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Old 01-15-2018, 09:04 AM   #301
Kalzazz
 
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Default Re: [Modern Firepower] Technothriller gear for secret DHS team in 2017

Pawn shops try to avoid accepting junk, so any binoculars for sale would pass their inspection.

They would certainly allow you to handle the binoculars inside the store.

Usually unless someone looks disreputable they would be let go try the item out in the parking lot

Most but not all pawnshops I've shopped at allow a 24-48 hour returns window to test your purchases and bring them back if need be
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Old 01-15-2018, 09:47 AM   #302
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Default Re: [Modern Firepower] Technothriller gear for secret DHS team in 2017

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Originally Posted by Kalzazz View Post
Pawn shops try to avoid accepting junk, so any binoculars for sale would pass their inspection.
Fair enough, but I doubt they'd pass on surplus MILSPEC 7x50 binoculars (or any used decent quality binoculars) just because the optical coating had degraded enough for low light performance to suffer -1 in GURPS terms.

And I don't know if they'd notify the buyer (or even realise this). Same goes for various subtle forms of damage that might result in an effective -1 or -2 to spot fine details or colours, use the binoculars for range finding or some other task.

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Originally Posted by Kalzazz View Post
They would certainly allow you to handle the binoculars inside the store.

Usually unless someone looks disreputable they would be let go try the item out in the parking lot
Yeah, but I wasn't sure if any PC had skills to diagnose damaged optics or not.

If that can be done at less than -4 penalty from any of Soldier, IQ-based Guns (Longarm), IQ-based Observation or Armoury (Small Arms), Taylor could do it expertly.

Relying on his default from Mechanic (Motorcycle) or Photography would be less impressive...

If IQ-based Observation or Photography can do it at full skill or at most a very small penalty, then O'Toole and Rubio can both examine their own optics to see if they are fully functioning. If there were a -3 or -4 default to find subtle flaws caused by hard use, however, they are not skilled enough at skill 14-15 to rely on it. O'Toole has Electronics Repair (Surveillance) at skill -14 and Electronics Repair (Security) at skill -15, which might also include lens repair, at least for optical surveillance equipment.

Of course, if Scrounging is any good for coming across the exact optics we need, whether in mothballed stores at the base or at a pawn shop, Taylor has Scrounging -26.

Unfortunately, he would not have been allowed to look up old friends-of-friends among the Ft. Bliss NCOs and use his Carousing, Savoir-Faire (Military) or just his really high Reaction Bonuses with career military (especially special operators and snipers) to get favours, as that would compromise security. Stay away from anyone who'd know him or even knows of him.

The team lead, Special Agent Rubio, has local Area Knowledge -14, Currrent Affairs (People) -16, Merchant -16, Streetwise -17 and Sex Appeal -20 if it comes to finding bargains or negotiating a good deal for something we actually have to pay for. Being Beautiful, a former E-6 and having Savoir-Faire (Military) -14 would help her get someone at Ft. Bliss to loan us something, maybe. Carousing -17, Fast-Talk -16 and Sex Appeal -20 might also help with getting some NCO in supply to overlook some necessary paperwork and loaning her binoculars (and maybe a spotting scope).

O'Toole would be able to get anything available from Onyx Rain inventories, with his Administration -16 and Savoir-Faire (Police) -16. He also has the Networked Perk.

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Originally Posted by Kalzazz View Post
Most but not all pawnshops I've shopped at allow a 24-48 hour returns window to test your purchases and bring them back if need be
That certainly won't help. Around ten hours after their shopping finally ended (counting an emergency after dinner run for stuff the the team lead finally authorised), the PCs were in Mexico. That's right from the closing of most pawn shops and they'll have left before most stores were likely to reopen.
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Old 01-15-2018, 03:35 PM   #303
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Default Compact surveillance binoculars

It looks like at least O'Toole will have personal binoculars, bought with his own money. I've penciled in the Leica Ultravid BCR 8x20 Compact Binoculars (Bulk 0 (Holdout +1); Weight 0.6 lbs.; Cost $730; MinST: 7†; Reduce -3 / -6 in range penalties; increases penalties for mirage or other atmospheric distortions by -1 past 1,000 yards).

Other options are:

Zeiss Victory Compact 8x20 T: Bulk 0 (Holdout +1); Weight 0.5 lbs.; Cost $510; MinST: 7†; Reduce -3 / -6 in range penalties; increases penalties for mirage or other atmospheric distortions by -1 past 700 yards.

Zeiss Victory Compact 10x25 T: Bulk 0 (Holdout 0); Weight 0.55 lbs.; Cost $700; MinST: 8†; Reduce -3 / -7 in range penalties; increases penalties for mirage or other atmospheric distortions by 1 past 700 yards.

Bushnell PowerView 8x21: Bulk 0 (Holdout 0); Weight 0.45 lbs.; Cost $30; MinST: 6†; Reduce -3 / -6 in range penalties; adds 2 to darkness penalties, -1 penalty to spot fine details, increases penalties for mirage or other atmospheric distortions by -1 past 300 yards, -2 past 1,000 yards.

