Hot Dogs, Horseshoes & Hand Grenades/Sniper Rifles

Sniper Rifles

Accuracy International Arctic Warfare Magnum

Added along with the Smith & Wesson Model 500 in Update #59's 7th alpha, the Accuracy International Arctic Warfare Magnum is the first (and so far, only) weapon in H3 chambered in .338 Lapua Magnum; it was also the largest-caliber sniper rifle in the game that wasn't an anti-materiel rifle, until the introduction of the Cheyenne Tactical M-200 Intervention.

Accuracy International Arctic Warfare Magnum - .338 Lapua Magnum

Admiring the AWM. A timeless classic, since '99.

Loading in a magazine. While many of H3VR's weapon models are purchased or donated from third-party sources, they are sometimes still modified on the game's end; the AWM is a perfect example of this, as its magazine and well were slightly too short to fit normal .338 Lapua rounds (which is correct; being retrofitted for .338LM rather than designed for it, the AWM's magazine can only fit slightly shorter-bulleted .338 rounds, which are sold specifically for this rifle; the decision to make it work with standard .338 Lapua was made in the interests of gameplay and development simplicity), so game dev Anton Hand had to perform "model surgery", as he put it, to lengthen the magazine and well.

Chambering a round.

Realizing that having a bare upper rail is hardly befitting of a rifle that once set a record for confirmed kill distance, but that a long-range scope is equally unfitting for use indoors, our invisible protagonist compromises and attaches a tube red-dot sight.

Aiming the rifle at a Sosig...

...and killing the one behind it.

While there's sadly no bright blue text across the center of everybody's screen announcing this double kill, it's still cause for celebration. And what better way to celebrate than to eject a spent case in the most unnecessarily dramatic way possible?

Firing a tracer into another Sosig; as is tradition, the "Magnum Sniper Rifle" can kill a full-health, fully-armored enemy with a single well-placed shot to the torso.

Firing an API (armor-piercing incendiary) round into yet another armored Sosig, producing a suitably impressive shower of sparks in the process.

Barrett M107A1

The Barrett M107A1 anti-materiel rifle is one of the available firearms in-game, added in Update #22. Up until the 2018 4th of July Update and its "M2 Tombstone", the Barrett was the only weapon in the game chambered in .50 BMG.

Barrett M107A1 with 29" barrel - .50 BMG

An M107A1 on a table, complete with all the bells and whistles.

Examining the left side of the rifle...

...and the right side.

Comparing one of the M107A1's .50 BMG rounds to a 7.62x54mmR really gives a sense of just how massive a round it is.

Loading the round back into the magazine...

...then loading the magazine into the Barrett.

Taking a close look at the forend, which gives a good view of the barrel recoil springs. It also gives a good view of...

...the bipod.

Interestingly, once unfolded, the bipod always points towards the ground, which can be used to create some rather amusing perspective illusions; here, our invisible protagonist decides to teach a marble-sized watermelon the definition of "asymmetric warfare."

Once mounted, the bipod shows off another one of its interesting traits: the complete and total negation of the effect of gravity on its parent rifle. Also note the extended rear monopod.

Of course, no long-range AMR would be complete without a sight; this 8-32x variable scope seems a good fit.

Chambering a round, with a satisfying "ker-CHUNK."

With that settled, there's only one thing left to take care of:

The safety.

Sighting up a watermelon. While a famous man told us what Barretts can do, nobody said what would happen if you were inside said building.

Only one way to find out...

The building thankfully still alive and well, a celebration is in order. And what better way to celebrate than to demonstrate an interesting part of the gun's functionality.

That being the weapon's short-recoil action, which means that the barrel reciprocates a short distance upon firing. This is to facilitate the unlocking of the bolt; the barrel and bolt are locked together and move backwards simultaneously for a short while, then the bolt and barrel separate, the bolt travels back further, and they both return to their locked positions; the period the bolt and barrel spend locked together is long enough for the chamber pressure to lower enough that the spent casing can safely be extracted and ejected without rupturing.

Raising the scope's magnification to its highest setting, for maximum sightseeing capabilities.

Aiming for a distant melon.

Taking the shot...

...and watching it hit its mark. H3VR has a rather in-depth ballistics simulation system, including distance-based drop and projectile travel time; even the mighty .50 BMG round has a few frames' worth of travel time out at 400 meters.

Cheyenne Tactical M-200 Intervention

The 22nd day of the 2018 Meatmas event added a Cheyenne Tactical M-200 Intervention sniper rifle, chambered in .408 CheyTac (a round exclusive to this rifle in-game).

