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« Special Dual-medium Assault Rifle is a bullpup rifle specially designed to allow shooting both on land and under water. It uses standard 5.56x45 mm rounds or special supercavitating ammunition which is efficient when used under water. But still, when under water, its range drops rapidly from 35 meters in 10 m depth to 13 meters in 40 m depth.
Field Manual
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The SDAR 5.56 mm underwater assault rifle.

The SDAR (full name: Special Dual-medium Assault Rifle[1]) is a 5.56 mm underwater assault rifle used by NATO, CSAT and the AAF in ArmA 3.

Overview[]

The SDAR is a selective-fire, bullpup assault rifle that is chambered to fire the 5.56×45 mm NATO round.

It can toggle between a three-round burst, semi-automatic and full auto fire modes, and has a muzzle velocity of 270 m/s when loaded with dual purpose ammunition. Unlike most assault rifles, it cannot mount any optical sights or be fitted with muzzle attachments.

Carried by the combat divers of each main faction, it is the only dual-purpose firearm in ArmA 3 which can be used on both land and underwater. It accepts regular 5.56 mm NATO STANAG magazines which allows it to be employed against surface targets up to approximately ~ 250 metres.

When submerged underwater, the user can instead feed the SDAR with its dedicated 20-round box magazines, which are loaded with supercavitating ammunition. These supercavitating rounds are the only source of damage that the user can inflict upon enemy divers without resorting to explosives.

However, the SDAR's utility outside of the water is sharply diminished by its lack of support for mounting attachments. Although its ironsights are not particularly unergonomic (nor are they overly obstructive), its inability to mount magnified optics can make engagements beyond 300 metres difficult. Furthermore, it cannot be suppressed and is therefore not very useful for missions that require a stealthy approach.

Lastly, when fired underwater the SDAR's supercavitating rounds still only possess an effective range of approximately 30 metres. Beyond that distance, they will lose most of their velocity and become effectively useless against any target.

Ironsights[]

Arma3-sdar-ironsight-overview

The SDAR's ironsights can be zeroed starting at a minimum of 30 metres up to a maximum of 400 metres (30, 100, 200, 300, 400). By default, SDARs are set to a zeroing of 30 metres.

Both the front and rear sights are illuminated; two dots are present on the rear sight while the front sight has one on the post. In non-low light conditions, the dots will appear white. At nighttime or when submerged deep beneath the water's surface, the dots will glow green instead.

Ammunition[]

Round name Base damage value Aerodynamic friction Initial velocity (m/s) Penetration depth (mm)
5.56×45 mm Dual-Purpose 9 -0.02 270 3.52
5.56×45 mm NATO 9 -0.0012 920 11.9

The SDAR supports being loaded with seven types of magazines. Of the seven, only 20-round DP box magazines enable the SDAR to fire underwater; every other magazine can only be used while the SDAR is above water:

5.56 mm 20Rnd Dual Purpose Mag[]

Arma3-ammunition-30rndkatibaball

Dual-purpose magazine loaded with supercavitating 5.56 mm rounds. Does not contain any visible tracers.

Has a total "mass" of 6 units.

5.56 mm 30rnd Reload Tracer (Yellow) Mag[]

Arma3-ammunition-30rndmk20

Basic 30-round 5.56 mm STANAG magazine. The last four rounds of the magazine always consist of yellow tracers.

Weighs in at a total of 8 "mass" units.

5.56 mm 30rnd Reload Tracer (Red) Mag[]

Arma3-ammunition-30rndmk20

Identical to the baseline STANAG, but the last four rounds consist of red tracers instead.

5.56 mm 30rnd Reload Tracer (Green) Mag[]

Arma3-ammunition-30rndmk20

Identical to the baseline STANAG, but the last four rounds consist of green tracers instead.

5.56 mm 30rnd Tracer (Yellow) Mag[]

Arma3-ammunition-30rndmk20tracer

Contains 30 rounds worth of visible yellow tracer ammunition. Identical in all other aspects to regular STANAG magazines.

Has a total weight of 8 "mass" units.

5.56 mm 30rnd Tracer (Red) Mag[]

Arma3-ammunition-30rndmk20tracerred

Consists purely of visible red tracers. Identical to the other full tracer STANAG magazines.

5.56 mm 30rnd Tracer (Green) Mag[]

Arma3-ammunition-30rndmk20tracergreen

Consists purely of visible green tracers. Identical to the other full tracer STANAG magazines.

