From: Thomas Barclay <Thomas.Barclay@s...>
Date: Wed, 18 Aug 1999 11:41:12 -0400
Subject: FMA Grenades
I was just speaking to a friend about the stats we use in Canada for our grenades, and I'm not sure if they are identical to Los' grenades.... nor am I certain how these compare to the grenades stat'd in many other games such as Traveller, Morrow Project, Aftermath, Twilight 2000, various Vietnam games in which there can be offensive and defensive grenades..... But my thought for a grenade is this: We really have two threats - fragmentation radius and concussion radius. They do different things. Fragmentation penetrates armour by piercing and causes wounds. Concussion waves produce knockdown, destroy walls etc., and beat the living crap out of a Humans innards without penetrating. These probably get modelled together for ease of play in FMA (and our attack mechanic does not differrentiate blunt trauma from piercing) A typical hand grenade can kill people out to 100m (sometimes). It will most likely kill you if you are within 25m. Check this out in gov't stats if you don't believe it. Generally, you often can't throw a grenade far enough so that if you were in the open standing up you'd like the results. You want to be behind cover, in a trench, or at least lying prone. So, how to model this? How about this: Use a radius from explosion point. Say for a typical grenade, 2". That means you have 0-2", 3-4", 5-6", 7-8", 9-10", etc. You have an attack value at the centre, and a drop off rate. Say 24/4. So you roll the dice that matches this best - 2d12 at the first RB, 2d10 at the next, 2d8 at the next, 1d12, 1d8, 1d4, nada. If there is an odd value, round down. So your grenade could affect someone out to 12" radius, which is 25m from the blast centre. Conservative, but perhaps fun for a game. This "drop off" might not model real explosive drop off - I think concussion drops off with cube of radius - but it models the hurling fragments reasonably. I think anyone attacked by a grenade (in the radius) should pick up an automatic suppression counter. <Obviuosly, the answer if you are in the radius, to avoid this, is be behind solid cover that prevents any dice being rolled against you>. These attacks should be rolled against walls and such too and could knock them down. Indoors, the results are less pretty. The explosion and fragments are contained by the walls of a room (you hope). If you are in a room where more than half the grenades overall area can be deployed (eyeball it), then don't worry about the effects of enclosure - there is space. If you are in a room (say a 3mx4m) where a grenade goes off (less than half the radius can be employed), then you get compounding effects. In this case, DOUBLE the attack dice used against the target. If you'd normally have used 1d10, use 2d10. (or d10x2 if that suits you). Note if a grenade is setoff in a room with an open door, people outside the doorway are fair game - doorways with no doors do not stop fragments... So, following these suggestions: FMA Normal Frag Hand Grenade: 24/4 (2d12 0-2", 2d10 3-4", 2d8 5-6", 1d12 7-8", 1d8 9-10", 1d4 11-12") FMA Defensive Frag (designed to be thrown from a trench or fighting position):36/4 (3d12 0-2", 3d10 3-4", 3d8 5-6", 2d12 7-8", 2d10 9-10", 2d8 11-12", 1d12 13-14", 1d8 15-16", 1d4 17-18") FMA Normal AP or HEDP Rifle Grenade: 20/4 (2d10 0-2", 2d8 3-4", 1d12 5-6", 1d8 7-8", 1d4 9-10") Controlled Effect CT Grenade: 20/8 (2d10 0-2", 1d12 3-4", 1d4 5-6") CT Stun Grenade: 24/8 (2d12 0-2", 2d8 3-4", 1d8 5-6", any wounded recover at +1 so 5 or 6 recovers, only a 1 kills) Flashbang: 32/16 (3d10 0-2", 2d8 3-4", can be defended against with full head protection (visor/ears), all wounds will recover, automatic suppression if in blast radius plus any suppresion gained from wounds) Just another 0.02...