The Special Weapons And Tactics officer is the conventional police forces last line of decision when all ways of solving a problem have been depleted. They're job is to resolve a hostile or dangerous situation quickly effecientley and with minimal casualties and fatalities. Even though they are loaded down with weapons and trained to kill, SWAT officers are nto the beady eyed killers they are stereotypically percieved as.
 Typical SWAT Teams are made up of a number of Assault Elements and Sniper elements.
 Assault Elements are the backbone of SWAT. Although many missions may be brought to a reasonable conclusion without the use of any Snipers whatsoever, it is not often to accomplish an operation without Assault Elements
 Each Assault Element can consist of up to five units:

             1.Element Leader (required)
             2.Scout (optional)
             3.Rear Guard (optional)
             4.Assaulter 1 (optional)
             5.Assaulter 2 (optional)

 Each Sniper Element can consist of up to two units:

             1.Sniper (required)
             2.2.Observer (optional)
 
 Here I will do my best to accuratley portray them in a palladium type view. This was made for S.D. games, but with a little logical modification it can be incorporated into Rifts ®.

Attribute Requirments: I.Q. 10, M.E. 10, P.S. 10, P.P. 12 or higher.
O.C.C. Bonuses: +1 on intiative at levels 1,4, and 8.

O.C.C. Skills:
Language American: 98%
Literacy American: 98%
Math Basic: 98%
Land Navigation: (+10%)
Radio Basic (+15%)
Intelligence (+10%)
Streetwise (+20%)
Pilot: one of choice (+15%)
General Athletics
Running
Climbing
W.P. Automatic Pistol
W.P. Sub-Machine Gun
W.P. Semi and Fully Automatic Rifle
W.P. of choice
Hand to Hand: Expert (can be switched to HTH: MArtial Arts at the cost of "other" skills.

O.C.C. Related Skills: The Character can choose 5 skills from the following list:

Communications: any (+10%)
Domestic: Any
Electrical: Basic only (+5%)
Espionage: Any
Mechanical: Automotive and Basic only
Medical: First aid only (+5%)
Military: Any, except Nuclear, Biological and Checmial Warfare, Parachuting, and Military Fortification.
Physical: Any
Pilot: any except jet fighter, hover craft, warships etc. (This is intended for S.D. games, so be logical) (+10%)
Pilot Related: Any (+5%)
Rogue: Any (+10%)
Science: Any. (+5%)
Technical: Any. (+10%)
Weapon Proficiencies: Any
Wilderness:  Any (+15%)

Secondary Skills: The characte gets 5 seondary skills at level one and an additional 1 at levels 3, 6, 9, and 12.

Equipment:
Individual Equipment
 SWAT Uniform (not woods camo) Urban or Black two-piece, Boots - Lightweight leather, waterproof (half-boot best), Nomex Balaclava (w/knit cap for winter) under Kevlar helmet (basically a ski mask),Nomex fire retardant gloves, Polycarbonate goggles to protect from blast, debris, or chemicals, Soft body armor-Threat Level IIIA Wrap around/load bearing, Protective groin cup - karate style, Full view gas mask and carrier, Handcuffs and key, Rechargeable halogen bulb flashlight (15,000+ candlepower), Pocket notebook & pen/pencil in waterproof pack, Ear plugs/trauma dressing/latex gloves/Derma Shield™, Elbow and knee pads (shin pads also useful for riot control), Ballistic helmet (w/wo polycarbonate face shield), Expandable baton (w/clip-on mirror), Water resistant watch, Rain gear in appropriate style, Cold weather gear, Walkie-Talkie with earphone or bone conduction ear piece, Canteen or fluid pack with MRE or C-ration, Waterproof Street chalk, Two Flash bangs, hooligan tool, battering ram (the latter two would only be carried by one officer). Full view gas mask, first aid kit.
 There are other items a SWAT officer would add and some items might be deleted but the above list is a fair working package for
most calls. This is a generic package of equipment for most types of call-outs.

LASH
Special to LAPD S.W.A.T is a communications device called the LASH. 'LASH' stands for Los Angeles SWAT Headset. Originally designed for LAPD SWAT, The two way radio head set is also used by the US Army Special Forces, Navy SEALs, and others. The objective of the LASH headset is to allow the tactical officer to communicate in a whisper and in high noise without the threat of detection. Using the LASH, the tactical officer is also able to moniter a recieve signal that is in audible to a person a mere 24 inches away.
 The headset consists of a thraot microphone on a breakaway elastic neck strap. the strap contains two modules in an assembly which cradles the officers windpipe. One of the modules contains a dedicated throat mic transducer. The throat mic picks up vibrations from the voice box only. This allows the transmission of a whisper at the same level as normal speech. the mic's sensitivity to ambient sound makes it ideal for use in a high noise environment.
 The other module contains a 50 ohm speaker with coiled tube terminated in a non-occluding ear mold which provides the tactical officer unobstructed hearing while allowing him to covertly moniter a radio signal and listen to a peripheral sound with the same ear. The "press  to talk" switch on the chest prevents accidental radio transmissions.

Weapons:

Scout:
*Semiauto pistol w/holster and two extra magazines.
*MP5 sub-machine gun with a tactical light and/or a laser target designator.
*Knife

Assaulter:
*Semiauto Pistol w/holster and two extra magazines (typically .45 or newer 9mm).
*MP5 sub-machine gun with laser a tactical light, and/or laser target designator.
*Knife (Gerber multitool is best).

Rear Security:
*Semiauto Pistol w/holster and two extra magazines.
*Benelli Tactical Shotgun with flash suppressor and a tactical light when needed.
*Knife.

Sniper:
*Sniper Rifle with Bipod and Scope. (typically a 7.62/.308 caliber rifle).
*Knife.
-Snipers are also issued a ghilly suit. Basically a netting covering the sniper for cover in wooded areas. a mesh jacket with either various real or synthetic leaves and brush attached to it.
-Snipers are also usually deployed in teams of two, one the actual shooter, and one observer who designates targets and gathers information about the area. The observer has a pistol.

 Additional Equipment or weapons such as entry explosives, tear gas, full medical kits, etc can be requested and are usually readilly available.

If operating in a wilderness area (ie: manhunts, rescue, stakeouts, etc...) The team may be equiped with woodland camoflage gear and according weapons in addition to the standard loadout like M16/AR15's.

Diagram of SWAT standard equipment