Space Mechs & Pylon Mounts

[Drop Bear]

OK I'm wondering how to go about Pylion Mounts for Space Capable Mechs (or normal Mechs operating in space), stuff like carrying usable "Flue" in external pods, external cargo, "Bombs" (more likely giant limpet mines) or even RL pods if we want to get munchtastic.

[sillybrit]

As a house rule, I would suggest copying the LAM bomb bay concept or the external stores hardpoints for support vehicles. If chosing the latter path, don't forget a payload penalty to movement, akin to the thrust reduction aerospace units get for carrying bombs, etc on their hardpoints.

[Drop Bear]

Oho I was going to give a Thrust penalty, I'm looking at it for a number of projects, like flue pods on Jump capable mechs to make them a monkey version of Space Mechs, Rocket Pods on Space Mechs to give them a penalty offset to the mass they invest in to Flue, extending the operational time of Industrial Space Mechs. stuff like that.

[snewsom2997]

As a House rule also, Partial Wings to carry stores, maybe half the capacity of a same sized ASF with the same engine, Rocket Launchers and OS Missile Launchers, and a +3 heat sink bonus. A couple tons for extra fuel/reaction mass. For Limpet mines I would suggest maybe a Thunderbolt Missile Launcher with magnetic head missiles, Like a Big Explosive Narc Missile.

[Drop Bear]

I'm trying to avoid getting in to "Binders" and "Command Armour", works in Mekton II (MTS) and Jovian Chronicles, but I want to avoid it as much as I can for just a couple of B-Tech side projects.

[sillybrit]

Something else to bear in mind: without house rules, even zero-G optimized Mech variants and configs are still only able to shoot at targets in the same hex on aerospace maps, suffering a +4 hit penalty as well (SO p119).

[Drop Bear]

We're still using BMR, because the TW edition books are too nice, cost too much and are too cross indexed to lug around everywhere (and buy multiple copies of on the cost thing).

[Weirdo]

Even in BMR days, space 'mechs operated as sillybrit describes. Their rules were in Explorer Corps I believe, and later in Aerotech 2.

I don't think a ruleset exists where fielding 'mechs in free-fall is ever a good idea.

[Drop Bear]

then there was Combat Opps, that included "Local" as in the same AT2 hex range rules IIRC.

[sillybrit]

Combat Ops (p75) has the same rules wording as StratOps, limiting Mechs and battlesuits to shooting targets in the same hex only, with a +4 hit penalty.