Barrel



A Barrel is an armored fighting machine first developed by the United States during the Great War. It was used at first to support infantry, until General George Custer and Lt. Colonel Irving Morrell realized the value of the barrel to actually lead an offensive action. The so-called Barrel Roll Offensive gave the U.S. victory over the Confederate States.

The United States led the way in barrel development during the Great War. After the War, the Barrel Works were established at Topeka, Kansas, under the command of Colonel Irving Morrell. However, the Works were closed in 1923 under the Sinclair Administration.

The Confederacy did not openly develop barrels until the Featherston Administration. However, Confederate volunteers with the Mexican Imperial forces gained operational experience using barrels.

In the interwar period, however, the U.S. allowed itself fall behind other countries in further developing and perfecting the weapon it had created. Only with the Pacific War did the U.S. return its attention to the barrel. In the meantime, the C.S. had developed sophisticated barrel technology of its own.

The US barrels of the 1941 War were the first to sport sloping armor. The Confederate Mark 3 barrel's heavier 50 mm gun was sufficient to destroy the US Custer barrel, however, despite its sloping armor. The Confederates used sloping armor in their new Mark 4 barrel, which was equipped with a heavy 75 mm cannon, making it the most powerful barrel yet deployed.

The US Mark II upgrade was an attempt to hold back superior Confederate barrel formations while a new, more powerful, barrel could be built. While both sides use different caliber rounds for their rifles, both sides' barrels have .50 caliber heavy machine guns, most likely on their turrets. In 1943, the Confederate States developed the "Barrel Busters" as a response to the large U.S. Army barrel formations.

The term "tank" was briefly used by the C.S. Army (as it was the British term for it), but it eventually adopted the term barrel.

Barrel Class
Confederate Models


 * Mark 1 (Great War) - Rhomboid barrel; 10 man crew; two 50mm guns, 3 machine guns.
 * Mark 2 (Between the Wars) - More familiar shape, with rotating turret. Crew of 5-6; Estimated 37mm gun, 3 machine guns.
 * Mark 3 (Second Great War) - Upgraded version of Mk2. Crew of 5; 50mm gun, at least 2 machine guns.
 * Mark 4 (Second Great War) - It held a crew of 5; mounted a 75mm cannon, and had at least 2 machine guns.

Unites States Models


 * Mark 1 (Great War) - 18 man crew; one 50mm gun, 6 machine guns.
 * Mark 2 (Between the Wars) - Nicknamed the 'Custer.' The ‘Custer’ was advanced for its time. It carried a crew of 5; mounted a 37mm gun, and carried at least 2 machine guns.
 * Mark 2.5 (Second Great War) - This barrel was developed to be deployed as quickly as possible to meet the challenge of the Confederate Mark 4. It consisted of a Custer barrel body with an upgraded turret. It carried a crew of 5; and mounted 60mm gun, at least 2 machine guns.
 * Mark III (1941 War) - The American response to the Confederate Mark 4. It was powerful, heavily armored with "perfectly" sloped armor, and carried a mounted 90mm cannon along with three machine guns. Deployed shortly before the invasion of Kentucky and Tennessee. This was the first United States barrel that outgunned the Confederates' best barrel


 * Southern Victory Lexicon