Cheyenne Tactical M-200 Intervention - .408 CheyTac

An Intervention in its gift box. It's a bigger gun than most people seem to realize.

Much bigger indeed...

Giving the rifle a full load of .408 rounds. This gives the rifle the honor of the largest-caliber sniper rifle in the game that isn't an anti-materiel rifle, an honor previously held by the AWM.

Sending one of the aforementioned rounds into the chamber.

Did we mention that this is a really, really big rifle? 'Cause I'm not sure if the point's quite gotten across. I mean, it doesn't even fit in the shot, for Hathcock's sakes.

Luckily, the rifle's full >30-pound weight (~14 kg) can be supported by...

...the forend-mounted bipod.

This ground-seeking bipod conspires with the occasional graphical bug to make the rifle look suspiciously like it's been poorly Photoshopped into the shot.

Other convenient features include a collapsible stock, which only furthers the visual absurdity of this situation.

Of course, as we all know, the only appropriate way to use an Intervention is to no-scope. As such, [FaZe]XxX_mLgTr1cKsH0tKu$hBl@z0r4201337_XxX sights up a particularly scrublord-looking snowflake...

...and hits one for the montage. "MOM, GET THE CAMERA!"

Satisfied, he cycles his rifle, and heads back to the basement for another Mountain Dew/Doritos smoothie.

Izhmash SV-98

Added in the ninth alpha build of Update #59, the Izhmash SV-98 sniper rifle makes its mark in H3 as the game's second Russian sniper rifle, and its first (and, currently, only) bolt-action one.

Izhmash SV-98 - 7.62x54mmR

Examining an SV-98, this particular specimen being fitted with a red-dot sight and a side-tilting toggleable magnifier.

A good view of the rifle's distinctive green wooden thumbhole stock.

Taking a look at an empty magazine; while a relatively-normal looking staggered-column box magazine, it does notably possess an unusual circular hole up at the front...

...which interfaces with a corresponding metal peg in the magazine well, as seen with this considerably less empty example.

Chambering a 7.62x54mmR round.

Taking aim at an oblivious Sosig.

That target (and several more) down, and it's on to the next.

Well, looks like it's time to call it a day.

Kimber Model 8400 Advanced Tactical SRC

The Kimber Model 8400 is one of the rifles added in the 2016 Meatmas Update. In keeping with Update #46's theme of shortened variants of existing guns, the Kimber received a rather strange short-barreled variant in this update.

Kimber Model 8400 Advanced Tactical SRC - .308 Winchester

While out on a walk in the woods, the Candy Hunter stops to admire his rifle.

The other side, which shows off the distinctively-shaped bolt handle.

Loading in a magazine.

Chambering a .308 round.

Sighting up his quarry, the Hunter belatedly realizes that he's forgotten something.

Not that he's going to let that stop him.

He then cycles his rifle, and goes along his merry way.

Taking out another oblivious gumdrop, execution-style.

Well, this is certainly an... interesting contraption.

Deciding that the rifle just isn't short enough, someone who actually understands that gumdrops aren't huntable game folds the stock.

Working the action right-handed...

...and left-handed.

MAS FR F2

The 15th gift added in the 2018 Meatmas event was a seldom-seen MAS FR F2 sniper rifle.

MAS FR F2 - 7.62x51mm NATO

A box with a French sniper rifle in it. A substantial step up from last year's pair of socks, no?

Loading the FR F2.

Chambering a round.

Pausing for a moment to appreciate the rifle. And what appears to be a Photoshop selection line around its edges; this appears to be some sort of graphical bug.

Well, as long as you keep it in the light, it should be fine.

Taking a close look at the rifle's distinctive forend; the large, thick barrel profile is the result of a thermal sleeve, one of the F2's improvements over the earlier FR F1. This view also shows off the integrated bipod...

...which, as ever, can be used to make the rifle look gigantic.

Aiming; as with the earlier-added M40A1, the FR F2 has a permanently-affixed, non-detachable scope.

Watching a round hit its mark. Fortunately, the amount of time it takes for the rifle's recoil to settle down is just a tad shorter than the time it takes for a 7.62 NATO round to travel this distance, allowing a clear view of the impact.

Ejecting a spent case.

PGM Hecate II

The only non-fictional weapon added in the 2019 April Fools' Day update was a PGM Hecate II, the game's first bolt-action AMR. The next update, Update #71, gave it a functional, fixed bipod.

