Items · Ranged Weapons · Combat
The Death Throes Bullet
The nurse put a hand on his shoulder, speaking softly, 'Calm down, sir, you're inside a hospital. You're safe.' The man's eyes darted back and forth, his whole body shaking in terror, 'Nooo,' He whispered, 'I'll never be safe, I saw him, I saw him jerking and writhing around, then he looked straight at me and fell over.'
Quest entry
Quest entry
Quest - Sounds of War
The hosts have gathered, legions eye barbarians across a barren field, the generals stab daggers into their maps, the WAR QUEST has arrived. Welcome to the Sounds of War Quest. We will be rewarding a 12XP Bonus per submi… Open the quest
Full quest brief
The hosts have gathered, legions eye barbarians across a barren field, the generals stab daggers into their maps, the WAR QUEST has arrived.
Welcome to the Sounds of War Quest. We will be rewarding a 12XP Bonus per submission with the first place submission earning 150 and second place earning 75.
The only important word in this Quest is War. Any category is OK.
An exert from the Department of Psychological Warfare's Cost/Benefit Analysis
The Death Throes Bullet has proven extremely effective when issued to the sniper division of the armed forces. Data taken from enemy soldiers left behind after the retreat revealed a 60% increase of madness than from normal combat exposure. Results for the incidence of Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome among the observed soldiers are preliminary, but point to another significant increase. It should also be noted that the capture of Havence, during which the bullet was employed, was the armed forces personal record for the capture of any rebel base. Further testing is suggested to determine whether a less consistent or more consistent voltage is more effective in provoking the mental conditions listed below. Finally, it should be noted with the current schematics, the weapon is extremely cheap, and so can be widely employed without difficulty.
History
The Death Throes Bullet is an ingenious use of a projectile when such weapons are quickly becoming obsolete in the face of energy discharge armaments. It was discovered by accident when a government agent attempted to 'tag' a target with a tracer fired from a rifle, and the tracer mistakenly penetrated the target's skull. As the people around the target watched in horror, the tracer shorted out, flooding the dead man's brain with electrical impulses, causing his body to flail in an extremely grotesque manner. The matter was not contained as it usually would have been, and psychiatric reports revealing that the incident had inflicted severe mental trauma on the witnesses.
Someone from the Department of Psychological Warfare must have been watching that night, because immediately after the winess's interviews were broadcast, the their homes were bugged and their every move watched. It only took a few weeks for a wide variety of mental illnesses to manifest themselves in the subjects, and work on the Death Throes Bullet began.
Full Item Description
The weapon today looks identical to an ordinary bullet, most traditionally given to snipers. Inside the bullet, however, is a device that will trigger a rapid series of electronic pulses to travel through the body a few minutes after impact. These pulses have been carefully measured to approximate human nerve impulses, and so the body spasms violently in an almost lifelike manner. The delay was created in order to maximize the terror inspired by this weapon, and the possibility of activating the vocal cords is also being examined.
The generals of the armed forces have strongly objected to the use of this weapon, but cannot deny its effectiveness in destroying enemy morale. Right now, the projectile is in the field-testing phase, but has performed so well that it is very likely to become standard issue among the armed forces' snipers.
Encountering the Bullet
As the Death Throes Bullet is at this point, strictly Government Issue, the PC's will only encounter it when working for or against the government. If the PC's are working for some rebel group, they will likely be treated to the bone-chilling spectacle of watching an ally being tossed around like a toy, and if they are working for the government, they could be expected to employ the bullet against an opposing faction to teach that group a lesson.
If the PC's are aware of the properties of the Bullet, it raises some interesting moral questions. Should the PC's use a weapon that is strictly intended to drive enemy soldiers insane? What if the bullet doesn't kill the target and then activates?
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- The Field of 10,000 Skulls by Wulfhere Same quest
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We need something like that in Iraq.
But then would EVERYBODY there hate you. You really don't want that.
While I would seriously be against the employment of such projectiles, it is scary that they do not sound improbable at all... they could be real.
There will be soldier stories of men that weren't dead, but killed or maimed during the spasms... and there is bound to be a story about a lucky bloke that was killed, but got revived by the bullet.
So yes, this will have some effect on the battlefield. Most soldiers will quickly learn of its existence, dulling a bit it's intended effect.
This would be a one-shot wonder - it is amazing the horror that already exists in war.
I thought it was cool.
Nifty idea there, but manfred's right; the knowledge of such a projectile would soon become wide knowledge, and it would be a dead give-away that you have snipers deployed.
An interesting idea, one that would have to be used sparingly lest the users become the subject of conventions and treaties like the Geneva convention. Then those using said weapons would become war criminals, plus over-use and the effect of the weapon would be dulled.
If it hits an insane person does it make the person sane?
Well, the intended use is to make the hit person dead - and to freak out any of its comrades around.
It might have an effect similar to electroshock therapy, but since it is a one time thing, it's unlikely.
Funky idea. Cool concept.