Tactical Operations - 6 December 2019 (v3.03)

[stoicfaux]

Not sure:  PDF, copyright is 2007-2011  (maybe "2010 - second release - NOTE: PDF ONLY"?)
Page:  page 301 Torso-Mounted Cockpit

Problem:  TacOps doesn't allow a Mech or a MechWarrior with a Torso Cockpit to survive head destruction.

Total Warfare pg 128 details Mech destruction and MechWarrior death thusly:
’Mechs
A ´Mech is considered destroyed and out of the game if its MechWarrior dies or the ´Mech suffers three engine hits (remember to count engine slots in the side torso if that torso is destroyed). The destruction of the head, cockpit or center torso has the same effects and renders a ’Mech destroyed. Mechwarrior survival: The MechWarrior dies when the destruction/loss of the head or cockpit occurs, or if the center torso is destroyed by an ammunition explosion or area-effect weapon. If the center torso is destroyed in any other fashion, the MechWarrior does not automatically die. CASE mounted in the center torso does not protect a MechWarrior from a center torso ammo explosion.


TacOps and the current errata do not state that Torso Mounted cockpits prevent Mech destruction or MechWarrior death upon head destruction.

Solution:  Add the following to the torso cockpit rules:
"A Mech with a torso mounted cockpit is not considered destroyed, nor is the MechWarrior considered killed, if the Mech's head is destroyed."


Disclaimer:  Yeah, it's common sense, but somewhere, there is a rules lawyer somewhere just dying to use that loophole.

[Xotl]

Version 3.1 of the errata for Tactical Operations has been released; the link is in the first post, with the main website link to follow a while later.

Major items in this release include:
 - heavy rewrites to Handheld Weapons and Recon Camera
 - complete Ghost Targets revision
 - major revisions to ECCM, especially when concerned with Stealth Armour

However, there are a very large number of smaller corrections, especially to advanced terrain and weather.  Some of the changes have already been featured in this thread, but many more are new, or were only previously found in the rules forum.  As always, in case of conflict between previously posted answers in the rules forum or earlier drafts of errata posted in this thread, this newer errata compilation takes priority.

Thank you all for your help over the five years since this book was first released.  If you have any comments about the errata, please make them in the Errata Discussion thread.

[SCC]

First Printing, page 34
Footnote 21 for the EXPANDED MO VEMENT COSTS AND PLANETARY CONDITIONS TABLEs (cont .), or the part that appears on this page reads: "Unless rail tracks also exist in the hex; if the hex is a water hex, the track must be mounted on a bridge, or the rail must mount the Environmental Sealing Chassis and Controls Modification"

Rails themselves cannot have Environmental Sealing Chassis and Controls Modifications so I believe that it should read something along the lines of "or the rail vehicles traveling along the rail must mount the Environmental Sealing Chassis and Controls Modification" or words to that effect

[CloaknDagger]

Tactical Operations, 2008 PDF
Page 21, Hull Down Vehicles

First, if a vehicle (including a landing VTOL/WiGE) enters a
half-level hex, it can go hull-down by spending 2 MP. Attacks
that would strike the vehicle’s Front side add a +2 modifier.
In addition, if the attacks hit, they will strike the turret if the
vehicle has one, or the front armor if it does not. Attacks from
other directions are resolved normally.

While the vehicle is hull-down, none of its front-mounted
weapons may fire (or weapons in the location oriented toward
a half-level hex, in the case of an adjacent half-level hex),
though the turret may fire to the front (or in the direction of
the adjacent half-level hex) as usual.

These paragraphs say that hull down, turretless vehicles will take damage to the front armor, but they can't fire back with front mounted weapons.

This doesn't make sense because if the front armor is taking damage, then logically you should be able to fire since that's near the area with the gun. And casemate vehicles do use hull down positions IRL.

A correction could be:

While the vehicle is hull-down, none of its front-mounted
weapons may fire (or weapons in the location oriented toward
a half-level hex, in the case of an adjacent half-level hex),
though the turret may fire to the front (or in the direction of
the adjacent half-level hex) as usual.

If the vehicle has no turret, then it may fire from the location oriented toward the half-level hex.

