In the 1930's, during Germany's reconstruction, Britain and France (as the 2 major "Western" powers of the time) did not take Germany very seriously. In 1940, when war finally came to France and the British Expeditionary Force, both nations and all of their allies were caught off guard by the new strategies and tactics used by the German Army. For over a year after the fall of France, Britain and her Commonwealth were the only things that stood between Germany and a complete victory in Europe. In the Pacific and various Asian theatres, the British did not fare much better as Japan continued to claim colony after colony. Ultimately, Britain was vastly unprepared for a war that it should have seen coming. However, the British preservered, and with aid ultimately achieved victory. In Assault Squad 2, the British rely heavily upon cheap and older designs, as well as weapons purchased from the US. That is not to say that British weapons are not without merit, as the British produced a few excellent weapons throughout the war, but the primary drive of British designs was Need. As such, some designs of the British may not be pleasant, but they are effective.

Full Name: SMLE (Short, Magazine, Lee–Enfield) Rifle No. 1 Mk III
Max Range: 70m
Accuracy: High
Rate of Fire: Below Average
Reload Time: 5 Seconds
Ammo Capacity: 10
Weight: 4.7 kg
Effective Range: Medium - Long
Carried By: Regular Infantry (x5), Assault Infantry (x3), Militia (x6), Black Watch (x4), ANZAC (x5)
The Lee-Enfield is the standard British infantryman's rifle, and is actually quite a good rifle as far bolt action goes. It has a faster rate of fire than other bolt actions just slightly (it can put out 5 shots in the time it takes a 98k to put out 4). On top of this, its magazine size is also much larger than "normal", meaning that it can keep up its rate of fire for longer, and when you mass these rifles together you have quite a formidable source of suppressing fire.


Full Name: De Lisle Commando carbine
Max Range: 70m
Accuracy: High
Rate of Fire: Moderate
Reload Time: 3 Seconds
Ammo Capacity: 7
Weight: 4.6 kg
Effective Range: Short - Long
Carried By: Commandos (x3), Royal Commandos (x2)
Although the De Lisle is actually a bolt action, in Assault Squad 2 it plays like a semi-automatic rifle, offering up a good rate of fire and accuracy. Only available to Commandos, the De Lisle comes with a built in silencer allowing them to draw as little attention as possible to themselves when attacking, which is a benefit to the soldier shooting the De Lisle as they can engage at longer ranges when compared to other silenced weapons in the game. Similar to all other semi-automatic rifles in Assault Squad, the De Lisle must also wait a brief moment between shots.


Full Name: SMLE (Short, Magazine, Lee–Enfield) No.4 Mk.I (T)
Max Range: 100m
Accuracy: Very High
Rate of Fire: Below Average
Reload Time: 5 Seconds
Ammo Capacity: 8
Weight: 4.6 kg
Effective Range: Medium - Long
Carried By: Sniper (x1)
The EM-2 Sniper is the most accurate, and in the hands of the right soldier, the most lethal of all the British rifles. The rate of fire for the EM-2 Sniper is identical to the Lee-Enfield, however, all sniper rifles require that the soldier take the time to acquire aim at longer ranges, making the actual time between most shots very long. In close ranges though, sniper rifles can fire at the same rate as any bolt action, meaning that the AI does not have to wait to acquire a target.
[UPDATE: Only Snipers can acquire a target with an aimed shot. All other soldiers treat sniper weapons as normal rifles.]

Full Name: STEN Mark III
Max Range: 50m
Accuracy: Below Average
Rate of Fire: Fast
Reload Time: 2.75 Seconds
Ammo Capacity: 32
Weight: 4.4 kg
Effective Range: Short - Medium
Carried By: Militia (x2), Regular Infantry (x1), Assault Infantry (x4), AT Infantry (x2), AT Rifle Infantry (x2), Flamethrower Infantry(x1), Combat Engineers (x4), Mine Disposal Experts (x2), Royal Commandos (x1), Radio Operator (x3) Tank Commander (x1)
The Mark 3 Sten was the most common SMG in British armies by the end of the war. The first STEN was produeced somewhere in Britain in 1940, and borrowed it's design heavily from the MP40 and MP28 models of German submachine guns. As time went on and resources became more availaible, the design of the STEN became more sophisticated, and helped fix some of the original design flaws. However it still remained a flawed weapon, and was retired soon after the war. In Assault Squad 2 the STEN has a marginally higher rate of fire than most other SMGs, but the accuracy suffers in turn. A small side note: The picture used to depict the Sten Mk. III is inaccurate, as the Mk. III did not have a wooden stock, and was made entirely out of pressed metal.


