RE: HBW and Cutter Beam

I can't remember if there was any conclusions either (and I can never
find
the archives).

Since FB2 came out, my biggest objection to the Heavy Beam Weapon (HBW),
that of an auto-hit at close range, has been overridden. The K-Guns use
this
mechanic. :-/

I came up with another mechanic, but don't know if it would 
balance out or not.

Cutter Beam
Same mass/cost/arc restrictions as Class-X K-Gun
Roll to hit and damage as Class-X Beam
Special: 
  Damage is marked off VERTICALLY rather than horizontally. 
  If damage from a CB reaches the last row of its target's 
  damage tracks, the target rolls a threshold check per its 
  current threshold level. If damage is beyond the last
  damage track, additional damage is lost.

Example:
A Class-3 CB rolls 6,4,3 it does 3 points of damage and a 
reroll (and gets a 5) for a total of 4 points of damage.
If the target had level-1 screens, the damage would only have
been 3 (as the 4 would not count). If the target had level-2
screens, the damage would have been 2 (as the 6 would have
done 1 pt and the 4 would not have counted).

The target (a Radetzky) has the following damage track
(with some previous damage marked by 'x':
  xOOOOO
  xxooo
  *ooo
  oo*o
  ooo*

The CB would mark damage as follows (marked by 'X':
  xXOOOO  <-- Damage is taken to the first armor
  xxXoo   <-- Damage is taken to the first hull
  *oXo	  <-- Damage is marked vertically
  ooXo	  <--  "     "	  "	  "
  ooo*
In this round, the CB failed to penetrate to the
last damage row, so no threshold check is made.

The next round the CB rolls 6,5,4 and a reroll of 6 for 
6 points of damage:
  xxXOOO
  xxxXo
  *oxX
  ooxX
  oooX
At this point the target would take a threshold check
(as its first threshold check as it still has a hull
box in the first row). This would NOT cause the threshold
level to change (i.e. the next threshold would still
require a 6 to damage and the core systems would be 
safe). Also note that the extra point of damage was
lost (i.e. not recorded).

What this hopes to model is a deep penetration weapon.
It punches through a ship, in hopes of hitting a 
critical system. If it misses a critical system, then
it has less effect in advancing the ship to a regular
threshold check.

So as not to make it too powerful, I chose to make it
fairly costly, effeced by screens and armor in the same 
way as regular beams, and limit the arcs.
regular beams

-----
Brian Bell
bkb@beol.net
http://members.xoom.com/rlyehable/ft/	   
-----

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Indy [SMTP:kochte@stsci.edu]
> Sent: Friday, May 26, 2000 8:50 AM
> To:	gzg-l@CSUA.Berkeley.EDU
> Subject:	Re: Fleet Book 3
> 
[snip]
>  have been fussing
> with stats for the new ships, and I _really_ want to put HBWs
> in most/many of them, but the HBW discussion (plug! plug!)
> hadn't (that _I_ know of!) reached a concensus regarding mass
> and point costs. I could be wrong, though, having missed a post
> or four (being swamped at the time barely able to keep up with
> the discussion in a peripheral manner :-/ ).
> 
[snip]

> ;-)
> 
> Mk