Re: HKP's (was....]

Jon (GZG) wrote:
> >PsyWraith wrote in reply to djwj:
> >
> >> >	We know the Kra'Vak use HKPs (railgins) but do they
> >> >	use guided missiles or only magnetic accellerators (HKP, MDC, >
>
> >DFFG)?
> >>
> >> Actually, the DSII hyper-kinetic penetrators (HKPs) are not
railguns
> >but
> >> chemical slug throwers, but firing "small caliber" rounds at
> >hypersonic
> >> velocities.
> >
> >In other words, the HKP is the ultimate development of today's
> >discarding sabot rod penetrators. Most modern tanks use them for
> >anti-tank work; we make smaller ones for the Bofors 40mm guns, etc.
> >They're not exactly experimental any longer - no more than any
> >relatively new weapon is, that is :-/
> >
> >Later,
> >
> >Oerjan Ohlson
> >oerjan.ohlson@telia.com
> >
> >"Life is like a sewer.
> >  What you get out of it, depends on what you put into it."
> >- Hen3ry
> 
> Just to set the record straight, the HKP was "inspired" by the
> hypervelocity antitank guns in one of the Slammers books (The Warrior,
> IIRC); in the book they used a tiny plasma burst rather than a chem
> explosive, to propel a small calibre osmium round that penetrated and
> killed with KE alone. Don't know how practical this is/would be, but
it
> sounded a cool idea so it went into the game!!  :-)

And Drake was inspired by the description of solid rod penetrators all
ready in existence at the time of his writing. While "osmium" and
"plasma"
bursts are the SF parts, the rest is a reasonable description of a rod
penetrator projectile being fired.
	So even though fictional, it's based on fact. So PsyWraith and
Oerjan are
quite correct, just one step out.

Reality APFSDS (solid rod penetrator)
	fictionalised to
David Drake's "Warrior" Osmium small calibre round propelled by plasma
burst
	went into game as
Jon's DSII HKP (hyperkinetic penetrator)

So there we are, the steps from APFSDS to HKP.

Andrew Martin
Al.Bri@xtra.co.nz
http://members.xoom.com/AndrewMartin/
Online @ 33,600 Baud!