25mm Grenade Launchers

[Anaximander]

My players picked up a 25mm Grenade Launcher, whose stats I based off of the under-barrel grenade launcher listed in GURPS Ultra-Tech. Loaded with HE rounds, they are practically useless at damaging armored opponents; which are relatively frequent in my game.

They seem to be able to pin the enemy down. The explosion itself causes some knockback and conceivably forces some will checks, but only on a direct hit. The fragmentation damage also does nothing to an armored target and there's really no point in indirect fire except to make noise and maybe collateral damage.

This is not the role I envisioned for GLs in my game. I rather figured that the GL would be used to frag the big, tough targets. Is there something I am missing in the stats of the weapon and how it does damage? How can I improve this without handing out shaped charge warheads and rpgs?

[gilbertocarlos]

Next time give a real grenade launcher, 40mm+, so, the ammo will be heavier, more expensive, rarer as well as stronger, and then, they will not use it in mooks.

[Refplace]

Grenade launchers not designed for bigger heavier targets anyhow.
Good for when you have to make an indirect attack against lightly armored foes or suppression activities.

[Joseph Paul]

Unless you have really heavily armored opponents let the players have some 25mm shaped charge rounds. That will liven things up.

Is this a modern day game or a UT game?

[Peter Knutsen]

Originally Posted by gilbertocarlos

Next time give a real grenade launcher, 40mm+, so, the ammo will be heavier, more expensive, rarer as well as stronger, and then, they will not use it in mooks.

Yes. 25mm sounds tiny. Maybe it'll be useful for lobbing specialty rounds, such as flash-bangs, concussion or various forms of gas?

[Ulzgoroth]

Originally Posted by gilbertocarlos

Next time give a real grenade launcher, 40mm+, so, the ammo will be heavier, more expensive, rarer as well as stronger, and then, they will not use it in mooks.

HE grenades are primarily for using on 'mooks'. 40mm HE is more useful than 25mm but still not much good against TL9 hard targets.

[Gold & Appel Inc]

Originally Posted by Anaximander

My players picked up a 25mm Grenade Launcher, whose stats I based off of the under-barrel grenade launcher listed in GURPS Ultra-Tech. Loaded with HE rounds, they are practically useless at damaging armored opponents; which are relatively frequent in my game.

[snip] This is not the role I envisioned for GLs in my game. I rather figured that the GL would be used to frag the big, tough targets. Is there something I am missing in the stats of the weapon and how it does damage? How can I improve this without handing out shaped charge warheads and rpgs?

Shaped Charge Warheads are how GLs frag big, tough targets.

[vicky_molokh]

Originally Posted by Anaximander

The explosion itself causes some knockback and conceivably forces some will checks, but only on a direct hit. The fragmentation damage also does nothing to an armored target and there's really no point in indirect fire except to make noise and maybe collateral damage.

Why? The damage from a direct hit is trivial compared to the damage from the explosion that comes right after the hit. Explosions are also scarier then being hit by its slug.

Some official rules on fright checks:

Originally Posted by TS34

"Typical situations include [ . . . ] being the target of a near miss (by 2 or less) from
any attack; being in the blast zone of an explosion (2 ¥ dice of
damage in yards);"
"-2 for a non-penetrating
hit;"

So if a formation of battlesuits is hit by a 25mm grenade (4d) will suffer Fright Checks in a radius of 8 yards from impact. Not much in the field, but devastating in trenches, tunnels etc.

[Ulzgoroth]

Originally Posted by vicky_molokh

So if a formation of battlesuits is hit by a 25mm grenade (4d) will suffer Fright Checks in a radius of 8 yards from impact. Not much in the field, but devastating in trenches, tunnels etc.

I would suggest that being fully protected from the explosion by sealed armor would substantially reduce its impact, even compared to being fully protected by normal armor.

[Fred Brackin]

Originally Posted by Ulzgoroth

I would suggest that being fully protected from the explosion by sealed armor would substantially reduce its impact, even compared to being fully protected by normal armor.

Also note that UT battlesuits have Protected Vision and Hearing. This definitely stops the extra effects of explosions from HT and Tactical Shooting. It should probably reduce any other psychological effects.

Serious battlesuit training probaly live fires ineffective grenade rounds at the trainees. A battlesuit is _supposed_ to make you immune to the effects of light weapons such as HE grenades. Actally it's probably supposed to protect from relativley heavy weapons like IEDs.