[Wild Goose]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

Which century do you live in?

As bears repeating, I grew up in a jungle in the middle of nowhere and only achieved broadband about 5 years ago. Despite my command of English (which has caused me to become the de facto SOP/Manual/Official Document/Memo writer of my company's Customer Service Centre for both Malaysia and Singapore branches), I'm a Malaysian national.

As a result of living in the middle of nowhere, what tools we had were utilitarian and simple, a fact that has since influenced me in daily life, and has thus influenced my OC.

Now mind you this can be used to show differing opinions - we've got an SSR OC with exotic weaponry and special abilities on her side, clashing opinions with an Assault OC who's more down to earth and has no special abilities beyond a near-photographic memory for music, Bad Boys 2 and Hot Fuzz.

Have you even seen a folding axe before? Or heard of metamaterials? Stun batons? Ginsu knives?

I've seen folding axes, but the idea of a folding axe that folds down into a baton strikes me as a bit odd. Also, while obviously anyone can use anything as a weapon - see Jackie Chan for a more humorous fountain of examples - the idea behind a folding axe is as a portable tool.

Also, you didn't mention stun batons. I'm aware those exist.

Again, as I said, our differing opinions between the exotic and the mundane.

You are JOKING. Soldiers DO bring knives to gunfights!

Nothing beats a good old dagger to the gut when some bastard round the corner grabs your gun and points it away.

TK has said most of what I'd say on this.

I just want to chime in that in much of my reading of books and millblogs a common theme in house clearing is that fixed bayonets is rarely used as it increases the length of the rifle, and makes it harder to handle in close quarters.

I'll have to reaquire that book to quote properly, but author Dick Couch wrote on SEAL Qualification Training in one of his books, The Finishing School - knife combat was discussed, as also what to do when the rifle is grabbed. In very few cases were SEALs encouraged to knife fight the opponent; rather as the opponent grabs the rifle, SEALs were taught to use rifle and opponent's momentum against him to club him to the ground. And then shoot.

Ever heard of a concrete saw?

Only concrete drill heads, of which I have a few in my Dad's tool box. That said... it's a hugeass damned thing which needs power to be able to move the blade fast enough to cut. Now okay, if Ayari's weapon is using Irokane and it's a special ability then fine, but there's a reason you don't see concrete saws used much by SWAT teams.

... I should note, however, that Jon's preferred method of entry by a wall is mouse-holing.

Also I was thinking of swapping out the MP7 with the Five-seveN, with an automatic function, and a bottom-open clip that allows attachment to the P90's magazine, plus a C96 type stock. Need to work on the feed design because dual-clip systems tend to jam more often, and carrying too many different ammo types sound crazy.

*twitches*

Given the amount of work that has to go into this... why not just stick to the MP7? With all the bits folded down and a 20-round mag it's not much larger than a Mk. 23. Plus, you don't have to worry about time for making this and/or costs.

Again, remember, for all the fancy guns, Butei cannot kill.

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

Boarding axes are quite handy and small, some are even the size of climbing picks. It can be almost as short as 60cm. Daggers are concealable by nature (she can hide it under her sleeve, if it is a stiletto), and that cutlass is locked in her school locker, not hand carried.

I had no problems at all with the dagger. In fact, I actually think that would be quite deadly indeed. So long as it didn't get caught, that is - the Demon Murphy stalks us daily, and we must take into account all that he can and will do to fuck us up.

By the time you switched you are already dead. Also, if the spring fails to eject, or if the contact head hits but the circuit dies, good luck.

A taser is a pretty risky weapon - if the needles don't go through the cloth, the guy will be very angry. If the person is sweaty, you risk short-circuiting the taser.

Don't the same issues also affect stun batons, then? [Curious]

Manganese, molybdenum and chromium all add to the different qualities of the steel. The micro-serrated edge turns a slash into a sawing motion. I took the concept from the serrated blade part of the SOG multitool, a cute little toy I was issued with during my army days.

And besides, I never said the weapon was foolproof. Where did you get that from?

He never said anything about it being foolproof either, dude. Chill.

This isn't a movie. IRL, I dare you to try storming a house with only your rifle without a bayonet attachment.

Only the Taliban are dumb enough to struggle for the weapon. Smarter soldiers would have thrown a punch at the bridge of your nose, reached for your sidearm, hooked your leg and flipped you down, or even worse, if he grabs the barrel he is going to press it under your neck.

That is why a knife is useful. It prevents the attacker from trying to grab you, get closer than he already is, or make any random movements because he is going to get himself cut in the process.

See my earlier comments above. Also, if the bayonet is attached to the rifle, aren't you out of a knife already? unless you're carrying a personal knife in addition to the issue bayonet.

