Tyranny of Steel

After making love to his favorite wife, Berengar realized that time waits for no man, and that he was currently in an arms race with a hostile reincarnator. Thus, rather than use what little time he had to relax. He quickly got to work designing a whole line of new weapons and vehicles that would completely change the way warfare was fought around the globe.

After years of industrialization efforts, and the control over massive deposits of raw materials, Berengar now had the means to create armored vehicles, submarines, aircraft, and other modern weapon systems.

However, first and foremost, he needed to equip his infantry with capable semiautomatic and automatic weapons that would prove vital in the wars that would be fought in the eastern world. Though Berengar could design a proper assault rifle to use as his armed forces standard issue rifle, he was hesitant to do so. For starters, he believed the extended range of a full power cartridge would prove vital in the islands of the Pacific. As Itami was likely to entrench her forces and fire upon him with bolt action rifles.

However, the history of his past life had proven that select fire battle rifles were generally uncontrollable on full auto. With a few noticeable exceptions. During the Second World War of Berengar's past life, the German Paratroopers had requested a rifle that was capable of fulfilling both the role of a light machine gun and an infantry rifle. After years of development, the FG-42 was created.

The Fg-42 was a select fire battle rifle that was unique for its use of both a closed bolt and an open bolt system. The closed bolt was utilized on semi automatic fire, which improved the accuracy of the single shots, while the open bolt was used for automatic fire. Interestingly enough, the device made use of a detachable twenty round box magazine which fed from the side of the weapon.

The Fg-42 was arguably one of the best infantry weapons of the war, despite this it had served in limited numbers. It made use of the 7.92x57mm Mauser cartridge and yet was surprisingly controllable in the automatic setting.

Berengar knew with the size of his military. It would take many months to replace the current issue G25 bolt action rifles, and because of this, he would give priority to his Reichsgarde and Special Operations Units. The G25 had played a pivotal role in the massacre of the Catholic Forces during the Crusade, but it was already obsolete when Berengar introduced it.

The only reason he had not gone with an automatic weapon system earlier was because he felt it was simply too much of an expense to warrant the cost. After all, until now, all of his enemies were using black powder muzzle loaders.

However, the threat that Itami and her Japanese Empire posed to the Reich was enough to warrant the development and manufacture of automatic infantry weapons. Naturally with the Fg-42, or as he would call it, the Stg-27, as the standard issue rifle, Berengar would need to develop machine guns to accompany such weapons.

There were two designs Berengar had in mind to replace the Vickers, and each fulfilled a different role. The ZB 30 was a top fed, light machine gun chambered in a variety of cartridges during the Interwar period of Berengar's past life.

It was a Czech weapon, however after the annexation of Czechoslovakia by the Reich, the ZB-30 was widely used by the Waffen-SS in the early days of the war. Largely because of internal politics that prevented them from using the standard Wehrmacht supply chains.

The weapon was the inspiration for the BREN gun used by British Armed forces as well as several Japanese light machine gun designs. In this life, Berengar would call the light machine gun the Mg-27(t) and it would make use of thirty round box magazines designed to feed 7.92x57mm cartridges into the weapon's action.

The idea behind Berengar's new doctrine for warfare was to issue a light machine gunner to every squad, while doing the same with a dedicated machine gunner to every platoon. This dedicated machine gunner would make use of a general purpose machine gun known as the Mg-42 in his past life or the Mg-27 in this life.

This Mg-42 would be an improved design that made use of the safety features issued in the later Mg-3 machine gun, which replaced the Mg-42 from active service in the armed forces of Western Germany. The Mg-42 was an improvement over the Mg-34 design, which implemented a quick barrel change feature.

Berengar intended not only to issue this weapon to his infantry, but with armored vehicles as well, and in fortifications. It could fulfill the role of both a static weapon and an infantry weapon. The Mg-42 or Mg-27 as it would be known as in this life, had a rate of fire of roughly 1200 rounds per minute, and made use of 50 round 7.92x57mm belts which could be linked together to form a belt that carried 250 rounds.

After designing the MG-42 to be used across his armed forces, Berengar moved onto a sniper rifle. Naturally, the first weapon that came to mind that used the 7.92x57mm cartridge was the G-43 semiautomatic rifle. This weapon had a built in scope mount, a detachable 10 round magazine, and was capable of firing one round per each pull of the trigger. It was also fairly accurate, and an excellent designated marksman rifle.