PGM Hecate II - .50 BMG

Examining the Hecate II. Gotta wonder what the first one was...

Loading in a magazine. 7 rounds of .50 BMG, perfect for dealing with long-range personnel, light armored vehicles, miscellaneous equipment, and giant scary bipedal lizards with claws the size of tent stakes.

Or if you just happen to have some tees that need hecking.

The flip-side of the rifle; at full size, "HECATE II" can just barely be made out on the receiver.

Leveling the behemoth at a wall. Without a scope, there's not much point to doing more in the way of aiming.

Punching a half-inch hole in the wooden barricade.

Satisfied with her handiwork, the protector-goddess Hecate readies another torch, prepared to deal with any other threats to the home accordingly.

A look at the back end of the rifle post-Update #71 shows off the Trijicon SRS02 red-dot sight that found its way on there at some point in the interim; this sight was one of the things changed in the update, with its previously too-small model being appropriately resized.

This view also shows off the bolt-mounted safety.

Moving forward displays the bipod that's also now tagging along for the ride. Quite a convenient feature...

...at least, that is, when you've got somewhere to put it.

Remington M40A1

Added along with the SV-98 in Update #59's ninth alpha build, the Remington M40A1 helps pad out the game's collection of sniper rifles. The weapon in-game has a woodland camo stock, and is fitted with a standard-issue, non-detachable 10x scope.

Remington M40A1 - 7.62x51mm NATO

Examining the M40A1. A small, boxed-in concrete room hardly seems like a good place for a sniper rifle.

Or, for that matter, for woodland camouflage.

Ah, well. Sometimes, you've just gotta make do.

Loading in some 7.62x51mm tracers.

Chambering a round.

Taking a look at a Sosig through the M40A1's permanently-affixed scope...

...before forgoing aiming entirely and just blasting one point-blank. Note the position of the cocking piece compared to the above screenshot; as with many of the bolt-action rifles in H3, the M40A1's striker correctly moves to indicate whether or not the rifle is cocked.

Cycling the M40's distinctive "cough drop" bolt handle. What's that? Nobody calls it that? Literally nobody has ever called it that until now? It has never been called that at any time, in any capacity whatsoever? Well, IT IS NOW!

"Sniper Rifle"

Another weapon that came out of the "Meat Fortress" TF2 crossover was the Sniper's "Sniper Rifle", a cartoonish-looking weapon seemingly loosely based on the Remington Model 700.

Remington Model 700 BDL - 7.62x51mm NATO

The "Sniper Rifle" on a table, along with several other TF2 weapons. We're showing it off here...

...since it's a bit hard to fit into the frame when you're holding it. The ludicrously massive scope is loosely based on an AN/PVS-2 Starlight, an early Vietnam War-era night vision scope (though the one in-game is just a standard scope, since H3's engine can't support NV overlays).

Taking a close look at the receiver. This shows off the cut in the receiver bridge that wasn't on the original model; it was added to the VR version to allow the bolt to move backwards, which wasn't a problem in TF2 since the bolt didn't actually move horizontally there.

It also shows off the moving striker, another alteration from the original model.

Opening up the action; since the bolt wasn't initially set up to move back and forth, both it and the area it concealed (the loading tray and the chamber) had to be fully modeled and textured.

Loading a round into the single-shot rifle; the Sniper Rifle's pre-release placeholder round of choice was the mighty .50 BMG, a cartridge which fits more in behavior than in physical space.

Looking through the colossal scope; note the red dot that serves as the scope's reticle...

...though this doesn't necessarily mean that it's actually part of the scope. This is instead the weapon's permanently-affixed and permanently-active laser sight (the comparatively-small tube in front of the scope with a wire leading to it); in TF2, this was only active when the scope was in use, but there's no real way for a VR game to distinguish such things.

Taking advantage of the laser sight, and no-scoping a Spy Sosig's head off. More by proxy than anything else, but still.

Working the bolt prompts the rifle to spit out a spent casing far too large to fit in or out of the ejection port. Damn you, Merasmus!

The round that the finished version of the Sniper Rifle uses the "18x50mm Packawhollop" which is this short, stumpy affair, somewhat reminiscent of rounds like the .458 SOCOM.

SVD Dragunov

The SVD Dragunov is one of the available sniper rifles in-game. It was added in Update #18; at the time, it was permanently fitted with a side-mounted rail adaptor bracket, but this was made removable in Update #40, allowing the use of Soviet-type dovetail optics (or, for that matter, open iron sights).

SVD Dragunov - 7.62x54mmR

An SVD on a table, next to a Sako 85.

