Lasers powered by gasoline engines

[Chris Goodwin]

I have this vague memory that there used to be a rule that laser weapons drew too much power per shot to be able to be used by cars with internal combustion engines. Is (or was) this an actual rule, or am I misremembering?

[43Supporter]

Check your PM.

[juris]

You're not misremembering - gas cars in CW do not have alternators or batteries of any kind - controversy was whether they could power targeting lasers - conflicting rulings

[Racer]

This problem was solved by the Micro Battery from NOVA pages or Night Messager :

Micro Battery - $100 , 10lbs , No Space , 0 DP . Provides 10 PU to be used by Electronics or Lasers . Destroyed when either Item they power or the Vehicles Power Plant/Gas Engine is destroyed .

Since the change of the Rules in 1988 (?) , no one in the groups we've played with have questioned the 'No Power Plant or Laser Battery - no Targeting Laser use' Ruling .

Seems strange after it was was resolved in Pyramid Magazine #4 way back , that people are still questioning this ?

[Edit] :
From Q&A Pyramid #4
7. Can gas-burning vehicles use a targeting laser without a laser battery?
- Bruce Lam, Vancouver, B.C.

7. No. Don't be cheap - buy the battery.

- Ken Scott

[43Supporter]

Originally Posted by juris

You're not misremembering - gas cars in CW do not have alternators or batteries of any kind - controversy was whether they could power targeting lasers - conflicting rulings

And if one follows that line-of-thinking to its logical conclusion: _CW_ cars also cannot use any sort of computer, or ABS, or headlights/taillights/turn-signals[1], or any other thing which uses electricity.

[1: Of course, no one uses those anyway, so.... .>;) ]

[swordtart]

And it seems little implausible that you can have a laser targetting scope on a pedestrian laser guided man portable rocket launcher that requires no battery of any sort.

I am sorry to say in my opinion Ken got this one wrong. It is not canon in my games. Electronic items that do not drain PUs (including Targetting Lasers) do not require a laser battery.