💾 Archived View for gemini.spam.works › mirrors › textfiles › stories › batlslau.txt captured on 2023-01-29 at 12:09:41.
⬅️ Previous capture (2020-10-31)
-=-=-=-=-=-=-
:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.: : Earth's Dreamlands : Info on: RPG's, :(313)558-5024 : area code : :RPGNet World HQ & Archive: Drugs, Industrial :(313)558-5517 : changes to : : 1000's of text files : music, Fiction, :InterNet : (810) after : : No Elite / No porn : HomeBrew Beer. :rpgnet@aol.com: Dec 1,1993 : :.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.: Below you will find the rules that my friends and I have come up with for Battletech. These rules were meant to augment the existing rules, not replace them. _The Battletech Compendium_ is the ruleook referenced throughout this text and is considered necessary for these rules to be used fully. One of the basic assumptions throughout this entire text is that the Clans do not exist. Granted, some of the technology presented in here is Clan in nature or capability, but this system was started before the Clans were presented. The history of the Battletech Universe has also been ignored completely. This is evident with the huge variety of weapons and the fact that (for example) LB-X autocannons weigh more than standard autocannons. For any system that is not specifically modifed or covered in these rules assume that the standard rules for "Inner Sphere" systems take precedence. The 2x engine rules were created some time ago, exact date forgotten. These rules are of my design and should be considered copyrighted. The Observer rules were created based upon ideas found in the Rec.Games.Mecha archives. Credit is given at the end. The Internal Structure and Armor rules were developed recently and are pretty much an adjustment to existing rules plus added systems. If anything appears to have come from FASA then it probably did. The Weapons list is a compilation of the existing weapons plus those developed by myself, my friends, and others. The alternate ammunitions were an outgrowth of rules presented in the FASA product _Unbound_ and material found in the aforementioned archives. The Infantry Rules were developed to make all types of infantry a viable selection. These rules were also intened to make them a little more capable of playing a role on the battlefield. The Credit Section is where I give credit to those who inspired me to put something resembling their work into my compilation. I tried to give credit where it is due, but if you feel slighted I apologize. One source of inspiration and information tht is not credited there is FASA. They deserve the credit for anything that resembles material from the rulebook and the product _Unbound_. If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions feel free to send Email to MURRAYMD@UDAVXB.OCA.UDAYTON.EDU or Matt Murray 144 Medford Apt E Dayton OH 45410 ENJOY!!! T W O E N G I N E A N D T W O C O C K P I T The 2xeng and 2xeng2xcockpit mech rules will require that you make new mech sheets for these monsters. With a little bit of work, clear tape, and photocopies you can cut up, you can make the sheets no problem. I'll give you what location has how many crits of each thing. 2 ENGINE MECHS The two engine mech is simply a battlemech that has such a high speed that the weight or power requirements are so high that two engines are requird as opposed to one. For a mech to have two engines, it must pass one of two requirements. If it doesn't, then the mech will simply use one engine. NOTE: The weight requirements below are based upon standard engine weights and are regardless of the possibility of the engines being ST or XL engines. For the design of your mech, replace the rules for "Determine engine weight" with this list: 1) Detremine the speed of the mech 2) Determine the Engine rating 3) Determine the Engine weight 4) Check to see if steps 2 or 3 qualify the mech for 2x engine status. If the mech does qualify, follow ths steps: A) If the last digit of the Engine rating is a 5, add 5 to the engine rating making it an even number. B) Divide the engine rating by 2 creating the engine ratings of the 2 smaller engines to be used. C) Use the smaller engine ratings to determine the engine weights of the two smaller engines. D) Modify the weights of the engines appropriately if you are going to use ST or XL engines. E) Add the weights of the engines together to determine the final weight of th engines. (Note: Gyro weight is based upon the engine rating from line 4A.) REQUIREMENTS: If the mech is 55-100 tons, then the requirements are: 1) The required engine rating is above 400 or 2) The weight of the engine required is 75% or greater than the weight of the mech. If the mech is 5-50 tons, then the requirements are: 1) The required engine rating is above 400 or 2) The weight of the engine required is 50% or greater than the weight of the mech. Now that the rules for what mechs are allowed to have 2 engines have been established, next are the special rules pertaining to them. 1) Since the mech has 2 fusion engines, it also has 20 heat sinks. A) They can be made double heat sinks. B) The number of HS that can be put on to an engine w/out being represented on the critical hit table is based upon the engine rating of each engine, not the combined engine ratings. C) If the engine heat sinks are double HS, then divide the number of heat sinks that can be put on an engine by the number of crits each double heat sink takes up. (This rule is put in so that double heat sinks are not common and do not unbalance the game since heat is the restraining factor in this game. This rule is also under the assumption that the rules concerning mixing standard and double heat sinks are changed. If you want to, you can mount double and standard HS on a mech. All of the heat sinks from the engines must be the same type. All 20 must be either double or standard, not half&half. If you keep the original rule saying ALL heat sinks must be the same type, then you may also consider possibly ignore this subrule completely. 