Author Topic: Some House Rules that might interest fellow old-timers...  (Read 1211 times)

Hominid Mk II

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  • Unofficial, sure. But better than nothing, right?
I act as GM for my group something like 75% of the time and, since my players and I have all been around since the late 1980s or early 1990s, we generally prefer to stick with the simpler BattleTech Master Rules + AeroTech 2 + Maximum Tech rules in most respects, rather than switching to the more complicated Total Warfare + TechManual + Tactical Operations + Strategic Operations + Interstellar Operations rules. (Although we’ve sometimes had to employ a fair bit of imagination in adapting some equipment introduced in the latter for use with the older rules.) If there are any other luddites out there who do the same, this compilation of the House Rules we commonly use might be of some interest to you as a source of ideas.

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Largely because I personally insist on it (unless someone else is taking a turn as GM for a while when I want to just play for a change), we nearly always set a game or campaign in an alternate BT universe timeline which diverges from the canon timeline in 3055, when both Melissa and Katherine Steiner-Davion rather than just Melissa alone were assassinated at the instigation of Ryan Steiner. As a result the Federated Commonwealth never split apart and the FedCom Civil War never happened. Operation Guerrero still happened, but it was a total failure for the Free Worlds League and only a partial success for the Capellan Confederation. The St. Ives Compact retained its independence from the CC. From 3068 to 3070 the Successor States joined the Word of Blake in a campaign to drive the Invading Clans from the Inner Sphere. When the WoB subsequently launched a genocidal attack on the Clan Homeworlds without consulting the rest of the Inner Sphere, recriminations and mutual distrust spiraled into a brutal war not unlike the Jihad in the canon timeline, waged from 3072 to 3079.

Because the period from 3057 to 3067 was altogether less eventful in this timeline than it was in the canon timeline, nothing like the ferment of political and military upheaval that drove programs like Project Phoenix forward at breakneck pace in the canon timeline during that period happened here. As a result there was far more conservatism in ‘Mech design and nothing like Project Phoenix (or its Diamond Shark equivalent) ever happened either.

Although the Diamond Sharks (and later the Sea Foxes) still eventually made a great deal of profit selling Clantech ‘Mechs to the Successor States, they did it mostly by selling existing models that had already been in production for generations, because there was never a point in time where it was unquestionably in the best interests of the Sharks for them to psych themselves up to make a break with the fundamental conservatism of the Clan mindset (by embracing technological innovation on a large scale) in order for them to be able to make even more money. As a result, few Clan second-line ‘Mechs introduced before the Clan Invasion of the Inner Sphere in 3050 have ever given rise to any new variants incorporating new tech. Such innovations in weapons technology as the Clans have made since the Clan Invasion have mostly benefitted only OmniMechs (because of course it’s much quicker and easier to experiment with new configurations for them) and second-line ‘Mechs introduced since the Clan Invasion.

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We're still using BV 1.0/BV1, for the simple reason that none of us can really get our heads around BV 2.0/BV2 in all its horrible complexity!

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We now use the descriptions of Inner Sphere Level 3 or Clan Level 3 a little differently to their original meanings, specifically to describe the Rules Level in our games of most technology introduced after the publication of the BattleTech Master Rules (First Edition). That includes not only weapons introduced in Maximum Tech (like X-Pulse Lasers and Light ACs) but also those introduced in the later volumes of the original FASA Field Manual series (like Rotary ACs and Heavy Gauss Rifles) or later on in Total Warfare + TechManual + Tactical Operations (like Plasma Rifles and MMLs). This is to help us avoid confusion between recovered technology (everything lost during the early Succession Wars that once again became available to the Successor States between the unlocking of the Helm Memory Core and the Clan Invasion) and entirely new technology (everything developed since the Clan Invasion). We had to make exceptions for long-established post-Clan Invasion weapons like the Light Gauss Rifle and MRMs which have been regarded as Level 2 Equipment ever since their introduction, since it would probably cause more confusion than it avoided if we made them Level 3 in our games! We’ve also kept Inner Sphere Targeting Computers as Level 2 Equipment rather than making them Level 3, because they were reverse-engineered from Clan models rather than being developed from scratch. (As with Inner Sphere ER Medium and Small Lasers, IS Streak SRM-4s and SRM-6s, IS LB 2-X, LB 5-X and LB 20-X ACs and IS Ultra AC/2s, AC/10s and AC/20s.) Although technically the Null-Signature System and Chameleon Light Polarization Shield are also recovered technology rather than being entirely new, they were Level 3 Equipment even during the era of the First Star League and we’ve kept them that way in the current era just as the canon timeline has.

