MECHSHOT MUNITIONSIn the midst of the Third Succession War, the realization that high technology could no longer be fielded in great numbers became a sobering reality. The House Lords withdrew their first-class forces to important worlds in response, jealously guarding the last bastions of ingenuity. Replacing for the Star League's weaponry was no longer possible, but creative solutions with the materials at-hand would become a hallmark of this era.
One of the simplest weapons to be produced by the Star League was the LB-X autocannon. Being made of a relatively-common (though expensive) alloy, its technology was cloned by every nation, including the battle-scarred Periphery powers. In the desperate conditions of the Succession Wars, however, the Great Houses became increasingly frugal, allowing the metallurgical knowledge needed to be lost to the sands of time. Its replacement, as innovative as it was, was a mere shadow of its ancestor and grew to be a costly alternative.
The original LB-X cluster round, after which Mechshot is patterned, was intended to be fired through a barrel with shallow rifling. Since Mechshot is used in weapons with an unsuitable bore, however, it causes the barrel to become easily-fouled and worn, ruining the weapon and requiring replacement. Due to its destructiveness to valuable (and rare) hardware during a time of scarcity, Mechshot saw only limited production runs, primarily fielded by anti-aircraft units defending static positions.
RULES
Mechshot Munitions ("MSM") can be used by any caliber of standard autocannon, but cannot be loaded by LB-X or Ultra ACs. When fired against ground targets, MSM grants the player a -1 to-hit bonus against ground targets and a -3 flak bonus against airborne targets.
Each time an AC fires a round of MSM, the player must make a roll with a target number of 3 to determine if the barrel is fouled. If he succeeds, no negative effect occurs and the weapon fires as normal. For each turn Mechshot is fired during a game, increase the target number needed to avoid fouling by +1. This penalty is cumulative. (Example: Turn 1 of firing requires a "3" to avoid fouling, Turn 2 requires a "4", Turn 3 requires a "5", etc.)
On a failed roll, the barrel becomes fouled, incurring a +1 penalty to-hit. These to-hit penalties affect all ammunition types fired by the weapon and are cumulative, to a maximum of +4 to-hit. This effect remains until the end of the game.
Tech Base: Inner Sphere
Tech Level: Experimental
Availability: B/X-D-X-C
Prototype: 2990 (AFFS)
Production: 2993 (AFFS), 3015 (All)
Extinct: 3052
Cost: 15,000 C-Bills per ton
Damage Type: Cluster
Damage: Varies (2, 5, 10, or 20) (1 damage/pellet)