This would clarify that casemate vehicles take hull down positions that they can actually fire from.

http://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php/topic,33984.msg792433.html#new

[Xotl]

p. 332, Naval Comm-Scanner Suite construction rules:
"The Large NCSS may not be installed on Small Craft,"
Change to:
"The Large NCSS may not be installed on Small Craft or satellites,"

p. 333, Naval Comm-Scanner Suite:
 - Available To:
add "SV"

 - Game Rules, 1st paragraph:
"a Small NCSS doubles the maximum detection range for all such systems and provides a –1 modifier to the target number to detect a given vessel."
Change to:
"a Small NCSS doubles the maximum detection range for all such systems (with the exception of satellites, which doubles all but Emergence Wave detection ranges) and provides a –1 modifier to the target number to detect a given vessel."

 - Game Rules, 2nd paragraph:
"In addition, an NCSS of either size provides a +1 initiative modifier in space combat each turn in which the NCSS-equipped unit is in play"
Change to:
"In addition, an NCSS of either size not mounted on a satellite provides a +1 initiative modifier in space combat each turn in which the NCSS-equipped unit is in play"

p. 409, Naval Comm-Scanner Suites entry:
Under SV, change "0" to 1*"

[Xotl]

PDF p. 405,
Under BattleMech Melee Weapons, for all three Shield entries, remove the asterisk next to their critical slot requirement.

[mordel]

All printed and PDF versions
Page 282, Reactive (Blazer) Armor:

Per the discussion in the Published years of intro and equipment date conflicts topic, the Prototype Design and production date should be brought in.

Issue: TO lists the Prototype Design and Production date as 3063. However, the fluff for the Longshot LNG-2 found in TR:3055u clearly states it's production was "late 3050s" (see Variants section). The MUL further backs this up by having an introduction date of 3058.
Correction: Change the Prototype Design and Production date found in TO to 3058 (or earlier). The Clan date should likely be brought in as well to match the update.

Note: These dates are also listed in the Jihad Technology Advancement table (TR: Prototypes) so would need to be updated there as well.

[Porkins]

Page 348 VTOL Chin Turret

Issue1: The game rules here do not make any mention of how the chin turret replaces position 4 (normally the rotors) on the VTOL Combat Vehicle Hit Location Table.  Only the record sheet sheet at the back of TO shows this on the table there.  As this specific piece of equipment changes the normal hit location table, some mention should be made here of the change. 
Issue 2: Also, there is no indication of what happens if the all the internal structure of the chin turret is destroyed i.e. does the excess damage or subsequent rolls to that location transfer to the front?  TW pg 121 indicates that damage on vehicles does not transfer and that they cannot survive the destruction of any location.  The diagram at the back of TO wouild seem to imply subsequent hits transfer to the front armor based on its positioning but I cannot be sure of this.  Clarification is needed. 

Correction: Add to the game rules an indication of the change for the hit location and also provide guidance on damage transfer (or if none then destruction of the vehicle).  Assuming damage transfers to the front, an example might be:

"The VTOL Chin Turret can be hit in gameplay and replaces the number "4" location on the VTOL Combat Vehicle Hit Location Table.  Therefore rolls of 4 that would normally hit the Rotors instead hit the chin turret.  If a chin turret's internal structure is reduced to zero, then the chin turret is destroyed along with any equipment mounted there, but this does not destroy the VTOL itself.  Excess damage and subsequent hits to the number 4 location transfer to the front location on the VTOL, damaging armor and then internal structure as normal." 

A bit verbose but something to that effect anyways, depending on how excess damage and destruction of the chin turret location is handled. 
Paul requested a link to the original thread where Issue1 was discussed.
http://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php/topic,36625.msg852146.html#msg852146

[Xotl]

A new release of the TacOps errata is now available (link in the first post, as normal).  Not a lot of changes, with the biggest being the formal implementation of the Arrow IV corrections posted here earlier, but I no longer want to wait until a huge release is ready each time, as it means too many rulings are left unavailable to the broader public for too long.

Thanks as always for your input.

[dirty harry]

Third printing, page 99, Dragging a mech:
In the example a Cossack is dragged away, said to be weighing 25 tons. A Cossack weighs only 20 tons.

Possible fix:
Replace Cossack with Commando.


Page 136, example calculation for fuel tank capacity:
Right at the beginning there is an error and the entire following calculation is going southwards. The estimated fuel consumption per day is 64 tons, not 54 tons ([80 hexes / 5 = 16] + [6 turrets with 4 heavy weapons each and 2 hours of activity per day (6*4*2 = 48 not 38) = 64 tons per day.
As this is a consecutive error, the entire example needs a redo.