Loading up the Dragunov.

Flipping the rifle over...

...disengaging the safety...

...and chambering a round.

Of course, logic dictates that a sniper rifle should have a scope.

It also dictates that a sniper rifle should have a cheek pad; fortunately, this rifle has both.

Laying prone and observing the area ahead, which gives a good view of the scope's markings. They read "NIRKON OPTICS" (an obvious play on real-world optics manufacturer Nikon) on the first line, ".223 SCOPE" on the second, and "1x-24x ZOOM" on the third. Fortunately, the fact that the scope is meant for .223 rifles is a non-issue in-game, since scopes in H3 are self-zeroing for convenience's sake.

Aiming the rifle at a watermelon...

...and blowing it away.

Having dealt the enemy of the revolution a copper-jacketed 7.62mm lesson, the Red Sniper reloads, looking for more targets in need of "re-education".

He then flips the rifle over, revealing the locked-open bolt...

...and releases it.

His nonexistent spotter having informed him of a particularly bourgeois-looking melon out at 250 meters, the Red Sniper adjusts his magnification accordingly, adjusting the knob to its highest setting.

He then takes aim...

...fires...

...and lands a hit. Once again, the effects of a properly-modeled ballistics system make themselves clear.

In the end, the Red Sniper's revolution would ultimately fail, in large part due to him being a raving lunatic who stood on a balcony and fired down into crowds of innocent watermelons because of a delusional fantasy about being a soldier for a communist revolution that didn't even exist, punctuated by his only help being his imaginary spotter friend. His rifle, however, would go on to have its own far more successful revolution, freeing itself from the oppressive shackles of aftermarket rail mounts, scopes graduated for the wrong cartridge, and government-controlled media.

The SVD is now free to choose its own path in life. It can finally be the 20th-century infantry rifle that it always dreamed of being. Maybe it'll even get to make use of its bayonet lug.

While the SVD's path from here on out might not be certain, one thing's for sure:

Snayperskaya Vintovka Dragunova is firmly in control of its own destiny.

VSS Vintorez

Along with its assault-rifle sibling, the VSS Vintorez was added on the 14th day of 2018's Meatmas event.

VSS Vintorez with PSO-1 scope - 9x39mm

Look familiar?

Loading a 10-round magazine into the VSS. The Val's 20-rounders work just fine as well, but aren't exactly ideal for using the rifle while laying prone.

Admiring the rifle. Something about wooden thumbhole stocks just looks... right.

Which is fortunate, because a lot of the other things about the rifle - namely, it being a sniper rifle shorter than your average 3-year-old with a muzzle velocity under the speed of sound that can fire in full-auto - seem about as far from "right" as you can get without a passport.

Unlike the reference image, unfortunately, the VSS in the box doesn't come with a PSO-1 scope - or any scope for that matter. Iron sights'll have to do.

Firing off a few shots at the crystal snowflake. A spent casing can just barely be seen on its way out of the ejection port.

Discovering that the fact that something has to work doesn't necessarily meant it will, the scorned sniper gives his VSS one last look before putting it back away, and trying to figure out how to tell HQ that he failed his mission without shooting himself twice in the back of the head.

Walther WA 2000

The sixteenth day's gift during the Meatmas 2018 event was a second-pattern Walther WA 2000.

Walther WA 2000 (second variant) - .300 Winchester Magnum

The WA 2000's gift box. Note the claim that the rifle is chambered in 7.62x51mm...

...which is strange, since the in-game rifle actually fires .300 Win Mag (the only weapon in the game to use the cartridge).

Well, at least we're certain about the bore diameter.

When you're handed a rifle of which only 176 were made in total, you ought to at least stop for a moment and admire it.

All 5 figures of it.

The Snowflake Sniper stalks silently through the snow, looking for a well-hidden position with a perfect view of the target. A View to a Kill, if you will...

He then unfolds his rifle's integrated bipod...

...and affixes a variable-magnification scope.

Next, moving his hand to the rifle's grip, he places his thumb on the safety switch, and slowly, carefully pushes it forward, from the white "S", to...

CAN WE JUST GET ON WITH THIS ALREADY?!

Skipping any further dramatic frivolities, the Snowflake Sniper (whose name you really probably shouldn't abbreviate) puts his target in the crosshairs...

...fires, sending a spent-but-unstruck case out of the ejection port as the sharp bark of the .300 echoes through the trees...

...and, FINALLY, watches the round hit home. "Target eliminated," he says, "and to all a good night."

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