So my Scoundrel/Commando has both a Carbine with a Foregrip and a Sling, and a Nova Viper with a Blaster Actuating Module and a Laser Sight.

I'm running into the problem of anything the carbine can do, the blaster pistol does better. And true, the Nova Viper is bamf, but even comparing a heavy pistol vs a carbine, the carbine just doesn't having anything like the pistol's BAM or the Spin Barrel that rifles get to really let them have a niche.

So using the attachments that have been put out there so far, please give me your best set ups for the carbine, but without leaning on talents to even things up, just parts and mods.

How about Spread Barrel? Gives you a shotgun-like blast with, appropriately enough, the Blast quality.

How about Spread Barrel? Gives you a shotgun-like blast with, appropriately enough, the Blast quality.

I had considered it, but I've got grenades for that. And most of them are non lethal.

Your comparing a sub par rifle to the most expensive and over powered pistol in the game.

Yes its going suck. About the best thing you can do with is attach a better weapon to it (flamerthrower, grenade launcher etc).

Buy a better rifle. I suggest a heavy blaster with a Augmented Spin Barrel

If you must have a carbine use the OK 98 in dangerous covenants mod with uped damage

Your comparing a sub par rifle to the most expensive and over powered pistol in the game.

Yes its going suck. About the best thing you can do with is attach a better weapon to it (flamerthrower, grenade launcher etc).

Buy a better rifle. I suggest a heavy blaster with a Augmented Spin Barrel

If you must have a carbine use the OK 98 in dangerous covenants mod with uped damage

To be honest, the carbine doesn't compare well against a regular H. Blaster Pistol either, which I thought I had mentioned, but could have been a tad clearer on.

I'm wondering if just making the spin barrel carbine compatible would do it. I was going to use a suppressor I got on it, but that's pistols only, so it's not even my quiet option.

How about Spread Barrel? Gives you a shotgun-like blast with, appropriately enough, the Blast quality.

I had considered it, but I've got grenades for that. And most of them are non lethal.

So a carbine with a spread barrel can't be set to stun?

I'll never use the Blaster Carbine. Instead, if I want a heavy-hitting one-handed ranged weapon, I'd put the pistol grip attachment on a Blaster Rifle and then rules-legally add the spin barrel for more bang.

I wouldn't say there's no reason to use a carbine.

You can buy one stun only at character gen. which you can use to get a better gun.

The carbine's more of a middle-ground weapon, as it packs the same amount of punch of a blaster rifle while not being as heavy (for some PCs, that one point difference in Encumbrance can make a lot of difference). And compared to some of the weapons found in later sourcebooks, it's not going to look that great; heck, most of the core rulebooks weapon look a bit anemic compared to some of the high-end stuff found in Stay on Target, Fly Casual, and to some extent Dangerous Covenants.

The idea of a "blaster shotgun" does have merit, as grenades have to be replaced after each use, and unless the GM is a total halfwit and not using the Encumbrance rules or is allowing you to lug around multiple backpacks, you should also have to deal with the Encumbrance of carrying multiple grenades since each single grenade is Encumbrance 1, meaning that if you're toting around 6 frag grenades, that's 6 points of encumbrance. By converting the carbine into the blaster shotgun, you've got a Blast 4 (can be modified to a Blast 6) weapon for three Encumbrance that doesn't need to be replaced after each shot. Add in the forearm grip for Accurate (better odds of getting the necessary Advantage to trigger Blast) and Point Blank (the damage bonus would apply to Blast damage since it's the result of a Ranged: Heavy attack) and you've got a weapon that's pretty capable of clearing out weaker minion groups in short order that can be used multiple times in an encounter without having to draw a fresh grenade each time.

Also in favor of the carbine, in my game on most, semi-civilized worlds, the pc's can't just walk around with anything larger than a carbine so no rifles, heavy rifles, repeaters or anything larger(one of my players got his hands on a flamestrike, he was so sad when he had to leave it on the ship). Doesn't really pertain to this as you got extremely lucky and somehow have found and held on to a nova viper, but just in general when one -doesn't- have arguably on of the best pistols to date, a carbine is for cinematic purposes a "gentleman's rifle". In at least my game.

I disagree on Point Blank applying to Blast. It applies to the damage of the normal hit, not to Blast.

I'm with BigSpoon on this one - to me, the main benefit of a carbine is more narrative than mechanical. In my game I ruled than generally a carbine can be hidden under your coat or cloak (unless you're being actively searched or scanned, anyway), which gives the ranged heavy combat monster in the party something to carry when I tell him he has to leave his horribly tricked out heavy blaster rifle on the ship because they haven't just landed in an active warzone.

