XM-10 Welrod

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The **XM-10 Welrod** is a suppressed pistol designed by FN Herstal for the Systems Alliance. Less widely-used than its cousin M-11 Suppressor, the Welrod found a niche audience within the Alliance Intelligence Service.

## Description

The FN Welrod is a sidearm developed by FN Herstal for the Systems Alliance military. With the advent of mass effect weaponry, silenced weapons were initially deemed impossible, as the very nature of the small, hypersonic projectiles initially precluded any attempts at reducing a weapon’s report.

In 2173, the Offensive Handgun Project was initiated by the Systems Alliance to develop a new sidearm for the Alliance military, with the additional task of designing an infiltration weapon for close-quarters use, ostensibly for covert assassinations. Both FN and an internal Alliance development group submitted bids, though the low-velocity FN submission was almost immediately rejected, on account of its negligible armor piercing abilities. The M-11 Suppressor, developed by an internal Alliance R&D group, was an attempt to develop a silent weapon using mass effect technology without compromising muzzle velocity. However, the design was only a partial success, resulting in a silent pistol, albeit one that was difficult to conceal. It was then that the Belgian submission, originally overlooked due to its limited capabilities, was brought back to the table. While it would never be able to match the Suppressor in raw performance, the Welrod was lighter and smaller, and still useful against unarmored targets. After reviewing the design, the Alliance decided to commence low-rate production of both the Suppressor and the Welrod, with the Alliance Intelligence Service expressed an interest in acquiring the latter design.

The Welrod is a new take on an old-fashioned design, abandoning the “ammunition block” feed mechanism that had been common since the discovery of mass effect technology. Instead, it uses mass effect fields to propel 10mm slugs to subsonic, but lethal velocities. The slugs travel at a low enough velocity that they can bypass some kinetic barriers at subsonic speeds, while their large mass results in a comparable muzzle energy to the M-5 Phalanx heavy pistol when used within 30 meters. With no expanding gases, minimal moving components and a subsonic muzzle velocity, it is nearly silent when firing. A single slug to center mass is often sufficient to incapacitate anything short of a krogan, as long as the round penetrates whatever kinetic barriers or armor the target is equipped with. Without a bulky sound modulator, the Welrod is much reduced in size, resulting in a light, easily-concealable form factor. With accessory rails on the top of the frame and below the barrel, the pistol can be fitted with a variety of attachments, including targeting optics, flashlights, stun devices, or even laser microphones.

### Ammunition

Due to the use of individual slugs instead of an ammunition block, the magazine for the Welrod contains both a disposable heat sink, as well as 12 rounds of ammunition, termed the “integrated reload” system. This reduces the amount of ammunition that an operative can carry, though this is less of a concern for the weapon’s intended use. Standard-issue ammunition for the Welrod consists of a 240 grain LAP (Light Armor Piercing) slug, with a tungsten core within a lightweight titanium body. With the low muzzle velocity, the Welrod is able to subvert most kinetic barriers. Despite the tungsten core, the subsonic rounds are unable to penetrate most 22nd-century body armors, though this was not the design intent. A close-range shot to a flexible joint can cause extreme pain, but the force applied is not enough to reliably break bones and cause internal injuries. As a secondary firing mode, the Welrod can fire its projectiles at supersonic speeds, allowing the weapon to defeat some light body armor at the cost of increased heat generation and recoil, as well as the sonic boom from firing, and the interference of kinetic barriers with the higher velocity projectile.

### Drawbacks

As is common for such a specialized weapon, there are numerous drawbacks to the design. Most notably is the unique ammunition, which cannot be scavenged from the battlefield. While solid slugs can be flash fabricated out of whatever materials are on hand, they will lack the hardened core of regularly issued ammunition, and thus cannot penetrate light armor even when firing at higher muzzle velocities. Additionally, as the wielder will have to carry “integrated reload” magazines containing both ammunition and a thermal clip. These weigh more than standard thermal clips, and greatly reduce the amount of ammunition an operative can carry. Also due to the larger projectile mass and light weight of the weapon, the Welrod has substantially more recoil than the Suppressor.