[FT] WotW #4: Railguns

WotW #3 is, I think, now closed. I've updated the WDA to include the
latest
discussions I've been able to track.

http://members.nbci.com/_XMCM/noam_izenberg/Weap-Def_Archive.htm

The next WotW is some unfinished business from several weeks ago.
Hopefully
this can be a quick one, since we've already had a reasonable amount
discussion on it on a few threads.

WotW #4: Railguns

Matthew Smith Brought up the "OUDF railgun" (plus there's an "Earth
Allieance Railgun" on the WDA list). Here's the orginal Smith post and
the
last part of the discussion (omitting quite alot) from early March. The
WDA
entry follows:

MS>Railguns come in classes 1-6 like K-Guns, and obey the same rules
with
MS> regard to arcs of fire.
MS> 
MS> Roll to hit like K-Guns, but the ranges are doubled - 0-12 mu: 2+,
12-24
MS> mu: 3 +, etc.
 
MS> If you hit, roll 1 die per railgun firing, and take the result as
the
MS> damage, BUT you cannot do more damage than the class of the firing
MS> railgun. For example, if you hit with a class four railgun, you
would do
MS> the damage as on the die, but rolls of 5 or 6 would only inflict 4.
 
MS> Damge is inflicted as per K-guns with regard to armour / shell.
Screens
MS> / vapour shroud / whatever have no effect.

MS> A class 6 railgun is a lot like a super-long range p-torp, and based
on
MS> this I have come up with some ideas for mass / points.
 
MS> Class 1 Railgun (all arcs): 	2 MASS
MS> Class 2 Railgun (one arc):	      3 MASS
MS> Class 2 Railgun (two arcs):      4 MASS
MS> Class 3 Railgun (one arc):	      5 MASS
MS> Class 4 Railgun (one arc):	      6 MASS
MS> Class 5 Railgun (one arc):	      7 MASS
MS> Class 6 Railgun (one arc):	      8 MASS
 
MS> All Railguns cost 3 x MASS.

NI>>> My personal bias is to just rename K-guns. There's not logic in
creating
NI>>> something that is basically a K-gun and give it  a differnet
mechanic
just
NI>>> so Humans can use them.

MS>>I disagree. I think that just re-naming K-Guns removes some of the
MS>>individuality of both KVs and humans. KVs and Humans both have their
own
MS>>very individual fighting style, and by porting the main KV weapon
directly
MS>>to the humans this is spoiled. 

NI>We'll have to agree to disagree on this one. FT is a KISS system, and
NI>creating a new weapon mechanic for a failry cosmetic difference adds
NI>unneeded complexity. If you want Human Railguns to be less
hard-hitting
than
NI>K-guns, limit humans to K-3 and under. You can make the weapons can
"feel"
NI>quite different with a small amount of effort in PSB. The tactics
will
NI>_have_ to be different, since Human ships will not have Advanced
Drives. 

MS>> The main human weapons are beams and (to a
MS>> far lesser extent) SMLs, giving them KV K-Guns provides a third
primary
MS>> weapon option that does not fit with their "image". 

NI>Don't forget Torps.

NI>Adding railguns as a "new" system in _any_ form doesn't change this
problem
NI>at all. 

NI>One alternative practical and KISS solution is renaming single or
dual
arc
NI>P-torps as Railguns. Easy mechanic, easy limitations. It's less
versatile
NI>than most KV weaponry becuase it's not classed (unless you play with
the
NI>Heavy and Light torps), making up for it a bit by having up to 2-arcs
of
NI>fire where K-3's only get 1. 
NI>Its less hard hitting because it divides damage evenly b/t hull and
armor
NI>instead of penetrating after 1 point, and can't ever score more than
6
NI>points (like K-4+ can).

(From Brendan:)
BR>Another easier variant to make human rail guns feel different would
be to
BR>have them double on a roll OVER the class level (roll of 6 always
doubles).
BR>This would make a bell curve for the weapon and larger class railguns
less
BR>effective (but still dangerous) with the best mix in the Class 2-4
range.
BR>Same mass as KV K-Guns. Costing them would be tricky, but an easy way
to
BR>lend a different flavor to the same basic principal. PSB: KV gravitic
BR>technology is supperior allowing them to fire the heavier guns with
greater
BR>efficiency (i.e. Human railgun projectiles slow as the mass of the
BR>projectile goes up, so the kinetic energy transfer curve flattens).
Human
BR>long-range targeting systems are better (cross-bred from Class-3 and
4
BR>beams).

BR>Human Railgun		      K-Gun
BR>Class     Average Damage on a Hit  Average Damage on a Hit
BR> 1	       1.83			 1.17
BR> 2	       3.33			 2.67
BR> 3	       4.50			 4.50
BR> 4	       5.33			 6.67
BR> 5	       5.83			 9.17
BR> 6	       7.00			11.00
BR> 7	       8.17			12.50
BR> .		.			  .
BR> .		.			  .

While this looks like it would work fines, its still a new mechanic for
something that doesn't need one. KISS again.

Earth Alliance railgun from Corye Seale on the WDA

WDA> As K3 w/2 arcs,  Mass 6, 24 points

WDA>Comments:
WDA>(Oerjan) Mass 7 brings it better into line with the K2-2 and the
PT-2,
but 6 is pretty close too. 
WDA>The "real" value is somewhere inbetween.
WDA>(Noam) Perhaps Mass 6, 30 pts or Mass 7, 21 pts. Just Use K-guns
with
different PSB
WDA>(Oerjan) Mass 7 Cost 4xmass is better (if a bit high).