Changes: AC-96/2

Revision as of 13:24, 7 October 2014

The Avtomat Nikonova model 1994 Abakan, (Nikonov Assault Rifle, model 1994 "Abakan"), called Obokan in Shadow of Chernobyl and AC-96/2 in Clear Sky and Call of Pripyat, is a 5.45mm assault rifle. It appears in S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl, S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky and S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat.

Background

It is an advanced assault rifle designed by Gennadiy Nikonov, and the successor of the Kalashnikov 1974 series rifles, made in the historic Izhmash state factories. The AN-94 makes use of a unique blowback shifted pulse system where the barrel moves back and forth when firing to dampen the recoil made by it, it also slightly increases the penetration probability of shots.

Overview

This weapon is found in all the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games and is one of the standard assault weapons of Duty stalkers and the Ukrainian Spetsnaz, although it sees limited use with the Loners. It uses 5.45×39mm rounds, can be mounted with a PSO-1 scope, and a GP-25 underbarrel grenade launcher (it does not accept the GP-25 in SoC). The weapon has three selective firing modes: it can fire in single shots, a 2-shot burst or full auto. The weapon makes use of the standard synthetic stock and all metal accessories. It has surprisingly low durability, starting to jam early at 75%.

Appearances

Shadow of Chernobyl

The AN-94 was called Obokan in Shadow of Chernobyl. It is the basic weapon of Duty and Veteran Military elements, and some members of Monolith might posses this weapon as well. The Abakan slightly surpasses the AKS-74 in terms of accuracy (making it the best candidate for a PSO-1 scope after much harder to obtain Sniper VLA), but it has slightly longer reload time and starts to jam earlier than the AK. The AN-94 is only sold by Sakharov, Colonel Petrenko, and Barkeep. It can only mount a PSO-1 scope, but it cannot mount a GP-25 grenade launcher. The Abakan has 2 unique variants: Sniper Obokan with an improved scope fixed to weapon and Storming Obokan, which has an integral underbarrel grenade launcher attached to it. The Abakan in mint condition can be obtained in two places. First is in Dark Valley at the Bandits' base, under one of the trucks there is AN-94 and two boxes of 5.45 ammunition. The second place is at Freedom base; when you go to talk to Chef, search the backrooms as well. Besides food and some other items, you can find Abakan either in or behind a fridge. Two Abakan in mint condition can be found in the stash "Warehouse in the train car" located nearby the factory in Dark Valley.

Clear Sky

In Clear Sky, the AN-94 is called AC96/2 and possessed by both Experienced and Veteran members of Duty and the Military; though some of Duty's expert Exoskeleton units use an upgraded AC96/2 (with better firing rate, ability to mount underbarrel grenade launcher and a PSO-1 scope). It is sold by Mitay regardless of faction alignment, although it is easier to salvage one from fallen Duty members since they tend to be everywhere.

The Abakan's stats changed dramatically since Shadow of Chernobyl and rivals that of NATO class weaponry, making it a good choice for those who prefer the looks of Soviet class weaponry or wish to use 5.45x39mm ammunition. The AN-94 has a slightly better rate of fire and accuracy than the AKS-74, but has slightly lower damage (not very noticeable, but can be a factor for those attempting to make this weapon into a sniper analogue) and handling. It can easily fit the roles of assault and sniper well. Thunderov, Gray, and Yar can upgrade it with superior accuracy or higher firing rate. Weapon needs to be upgraded to mount a GP-25 grenade launcher, but can mount a PSO-1 scope by default.

Overall, AN-94 is a relatively good weapon choice for a player who wants performance at a reasonable price. It can be acquired as early near the military base perimeter at the Cordon by killing one of the Spetsnaz patrols that routinely patrol the base's area. It is the second cheapest assault rifle to repair, does not have the reliability problems of the common 5.56 rifles, and is almost as accurate. However, a fully upgraded AKS-74 has almost the same statistics, but is lighter, cheaper to repair and easier to obtain (unless you don't bother about fighting more than 20 soldiers with nothing more than a TOZ-34 and a Viper 5).

Call of Pripyat

In Call of Pripyat the weapon is called AC-96/2. The AN-94 is given yet another boost, making it one of the best 5.45mm rifles available to the player, along with the unique Storm.

