Welcome to the triumphant return of
Nuclear Weapon of the Month, from yours truly! The old articles, unfortunately, were lost by me. But fear not! It's time for a new look at some thermonuclear goodness! [drool]
Today, we are going to discuss what is probably the first
named nuclear device in the Battletech universe, the
Davy Crockett. Or, to be more specific, the infantry deployed variant known as the
Davy Crockett-I.
The
Davy Crockett is about as "tactical" as you can get with Battletech tactical nuclear weapons. The "I" variant, probably more so. This particular package was designed to be deployed by infantry, to support infantry (or anybody that needs some
serious fire support, for that matter). The
Davy Crockett-I is deployed from a special mobile launcher (I'm assuming self-propelled), at a rate of one per platoon (effectively making said platoon Motorized Infantry, adding three tons to the platoon's base weight). The system requires at least a squad's worth of personnel active to give the Bad Guys some "canned sunshine" to "brighten" their day. Anything lower than seven troops, and the device cannot be deployed.
The
Davy Crockett-I, like the original (real-life) U.S. Army
M28 and
M29 Davy Crockett Nuclear Rifle Systems, is not particularly popular with the troops. The range from launch point to Ground Zero is fairly short (short enough to make nearby friendlies
VERY nervous). The Battletech
Davy Crockett-I has a max range of
two boards (as in Battletech mapsheets), thanks to the weapon's special booster rockets. That about 34 hexes, off the top of my head. Which is well outside the blast area, based on damage degradation by hex (up to 20 hexes from Ground Zero for ground bursts, 25 for airbursts). That's the good news. The bad news? The platoon operating this nuclear slingshot is still well within the Secondary Effects radius of the weapon (40 hexes for a ground burst, 53 for an airburst). Any unit within this radius will suffer from EM effects (+2 modifier for ranged attacks, -2 on the missile hit table), regardless of what you roll of the Secondary Effects table (including airborne units at 3000 levels/18 klicks altitude). There is a very real possibility that the deploying unit(s), and friendlies, may end up deader than hell even outside the blast area. Cover offers little to no protection from secondary effects. You get a +2 bonus for mechanized units and a +2 bonus for being within a hardened structure ( modifiers are culminative). Ultimately, you had better hope for that 11-12 roll on the table (no damage).
It pays to deploy the weapon close to cover, if possible. Preferably, a structure the launch crew can get to within two turns. Or a friendly APC or IFV that just happens to be available to hole up in. It will improve the odds of the platoon in surviving the secondary effects. And I would make damned sure to use it to attack at
maximum range, no closer, to avoid the blast effects. You are going to have enough problems with potential secondary effects to make you sweat bullets.
The odd thing about the stats for this nuclear device, is that it has a listing for both airburst and ground burst attacks (in the damage degradation and secondary effects ratings). But, the rules specifically state that the
Davy Crockett-I is a ground burst-only weapon. Go figure. As opposed to the
Davy Crockett-M fired out of a Long Tom artillery piece at descending Dropship formations, I don't see the infantry variant being used in the triple-A role. Unless there is a mistake in the tables, or that it merely reflects the danger to airborne aerospace units, it does have airburst capability against ground targets. You're just not allowed to under the rules as they stand.
As for the stats for the
Davy Crockett-I, it reflects a nice little "ball buster of doom". Base damage is 100 at Ground Zero, with a damage degradation per hex of five points for ground bursts, four points for airbursts. The secondary effects radius is 40 hexes for a ground burst, 53 hexes for an airburst. Range is two mapsheets for Battletech. But since it's a ground deployed tactical device, there is no "AT2" range listed. It does, however, have an "AT2" capital damage rating of one, with a critical on 11+ (this supports my supposition that the
Davy Crockett has potential anti-aerospace defense applications, in addition to chance damage to airborne units near the blast zone). It doesn't form much of a crater (Depth zero), unless using the alternative environments table (special conditions). Then it's considered to have produced a crater depth of one. The system weighs in at three tons. The rules for artillery apply, including the rules for flight time and artillery scatter.
