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Old 11-20-2019, 12:27 PM   #1
Varyon
 
Join Date: Jun 2013
Default Appropriate skills for DEWs

By GURPS default, Directed Energy Weapons (DEWs) use Beam Weapons, with required specialization into Pistol (for one-handed), Rifle (for two-handed), and Projector (for those that spread as a cone or similar). The last honestly seems like it should be something like a Familiarity or Technique of the others (much as the Pyramid #3/65 gun article replaced Guns (GL) with a Payload Technique), but we'll come back to that.

My purpose here is to explore the differences between the Beam Weapons and Guns skill, and see if there are some weapons that traditionally fall into the former that would be more appropriate for the latter. From what I understand (influenced heavily by some of lwcamp's posts and articles), for a weaponized laser to be effective at range it needs to be set such that the beam is focused exactly at (or at least very close to) the range at which the target is located. This means the weapon must "focus" on a target - actively by using a rangefinder, passively by using technology comparable to a modern camera's autofocus (or even with the user manually adjusting the focus) - to be effective, as otherwise it's just briefly shining bright-but-unfocused light on the target. This is different from the way a firearm is used, hence being a different skill.

That's for realistic lasers, but the way they are typically depicted in fiction has them as just a single focused beam coming from the weapon. This seems doable, and avoids the need to focus above, but is going to greatly reduce effective range for the weapon. Electrolasers are likely to use this methodology, as you don't need - or want, really - a focused point on the target, but rather a nice, ionized channel to conduct the current. Microwave Area Denial (MAD) weapons are likely to use this scheme, as are any other cone weapons - although they could get better range (in exchange for being an AoE effect on the target rather than a cone leading up to it) by using variable focusing. Sonic stunners probably use variable focusing, but don't necessarily have to. Particle beams are likely to use variable focusing, although the way they are depicted in fiction is, again, a single focused beam coming from the weapon.

For superscience weapons, in many cases either scheme could be used. As cones, neural weapons seem by default to use the single-focus scheme, but could be converted to longer-range AoE weapons by using variable focusing instead. Sonic screamers are in a similar boat. For plasma weapons, these are clearly single-focus, both for flamers and plasma guns, and it's difficult to imagine a variable-focus variant with the weapons being so similar in nature to flamethrowers and firearms, respectively. Gravity weapons seem most appropriate as variable-focus weapons, as do disintegrators and conversion beams, although one can imagine shorter-ranged single-focus variants. Field-jacketed beams are almost certainly single-focus. For weapons outside of UT, Star Wars blasters (which seem comparable to most soft scifi DEWs) are clearly single-focus, while the "Little Doctor" from Ender's Game and its sequels uses variable-focus.

I would strongly suggest that the Beam Weapons skill is appropriate for weapons using variable-focus, while those using single-focus handle more like Guns. A Beam Weapon DEW with an area of effect, such as a dazzler laser or similar, seems somewhat-comparable to the Payload Technique for guns. With that in mind, I would suggest a new Technique for both Beam Weapons and Guns:

Code:
Projector						Hard
Default:  Prerequisite-2
Prerequisite:  Beam Weapons or Guns; cannot exceed prerequisite

This Technique allows you to buy off the -2 when using a DEW that
produces an area of effect (for Beam Weapons) or projects a cone
(for Guns).
Note this effectively gets rid of the Beam Weapons (Projector) skill.

The Burst-Fire Technique probably isn't necessary for most DEWs, due to lack of recoil, but I'd be tempted to leave it in (particularly because many superscience DEW's do produce recoil).

The Gunner skill would follow the above scheme - Gunner (Beams) for variable focus DEWs, Gunner (Cannon) for single-shot, single-focus DEWs, and Gunner (Machine Gun) for multi-shot, single-focus DEWs. Actually, looking at Gunner, it seems like it should probably just be Beams, Catapult, and Guns (rolling together Cannon, Machine Gun, and Rocket), with appropriate Familiarities and Techniques, but I digress.

