Quick Strike 'shooting in the back' question

[tsmpaul]

Hi guys. I've got the Strategic Operations rulebook, and I've been flipping through it, but can't seem to find any reference to shooting someone in the back. I was just wondering if in Quick Strike or Battleforce, is there any sort of attack roll or damage bonus for shooting into the rear of another mech (such as mechs in Classic Battletech having weaker rear armour), or is the bonus simply that they can't shoot back at you because they are facing away from you?

[Kell]

you do an additional point of damage

[Hellraiser]

The OstScout-7J, the only mech in the game that goes from "quirky" in CBT to OMFG uber in Quickstrike.

Yes ladies and gentlemen, that Ostscout now hits you from behind like an AC-20 in CBT scale damage & has the range of a PPC.

Who needs a Gauss Rifle when you have an Ostscout in your Rear Arc ?

PS.  Its also slaved to a Pulse+TC like uber sighting system that negates that +3 Jumping Mod it would normally have.


(This message has been brought to you by the beware of some rules translations safety board in hopes of saving you the heartattack it almost gave me when that little dinky scout succeeded in tearing apart 1/2 a company of SLDF mechs)


We now return you to your regularly scheduled program.

[Medron Pryde]

In QS, you don't add mods for your movement, unless I've been playing it totally wrong all along.
Also in QS, you don't subtract mods for pulse or TC.  Instead you boost the damage IF it hits.  The damage boost has already been performed during the creation of the stats.  That is why an LPL does the equivalent of 20 points of damage, though since it is an LPL it only does that out to the equivalent of 12 hexes, not PPC range.

;)

[Hellraiser]

In QS, you don't add mods for your movement, unless I've been playing it totally wrong all along.

Attacker movement no, Defensive TMM still count, & always count at max value regardless of how far you actually move.  IE, You can Park a Jump-7 unit in woods every turn and be nigh unhittable while not actually moving.

Also in QS, you don't subtract mods for pulse or TC.  Instead you boost the damage IF it hits.  The damage boost has already been performed during the creation of the stats.  That is why an LPL does the equivalent of 20 points of damage, though since it is an LPL it only does that out to the equivalent of 12 hexes, not PPC range.

Aye, I know.

I'm pointing out that an Ostscout translates well into QS rules.

1.  It always gets Max +4 Mod for Jump 7+ and never has the +3 to hit for jumping.
    (All designs do this in QS, but Jumping ones get an even bigger advantage.)
    (This would be like slaving its weapons to a Pulse+TC since that +3 never happens)

2.  The single ML, due to rounding up, comes out to doing 10 points of damage.

3.  A "Rear" shot adds 10 points of Damage regardless of the weapons shooting.
    (So that Medium Laser now hits like an AC20)

4.  The range is 24 w/ only a +2 to hit, equal to having a 12 Medium Range, hence PPC ranged.


So as I discovered, a single ML toting Ostscout, if it gets behind your forces, can rack up a +4 defensive mod, not counting terrain, never take that +3 for jumping all day, shoot from 12 hexes out at only a +2 to hit, and hit for a whopping 20 points of damage.

I'd rather have a Jenner-F behind me in CBT terms, at least that thing will overheat !!

[Medron Pryde]

You are combining a lot of stuff that really doesn't compare.

ANY 'Mech that gets behind another one will do +1 damage.  So throw out that bit when comparing it to other units.

So it does 1 point of damage.  It would doe the same if it had TWO medium lasers BTW.  It does so out to medium range.  Which in QS is equivalent to 12 hexes.
A PPC does 1 point of damage out to LONG range which is equivalent to 21 hexes.  There is no comparison there either.

No 'Mechs count there own movement in BattleForce, so saying it has an LPL with targeting computer is a false comparison.

Yes, the design is good.  Any jumping light 'Mech is hard to hit in QS.  Of course, if you look at their armor, if they ARE hit they tend to pop VERY quickly.  So hard to hit but very fragile.

[Hellraiser]

You are combining a lot of stuff that really doesn't compare.

It compares, just not equally across the board.

ANY 'Mech that gets behind another one will do +1 damage.  So throw out that bit when comparing it to other units.

Not every mech only does 1 point to begin with.
+1 is 200% damage to an Ostscout.
Its +16% or so to a DireWolf IIRC.
This advantage gets even bigger if your running multiple units.
A trio of light recon units are suddenly putting out Clan Assault Mech Levels of Firepower.
While being much much harder to hit.

It would doe the same if it had TWO medium lasers BTW. 

I know.  Rounding gives the mech a very nice advantage.
Rounding up from 7.1 to 8 isn't a huge jump, rounding from .5 to 1 is double its true firepower in CBT scale.

It does so out to medium range.  Which in QS is equivalent to 12 hexes.
A PPC does 1 point of damage out to LONG range which is equivalent to 21 hexes.  There is no comparison there either.

Is a PPC Long Range ?    I was thinking it was Medium Range,  if I'm wrong, then sorry, bad comparison.  Eitherway its giving a Medium Laser that is LONG at 7 a MEDIUM of 12.  So again it compares well, kind of like the LPL getting a range boost in AT.

No 'Mechs count there own movement in BattleForce, so saying it has an LPL with targeting computer is a false comparison.

And again this is a big advantage to jumping mechs over those that don't jump.
You get the full +4 as if you had Jumped 7+ every turn making you VERY hard to hit, while taking none of the Jump Movement mods, true all mechs get that but w/ a jumper its an even bigger advantage getting the added +1 defensive (Jumped) w/o the +1 offensive mod (v/s Walk/Run)

Yes, the design is good.  Any jumping light 'Mech is hard to hit in QS.  Of course, if you look at their armor, if they ARE hit they tend to pop VERY quickly.  So hard to hit but very fragile.

And Armor means nothing when there is no modifier to hit for anything.
A DireWolf-A gets no +2 for those LPLs.  Meaning that it will have a VERY hard time catching that Ostscout to actually hit it.


Which all comes down to the point I was getting at, that yes, Light Mechs are sick in QS.
The BV for the above Ostscout or say a Stinger-3G is just sickeningly cheap compared to what they do in damage on the QS battlefield.  Toss in some Spider-8M's & Mongoose's just to mix things up and you can over run enemy units w/ impunity.