Even with ultra-tech advances in missile technology many militaries still have the need for a simple, accurate, and relatively cheap man portable heavy direct fire support platform. The Belgium developed Limburg Geavanceerde Industriële Productie (Limburg Advanced Industrial Manufacturing) Light Anti-Material 88 millimeter recoilless rifle was developed to fill that niche.
The LAA-88 follows a fairly conventional shoulder launch design that took advantage of advancements in material manufacturing to build the main body out of composite fiber wrapped around a rifled barrel made of titanium alloy. This kept the weapons weight down while maintaining a long barrel life (rated for 1,500 shots before needing to be discarded) without major increase in manufacturing cost. Also while not a true Rarefaction Wave Gun, it does use a similar but simpler gas pressure trapping system to reduce the amount of wasted motive energy normally present in recoilless designs and increase the weapons muzzle without needing more propellant. At its rear is a proprietary advanced variable aperture venturi which helps break up the weapons backblast cutting its force by almost a third. To handle the weapon it features an ergonomic integrated forward grip, trigger assembly and adjustable shoulder rest made of high impact polymer. It also has a detachable 0.9lbs 4× IR scope with integrated targeting computer and standard smart gun electronics (+2 Acc from scope, +3 Acc from laser rangefinder, range 5,000 yards, +2 to Guns (LAW)*, 1B/10hrs). While it can be used by a single operator (doubles how long it takes to reload) it more optimally used with a two man crew with one carrying and firing the weapon and the other loading it and carrying the ammunition.
Like all reoilless rifle ammunition the 88mmRL rounds are actually rifled cannon rounds and not rockets. This means a reoilless round leaves the barrel its peak velocity as allowing it to reach a higher muzzle velocity over all and making them more accurate then a rocket. The round further increases muzzle velocity to over twice that of earlier models not only through its launch platforms pressure trapping system but through the use of higher energy explosives based propellant. They weigh 4.4lbs which include a counter mass made of high surface area to mass plastic flakes designed to decelerate quickly further helping to contain its backblast. The ammunition is rear loaded into the LAA-88 opening the sealing lock just before venturi and then twisting it open, sliding in the round, twisting it back down, and then closing the sealing lock.
Besides Shaped-Charge rounds (in table), it could also fired HE (7d×4(0.5) cr with a 5d×5 [4d+1] cr ex follow up), MF-DC (Multiple Fletch-Dense Cored, 1d(2) pi-, ROF 1 × 1,100 ), SAP-E2 which is designed to penetrate into a target like a bunker before setting off a powerful Thermobaric explosive (Semi-Armor Piercing-Enhanced Effect, 7d×4 cr with a 5d×10 cr ex follow up. Divide crushing explosive damage by [2 × distance in yards from center of blast]), Electromagnetic Smoke (9 yard radii, lasts for 1 to 4 minutes. Takes 9 seconds to fully deploy.), and flare (900 yards radii, lasts for 5 minutes) rounds.
LGIP also offers more advanced version of its range of 88mmRL rounds which use an nano-optic array and added control surfaces similar to the the type used in their range of 15 and 30mm Gyrocs which allows the rounds to make course corrections to greatly increase the weapons accuracy. These increase the rounds Acc to 7 but triple the cost.
Backblast: 1d+1 cr
GUNS (LAW) (DX-4 or most other Guns at -4)
TL Weapon Damage Acc Range Weight ROF Shots ST Bulk Rcl Cost LC Notes
9 LAA-88, 88mmRL 5d×11(10) cr inc 5 +2 10/2,700 13.9/4.4 1 1(4) 8† -7 1 $2,700 1 [1, 2]
Linked 6d×2 [4d+1] cr ex
[1] Hazardous backblast (see description).
[2] First Range figure is minimum range, not 1/2D.
TL Ammo WPS CPS LC
9 88mmRL Shaped Charge 4.4 $280 1
9 88mmRL HE 4.4 $250 1
9 88mmRL MF-DC 4.4 $440 1
9 88mmRL SAP-E2 4.4 $500 1
9 88mmRL Electromagnetic Smoke 4.4 $310 1
9 88mmRL Flare 4.4 $280 1
*Uses the Specialized Targeting Programs optional rule from Future Soldier, Pyramid 3-55 Military Sci-Fi. This program is specialized to work only with this weapon dropping the Complexity for a +2 to Guns down from Complexity 4 to a Complexity 2 program. $250.