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am working on some Kra Vak riding beasts. I got to thinking about what info
there was out there regarding the beasts. Not much is what I have found. Basic
movement is 10" act as Calvary per the rules. Hu not much, any thoughts out
there? IÂ wondered what other functions the beast could have. Perhaps the
beasts are telepathically connected to their rider (or unit leader). They
could be controled to defend or attack as needed. Yes I knoe that Kra Vak have
enough trouble keeping themselves under control let alone someone (something)
else. The beast figures look fierce and just seemed to need a role to play in
the game. Plus I like the idea of suppressing an enemy squad with withiring
fire and then sending in the beasts to feed, I mean finish them off in close
combat. Again just looking for thoughts out there on the subject.
Get there first with the most
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problem with telepathic control over the beasts is what happens to the
controller when the beast gets shot? Traditionally being in a telepathic bond
with someone else when they die is a very bad thing....
The purpose of most riding beasts is typically transport to the battle area so
that the infantry are less tired than them walking. A big predatory beast
might be hard to control, hence why cavalry ride horses rather than bears.
I'd use the mounts as extra mobility and as allowing the rider to carry a
heavier weapon and or more ammo. See the recent discussion on SAWs. A cavalry
unit could all carry SAW weapons if the mount carries the extra ammo.
Mounts were also trained to lie down, so could count as cover, if you care
about the mounts survivability you could have the mount wear some kind of
balistic body armour. A good idea especially if you are in a telepathic link
with your cover.
Depending on your PSB on sensors cavalry could also be stealthy compared to
vehicles, possibly lower heat signature, less noise and no EM emmissions. The
drawback being they woudl be vulnerable to small arms and biochem weapons.
I'd definately try and avoid anything resembling the charge of the light
brigade, for similar reasons.
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you do wish to use them as more than mobility for infantry (hobilars) or as
mounted scouts, then you need to make the beasts robust. To mount a cavalry
charge requires you to get in range and not be broken by the fire during the
charge.
One possibility for this is to assume the nasty looking beasties bear
something in common with grizzlies or wild boars - thick grisle, tough
hide, amazing adrenalin, etc. This would allow them to not take hits all that
easily. I read one account of a man and his son hunting wild boar with (they
thought) handguns. They got charged by one - in order to down it, it
took an entire magazine of.357 magnum from a desert eagle, the entire contents
of a.44 magnum revolver, and somewhere between 3 and 5 shots of 5.56mm from a
Mini-14 to drop it. The grisle stopped most of the pistol slugs dead.
Project a nastier, tougher hide and a tougher alien physiology (not much
tougher, mind you - big boars are something else) and you've got a
viable charger. Give it some ballistic armour and its even more feasible.
I think of them as scouts mostly - able to get through areas some
vehicles could not, able to help defend the scout against unforseen natural
enemies (other critters), and able to get the scout out of trouble with a
quick gallop away. But if I planned to use them in battle, I'd construe them
as above and modify the rules as required to support that.