Author Topic: Unarmored infantry carriers (trucks, hovertrucks, etc)  (Read 1727 times)

kaliban

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Unarmored infantry carriers (trucks, hovertrucks, etc)
« on: 04 November 2019, 10:36:05 »
I am testing a radical idea. Extra light infantry carriers totally unarmored.

You can have a 7 ton hovertruck, carrying one foot platoon at a speed of 9/14 (12/18 if you use fractional accounting) for about 17BVs and costing some 60k cbills. A wheeled 5ton truck, build with fractional accounting, also reach 9/14 for 7k cbills and less than 10BVs - it is just 6x6 military truck as used today by armies around the world.

You cannot use them in a open map but in urban warfare or another map with enough hills and forests, you can sneak around at high speed and deploy infantry quickly.

In combination with other combat units, you surround and block enemy units. Unless the enemy units carry dedicated anti-infantry weapons conventional infantry is quite hard to eliminate even in open terrain.

Remember that even if the carrier is destroyed there is a 4 in 6 chance that the infantry inside survives - does not matter if you have armor or not (this is metagaming thinking, I know).

Sounds suicidal but the actual changes that the infantry is hit before disembark is small, and after that the infantry carrier cannot help much.  In a city map, with 12 cruise speed it takes you just two turns do disembark your troops on the other edge.

The reasoning behind is that the canon APC carrier is much slower and takes much longer to get to the target hex and deploy the infantry. Even a Heavy APC (wheeled) is not so well protected and move at only 6/9 making it an easy target.
« Last Edit: 04 November 2019, 10:40:08 by kaliban »

Natasha Kerensky

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Re: Unarmored infantry carriers (trucks, hovertrucks, etc)
« Reply #1 on: 04 November 2019, 13:51:23 »

If you wanna play dirty/fun, use fast, unarmored vehicles as blocking units.  Have them zoom out from behind cover and surround a non-jumping mech.  Forces the mech to waste firepower and/or risk physical attacks against junk units if that mech wants to move next turn.

Of course, each blocking vehicle could carry anti-mech infantry, too.  Booby traps and other one-shot wonder weapons (like RLs) is another way to make unarmored blocking vehicles downright dangerous/hilarious.  Plain old, high-speed charges are another option.

Not realistic for a regular army, but an interesting twist for underground resistance or fanatical kamikaze types.
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DOC_Agren

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Re: Unarmored infantry carriers (trucks, hovertrucks, etc)
« Reply #2 on: 04 November 2019, 15:36:44 »
and when those resistance fighters manage to "ambush" an enemy mech and force the pilot eject, now comes the fun part.  Every want to try out Bat 21 or Behind Enemy Lines?  I hope your mech pilots are up to date on E&E skills as these are not people who Mech Pilots want to fall into thier hands most likely.

It can be a fun and interest game, can the mech pilot E&E until a SAR Bird can get in to rescue them.  Hell of a change of pace for most players.
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Daryk

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Re: Unarmored infantry carriers (trucks, hovertrucks, etc)
« Reply #3 on: 04 November 2019, 19:02:07 »
A 5-ton, 9/14 wheeled vehicle can be built to carry a squad inside 10 points of armor on each facing (with Fractional Accounting).  That's still useful, not too expensive, and survivable too.

kaliban

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Re: Unarmored infantry carriers (trucks, hovertrucks, etc)
« Reply #4 on: 04 November 2019, 20:15:50 »
A 5-ton, 9/14 wheeled vehicle can be built to carry a squad inside 10 points of armor on each facing (with Fractional Accounting).  That's still useful, not too expensive, and survivable too.

in BVs it is much more, because each one is higher value and you need 3 vehicles instead of one to carry a platoon. One the other hand, if you use them to block it is better as you refer.

kaliban

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Re: Unarmored infantry carriers (trucks, hovertrucks, etc)
« Reply #5 on: 04 November 2019, 20:24:55 »
If you wanna play dirty/fun, use fast, unarmored vehicles as blocking units.  Have them zoom out from behind cover and surround a non-jumping mech.  Forces the mech to waste firepower and/or risk physical attacks against junk units if that mech wants to move next turn.

Of course, each blocking vehicle could carry anti-mech infantry, too.  Booby traps and other one-shot wonder weapons (like RLs) is another way to make unarmored blocking vehicles downright dangerous/hilarious.  Plain old, high-speed charges are another option.

Not realistic for a regular army, but an interesting twist for underground resistance or fanatical kamikaze types.

I just tested it in Megamek so far but the idea is not make it unbalance like a Savannah Master swarm. At table top it is not manageable to use more than 8 or so in a game. 

I just believe a Rifle Foot Platoon of 90BVs does not deserve a Heavy APC with more BVs than what it is transporting.

Most likely this is the only thing a deep periphery rogue state can place against invaders - poorly trained foot platoon in civilian transports - and the enemy mechs will regret to not have traded the PPCs for a Machine Gun! 

truetanker

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Re: Unarmored infantry carriers (trucks, hovertrucks, etc)
« Reply #6 on: 04 December 2019, 22:36:33 »
Also said 5 tonner can have a 2 MG or an SRM-2 to help...

If you use the Pintle Mount, .5 tons, one can even mount those MG's on the side of the vehicle, to allow 2 front and back or just a single per side arc. 180 degree swing.

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kaliban

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Re: Unarmored infantry carriers (trucks, hovertrucks, etc)
« Reply #7 on: 05 December 2019, 11:18:05 »
these days I went a step further in this madness:  played an unarmored hovercraft transport of 25ton and 12.5tons of cargo. It has 11/17 speed and carry a two squad motorized infantry with a AC/5 field gun, or two full platoons of motorized infantry.