Notes: This is a large, heavy-caliber machinegun, similar in concept (but not form) to the Russian KPV. It was designed primarily for antiaircraft use, but also used as a heavy support weapon. Operation is by long-stroke gas piston and, very different from most pre-World War 2 Italian automatic weapons designs, has a straightforward and simple operation. The M-1931 fires from an open bolt, and the M-1931 was used only from a tripod. The heavy 43.3-inch barrel is finned for the last two-thirds of the length to aid in cooling, and is tipped with a rather small flash suppressor considering the size of the weapon. Firing is automatic only, but the slow cyclic rate (450 rpm) makes single shots possible for a good gunner. The M-1931 uses spade grips and a butterfly thumb trigger. The weakness of the M-1931 is its feed method – by box magazines instead of belts.

Notes: This was the standard heavy machinegun of the Italian military from 1937 to 1945, and like many Italian automatic weapons of the period, it had several peculiarities. The first was its feed; it was fed from a metal strip on the left side of the gun, and the gun pulled a cartridge off the strip, fired it, and then neatly put it into another strip on the right side of the gun. This led to a rather complicated receiver and extractor mechanism. The rounds had to be lubricated before they were loaded into this metal strips, or loading and extraction would be far from certain. Despite these strange features, the Breda 37 remained popular with Italian gunners throughout World War 2. A tripod or vehicular mount is required to use this weapon.

Notes: Another weird pre-World War 2 Italian weapon, the M-1923 it fitted with a bipod and a sling for hip-firing – even though it has no shoulder stock and is fired with spade grips. Luckily, there is also provision for mounting it on a tripod, and that is how it was normally used. (Firing from the hip or bipod is, in game terms, one level more difficult than normal.) The action is based on the Fiat-Revelli M-1914, but uses a different-shaped locking wedge that helps mitigate recoil to an extent, and also serves as a sort of passive trigger safety. It has a two-stage trigger; the trigger is pushed all the way in to fire semiautomatic shots, and halfway to fire on automatic. The cyclic rate of fire is a mere 350 rpm. The short 18.1-inch barrel is tipped with a conical flash suppressor, and does not lend the M-1923 to long-range fire. A selector switch may also be used; this is better than trying to fire with thumb pressure, as trying to push a butterfly trigger only halfway in in the heat of battle is a real feat of skill. The M-1923 is fed by box magazines mounted on the right side; these magazines have large slots in the side to check ammunition levels; this also lets a lot of dirt into the magazines, duplicating the mistake the designers of the Chauchat did when they designed magazines for their gun.

Notes: This is for all intents and purposes a World War 2-era MG-42 that has been given a change in caliber with as little other changes as possible. The 7.62mm NATO version is also used by Nigeria, Chile, Mozambique, Portugal, and Denmark. As deliveries of the Minimi to Italian troops have been greatly slowed for budgetary reasons, a version of the MG-42/59 has also been manufactured using 5.56mm NATO ammunition.

Twilight 2000 Notes: The 5.56mm NATO version became the standard squad automatic weapon as sources for the Minimi quickly dried up.

Merc 2000 Notes: The 5.56mm NATO version became a speedbump in the arms road as shipments of the Minimi were accelerated.