From: Andrew Ayres <ftshipcreator@b...>
Date: Sat, 3 Feb 2001 20:11:25 +1100
Subject: RE: Armour bypass weapon + kinetic shields
Okay heres an idea for not so much a weapon, but a system, and further down a shield. Sorry folks but this is a little bit of an essay: Structural Analyzer:~ The PSB would be the system scans the ship for defects and damage in armour and hull. The system would then link to a fire control and be able to fire say, 1 or 2 standard beams, or maybe link to any number of FCS, but only fire one per FCS. The Ship would require Superior Sensors as these would be the only ones powerful enough to give the required scan resolution and detail. Effect: System penetrates 1 layer of armour. Rest of damage is done straight to ship. If no armour, then say allow reroll on 5 as well as 6 to show for hitting a weak spot, only on initial hit, all rerolls are as normal. Mass: Fixed number as just a superior, specialised computer. Say 5 Cost: Should be expensive due to level of quality required -> cost 25 also as it is just a computer, and is deep inside the ship, not near the surface (uses sup.sensors and normal FCSs as surface parts) could put in core systems. My suggestion for kinetic shields would be that (PSB) the ship uses essentially very strong screens, and flows a dense layer of particles over the field. The shields would have a set strength over the entire ship (any reduction is balanced out by flow of particles), and as a weapon hits, all damage is done to the shield until it fails, at which point one of two things happen: *For weapons like beams and K-guns, the remain damage goes straight to armour and ship as normal *For torpedoes and missiles, no damage flows on as it would be assumed the missile explodes on the shield, which would be a distance away from the ship such that the explosion would have no effect. Draw backs would have to be that, when using sensor rules, all rolls suffer a penalty due to the magnetic and particle fields, and that if the ship fires then the arc through which the shot passed would be 'leaky' letting through half beam and k-gun damage (round down) and for missiles, etc, roll 1D6 4-6 missile gets through. PSB would be that the ship has to emit a disturbance cone in the field to allow shots to pass through. The system could be turned off and on, negating all effects while off, but would take 1 turn to put up and down (PSB=to allow for retrieval and redeployment of particles, and for the charging and discharging of magnetic field generators). During this 1 turn, the effects would be halved, essentially in a 'leaky' state. The shields would have a set strength dependent on ship size and shield rating and as damage is suffered the shield reduces (particles being dislodged and lost from the field), but could regenerate say, 5 or 10% each turn dependent on rating by emiting more particles. When damaged the system would become 'leaky' on first hit, disabled on second and each repair takes it up a level. Possible option is overcharging it, doubling strength and recharge, but for each turn running overcharged it risks damage, 6 on a D6 first turn, 5-6 on second, etc. Damage reduces it by outlined 'damage level' however if run for six turns, system is completely fried, and if already damaged, can't be repaired until it returns to a space dock. 2 rating levels: 1st: mass = 10% TMF cost = 10 times mass strength = 50% mass regen = 5% per turn 2nd = 15% TMF cost = 15/20 times mass strength = 75-100% mass regen = 10% per turn I'm not that flash at working out costs and actual mechanics, but as a general guide Possible Background: ESU first started developing in early war against Kra'vak at the realisation their ships which largely use screens are very vulnerable. The other sides quickly caught on through espionage, and so all sides got it around the same time (ESU first as they had a head start, NSL last as they are least qualified in Sceens and magnetic fields, and with armour and stong ships didn't see the urgency at first) A variation along the lines of the pinpoint shield is that the same concepts as outlined above, but only one arc coverage per generator, but can be moved around 2 arcs per turn to which ever arc player desires (arc along which the SDN is =))