[T5Stuff] "Classic Traveller" Guns and Armor List, draft
- Thread starter robject
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Great stuff, thanks!
And yeah, T5 makes a big change with lasers not needing big ol' back-packs for power anymore, but it's nice actually. I wouldn't mind early ones requiring one, but at higher TLs, I want it more like in the movies. Not Star Wars laser-bullets mind you, but more like the one in Firefly, which I imagine these are.
And yeah, T5 makes a big change with lasers not needing big ol' back-packs for power anymore, but it's nice actually. I wouldn't mind early ones requiring one, but at higher TLs, I want it more like in the movies. Not Star Wars laser-bullets mind you, but more like the one in Firefly, which I imagine these are.
I'd appreciate any insight you (or anyone else) might have to offer as to how GunMaker works. My hardcopy of T5 arrived barely a week ago and I'm finding it heavy going.
For example, the GunMaker output sample of p.240 have a P-5 listed at the top. The statline is identical to your AP-6 apart from the Damage. But as hard as I stare at the tables I can't see how to add Automatic and an extra TL for Bullet-2.
Right. As far as I know, any Pistol is going to be automatic in the classic Traveller sense -- that is, semi-automatic, rather than a machine pistol.
As for the extra damage: certifying a weapon stage as "Standard" adds 1 to the TL and 1 to the damage.
Gimme a moment and I'll step thru it a bit more.
As for the extra damage: certifying a weapon stage as "Standard" adds 1 to the TL and 1 to the damage.
Gimme a moment and I'll step thru it a bit more.
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Now that you mention it... the laser rifles I've listed are 4 kilograms: roughly twice the weight of today's hunting rifles. It is not inconceivable that half of that is battery pack after all. But, there's no rule stating that this is so. I think.
OK, here's how I designed the Body Pistol.
First, I open my old copy of The Traveller Book to page 40. The BP there is 300 grams, Cr 520, and TL7. Its range is Medium. Those are my general constraints. Damage is... different in CT. Every slug thrower except the Shotgun does 3D. A lot of that is based on the combat system. I have to leave that behind.
Next I open up Traveller5, to GunMaker, page 251, and select the Pistol from the Categories table.
I skip the Descriptors page, and come to Burden and Stage (p. 253). Choosing "Body" gets me to:
Now, I could apply "Standard", because I can't stand a Pistol with Bullet-0 damage (that means the only way to do damage is to rely on Snapfire, which limits my options).
GunMaker designs are quite amenable to spreadsheets.
NOTE I'm not entirely sure that "Body" adds 1 to range; it's got an asterisk next to it. Maybe it SETS the range to 1?
First, I open my old copy of The Traveller Book to page 40. The BP there is 300 grams, Cr 520, and TL7. Its range is Medium. Those are my general constraints. Damage is... different in CT. Every slug thrower except the Shotgun does 3D. A lot of that is based on the combat system. I have to leave that behind.
Next I open up Traveller5, to GunMaker, page 251, and select the Pistol from the Categories table.
Code:
Pistol TL5 Range 2 Mass 1.1 Burden 0 Bullet 1 Cr 150I skip the Descriptors page, and come to Burden and Stage (p. 253). Choosing "Body" gets me to:
Code:
Pistol TL5 Range 2 Mass 1.1 Burden 0 Bullet 1 Cr 150
Body TL+2 Range +1 Mass x0.5 Burden -1 Damage -1 Cr x 3
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Body Pistol TL7 Range 3 Mass 0.55 Burden -1 Bullet 0 Cr 450Now, I could apply "Standard", because I can't stand a Pistol with Bullet-0 damage (that means the only way to do damage is to rely on Snapfire, which limits my options).
Code:
Body Pistol TL7 Range 3 Mass 0.55 Burden -1 Bullet 0 Cr 450
Standard TL+1 Range +0 Mass x1 Burden +0 Damage +1 Cr x1
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Body Pistol TL8 Range 3 Mass 0.55 Burden -1 Bullet 1 Cr 450GunMaker designs are quite amenable to spreadsheets.
NOTE I'm not entirely sure that "Body" adds 1 to range; it's got an asterisk next to it. Maybe it SETS the range to 1?
I submitted some errata on the Standard stage effect in ArmorMaker. I don't think it should add to TL because in effect what you are producing from the Maker process is a "Standard" version of any weapon. Ask yourself if you aren't producing the standard version without having to add the stage effect, what are you producing? Its not the Basic version because thats cheaper, and its not the Alternate version because that has QREBS based on Flux. So is it the "Blank" version, that doesn't sound right.
It seems to me that a lot of the stage effects embedded in the Maker tables were superseded by the table on p500.
I understand your point about Bullet-0 being a problem. Maybe a better fix is to say no Effect can fall below 1?
If the Effects are characteristic of the different weapon types, maybe they should not "design out" but just get minimized.
Anyway your design is correct, but I wouldn't be surprised if the process changes with future errata. Oh and yes I think you are right about Body "Sets" range to 1. Likewise Snub sets range to 2, although why VHeavy sets range to 5 I'm not sure if thats right because something like Anti-Flyer should have a range of 6 why would a VHeavy Anti-Flyer have reduced range?
It seems to me that a lot of the stage effects embedded in the Maker tables were superseded by the table on p500.
I understand your point about Bullet-0 being a problem. Maybe a better fix is to say no Effect can fall below 1?
If the Effects are characteristic of the different weapon types, maybe they should not "design out" but just get minimized.
Anyway your design is correct, but I wouldn't be surprised if the process changes with future errata. Oh and yes I think you are right about Body "Sets" range to 1. Likewise Snub sets range to 2, although why VHeavy sets range to 5 I'm not sure if thats right because something like Anti-Flyer should have a range of 6 why would a VHeavy Anti-Flyer have reduced range?
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There is no rule but you might examine Burden to see if a battery pack is need. Your Laser Carbine masses almost the same as the Laser rifle but has B+1.
Maybe the higher the Burden the more weight is shifted to a battery pack?
Halve the mass. Half the mass is the "weapon" part and half is the "battery pack" then move a kilo per Burden to the battery pack.
For example for the Carbine 1.15Kg is the weapon and 3.15Kg is the battery pack because its B+1.
For the Rifle 2.4kg is the weapon and 2.4Kg is the battery pack because its B+0.
Its quick and dirty but might be useful. On the otherhand if you don't want battery packs T5 has more to say on Power Cells which have a base TLA, maybe they can be built into the weapon at the expense of Weight?
Also on Lasers in general, have another read of what it says about "Determining Controls" on p256. Controls for a weapon are the sum of the controls for Type and Descriptor. Then it specifically gives the example of a Laser Rifle getting Off-Single-Burst-P1-P2-P3. I think the entry on the table for laser under Long Guns p252 is wrong and omits this.
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I like your rule of thumb about using Burden to guesstimate the mass of a carried battery pack.
I'm sure the total gun mass is the same, whether it's one big unit, or split into a rifle-like lasing unit and a backpack with the power cells.
I'm sure the total gun mass is the same, whether it's one big unit, or split into a rifle-like lasing unit and a backpack with the power cells.
Many thanks for that and your subsequent Body Pistol walk through, helps a lot.
