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The Projector, Infantry, Anti Tank (PIAT) Mk I was a British man-portable anti-tank weapon developed during the Second World War. The PIAT was designed in 1942 in response to the British Army's need for a more effective infantry anti-tank weapon and entered service in 1943.

The PIAT was a Spigot Motar system, that launched a 2.5 pound (1.1 kg) shaped charge using a cartridge in the tail of the projectile. It possessed an effective range of approximately 115 yards (105 m) in a direct fire anti-tank role. Its shaped charge was capable of penetrating around 100 mm (4 in) of armour. The PIAT had several advantages over other infantry anti-tank weapons of the period, which included absence of back-blast, lack of muzzle smoke to reveal the position of the user, and an inexpensive barrel; however, the PIAT also had some disadvantages such as a difficulty in cocking the weapon, fragile barrels, powerful recoil, and problems with ammunition reliability.

Battlefield Heroes[]

Several variants of the PIAT are featured in Battlefield Heroes for the Gunner kit of the Royal Army.

Tank Buster[]

"Long range anti-vehicle weapon that’s a blast!"

— Tank Buster in-game Description

"Same as the original Tank Buster with a fresh new look!"

— Dapper Tank Buster in-game Description

The Tank Buster is the standard rocket launcher available for the Royal Army. Its counterpart is Faust's Panzerfist for the National Army.

The Dapper version of the launcher is a reskin and functions in the same manner as the original. The upgraded version of it is the Super Tank Buster

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Dragon's Fire[]

"Fires a large cannonball with a big bang. Don't forget to make tactical use of the cannonball's bounce property"

— In-game description

Dragon's Fire was introduced to the in the Heroes of the Rising Sun bundle on November 21, 2011. Its counterpart is Drake's Fire for the National Army. The Azure version of the launcher was awarded to any player to obtained 400 kills with Dragon's Fire before November 30, 2012.

Unlike other rocket launchers, munitions fired from Dragon's Fire bounce off surfaces. Additionally, two munitions may be fired from the launcher before reloading. This makes the weapon more anti-infantry oriented due to the difficulty of gaining successful hits against enemy vehicles.

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Jack-o'-buster[]

"Spooky long range anti-vehicle weapon that's a blast!"

— In-game Description

Jack-o'-buster was introduced with the Halloween 2012 bundle. Its counterpart is the Doom Skull for the National Army. It functions in a similar manner to the normal Tank Buster.

Aside from purchasing it, it could be unlocked permanently by obtaining 300 kills with the rented version of the launcher.

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Frosty the Snowgun[]

"Start a snowball fight! Chill down your opponents with this fast-firing snowball launcher."

— In-game Description

Frosty the Snowgun was introduced in the Christmas 2014 bundle. Its counterpart is the The Claus Launcher for the National Army.

The launcher fires snowballs that deal a moderate amount of damage. The snowballs have the added effect of slowing the speed of enemy players down for two seconds for every hit. It does not, however, cancel out the Leg It or Elixir Abilities.

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Battlefield V[]

"The PIAT is a rocket launcher, effective against both infantry and armoured vehicles. Handle with care."

— In-game description

The PIAT is a weapon featured in Battlefield V. It was first seen in the Battlefield 5 Official Reveal Trailer, and is unlocked for the Assault kit at class rank 11.

Compared to the Panzerfaust and M1A1 Bazooka, the PIAT deals more damage with a larger blast area of 5m outer and 1.5m inner, and with much greater destructive performance against structures. Uniquely, this allows the gadget to function effectively as an anti-infantry weapon, as well as having the greatest per-hit damage against armor. The PIAT is also the fastest loading launcher of the three.

In exchange for these statistical advantages, the PIAT has higher ricochet chance in addition to severely limited range when used in a direct-fire role. Its projectile suffers constant deceleration after firing, and is nearly doubly susceptible to gravity than the Panzerfaust and more than triple that of the Bazooka, resulting in high drop. This can can make hitting moving targets especially troublesome, requiring a high degree of compensation.

In spite of this, the weapon has some mechanical provisions to assist with calculating drop. By opening the minimap while aiming, the user can observe the impact point of a projectile, relative to their elevation. This can allow them to adjust onto a spotted enemy or marked position. The significant drop can also allow players to hit tanks on their top armor, where they present a much larger target and potentially killing turret machine gunners, or attack positions from cover by staying out of direct line of sight. This can present a problem when shooting from indoors or with overhead cover, as compensating for distance may cause the projectile to hit a ceiling or window frame when firing.


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