Full Name: STEN Mark V
Max Range: 50m
Accuracy: Moderate
Rate of Fire: Fast
Reload Time: 2.5 Seconds
Ammo Capacity: 32
Weight: 4.4 kg
Effective Range: Short - Medium
Carried By: SAS (x2), Mechanized SAS (x2)
Essentially the "deluxe" STEN gun, complete with wooden stock. This model of STEN was only issued to special forces units, including the SAS. In Assault Squad 2, this weapon has a higher damage per round, but other than that it is identical to the Mk 3.


Full Name: STEN Mark VI Suppressed
Max Range: 50m
Accuracy: Moderate
Rate of Fire: Fast
Reload Time: 2.5 Seconds
Ammo Capacity: 32
Weight: 4.4 kg
Effective Range: Short - Medium
Carried By: Commandos (x3), Royal Commandos (x5) Saboteur (x2)
Another special issue STEN model, the Mark 6 is identical to the Mark 5 STEN, with the only difference being the silencer.


Full Name: Owen Machine Carbine
Max Range: 50m
Accuracy: Moderate
Rate of Fire: Fast
Reload Time: 2.5 Seconds
Ammo Capacity: 32
Weight: 4.4 kg
Effective Range: Short - Medium
Carried By: ANZAC (x4)
The Australian made Owen Gun was designed and manufactured in Australia, and was mostly issued to ANZAC (Austraila New Zealand Army Corps) forces in the various theatres of war that they fought in. During WW2, the Owen was highly praised by many different allied nations for its reliability in jungle and desert combat, a feature that the gun was designed around. Another design feature was the ability to use the same magazine as the STEN guns. In Mowas 2 the Owen is very similar to the Sten, the only significant difference being a much higher rate of fire, similar to the Thompson.


Full Name: Thompson Submachine Gun
Max Range: 50m
Accuracy: Moderate
Rate of Fire: Fast
Reload Time: 2.5 seconds
Ammo Capacity: 20
Weight: 4.3 kg
Effective Range: Short - Medium
Carried By: Regular Infantry (x1)
The British purchased many weapons from the United States during WW2. This Thompson is identical to the standard US Thompson. See the US guide for more info.


Full Name: Thompson Submachine Gun M1928A1
Max Range: 50m
Accuracy: Moderate
Rate of Fire: Fast
Reload Time: 3.5 Seconds
Ammo Capacity: 50
Weight: 4.7 kg
Effective Range: Short - Medium
Carried By: SAS (x4), Mechanized SAS (x6)
A different model of Thompson purchased from the US, this particular weapon is the same gun that was made famous by the various "Mob wars" in the 1920's and '30s. In Assault Squad, this militarized version can only be found on the SAS soldiers, but performs similarly enough to the standard Thompson that no significant difference was recorded.


Full Name: Reising Submachine Gun Model 50
Max Range: 50m
Accuracy: Below Average
Rate of Fire: Fast
Reload Time: 2.5 Seconds
Ammo Capacity: 20
Weight: 4.3 kg
Effective Range: Short - Medium
Carried By: Royal Engineers (x6), Black Watch (x3)
Yet another weapon purchased from the US. The United States mostly issued these SMGs to Navy and Coast Guard personnel, however, the British Commonwealth was desperate for any SMGs they could get their hands on. In Assault Squad, this weapon is given to the Canadian Black Watch, and the Royal Engineers to represent this. As a weapon in AS, it has a slightly slower rate of fire than the Thompson while retaining the same accuracy, but does slightly more damage per round.

Full Name: Bren Light Machine Gun
Max Range: 80m
Accuracy: Average
Rate of Fire: Fast
Reload Time: 2.5 Seconds
Ammo Capacity: 29
Weight: 12.4 kg
Effective Range: Short - Long
Carried By: Regular Infantry (x1), ANZAC (x1), Commandos (x2), Royal Commandos (x2)
The Bren was the most common light machine gun used by Commonwealth forces, and acts as many different unit's support weapon. The actual magazine capacity of the Bren is 30, but somewhere along the line soldiers figured out that the gun jammed a lot less often if you only filled the magazine to 29 bullets instead. As a weapon, this gun is a fairly well balanced weapon, striking a good medium between rate of fire and accuracy. One of the biggest benefits of the Bren, as with many other LMGs like the Type 99, BAR, and FG-42, is the quick reload time, allowing it to swiftly get back into action once it has spent all of its ammunition.


