Gauss Rifle

Gauss rifles are infantry fielded coilguns that appear in Fallout 2, Fallout 3, Fallout: New Vegas, Fallout 4, Fallout 76, Fallout Tactics, and Fallout Extreme.

Background
The Gauss rifle is a coilgun, a type of projectile accelerator, which uses electromagnetic coils configured as a linear motor to accelerate ferromagnetic or conductive projectiles to extreme velocities. Though these weapons were historically suffering from a number of difficulties, focused on discharging the coils in sequence or providing enough power for the coils, these design issues were overcome by German scientists in the 21st century and entered limited service. This class of weapons is named in honor of the German mathematician Carl Friedrich Gauss, responsible for formulating the math underlying the magnetic acceleration principle of coilguns.

M72 Gauss rifle


The M72 has an electromagnetic accelerator, which uses an auto-loading 2mm EC cartridge (carrying both the 2mm steel slugs and the battery necessary to power it) slid into the magazine well, located in front of the trigger guard. The combination of German engineering and attention to detail make it a tremendously powerful weapon, with the slugs capable of piercing most targets at extreme ranges. In 2241, it is often used by Enclave soldiers.

An enhanced M72 Gauss rifle was used in the war between the Brotherhood and the Cause.

Prototype Gauss rifle


Advertised as the United States Army's newest weapon.

A supposed Chinese variation on the German design, the scoped Gauss rifle was originally deployed in the Sino-American War. Unlike the original weapon, it features eleven coilgun stages, resulting in a higher damage output. The weapon is larger and bulkier to accommodate the increased stress put on the weapon and uses a different feed system. While the standard 2mm EC magazines incorporate both slugs and ammunition, the Chinese Gauss rifle has to be loaded with ferromagnetic slugs separately, with microfusion cells loaded into the battery well in front of the trigger group. The cell is used to power the magnetic accelerator and fire the slug and has to be replaced after each shot.

The sheer firepower of the weapon has resulted in the design being used by the American military against the Chinese, both in the form of captured units and a limited production run of reverse-engineered units.


 * For the unique Gauss rifle that appears in Fallout: New Vegas, see YCS/186
 * For other versions in Fallout Shelter, see rusty Gauss rifle, enhanced Gauss rifle, hardened Gauss rifle, accelerated Gauss rifle
 * For the unique Gauss rifle that appears in Fallout Shelter, see Magnetron 4000

Gauss rifle


A design halfway between the German Gauss rifle and the Chinese anti-materiel gun, this type of coilgun uses a series of high-powered capacitors and hypermagnetized coils to propel the projectile. The 2mm ferromagnetic slug exits the barrel at extreme velocity, enough to destroy anything in its path. These are fed from a top-mounted drum, sitting in front of a control panel that displays the current capacitor charge level via a pair of Nixie tubes.