Based on hints from past canon, going back to the FASA days, the
Davy Crockett-I was in use during the Star League era, operated by the SLDF (and probably by the Member States military forces, considering the seemingly endless supply of nukes used in the early Succession Wars). The 0.5 kiloton yield
Davy Crockett-I was possibly a "modernized" (in terms of technology, not performance) version of the old Type Ia tactical nuclear weapon that entered service in 2412 (also rated at 0.5 kilotons when achieving nuclear yield). In addition to use in the Reunification War, it's safe to assume the Type 1a was also used in the Age of War period (based on the in-service date). I guess the Cameron military thought that a weapon geared toward safer deployment by infantry forces was unnecessary, despite the high value the SLDF placed on said infantry forces.
The basic concept, however, goes back to the Cold War/Early Space Race era. The 120mm
M28 and 155mm
M29 Davy Crockett Weapon Systems went into production in 1956, remaining in service until they were decommissioned in 1971. Originally designed to give rapid response forces a quick nuclear capability against an initial WarPac invasion of Western Europe, it was deployed in West Germany. The system utilized a recoilless spigot gun to launch the M388 nuclear projectile (utilizing the W54/Mk54 variable yield fission/implosion device; yield ranged from 0.01kt to 1kt) up to one and a quarter miles for the
M28, or two and a half miles for the
M29, recoilless rifles. The Davy Crockett system, named after the great American folk hero, represented deployment of the smallest nuclear weapon ever used by U.S. Military. The tiny W54 was also considered to be the "last word" in the practical downsizing of a fission weapon. It could be set up for firing on a tripod by it's three-man crew transported by an APC, truck, or jeep. Or deployed on a jeep mount (M38 and M151 jeeps) for increased mobility.
Here is a photo of the
XM-28 120mm nuclear rifle:
Photo of the
XM-29 (with a good view of the 37mm spotting gun slung underneath):
Davy Crockett jeep launcher:
Perhaps, in-universe, the fictional
Davy Crockett-I (and the earlier Type Ia) was inspired by the unusual American nuclear rifle system. It would make sense. And the fictional weapon is a damn sight more practical than the real world historical weapon. However, the end results for both have the potential to make things suck bad for the poor, dumb shits firing the thing.
The
Davy Crockett-I is not really practical for your run-of-the-mill pick up game. Or a campaign scenario using a small number of mapsheets (usually two to four). If that were the case, you might as well saturate your gaming table with lighter fluid and toss in a match. Larger scenarios, with more mapsheets, allows for use of this weapon system in-game (for my group, it's usually 10-12 maps per scenario).
How to use it? Well, from my point of view, it's a waste of a perfectly good "glass maker" to use it against mechanized forces in the field. The engagements tend to be more mobile, which can vary the number of hostile pricks you get within the blast radius (preferably at Ground Zero or in the crater radius; it's the only way to be sure }:)). Secondary effects are nice and all, but I prefer to outright fry as many of the bastards as possible. Enemy units turned into vapor don't get rolls on the secondary effects table. }:)
My group generally assigns
Davy Crockett-I teams to units we call "Special Atomic Artillery Teams-Light", attached to heavy assault brigades as independent reinforced companies. Transported by upgraded APCs or by IFVs (in more recent times, the oddball
Trajan gets this thankless job), they are used when defense networks (static and mobile) prove to be a handful. Conventional artillery and air strikes aren't softening them up fast enough, and losses are mounting. The
Davy Crockett-I is a great way to open up a breach in their defenses in a timely manner. }:) It takes a bit to clear friendlies to a safe distance off-board, since the mobile defense elements tend to press what they think is the advantage. Once a nice big opening is provided, thanks to the miracle of nuclear physics, the assault force can push back toward the opening and breach that layer of defenses, further throwing all local hostiles into chaos. }:)
The downside is that these fire teams are autonomous, meaning if they are spotted, they often have to defend themselves without timely support. Timing is key to successful deployment. Because you can bet your ass that the other guys are on the lookout for possible nuclear fire support in our campaigns. Nobody wants their allocated forces sporting orange Don King hairdos and glowing in the dark. :-\ #P
As far as other units in our games, we tend toward the safer
Davy Crockett-M, even in line infantry formations. The "I" variant's utility is somewhat restricted when compared to the artillery deployed weapon.
Anyway, that it for now. I hope that some background (and my take) on this interesting weapon system was enjoyable and informative. So, let's hear your war stories and thoughts on this glorious embodiment of a
big boom in a small package. [drool]
Be sure to tune in next month, for another enlightening installment on my favorite class of weapons of mass destruction. [drool] [drool] [drool]
As as always, just my $0.02 worth.