DC-15A blaster rifle

The DC-15A blaster rifle was the weapon of choice for the Galactic Republic's clone troopers in the Grand Army of the Republic and the standard weapon of the Senate Commandos. It was a larger and more powerful long-range alternative to the DC-15S blaster.

Characteristics


This was one of the standard issue weapons for clones. While the use of blasters allowed a clone trooper to carry significantly more ammunition than a projectile weapon, the DC-15A was a heavy 9.5 pounds, and despite the weapon's size it is not a true dedicated repeating blaster rifle; the inherent instability of plasma gas in ion blasters reduced the weapon's accuracy under sustained fire. Even so, the DC-15A was very powerful and deadly in the hands of the skilled clone troopers that received extensive training in its use.

The weapon's tibanna gas cartridge carried enough gas for up to 500 shots, depending on the power settings of the weapon. The lowest setting managed 500 rounds per cartridge, and these bolts were equal in power to the DC-15S blaster. The settings then went up to a rifle-power shot that had longer range, but overheated the gun on the automatic setting. The anti-material shot ate up a clip in 10 shots, with a range of 3 miles, but could not be fired repeatedly, or used in the automatic setting. Like its smaller cousin, the legnth of the trigger pull determined the firing setting, while a knob controlled power settings. Its power-charge magazines ionized the gas into charged plasma within its ignition chamber. These bolts would then be accelerated out of the rifle electromagnetically. On higher settings, the large rifle's powerful blue plasma bolts are more than capable of penetrating the armor of most infantry droids, and because of the hyper-ionization, they were exceptionally effective against droid targets.

In addition to standard iron sights on the rifle's upper surface, the DC-15 could interface with the helmets of clones to project a graphical gunsight on the clone trooper's helmet display. Mounted on a tripod, the maximum effective range of a DC-15A was 10 kilometers. On maximum power, a shot from a DC-15A could leave a 0.5 meter hole in any ferroconcrete wall; however, firing at maximum power demanded a higher rate of power consumption; while on the lowest power setting a DC-15A power pack would last for 500 shots, just ten maximum power would deplete the power pack.

The blaster could be outfitted with ascension cable projectors to climb up walls or cliffs as seen during the Battle of Teth. Despite the superior power of the DC-15A, many clone units preferred to use the lighter, more compact DC-15S rifle. The DC-15A was preferred when fighting against larger and more heavily-armored droids such as the super battle droid and the dwarf spider droid on open battlefields, whereas the DC-15S was less bulky and easier to maneuver when engaging in close combat in the cramped confines of indoor structures or starship corridors. The DC-15A also proved to be a good weapon to have on hand if a clone unit confronted large biological threats, one such encounter being the Battle of Felucia, where the 501st used it to great effect in an unexpected confrontation against several wild acklay beasts.

History


Manufactured by BlasTech Industries, the DC-15-series was a range of plasma weapons used during the Clone Wars. Later, eight years into the reign of the Galactic Empire, anti-troopers bred on Kamino would use these weapons to fight against the Empire. Some clone stormtroopers also utilized this weapon. Additionally, it was the standard weapon amongst the non-clone Senate Commandos, who further separated themselves from the regular Senate Guards by using this instead of the standard issue weapon. the ARC troopers, (mostly in a modified version) also used this weapon. On Boz Pity, an IG-100 MagnaGuard nearly killed Asajj Ventress with a DC-15, although she managed to survive. It is unknown how the MagnaGuard managed to obtain this weapon, but it was probably stolen. These weapons were also used by Dark novatroopers in the imperial special forces. These were heavily modified, bulked up and equipped with extra firepower.

Captain Judder Page also used this weapon on Caluula during the Yuuzhan Vong War.

Behind the scenes
The DC-15A blaster rifle that the majority of the clone troopers carry in Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith is based on parts from the German Maschinengewehr MG34 from World War II (the same gun was used as the basis for the DLT-19 heavy blaster rifle in the original trilogy), making up the rear half, as well as much of the BlasTech E-11 blaster rifle (carried by the Imperial stormtroopers from the original trilogy) turned upside-down for the front.