Page 152, right column, first paragraph, calculation of ramming damage for the first trailer:

[12 (current front location internal structure) + 20 (current front location armor) = 32 / 10 = 3.2 x 3 (MP unspent in the turn) = 9.2

The result is 9.6, not 9.2. Luckily it will be rounded down and cause no further errors.


Page 224, double blind example, right column.
In the first paragraph it is mentioned, that the Mech in hex E mounts an Angel-ECM.
In the third paragraph, during the Beagle probe test, it is said, that the Mech in hex E doesn't mount any special equipment.
As an Angel-ECM is one of the most powerful adversaries of a Beagle probe, there must be something wrong. At least the player must be informed, that there is another sensor defying system out there.

Page 242, example Jormungand
It is a template E unit, but it is said to have a -3 attacker to hit modifier.
Table on page 241 says that a Template E has -4 attacker to hit modifier.
Needs to be corrected to -4.

Page 325, vehicular and Battle Armor dispensers, game rules, second paragraph:
The last sentence is repeated.
Fix: The repeat needs to be deleted.

Page 330, construction rules, mobile HPG, third paragraph:

Mobile HPGs may not be pod-mounted on Omni-units.

This would cancel out the Septicemia Z from 'The wars of Reaving' supplemental, which mounts a ground-mobile HPG in an Omnimech (at least i can't find an indication, that this Septicemia is not an Omnimech and the ground-mobile HPG is hardwired).

Page 363, fragmentation grenades, game rules:

Against all units except conventional infantry and Support Vehicles with armor BAR values of 5 or more, Fragmentation Grenades inflict no damage.

Should be "...Support Vehicles with armor BAR values of 4 or less..."

Page 375, smoke mortars, tech base (ratings):
It shows "Industrial" for mech mortar rounds.
Should be replaced with "Mech".

Page 382, laser - variable speed pulse laser:
The entry suggests, that VSP lasers have variable heat level. That is not true, they feature variable damage and to-hit-modifier, but constant heat.
Bombast laser is not mentioned, but maybe the one the author had in mind.

[Xotl]

I am a bit confused by the Arrow IV errata, the first paragraph in the errata says "An Arrow IV Homing Missile targets a mapsheet, not a hex" then the next bullet point says "within 8 hexes of the target hex"
There seems to be a disagreement there as far as targeting goes.

Oops, thanks.  It should read:

  •   When firing an Arrow IV Homing Missile either directly or indirectly, the player must first choose a mapsheet within range of the launcher. Next they choose a hex on the selected mapsheet. On the turn the homing missile arrives, it may attack any unit successfully designated by friendly TAG within 8 hexes of the chosen hex. If there are no such targets when the homing missile arrives, it explodes harmlessly over the battlefield. (Undirected or misdirected Arrow IV Homing Missiles do not scatter.)

I'm going to up a 3.3 soon that will have this corrected, along with a few new entries.

[dirty harry]

Page 250, Advanced support vehicle minimum crew tables, minimum gunners, support vehicle size:
Change 'medium/heavy' to 'medium/large' as this refers to size not weight.


Page 384, Clan capital weapon BV table (Addendum):
The subtitle Naval gauss has BV for weapon and ammo. The same for subtitles sub-capital missiles, Naval lasers and Naval PPC, the latter even incorporating ammo BVs.
Fix: delete those numbers.

[mbear]

Corrected Second Printing PDF, Page 325, Game Rules section, second sentence. Misspelled word:

Groundbased
units, including ’Mechs, ProtoMechs and Combat or Support Vehicles uusing wheeled,...

Remove extra U so it reads using.

[DarkISI]

Page 380
Under "Actuator Enhancement System" replace:
"Multiply by 1.5 the unmodified BV of any weapons (including all physical attack weapons, but not including any ammunition) linked to an AES."
with
"Multiply by 1.25 the unmodified BV of any weapons (including all physical attack weapons, but not including any ammunition) linked to an AES."

-----

I will take a look into affected units shortly and recalculate their BV.

[Xotl]

I would have made it a 6th of June release, but I'm leaving that day for the summer so I won't be available.  Here's the latest TacOps errata.  This one at last finishes wading through the many reports generated on this and the old forum going back to the book's release - as such, I consider it up to date at this point, and expect the errata for TO to slow markedly from here on in.  That having been said, it's by fair the most difficult book errata-wise, in that it's an entire book of almost completely new rules, and so lacking the decades of playtesting the base rules had.