Full Name: Vickers GO No.2 Mk.1 Land Service
Max Range: 80m
Accuracy: Low
Rate of Fire: Extremely Fast
Reload Time: 5 Seconds
Ammo Capacity: 96
Weight: 13.4 kg
Effective Range: Short - Long
Carried By: SAS (x2), Mechanized SAS (x2)
Originally intended for use in aircraft, the VGO is designed around some of the same basic principles as the MG42, however it is not clear if they were inspired by each other or reached the same conclusion independently. With one of the highest rates of fire in Assault Squad, the VGO is a very potent machine gun. Unfortunately, the VGO was only acquired by special units of the Commonwealth.


Full Name: Lewis Automatic Machine Gun
Max Range: 80m
Accuracy: Below Average
Rate of Fire: Above Average
Reload Time: 5 Seconds
Ammo Capacity: 47
Weight: 12.7 kg
Effective Range: Short - Long
Carried By: Black Watch (x1)
The Lewis machine gun is an older World War 1 machine gun, and saw limited service in the Second World War. Many of the older MGs used by the army were replaced, and the most common use of the Lewis was on various naval vessels as an anti-air gun. However, many of these older machine guns still saw use in various Commonwealth countries, and Assault Squad 2 has represented this by giving a Lewis to the Canadian Black Watch unit. As an older weapon, it does not perform as well as other machine guns out there due to its relatively low rate of fire for a machine gun. However, it still remains an effective weapon compared to most other small arms.


Full Name: Browning Machine Gun, Cal. .50, M2, HB
Max Range: 90m
Accuracy: Low
Rate of Fire: Fast
Reload Time: 6.25 Seconds
Ammo Capacity: 100
Armor Penetration:
-10m: 23mm
-50m: 12mm
-90m: 6mm
Weight: 234 kg
Effective Range: Short - Long
Carried By: Vehicles
Given to the UK through the Lend-Lease Act with the USA, the .50 cal is the most devastating out of any man-portable weapon in the game, and can only be found on US vehicles, and the more expensive British tanks. See the US guide for more info.

Full Name: Rifle, Anti-Tank, .55in, Boys
Max Range: 80m
Accuracy: High
Rate of Fire: Slow
Reload Time: 3.5 Seconds
Ammo Capacity: 5
Armor Penetration:
-10m: 28mm
-50m: 19mm
-80m: 10mm
Weight: 18.5 kg
Effective Range: Short - Medium
Carried By: AT Rifle Infantry (x1), SAS (x1), Mechanized SAS (x1)
The Boys anti-tank rifle (Boyes is often an improper, but accepted spelling), is an average anti-tank rifle used by British and Commonwealth forces. As heavier units are deployed to the field its effectiveness against armor diminishes, but it can still be used against soft, or lightly armored targets such as infantry and anti-tank guns.


Full Name: Projector, Infantry, Anti Tank (PIAT)
Max Range: 35m
Accuracy: Moderate
Rate of Fire: Single Shot
Reload Time: (aprox) 4.5 Seconds
Ammo Capacity: 1
Armor Penetration: 120mm
Weight: 8.8 kg
Effective Range: Short
Carried By: AT Infantry (x1), SAS (x1), Mechanized SAS (x1), Royal Commandos (x1)
The PIAT, while not having the penetration potential of the various German rockets, is still quite a useful anti-tank weapon. When the PIAT is fired, the projectile is launched in an arcing path at a low velocity. This means that fast moving targets will be much harder to it, any stationary or slow moving target will be able to be hit from behind hard cover, like low walls, rocks, or even small hills. Additionally, the high arc of the PIAT means that there is a strong likelyhood that the PIAT's projectile may strike the often weaker top armor of its target, creating additional opportunities for incapacitation of the enemy.

