In news from the Pentagon, the LSAT Rifle has not panned out. That means the Pentagon will now be soliciting designs for a next generation combat rifle for the US military. And on USG, there's only one way to do that!

In this bid scenario, players will be able to submit a design proposal for the US military's standard replacement for the M-16 rifle.

What should my bid include?

• The name of your proposed weapon- Self exlanatory. I hope.
  
• Manufacturer(s)- This can either be a RL manufacturer from your area, or you can make one up. Multiple manufacturers are permissible, if not all the parts are going to be assembled in one place, though a single entity is prefered. You don't need much here, just a company name and location. If needed, we'll fill in the rest.
  
• Technical specs- You know, barrel length, range, cartridge, muzzle velocity. Whatever you want to include, just be sure to at least cover all the basics. 5 minutes of wiki'ing assault rifles should show you everything you need to include.
  
• Further info- Why is your system superior to the M-16? Why is it best suited for the 21st century soldier? Anything you want to explain about your proposal, this is where to do it.
  
• Estimated cost per unit- Given the sheer number of rifles that will be produced if your design is selected, how much do you expect to deliver it for? Cheaper is better, but don't try and fool us. And as always, the military is not afraid to spend money.

Who should I send it to? Me. (Sykes)

Who will decide the finalists/the winner? Along with a number of admins, the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Homeland Security.

Who is eligible? Any official political character. This includes Representatives, Senators, Governors, Lt. Governors or Regional Legislators. You must have a valid bio for your proposal to be accepted.

What's in it for me? If your proposal is selected, that manufacturer you listed is gonna be rolling in big money government contracts. When that happens, the admins will tie your character into the proposals success, making sure the voters know who helped get all this cash flowing into their region.

How long do I have. For now, two weeks as of this posting. Depending on reaction, this might be altered. Stay tuned.

If you have any questions, feel free to PM me. Otherwise, good luck!

Tremendous bids submitted so far. But if you have interest in the subject, or 20 minutes to familiarize yourself on Wikipedia, I highly encourage you to submit a bid if you have not done so.

Because of the high quality of bids received so far, I'm adding on a consolation prize for the runner-up bid. I haven't decided what it will be yet, but it will make your bid worth your while.

First, see the announcements I bumped off the front page.

Secondly, 24 hours for any final bids.

First, we have a Hall of Fame!


The bid process is now closed. Because of the high quality of the received bids, selecting a winner will take some time. My hope is that by the time holiday break is overwe will have narrowed the field down to three finalists, but that depends on everyone else's ability to be around the next couple weeks. In the meantime, thanks to all who applied, and we'll let you know if we need more info from anyone.

The three finalists have been selected. If you submitted a bid, and have not received a PM from me with further instructions, then I am afraid your bid was not among those chosen. Absolutely no shame, as we had to eliminate some very good bids in order to get the list to just three.
Thanks to all who applied, and I'll see our finalists at Aberdeen Proving Ground.

And, we have a winner. And a runner-up. Thanks again to all who applied.