Major elements of this release:

 - lots of weather fixes
 - AES clarified and made cheaper BV-wise
 - BA Mines can now be tracked individually, so that BA can have a greater variety of types
 - Flak ammo has become a LB-X antecedent, available in the Succession Wars as a poor-man's Golden BB
 - Arrow IV Homing rewritten a zillion times and hopefully clear at last
 - Acid Warheads affect FL armour
 - VTOL Mast Mount equipment clarification and BV change

[A. Lurker]

...speaking of flak ammo, the new document now seems to contain both the old version of the errata (erroneously referring to p. 350 and presumably also now overruled by the entry following it) and the new one.

[Xotl]

Oops.  I'll re-up right now with a fix.

Thanks.


EDIT: and it's up.

[Paul]

Page 330, construction rules, mobile HPG, third paragraph:This would cancel out the Septicemia Z from 'The wars of Reaving' supplemental, which mounts a ground-mobile HPG in an Omnimech (at least i can't find an indication, that this Septicemia is not an Omnimech and the ground-mobile HPG is hardwired).

There's a distinction between the Mobile HPG and Ground-Mobile HPG. The latter can be pod-mounted, the former cannot. The latter can be mounted on a 'Mech, the former cannot. The latter has a crew requirement of 6, the former needs 10. Etc.

[Yu Kigono]

Hi Garner,

"In ground combat, Artillery Cannon attacks may be resolved normally or using the rules for indirect LRM fire (see p. 111, TW),"

is intended to be the correct text (emphasis on the "or"); thanks for the catch.  I'll be upping a 3.04 later on.

I should note that this ruling does not actually appear in the Errata document. Errata for the Errata as it were.

[Xotl]

Inferno-IV Missiles (p. 356)
Under “Game Rules”, at the end of the section insert the following new bullet point:

•   When resolving an Inferno-IV attack on a hex with a unit carrying battle armor, the firing player rolls for five hit locations against that unit. Any battle armor riding in one of the locations hit is affected as though struck by a SRM Inferno round.

[Xotl]

BattleMech Turret (p. 347)
Under “Game Rules”, at the end of the section insert the following new paragraph:

BattleMech turrets (of all types) cannot be pod-mounted on an OmniMech. If used in the base configuration of an OmniMech, treat a BattleMech Turret as you would a turret on an OmniVehicle (see TM, p. 108).

[Xotl]

High/Low Gravity (p. 55)
Under “Weapon Attacks”

Add a +1 to-hit modifier to all direct-fire ballistic and missile weapon attacks for every .2 G (or fraction thereof) above or below the Terran standard 1 G.
Change to:
Add a +1 to-hit modifier to all direct-fire ballistic and missile weapon attacks for every full .2 G above or below the Terran standard 1 G.

[Xotl]

Autocannons (p. 100)
Under “Optional Firing Modes”, “Rapid-Fire Mode”, at the start of the third paragraph (“Double the heat generated […]”) insert the following:
Both rounds fired must be of the same ammunition type.

VTOL Special Attacks (p. 107)
First sentence
In advanced-rules play, VTOLs may make strafing and bombing attacks in much the same way as aerospace fighters.
Change to:
In advanced-rules play, VTOLs (not including VTOL battle armor) may make strafing and bombing attacks in much the same way as aerospace fighters.

[Xotl]

Bloodhound Active Probe (p. 278)
Under “Game Rules”, replace the first paragraph with the following:

The Bloodhound Probe is an upgraded version of the Inner Sphere’s Beagle Active Probe and follows the same rules as that device (see p. 129, TW). However, in addition to boasting increased range, the Bloodhound can detect conventional infantry. It can also detect hidden units with stealth or sneak ability—including Battle Armor units with Stealth Armor, Mimetic Armor and ECM, as well as other units featuring ECM, Null-Signature Systems or Stealth Armor—with the exception of conventional infantry using ECM or stealth systems.

[Xotl]

Battle Armor Myomer Booster (p. 286)
Under “Construction Rules”, first paragraph, at the end of the paragraph insert the following:

Like armor, myomer slots may be broken up among the battle armor’s various body locations.