Bushnell Legend Ultra HD Compact 10x25: Bulk 0 (Holdout 0); Weight 0.6 lbs.; Cost $160; MinST: 8†; Reduce -3 / -7 in range penalties; adds 1 to darkness penalties; increases penalties for mirage or other atmospheric distortions by -1 past 500 yards.

Pentax 6.5x21 U-Series Papilio II: Bulk 0 (Holdout 0); Weight 0.65 lbs.; Cost $125; MinST: 6†; Reduce -2 / -5 in range penalties; adds 1 to darkness penalties; increases penalties for mirage or other atmospheric distortions by -1 past 500 yards.

Swarovski Pocket CL 8x25 B: Bulk 0 (Holdout 0); Weight 0.8 lbs.; Cost $900; MinST: 7†; Reduce -3 / -6 in range penalties; +1 to spot small details.

Nikon ACULON Compact 8-24x25 Zoom Binoculars: Bulk 0 or -2 (Holdout -1); Weight 0.9 lbs.; Cost $150; MinST: 7† to 10†; Reduce -3 / -6 or -9 in range penalties; adds 1 to darkness penalties and increases darkness penalties by 2 on 24x zoom; -1 penalty to make out fine detail on max zoom; increases penalties for mirage or other atmospheric distortions by -1 past 500 yards, by -2 in max zoom.

Bushnell Spectator 4x30 Xtra-Wide: Bulk 0 (Holdout -1); Weight 0.9 lbs.; Cost $65; MinST: 5†; Reduce -2 / -4 in range penalties; -1 to spot small details.

Vortex Diamondback 8x28: Bulk 0 (Holdout -1); Weight 0.9 lbs.; Cost $180; MinST: 7†; Reduce -3 / -6 in range penalties; adds 1 to darkness penalties.

Swarovski CL Companion 8x30: Bulk 0 (Holdout -1); Weight 1.1 lbs.; Cost $1,200; MinST: 8†; Reduce -3 / -6 in range penalties; reduce darkness penalty by 1; +1 to spot small details.

Wingspan Optics Spectator 8x32: Bulk 0 (Holdout -1); Weight 1 lbs.; Cost $100; MinST: 8†; Reduce -3 / -6 in range penalties; increases penalties for mirage or other atmospheric distortions by -1 past 700 yards.

Vortex Optics Viper Series 8x28: Bulk 0 (Holdout -1); Weight 1.15 lbs.; Cost $390; MinST: 8†; Reduce -3 / -6 in range penalties.

Hawke Endurance ED 8x32: Bulk 0 (Holdout -2); Weight 1.2 lbs.; Cost $180; MinST: 8†; Reduce -3 / -6 in range penalties.
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Last edited by Icelander; 01-17-2018 at 03:49 AM.
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Old 01-15-2018, 04:05 PM   #304
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Default Re: Compact surveillance binoculars

Quote:
Originally Posted by Icelander View Post
It looks like at least O'Toole will have personal binoculars, bought with his own money. I've penciled in the Leica Ultravid BCR 8x20 Compact Binoculars (Bulk 0 (Holdout +1); Weight 0.6 lbs.; Cost $730; Reduce -3 / -6 in range penalties).
Showing off wealth and good taste is the kind of thing he likes to do, isn't it? Those look like the best for that purpose.
Quote:
Nikon ACULON Compact 8-24x25 Zoom Binoculars: Bulk 0 (Holdout -1); Weight 0.9 lbs.; $150; Reduce -3 / -8 in range penalties; adds 1 to darkness penalties and increases darkness penalties by 2 on 24x zoom; -1 penalty to make out fine detail on max zoom.
These are more for people who buy by big numbers. Long ago, I worked in a camera shop that also sold binoculars, and there was a recognisable type of customer who thought magnification was everything, and rejected all suggestions to the contrary. There are enough of them that there are binocular models made to be sold to them.
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Old 01-15-2018, 04:31 PM   #305
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Default Re: Compact surveillance binoculars

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Originally Posted by johndallman View Post
Showing off wealth and good taste is the kind of thing he likes to do, isn't it? Those look like the best for that purpose.
While not wealthy and not really stylish, O'Toole is a highly skilled surveillance technician. So it makes sense that he would be good at picking useful gear for it. And as O'Toole attaches serious importance to this mission, as he belives he will finally find the father he has searched for all these years, he has liquidated all his possessions to invest in necessary equipment (and to bring cash, if he should have to finance going on the run).

Technically, the characters all have monthly salaries and haven't had a chance to spend them yet for February 2017. On the other hand, the monthly salaries for Taylor and Bell are theoretical, probably paid into the account of some cover ID, if they are paid at all, and they certainly have no access to the money.

The monthly salaries, after taxes, are approximately:

Dr. Anderson: $13,000
Special Agent Rubio: $6,500
Special Agent O'Toole: $4,500
Taylor: $1,300
Bell: $1,300

Dr. Anderson is getting fancy psychiatrist consultant money and Rubio is a GS-13, Step 10. O'Toole just became a GS-11, but he's been getting a lot of overtime recently. Unless someone fixes that for him now that he's on detached duty, he will probably only get $3,500-$4,000 per month from March onward. Not that the odds are very good that he'll still be in good odour with the US government by then...