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We use the description of Primitive Level 0 to describe the Rules Level in our games of all technology incorporated into early BattleMech designs first built during the early Age of War era using the Primitive Technology Base and also using only the kinds of basic Level 1 weapons (or, in some cases, primitive prototype versions of them) that were available during the early Age of War era.

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We also use the description of Primitive Level 0 to describe the Rules Level in our games of all technology incorporated into BattleMech designs first built during the "RetroTech craze" of the Jihad era using the Primitive Technology Base and also using only the kinds of basic Level 1 weapons that were available during the early Age of War era.

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We use the descriptions of Mixed Primitive Level 2 and Mixed Primitive Level 3 to describe the Rules Level in our games of all technology incorporated into BattleMech designs first built during the "RetroTech craze" of the Jihad era using the Primitive Technology Base but also using more advanced Level 2 and Level 3 weapons and weapon accessories that only became available long after the early Age of War era.

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We use the descriptions of Inner Sphere Level 4 or Clan Level 4 to describe the Rules Level in our games of most of the new technology introduced in Interstellar Operations.

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We calculate BV for ‘Mechs with Dual Cockpits using the old MechWarrior Companion rules which state that a Dual Cockpit has a BV equal to 4x the tonnage of the ‘Mech it’s installed in.

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We calculate BV for QuadVees by simply treating their QuadVee Cockpits as Dual Cockpits.

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We calculate BV for standard-weight tripod 'Mechs by simply treating their Tripod Cockpits as Dual Cockpits.

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We calculate BV for superheavy tripod ‘Mechs with Superheavy Tripod Cockpits by treating them as though they had both a Dual Cockpit and a Command Console.

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We accept the logic of the official rules that require standard-weight tripod ‘Mechs with three legs and two arms to have both a dedicated pilot and a dedicated gunner in a Tripod Cockpit [treated here as a Dual Cockpit], because it does seem plausible that the extra difficulty of coordinating the movements of five ‘Mech limbs instead of the normal four while also aiming and firing weapons might well be simply too great for any one human being to fully overcome. However, we’ve made it a house rule in our games that standard-weight tripods which also use the old Level 3 rule from Maximum Tech (since disavowed) that allows for the construction of armless ‘Mechs can be operated by a single pilot/gunner in a Standard Cockpit, just like a normal biped or quad ‘Mech, because coordinating the movements of just three ‘Mech limbs instead of the normal four poses no extra difficulty at all.

In similar vein, superheavy tripod ‘Mechs which also employ the armless ‘Mech rule still require both a dedicated pilot and a dedicated gunner and therefore still require a two-man, 4-ton Tripod Cockpit [treated here as a Dual Cockpit]. However, they don’t require a tactical support officer as well and therefore don’t require a three-man, 5-ton Tripod Cockpit.

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We calculate Defensive BV for ‘Mechs equipped with a Chameleon Light Polarization Shield by assuming that it adds 0.50 to the Defensive Movement Factor (as with a Null-Signature System).

