Synchronizing shots between squad members

[gesus]

I'm looking for a way to take down guards not allowing them to sound the alarm.
Let's say we have 3 guards to take out and our squad is made of 3 shooters and 1 coordinator.
If all shooters Aim for a few turns and then coordinator orders to attack, we have a standard turn sequence in the next turn. So if one of guards has his BS between two of shooters, he will have his maneuver, but restricted to "Do Nothing" because of partial surprise (assuming he has Combat Reflexes). During this turn he can scream (this is a free-action and B363 states free actions can be done during any maneuver) and thus sound the alarm.
Shooters can't declare Aim and Wait (for coordinator's command) at the same time. Or can they?
Shooters can't lower their BS to the same low value to not let guards act between them. Or can they?
Shooters can't use Opportunity Fire to combine Aim and Wait because due to RAW they will have to shoot once target appear in the hex. Meaning instantly in this case (target already in the hex). Am I right?
So what can they do?

[Whyte]

I'd definitely allow a team of 3 snipers and one coordinator to time their fire to be, in effect, simultaneous. The surprised guards would likely even waste the first second afterwards, if still alive, although their training might kick in and allow them to drop and dodge. It takes a moment for a person to scream an alarm, if not prepared for it anyway. I would not allow a surprised guard to do that on the same second, and most likely, not on the next second either (that would be the drop and dodge while inhaling stage), and let them scream on the third round.

[RyanW]

Wait: when Cap gives the order, I AOA (Determined) my target. I believe (and I allow) Aim benefits can be retained through a Wait as long as you keep eyes on the target.

[vicky_molokh]

Originally Posted by RyanW

Wait: when Cap gives the order, I AOA (Determined) my target. I believe (and I allow) Aim benefits can be retained through a Wait as long as you keep eyes on the target.

There's some nuance to this, but yes, that's the gist of it. You can certainly start using more fiddly ways to do it, but I don't see the need. It's perfectly sensible.

[gesus]

It's not by RAW, is it?

[vicky_molokh]

You may take a Wait with a ready
ranged weapon; this is known as “cov-
ering” a target or area. If so, you must
specify the zone that you are covering
with that weapon. There is no penalty
to cover a one-yard area.

Exception: If you watch a single hex
(only), you can Aim and Wait. Each
second you wait for a target also
counts as an Aim maneuver, and you
will get the normal bonus for that
amount of aiming when you finally
attack.

It's somewhat counter-intutive that such 'Aim-and-Wait' is described on B390 under Opportunity Fire, but there is no reason to claim that the manoeuvre cannot apply to waiting for a fire command instead of waiting for an enemy to pop up.
Who's the GM?

[Tuk the Weekah]

Originally Posted by gesus

I'm looking for a way to take down guards not allowing them to sound the alarm.
Let's say we have 3 guards to take out and our squad is made of 3 shooters and 1 coordinator.
If all shooters Aim for a few turns and then coordinator orders to attack, we have a standard turn sequence in the next turn. So if one of guards has his BS between two of shooters, he will have his maneuver, but restricted to "Do Nothing" because of partial surprise (assuming he has Combat Reflexes). During this turn he can scream (this is a free-action and B363 states free actions can be done during any maneuver) and thus sound the alarm.
Shooters can't declare Aim and Wait (for coordinator's command) at the same time. Or can they?
Shooters can't lower their BS to the same low value to not let guards act between them. Or can they?
Shooters can't use Opportunity Fire to combine Aim and Wait because due to RAW they will have to shoot once target appear in the hex. Meaning instantly in this case (target already in the hex). Am I right?
So what can they do?

If your team has a means of telecommunication (ie: the Coordinator is a Telepath or, somewhat more mundanely, they have walkie-talkies or bluetooth-enabled phones), and all 3 snipers are Waiting for the same fire command, I see no reason why the attacks couldn't be (in GURPS terms) simultaneous.

[Peter Knutsen]

Originally Posted by Tuk the Weekah

If your team has a means of telecommunication (ie: the Coordinator is a Telepath or, somewhat more mundanely, they have walkie-talkies or bluetooth-enabled phones), and all 3 snipers are Waiting for the same fire command, I see no reason why the attacks couldn't be (in GURPS terms) simultaneous.

I also see no reason why, if the team drills the procedure extensively, it can't be made into a non-levelled Perk that gives a reasonable bonus to any rolls to avoid timing mishaps in such a situation.

[fredtheobviouspseudonym]

Back in the late 1980s some US company had a gadget. Each sniper rifle had a transmitter-receiver solenoid interposed between the trigger and the rifle's action. A team of up to six snipers could line up on their targets & squeeze the triggers. Only when all six triggers were pulled would the six rifles fire. IIRC the maker claimed the shots would all go off within one-twentieth of a second. The variability had more to do with the rifles' varying lock time than the system.

Or -- just have all snipers on radio. Let the commander say, "Four, three, two, one, shoot!" Should be within about 1/5th second.

[whswhs]

This is the sort of thing where I'd ask for a Leadership roll. Whoever is acting as leader of the fire team can get exact coordination on a success, but not on a failure. You could also apply a Gesture roll, but I think if someone has Leadership skill a separate Gesture roll would be redundant; this is going to be one of the things where a good leader will have made the gestures routine long ago.

Since the intent is to gain effective surprise on the targets, you might also review the surprise rules in the Basic Set.

Bill Stoddard