The BrikWars Forums

So yeah, while these rules work and I especially like weapons not having ranges, I think they could use some work...

For instant, lack of range limitations makes movement kind of moot point for anything besides ramming.
What I suggest is adding "Railguns" to the standard weapons list, then altering "Burst Cannons" into their polar opposite.
These "Flak Cannons" still have the burst effect of potentially damaging any craft within three inches of a target, but also suffer from damage falloff if the target is more then a certain distance away.

Also would be good just outright remove length restrictions on Ship Classes, and maybe somehow standardize CP cost with Fleet Points instead.

Perhaps it has been modified recently, but weapons do have a maximum range, and its pretty restrictive. Firing arc would probably be better for emphasizing maneuver, but I can see that as subject to abuse. (why yes, all of my weapons are in 360 degree turrets even though none of them could actually see that much space, it's microscale and not entirely accurate!)

My biggest problem is that railguns don't lose damage with range. In space, there is no friction, and a big metal slug won't slow down as it travels. They will lose accuracy, as will any unguided weapon (like a laser beam). In fact, lasers diffuse surprisingly quickly, so should lose damage pretty quick. They are devastating up close, but at longer ranges...

Those are just my thoughts, and they all go against the cinematic, space-opera-y feel of Brikwars fleets. But what can I say, I've been ruined by the Atomic Rocket website. Read it! It's great! But never expect to look at Star Wars the same way again...

IX_Legion wrote:Perhaps it has been modified recently, but weapons do have a maximum range, and its pretty restrictive. Firing arc would probably be better for emphasizing maneuver, but I can see that as subject to abuse. (why yes, all of my weapons are in 360 degree turrets even though none of them could actually see that much space, it's microscale and not entirely accurate!)

Yes it list ranges, but they are apparently not used for anything since hits are determined by rolling Weapon Accuracy verses Agility Rating.

IX_Legion wrote:My biggest problem is that railguns don't lose damage with range. In space, there is no friction, and a big metal slug won't slow down as it travels.

No no no no no!
I was suggesting replacing the "Burst Cannons" with "Flak Cannons", the idea being they'd use fragmentation explosives on timers.

Railguns with the current rules ironically do MORE damage at longer ranges and are completely ineffective at point blank for some reason...
...My guess is the kinetic kill vehicle is somehow creating thrust for itself after launch, but Brikwars are rarely the place for ballistics physics.

IX_Legion wrote:Those are just my thoughts, and they all go against the cinematic, space-opera-y feel of Brikwars fleets. But what can I say, I've been ruined by the Atomic Rocket website. Read it! It's great! But never expect to look at Star Wars the same way again...

Yes I'm familar with that site...

...Weirdly enough, it inspired me to imagine why far future space wars would actually be fought with Gundams...

Whiteagle wrote:

IX_Legion wrote:Perhaps it has been modified recently, but weapons do have a maximum range, and its pretty restrictive. Firing arc would probably be better for emphasizing maneuver, but I can see that as subject to abuse. (why yes, all of my weapons are in 360 degree turrets even though none of them could actually see that much space, it's microscale and not entirely accurate!)

Yes it list ranges, but they are apparently not used for anything since hits are determined by rolling Weapon Accuracy verses Agility Rating.

Yeah, and in regular Brikwars you roll skill vs use to see if you hit, but the range limits are still in effect. Accuracy doesn't degrade at long range using this system, but there you go.

Whiteagle wrote:

IX_Legion wrote:My biggest problem is that railguns don't lose damage with range. In space, there is no friction, and a big metal slug won't slow down as it travels.

No no no no no!
I was suggesting replacing the "Burst Cannons" with "Flak Cannons", the idea being they'd use fragmentation explosives on timers.

Railguns with the current rules ironically do MORE damage at longer ranges and are completely ineffective at point blank for some reason...
...My guess is the kinetic kill vehicle is somehow creating thrust for itself after launch, but Brikwars are rarely the place for ballistics physics.

Ah, sorry, misread the rule there. That's actually pretty good for a kinetic kill slug that is mounted with a drive and launched at relatively low velocity initially.

And I really wasn't saying anything about the Burst/Flak cannons, my comment was directed toward the railgun rules which I misread.

IX_Legion wrote:Yeah, and in regular Brikwars you roll skill vs use to see if you hit, but the range limits are still in effect. Accuracy doesn't degrade at long range using this system, but there you go.

True, but in regular Brikwars there needs to be an incentive to close distances for glorious CQC Ultraviolence instead of blasting away at things with huge ass cannons.
BrikSpace rolls are set up so that smaller weapons are more likely to hit anything, but might not overcome somethings armor.

IX_Legion wrote:Ah, sorry, misread the rule there. That's actually pretty good for a kinetic kill slug that is mounted with a drive and launched at relatively low velocity initially.

And I really wasn't saying anything about the Burst/Flak cannons, my comment was directed toward the railgun rules which I misread.

Yeah, I just wanted to clarify what's what.

Edit: Looking at various weapon stats and how out of whack they are with each other, here's my revised table:

Laser Weapons
Small - Cost: 2 Cp, Damage Rating: 1d6
Medium - Cost: 4 Cp, Damage Rating: 2d6+2
Large - Cost: 8, Damage Rating: 3d6

Rockets/Torpedoes
Small - Cost: 3 Cp, Damage Rating: 1d6+1d4
Medium - Cost: 6 Cp, Damage Rating: 3d6-2
Large - Cost: 12, Damage Rating: 1d10+2d6

Flak Cannons (Burst special - Any ship within 3" radius of the target must roll a d6, on a +4 they also take damage)
Small: 4CP, Damage: 1d6+2 (<8") | 1d4 (+8")
Medium: 6CP, Damage: 3d6 (<8") | 1d6+2 (+8")
Large: 12CP, Damage: 4d6+2 (<8")| 2d6+1 (+8")

Railguns (Slow Starting special - Ineffective closer then 2")
Small: 4CP, Damage: 1d4 (2-6") | 1d6+2 (+6")
Medium: 6CP, Damage: 1d6+2 (2-6") | 3d6 (+6")
Large: 12CP, Damage: 2d6+1 (2-6") | 4d6+2 (+6")

Whiteagle wrote:

IX_Legion wrote:Yeah, and in regular Brikwars you roll skill vs use to see if you hit, but the range limits are still in effect. Accuracy doesn't degrade at long range using this system, but there you go.

True, but in regular Brikwars there needs to be an incentive to close distances for glorious CQC Ultraviolence instead of blasting away at things with huge ass cannons.
BrikSpace rolls are set up so that smaller weapons are more likely to hit anything, but might not overcome somethings armor.

Throw in "Plasma Cannons" or something: a weapon that does massive amounts of damage but is limited in range (like 2"-3" max).