[Xotl]

Bonus MP (WiGE) [example text] (p. 26)
Eighth sentence (seventh line from the bottom)

As with hexes 1, 2 and 3,
Change to:
As with hexes 2, 3 and 4,

Conflicting Planetary Conditions [example text] (p. 30)
1)   First paragraph, second-last sentence

In the end, the Ultra-Heavy Jungle base terrain type and Mud terrain modification are applied to Hex B,
Change to:
In the end, the Ultra-Heavy Jungle base terrain type and Mud terrain modification are applied to Hex C,

2)   Replace the second and third paragraphs with the following:

     If the controlling player wished to move the ’Mech in Hex A to Hex B, it would require 4 MP [1 (entering the hex) + 1 (Light Woods) + 1 (Deep Snow) + 1 (Mud) = 4]; the ’Mech would have to run to enter the hex. However, the controlling player cannot move the ’Mech into Hex C, as a ’Mech cannot enter an ultra-heavy jungle hex.
     If the controlling player wished to move the infantry in Hex A to Hex B, it would require 3 MP [1 (entering the hex) + 0 (infantry do not pay any MP for Light Woods) +1 (Deep Snow) + 1 (Mud)]. As the infantry unit only has 2 Ground MP, it cannot enter the hex normally. However, the infantry could enter the hex using the Minimum Movement rule (see p. 49, TW).

Expanded Movement Costs and Planetary Conditions Table (Cont.) (p. 34)
On the first table, move all column entries for “Sprinting (’Mechs only)” over one column to the left.

Expanded Movement Costs and Planetary Conditions Table (Cont.) (p. 36)
Under “Heavy Snowfall”, Piloting/Driving/Control Modifier, Vehicles column, change +1v to +1.

Ice (p. 50)
Under “Jumping”, last line

(this time only on a 6 or greater).
Change to:
(this time only on a 6).

Charging (p. 91)
Delete the entire “Charging Terrain/Falling” subentry.

Coolant Systems (p. 106)
First paragraph on the page (continued from the previous page), first and second new sentences on the page

Additionally, for each turn after the first that the ’Mech is continuously hooked up to a coolant truck, remove 2 levels of coolant failure. For example, a ’Mech with a 3-level heat sink reduction due to coolant failures would reduce that number to 1 after the first turn; after the second turn, the drop would be eliminated.
Change to:
Additionally, the ’Mech removes two points of coolant failure.

Visual Range Tables (p. 221)
This ruling has changed from previous errata versions.
Second (double-asterisk) footnote

**If a unit mounts a searchlight, add 10 hexes; for infantry, add 5 hexes.
Change to:
**If the spotter has an active searchlight use the following ranges instead: mounted (30), handheld/infantry (10).  If the target is illuminated by another source (such as fire, or another unit’s searchlight) use a range of 45 hexes.

[Xotl]

Super-Heavy Vehicles (p. 378)
Under “Super-Heavy Combat Vehicle Game Rules”, at the end of the entry insert the following new paragraph:

     Non-Naval Super-Heavy Combat Vehicles may enter Depth 1 water, paying the MP costs for such as shown on page 52 of Total Warfare.


Super-Heavy Combat Vehicle Table (p. 378)
In the “Terrain Restrictions” column, change all four references to Depth 1+ to Depth 2+

[A. Lurker]

Okay, it's been while since I last brought this up...a possible problem with the current errata to page 409, to wit:

"5) Missile Launchers, Extended LRM-15: Cost should be 218,750" (found at the top of p. 89 in the current errata document)

What's interesting is that in older versions of the errata document -- such as an old copy of v1.4.1 I still have lying around -- a version of this was already present but referred instead to the Enhanced LRM-15, where the 218,750 C-bill cost indeed seems to fit better into the overall progression with increasing launcher size. I suspect this particular entry may have been accidentally changed in the course of some ELRM-specific update, messing up the original reference.

(Relevant Ask the Writers thread from a couple of years ago to be found here. BattleTech dropped a bit off my radar for a while not too long afterwards, but it seems nothing further has come of this in the meantime.)

[Xotl]

The Tactical Operations errata has been updated to v3.4 - Glorious 6th of June edition.

Major changes:

Landing Modifiers for all unusual terrain types found in TO (found in separate document)
ECM and Double Blind updated so that ECM doesn't suck
Field Gun flak possible
Years-old mortar errata folded in
Support Vehicle artillery space changed
Superheavy vehicles can enter depth 1 water
Artillery Cannons are now flak-capable
Thunder LRMs scatter as they did in the older rules, but do slightly less damage when scattering
And, finally, Arrow IV Homing Missiles updated again, in what is probably the BT record for number of separate updates

It's mostly misc stuff this time around.

[Xotl]

Silent edit to address question asked about how the new Thunder rounding is applied.