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Author Topic: Request for Comments: Combat System  (Read 912 times)

afrodri

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Request for Comments: Combat System
« on: July 11, 2021, 01:38:17 PM »

I'm looking for some feedback on some experimental combat rules for ballistic weapons. This is for the VSF 'Hive, Queen, and Country' setting / rule set.

The linked document (PDF format) explains the rules and how they were developed. The actual rules are only about 4 pages (pages 2-6) with examples. The bulk of the document is the sources and data used to come up with the modifiers.

The basic form of the rules is standard (roll to-hit, roll to-damage) and uses an 'opposed roll' system to get the right statistical distribution. I gathered data from a number of sources, particularly US DOD Project SALVO documents, to calibrate.

Any thoughts or comments would be appreciated! We're starting work on a book of 'space equipment', which this will probably be a part of.

Combat Rules (PDF)

Some more info on the setting:

Setting (PDF)
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For more info, join the HQC mailing list: https://groups.io/g/Hivequeen/

Kyle Aaron

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Re: Request for Comments: Combat System
« Reply #1 on: October 31, 2021, 10:40:30 PM »
I think you've gone into a bit more detail than most people have an appetite for, which might be why you have a few hundred views but no comments. That's alright, you have to make the game you want to make, just be aware of the potential audience.

Speaking generally, my game design is motivated by - well, I work as a trainer, and I often work with some pretty smashed-up people. And the saying is that the difference between a medicine and a poison is the dosage. Training's the same: we want the minimum effective dose. I think the same about game rules: we want the minimum effective dose of rules. This is often less than you think.

In this video - from Townsends, a very wholesome fellow whom everyone should follow - the point is made that a three-legged stool will be steady on any ground, but a four-legged stool requires a perfectly flat finished floor. As usual, simpler is more adaptable and resilient - even down to the number of legs on your stool.

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