With upgrades it can have one of the highest rate of fires in the game, as well as the best accuracy of any 5.45mm assault rifle, fulfilling a role similar to the G36 albeit with higher recoil. The unique two-bullet fire mode now slightly mirrors the real-life version; first two bullets fired from the Abakan (whether in the two round mode or normal full auto mode) will have identical accuracy and slightly higher speed than other bullets (instead of having higher firing rate). Just like AKS-74, AN-94 can take both the PSO-1 scope and GP-25 as attachments, though it needs a tool-less Tier 1 upgrade for the latter. When the single-shot firing mode is chosen, Abakan can serve as a makeshift sniper rifle in conjunction with a scope. A key downside to using it early on, are the repair costs, which are double that of the AKS-74U.

The rifle is fairly common in Yanov, being used by Duty stalkers but one can be salvaged early in the game in the Zaton sawmill, where a single zombified soldier will always carry it. It can also be occasionally found in Hawaiian's offer if the player is neutral or sides with Duty.

The AN-94 can also be found in a secret stash in Yanov, along with a PSO-1 scope and 180 5.45mm rounds. The stash is located just outside of the east entrance to Yanov station (the entrance that faces Zulu's tower). Directly in front of this entrance, you will see a building with stairs on the left side. Look in the desk beneath the stairs to claim the goods.

Trivia

The codename Abakan refers to the Abakan Mountain Range in southwestern Siberia, Russia.
In Shadow of Chernobyl and Call of Pripyat, it is quite odd for a regular AN-94 or "Obokan" not to being able to mount a grenade launcher as the AN-94 was designed to mount both a Grenade launcher and bayonet at the same time; unlike its cousin the AK-74, which can only mount 1 underbarrel modification. This is especially odd in Call of Pripyat, where the AKM-74/2 can mount an underbarrel grenade launcher, while the Obokan can only mount a scope. In Shadow of Chernobyl, it is probably made because of existence of Storming Obokan, which wouldn't be unique weapon if player could mount GP-25 to regular Obokan (also, Storming Obokan even with GP-25 attached to it has the same weight as normal Obokan). In Clear Sky, it is most probably for gameplay reasons as the upgrade for the attachment of an underbarrel mount is needed as part of the assault modification tree.
In reality, the AN-94 is exclusive to the Russian armed forces as Gennadiy Nikonov refused it to be sold to foreign buyers. While the black market could be an explanation how Stalkers obtained this weapon, it's odd that the Ukrainian Spetsnaz would go on and use this weapon as their mainstay rifle.
The gun naming is following: AN - for Avtomat Nikonova (Nikonov assault rifle), '94 - year of this model. "Abakan" was its development codename, named after the Abakan Mountain Range in Siberia.
The AN-94 is capable of firing two-round bursts so rapidly that they hit the same spot, with rate of fire 1800 RPM (like the "shifted pulse" burst-mode on the HK G11). This is aided by its special counter-recoil mechanism (often seen utilized on artillery weaponry) in which a chain-drive counters the recoil of the breach.
The AN-94 (as well as the other '97 contest candidate - AEK) have failed to replace the AK-74 due to much higher complexity, lower reliability and much higher production costs than those of the AK-74. They were passed over for the AK-74M, a slightly modified AK-74 with better furniture and a side-mounted scope bracket.
In real world terms, the price of 1 AN-94 is equivalent to the cost of about 3 AK-74s, which limited it to special forces use. It was too expensive to mass-produce to fit service rifle demands for the entire Russian Army.
In Shadow of Chernobyl, the Obokan's barrel will reciprocate when firing and reloading, true to its real-world counterpart. However, in Clear Sky and Call of Pripyat, the barrel does not move at all.
The AN-94s in game uses the AK-74's muzzle brake, despite the fact that a real AN-94 cannot do so as it sports a custom, integral muzzle brake built specifically for its recoil system.

@@ Line 58: / Line 58: @@
 *In real world terms, the price of 1 AN-94 is equivalent to the cost of about 3 AK-74s, which limited it to special forces use. It was too expensive to mass-produce to fit service rifle demands for the entire Russian Army.
 *In Shadow of Chernobyl, the Obokan's barrel will reciprocate when firing and reloading, true to its real-world counterpart. However, in Clear Sky and Call of Pripyat, the barrel does not move at all.
-*The AN-94s in game uses the AK-74's muzzle brake, despite the fact that a real AN-94 cannot do so as it sports a custom, integral muzzle brake built specifically for it's recoil system.
+*The AN-94s in game uses the AK-74's muzzle brake, despite the fact that a real AN-94 cannot do so as it sports a custom, integral muzzle brake built specifically for its recoil system.
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