2) A damage track is kept for each engine. It is possible for a 2x engine mech to recieve 4 engine hits, 2 per engine. When one of the two engines receives 3 hits, it is destroyed and the move rate of the mech is halved, rounding down. The destroyed engine also stops producing heat due to damage or moving. A 2x engine mech is considered destroyed when both engines are destroyed, i.e.: When each engine has received 3 engine hits. Any HS mounted on the engine and not represented on the crit. hit table for the mech are also destroyed. 3) When the internal structure for a side torso has been completely destroyed, that sides engine is also counted as destroyed with the appropriate effects for losing one engine as outlined in rule 2. 4) The Critical Hit table for a 2x engined mech is different from that you would find on a standard one. A) Change the center torso by changing all engine slots (11,12,13,22,23,24) into empty slots that can mount equipment. B) Change both of the side torsos to this slot configuration: Standard ST Engines XL Engines 1. Engine 1. Engine 1. Engine 2. Engine 2. Engine 2. Engine 3. Engine 3. Engine 3. Engine 4. ______ 4. ______ 4. Engine 5. ______ 5. ______ 5. Engine 6. ______ 6. ______ 6. Engine 1. ______ 1. Engine 1. Engine 2. Engine 2. Engine 2. Engine 3. Engine 3. Engine 3. Engine 4. Engine 4. Engine 4. Engine 5. ______ 5. Engine 5. Engine 6. ______ 6. Engine 6. Engine (As you can see, you have a high to 100% chance of getting an engine hit with the more advanced engines.) 5) If the engines are going to use ST or XL technology, both must be of the same type. 6) The heat produced from movement is doubled with 2x engine mechs. Walking heat is 2 while running produces 4 heat. 7) As before, regardless of technology level of the engine, each engine requires only 3 engine hits to be destroyed. DESIGN NOTES ON 2X ENGINE MECHS: These rules were written long before the clans came into the picture. They were even written before the rules for XL engines were published. From the time we came out with the rules for 2x engine mechs, we have experimented with rules for 2x engine tanks (we never goofed with aerospace fighters, but that would be another logical growth of the rules.) The rules we developed never did seem balanced and seemed to require a major rewrite of the tank rules, which we did for some areas. If you desire to have 2x engine tanks, you may want to take a long hard look at them. Realize that the limiting factors for 2x engine mechs are: loss of internal space, loss of armor protection for the engines due to sitting in the side torsos, ease of getting engine hits due to doubled number of engine crits, and increased heat for movement. All of these limiting factors are not available for tanks based on the available rules. There are no damage locations where tank engines are. There are no internal crit slots for tanks. Tanks don't have to worry about movement heat. As you can see, tanks were made overly simple so that they were easy to play and integrate. Due to these simplifications, you can't easily integrate 2x engine rules for them. On further investigation, you'll see that the same problems exist for aerospace fighters, conventional fighters, and the other vehicles. If you are going to put rules for 2x engines in for other vehicles, you will have to rebuild a lot of the game. The Clans would probably never have 2x engine mechs. Their mechs tend to point to a huge standardization policy throughout the clans and would be very slow to change to 2x engines upon discovering 2x engine mechs. Even with those points of logic out of the way, it should be apparent enough that the clans are nasty enough as they are and need no further modification. You will find that 2x engine mechs come only half way to meeting the clans on even grounds. *I* wouldn't want a 100 ton clan mech with 2x engines stomping on my face and ripping my lipps off! SPECIAL TECHNOLOGY (ST) ENGINES ST engines were developed primarily to incorporate the weight saving capabilities of XL engines without the huge space requirements. ST engines are best described as being halway between standard and XL engines. ST engines are best used on one engine mechs that need extra tonnage for ballistic weapons and extra space for the weapons themselves. For 2x engine mechs, internal space becomes critically short when both engines are made XL, making the use of ST engines predominant. 1) ST engines weigh .75 the weight of a standard engine, this in comparison to XL engines that weigh .5 the weight of a standard engine. 2) ST engines require 3 extra crit slots on a critical hit table. These crit slots have already been described for 2x engine mechs. For one engine mechs, ST engines require one extra slot in each of the 3 torsos. 3) 3 engine hits are required to destroy an ST engine, regardless if they are in the side or center torsos. 4) For figuring the costs of an ST engine, as per p. 128 of _The Battletech Compendium_, use the formula of: (10,000 x rating x tonnage) / 75 NOTES ON ST ENGINES: As you can see, ST engines are halfway XL engines. That's what they are intended to be. When I first came up with ST engines, I had trouble convincing my friends the need of ST engines. They are truly put in for 2x engine mechs, I have never seen their use on one engine mechs. Use them as you please. The Clans would probably never use ST engines. They would more then likely use XL engines exclusively. Historically, you could say that ST engines are a stepping stone to XL engines, with their use relegated primarily to 2x engine mechs. You could also say that Peripheral houses and governments developed them as their best effort to reach XL technology. 