(Answered) What is the point of Anti-Personnel Mortar Ammo

[Jim1701]

I've never understood the point of Anti-Personnel mortar ammo as it is described in TacOps pg. 373 - 374.  It seems to have the exact same rules as Airburst mortar ammo except it does more damage in an ammo explosion (2 pts./shell vs. 1 pt/shell) and it does less damage to infantry ( 1d6/2 /shell vs. 1d6 /shell)

The fluff indicates it does less damage to non-infantry units but that is not the way the game rules read. 

[Jim1701]

Bump

[Chunga]

We're discussing this.

[Jim1701]

Thanks.

[Jim1701]

Since the publication of the errata for TacOps I am now forced to ask what is the point of Air-Burst Ammo? 

Both Air-Burst (AB) and Anti-Personnel (AP) ammo are area effect.  Both do 1 point of damage to all units in the hex except for conventional infantry.  Before AB ammo did 1d6 damage per shell to conventional infantry while AP ammo did 1d6/2 damage per shell.  Now that has been reversed so that AP ammo does 1d6 damage and AB ammo does 1d6/2 damage per shell. 

The only effective difference between these two ammo types appears to be whether you want the enemy's infantry chopped or puréed. 

What I'm trying to figure out is what one type does that the other does not that warrants taking one over the other.  Is this purely a fluff thing where the ammo types are functionally the same (except for infantry) and the only different otherwise are based on what the fluff says they are for?

With the errata change I don't see the point in taking Air-Burst ammo any longer if AP ammo does all the same things as AB ammo and additionally does more damage to infantry. 

[Jim1701]

Bump.

[Jim1701]

Going to try and clarify this question a little.  Please tell me if this would be better asked in a different forum but I believe that this is still a rules clarification issue so I am asking it here. From the current version of TacOps pg. 373 Air Burst Mortars are described as follows:

Game Rules: Airburst Mortars are fi red at a hex, rather than at a target unit. Airburst Mortars infl ict 1 damage point per shell to
all targets in the hex, and delivers its damage in 1-point clusters (conventional infantry treat Airburst Mortars as a burst-fi re weapon that
delivers 1D6 ÷ 2 damage per shell). Only units inside buildings avoid this damage (though the building itself suff ers damage to its CF). 
Each shell of Airburst Mortar ammunition inflicts 1 point of damage in an ammunition explosion (multiplied as normal by the mortar rack’s
size and the total number of unfi red rounds). Under no circumstances do Airburst Mortars apply the –4 immobile target to-hit modifier,
regardless of whether the target of the attack is a hex, is shut down or immobile, and so on.

Then on pg. 374 Anti-Personnel Mortars are described as:

Game Rules: Anti-Personnel (AP) Mortars are fi red at a hex, rather than at a target unit. Each shell in an AP Mortar fl ight delivers 1D6 burst damage
points (rounded up) to conventional infantry units (for example, a full fl ight of 8 AP ’Mech Mortars delivers 8D6 damage to a conventional infantry
platoon). Against all other units, AP ’Mech Mortars infl ict 1 damage point per shell, applied in 1-point groups. Each shell of Anti-Personnel Mortar
ammunition infl icts 2 points of damage in an ammunition explosion (multiplied as normal by the mortar rack’s size and the total number of unfi red
rounds). Under no circumstances do Anti-Personnel Mortars apply the –4 immobile target to-hit modifi er, regardless of whether the target of the attack
is a hex, is shut down or immobile, and so on.

I am still trying to understand the differences between these ammo types.  Other than the difference in damage to infantry they seem largely the same. 

[Xotl]

Still researching, thank you.

[Xotl]

Okay, a close enough look was not taken during the recent correcting of these two in the most recent TacOps errata, for which I take full blame.  We've worked out a mix that should provide each with a distinct battlefield role and that also fits the fluff for each shell entry.  Under Game Rules, replace the entire entry for each with the following:

Airburst Mortars (p. 373)
“Airburst Mortars are area-effect weapons that are fired at a hex, rather than at a target unit. Airburst Mortars inflict 1 damage point per shell to all targets in the hex, and deliver their damage in 1-point clusters (conventional infantry treat Airburst Mortars as a burst-fire weapon that delivers 1D6 ÷ 2 damage per shell). Only units inside buildings avoid this damage (though the building itself suffers damage to its CF). Each shell of Airburst Mortar ammunition inflicts 2 points of damage in an ammunition explosion (multiplied as normal by the mortar rack’s size and the total number of unfired rounds). Under no circumstances do Airburst Mortars apply the –4 immobile target to-hit modifier, regardless of whether the target of the attack is a hex, is shut down or immobile, and so on.”

Anti-Personnel (AP) Mortars (p. 374)
“Anti-Personnel (AP) Mortars inflict 1D6 burst-fire damage points (rounded up) per shell to conventional infantry units (for example, a full flight of 8 AP Mortars delivers 8D6 damage to a conventional infantry platoon). Against all other units, AP Mortars inflict 1 damage point per shell, applied in 1-point clusters. Each shell of AP Mortar ammunition inflicts 1 point of damage in an ammunition explosion (multiplied as normal by the mortar rack’s size and the total number of unfired rounds).”

To sum up:
Airburst: area-effect, does not affect units in buildings, less infantry damage, more ammo explosion due to "special, heavier shell"
Anti-Personnel: no area effect, affects units in buildings, more infantry damage, less ammo explosion

Note that the ammo notation on p. 416 already matches this, and thus no changes are required there.

Errata will be entered into the TacOps thread to match this.  Thanks for your patience.

[Jim1701]

Works for me!  O0