The only problem with the G-43 or the G-27, as it would be known as in this life, was that the original rifles were over gassed, and poorly finished as a result of war exhaustion. This resulted in an increased wear of the parts. Because of this, some re-engineering needed to take place to fix the gas system, and ensure that the parts were properly constructed.

In reality, Berengar already had a basis for this system, as a post-war modification was made in America to make the rifles that were brought back from the conflict more shoot able. So, after some fine tuning, he believed he came up with the perfect design for long-term military use.

Finally, Berengar needed a weapon to issue to vehicle crews, rear echelon troops, and officers. The immediate weapon that came to mind was the Mp-40, or the Mp-27, as he would call it in this life. The Mp-40 was a submachine gun that made us of 32 round 9x19mm box magazines. It had a folding stock for ease of transport, and was made of stamped sheet metal, making it not only easy to produce, but an inexpensive product.

After finishing designing these blueprints and stamping his approval for them to go through thorough development, testing, and manufacture. Berengar set his eyes on his next target. The Second World War, in his past life, was in reality a proving ground for various ideas that were good and bad for the battlefield. It was the dawn of a new style of warfare, and many nations came up with different ideas on how an army should function.

Berengar naturally knew the advantages and disadvantages of these systems, and had decided upon a series of armored vehicles that took inspiration from modern American Doctrine. The first vehicle that came to mind was an Infantry Fighting Vehicle.

The Infantry fighting vehicle was a concept that came out in the post-war era. Essentially, it was a vehicle designed to transport troops into battle and provide direct fire support. The main difference between an Infantry Fighting Vehicle and an Armored Personnel Carrier was the size of its primary weapon. An infantry fighting vehicle had a main gun that fired at least a 20mm projectile.

Berengar intended to create a large Infantry Fighting Vehicle capable of carrying an entire squad of infantry into battle. Because of this, he actually designed something relatively unique. The overall shape of the IFV that Berengar created took the form of the West German Schützenpanzer SPz 11-2 Kurz. However, its size was increased to that of an M2 Bradley IFV.

With the increase in size of the vehicle, it needed a better engine, and because of that, Berengar made use of the same engine which powered his five-ton trucks. Which incidentally was the same engine used in the M2 Bradley and its most modern variants.

After ensuring that this beast of a vehicle was properly armored, he redesigned the rear so that it replicated that which the M2 Bradley used. The final modification Berengar made to this vehicle was to ensure that it had amphibious capabilities, something he felt he would need if he was going to war in the Pacific. He named this vehicle the Schützenpanzer SPz 27 "Lynx".

After designing the IFV that would carry his troops into battle, Berengar decided on a tank design that he was able to build at this moment. Any design that originated after the Second World War would be difficult to achieve, if simply because of their reliance on more modern sighting systems. Because of that, Berengar selected what he believed to be the best tank of the Second World War, and that was the Panzerkampfwagen V Panther, also known simply as the Panther.

The Panther tank was a medium tank that saw extensive use in the Second World War by the forces of the Wehrmacht and Waffen SS. It made use of a 7.5 cm KwK 42 main gun, and was a decent compromise between armor, firepower, and mobility. Some historians would say it was one of the leading inspirations for the post-war Main Battle Tank concept. Berengar intended to name this vehicle the Panzerkampfwagen I Panther, since it was the first of the Reich's tank designs in this world.

Berengar suspected that in a year, or maybe two, his Reichsgarde would be fully mechanized, and in the following years, his Army would catch up. These weapons would be gradually introduced to his forces over time, and he intended to use the Indian Subcontinent not only as a proving ground for his new weapons but also as a means to give his army some experience in modern combat.

These Armored Vehicles, and automatic weapons, were but the first of the new inventions Berengar intended to design. It was a bold new era. With access to combustion engines and materials such as aluminum, he could design new naval vessels, and a dedicated air force. Hell, from the looks of it, his first ever airship was nearing completion. Once such a thing was constructed, his people would rule the skies.

Thus, while Hans continued to show off the wealth of the Reich to his guests. Berengar was fast at work, designing an entirely new generation of weapons that the Reich's Armed Forces would be equipped with in the coming years.