Blaster Rifle
The BlasTech E-11 blaster rifle was declared the
standard sidearm for Imperial stormtoopers
because it offered the great range and heavy
damage of a traditional long barreled rifle in a
compact, easy-to-wield weapon. The E-11 has a
light well-balanced design that permits accurate
one-handed fire, allowing soldiers to move
unencumbered and use the weapon in close
quarters almost as easily as one wields a pistol.
This rifle has good long-range targeting because of the extendable sighting stock, the barrel's
advanced galven circuitry, and the computer-enhanced scope, which filters out smoke and
haze and enhances vision in low-light conditions.
The E-11 blaster rifle has a maximum range of three hundred meters and an optimum range
at one hundred meters, nearly three times the reach of a blaster pistol. This range is achieved
because the barrel runs almost the entire length of the weapon, producing a tightly focused
and very powerful particle beam,
To accommodate this barrel design, only the actuating blaster module and the prismatic
crystal housing are placed behind the barrel. Other components are mounted to the side or
underneath the galven circuitry, while the gas chamber has an unique tubular design that
wraps around the back of the barrel. These components are mounted on a single module that
slides out of the back at the weapon for repair or replacement.
To prevent dangerous heat buildup, the E-11's cooling coils force-feed a liquid cooling
agent called freelol through an intricate capillary system that carries heat away from vital
components and into the forward vent capcitator.
The side-mounted power pack supplies enough energy for one hundred shots, The E-11 can
be set for a variety of power levels, from stun to full blast. Because of its large
quarter-centimeter bore, the E-11 is quite lethal at full power. Although both Imperial and
New Republic soldiers normally use the semiautomatic setting in order to conserve
ammunition and allow adequate cooling, the weapon has full automatic and pulse fire
settings. Extended automatic fire may throw the barrel out of alignment.
While the E-11 was sold exclusively to the Empire during the Galactic Civil War, the Rebel
Alliance managed to acquire thousands of these weapons through black market purchases
and outright theft. The E-11 and its technological "clone" a Sarosuub-manufactured blaster
rifle called the Stormtrooper One (later renamed the Freedom One), remained favorites of
both Imperial and New Republic forces.