Designation: VM-15 Holdout Railgun
Zoid(s) For: Shield Liger (DCS-J), Saber Tiger
Weapons Added: 42mm Electromagnetic Gauss Rifle
Special Abilities Added: nil
Cost: 25,000

The Triple Impact Cannon of the Shield Liger and Saber Tiger, apart from bveing a very powerful weapon, also sports a small mounting peg. On the Saber Tiger this peg holds a 20mm cannon, whilst on the Shield Liger, nothing is mounted. Taking advantage of this mounting peg, weapon designers created the 42mm Electromagnetic Gauss Rifle, or as it is more commonly known, Holdout Railgun.

The Holdout Railgun has a single fairly long barrel, which extends out from the chest of the equipped Zoid, an electromagnetic generator, which is the part that mounts to the TIC, and then behind the TIC, a small but powerful charging unit and a conduit that links right into the Zoid’s underbelly for power. This Railgun works like any other railgun, in that it propels solid shells at high fractions of c, allowing for incredible piercing damage.

Having a 42mm caliber, the shots from this railgun will hurt, quite a lot. They can punch through most armour with relative ease, and are very useful for penetrating limbs. However, the railgun produces a massive amount of recoil. There are specialized absorbers built to withstand the kickback, but they only work if the Liger is standing relatively still. In other cases, the railgun can be very inaccurate. This is a very good thing, because as can be seen, it is a fixed unit and basically points where the TIC does.

The thing you must take into account with the holdout railgun is that it only has two shells, and they can only be fired with a minimum of seven seconds of charge time. Whilst the Zoid can operate as normal while the electromagnetic charge is building, it does mean that this railgun is more suited for tight spots than as a dependable weapon. It’s not a Holdout Railgun for nothing.