Some weapons fire in bursts, trading additional bullets for an increased chance one hits something vulnerable—or hits anything at all. Each option adds a bonus to the attack roll, costs additional bullets, and may increase the Malfunction range (see below). Unless otherwise noted in their description, all firearms that can fire Long Bursts may also fire Short Bursts. Heavy Bursts are typically only found in miniguns or vehicular weapons, and may not fire in any other mode unless otherwise noted in their description.
Rapid Fire Options
| Option | Bonus | Rounds per Target | Malf Range |
| Short Burst | +2 | 3 | 1–2 |
| Long Burst | +4 | 7 | 1–3 |
| Heavy Burst | +6 | 50 | 1 |
Malfunctions
A Mishap roll of 1 when using Rapid Fire means the attack doesn’t happen and the weapon suffers a Malfunction. A Malfunction roll other than 1 means the weapon suffers a Malfunction after the attack (which may still succeed depending on skill, Possibilities, etc.).
Reloading
Rapid Fire relies on quick, consecutive shot groups. If the attacker doesn’t have the full amount of ammunition in his clip or magazine, he may not use this option. A shooter can’t fire the last round in his weapon’s magazine, reload, fire more shots, and claim the Short Burst bonus, for example.
Multi-Targeting
If firing on multiple targets, the attacker must use the same Rapid Fire option for each.