Quote:
Originally Posted by johndallman View Post
These are more for people who buy by big numbers. Long ago, I worked in a camera shop that also sold binoculars, and there was a recognisable type of customer who thought magnification was everything, and rejected all suggestions to the contrary. There are enough of them that there are binocular models made to be sold to them.
With the stats I've given them, they are actually useful, albeit not as dominant as if I'd just gone by magnification. Do you think they should give a -2 penalty to see fine details or are they actually fairly useful?
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Old 01-15-2018, 04:59 PM   #306
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Default Re: Compact surveillance binoculars

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Originally Posted by Icelander View Post
With the stats I've given them, they are actually useful, albeit not as dominant as if I'd just gone by magnification. Do you think they should give a -2 penalty to see fine details or are they actually fairly useful?
They'll need to be steadied on or against something to be useful at full magnification. 10x is about as much as can be hand-held, and 8x is much easier. At 24x, just leaning them against a post or bracing them on a car window is starting to be inadequate: give them -1 for fine details under those conditions, and -3 or worse if they're just hand-held.
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Old 01-15-2018, 05:04 PM   #307
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Default Re: Compact surveillance binoculars

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Originally Posted by johndallman View Post
They'll need to be steadied on or against something to be useful at full magnification. 10x is about as much as can be hand-held, and 8x is much easier. At 24x, just leaning them against a post or bracing them on a car window is starting to be inadequate: give them -1 for fine details under those conditions, and -3 or worse if they're just hand-held.
Yeah, I'd considered that.

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Originally Posted by Icelander View Post
Stabilising a light pair of binoculars is mostly a matter of having adequate Trained ST to hold them steady for long periods, experience and one of the many things that go into DX in GURPS. At a human scale, it means that very light, low magnification optics can be stabilised with a firm two handed grip, the use of low-tech aids like a strap or at worst, against an object, analogous to how firearm are Braced (use the same rules).

Depending on strength and skill level, normal people (Trained ST 10) can adequately stabilise up to 8x or 10x magnification binoculars of not much over 2 lbs. using nothing more than both hands and possibly a neck strap. Higher magnification usually requires assuming a stable position or bracing against an object. Heavier binoculars require higher Trained ST, using the relative skill level of such skills as Observation, Soldier, Survival or Hobby Skill (Birdwatching).

Inadequately stabilised optics will at best give the benefit of half their actual magnification, at worst be useless in game terms.

Bracing or other forms of stabilisation makes it possible to get any benefit from higher magnification, but most methods of stabilisation beyond a firm two handed grip do make it slower to scan the entire front arc. Add -1 or even -2 for very stable positions (making it hard to move the optic fast) to effective Bulk unless watching only that part of the forward arc within a few degrees each way of the field of view of the optic. Only tripods designed for easy and fast handling avoid this penalty.
Any suggestions on how to tweak the proposed house rules?
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Old 01-15-2018, 11:31 PM   #308
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Default Re: [Modern Firepower] Technothriller gear for secret DHS team in 2017

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A scope with an objective lens smaller than 7mm x magnification (i.e. basically all of them) actually makes your night vision worse; figure anything under 5mm x mag increases darkness penalties by 1, anything under 2mm x mag increases it by 2.
Actually, it's not nearly all of them - 4x40 was common for a long time and 4x32 is still fairly common. The former was really wasting collection area, but the larger lens would still allow for less distortion, etc. The common 3-9x40 only see loss of night vision at about x6 and above (so at +3 acc in GURPS terms).
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Old 01-16-2018, 02:26 AM   #309
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Default Re: [Modern Firepower] Technothriller gear for secret DHS team in 2017

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Actually, it's not nearly all of them - 4x40 was common for a long time and 4x32 is still fairly common. The former was really wasting collection area, but the larger lens would still allow for less distortion, etc. The common 3-9x40 only see loss of night vision at about x6 and above (so at +3 acc in GURPS terms).
Any thoughts on the effects of modern lens coatings on light transmission?

According to the claims made by manufactorers, anecdotally by users (and from my limited experience), modern top of the line coated lenses (i.e. Zeiss, Swarowski, etc.) allow so much more light than older or cheaper uncoated lenses that the top of the line 10x42 are brighter than uncoated 7x50.
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Old 01-16-2018, 02:37 AM   #310
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Default Re: [Modern Firepower] Technothriller gear for secret DHS team in 2017

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Any thoughts on the effects of modern lens coatings on light transmission?
Well, this claims 35% loss for uncoated optics, vs 5% for top optics. 42mm with 5% loss is better than 50mm with 35% loss, and thus a modern 7x42mm will be slightly brighter than an uncoated 7x50mm. However, a 10x42mm will still be only half as bright per unit area, it's an unavoidable side effect of magnification (note that this doesn't matter for stargazing, point sources will appear the same brightness regardless of magnification).
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