Chain Gun

"Someone get on that turret!"

— Dominic Santiago, to his fellow Gears, aboard the Derrick in Tip of the Spear

[edit] Background

The COG Chain Gun is a modern heavy machine gun employing the Gatling-gun principle, in which six revolving barrels rotate around the firing axis. This arrangement allows the individual barrels to cool between shots. The Chain Gun's action is driven by an electric motor, unlike the hand-crank system of the Mulcher. This feeds ammunition in and rotates the firing mechanism. As it rotates, the barrels close into the bolt for firing, then withdraw to extract the spent cartridge case and feed in a fresh round. The entire process happens very quickly; when the Chain Gun is fired, the sounds of the individual shots blur into a continuous, rippling roar.

Much of the Chain Gun's length is in its barrels; the actual firing mechanism is quite compact for such a powerful weapon. The weapon only has rudimentary iron sights; the gunner is expected to observe the stream of fire's fall and adjust their aim accordingly. To keep up with the Chain Gun's voracious appetite for ammunition, It is normally fed from enormous ammunition boxes, with ammo fed to the weapon via a flexible metal chute.

Because of the Gun's size and mass, it is far too big to be moved about by any one soldier. Instead, it is normally seen as a vehicular or aircraft weapon - it is particularly well-suited for being a helicopter door gun, where its high rate of fire makes up for the relative lack of accuracy that comes from using a flying helicopter as a firing platform. It is also sometimes seen mounted on a tripod or base for use as a static defense weapon.

[edit] Tactical Use

The Chain Gun is the COG answer to the Locust Troika. Though it's not quite as powerful as its Locust contemporary, it's still an incredibly powerful weapon that can tear even the most brutal of enemies to shreds. The times you'll actually get to use the Chain Gun are rather rare; the only time the weapon appears in Gears of War 1 is on the Tyro Pillar, during Act 5; you see it both during the segment wherein you must down Reavers, and the notorious RAAM fight.

In Gears of War 2, it's used first in Act 1: Tip of the Spear, mounted on the Derrick that Delta Squad rides. It is easily the best way to deal with the Nemacyst that appear early in the chapter, and the best way to deal with the scores of Reavers and worse you encounter as the mission progresses. The next time you'll use the Chain Gun is in Aftermath, where the weapon is used for repulsing the attack by a swarm of Reavers on the Comm Tower in Jacinto Plateau.

In general, the Chain Gun is functionally identical to the Troika. It isn't as powerful (since it fires fewer bullets), but it's considerably more accurate. Like the Troika, it has a front-mounted shield that protects the firer from small-arms fire. Also like the Troika and Mulcher both, it uses a cooling system that can flush the weapon with coolant should it overheat (accessed with the Right Bumper Button). Note that because the Chain Gun, like the Troika, is electrically-operated, its clutch stops the barrels cold if you stop firing to flush the gun with coolant. Because of this, it's advised that if you must stop firing, completely reduce the gun's heat before starting it back up.

[edit] Trivia

• The Chain Gun and Mulcher are 2 different weapons. The Chain Gun is specifically designed as a vehicle mount or emplacement weapon, were the Mulcher is intended as the smaller-caliber, man-portable weapon.
• It is the main weapon on King Raven Helicopters. One is mounted on each of the King Raven's the port and starboard-sides. 2 are also mounted in the Raven's nose.
• The King Raven Gunship removes the door-mounted versions for a pair of Chain Guns mounted on its weapon wings.
• It is the main weapon on Derricks.