# Diffrence between hellgun and Hotshot lasgun



## Archlich (Apr 14, 2011)

Hi,

Is there any diffrence (in fluff as well as battle mechanics) between hellguns and Hotshot lasguns? Or this is just one of those tricks that "Humanity forgot some technology again"?


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## Maidel (Jun 28, 2009)

Yes

the hellgun has a worse AP value


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## Rems (Jun 20, 2011)

The hotshot lasgun was just a normal lasgun that fired hotshot laspacks, laspacks that were overcharged to give you more power but less shots. The heat could also warp the barrel. 

Hellguns were specialist equipment given to stormtroopers. They fired faster, and were more powerful than a lasgun, capable of piercing power armour (and certainly carapace) and were fed by a carried power supply. They were more delicate, requiring greater care to maintain. 

This previous distinction seems to have somewhat changed in the latest Guard codex with the new hotshot lasguns being a amalgamation of the previous hotshot lasguns and hellguns.


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## Maidel (Jun 28, 2009)

Rems said:


> Hellguns were specialist equipment given to stormtroopers. They fired faster, and were more powerful than a lasgun, capable of piercing power armour (and certainly carapace) and were fed by a carried power supply. They were more delicate, requiring greater care to maintain. .


Erm - rules wise thats all wrong - they have the same rate of fire, the same chance of penetrating power armour, same strength as a lasgun.

Its only the most recent hotshot lasgun thats the power armour penetrator - but it still has the same rate of fire and the same strength.


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## hailene (Aug 28, 2009)

I don't recall hellguns shooting faster. Though in "Helsreach" their beams are brighter and apparently they are louder when they fire, too.

About the rules, in 4th ED Hellguns had the same range, firing characteristics (including fire rate), but did have 5 AP instead of -. So, yeah, they penned more armor.

In 5th ED I think they mostly combined the concept. Though for balance reasons, probably, they reduced the range of the hotshot to 18" instead of the Las gun's 24.


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## Rems (Jun 20, 2011)

Maidel said:


> Erm - rules wise thats all wrong - they have the same rate of fire, the same chance of penetrating power armour, same strength as a lasgun.
> 
> Its only the most recent hotshot lasgun thats the power armour penetrator - but it still has the same rate of fire and the same strength.


This is the fluff board and a fluff discussion. Rules have no impact on fluff. I was providing information from a fluff perspective, as the op's question was intended.


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## Maidel (Jun 28, 2009)

Rems said:


> This is the fluff board and a fluff discussion. Rules have no impact on fluff. I was providing information from a fluff perspective, as the op's question was intended.


He asked for 'battle mechanics' which I would understand as rules.

And even in the fluff they never fired faster.


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## khrone forever (Dec 13, 2010)

this is going to tern into people saying "yes they do" and others saying "no they don't" in slightly more complex ways trying to disguised there pettiness


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## Rems (Jun 20, 2011)

Maidel said:


> He asked for 'battle mechanics' which I would understand as rules.
> 
> And even in the fluff they never fired faster.


Incorrect. I refer you to the Munitorum Manual, page 64. "the powercells of a hellgun allow for more rapid firing and can be switched between single shot and full auto". "its penetrative power is great and can punch through layered armour with ease".


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## Archlich (Apr 14, 2011)

Thank you very much for those information
So basically Hellguns are like Las+ and Hotshotis like las x 2 (at the cost of greater ammunition use)?


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## Maidel (Jun 28, 2009)

Rems said:


> Incorrect. I refer you to the Munitorum Manual, page 64. "the powercells of a hellgun allow for more rapid firing and can be switched between single shot and full auto". "its penetrative power is great and can punch through layered armour with ease".


No, you misunderstood his question. He asked for the differences between the hellgun and a hotshot lasgun.

What you just typed is the difference between the hellgun and a lasgun.


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## Maidel (Jun 28, 2009)

Archlich said:


> Thank you very much for those information
> So basically Hellguns are like Las+ and Hotshotis like las x 2 (at the cost of greater ammunition use)?


The answer to that is complicated. Both are effectively the same gun, a slightly more powerful lasgun. Depending on the source they both fire a slightly more powerful las blast, at least one of them can be fired on auto (but depending on the source so can lasguns) and both penetrate armour better.

The problem is the rules have driven the fluff on this one and as the rules have consistently made 'better'. Thus there is no clear distinction either between the guns or between the powers they actually have.


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## Rems (Jun 20, 2011)

Maidel said:


> No, you misunderstood his question. He asked for the differences between the hellgun and a hotshot lasgun.
> 
> What you just typed is the difference between the hellgun and a lasgun.





Maidel said:


> The answer to that is complicated. Both are effectively the same gun, a slightly more powerful lasgun. Depending on the source they both fire a slightly more powerful las blast, at least one of them can be fired on auto (but depending on the source so can lasguns) and both penetrate armour better.
> 
> The problem is the rules have driven the fluff on this one and as the rules have consistently made 'better'. Thus there is no clear distinction either between the guns or between the powers they actually have.


Which is exactly what i said in my first post. I gave a description of what hotshot lasguns previously were and what hellguns are. I then said the new hotshots lasguns (as of the 5th ed Guard codex) have changed. 

These latter posts were me replying to your questioning of my description of the hellguns, of which i have since stated my source. Anyway, lets not devolve this thread any further. 

The point is that what hotshot lasguns used to has somewhat changed. Going by their current description though they are still a separate weapon from hellguns, differing in some characteristics.


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## Maidel (Jun 28, 2009)

Well hellguns don't exist in the current codexes, so it's hard to say either way. When looking at this sort of question you can't only go by fluff because the fluff is often exaggerated.

You can read some fluff sources that describe a bolt gun with as much penetrating power as a heavy bolter and power armour stronger than terminator armour.


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