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RE: 25mm Grav Bikes and Rules

From: Thomas Barclay <Thomas.Barclay@s...>
Date: Wed, 18 Nov 1998 22:04:43 -0500
Subject: RE: 25mm Grav Bikes and Rules

Wayne spake thusly upon matters weighty: 

> At 05:45 PM 18/11/98 -0800, Brian Burger wrote:
> 
> >> The point of the rules was to create what is in effect another
infantry
> >> squad type.  The rules are really just modifications of the
existing ones
> >> to take into account the fact that the infantry are mounted on
bikes.	I
> >> wanted there to be advantages (increased speed) and disadvantages
(no heavy
> >> weapons and shorter ranged when mounted) so that game balance could
be
> >> maintained.  
> 
> >Fair enough. SG2 is, after all, an infantry game. I've run IFVs with
three
> >SAWs mounted on them, and they put out insane amounts of fire. A
squad of
> >eight bikes (or even small squads of six or less) all with SAWs would
be
> >devastating. Which may be the point, but it screws up game balance.
> 
> I've never seen or used vehicles in SG2 but it nice to know that
someone
> else agrees with my thoughts about a lot of SAWs unbalancing the game.

Of course, with any sort of an ammo capacity, you'd run out after a 
few turns of fire. With basic firecontrol (the best the bike could 
mount), you are only somewhat dangerous (per SAW). And if the bikes 
themselves increased weapon damage (to integrate the likelihood of an 
explosion or being thrown off or any number of things), then they'd 
still be pretty balanced. And, like I've always said, I can balance 
any situation if I think about it. If I give you a fast bike squad 
with 6 SAW weapons, I'd better have a reasonable counter - maybe a 
VTOL, some good arty, or chassis mounted quad-APSWs to offer some 
examples. If you don't like the idea of armed bikes, I'm fine with 
that, but I think it is hard to say it is technologically impossible 
to arm such a beast. A saw (even with ammo hoppers) won't weigh more 
than 30 pounds - limited ammo. I don't think that is too much to 
assume. Maybe the RFAC is too heavy. Maybe these 'gun bikes' have 
slower movement rates. Who knows? What makes one comfortable is what 
one should always go with. 
  
> I don't have any concrete ideas about alternatives its just that I
don't
> like the idea of everyone jumping of their bike cause someone shot at
them.
>  Though movies aren't a good factual source I keep thinking of all the
> Westerns where the response of the US calvary to getting shot at by
the
> indians is not to instantly jump off their horses, and use them for
cover,
> but to gallop out of range, regroup and then to think about dingo
something
> about the indians.  

Hmmm. A lot of those movies (again a crappy source) showed them 
dismounting (hobilar style of fighting) to engage the enemy when 
fired on. And I hardly think the cavalry was being fired on by RFACs, 
SAWs and modern ARs with GLs. That is perhaps where the analogy goes 
awry.  

> It just seems that if you are riding your bike across some open ground
with
> your squad mates and start to get shot at, you wouldn't all instantly
jump
> off but would instead gun the engine and drive as fast as you could
out of
> there, and probably toward some near by cover to hide behind.  Then
> dismount and return fire in a more organised and coordinated fashion.

Unless I realized that the drive across the open would keep me 
exposed to the aforesaid threat (like say a SAW or RFAC) for some 
period of time. My bike won't move fast enough to outrun its 
traverse, it has a high cyclic, and I have no armour to protect me. 
I'd consider bailing off and getting prone.  

.... but I'm a ground pounder at heart. I don't like the idea of 
fighting from inside a tin can or astride a bike. So I may just have 
a silly predjudice. 

> Here's an idea I just had.  Maybe the mounted infantry should only do
a
> crash dismount if they actually take casualties from the fire,
otherwise
> they can continue to move no matter how many suppressions they have. 
What
> do you think.

It's your dime! :)  
/************************************************
Thomas Barclay		     
Voice: (613) 831-2018 x 4009
Fax: (613) 831-8255

 "C makes it easy to shoot yourself in the foot.  C++ makes
 it harder, but when you do, it blows away your whole leg."
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