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We calculate Defensive BV for ‘Mechs equipped with a Void-Signature System by assuming (arbitrarily) that it adds 0.70 to the Defensive Movement Factor. The current official ruleset is unclear as to whether it’s an ECM Suite or an Active Probe that also needs to be installed on a unit equipped with a V-SS in order for the latter to function. (I’m guessing that when Tactical Operations was written there was a mistake made that slipped past the proofreaders. I expect they originally intended it to be an Active Probe, then changed their minds and opted for an ECM Suite - but one section of the text of TacOps missed being revised accordingly.) For our games we’ve opted for an Active Probe, regardless of how the confusion may eventually be resolved with respect to the official rules.

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We calculate BV for ‘Mechs equipped with Electronic Warfare Equipment by assuming that it has Defensive BV of 31 and Offensive BV of 8. (As was actually stated in TacOps in what was presumably another proofreading error.)

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We calculate BV for ‘Mechs equipped with a Nova CEWS by assuming that it has Defensive BV of 61 and Offensive BV of 7 (as with a Watchdog CEWS).

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We calculate BV for ‘Mechs equipped with a Blue Shield Particle Field Damper by assuming that it has Defensive BV equal to 0.50 percent of Armor Value, but then subtracting 20 points for each of its seven hit locations (all except the head) not protected by CASE or CASE II, as with a Gauss weapon or explosive ammunition.

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We calculate Defensive BV for ‘Mechs equipped with Ferro-Lamellor Armor by multiplying Armor Factor by 1.20 and then multiplying the result by 2 to determine Armor Value.

We calculate Defensive BV for ‘Mechs equipped with Anti-Penetrative Ablation (APA) Armor by multiplying Armor Factor by 1.20 and then multiplying the result by 2 to determine Armor Value.

We calculate Defensive BV for ‘Mechs equipped with Ballistic-Reinforced Armor by multiplying Armor Factor by 3 to determine Armor Value.

We calculate Defensive BV for ‘Mechs equipped with Impact-Resistant Armor by multiplying Armor Factor by 2 to determine Armor Value.

We calculate Defensive BV for ‘Mechs equipped with Heat-Dissipating Armor by multiplying Armor Factor by 1.10 and then multiplying the result by 2 to determine Armor Value.

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We calculate BV for ‘Mechs equipped with one or more Modular Armors by simply assuming that each one carried adds 20 to Defensive BV.

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We calculate BV for ‘Mechs equipped with a Radical Heat Sink System by treating them (arbitrarily) as though they were equipped with 6 individual Coolant Pods, but without any reduction in Defensive BV due to exploding if destroyed by a critical hit.

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We calculate BV for ‘Mechs equipped with an Emergency Coolant System by treating them (arbitrarily) as though they were equipped with 5 individual Coolant Pods, but with only a 20-point reduction in Defensive BV due to exploding if destroyed by a critical hit instead of a 100-point reduction.

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We calculate BV for ‘Mechs incorporating an Interface Cockpit as usual and then multiply by 1.25.

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We calculate BV for Robotic Drone BattleMechs incorporating a Robotic Cockpit as usual and then multiply by 0.85.

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We calculate BV for IndustrialMechs not equipped with Advanced Fire Control as usual except that we multiply Offensive BV by 0.90 before adding it to Defensive BV.

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We calculate mode-specific BV for LAMs in Fighter Mode as usual using standard AeroTech 2 rules, with the following exceptions:

We assume Structural Integrity to be equal to the number of Internal Structure Points in the Center Torso. (If a LAM incorporates Composite Internal Structure, this figure is halved.)

We assume that the 80 Fuel Points a LAM automatically recieves at no cost in tonnage add 1 Point when calculating Defensive BV in exactly the same way that a single ton of fuel (80 Fuel Points) would do with a standard AeroSpace Fighter. Each additional 1-ton Fuel Tank incorporated (if any) adds a further 1 Point when calculating Defensive BV.

We assume that each additional 1-ton Fuel Tank (if any) and each 1-ton Internal Bomb Rack/Bomb Bay (if any) a LAM incorporates subtracts 20 Points when calculating Defensive BV as if it was explosive ammunition. (This is affected by CASE or CASE II as usual.)

