[FT] Idea: Fighter MRSM

MRSM - mid range standoff missile 

This is something akin to a cross between an 
SM and a group of torpedo fighters. 

Concept:
Fighters currently run a very high risk of being 
obliterated in a high PDS environment as well as 
a risk of being annihilated by interceptors. 
Enemy fighters are kind of hard to dodge, but 
the problems engaging ships outside the PDS 
envelope suggest the development of some 
sort of standoff weapon. It can't be hugely 
powerful or everyone will take it! It has to also 
be costed appropriately. 

The idea is this: 
PDS range is 6". A weapon which would allow a 
fighter to attack from a range of 9" would allow 
a squadron of attacking fighters to engage the 
target from range and eliminate PDS (except 
from other ships with ADFC within 6") as a 
threat (thus leaving only the other side's 
fighters). 

So, when we buy a torpedo fighter, we get a 
weapon which can (IIRC) do 1d6 damage per 
fighter but requires you to enter the PDS 
envelope to use it. It also is a one shot, then 
home to reload kind of item. 

Similarly the MRSM is proposed as a 
modification to a standard fighter to replace its 
existing ordinance loadout. An MSRM fighter 
can fire one MSRM salvo before rearming. So in 
this sense, things work like a torpedo fighter. 
However, the MSRM may be fired from 9" out 
and therefore outside of PDS range (however, if 
the fighter player is a little clueless, he might 
still put himself inside PDS range....). So it can't 
do as much damage. 

Each fighter fires its MRSM and the 6 (for a full 
squadron) come in as one attack. Each MSRM 
does 1d6-3. (average 1 pt, max 3). However, 
MSRMs are subject to the PDS (their fighter 
platforms might not be, but the munitions have 
to enter the PDS envelope to attack) and so the 
PDS can attack incoming MSRM salvoes (when 
an MSRM fighter declares it is attacking, it must 
identify that it is deploying the MSRM to give 
the defender a chance to allot his PDS with this 
fact taken into account). Because the squadron 
fires one salvo together, PDS multi-kill is 
effective (that is, you can kill more than one of 
the 6 MSRMs with a given PDS if you roll well). 
Screens have no effect on this attack form (its 
missiles). 

I suspect a flight of fighters armed with MRSMs 
should be costed as torpedo fighters. 

This gives a standoff weapon that gives fighters 
a good chance to survive an engagement, but 
they'll have to go home to rearm. Against a 
light PDS vessel, they should be able to do a 
few points damage. Against heavy PDS, they'll 
probably be moderately ineffective. 

Thoughts? 

Tomb Raider