Author Topic: Hold on, did I just build a usefull LAM?  (Read 8556 times)

Cyk0

  • Sergeant
  • *
  • Posts: 188
Hold on, did I just build a usefull LAM?
« on: 27 August 2018, 19:11:02 »
Backgound
Okay I just noticed something about LAMS, the bomb bays they have seem to be carrying one ordinance per bay...
Under bombs and bomb bays it simply says
"The bombs and other external ordnance usable within a LAM bomb bay are listed in the LAM. Bomb Bay Ordnance Table" That points to one ordinance per bomb bay (that are clearly considered multiples by the title) And if you look up the actual missiles it says they take up multiple slots when mounted on an external hardpoint. And the LAM internal bomb bays (that do weigh one tone) don't seem to be covered by that.

This is good news since the LAM bomb table has some fun things in it. Sure you can fire bay mounted rocketlaunchers in battle mech mode... But i would rather use tasty things like the air to air arrow or the high damage anti ship version. I guess you get 4 arrows per tone if you have a launcher so 1 per tone is not crazy. And normal fighters get them for zero tones, but the ability to specialize on them opens some build options

The best one I came up with:
A 55 ton Word of Blake LAM with with 9.5 tones of armor and thrust profile of 8/12 thanks to enhanced jump jets (with small cockpit and composite structure) can mount 8 of those bomb bays, which considering the internal bomb bays don't slow you down when loaded would make for a decent interceptor/Striker. (Going in quick, delivering its payload and powering away)

PS: Only one tone of fuel so depending on mission profile you might have to sacrifice some of the bays for more.

If you what to be stupid feel free to use it on the ground with rocketlaunchers and a handheld, but I'd just have a pilot good at actual flying and keeping the mechform for stuffing new missiles into my torso bays back at base.

Easy

  • Warrant Officer
  • *
  • Posts: 591
Re: Hold on, did I just build a usefull LAM?
« Reply #1 on: 27 August 2018, 19:22:46 »

glitterboy2098

  • Lieutenant Colonel
  • *
  • Posts: 11991
    • The Temple Grounds - My Roleplaying and History website
Re: Hold on, did I just build a usefull LAM?
« Reply #2 on: 07 September 2018, 23:39:05 »
pretty sure the bomb bays use the same rules as the external hardpoints. so an Arrow IV takes up 5 tons worth of (contiguous) bay.

Cyk0

  • Sergeant
  • *
  • Posts: 188
Re: Hold on, did I just build a usefull LAM?
« Reply #3 on: 07 February 2019, 15:41:49 »
Gravedigging my own topic hoping for an answer here... The way I read the rules in the lam section. I really only see my interpretation... How would you read it?

Giovanni Blasini

  • Lieutenant Colonel
  • *
  • Posts: 7103
  • And I think it's gonna be a long, long time...
Re: Hold on, did I just build a usefull LAM?
« Reply #4 on: 07 February 2019, 16:13:56 »
pretty sure the bomb bays use the same rules as the external hardpoints. so an Arrow IV takes up 5 tons worth of (contiguous) bay.

Yep.  You even asked a question regarding this:

https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php?topic=20930.0

A similar question:

https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php?topic=2708.0

My read is that while it looks like the Internal Bomb Bay quirk at first glance, it's more like a hybrid of external stores and that quirk in practice.  Of course, an updated question to the Rules Questions board couldn't hurt  I'm pretty sure nobody intended the WSP-100 to be able to fire a total of 20 Arrow IV missiles, though.
"Does anyone know where the love of God goes / When the waves turn the minutes to hours?"
-- Gordon Lightfoot, "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald"

Korzon77

  • Captain
  • *
  • Posts: 2441
Re: Hold on, did I just build a usefull LAM?
« Reply #5 on: 07 February 2019, 23:54:18 »
Maybe it's just embracing its inner Macross  ;D

Cyk0

  • Sergeant
  • *
  • Posts: 188
Re: Hold on, did I just build a usefull LAM?
« Reply #6 on: 18 February 2019, 15:06:04 »
Nope found an even clearer indication of the fact that its one item from the list per bay. p 114

"LAMs may mount up to 20 bomb bays, each of which weighs 1
ton and occupies 1 critical space in the unit’s left or right torso. Each
bomb bay accommodates a single-slot bomb, and has no effect on
the unit’s movement.
The bombs (and other external ordnance items) that may be carried
in LAM bomb bays are as shown in the LAM Bomb Bay Ordnance
Table (see p. 111)."

So I would say it is indeed embracing its inner Macross



(To be fair if you try to go nuts and have a basically stationary LAM with the maximum 20 bomb bays you might as well do a slow normal fighter and just mount an arrow to score 4 arrows per tone and bring along 32 missiles and a launcher for the same weight... But with a way slower rate of fire)

PS: The rules also does not contain anything at all indicating that ordinance can take up more than one bomb bay crit slot which would be needed for the crit rules or anything else saying certain of the bombs on the table on 111 taking up more than one slot. (and the rows for the individual pieces of ordinance refers directly to the weapon page not to the list for external hardpoints that come for free for normal fighters.)

Edit*

Also worthy of note is that the page refers to is to the pure munition of the AAA and AS missiles that don't even have any rules for air stuff, and if one looks at the light missile (that it does point to) its says "Light Air-to-Air Arrow Missiles take up 2 bomb slots per missile when mounted on an external hardpoint." so no mentions of bays and a specific mention of external hardpoints.

Its not super clear, but I know what the RAW interpretation would be...

Anyway... Im of to try to build something with prototype improved jump jets in a vain attempt to get something that can almost match the speed and payload of a normal fighter (though it will certainly be an explosive and fragile package)
« Last Edit: 18 February 2019, 16:57:05 by Cyk0 »

 

Register