We assume that LAMs have no Bombing Battle Rating, even if they incorporate Internal Bomb Racks/Bomb Bays.

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We calculate BV for Glider ProtoMechs as usual, with the following exceptions:

When calculating Defensive BV, we use their full Flanking MP as their Defensive Movement Factor, as with a LAM in AirMech Mode.

When calculating Offensive BV, we add their full Running MP to their full Flanking MP to determine their Speed Factor, as with a LAM in AirMech Mode.

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We calculate Defensive BV for AeroSpace Fighters or Conventional Fighters equipped with Vehicular Stealth Armor by assuming (arbitrarily) that it adds 0.1 to the Vessel Type Modifier.

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We’ve reduced the BVs for Heavy, Light, Snub-Nose and Enhanced ER PPCs fitted with PPC Capacitors slightly from the those given in Tactical Operations (multiplying by 0.936 percent, rounding fractions of less than 0.5 down and rounding fractions of 0.5 or more up, to be precise) in order to keep them in proportion with the similarly lower BVs for Standard and ER PPCs with Capacitors given in Maximum Tech. (Yes, I know, are we pedantic or what!? ;D) The reduced BVs are as follows:

IS Tech

Enhanced ER PPC [BV 329] + Capacitor [BV 44] = BV 373

ER PPC [BV 229] + Capacitor [BV 92] = BV 321

Heavy PPC [BV 317] + Capacitor [BV 29] = BV 346

PPC [BV 176] + Capacitor [BV 71] = BV 247

Light PPC [BV 88] + Capacitor [BV 36] = BV 124

Snub-Nose PPC [BV 165] + Capacitor [BV 71] = BV 236

Mixed Tech

ER PPC (C) [BV 412] + Capacitor (IS) [BV 39] = BV 451

Clan Tech

ER PPC [BV 412] + Capacitor [BV 39] = BV 451

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When the Enhanced ER PPC was first introduced (in a very low-key way) some time ago in Jihad Secrets; The Blake Documents, it was clearly described as being able to be constructed using the Inner Sphere Technology Base. (Although it was created by the ill-fated Clan Wolverine, this was very early in Clan history, before they'd made any of the key technological breakthroughs that allowed them to advance from the Inner Sphere to the Clan Technology Base.) I've been very taken with this weapon right from the start, so I've contrived to have the history of this alternate universe include an independent development of the Enhanced ER PPC by the Successor States in the late 3060s. The more recent attempt in Interstellar Operations to re-interpret it as needing to be constructed using the Clan Technology Base would effectively make that impossible, which doesn't suit my purposes at all, so I'm simply refusing to go along with it here. (Hey, this is our alternate universe, after all! We get to make the rules here! ;D)

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We’ve decided (arbitrarily) that, under the old BMR + MaxTech Level 3 rules allowing increased or decreased BVs for specialized munitions, Flak ammunition for Standard ACs or Light ACs has a BV multiplier of 0.5, Mine Clearance ammunition for SRMs, LRMs and MMLs has a BV multiplier of 0.25 and Tandem-Charge ammunition for SRMs and MMLs has a BV multiplier of 3.0.

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Another house rule in our games is the existence of a new Design Quirk: Extra Critical Slots/Weakened Internal Structure. A design with this extremely rare feature sacrifices Internal Structure Points in order to free up space which will allow it to incorporate extra Critical Slots.

Only standard BattleMechs weighing 100 tons or less with Standard Internal Structure can feature this Quirk: OmniMechs, LAMs, QuadVees, superheavy BattleMechs weighing 105 tons or more and standard BattleMechs with Endo Steel, Endo-Composite, Composite or Reinforced Internal Structure cannot.

