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Old 07-21-2018, 02:43 PM   #1
RedDragon
 
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Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: Santa Fe, New Mexico
Default WWI and gas weapons questions

I'm preparing resources for an upcoming WWI Supers game I'm going to be running. I've got High-Tech (and all of its "Guns" expansions), but I can't find any published stats for Chlorine or Phosgene gas (or Green Cross, for that matter), although Mustard gas is listed in the basic set. I also have no idea how to describe their effects in GURPS terms (HT penalty, follow-up damage, etc.) other than that they are suffocating agents with follow-up cor or tox damage.

Also I'm wondering if anybody here has suggestions for things I'm forgetting or that might be useful in a campaign like this (So far I know where to find realistic shooting rules, a wide selection of guns, barbed wire, and basic military kit, but I'm probably overlooking something vital).
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Old 07-21-2018, 03:52 PM   #2
Ulzgoroth
 
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Default Re: WWI and gas weapons questions

If you want the exact right guns, the Pulp Weapons books might help.

I'm not having any luck finding stats for choking agents either.
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Old 07-21-2018, 05:35 PM   #3
Curmudgeon
 
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Default Re: WWI and gas weapons questions

Quote:
Originally Posted by RedDragon View Post
I'm preparing resources for an upcoming WWI Supers game I'm going to be running. I've got High-Tech (and all of its "Guns" expansions), but I can't find any published stats for Chlorine or Phosgene gas (or Green Cross, for that matter), although Mustard gas is listed in the basic set. I also have no idea how to describe their effects in GURPS terms (HT penalty, follow-up damage, etc.) other than that they are suffocating agents with follow-up cor or tox damage.

Also I'm wondering if anybody here has suggestions for things I'm forgetting or that might be useful in a campaign like this (So far I know where to find realistic shooting rules, a wide selection of guns, barbed wire, and basic military kit, but I'm probably overlooking something vital).
Comparing write-up for mustard gas with Wikipedia summary of same.

Mustard gas is an area-effect respiratory and contact agent.
Vs.
Mustard sulfur, better known as mustard gas is colourless in pure liquid form. The impure form used in warfare is yellow-brown and has the odour of mustard, garlic or horseradish. Despite the name, it is deployed as an aerosol (liquid droplets). It primarily acts as a contact agent causing blisters which vary between first and second degree burns, though they are every bit as severe as third degree burns. In high concentrations, it will also act as a respiratory agent.

As a contact agent, it has no delay and a HT-4 roll to resist, and inflicts 1 point of toxic damage repeating at 8 hour intervals for 24 cycles.
Vs.
Within 24 hours of exposure, victims experience severe itching and skin irritation which gradually turn to large blisters filled with yellow fluid. Severe burns (more than 50% of the body) are often fatal with death occurring after days or even weeks have passed.

As a respiratory agent, it has a 2 hour delay and a HT-1 roll to resist, and inflicts 1d toxic damage, repeating at one hour intervals for 6 cycles.
Vs.
No information.

Notes: Mustard gas penetrates wool and cotton, so clothing offers no protection. Gas masks may offer protection from contact with the eyes. People exposed to mustard gas rarely display immediate symptoms, so it is possible to be exposed to high dosages. Mustard gas is persistent, remaining an effective incapacitating agent for days and weeks on the ground. Mild and moderate exposure to mustard gas is rarely fatal though convalescence is lengthy. Changes in skin colour after exposure to mustard gas have been observed. Unlike chlorine, the colours vary with red and blue predominating. About 1% of all casualties caused by mustard gas are fatal.

gives a basis for converting these bits of information into GURPS. The stat write-ups aren't anything official, just my estimate based on the real world info.

From this:
Chlorine
From Chapter X Gas-poisoning, Medical Diseases of the War by Arthur Hurst M.D., edited by Dr. M. Geoffrey Miller

The gas has never been collected for analysis but is probably chlorine in most instances. It rapidly puts a man out of action in concentrations of 1 in 10,000. Being much heavier than air it readily drifts and sinks into trenches and cellars.

The first effect is a burning pain in the eyes and throat accompanied by a sense of suffocation and severe chest pain behind the sternum. Respiration enters a phase of asphyxia which may result in death in the case of severe exposure. This may be accompanied by retching and vomiting giving temporary relief. This is followed by severe headache and weakness in the legs. If the patient lies down, he will be exposed to greater concentrations of chlorine which collects close to the ground. Unconsciousness follows; nothing more is known about field fatalities in the first few hours after the gassing, other than the skin assumes a pale greenish yellow colour.

If a man makes it to a clearing station, the asphyxia phase gradually subsides after 36 hours, if death does not occur before. Before efficient respirators about 5% of those who made it to clearing stations died within 48 hours.
After a quiescent period of a few hours, though it may be much shorter in severe cases, bronchitis or broncho-pneumonia develops. Of those who reach base hospitals 1-2% die of broncho-pneumonia or pulmonary complications in the second or third weeks.

Notes: Chlorine is a yellow-green gas having an odour of bleach. Sodium-bicarbonate was effective against it in gas masks and ammonia inhalation was a medical treatment at the time.

Respiratory agent, no delay, roll vs. HT-3, take 1 toxic damage, repeating at 4 hour intervals for 12 cycles, followed by: roll vs. HT-2, if successful, 2 hour delay, roll vs. HT-1, take 1 toxic damage, repeat at daily intervals for 21 cycles.


From this:
Phosgene
A colourless gas, COCl2, with an odour like freshly cut hay or grass (in low concentrations). Phosgene was frequently used as a substitute/addition for chlorine gas as it wasn’t subject to visual detection and the odour sometimes escaped notice. Phosgene was responsible for 85% of all WWI chemical casualties. Phosgene was denser and slower to spread than chlorine, so it was frequently used in conjunction with an equal volume of chlorine gas to speed diffusion. Phosgene was more potent than chlorine but symptoms often took 24 hours or more to manifest.

Treat as Chlorine but initial delay 24 hours.
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