2X COCKPIT and 2X ENGINE 2X COCKPIT MECHS 2x cockpit mechs are a natural outgrowth of mech designs that had 2 seats in a mech cockpit where one seat was for the mech pilot and the other seat was for a commander/observer/nobody useful. There are 3 types of 2x cockpit mechs: one engine 2x cockpit, 2x engine 2x cockpit Alpha, and 2x engine 2x cockpit Beta. After the descriptions of the three type of 2x cockpit mechs rules will be given for their use. NOTE: When examples of the internal structure are shown, there will be two empty critical slots with astricks. These are the slots for "extra" sensors to be placed in. They will be explained later in the rules. 2X COCKPIT MECHS: These designs are achieved through the removal of the cockpit from the head and replacing it with a cockpit in each side torso. 1) The critical hit table is modified by replacing the head with six empty crit slots. This effectively turns the head from a cockpit center into a weapons platform. This platform can have a turret like a ground vehicle where the turret mechanism weighs ten percent of the weapons mounted (round up to the nearest half ton). When the armor has been breached and internals have been scored, roll for turret lock where the turret locks on a roll of 1-3. If the turret locks, it locks facing the hexside that it was firing into that turn. 2) The side torsos are modified as such: LEFT SIDE TORSO RIGHT SIDE TORSO 1) Life Support 1) Life Support 2) Sensors 2) Sensors 1 3) Cockpit 1 3) Cockpit 4) _______ 4) _______ 5) _______* 5) _______* 6) Life Support 6) Life Support 1) _______ 1) _______ 2) _______ 2) _______ 2 3) _______ 2 3) _______ 4) _______ 4) _______ 5) _______ 5) _______ 6) _______ 6) _______ 3) The pilot can be in one side or the other as long as which side has the pilot and which side has the gunner is marked on the sheet before the game begins. 2X ENGINE 2X COCKPIT MECHS ALPHA These types of mechs are achieved through the addition of a cockpit to the center torso. Traditionally the gunner would be positioned in the torso and the pilot would be in the head. This arrangement can be swapped around with little problem, but it would seem more logical to have the pilot in the head. 1) The head cannot be mounted on a turret. 2) The head and Center torso critical hit tables would look like this: Center torso Head 1) _______ 1) Life Support 2) _______ 2) _______* 1 3) _______ 3) Cockpit 4) Gyro 4) _______ 5) Gyro 5) _______* 6) Gyro 6) Life Support 1) Life Support 2) Sensors 2 3) Cockpit 4) Gyro 5) Sensors 6) Life Support 3) To put the gunner in the head, move the sensors from the center torso and put them in the #2 and #5 slots in the head. 2X ENGINE 2X COCKPIT MECHS BETA These types of mechs are achieved through putting both of the cockpits in the center torso. The advantage of this arrangement is that the head can act as a weapons platform like the rules above state. The primary disadvantage is that whenever the center torso is hit on a 2, both pilots take damage and roll for consciousness. 1) The head can act as a turreted weapons platform as discussed above in the rules for 2x cockpit mechs. 2) The center torso is modified as such: CENTER TORSO 1) Life Support 2) Gyro 1 3) Cockpit 4) Gyro 5) Gyro 6) Life Support 1) Life Support 2) Sensors 2 3) Cockpit 4) Gyro 5) Sensors 6) Life Support 3) The pilot is in the upper cockpit while the gunner is in the lower cockpit. Notice also that there are no provisions for there to be backup sensors on this type of mech. GENERAL RULES COVERING 2X COCKPIT MECHS 1) There are 2 cockpits on 2x cockpit mechs. One is for a pilot where the other one is for a gunner. These two pilots work together to pilot and fight the mech. The cumulative effect of these two working together and being able to concentrate on their jobs is that the piloting and gunnery skills are better. To reflect these advantages, a mech with two cockpits has a -1 bonus on its to hit and piloting target numbers. 2) The pilot controls the piloting functions of the mech, but he can also do weapons firing. If the gunner should be killed, the pilot can take over weapons fire. The turn after the gunner is killed, the mech can not fire weapons but can still move. This represents the pilot realizing the loss of the gunner and switching over gunnery systems to his control. After this turn of lost weapons fire, the pilot operates the mech without the piloting skill bonus and has a +1 penalty to weapons fire. 3) The gunner controls the firing functions of the mech, but he can also pilot the mech. If the pilot should be killed, the gunner can take over moving the mech. The turn after the pilot is killed, the mech can not move but may continue to fire weapons. This represents the gunner realizing the loss of the pilot and switching over movement systems to his control. After this turn of lost movement, the gunner operates the mech without the gunnery bonus and has a +1 penalty to piloting skill. 4) The bonuses and penalties mentioned above are treated just like any of the bonuses and penalties found in the rules and can be made cumulative with any other modifiers. If the players are using the optional rules for DNI and VRPP piloting enhancements, they can also be used with 2x cockpit mechs. (The two pilots had better know each other *VERY* well to be allowed to use DNI.) 5) If both the pilot and the gunner are killed, then the mech is considered destroyed. 6) The Sensors that were deleted from one of the cockpits can be left in to serve as backup sensors. Either one or both of the deleted sensors can be left in. As long as there are two undestroyed Sensors critical hit locations remaining on the mech, there is no effect from Sensors hits. 7) When a 2 is rolled onto a torso hit location that has a cockpit in it will also damage the pilot/gunner like a head hit. 8) When a 2x cockpit mech falls, the pilot must roll two piloting skill rolls to determine if both he and the gunner take damage. Roll each one seperately. 9) When ammunition explodes, each pilot takes one point of damage as oppossed to both taking two points. If one of the pilots is dead, then the other takes 2 points of damage. 