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Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30
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Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30 is a 2005 video game developed by Gearbox Software and released by Ubisoft Studios. Set during the iconic Normandy Invasion of June 1944, it follows a paratrooper squad in the 101st Airborne over eight days, from the jump of June 6th to the defense of the eponymous Hill 30 on June 13th, and the squad leader, Staff Sergeant Matthew Baker's, attempt to make sense of the sufferings of war and the responsibilities of leadership. Earning praise from both video games and historians, the game was immaculately researched. It allows the player character to lead his men tactically, and splits the squad into two teams - "assault", for flanking and eliminating the enemy, and "fire", for keeping their heads down. In some missions the player can also command a support tank. It was followed by Brothers in Arms: Earned in Blood later that year, and Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway in 2008.
WARNING! THIS PAGE CONTAINS SPOILERS!
The following weapons appear in the video game Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30:
Handguns
Colt M1911A1
After losing his leg bag and rifle in the D-Day jump, Staff Sergeant Baker uses a Colt M1911A1 given to him by Platoon Sergeant Greg "Mac" Hassey in Rendezvous with Destiny and Silence the Guns. He also carries an M1911A1 as part of the loadout in Foucarville Blockade. Sergeant George Risner fires an M1911A1 when his Stuart is disabled by anti-tank fire. Radioman Pfc. Kevin Leggett fires an M1911A1 during his "last stand" against a German Panzer tank at Hill 30.
Walther P38
The Walther P38 is the main sidearm of the Wehrmacht in the game, although it is incredibly rare and is only available in multiplayer or mods. Compared to the powerful .45, it's 9mm caliber lacks the same punch. The P38 does appear in Hill 30 single player in the PSP Port of both Hill 30/Earned in Blood Brothers in Arms D-Day where it appears during the first level used by a German soldier who normally uses a Karabiner 98k, though this is the only time it appears in that version. (As the Earned in Blood Maps where it appeared aren't included in the port nor the competitive multiplayer.)
Submachine Guns
M1A1 Thompson
The M1A1 Thompson is used by S/Sgt Baker alongside the M1 Garand in most levels. It fires from a 20-round magazine. It is the weapon of choice for Corporal Sam Corrion, Baker's assault team leader, Platoon Sergeant Greg "Mac" Hassey and Sergeant George Risner. Lieutenant Colonel Robert G. Cole uses a Thompson during the attack on the German farmhouse in Cole's Charge, an action which earned the real-life Cole a Medal of Honor.
MP 40
The iconic MP40 is used by German soldiers and Squad Leaders.
Rifles
Karabiner 98k
The Karabiner 98k is the standard-issue weapon for German soldiers in the game. It can be used by the player. It is either reloaded using a five-round stripper clip, or if the chamber is not empty, by individual bullets not unlike a sniper rifle. A scoped variant can also be picked up from German snipers (providing the player has dropped them, of course.)
M1903A4 Springfield
S/Sgt Baker uses an M1903A4 Springfield in Purple Heart Lane and Tom and Jerry. It also appears in Buying the Farm but only in the PS2/PSP ports.
M1 Garand
The M1 Garand is the main weapon of S/Sgt Baker in the game, alongside the M1A1 Thompson. The game correctly shows it as being able to reload before the clip has been expended. It is carried by the platoon RTO, Pfc. Kevin Leggett, most of Baker's fire team (most notably Privates Allen and Garnett) and some of his assault team, as well as Lieutenant Colonel Robert G. Cole, before he swaps it for a Thompson. Notably, the player can reload the Garand before the clip is empty, with a unique animation of ejecting the current clip and catching it before putting in a new clip.
M1 Carbine
The M1 Carbine appears on the Situational Awareness View (Basically the game's map) as the icon for the M1A1 Carbine.
M1A1 Carbine
S/Sgt Baker uses an M1A1 Carbine in several missions. His fire team leader, Corporal Joe "Red" Hartsock, uses the Carbine until he swaps it for a Browning Automatic Rifle taken from a glider in Rommel's Asparagus.
