Although the Technika Magnum may be the Anti Material Rifle that fires the most powerful cartridge *in service today*, the engineers at Steyr wanted to create a weapon that was even more powerful and had even greater distance than any other before it. The way that they ultimately did this was by designing a AMR that fired a totally new cartridge. The Steyr AMR fires a 200 mm (8 inch) long cartridge that is made out of polymers, except for the base, which is still metal. The caliber is 14.5 mm, but this is really the caliber of the sabot, as the real projectile is a solid tungsten fin-stabilized dart with a body diameter of 5.56 mm (.22 inch). The total cartridge weighs in at 150 gram, with the actual dart weighing about 36 grams . As soon as the sabot leaves the muzzle it will be stripped off, leaving the dart to continue its flight unimpeded. And since the muzzle velocity is over 1,400 meters per second (4,700 fps...), this means that the very aerodynamic dart will have a very flat trajectory indeed. As a matter of fact, the dart will only drop 80 cm after 1000 meters of flight. At that distance the dart still carries enough energy to totally penetrate a hardened plate of steel, 40 mm (1.62 inch) thick.
These ballistics that are superior to even the .50 BMG or the 14.5 x 114 bloc rounds.

The rifle itself is operated by the system of long recoil: Basically, the recoil of the weapon moves the entire barrel/bolt assembly backwards. At the end of the action the bolt rotates, and the barrel moves forward, while the bolt assembly is held back by a retainer. When the barrel has traveled fully forward the bolt is released, moves forward and feeds a new cartridge into the chamber. End of cycle. It should be noted that the entire system is buffered by a hydraulic buffer.
Another thing is that the barrel is a smoothbore, since the dart is fin-stabilized. At the end of the barrel is a huge flat muzzle brake, which is also essential in dampening recoil. Even so, recoil is in the order of the largest conventional magnum cartridges fired from a undampened bolt-action rifle. The entire operation of firing, recoil, and reloading the gun takes about two seconds, due to the hydraulic buffer.
Large parts of the stock are made out of Steyr`s trademark polymers, and this is essential in keeping the rifle`s weight down to a very reasonable eighteen kilograms. On top of the stock is a rather simple telescopic sight. The superior ballistics of the dart mean that virtually no adjustments to the scope are necessary over the entire effective range of the projectile. Mounted on top of the barrel housing is a sturdy bipod. On the underside of the barrel housing the charging bolt is located, which folds flat when not used. At the rear end of the stock there is a adjustable leg, so that the shooter won`t have to lift the entire weight of the rifle all the time.
The rifle is fed through a flat five round box magazine, which is inserted into the stock on the right side, opposite the place that the shooters head will normally occupy. The ejection port is below the magazine, and ejects the empty shells down to the right of the rifle. A eight round magazine might be available.

Note: This weapon is military issue only! Should you wish to use it in a game, you should keep in mind that not only will it be very difficult to find both the weapon and the ammo, but firing such a weapon also takes inordinate amounts of skill, especially at longer ranges.

Weight:	40 lbs (18 kg)
Caliber:	14.5 mm AMR.
Barrel Length:	47.24 inch (120 cm).
Overall Length:	70.87 inches (180 cm).
Action:	Long recoil rotating bolt.
Mode of Fire:	Semi Automatic only.
Range:	1333 feet (2,000 meters).
Magazine:	5 round box magazine.
Cost:	$ 15,000 ?.
Made in:	Austria.
Special:	Innovative design, robust, relatively light, mostly polymer stock. Posesses immense power and penetration. Military issue only!

By Mischa (E-Mail Mischa ) and by Kitsune (E-Mail Kitsune).

Copyright © 1999, Mischa & Kitsune. All rights reserved.