10) Life support hits are kept for each cockpit and are seperate from each other. It is possible for one pilot to take hits from excess heat and the other to be perfectly fine. 11) Conciousness rolls for each pilot are done seperately and are independant of each other. It is possible for one pilot to be unconcious while the other is not. If this should happen, treat the unconcious pilot to be "temporarely" dead. Refer to rules 2 & 3 for switchover procedure. When the unconcious pilot regains conciousness, he may resume his functions at the beginning of the next turn. Design notes on 2x cockpit mechs: 2x cockpit mechs are just about the epitome of Battlemech technology when you combine 2x engine 2x cockpit rules with ST/XL engine rules. Throw in any other sundry advanced technologies you wish and you will have true war machines. These rules were developed well before the Clans came out. Based on the reading I've done, I don't think the clans would go for this type of mechs. Their honor code would seem to dictate that they fight "without someone else's help." Anyway, would you want the Clans to be any more powerful? C O C K P I T S E C O N D S E A T S / O B S E R V E R S Normally the cockpit of a mech has a second seat for a passenger but that seat has no special function. These rules are designed to add special seatings for specialty observers. Note that the people in these seats *CAN NOT* control the mech that they are in in any special manner or way. (Exception: Mech Gunners) They are only observers. If the critical hit location that the second chair takes up is destroyed then the passenger is killed and cannot perform their function. If the pilot's critical hit location is destroyed then the mech is considered destroyed for one cockpit mechs. 2x cockpit mechs are different in that the cockpit up in the head (normally the pilot's cockpit) is the only cockpit that can have a second chair. Destruction of the head still results in the Observers death as well as the pilot/gunner, but the 2x cockpit mech still functions as per the 2x cockpit rules. (Exception: Mech Gunners: The mech is not considered destroyed if the head is still intact and the pilot is unconcious/dead then the gunner can still fire the mech's weapons. Mech gunners can not be used in 2x cockpit mechs.) Artillery Spotter: The Artillery Spotter is a trained professional in the coordination of off-board artillery fire. Their seat has range finding and communication equipment built in to assist them. ADVANTAGES: The AS mech can act as an oberver for off board artillery fire. Any off board artillery fire using this mech as the observer gets a -2 to hit bonus for Observing unit Gunnery Skill as per p.49 of _The Battletech Compendium_. WEIGHT: The Artillery Spotter seat weighs 1.5 tons and takes up 1 critical location in the head. Company Commander: The company commander can be in a command mech that has a trusted pilot piloting his mech while he pays attention to the battle. His attention to the battle plus his training gives his company a special advantage over those that do not have a dedicated command mech. ADVANTAGES: The Command Mech and the 11 other mechs designated as being in the comapany get a special and seperate Initiative Roll. They roll 2D6 for their Initiative instead of the regular 1D6. DISADVANTAGES/REQUIREMENTS: For the Company Commander to be able to do his/her job the command mech must be equipped with 2 C^3 Masters and the rest of the company must be set up with the C^3 system as per the rules in _The Battletech Compendium_ p.118. This communication and coordination still continues even if LOS between company mates is blocked or there is a Guardian operating in the LOS, even if the C^3 does not work. WEIGHT: The Commander's seat weighs 1 ton and takes up 1 critical spot in the head. Forward Observer: The Forward Observer is a person trained in the coordination and directin of all indirect fire. S/he can assist in the firing of normal artillery fire and indirect missile fire. ADVANTAGES: The FO mech can act as an observer for a unit firing LRM or BRM missiles indirectly. For this fire there is no +1 automatic penalty to the to hit and the FO mech can make attacks as normal. The FO mech can also act as a spotter for off board artillery fire, giving a -1 to hit bonus for Observing unit Gunnery Skill as per p.49 of _The Battletech Compendium_. WEIGHT: The Forward Observer seat weighs 1 tons and 1 critical spot in the head. Mech Gunner: The Mech Gunner is a Mechwarrior in a specially designed chair that allows the gunner to fire the mech's weapons while the normal pilot concentrates on piloting the mech. While this system has the same advantages as 2 cockpits, it still has the inherent disadvantage that destroying the head will knock out the mech. ADVANTAGES: The mech with a mech gunner can fire weapons and pilot better. Any Piloting Skill rolls and weapons fire is done at a -1 bonus, cumulative with other bonuses and penalties. DISADVANTAGES: The mech gunner in this system cannot be combined with the 2 cockpit system, it is either/or. If the gunner gets knocked out via unconciousness or critical hit then the mech cannot fire weapons. If the pilot is knocked out in a similar manner then the mech cannot move. If the head is destroyed then the mech is counted as destroyed. Otherwise refer to rules 8, 9, and the first part of 11 in the 2 cockpit rules for assitional information. Mech Gunner chairs can not be installed on 2x cockpit mechs. WEIGHT: The Mech Gunner seat weighs 2 tons and takes up 1 critical hit location in the head. G Y R O D E S I G N C H A N G E S Gyros can be rounded to the nearest half or quarter ton, depending on what your are rounding nearest to in your design. A L T E R N A T E I N T E R N A L S T R U C T U R E S and A R M O R There are several different types of internal structures, armors, and defensive systems that can be used by a mech. Each are detailed below. Endo Steel: This is the same as presented in the books with the exception of changing the number of critical hit locations that are taken up. This is done to make its use more viable. TONS: Half Standard Slots: 10 Nitivir Composite: This extra strong internal