Full Name:
Max Range: 45m
Accuracy: Low
Rate of Fire: Single Shot
Reload Time: 14.5 Seconds
Ammo Capacity: 1
Weight: 6 kg
Effective Range: Short - Medium
Carried By: Assault Infantry (x1)
The EM-3 Rifle Grenade is a very interesting weapon, and is only carried by the Assault Squad Leader in Assault Squad 2. It fires a low-velocity grenade at the intended target which will explode upon impact, damaging or killing anything in the blast radius. This is most useful, however, because it can be shot over low obstacles like rocks, or hills, and still hit its target, giving assault infantry indirect fire capabilities similar to a mortar. Unexpectedly, the EM-3 also has limited effective against very lightly armored vehicles, such as a Sdkfz 222 or a Daimler. As these are not its intended targets, no AP value is available for it.
[Tester's Note: Only gains 5 rounds from ammo crates, and 10 from ammo trucks.]


Full Name: Webley Mk IV .455 Service Revolver
Max Range: 40m
Accuracy: High
Rate of Fire: Semi-Automatic
Reload Time: 3 Seconds
Ammo Capacity: 6
Weight: 1.1 kg
Effective Range: Short
Carried By: Tank Crew, Officer
The Webley is the only pistol available to the standard British soldiers. As a weapon it is about as effective as other pistols, but due to it being a revolver it suffers from a low number of shots before needing to reload.


Full Name: Welrod
Max Range: 40m
Accuracy: High
Rate of Fire: Semi-Automatic
Reload Time: 3 Seconds
Ammo Capacity: 6
Weight: 2.6 kg
Effective Range: Short
Carried By: Saboteur (x2)
Another British weapon with a built-in silencer, the Welrod is a special forces pistol, that does more damage per round than other pistols.


Full Name: Flamethrower, Portable, No 2 "Lifebuoy"
Max Range: 25m
Accuracy: Precise
Rate of Fire: Extremely Fast
Reload Time: Manual
Ammo Capacity: 80
Weight:
-Flamethrower: 1 kg
-Fuel Tank: 83 kg
Effective Range: Short
Carried By: Flamethrower Infantry
The Flamethrower is a brutally effective assault weapon most commonly used to flush enemy soldiers out of a defensive position. The short range means you need to get very close, which means you will have to either sneak your way up to your target, or advance under the cover of suppressing fire. Either way, the flamethrower does devastating damage to any infantry it touches, but its uses can go beyond killing enemy infantry. Fire weapons can be used to clear trees and bushes away, depriving the enemy of cover, burn entire buildings down, and sustained application of fire to a vehicles engine can destroy even the heaviest of tanks. When you eventually run out of fuel, you must manually refuel the fuel tank. Since ammo trucks don't carry fuel tanks and they also don't auto-reload it for you, equip the gas tank (shown above) by right clicking it in your inventory. Once it is equipped you can walk up to almost anything that contains fuel in it, like vehicles or a fuel drum. Once you are done, you can reequip your flamethrower and go burn more stuff down. Enjoy.


Full Name: N/A
Max Range: 60m
Accuracy: Very Very Low
Rate of Fire: Extremely Fast
Reload Time: 26 seconds
Ammo Capacity: 5
Effective Range: Medium
Weight:
-Flare Pistol: 1.1 kg
-Radio Pack: 0.7 kg
Carried By: Radio Operator
The flare pistol allows the soldier firing it to call down a small volley of artillery fire. The flare projectile is parabolic, so you can fire it over obstacles and cover between you and your target. Although the accuracy of this weapon is low, the artillery fire that rains down shortly afterwards more than makes up for it, allowing the high spread to work to your benefit. Upon reloading, the soldier will take ammo out of the radio pack to prepare another volley.

*Note: AT Rifles and Rifle Grenades are both classified as Rifles.

Note: In Skirmish games each soldier receives an HP multiplier based on the game's difficulty setting. Easy grants x5 HP, Normal grants x4 HP, Hard grants x2, and Heroic grants no bonuses to HP.

The weapons listed in this section are ordered from highest rate of fire, to lowest. All the rating numbers are in ascending order (worst is lowest), and they are also relative to eachother. For example, the difference in damage between the Johnson and DeLisle is very small, but the difference from the various bolt actions to the M1A1 is pretty significant. These tables are here to give you a general idea of what you're dealing with when it comes to these weapons.


Thanks for reading and following these guides. Hopefully I'll have the time to do SMGs and MGs as well.

Thanks for reading. Please rate up for visibility & share your thoughts bellow.

Special thanks to TheRangerLOL for dreaming up this series, testing and doing commentary & Ficus for invaluable testing feedback.