A sidearm is considered a secondary weapon. Some troopers carry sub-machine guns or PDWs instead of a pistol because it simply doesn't have the range or suppressive capability.

Also, how are you going to reach for your pistol when your master hand is already holding your rifle, but letting go of the rifle means the asshole is going to sock your face in with the butt? A knife, on the other hand, can be handled at no matter what position as long as you can reach for the hilt - overhand is thrust, underhand is stab. At a range of half your entire armlength, NEVER slash. Three basic rules of knife-fighting.

Finally, hand-to-hand combat is brutal and uglier than you think. Like any form of fighting, it is either he/she goes down permanently, or you do. And when someone goes down permanently, he/she is usually dead, or K.O.

What has been forgotten, and what we need to remember, is that this is not Iraq and our OCs are not troops - they are at most SWAT cops and suspects need to be apprehended, not killed. Also, criminals do not, as a general rule, posses the same amounts of resistance as do illegal combatants.

The next time your local armed forces have an open house, go there and watch the urban combat operators. "Realism" is nothing more than a "perspective" to them - if there is a way to get it done, it will be done.

This isn't magic. I have seen equipment being built and used like that. And they are usually custom made, incredibly rare and cost a bomb. The only thing to mitigate the cost factor is either by gift, hand-me-down or in most cases, DIY.

If you have examples of the like, I'd appreciate it if you could share - generally the Malaysian perspective with regards these things tends to be rather conventional - infiltrate from the roof, storm the front door or windows, sneak in from the jungle to the jungle huts where hostages are kept...

Who are you? J.J Thomson and his pudding atom?

Who? What?

If you want junk science, look for intelligent design. That is not what I am talking about here, I am talking about MATERIALS SCIENCE. Also, Isaac Newton was proven wrong that his Laws of Gravity don't work for something that has no mass; light can be bent, but photons have no measurable mass - nothing is impossible in science because anything can be built with a plan, acquisition list and design.

I have my own opinions on intelligent design but that's neither here or there - though I do think that the idea that everything exists as a result of random unplanned evolution to be a bit... odd.

...as for the materials science rant, how'd that come about?

If you are looking for someone to flame to assert your superiority, you are in the wrong place. If you want to prove me wrong, show me a real scientific experiment done that it is impossible. Don't just throw around your "it cannot be done" and just leave it there.

Mate, this isn't flaming at all. If TK flames you, you'll know you've been flamed, and he doesn't do that anymore. This is just him being penetratingly nit picky, hammering holes so that one can fix up the holes or provide a better justification.

Mind you the only real justification anyone needs is rule of cool - I'm a bit surprised that my personal views have actually triggered this long... thing. Whatever it is.

Nothing is meant personally and no offense is offered.

But in addition to Tempest's comment on Aria, I'd like to offer my own summation: in videogame terms, Hidan no Aria OC is less Modern Warfare and more...

... Police Quest.

And as I said earlier, this makes for a certain degree of conflict/charecter building with OCs, which all can use:

Spoiler for Exotic and Mundane:

"... a dagger on a bit of piano wire," said Jon, watching Ayari going through her paces. "You could put a man's eye out with one of those."

"That's the idea," said Kanari, giving Jon a look that said quite clearly how obvious he thought it was.

Jon recognised the look, thought back to his last sentence, and mentally filed his statement under a list of things that would fit the Officious Bystander Rule and the Captain Obvious trope page.

"Besides, a good blade in close combat is essential," continued the male of the Unamichi siblings, to which the Malaysian-Briton shrugged, as Ayari finished her kata and walked towards them.

"I think it's a difference in our backgrounds and paradigms," pointed out Jon. "I grew up in a jungle in the middle of nowhere, 4 hours drive from the nearest city, if the road hadn't been washed away, in which case it'd take god knows when - that's why I've got so much kit in my rucksack. Everything we had needed to be simple and utilitarian, especially when we couldn't get spare parts for anything. Besides, as they say in America, a knife is until you get a handgun, and a handgun is until you get a long gun. Or shotgun."

"Do you have a problem with my choices?" barked Ayari, wiping away sweat.

"I just think it's a bit naff to have so much exoticness - there's something to be said for simplicity-"

"It's my choice, isn't it?"

"Well, yes," allowed Jon. "I just-"

"Diam," hissed Rachel, jabbing him in the side. Quiet.

"... look, that's a pretty lethal set of weapons you've got there, but aren't you two forgetting Butei Law Section 9? We're forbidden to kill, y'know. That's why I've got rubber bullets loaded in the SLR whenever I sign it out." Jon shrugged. "Besides, for me, I use my knife more as a tool than a weapon."

BTW, am wondering - are you West Malaysian?