structure is made from a laticed composite of Nickel, Titanium, Vanadium, Iridium, and other standard metals. This combonation is heavier and bulkier than standard internal structure but is 25% more resilient to damage and allows the mech to mount heavier armor. The mech with Nitivir Composite multiplies the amount of internal points for each of the internal structure areas by 1.25, round .5 up. This new, higher number is the amount of internal structure each area has and is used as the base for the max number of armor points that the area can mount. If the number of internal structure or armor points in a location exceeds the number of circles that the mech sheet has simply write the excess points next to the appropriate location. TONS: Standard Slots: 10 Standard Internal Structure: The standard internal structure is not changed at all from the rules. It is though used as the basis of comparison for the other internal structures. --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- The below armor types are "base" armors and are not compatible with each other. See the defensive systems below to see which are compatible with what. Ferro-Fibrous Armor: This armor is like that presented in the rules with changes to make its use more viable. The Armor Value is multiplied by 1.2 instead of 1.12. (Where did they get 1.12?) TONS: Standard Slots: 10 Ceramo-Steel Armor: This armor uses the natural heat resistive properties of ceramic materials and meshes them within layers of standard armor. Ceramo-Steel armor comes in 2 ratings: Level 1 and Level 2. Level 1 Ceramo-Steel comes with a armor rating multiplier of 1.1 similar to Ferro-Fibrous and makes the mech invulnerable to energy weapons target heat (From lasers, PPCs, etc). Incindiery Target Heat from Infernos, Flamers, and the like still affect the mech normally. Level 2 Ceramo-Steel Armor gets no armor multiplier but makes the mech invulnerable to *any* target heat. TONS: Standard (for both levels) Slots: 10 (for both levels) Reflective Armor: This is an armor where the armor plates have been covered in layers of polished metallic flakes. The effect is to reduce the effectiveness of lasers hitting the target. The disadvantage is that the overall armor resiliancy is reduced. Reflective Armor reduces the effectiveness of incoming laser fire. All laser fire that hits the mounting vehicle has 1 point of damage subtracted from it. EXAMPLE: A large laser and 2 medium lasers are fired at a tank with reflective armor. The net damage is: 15 (8-1 + 5-1 + 5-1). Reflective armor gives less protection than standard armor and is expressed by multiplying the number of armor points available by .9. Standard Armor: This ablative armor is not changed from the game, yet is used as the basis of comparison for other armors. --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- Below are defensive systems that can be designed into a mech in addition to other armors/defensive systems. Refer to the description of each one to determine what can armors/systems can be used on the same mech/vehicle. Blue Shield Project: This system is a concentrated particle field dampener which dissipates incoming PPC fire. Blue Shield way 3 tons and takes up one critical hit space in each of the mech/vehicle's hit locations. This system halves the damage of any LPPC, PPC, HPPC, or variants. A critical hit to a Blue Shield slot destroys the entire shield. Every time that Blue Shield is activated by PPC or HPPC hit roll 2D6. On a roll of 2 when hit by a PPC or on a roll of 2 or 3 when hit by HPPC the system overloads, destroying all of the shield critical locations and inflicting 5 points of internal damage to all of the hit locations except for the head which takes one point of internal damage. Blue Shield is compatible with all of the armors and can be use with the other defensive systems. Chameleon System: This is a system that evaluates the surrounding terrain with electronic sensors and changes the color scheme of the armor on the mech/vehicle. It works best when the mounting vehicle is not moving and in some type of obscuring terrain. The Chameleon System weighs 3 tons and takes up one critical hit space in each hit location. This system adds a +1 to hit penalty to any weapons fire against the mounting vehicle when the mounting vehicle is standing still, walks/cruises or jumps. It has no effect when the mounting vehicle runs/flanks. When the mounting vehicle is stationary for the turn in a hex that provides terrain modifiers to hit (Woods, smoke, etc.) the terrain to hit penalties against the mounting vehicle are used as the effects of the Chameleon System. EXAMPLE: Fred walks his mech that has the Chameleon System and ends it in a heavy woods hex. Since he walked it any fire against his mech has a +1 to hit penalty in addition to any other modifiers. The next turn Fred does not move his mech, remaining in the heavy woods hex. The Chameleon System gives any fire against the mech a +4 to hit penalty (+2 for heavy woods hex that the Chameleon System emulates) in addition to the +2 for the heavy woods his mech is in and any other modifiers. The Chameleon System is not very good at keeping the color coordination if the mounting vehicle is running/flanking or jumping. This difficulty can overload the system with disasterous results. At the end of any turn that the mounting vehicle runs/flanks or jumps it must roll 2D6. On a roll of 2, 3, or 4 the system has overloaded and explodes. This destroys all of the system's critical locations and inflicts 5 points of internal damage to all of the hit locations except for the head which takes one point of internal damage. The Chameleon System can be used with all armors except Reflective Armor and defensive systems except for Reactive Armor. Reactive Armor: This is bolted on armor that protects the mech from slow incoming projectiles by using a shaped charge to blow them away. It can be combined with any of the other types of armor. The covering of Reactive Armor requires internal support