3D Printed Nerf Halo 5 Assault Rifle Takes Humans vs. Zombies Game to a Whole New Level

If Nerf guns — or better yet, Nerf gun battles — are your thing, there’s a new 3D printed interpretation of them just for you. In fact, a Reddit user named “Sithslayer78” has made a contribution to the popular game Humans vs. Zombies by hacking a Nerf Halo 5 Assault Rifle and adding 3D printed parts to turn it from a mere toy into a, well, more serious weapon. It appears the Humans vs. Zombies game just got a little more serious. The game, which began at Goucher College in 2005, is now an international sensation. This is basically a game of tag whereby either the Zombie horde wins by overwhelming the Humans, or the Humans win by eluding the Zombies long enough to “starve” them. Humans can stun Zombies with projectiles including foam dart blasters, marshmallow launchers, and/or socks.

Sithslayer78 has gone ahead and upped the ante in the competition for the 3D printing Human players amongst us with his Halo 5 Assault Rifle “3D printed on a Rostock Max V2, and powered with a 2S LiPo that runs the electronics and the flywheel motors (180s).”

The blaster has many nifty features. Consider its Ammo Counter (see above photo), which keeps precise count of how many times the weapon has been shot. This counter is “run off of a Adafruit 128×64 pixel OLED Screen lit with a NeoPixel RGB LED.” Other important features include the ability to take the rifle apart for convenient storage. This is possible because the “leads to the Arduino Nano as well as the power leads to the motors can be disconnected.” Also, the Counter keeps track of how many times the trigger is pulled: as the ammo drops to zero, the Counter’s color changes so you’ll know when you are getting to that critical reloading point. How cool is that?

If the rifle’s clip or jam door is open, the Counter screen will warn you. You also have a timer there that keeps track of where you need to be when on your game mission. The gun’s scope is a very nice touch, as Sithslayer78 reports that it runs off of a 5V voltage adapter and will not suffer if it is accidentally left on. This adapter also allows for various attachments to augment the gun. Finally, the blaster has a “Jolt Masterkey with a 5kg Vulcan spring, and a 1W LED flashlight.” “Fully loaded” would be the right phrase for this weapon!

And for those of you interested in blasting your own zombies, good news:

“Yes, I do intend on selling kits of the 3D Printed Front End Parts. After all, it fits on any Retaliator/Recon Barrel,” notes the maker.

It’s clear this is no ordinary Humans vs. Zombies blaster. The gun has grown more sophisticated over time, as its designer reports he has refitted it 3 times over the past 5 years. The recent version of the Zombie blaster still looks a bit rough and unfinished, and Sithslayer78 notes that this version is finished with XTC-3D. However he doesn’t recommend this because it is “overrated” and “too hard to sand.” But hey! We are talking about Humans vs. Zombies here, so a shabby and weathered look to the Zombie hunter looks downright authentic to me!

After all, who has the time to finish off a 3D printed Nerf Assault Rifle to a perfect smoothness when there are so many Zombies hot on your trail? Does this ‘weapon’ interest you? Discuss in the 3D Printed Nerf Halo 5 Assault Rifle forum over at 3DPB.com.