Internal Structure Points can only be reduced in this way by an absolute maximum of three Points in any one location and in no more than two separate locations. Only the arms and the side torsos can have their Internal Structure Points reduced in this way: the head, center torso and legs cannot. The arms can only sacrifice points in this way if they have no hand or lower arm actuators. The side torsos can only do so if the engine isn’t a type which takes up Critical Slots in the side torsos (Light, XL or XXL). Each Point sacrificed will give the design one extra Critical Slot in that location: sacrificing the maximum three Points in any one location will give the design a maximum of three extra Critical Slots in that location. Each Point sacrificed also reduces the number of Armor Points the design can mount in that location by two: removing the maximum three Points from a location in order to gain the maximum three Slots will reduce the maximum number of Armor Points the design can mount in that location by six.

Only assault ‘Mechs can sacrifice the absolute maximum of three Points from a single location in order to gain the absolute maximum of three extra Slots.

Heavy ‘Mechs can only sacrifice a maximum of two Points from a single location in order to gain a maximum of two extra Slots.

Medium ‘Mechs can only sacrifice a maximum of one Point from a single location in order to gain a maximum of one extra Slot.

Light and Ultralight ‘Mechs cannot feature this Quirk at all.

Incorporating this Quirk into a BattleMech skeleton constitutes a major technological challenge to designers and engineers. It must be custom-designed around the specific bulky component(s) whose placement in the particular location(s) featuring it has made it necessary in the first place. If the components in question are later removed and replaced by others during the course of a field upgrade, the extra space which was occupied by the original components must be assumed to be of the wrong size and shape to allow the replacement components to occupy it, meaning that the switch can only be made if the replacement components are more compact than the originals and therefore don’t actually need the extra Slots previously occupied by the originals. The only exception to this is if the refit in question is being carried out in a full-scale BattleMech factory (preferably the one where the design was originally built). In that event, it can be assumed that the necessary technological expertise is present to completely disassemble the skeleton in the relevant location(s) and reassemble it in a way which is custom-designed around the replacement components in much the same way that it was previously custom-designed around the originals. If this condition is met, replacement components as bulky as the originals can be installed making full use of the extra Slots.

This Design Quirk can be considered both Positive (because of the obvious utility of the extra Critical Slots) and Negative (because of the reduction in the maximum possible number of Internal Structure Points and corresponding reduction in maximum possible Armor Points) at the same time.

To date the only design to feature it is the experimental HNT-1S Huntress of the late Star League era (from BattleTechnology Issue #14), which sacrifices three Internal Structure Points from each side torso in order to gain three extra Critical Slots in same, allowing it to mount an entire Thumper Artillery Piece (each occupying fifteen Critical Slots) in each side torso.

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A Ram Plate is a physical weapon usable only by quad BattleMechs, first deployed during the late Star League era with the experimental RHN-1O Rhino design (from BattleTechnology Issue #12). It multiplies the damage inflicted by a successful charging attack by 1.5 and concentrates it in a single hit location. The charging ‘Mech takes no damage. It must always be mounted in the center torso and a ‘Mech fitted with one can’t mount any forward-firing weapons in any torso location unless they’re mounted in quad ‘Mech turrets. It can never be mounted on a quad with fragile Composite Internal Structure. A Ram Plate weighs 1.5 times as much as a Hatchet carried by a biped ‘Mech of the same weight as the quad would weigh but occupies only half as many critical slots (rounding up in both cases).

A Ram Plate can’t be pod-mounted on an OmniMech, but it can be permanently mounted on the base chassis.

BV for a Ram Plate is equal to the damage it would inflict with a successful charging attack in which the ‘Mech mounting it used half of its maximum Running MP (rounding down). It costs twice as much as a Hatchet would.

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In this alternate universe Reinforced Internal Structure was first prototyped during the late Star League era, introduced with the aforementioned RHN-1O Rhino design. The loss of much advanced technology resulting from the ravages of the Amaris Civil War and the early Sucession Wars rendered it extinct and caused it to be forgotten for centuries. It was eventually rediscovered in the 3050s by the Federated Commonwealth following the unlocking of the Helm Memory Core.