Trivia[]

  • The SDAR is based on the real-life "RFB" bullpup battle rifle designed by Florida-based firearms company Kel-Tec CNC Industries Inc.
    • In reality, the RFB is not designed to function as a dual-purpose rifle, nor can it fire 5.56 mm as it chambered exclusively for the 7.62 mm NATO cartridge.[2]
  • Its concept is also very similar to the Russian-made "ADS Amphibious Rifle", right down to the SDAR acronym being a direct English translation of the ADS acronym. Like the SDAR, the ADS is built to fire both supercavitating underwater rounds and standard 5.45×39 mm ammunition.[3][4]
  • In the Alpha, the SDAR's zeroing was originally set to a fixed range of 30 metres. This was eventually changed to its current 30-400 metre range after the release of Game Update 0.76 (in the Beta).[5]
  • Prior to Game Update 1.12, the SDAR's UW ammunition had less aerodynamic friction and performed almost identically to standard 5.56 mm ammunition (when fired outside of water).[6]
  • Before the release of the Laws of War DLC, the fire geometry of the SDAR's model was incorrectly configured, allowing it to block multiple direct hits by 12.7 mm bullets. This was changed after Game Update 1.76 so that its model's fire geometry can no longer block large calibre projectiles.[7]
  • Excluding those featured in semi-official third party Creator DLCs, the SDAR remains as the only weapon in ArmA 3 that can be operated underwater; both for firing and reloading.
    • It is also the first weapon in the entire series that is specifically designed for underwater combat.
The information below details unused, pre-release or removed content.
  • Arma3-sdar-03
    The SDAR has an unused top rail that is normally hidden in regular gameplay.
    • However, it is still not possible to attach optics onto the SDAR in-game without the weapon being configured to do so through a replacement addon.

Gallery[]

References[]

  1. ARMA 3 2013 [Video Game], Bohemia Interactive a.s., Field Manual/Weapons/SDAR, "Special Dual-medium Assault Rifle is a bullpup rifle specially designed to allow shooting both on land and under water. It uses standard 5.56x45 mm rounds or special supercavitating ammunition which is efficient when used under water. But still, when under water, its range drops rapidly from 35 meters in 10 m depth to 13 meters in 40 m depth."
  2. Johnson, S 2008, 'Kel-Tec RFB 7.62mm bullpup rifle', The Firearm Blog, 9 February, viewed 2 October 2023, <https://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2008/02/09/kel-tec-rfb-762mm-bullpup-rifle/>.
  3. Johnson, S 2013, 'The New Tula 5.45x39mm ADS Rifle', The Firearm Blog, 25 October, viewed 7 February 2024, <https://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2013/10/25/tula-5-45x39mm-ads-rifle/>.
  4. Popenker, M 2009, ADS dual medium, Modern Firearms, viewed 7 February 2024, <https://modernfirearms.net/en/assault-rifles/russia-assault-rifles/ads-dvuhsrednyj-eng/>.
  5. van 't Land, J.J. 2013, SPOTREP #00009, Arma 3, viewed 2 October 2023, <https://dev.arma3.com/post/spotrep-00009>.
  6. van 't Land, J.J. 2014, SPOTREP #00019, Arma 3, viewed 2 October 2023, <https://dev.arma3.com/post/spotrep-00019>.
  7. van 't Land, J.J. 2017, SPOTREP #00073, Arma 3, viewed 28 November 2023, <https://dev.arma3.com/post/spotrep-00073>.

External links[]

See also[]

