Rogue Trader: Ork Zzzap Gunz

"PUSH IT! PUSH IT 'ARDA, GROT! ROIGHT, STAND BAKK, LET ME SHOW YA 'OW ITZ DUN..."
-Last words of Big Mek Gobstompa

Orks are known for their ramshackle technology - though behind layers of rust, gubbins, and assorted blades, they can be surprisingly effective - like the Zzzap Gun. Normally crewed by Gretchin (though an Ork might use it in a pinch, or if it's in a particularly killy mood), these huge weapons fire bolts of weird green lightning, and can tear through infantry, armour, and vehicles with terrifying ease...

If the Grot at the trigger has the guts to use it right.

Zzzap Gun
Exotic (Ork) Heavy Weapon (requires a tripod or vehicle mount)
Range: Special (see below)
Rate of Fire: Single/-/-
Damage: Special (see below)
"Clip": 25 charges
Reload: 2 Full Rounds
Qualities: Special (see below), Inaccurate, Unreliable to non-Orks,
Weight: 90 kgs (note that this varies from Zzzap Gun to Zzzap Gun, no two are made the same!)

Roll 1d5 each time the weapon is fired. This determines how many rounds the brave (or cowardly) Grot is willing to charge the weapon.

1- The Grot simply taps or squeezes the trigger, producing a weak shock that can still stop a man in his tracks. This setting uses 1 Charge.

Range: 30m Damage: 1d10 Special Qualities: Shocking

2- A longer squeeze of the trigger produces a blast that may prove lethal. Uses 2 charges.

Range: 60m Damage: 1d10+5 AP: 1 Special Qualities: None

3- This blast can easily kill a man, and might dent smaller vehicles. 3 charges.

Range: 60m Damage: 1d10+10 AP: 2 Special Qualities: Blast (1)

4- Now we're talking. A great green bolt of energy flies from the gun, capable of killing even a heavily-armoured target. 5 charges.

Range: 200m Damage: 2d10+10 AP: 4 Special Qualities: Blast (3), Felling (1)

5- This Grot has some stones, or is too stupid to know better. The charge produced here is enormous - easily capable of taking out tanks and fortified positions. However, the blast produced comes with a great backlash - if a Grot is operating the weapon, they are killed outright, much to the amusement of the surrounding Orks. If it's an Ork (or other humanoid crazy enough to use a Zzzap Gun), they take the same damage as the target, ignoring Armour. Few could hope to shrug off such a blow, but Orks are stupid tough. And stupid, too. 10 charges are used every time the weapon operates in this capacity.

Range: 300m Damage: 5d10+10 AP: 6 Special Qualities: Rending, Shocking, Blast (4), Felling (2), Overheats (Special - see above)

If there are not enough charges for the weapon to operate at the rolled level, simply use the highest level of charge available (so, rolling a 5 when you only had three charges left would result in a "modified" roll of three). Use the highest possible charge first (so, with 4 charges left, you would use a 3 charge blast, then a 1 charge shock).

For PCs (or intelligent NPCs) operating the gun, it's their choice how long they want to charge the gun - any result that would lead to a Jam, however, is resolved as though they were using the gun on its highest setting (i.e. the user takes damage equal to that which would have been taken on a successful hit).

While these are usually stand-alone artillery pieces, many Ork vehicles can take a Zzzap Gun - mostly Buggies and Trukks. They are also commonly seen as light weapons on the mighty Squiggoths... though you wouldn't be so cruel as th throw one of those at your players... right?

There is a chance that Ork Freeboota or Mekboy PCs (especially Mekboyz) might want to get their hands on one of these - if so, it cannot be used with the Bulging Biceps talent (even for an Ork, it's too cumbersome to use without a mounting). It also might seem powerful, but remember - at the point they can blow up small buildings with it, they take the same damage. It's a risky trade-off, but one that any Ork would be willing to take to get his hands on so much DAKKA.