period
In the 24 year period between the Sterlina-Zeliph War and the Dendarin Expansion Conflicts, the weapon and its variants were mostly used in Sterlina to combat encroaching invasions by various small khanates and fledgeling nations in the disorganized territory to the north, as well as surplus units being sold in New Dendarin to attempt defending themselves against Ismere's advances into their eastern farmland. Superior numbers would prevail over quality of weapons in their case.

They acquired the weapon's schematics in a deal between Sterlina's leaders and New Dendarin's leaders before Amelia Kohen rose to power. The weapon would continue to be refined in New Dendarin until the M1168-CND was invented in the later half of the AC1170s, which had not been iterated upon again as of yet.

Dendarin Expansion Conflicts
Dendarin troops were armed with M1168-CNDs and M1155/75-RNDs when they moved into Ebenland in AC1181 for the purpose of annexation. They eventually took all of Ebenland, most of Ismere, and met resistance when encountering vastly overwhelming forces of Exian and Bausablite troops armed with Ivanovka M1179s, and troops in Montase with superior numbers as well.

As their expansion had been halted for the time being, the conflicts came to an end.

The Second Sterlina-Zeliph War
The M1168/83 was used in limited numbers by New Dendarinian soldiers fighting for the side of Zeliph as per the agreement with Sterlina.

"War Crime?"
Due to the sheer amount of energy within the charges for these rifles, Zeliph attempted to reach out to other nations for aid. Both their ground and aerial mage corps had no ability to deflect or dissipate the C8.81x14 charge's power before it penetrated the shielding and caused the death of the target.

Their plea was mostly ignored, with some small amount of medical aid coming in from Randghur. The counter argument from Sterlina was that the use of deadly and uncounterable weather-altering magics was unfair as well."'Causing icicles and fire to rain from the sky, causing certain death for hundreds of our men and women, is not as bad as a few dozen flying mages unable to resist progress?'""-A line spoken by a general of the army of Sterlina at conferences to determine whether foreign intervention was necessary."In the end nothing changed. Both members of the conflict continued to use their technologies or techniques until the armistice was signed two years later in AC1157.

"Who Designed It?"
While the rifle's schematics are known to be almost entirely based on a design submitted anonymously in exchange for a reward, many other countries wanted to hire the original designer to either design more weapons or, in most cases, turn over the original plans of the SS1155-R.

Several have claimed to be the designer, and most have failed to produce similar results. The most likely candidate is a Born Immortal woman by the name of Viktoriya Ivanovka, the former leader of the Purist Cult Hunters, who had previously been living in Sterlina before moving to Bausable in AC1154.

Not only is she suspected of having invented the SS1155-R, but she is known to have invented the BRM956, the first modern Crystal Charge Firearm, and the Ivanovka Model AC1179, which became the standard service rifle for the militaries of Bausable and Exia.

Another layer of suspicion is that she is considered a traitor to Sterlina for "releasing government secrets".

Real-Life Origins
The weapon is loosely based on the Mondragon Model 1908, with inspiration for the bolt handle on M1155-RND and SS1155-RB taken from the M1903 Springfield.