Snap Whip, Thunderstrike

One-Handed

Sonic

Advanced Melee

Until recently, atlapaks’ exceptional pincers resisted engineers’ efforts to replicate the same mechanics in the form of a reliable weapon. In the past three decades, breakthroughs in materials science have enabled arms manufacturers to create handheld versions of an atlapak claw, which take the form of a semi-flexible, whip-like rod. An assemblage of reinforced metallic percussion plates and high-pressure levers near the rod’s tip creates a focused shock of sonic energy when activated, shattering nearby materials. Artificial ligaments strung throughout the rod translate the kinetic energy of a user’s backswing to rearm the device, priming it to release another sonic burst. Early prototypes of the snap whip directly incorporated atlapak components, though all but the most eccentric versions of such whips are now entirely synthetic and merely borrow the atlapak’s uniquely evolved design.

The drow corporation Arabani Arms ultimately developed the breakthrough technology that created viable snap whips, and it continues to protect the design via patents and ongoing research despite the countless lethal imitations that have appeared on the market. The company’s R&D department has yet to replicate atlapaks’ particular ability to channel sound waves over long distances—a breakthrough that would allow Arabani Arms to create a devastating new sniper weapon—but it has come close on several occasions.