What does the hive mind think? Additionally, what sort of mechanical difference should there be between single-focus DEWs (DEW Guns) and variable-focus DEWS (DEW Beams)? The latter seem like they should be at least a bit more expensive (and perhaps marginally heavier, due to having a large aperture) and possibly require an Aim maneuver before being able to fire, but would have greatly improved range. The question is, how much more expensive (if at all) and how much of a range boost? Playing around with lwcamp's Burninators, and assuming the UT lasers use red light, I'm getting aperture diameters around 1000x the minimum (which I take to be appropriate for single-focus) to get comparable 1/2D ranges (Luke's system handles Max quite a bit differently). As range appears to scale linearly with aperture diameter, this implies single-focus DEWs would have roughly 1/1000th the range of variable-focus ones (and conversely, variable-focus DEWS have 1000x the range of single-focus ones). That seems a bit excessive... but perhaps it isn't? Even so, it seems like the effect wouldn't be quite as pronounced when comparing a cone DEW to an AoE DEW, but I may be mistaken. What sayeth the hivemind?
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Old 11-21-2019, 01:33 PM   #2
Prince Charon
 
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Default Re: Appropriate skills for DEWs

I'm pretty sure Beam Weapons (Projector) was basically a direct translation of Guns (Shotgun), though I don't have a problem with Projector being a technique, instead. One Beam Weapons skill that I think should be considered (whether under this name or another) is the 'beamer,' defined on lwcamp's page as 'a weapon without stock or pistol grip, like a flashlight or cutting tool.' It seems to me that using one would require a different skill than a pistol or rifle. Another is the idea of a laser or other beam weapon that is worn as headgear, or that is in the form of a camera (like a Canon FT QL, but it kills, instead of embarrasses). Neither of these fits the current Beam Weapons skills, though the camera shape might fit a 'Beamer' skill.
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Old 11-21-2019, 03:07 PM   #3
Varyon
 
Join Date: Jun 2013
Default Re: Appropriate skills for DEWs

Quote:
Originally Posted by Prince Charon View Post
One Beam Weapons skill that I think should be considered (whether under this name or another) is the 'beamer,' defined on lwcamp's page as 'a weapon without stock or pistol grip, like a flashlight or cutting tool.' It seems to me that using one would require a different skill than a pistol or rifle.
That feels fairly similar to a pistol. It's not as convenient to use, but a low Acc or even built-in penalty (negated with a Perk) feels appropriate.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Prince Charon View Post
Another is the idea of a laser or other beam weapon that is worn as headgear, or that is in the form of a camera (like a Canon FT QL, but it kills, instead of embarrasses). Neither of these fits the current Beam Weapons skills, though the camera shape might fit a 'Beamer' skill.
Head mounted weapons may well have their own separate specialty, as would wrist-mounted weapons. Note such may be available for both Beams* and Guns. A Wrist specialization would default with Pistol at -2, the others at -4. Shoulder, Head, Torso, and Hip (like Can't Stop Twinkling from My Hero Academia) mounted weapons would all use a Body specialization, which would default with the other skills at -4 (and would require a HUD-link or similar to be able to Aim, otherwise you're always shooting from the hip... literally in some cases). In either case, there's some overlap with Innate Attack; a character who can shoot beams from his hands can probably use a wrist weapon fairly effectively (ditto with eye beams and a head-mounted laser), so a default there would be appropriate.

Concealed weapons, like that Canon FT Kill variant, would use whatever skills came closest to their use, often at a penalty. A handheld camera would probably use Pistol (although you may be able to use it with Body, if you happen to be better with that). One of those shoulder-carried big video cameras (like you see with news crews or on movie sets) would probably use Rifle, although again you may be able to make use of Body instead.

Come to think of it, a flashlight-type weapon (like a Type I Phaser) is probably equally usable with Pistol and Wrist, at a (negate-able with Perk) penalty either way.

*"Beam Weapons" is a little unwieldy, just shortening it to Beams seems appropriate.
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Old 11-22-2019, 09:56 AM   #4
Varyon
 
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Default Re: Appropriate skills for DEWs

Thinking on things a bit further, some discussion of Beams and Guns defaults seems appropriate. B179 suggests the same specialties should default at -4, which seems appropriate. I feel -6 for other specialties is about right... but perhaps the -8 implied if double-defaulting were legal is more appropriate? Certainly I feel there should be some default involved for, say, Guns (Pistol) and Beams (Rifle). Defaulting between Pistol and Wrist is again possibly more lenient; if going with -6 for any unlike specialties, that probably works fine, but if going with -8 I feel Pistol and Wrist should default at -6.


With no responses about the range difference between single-focus and variable-focus beams, I thought to take a look at electrolasers (which you'd expect to be single-focus) and lasers (which you'd expect to be variable-focus). Unfortunately, electrolaser range seems to be right around what you'd get scaling a normal UV laser down to 1d-3 or 1d-2, so that clearly doesn't work for us here. Anyone have any good ideas? I'm considering just going with 1/10th range for single-focus weapons, and assuming most of UT's beam weapons are variable-focus (with the exception of plasma weapons, for which variable-focus isn't really an option). Note also this means most UT cone weapons are now AoE weapons; cone variants are at 1/10th range. Does this seem fair?
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