brackets which take up space. Reactive Armor requires 1 critical hit space in each of the mech's/ vehicle's locations and weighs equal to the mech's/vehicle's tonnage/20. Any missile and certain other weapon attacks made against the target with reactive armor do half damage, round fractions up. The armor location hit must have armor points left for this to work or there will be no effect. Any critical hits to the Reactive Armor slots count as no effect. VTOLs may not have reactive armor. Reactive Armor has no effect upon TSM or Inferno. Every time that the mech is hit by missile fire and Reactive Armor is used roll 2D6. On a roll of a 2 the armor has blown back the missile at a bad angle. Apply the half damage to the location hit and then roll for another hit location. This second hit location takes an equal amount of damage as the first. Reactive Armor is compatible with all armor and defensive systems except for Chameleon System. Reactive Armor will not explode when set afire. W E A P O N S T A B L E TYPE DAMAGE HEAT TAR/HEAT MIN. RANGE (S/M/L/Ex./Max.) ---- ------ ---- -------- ---- ----- S. Laser 3 1 - - 1/2/3/4/5 M. Laser 5 3 .5 - 1-3/4-6/7-9/10-12/13-15 L. Laser 8 8 1 - 1-5/6-10/11-15/16-20/21-25 ER Small Laser 3 2 - - 1-2/3-4/5-6/7-8/9-10 ER Medium Laser 5 5 .5 - 1-5/6-10/11-15/16-20/21-25 ER Large Laser 8 12 1 - 1-7/8-14/15-21/22-28/29-35 S. Pul. Laser 3 2 .5 - 1/2/3/4/5 M. Pul. Laser 6 4 1 - 1-2/3-4/5-6/7-8/9-10 L. Pul. Laser 9 10 2 - 1-3/4-6/7-9/10-12/13-15 Light PPC 5 5 1 4 1-7/8-14/15-21/22-28/29-35 PPC 10 10 2 3 1-6/7-12/13-18/19-24/25-30 Heavy PPC 15 15 3 2 1-5/6-10/11-15/16-20/21-25 ER Light PPC 5 7 1 - 1-8/9-16/17-24/25-32/33-40 ER PPC 10 15 2 - 1-7/8-14/15-21/22-28/29-35 ER Heavy PPC 15 23 3 - 1-6/7-12/13-18/19-24/25-30 Pul. LPPC 6 6 2 3 1-5/6-10/11-15/16-20/21-25 Pul. PPC 11 11 3 2 1-4/5-8/9-12/13-15/16-18 Pul. HPPC 16 16 4 1 1-3/4-6/7-9/10-12/13-15 Light EDC 5 3 - 3 1-6/7-12/13-18/19-24/25-30 EDC 10 7 1 2 1-5/6-10/11-15/16-20/21-25 Heavy EDC 15 10 2 - 1-3/4-6/7-9/10-12/13-15 Rail Gun 5 0 - 4 1-9/10-18/19-27/28-36/37-45 Rail Cannon 10 1 - 3 1-8/9-16/17-24/25-32/33-40 Gauss Rifle 15 2 - 2 1-7/8-14/15-21/22-28/29-35 Gauss Cannon 20 3 - 1 1-6/7-12/13-18/19-24/25-30 A/C 2 2 0 - 4 1-8/9-16/17-24/25-32/33-40 A/C 5 5 1 - 3 1-6/7-12/13-18/19-24/25-30 A/C 10 10 3 - - 1-5/6-10/11-15/16-20/21-25 A/C 15 15 5 - - 1-4/5-8/9-12/13-15/16-18 A/C 20 20 7 - - 1-3/4-6/7-9/10-12/13-15 A/C 2 Ultra 2 (x2) 0 - 4 1-8/9-16/17-24/25-32/33-40 A/C 5 Ultra 5 (x2) 1(x2) - 3 1-6/7-12/13-18/19-24/25-30 A/C 10 Ultra 10(x2) 3(x2) - - 1-5/6-10/11-15/16-20/21-25 A/C 15 Ultra 15(x2) 5(x2) - - 1-4/5-8/9-12/13-15/16-18 A/C 20 Ultra 20(x2) 7(x2) - - 1-3/4-6/7-9/10-12/13-15 LB2-X 2 0 - 4 1-8/9-16/17-24/25-32/33-40 LB5-X 5 1 - 3 1-6/7-12/13-18/19-24/25-30 LB10-X 10 3 - - 1-5/6-10/11-15/16-20/21-25 LB15-X 15 5 - - 1-4/5-8/9-12/13-15/16-18 LB20-X 20 7 - - 1-3/4-6/7-9/10-12/13-15 Machine Gun 2 0 - - 1/2/3/4/5 Vulcan 4 1 - - 1-2/3-4/5-6/7-8/9-10 Light Cannon 3 0 - - 1-3/4-6/7-9/10-12/13-15 Flamer 2 3 3(I) - 1/2/3/4/5 Flame Thrower 4 5 5(I) - 1-2/3-4/5-6/7-8/9-10 Coolant Cannon 0 0 (-10) - 1/2/3/4/5 BRM/6 1D6 2 - 7 1-9/10-18/19-27/28-36/37-45 BRM/12 2D6 4 - 7 1-9/10-18/19-27/28-36/37-45 BRM/18 3D6 6 - 7 1-9/10-18/19-27/28-36/37-45 BRM/24 4D6 8 - 7 1-9/10-18/19-27/28-36/37-45 BRM/30 5D6 10 - 7 1-9/10-18/19-27/28-36/37-45 LRM/5 1/hit 2 - 6 1-7/8-14/15-21/22-28/29-35 LRM/10 1/hit 4 - 6 1-7/8-14/15-21/22-28/29-35 LRM/15 1/hit 5 - 6 1-7/8-14/15-21/22-28/29-35 LRM/20 1/hit 6 - 6 1-7/8-14/15-21/22-28/29-35 TSM/1 (5/2)/hit 2 - 6 1-7/8-14/15-21/22-28/29-35 TSM/2 (5/2)/hit 4 - 6 1-7/8-14/15-21/22-28/29-35 TSM/3 (5/2)/hit 5 - 6 1-7/8-14/15-21/22-28/29-35 TSM/4 (5/2)/hit 6 - 6 1-7/8-14/15-21/22-28/29-35 MRM/3 1/hit 1 - 3 1-5/6-10/11-15/16-20/21-25 MRM/6 1/hit 2 - 3 1-5/6-10/11-15/16-20/21-25 MRM/9 1/hit 3 - 3 1-5/6-10/11-15/16-20/21-25 MRM/12 1/hit 4 - 3 1-5/6-10/11-15/16-20/21-25 SRM/2 2/hit 2 - - 1-3/4-6/7-9/10-12/13-15 SRM/4 2/hit 3 - - 1-3/4-6/7-9/10-12/13-15 SRM/6 2/hit 4 - - 1-3/4-6/7-9/10-12/13-15 Streak SRM/2 2x2 2 - - 1-3/4-6/7-9/10-12/13-15 Streak SRM/4 2x4 3 - - 1-3/4-6/7-9/10-12/13-15 Streak SRM/6 2x6 4 - - 1-3/4-6/7-9/10-12/13-15 CRM/1 3/hit 0 - - 1/2/3/4/5 CRM/2 3/hit 1 - - 1/2/3/4/5 CRM/3 3/hit 2 - - 1/2/3/4/5 CRM/4 3/hit 3 - - 1/2/3/4/5 Inferno/1 - 2 (5/2)(I) - 1-7/8-14/15-21/22-28/29-35 Inferno/2 - 1 5/hit(I) - 1-3/4-6/7-9/10-12/13-15 Inferno/3 - 1 3.3/ht(I) 3 1-5/6-10/11-15/16-20/21-25 Inferno/5 - 2 2/hit(I) 6 1-7/8-14/15-21/22-28/29-35 TAG Laser - 0 - - 1-5/6-10/11-15/16-20/21-25 NARC - 0 - - 1-3/4-6/7-9/10-12/13-15 AMS - 1 - - Special rules AML - 3 - - Refer to note PAML - 1D6 - - Refer to note AP pods 1D6-1 0 - - 0-1 Auto hit Hatchet 1/5 ton 0 - - Close combat Sword 1/10ton 0 - - Close combat Buzzsaw 2D6 3 - - Close combat Arrow IV 20/10 10 - - 5 maps Bolt III 10/5 5 - - 5 maps Dart II 5/2 3 - - 5 maps Long Tom 20/10 20 - - 20 maps Sniper 10/5 10 - - 14 maps Thumper 5/2 6 - - 12 maps Self Destruct ER/15 A lot ER/30 - 0/1 RANGE TARGET # DAMAGE and TARGET HEAT MODIFIERS ----- -------- -------------------------------- Short (S) 4 Normal Damage Medium (M) 6 Normal Damage Long (L) 8 Normal Damage Extreme (Ex.) 10 Damage&Tar. Ht. x.75 (round .5+ up) Maximum (Max.) 12 Damage&Tar. Ht. x.5 (round .5 up) Note: Missiles roll on the Extreme Range Missile Hit Chart and the Maximum Range Missile Hit Chart when firing at those ranges. BRM's roll D6-1 at Extreme Range and D3 at Maximum Range. MISSILE HIT CHARTS STANDARD MISSILE HIT CHART ----------------------------- DIE ROLL # of MISSILES 2 3 4 5 6 9 10 12 15 20 ----------------------------------------------- 2 1 1 1 1 2 3 3 4 5 6 3 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 4 5 6 4 1 1 2 2 3 4 4 6 6 9 5 1 2 2 3 3 5 6 6 9 12 6 1 2 2 3 4 6 6 8 9 12 7 1 2 3 3 4 6 6 8 9 12 8 2 2 3 3 4 7 6 8 9 12 9 2 3 3 4 5 8 8 10 12 16 10 2 3 3 4 5 8 8 10 12 16 11 2 3 4 5 6 9 10 12 15 20 12 2 3 4 5 6 9 10 12 15 20 EXTREME RANGE MISSILE HIT CHART ----------------------------------- DIE ROLL # of MISSILES 2 3 4 5 6 9 10 12 15 20 ----------------------------------------------- 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 3 3 4 3 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 3 4 5 4 1 1 1 1 2 3 3 4 5 7 5 1 1 2 2 2 4 4 5 6 8 6 1 1 2 2 2 4 4 6 6 9 7 1 1 2 2 3 5 5 6 7 9 8 1 2 2 3 3 5 5 6 7 10 9 1 2 3 3 4 6 6 7 8 11 10 1 2 3 3 4 6 6 8 9 12 11 2 3 3 4 5 7 7 9 11 14 12 2 3 3 4 5 7 8 9 12 15 MAXIMUM RANGE MISSILE HIT CHART ----------------------------------- DIE ROLL # of MISSILES 2 3 4 5 6 9 10 12 15 20 ----------------------------------------------- 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 3 3 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 5 1 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 4 6 6 1 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 6 7 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 4 5 6 8 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 4 5 6 9 1 2 2 2 2 4 4 5 6 8 10 1 2 2 2 3 4 4 5 6 8 11 1 2 2 2 3 4 5 6 7 10 12 1 2 2 3 3 5 5 6 8 10 CONSTRUCTION PARTICULARS WEAPON TONS SHOTS/TON CRITICAL NOTES ------ ---- --------- -------- ----- S. Laser .5 - .5 #1 M. Laser 1 - 1 #2 L. Laser 4 - 2 #3 ER Small Laser .5 - .5 #1 ER Medium Laser 1 - 1 #2 ER L. Laser 4 - 2 #3 S. Pul. Laser 1 - 1 -2 to hit M. Pul. Laser 2 - 1 -2 to hit L. Pul. Laser 6 - 2 -2 to hit Light PPC 3 - 2 #4 PPC 7 - 3 Heavy PPC 9 - 4 #4 ER Light PPC 3 - 2 #4 ER PPC 7 - 3 ER Heavy PPC 9 - 4 #4 Pul. LPPC 4 - 2 -1 to hit Pul. PPC 8 - 3 -1 to hit Pul. HPPC 10 - 4 -1 to hit Light EDC 3.5 20 3 #5 EDC 8 15 5 #5 Heavy EDC 11 10 7 #5 Rail Gun 9 20 4 Explodes for 10 Rail Cannon 12 15 5 Explodes for 15 Gauss Rifle 15 8 7 Explodes for 20 Gauss Cannon 18 4 9 Explodes for 25 A/C 2 3 45 1 #6 A/C 5 4 20 4 #6 A/C 10 10 10 6 #6 A/C 15 12 7 8 A/C 20 14 5 10 A/C 2 Ultra 4 45 2 Double shot, #6 A/C 5 Ultra 6 20 4 Double shot, #6 A/C 10 Ultra 13 10 7 Double shot, #6 A/C 15 Ultra 14.5 7 9 Double shot A/C 20 Ultra 16 5 11 Double shot LB2-X 3.5 45 1 Shotgun w/-1,#6,#7 LB5-X 5 20 4 Shotgun w/-1,#6,#7 LB10-X 11 10 7 Shotgun w/-1,#6,#7 LB15-X 13 7 8.5 Shotgun w/-1,#1 LB20-X 15 5 10 Shotgun w/-1 Machine Gun .5 200 .5 #1 Vulcan 1 100 1 Light Cannon 1 100 1 Flamer 1 - 1 #8 Flame Thrower 2 - 1 #8 Coolant Cannon 1 2 N/A (1) #9 BRM/6 3 14 2 #10 BRM/12 6 10 4 #10 BRM/18 9 6 6 #10 BRM/24 12 5 8 #10 BRM/30 15 4 10 #10 LRM/5 2 24 1 LRM/10 5 12 2 LRM/15 7 8 3 LRM/20 10 6 5 TSM/1 2 18 1 #11 TSM/2 5 9 2 #11 TSM/3 7 6 3 #11 TSM/4 10 4 5 #11 MRM/3 1 50 1 #12 MRM/6 2 25 2 #12 MRM/9 3 15 3 #12 MRM/12 4 10 4 #12 SRM/2 1 50 1 SRM/4 2 25 1 SRM/6 3 15 2 Streak SRM/2 1.5 50 1 Streak SRM/4 3 25 2 Streak SRM/6 4.5 15 2 CRM/1 .5 50 .5 #13 CRM/2 1 25 1 #13 CRM/3 1.5 15 1.5 #13 CRM/4 2 10 2 #13 Inferno/1 3 9 2 #14 Inferno/2 2 25 2 #14 Inferno/3 2 25 2 #14 Inferno/5 3 12 2 #14 TAG Laser 1 - 1 #15 NARC 3 6 2 #16 Artemis 1 - 1 #17 AMS .5 50 1 #18 AML 1.5 - 2 #18 PAML 3 - 2 #18 AP pods .5 one shot 0 Hatchet 1/15 ton 1/15 ton Sword 1/15 ton 1/15 ton -2 to hit Buzzsaw 4 - 2 Att roll 2 dest. saw Arrow IV 15 5 15 Bolt III 10 10 10 Dart II 7 20 7 Long Tom 30 5 30 Sniper 20 10 20 Thumper 15 20 15 Icewind .5 one shot 0 #19 C^3 Master 5 - 5 C^3 Slave 1 - 1 Beagle 1.5 - 2 Guardian 1.5 - 2 AAR 1per5 - 1per5 tons #20 GAR 1per5 - 1per5 tons #21 Target Comp. 1per5 - 1per5 tons Infantry pods 4.5 1 Platoon 3 #22 BAIP 2 1 Star 2 #23 Self Destruct 1 Your mech! 1 #24 1) The .5 critical means that 2 of these weapons can be fitted into one location. If this location gets hit, both weapons are lost. The two weapons can be considered "banked" as per the rules below. Any weapn that takes up x.5 critical hit locations can fit another .5 critical hit location item with one of its lines. Example: An LBX-15 takes up 8.5 critical hit locations. On one of the lines a small laser can share the same line as one of the 9 LBX-15 lines. Another example would be where a CRM/3 has 1.5 tons of ammo assigned to it. The first line would be "CRM/3," the second would read "CRM/3 & 1/2 ton ammo," and the last line would read "1 ton CRM/3 ammo." 2) The .5 Target Heat means that for every 2 medium lasers that hit, the target receives 1 point of heat. Refer to the Target Heat rules found below. 3) The large laser and variants had their weights reduced to make them more competitive with other weapons. It seemed that the large laser was not worth the weight of the weapon, therefore the weight is reduced on this weapons list. 4) These two weapons seemed like natural outgrowthes of the standard PPC. The pulse PPC's also seemed like they should belong somehow. Their only special rule is that there is a -1 to hit for them as opposed to the -2 for the pulse lasers. 5) The Electrical Discharge Cannon is an energy weapon designed around the principle of discharging huge amounts of electrical energy into the target. For the EDC to fire, a discharge coil is needed. As this coil burns out everytime the weapon fires, the weapon is designed to have a new coil placed in the receptacle and the burned out one cycled out in a way similar to an autocannon reload system. Thus in the listing for the weapon under ammunition the number gives how many coils. A) The "ammunition" for the EDC is not truly ammo. When it is hit it does not explode. B) The EDC will cause collateral damage to units in water hexes. If the EDC hits a target in or above (like hovercraft or LAM at 1 elevation) water the EDC does full damage to all targets in that hex. Any units in or above water 1 hex away will receive full damage minus 5 points. Any units in or above water 2 hexes away will receive full damage minus 10 points of damage. Any unit 3 or more hexes away is safe from collateral damage. 6) The weights of the lighter autocannons were lowered because they were perceived to be to heavy for them to be worth taking. The benefits of low heat and high range were not enough to counter the drawbacks of very high weight and possibility of ammo explosions. It got to the point that all A/C 2 through A/C 10 were replaced with different weapons due to their attractiveness. Therefore the weights of some of the A/C were reduced. 