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The Electrical Discharge Cannon (EDC) is essentially a crude attempt at emulating the PPC which was developed in the 3080s by a small consortium of Periphery arms manufacturers (brought together at the initiative of Able’s Aces and Rim Motors in the Rim Collection) after they accepted that they couldn’t hope to produce the real thing for themselves. It’s designed around the principle of simply discharging huge amounts of electrical energy into the target (somewhat like a Taser). For the EDC to fire, a discharge coil is needed. Since this coil burns out every time the weapon fires, the weapon is designed to have a new coil placed in the appropriate receptacle and the burned-out one cycled out in a way similar to the functioning of an autocannon reload system. The number of shots listed when referring to ammunition for an EDC is actually the number of discharge coils available to allow the weapon to be fired. Unlike conventional ammunition, it doesn’t explode if a critical hit destroys its slot. The weapon itself, however, will explode for 10 points of Internal Structure damage if a hit to one of its critical slots destroys it. (This subtracts 20 points from the Defensive BV for each EDC mounted that isn’t protected by CASE or CASE II, as with a Gauss weapon.)

An EDC occupies 5 Critical Slots and weighs 8 tons. It generates 7 Heat Points when fired. A hit inflicts 10 points of damage on the target. Minimum range is 2, short range 1-5, medium range 6-10, long range 11-15. One ton of ammunition consists of 10 discharge coils, enough for 10 shots.

An EDC inflicts damage on a target in the usual way for as long as the hit location struck in any given turn still has any Armor Points left after the damage inflicted in that turn has been subtracted. This damage will be reduced by half if the target is equipped with Laser-Reflective Armor, but will be unaffected by a Blue Shield PFD. Whenever a hit on a target by an EDC inflicts enough damage to destroy the last of the Armor in the location struck and damage its Internal Structure, roll on the Taser Effects Table to determine what additional effects are suffered by the target. Do the same for the 'Mech mounting the EDC if a hit to one of its Critical Slots causes it to explode.

An EDC will cause collateral damage to units in water hexes. If the EDC hits a target in water (or one directly above water in the case of a hovercraft, WiGE or LAM at an Elevation/Altitude Level of 1), the EDC does full damage (10 points) to all units in that hex. Any units in (or directly above) water in adjacent hexes will receive half damage (5 points). Any unit 2 or more hexes away is safe from collateral damage.

An EDC costs 200,000 C-bills and a ton of ammunition (10 discharge coils) costs 20,000 C-bills. Weapon BV is 120, ammo BV is 15 per ton.

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A Dual-Purpose Gauss Rifle is simply a Gauss weapon that can fire either standard slug ammunition or Silver Bullet ammunition equally well. (It’s essentially the Gauss equivalent of an LB-X autocannon.) It owes its existence to the continuing unity of the Federated Commonwealth and the absence of any equivalent of the economic contraction in both of its two sundered halves that followed the secession of the Lyran Alliance in the canon timeline. There was more spare cash available to fund even comparatively marginal weapons research and eventually, in 3058, the NAIS took another look at the mothballed Silver Bullet Gauss Rifle project. Five years later, in 3063, the Dual-Purpose Gauss Rifle was the result.

A DPGR costs twice as much as a standard Gauss Rifle but has the same Critical Slot and tonnage requirements. It likewise explodes for 20 points of damage if it suffers a critical hit. Weapon BV is the same as for a standard Gauss Rifle. Ammo BV is the same as for standard slug ammo or as for Silver Bullet ammo, depending on which type it is.


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Constructive criticism (pretty much anything other than an unqualified "Man, you guys suck!" or the like) is just as welcome as sycophantic praise!
« Last Edit: 24 August 2017, 13:03:04 by Hominid Mk II »
Ever felt that The Powers That Were at FASA, WizKids and FanPro never gave Victor Steiner-Davion and the Federated Commonwealth a fair shake in the canon timeline? Then you might be interested in my Victor Victorious AU at

https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php?topic=65976.0

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