Sturmgewehr 44
The Sturmgewehr 44 makes an appearance in German hands in later missions. It is a powerful weapon and, accordingly, very frustrating to go up against, especially during the street fighting in "Push into Carentan". Panzergrenadiers equipped with it on the hardest Difficulty level, Authentic, are infamous for basically instantly mowing down the player and their squadmates down if given the chance. Notably, (And unrealistically) the Sturmgewehr 44 in Hill 30 and the later released Earned in Blood tends to be the only weapon mainly used by Panzergrenadiers equipped with them. (Despite the earlier sections with other German Units actually featuring more realistic weapon distribution, with usually one or two MP40's in an group of enemies using Karabiner 98k rifles.)
Machine Guns
Browning Automatic Rifle M1918A2
Corporal Joe "Red" Hartsock acquires the Browning Automatic Rifle M1918A2 from a glider in Rommel's Asparagus and carries it for the rest of the game. S/Sgt Baker uses the BAR in Alternative Route, can pick it up from a dead Paratrooper in Push into Carentan and can take it from Hartsock if he suffers a non-canon gameplay death. The in-game model lacks a bipod.
Browning M1919A4
A Browning M1919A4 mounted on an M2 tripod (referred to as a "Browning .30 Cal" by Allen and Garnett) can be used by S/Sgt Baker in Ambush at Exit 4, it's 82nd Airborne crew having being killed by a German potato masher. ("Watch out for the blood on the trigger".). Another paratrooper fires one in defense of Hill 30 in the mission No Better Spot to Die. The M1919A4 is also pintle-mounted coaxially and in the hull of the M5 Stuart and M4A1 Sherman Tanks that are available as support in several missions. It has infinite ammunition.
The Browning M1919A4 and the other mounted machine guns are the only weapons that can be used in a third-person view.
Browning M1919A5
The Browning M1919A5 is mounted on the turret of the M5 Stuart, where it can be mounted and used by S/Sgt Baker. The M1919A5 was a modified M1919A4 developed specifically for use by the Stuart. It has infinite ammunition.
Browning M2HB
The Browning M2HB is mounted on the turret of the M4A1 Sherman tanks given to the S/Sgt Baker's squad as support in Buying the Farm, Alternate Route and No Better Spot to Die. It can be mounted by Baker. It has infinite ammunition.
MG 42
The MG 42 is frequently-and frustratingly-used by German troops in fixed positions, mounted on the Lafette tripod. A few hits mean instant death, which makes flanking it not a mere priority but a requirement. The player can man it for himself. It has infinite ammunition.
Launchers
8 cm kurzer Granatwerfer 42
German mortar crews can be seen firing the 8 cm kurzer Granatwerfer 42 in several levels. Silencing the mortar is usually one of the squad's objectives.
M1 Bazooka
Private Allen and Private Garnett use an M1 Rocket Launcher "Bazooka" in an attempt to eliminate a German MG post in Objective XYZ, succeeding on their second attempt in a rather comical cutscene. S/Sgt Baker uses the Bazooka against German Panzer IV tanks in defense of the Carentan church in the chapter called Tom and Jerry. (Or Cat and Mouse in the PS2/PSP versions of the game.) Notably, while Baker's reload animation doesn't involve it, when Allen and Garnett use it in Objective XYZ, connecting the wires to the rocket is actually mentioned, avoiding the backblast is also mentioned despite not being present in actual gameplay.
Panzerfaust
The single-shot, disposable fire-and-forget Panzerfaust is used by German soldiers to attack American tanks and also infantry. They can be wielded by the S/Sgt Baker when dealing with enemy Panzers. The player can only carry one Panzerfaust, which is then dropped after being fired. (Except in the PSP Port, where Baker/Hartsock carry 5 Panzerfausts at once.)
Grenades
Mk 2 Hand Grenade
The Mk 2 Hand Grenade can be used by S/Sgt Baker. It's heavy weight makes an accurate throw difficult as it tends to drop of fly off course, unusual for video games, most of which show the grenade flying in a straight arc. Baker's squad also use the Mk 2, with varied success. Grenades are fairly scarce, as Baker only starts with a small handful of them in most missions, with only Burying the Farm having a mid-mission Grenade resupply. (This changes in the PSP Port Brothers in Arms D-Day where enemies sometimes drop brown bags containing grenades when dying.)
Model 24 Stielhandgranate
German soldiers occasionally throw Model 24 Stielhandgranate at S/Sgt Baker and his squad. Unfairly, Baker cannot throw the grenades back although the Germans can throw grenades back, though the PSP Brothers in Arms D-Day port allows him to throw them back too. The Player can only in the original release use this grenade when playing as the Germans in Multiplayer.