RE: Thinking of aspects of PA in urban fighting [FMAS] [General]

-----Original Message-----
From: owner-gzg-l@lists.CSUA.Berkeley.EDU
[mailto:owner-gzg-l@lists.CSUA.Berkeley.EDU]On Behalf Of Eli Arndt
Sent: Sunday, March 11, 2001 5:58 PM
To: gzg-l@csua.berkeley.edu
Subject: RE: Thinking of aspects of PA in urban fighting [FMAS]
[General]

Good points all, but with a couple of exceptions I can see..

>PAs shortcomings:
>- heavy (will tend to fall through weaker floors which also leads to
the
>thought of punji pits to dispose of PA)

[Bri] Or even hardened pits. Unless the PA have jump capibility,
dropping
them into a hardened concrete pit may put them out of action until they
are
rescued (by other PA or infantry with a wench/crane to pull them out).

>- not quiet (maybe you can build a light PA exoskeleton for commandos
that
>uses silent servos etc, but it definitely won't be full normal PA) so
can
be
>easily detected by sound (probably by emissions and whatnot too)
>- immobilized by some EMP charges

I don't see why they couldn't be shielded like other systems.  Of course
there is always a bigger bomb/gun/beam/charge so I understand the
<some>.

[Bri] True. I don't see this as a huge and often used tactic vs. PA.
However, hardening systems adds to the weight/cost/bulk of the PA.

>- hard to get out if you have a collapse

Explosive bolts, or mechanical back-ups with a quick-release handle. 
The
guy who did Akira had a cool short called "A fairwell to weapons" that
had a
great set of realistic PA encounter with an automated opponent.

A guy in there survives an attack, but finds the attack has shorted out
his
armor.	To add insult to injury, the missile's explosion glassed a lot
of
the sand and made quick release difficult so he had to blow the suit.

[Bri] If the PA falls through the (weakened) floor on the 3rd floor and
falls to the cellar with major debris on top of it, getting out of the
PA
could be difficult (due to the debris on top of it, possible power loss,
broken servos, etc.).

>- not dexterous

True, but you could install micro-manipulators to specific suits (techs,
RTO's, etc.)

[Bri] True, but these might be delicate and easily damaged if exposed in
combat.

>- problems fitting through doors and into warrens or rooms with low
ceilings

Without damaging the structure and making tons of noise, yup.

[Bri] If they try to bull thier way through doors, hallways, etc. that
they
do not fit in (rather than crouch, twist, turn to get through without
damage), I suggest that they make some sort of breaching check.
Material		     Light PA		    Heavy PA
Glass, Plaster, siding		+2		       +0
Weakened block or brick 	+4		       +2
Block, brick, or concrete  Breaching Charge	       +4
			      Required
Roll vs. Quality. Success indicates the PA moves as normal (creates a
man-sized breach). Failure indicates PA moves as encumbered (creates
man-sized breach). Failure under 1/2 the required number indicates the
PA is
damaged and can only move 1/2 of its previous rating.

>- not so great at negotiating stairs, ropes or ladders (does fine on
ramps
>for the handicapped, elevators, and cargo lifts)

Ladders might be bypassed by climbing the verticals rather than messing
with
the slats but still not so great

[Bri] And there is the weight problem. Many ladders are only rated for
300lbs. PA would be substantially heaver than this.

>
>Anyone think of anything else to add? I'm trying to fit together some
sort
>of conjectural doctrine for joint infantry-PA operations in urban
terrain...
>along with appropriate rules to handle various situations.
>
>Tomb.
-----End Original Message-----

My comments marked by [Bri]

---
Brian Bell
bkb@beol.net
ICQ: 12848051
AIM: Rlyehable
The Full Thrust Ship Registry:
http://www.ftsr.org
---