7) The weights of the LBX autocannons were made higher than the standard models to compensate for the fact that they were better than standard autocannons. Granted, these changes to the various autocannons are not historical, but then again, who plays historically? 8) The Flamer and the Flame Thrower are modified to make them more worth their weight. In addition to doing their damage, these weapons incur "incindiery" target heat upon their target. The target heat from these weapons will remain on the target for 3 turns. Any additional target heat beyond 10 points carries over for an additional 3 turns. Refer to the target heat rules below. 9) The coolant cannon is "weapon" that does no damage and is designed to cool down mech in one of two methods. The first is to take any flame/inferno heat that is sticking to the target and eliminate it. Any flame/inferno heat fired upon the target after it has been cooled will act normally. This first method of cooling will take precedence over the second method. (This first method of "attack" is similar to blowing out a candle or using a fire extinguisher to put out a fire.) The second method of "attack" for a coolant cannon is to eliminate 10 points of heat generated that turn by the target. This can be done only if the target has no flame/inferno target heat generating at the time. If the target has less than 10 points of flame/inferno heat generateing at the time, for example 6 points, the coolant cannon would eliminate the 6 points of fame/inferno heat and reduce the heat generated by the target by 4. In general terms, the coolant cannon does -10 points of target heat. It will eliminate up to 10 points of flame/inferno heat. Any remaining coolant cannon "damage" will reduce that turns heat output for the target by the remaining amount. Coolant cannons can only be mounted on ground vehicles since the volume of the coolant is too large to mount on a battlemech. If rules are made such that a coolant cannon were to take up crits, the number is listed in parentheses. 10) Bombardment Range Missiles (BRM) BRM's are an extreme range weapon designed to saturate an area with warheads. It is a rather erratic weapon in its performance, but this is compensated for by its long range. A) BRM's do not roll on the missile hit chart to determine the number of missiles that hit. Instead, a number of D6 are rolled to determine the number that hit. When firing at Extreme Range a number of D6-1 are rolled and the number of D3 when firing at Maximum range. B) The damage that a BRM does is distributed as an LRM would would. Every 5 points of damage is rolled for. C) If Artemis is tied in to a BRM, an extra D6 is rolled to determine the number of missiles that hit. If the number of missiles that would hit is greater than the rating of the launcher, then simply all of the missiles hit. D) BRM's may indirect fire just as LRM's can. 11) Tactical Support Missiles (TSM) TSM's are an area effect, mech mounted, reloadable weapon system based loosely on the LRM. It utilizes an airburst schrapnel charge to spread its damage over an area. A) TSM's do 5 points of damage to any units in the target hex and 2 points of damage to any units one hex away from the target hex. (The 6 surrounding hexes) B) Like artillery, TSM's attack hexes rather than units. The to hit roll is modified only by intervening terrain and the attacking unit's movement and condition, never by the movement or condition of units in the hex. C) To determine the number of missiles that hit, roll on the Missile Hit Chart under the appropriate number. (Obviously the TSM/1 is a hit or miss deal.) D) Roll for scatter for any TSM's that did not hit their intended target hex. Use the Artillery scatter method. Roll each missile seperately. E) The firing of TSM's cannot be modified or helped by the following systems: Artemis, AAR, GAR, NARC, TAG, or anything else that would improve the accuracy or damage of the missile. (This restriction does not apply to 2x cockpit mechs, C^3, or pilot/gunners that have an improved gunnery skill.) This reflects the fact that the TSM is a ballistic missile that air bursts over the target and cannot really be guided to the explosion point. Another reason is because these things are nasty enough as they are! F) When TSM ammunition explodes due to heat or critical hit each missile explodes for 7 points of damage. 12) MRM's (Medium Range Missiles) Medium Range Missiles were developed as support weapons that would have a longer range than SRM's but shorter range than LRM's. A) To resolve a missile hit from an MRM, conduct it in a manner similar to an LRM except that MRM hit in groups of 3 as opposed to in groups of 5 as with LRM. B) MRM can not be fired in indirect fire mode. They are, except as noted previouslly, functionally similar to LRM. 13) CRM (Close Range Missiles) are an functionally similar to SRM's except that they do 3 points of damage per missile that hits. 14) Inferno weapons. The only changes from the Inferno rules as listed on p.60 of _The Battletech Compendium_ are listed below. A) The max target heat that Infernos (of any kind) can deliver is 10 instead of 6. B) Inferno/1 is based upon the TSM/1. Use notes 11B, 11D, and 11E for additional information. The Inferno/1 delivers 5 target heat to anything in the target hex and 2 target heat to anything in the 6 immediately surrounding hexes. C) While the Geneva Conventions and the rules may prohibit the use of incindiery weapons against infantry, we warmongers will not. The number of men killed by an inferno attack is equal to the target heat inflicted. 15) TAG Laser. The TAG laser appeared to be too limited in scope for your average warmonger. To make the TAG laser more useful for its weight it was decided to make it helpful for normal missile attacks in addition to your average Arrow IV attack. In addition to its normal functions, the TAG laser can be used by a mech about to make a missile attack against a target. Fire the TAG laser first. If it hits then any