Roleplayer #15, August 1989
(Part 2 of 2)
by Mike Hurst
This concludes the discussion,
begun last issue, of the background and reasoning behind the weapons
and armor in GURPS Space.
If Not A Laser, Then What?
The laser (discussed last issue) is the principal weapon of ultra-tech societies,
but other items in the arsenal have significant uses as well:
Flamers
Unsealed armor has only 1/2 its DR against a flamer attack; the target takes
a minimum of 1d-2 damage (doubled if the attack hits the head). A sealed
suit loses integrity on a roll of 10 or less; die rolls are -1 for every
successive turn that the target is flamed.
The armor can actually be heated to the ignition point; on a 5 or less it
burns and die rolls are -1 for each successive turn as with breaking integrity
above. A hand flamer could defeat even Superheavy Combat Armor, given enough
time. A tripod flamer can slaughter armored troops.
The flamer's weakness is range, but this is a positive advantage inside
the confines of a ship. Stray shots are less likely to damage the hull or
vital components.
Force Swords
Force Swords can carve through Light Body Armor with a good roll; against
heavier armor they can target the weak points. Combined with a Force Shield
it gives a melee fighter a real chance against any weapon, if he can close
the range.
Paralysis Guns
Only totally sealed armor has any resistance at all to paralysis guns. Totally
sealed armor is an additional 5 lbs. and $1,500 to any complete body armor.
Any breach in the suit's integrity negates its defense against a paralysis
gun.
P-guns are the usual equipment of military ship's crews for in-ship combat
at TL10+. Unfortunately, the radiation they emit can scramble delicate computer
and communication circuits. Military ships have shielded circuitry; civilian
ships usually don't, because it is costly and requires careful maintenance.
A hit with a P-gun on an unshielded device has a 1/3 chance of putting it
out of service. Saboteurs and terrorists use P-guns to attack delicate circuitry.
They can say piously that they were using non-lethal weapons; it's not their
fault that the elevator fell 800 stories when the control box failed.
Screamers and Stunners
Screamers degrade armor slowly (-1 DR per successful attack). Unless it
is part of a completely sealed Suit, any hit to the helmet is likely to
shatter the eardrums (roll against HT to resist) leaving the target deaf.
Shattered eardrums are a special category of stunning damage (see p. B99).
Even if it does less than 1/2 HT, all the target's defenses are at -4 until
the next turn. Then the victim must roll against HT to recover.
Armor resists stun weapons only partially; HT is increased by one for each
five points of DR at the hit location.
Stunners can be hotshotted; a hotshotted stunner is a screamer which burns
out after a single shot, but has only the range of a stunner. It is then
useless; it cannot be repaired and reused. This is also a highly illegal
modification. It takes the same time and roll as hotshotting a laser; parts
cost $400.
Stun rifles can also be hotshotted; parts cost is $600. A hotshotted stun
rifle is -1 to Malf for each shot after the first. On any failure it burns
out and cannot be repaired. On any critical failure it burns out and does
1d of burn damage to the firer. It has the same range and damage as a screamer.
Tanglers
Tanglers can wrap and bring down a foe in even the heaviest armor. He can
then be dealt with at leisure. One method is to bring up a drill with super-hard
bits and bore him to death (a joke beloved of Marine drill sergeants).
Needlers
Kevlar and Monocrys have minimum resistance to any sort of needler. Needlers
are widely used by security guards and by anyone stationed on a primitive
planet. They are not as regulated as beam weapons, are small and light,
and carry a lot of shots without reloading. They are also very difficult
to detect; chemscanners can't find them and radscanners are at -3 for Gauss
needlers and cannot detect needlers at all.
The enormous rate of fire of Gauss needlers makes them especially deadly
to unarmored targets. Since they are effectively recoilless, it is easy
for a skilled shooter to get most of the shots from even a long burst into
the target. The weakness of any needler is against rigid armor. The thin,
frangible needles disintegrate against anything they cannot penetrate.
Blasters
At TL9+, blasters and blast rifles are almost as common as lasers in the
military arsenal. They are not as elegant and versatile as lasers and are
shorter ranged, but they are powerful and simple. They are favored as the
armament of barbarian mercenary units and hastily-formed conscript armies.
They are also widely used for hunting dangerous game at close quarters,
because of the knockback effect.
Blasters are also favored by the more brutal sort of bucko mate or prison
guard. The noise and spray of blood and flesh from the surface explosion
have a powerful psychological effect in suppressing mutinies.
Call for Fire
The usual source of heavy firepower for a spaceman in trouble is a spaceship.
The weapons and defenses of even the flimsiest and lightest starship can
be incredible. There is no exact relationship between the firepower ratings
of starships and the damage of lighter weapons, but no personal armor can
protect against even a light spaceship laser, and the range of spaceship
lasers is over 100 miles even in Earth atmosphere. A light explosive missile
has the equivalent explosive force of a 5-inch gun, and is accurate enough
to hit any defined square yard at 100 miles.
Ships also have lighter weapons. For instance, Gatling lasers may be used
as a Close-In Weapons System, to defend ships and fortifications from missiles.
They are powered from the power plant of the facility, and have effectively
infinite ammunition.
Spacemen who are in contact with their ship can call down the wrath of the
gods in fire and thunder. If they lose that communication, they become just
more grunts in the mud, with what they have on their backs and in their
vehicles.
Armor
Armor at TL8+ is very effective. The heaviest versions are nearly impervious
to legal civilian weapons and even resistant to military weapons.
Even the best armor is not invincible, however. The joints, faceplate and
hands are weaker than the large areas of torso, limbs and head. In general,
the joints (for a human, faceplate, hands, knees, elbows, hips, waist and
neck) have 1/2 the DR of the main suit. (The reason armor has only 1/2 resistance
to flamers is that the gush of plasma washes over the joints.)
Joints (the firer must specify which joint is aimed at) are -5 to hit; faceplate
is -6 to hit; hands (specify right or left) are -6 to hit. Impaling attacks
at the waist can be aimed at the vitals (-7 to hit); impaling attacks at
the faceplate can be aimed at the brain (-9 to hit). These shots are more
difficult than aimed shots at an unarmored target because the shot must
first hit the weak point of the armor at exactly the right angle at Other
attacks at the waist hit the torso if they penetrate; other attacks to the
faceplate hit the head.
Armor with No Faceplate
At TL10+, military armor can be built with no faceplate; only the joints
are vulnerable. All the sensor information is presented on a display inside
the helmet. Such a sensor suite costs $1,000.
Suit sensors are subject to spoofing and jamming. This is considered a Contest
of Electronics. Jamming is at Electronics skill of the jammer; spoofing
is at Electronics from -1 to -7 depending on how elaborate the false information
is. Jammers and spoofers are $2,000 and five pounds for each +1 to the Electronics
roll. Helmets can be fitted with countermeasures; $2,000 for each +1 to
the Electronics roll.
Sights
At TL8+ sights need not be mounted on the gun; they can be part of a heads-up
display in a helmet or goggles. At TL9+ they can be holographically displayed
in front of the firer's eyes. HUD sights cost $1,000; holographic display
sights cost $2,000. Each sight mechanism must be slaved to a particular
weapon. HUD sights are -2 to SS; holographic sights are -5.
(Back to Roleplayer
#15 Table of Contents)