Weapons of ArmA 3
Handguns 4-five .45ACP-C2 .45P07 9 mmPM 9 mmRook-40 9 mmStarter Pistol 10 mmSpectrum DeviceZubr .45
Submachine guns ADR-97 5.7 mmPDW2000 9 mmProtector 9 mmSting 9 mmVermin .45
Shotguns Kozlice
Carbines AKU-12 7.62 mmAKS-74U 5.45 mmKatiba Carbine 6.5 mmMk20C 5.56 mmMXC 6.5 mmTRG-20 5.56 mm
Assault rifles AK-12 series (AK-12, AK-12 GL) • AKM 7.62 mmCAR-95 series (CAR-95, CAR-95 GL) • Katiba 6.5 mm (Katiba GL) • MX series (MX, MX 3GL) • Mk20 5.56 mm (Mk20 EGLM) • Promet series (Promet, Promet GL, Promet SG) • SDAR 5.56 mmSPAR-16 series (SPAR-16, SPAR-16 GL) • Type 115 6.5 mmTRG-21 5.56 mm (TRG-21 EGLM)
Designated marksman rifles ASP-1 Kir 12.7 mmCMR-76 6.5 mmCyrus 9.3 mmMk-I EMR 7.62 mmMk14 7.62 mm (Classic) • Mk18 ABR 7.62 mmMAR-10 .338MXM 6.5 mmPromet MR 6.5 mmRahim 7.62 mmSPAR-17 7.62 mm
Sniper rifles GM6 Lynx 12.7 mmM320 LRR .408
Squad automatic weapons CAR-95-1 5.8 mmLIM-85 5.56 mmMk200 6.5 mmMX SW 6.5 mmRPK-12 7.62 mmSPAR-16S 5.56 mmZafir 7.62 mm
Machineguns Navid 9.3 mmSPMG .338
Launchers 9M135 VoronaMAAWS Mk4PCMLRPG-7RPG-42Titan MPRLTitan MPRL Compact
Static M2Mk6 MortarMk30Mk32Remote DesignatorStatic Titan Launcher (AA, AT)
(Parenthesis) denote variants.
Karts DLC | Marksmen DLC | Apex DLC | Tanks DLC | Contact DLC
Arma3-factionicon-nato NATO - Armoury (ArmA 3)
Handguns 4-five .45P07 9 mm* • Spectrum Device
Submachine guns Vermin .45
Carbines MXC 6.5 mm*
Assault rifles MX series (MX*, MX 3GL*) • SDAR 5.56 mmSPAR-16 series* (SPAR-16*, SPAR-16 GL*)
Designated marksman rifles Mk-I EMR 7.62 mmMAR-10 .338* • MXM 6.5 mmSPAR-17 7.62 mm*
Sniper rifles M320 LRR .408
Squad automatic weapons MX SW 6.5 mm* • SPAR-16S 5.56 mm*
Machineguns SPMG .338
Launchers MAAWS Mk4 Mod 1* • PCML* • Titan MPRLTitan MPRL Compact
Static Mk6 MortarMk30Mk32Remote DesignatorStatic Titan Launcher (AA, AT)
(Parenthesis) denote variants.
* denotes weapons also used or are exclusive to the CTRG sub-faction.
Marksmen DLC | Apex DLC | Tanks DLC
Arma3-factionicon-csat CSAT - Armoury (ArmA 3)
Handguns Rook-40 9 mmZubr .45
Submachine guns Sting 9 mm
Carbines Katiba Carbine 6.5 mm
Assault rifles CAR-95 series (CAR-95, CAR-95 GL) • Katiba 6.5 mm (Katiba GL) • SDAR 5.56 mmType 115 6.5 mm*
Designated marksman rifles ASP-1 Kir 12.7 mmCMR-76 6.5 mmCyrus 9.3 mmRahim 7.62 mm
Sniper rifles GM6 Lynx 12.7 mm
Squad automatic weapons CAR-95-1 5.8 mmZafir 7.62 mm
Machineguns Navid 9.3 mm
Launchers 9M135 VoronaRPG-42Titan MPRLTitan MPRL Compact
Static Mk6 MortarMk30Mk32Remote DesignatorStatic Titan Launcher (AA, AT)
(Parenthesis) denote variants.
* denotes weapons exclusive to the Viper sub-faction.
Marksmen DLC | Apex DLC | Tanks DLC
Arma3-factionicon-aaf AAF - Armoury (ArmA 3)
Handguns ACP-C2 .45
Submachine guns PDW2000 9 mm
Carbines Mk20C 5.56 mm
Assault rifles Mk20 5.56 mm (Mk20 EGLM) • SDAR 5.56 mm
Designated marksman rifles Mk18 ABR 7.62 mm
Sniper rifles GM6 Lynx 12.7 mm
Squad automatic weapons Mk200 6.5 mm
Launchers MAAWS Mk4 Mod 0PCMLRPG-42Titan MPRLTitan MPRL Compact
Static M2Mk6 MortarMk30Mk32Static Titan Launcher (AA, AT)
(Parenthesis) denote variants.
Apex DLC | Tanks DLC
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