Vehicle Combat/Damage

[M-Type]

Hey everyone, it's been a loooong time since I posted here on the site. Now that the semester is finishing up (Finals Week wheeeee ), I'm finding more time to focus back on good 'ol RPGs.

I'm happy to say that I was able to find a T2000 v1 boxed set using the power of the internet and careful searching at older book stores and yard sales, and I really want to try to get a face-to-face game together, possibly on the school's campus in the New Year (providing we live that long if you're looking at it in that angle ). I also found the US Army/Soviet vehicle guides for v1, which also excited me. Thing is, IMHO, v1 vehicle damage is clunky as all hell.

I'm hesitant to go the route of Twilight Encounters (I have the PDF) because I have all these stats in the traditional v1 layout.

Is there anyway that you out there have man-handled the system to a be a bit more...fluid?

[Legbreaker]

In my opinion, the V1 vehicle damage system works fairly well, at least as far as hit location and what gets hit in which order. The damage amounts are about the only bit that needs a decent tweak, but that's relatively easily done considering V2.x armour values by and large are just 1/10th of V1.

[pmulcahy11b]

In my mind, the v1 vehicle damage with its charts is too clunky, and I have seen players' minds wander off while vehicle damage is being resolved. That said, it beats vs2/2.2 all to hell for realism.

V2/2.2 has the advantage of not bringing the game to a grinding stop every time a vehicle gets hit. But it is a bit too dumbed-down. Between the two, I prefer v2/2.2.

And this is from a guy who used to spend hours poring over Janes and, ahem, other sources to get V1-type realism. And chucked those charts in favor of v2/2.2.

[M-Type]

As for realism, v1 has got that covered hands-down. It's exactly as Paul said, I don't want to stall the game while I roll some d10s to see if this or that got hit, find out the damage, subtract the damage, roll another d10...

I'm a guy who likes to keep the story going in games, and will gladly fudge the rules a bit to do so, so my method as of right now is too simply say "You hit the APC with the RPG." Adds an air of mystery and uncertainty, and gives me some time to roll it out if they decide to go investigate it.

Because I mean, honestly, besides the explosions and maybe the suspension, how would an outside observer know the radio took a hit, or that the driver took 1d6x1d6 hits?

Of course, if it's a PC-run vehicle taking the hit, I'd have to roll it out on the spot.

[Legbreaker]

As a GM, I believe it's vital to keep players in the dark about exactly what the result of their hit upon the enemy vehicle is, describing only the obvious effects.
A single .50 cal round may well be enough to take out a BTR (if it's REALLY lucky), but the observable result is likely to be exceptionally minimal - a spark of the armour as the round penetrates, perhaps a few moments later the vehicle coasting to a halt against an embankment.
On the other hand, a 120mm HEAT to the same BTR is going to be pretty damn obvious in it's effectiveness!

[M-Type]

Originally Posted by Legbreaker

On the other hand, a 120mm HEAT to the same BTR is going to be pretty damn obvious in it's effectiveness!

Undoubtedly!

I could probably use the time of doodling my math down for vehicle damage as a 'breather' for the PCs to say something along the lines of "Okay, you hit the tank/APC/UAZ, but what about the foot-soldiers rushing your position? Can't accurately hit them with the AT."

[Legbreaker]

Originally Posted by M-Type

Can't accurately hit them with the AT."

Don't need to. If it's a HE type round (which most missiles/rockets are) near enough is almost always good enough. If the blast itself doesn't get them, shrapnel just might!

Something else to keep in mind is shrapnel (in 2.x rules at least) can for small calibre heavy weapons (20-40mm or thereabouts) often do more damage to a soft skin vehicle than a direct hit. Shrapnel has a Pen of 1 and there can be up to 6 hits from a single shot. A basic 25mm API round has a Pen of -2 at longer ranges (plus 2D6, so theoretically it could come out at 0). Even if a maximum final Pen of 10 was rolled up, it's still not going to do any more damage than a single shard of shrapnel.

Make that round a basic HE (Pen -8 +2D6), and chances are no damage from the impact itself will occur.

[M-Type]

Please don't convince my players to run around with hundreds of LAWs instead of normal weapons.

And knowing that most roleplayers in the area are D&D players, it wouldn't surprise me if they tried.

[Legbreaker]

LAW's are inefficient and too heavy. A multishot grenade launcher such as the MM-1 or MGL though....ooooooo, baby!

Had an f2f game a month or two back where one character behind a German H&K Grenade Machine Gun took out about 40 Russian infantry single-handedly in just a few seconds, then turned the weapon on two BTR-80's. The carnage was scary.

And they were just the PC's doctor....

[M-Type]

My uncle often says that the most fun he had in the Marine Corps was getting behind the mk19, if juuuust for a few minutes.

[dragoon500ly]

Mmmmmmmmm, nothing beats sitting behind a M-2 and getting to work through a 1,000 rounds of .50-cal!