Weapon Background

The QBZ-95 is a bullpup configured, selective fire rifle manufactured by Arsenal 266 (part of Norinco) and Arsenal 296 (under Jianshe Corp). The rifle's designation "QBZ" stands for "light weapon (Qīng Wŭqì) - rifle (Bùqiāng) - automatic (Zìdòng)", in keeping with the coding standards of the Chinese defense industry. The QBZ-95 is the flagship of an entire family of firearms sharing a common receiver design, which includes a standard rifle, a carbine and a light support weapon variants. The Type 95 is currently in service with the People's Liberation Army, the People's Armed Police (para-military police), and various Chinese law enforcement agencies. The rifle was developed between 1989 and 1995, and is often called the 'Type 95' in reference to the year development was completed.

In 1989, the People's Liberation Army requested that Norinco begin development of a next generation family of small-caliber firearms. They stipulated that the new rifle was to be more accurate and more reliable than their previous service rifle, the Type 81. The system also needed to be adaptable to different tactical situations. Duo Yingxian, who is credited for the design of the Type 95, was recruited to serve as the project head in 1991. He was given four years to complete development. Two years were spent on the design, alongside two years of field tests.

The Type 95 was first observed outside of China on the 1st of July 1997, the United Kingdom handed over sovereignty of Hong Kong to the People's Republic of China. The original Type 95 model is no longer in production, as it underwent immediate refurbishment/modernization following this initial appearance. Upgrades included an adjustment to the ejection port, a redesigned muzzle brake/buttstock/trigger guard/carrying handle, and added combat accessory compatibility with the addition of dovetail rails. The current production model is known as the Type 95-1.

Operation of the Type 95 is similar to the previous Chinese service rifle, the Kalashnikov-derivative Type 81 rifles, but the operating mechanism is set in a bullpup configuration. As a result of being a bullpup, the rifle measures just 745mm in length. The rifle chambers the domestically-designed 5.8x42mm DBP10 cartridge, and is able to achieve a fully automatic cyclic rate of fire of around 650 rounds per minute. Ammunition is fed using either a 30-round box magazine or a 75-round drum magazine. The rifle has an effective range of around 400 meters with the default iron sights, and various Chinese-issue optics can also be mounted on the carrying handle to improve this figure.

The Type 95 is made with primarily industrial grade polymer, making it fairly lightweight at around 3.25kg unloaded. The modern production models feature fully ambidextrous controls with the fire selector accessible from both sides and a forward ejecting brass ejection port located on the right side. The selector switch on the rifle has four settings. The selector settings are as follows: "0" for safe, "1" for "semi-automatic", "2" for fully automatic, and on selected models, "3" for three round burst setting. Accessories issued to Type 95 operators include rifle grenades, which are fired using blank cartriges. Army-issued bayonets can also be mounted on the muzzle end of the barrel. The Chinese-made QLG91B (Type 91B) 35mm grenade launcher is also issued to various military units, which can fit under the Type 95's barrel.

Other than domestic usage, the Type 95 has also been exported to other Asian countries, and has entered into military/law enforcement service in both Bangladesh and Pakistan. A variant of the QBZ designed to chamber the 5.56x45mm NATO cartridge was also developed for export under the designation 'Type 97'. This version was exported to regions that preferred to use NATO standard ammunition.

Character Design

Using the weapon as a comparison and assuming it is drawn to size, Type 95 is around 160cm in height. In her default art and her costume 'Pure White Graduation', she carries the original production model of the Type 95, while in her 'Jade Moisette Rose' and 'Summer Cicada' outfits, she is using the updated Type 95-1 rifle.

The artist, 木shiyo, made comments on the design inspiration for both Type 95 and her sister Type 97 in the Official Art Book of Girls' Frontline.

The color theme for the two sisters was decided long ago, with the older sister having the white/blue combination to represent her maturity while the black/red combination was given to Type 97 to represent her activeness.

The clear contradiction of their colors represents their contradicting personalities. 95's costume was designed in reference to the current servicing uniforms, though the cloak and stockings are modifications of her own design. The skirt was also made shorter.

Type 95's outfit has blue ribbons incorporated into the design. The shoulder badge is a modified version of the previous Norinco logo, while the glove's badge had the People's Liberation Army logo (prior to removal).

Type 95's costume layering design has been posted to 木shiyo's Pixiv page.

Character Background

Mentally mature, introverted, relatively weak in athletics but superb in intelligence, fond of taking care of others, loves Type 97 very much.

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