If the humble carbine is good enough for a stormtrooper, then it is good enough for everyone.

(Intentionally throwing hyperdrive fuel on the fire)

The repeater gun in the Hutt book is a carbine with autofire and stun, that's pretty good. How about a spread barrel with autofire, that should get the power gamers interested. You'd need to tinker it but quite the room clearer.

Personally I favour a forearm grip on it for accurate and point blank shot.

Spread barrel just doesn't do enough to make it worthwhile and requires 2 hp and the repeater only has one.

Personally I favour a forearm grip on it for accurate and point blank shot.

Spread barrel just doesn't do enough to make it worthwhile and requires 2 hp and the repeater only has one.

Hence I said you'd need to tinker it.

I allow the spin barrel with carbines. I didn't see any reason to forbid it.

My players and I are just beginning to explore weapon mods and more diverse weapons than the Core "Heavy Blaster Pistol" and "Blaster Rifle".

Nova Viper is basically Excalibur - I'm building an entire session around it and none of the players are getting it unless they steal it. Comparing it to anything is apples to bricks of gold.

My understanding of why a carbine is a good choice vs. a heavy blaster pistol is the diversification of mods. Rifles seem to have more mods available to them than the pistols do, and certainly some mods with real teeth. Carbines can benefit from any that aren't specific to pistols or heavy rifles, n'est pas?

Most importantly, anybody can do anything anytime in an RPG. Doing it with swagger is what counts. If the aesthetic of the character befits a carbine then that's the better choice. The player's brain will be worth more than an extra damage or less encumbrance.

Nova Viper is basically Excalibur - I'm building an entire session around it and none of the players are getting it unless they steal it. Comparing it to anything is apples to bricks of gold.

I agree, and it's why I added an xp component to the purchase of some weapons, as well as the attachment/modification process. Some of those weapons are like buying three or four boxes in a spec tree and the credit cost is no real cost imo in a PCs mind.

Nova Viper is basically Excalibur - I'm building an entire session around it and none of the players are getting it unless they steal it. Comparing it to anything is apples to bricks of gold.

I agree, and it's why I added an xp component to the purchase of some weapons, as well as the attachment/modification process. Some of those weapons are like buying three or four boxes in a spec tree and the credit cost is no real cost imo in a PCs mind.

Truly. Rarity is also something that is often interpreted as "kind of hard to find but not really" but I'm interpreting it differently, where applicable. I like the idea of John Raider having made like a dozen Nova Vipers in total across the galaxy. Yeah, he's building more, but he's just set himself apart from BlasTech and each Nova Viper is personal and spiritual. He interviews the prospective buyer, he shadows them at the range, perhaps for some adventures if it applies. He really gets to know the person who will use the weapon and he hand tailors it precisely to what works best for them. The way they hold it in their hand, the strength of grip from their fingers, the way their elbow bends when they draw it. All those factors go in to John Raider's genius.

That's what Rarity 9 means to me.

Perhaps I'm taking the idea to the nth degree but I think it is awesome. No wonder BlasTech wants him dead! He's an artist. He builds his name on the top tier weapon. When he decides to create an economy option for the average merc, his name will make the blaster an industry standard. BlasTech and Merr-Sonn won't permit a loss to their market share.

I agree.

To each their own but a lot on these forums just reduce weapon/gear purchases to moving credit tallies around on their character sheet and rolling a rarity check. That just strikes me as not very RP or interesting really.

Shot in the dark - Is there a corporate logo for Raider Arms? I'm putting together my campaign wiki page for John and the company now.

I say all those nice things about Raider but get the name wrong - Joran. LOL.

As far as getting the blaster goes, I had to survive the mission that netted me the credits, had to find the guy who made them, and even then I had to wait a week (two seasons) before it was delivered.

I'd say I earned it.

As far as getting the blaster goes, I had to survive the mission that netted me the credits, had to find the guy who made them, and even then I had to wait a week (two seasons) before it was delivered.

I'd say I earned it.

Sure, whatever works. Each of these campaigns is a different dimension, really. It doesn't matter even a little if in your dimension you have a pistol that in my dimension is a thing of incredible rarity.

I'm more interested in a week = two seasons. I am fascinated by each dimension having a different sense of time. My players waited a RL calendar year before getting enough money to pay off their debt to the Hutt Cartel and getting their beloved ship out of impound. July 11th they get to use it!

The space between sessions is sometimes a few in game hours, days, or weeks. The RL space between sessions is most generally 1 month.

We started a year ago July and have played 9 sessions.

When you say a week = two seasons, did you mean a real life week is two in universe seasons or vice versa?