Post-Apocalypse Firearms

[Minuteman37]

Originally Posted by lachimba

In what natural or man-made disaster is a person more likely to survive than their gun and at least some ammunition.

Especially for North America there is just so much ammo and guns that I have no doubt people will be digging up or finding unspent ammo for the next century.

I'm just saying 1000 rounds per person is an optimistic number.

[jason taylor]

Originally Posted by Minuteman37

SJgames I'm trying to put together a list of weapons and gear to use in my Post-Apocalypse Game and am wondering about gun crafting in particular. Any advice or suggestions?

Factor A) Knowledge of firearms remains
Factor B) Infrastructure is gone

Single shot pieces can be made by cottage industry gunsmiths. Black powder is well within the reach of a reasonable economy and the recipe is well known.

Fancier stuff is relegated to toys for chiefs and their retinues probably. These will want them customizable for the use of an individualistic warriorish mentality rather then a militaristic mentality. Perhaps sniper scopes will be popular. After a few hundred years there will be mythology around guns.

[Minuteman37]

To shift the focus of the thread over to some crunchier conversation, what should I allow my players to buy for gear at character creation and in play?

[lachimba]

Originally Posted by Minuteman37

To shift the focus of the thread over to some crunchier conversation, what should I allow my players to buy for gear at character creation and in play?

A difficult question for me.

I think first you need to set campaign TL as that determines starting income and gear available. Then there's consideration of higher (or lower) TL to allow certain equipment.

Probably there's a better way in a post apocalypse campaign which might have so many split TLs it's nonsensical to talk about a campaign TL.

Add to that individual cities that night be ahead in say guns and trade or steal for a petrol refinery and that gets more confusing.

Redo TL for your campaign? Set a baseline of what's available then call higher TLs and lower TLs levels based off that?

[evileeyore]

Originally Posted by lachimba

In what natural or man-made disaster is a person more likely to survive than their gun and at least some ammunition.

Exotic nanotech-grey goo scenario that needs refined metals to reproduce but ignores organics.



As for the mixed TLs that's how I handled my 'mostly' TL4 (with dips down to 3 and some 'bumps' up to 5-12) Gamma World Fantasy campaign. I just decided at what level I wanted them to start at and then played it out from there.

But I also dropped the standard TL skill penalties and treated it as Familiarity penalties. So a Musketeer could 'pretty quickly'* learn to use an M-16 or Alien Death Ray with his Guns (Longarm) if he found one.

* Like several weeks.

[Minuteman37]

Originally Posted by lachimba

A difficult question for me.

I think first you need to set campaign TL as that determines starting income and gear available. Then there's consideration of higher (or lower) TL to allow certain equipment.

Probably there's a better way in a post apocalypse campaign which might have so many split TLs it's nonsensical to talk about a campaign TL.

Add to that individual cities that night be ahead in say guns and trade or steal for a petrol refinery and that gets more confusing.

Redo TL for your campaign? Set a baseline of what's available then call higher TLs and lower TLs levels based off that?

Well, the village/tribe that the party will be from is based out of an abandoned government fallout shelter, but I'm also trying to go for a tribal native feel to it becouse of heavily forested alaskan location. I can definitely say I'm set on a low tech campaign level so TL4 max. Though becouse a good deal of people are still living it's more a TL8 setting with a TL4 or lower economy.

[Phantasm]

For the TL, I'd recommend TL 5. Flintlocks are the staple during that time period; caplocks and brass cartridges come in late in TL 5, near the start of TL 6; they don't define it. I reckon a case can be made for late-TL 5 brass cartridges being a TL6 tech that appeared earlier than the rest of TL 6 by a decade; adjusting those guns from the 1870s to TL 6 would essentially double the price of all those old west revolvers, rifles, and shotguns. Caplocks are a late-TL 5 tech, which you might or might not want to use.

[Minuteman37]

Originally Posted by tbrock1031

For the TL, I'd recommend TL 5. Flintlocks are the staple during that time period; caplocks and brass cartridges come in late in TL 5, near the start of TL 6; they don't define it. I reckon a case can be made for late-TL 5 brass cartridges being a TL6 tech that appeared earlier than the rest of TL 6 by a decade; adjusting those guns from the 1870s to TL 6 would essentially double the price of all those old west revolvers, rifles, and shotguns. Caplocks are a late-TL 5 tech, which you might or might not want to use.

My problem with starting the game at TL5 is that it ushers in the era of "High-Tech" which can really change the dynamic for example all TL5 melee weapons are fine quality by default and very fine is pretty cheap for many weapons.

[Phantasm]

Originally Posted by Minuteman37

My problem with starting the game at TL5 is that it ushers in the era of "High-Tech" which can really change the dynamic for example all TL5 melee weapons are fine quality by default and very fine is pretty cheap for many weapons.

Actually, under Melee Weapon Quality on p. B274, it says, "At TL7+, all weapons are “fine” at no extra cost."

So, it's not TL5 you need to worry about, it's TL7. Through TL6, Good quality is the default.

[Minuteman37]

Originally Posted by tbrock1031

Actually, under Melee Weapon Quality on p. B274, it says, "At TL7+, all
weapons are “fine” at no extra cost."

So, it's not TL5 you need to worry about, it's TL7. Through TL6, Good quality is the default.

I stand corrected, though TL5 Steel is a massive leap in metallurgy compared to TL4 by default it doubles the DR of armor with no extra cost or weight. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing, but it can get confusing. It also makes me do more bookkeeping because I can't just hand my players a copy of low-tech and telling them no exotic items or only universal items then sprinkle in high-tech items as needed.