[High-Tech, Ultra-Tech] Targeting systems questions

[MatthewVilter]

So, this thread got me thinking about targeting systems and how little I know about them. I did some reading and now I have a lot of questions. I hope this is not too much to ask people to parse.

In the Basic Set:

Scanning Sense (Targeting; p. 81-82) lets you take an Aim maneuver to “lock onto” something “just as if you had a high-tech rangefinder.” which gives “+3 to hit” with aimed attacks. I am guessing this is where the rules in Ultra-Tech (and later High-Tech) came from in the first place.

There is a note (p. 364, also HT p. 155) that the combined bonus from targeting systems can’t exceed the base Acc of the weapon. This seems like it will be very important when we start stacking the bonuses in High-Tech or Ultra-Tech.

Page 469 talks about vehicles’ targeting systems. It says that they “add a bonus to the gunner’s effective skill, just like a telescopic sight.” and that they mostly require an Aim maneuver to work. But do they require multiple seconds to work like telescopic sights? It notes “radar-directed fire control” as something that would give +3 which seems right so far but weak when compared to slaving a weapon in Ultra-Tech.


In High-Tech:

Collimating and Reflex Sights (HT p. 156) give “+1 skill” and Targeting Lasers (HT p. 156) give “+1 to hit”. They don’t stack with each other and you can’t use a Reflex Sight with a telescopic sight. This makes sense to me; being able to see where your weapon is pointed should help if you are Aiming or not.

Computer Sights (HT p. 157) have "a targeting program that gives +1 to [skill]" and a laser rangefinder (which gives "+3 Acc out to x yards" in the stat block) and it talks about the shooter lasing the target to get an aiming point and getting "+3 to hit" with an aimed attack. How long this supposed to take? Is it just a part of normal Aiming? I guess the targeting program helps regardless but the rangefinder needs you to aim (and lase before that?)?

Various guns come with or have available Computer Sights with laser rangefinders that give "+3 Acc". Some mention that they take one second to use, some do not. I can’t find where to buy a laser rangefinder separately from a Computer Sight or what its effect would be.

The Targeting Mode on an Active Sensor (HT p. 45) needs to locked on with an Aim maneuver. It then acts "as a rangefinder, determining the target’s precise range and speed." which gives "+3 to hit" with an aimed attack which is cumulative with targeting software. Do rangefinders really give precise speed? Sounds more like lidar to me... We are actually talking about getting a vector and not really just speed, right? If you added a Computer Sight you would get the +1 to skill from the targeting program but would you also stack the +3 Acc from the rangefinder? It seems to me that that would be double dipping...

Some vehicles have a “targeting computer” that gives +1 Gunner. I guess this is more or less the same as the one in the Computer Sights and, like those, just works all the time.

Bow rangefinders (and/or some other things; HT p. 201) give "+1 Acc". I would think that if anything would get strong dividends on a rangefinder it would be a bow...


In Ultra-Tech:

Binoculars (UT p. 60) include a laser rangefinder. Could this be used in conjunction with a gun to to claim some bonus to hit, skill, or Acc? Again, I can’t find where to buy a laser rangefinder as an accessory.

The “rangefinder mode” on a tactical Active Sensor (UT p. 63) needs to locked on with an Aim maneuver. Again this gives “precise range and speed” and gives “+3 to Hit” with an aimed attack but this time only “in conjunction with targeting software”.

A HUD Link (UT p. 149) tells you exactly where your gun is pointing. This sounds a lot like a Targeting Laser/Laser Sight (HT p. 156, UT p. 149) or a Reflex Sight (HT p. 156) to me but instead of giving “+1 to hit” or “+1 to skill” like those and not stacking with them it gives “+1 Acc” and is “not cumulative with the Acc bonus for other targeting systems“. Does that mean that it does not help with unaimed shots at all and is cumulative with a Targeting Laser? This seems like it would come up a lot because Smartgun Electronics (also UT p. 149) include both.

Compact and Enhanced Targeting Scopes (UT p. 149) interface with the weapon’s “HUD sight” (HUD Link?) giving a bonus of between +2 and +5 “to aimed shots” which I guess is in addition to the “+1 Acc” from the HUD Link. Or is “bonus to aimed shots” synonymous with Acc? Also; these bonuses match the bonuses that one could get from the scopes’ magnification, are they in addition? If not do they take n seconds to use the way High-Tech scopes do?

A Targeting program (UT p. 149) gives either +1 or +2 to skill if used with a HUD Link. Again, I guess, in addition to the +1 Acc from the HUD Link? If you are using a tactical sensor and a mounted weapon with the Targeting program you can “slave” the weapon to the program which gives you doubled Acc instead of “all the bonuses for scopes, computers, sensors, etc.” So I guess this includes non-Acc bonuses like from Targeting Lasers and Reflex Sights?


So:

Do bonuses to skill and to hit (like from Targeting Lasers, vehicles’ targeting systems, Reflex Sights, and Targeting programs) count against the base weapon Acc limit on targeting bonuses? Looking at the rules for weapons slaved to sensors I would think yes.

Why do Computer Sights using laser rangefinders give the same bonus that a tactical radar or lidar would? Maybe I am not understanding what is meant by “laser rangefinder”?

Does locking onto a target with an Aim maneuver count as Aiming at it for your attacks next turn or do you need to lock on and then aim and then fire?

Is there or should there be a skill roll to lock on?

Ultra-Tech’s tactical Sensors only working “in conjunction with targeting software” doesn’t matter most of the time, right? It is more troublesome to get a tactical sensor on your gun then targeting software, I would think (and having both with a mounted weapon seems more likely than not).

Should there be Ultra-Tech laser rangefinders like the ones in High-Tech available to link with your Targeting program and/or Scope and/or HUD? I poked my head (-2 for a pop up attack) into Tactical Shooting (which explains rangefinding on p. 27) for this one and with that kind of bonus it seems like a laser rangefinder and auto-adjusting sights should be a part of every serious Ultra-Tech shooter’s kit if not simply added to all Smartgun Electronics.


You made it to the end! Thank you! :D