Last article I wrote about improving infantry in Battletech. Strangely enough the article mimicked the rules in the new BT rulebook Maximum Tech, which hit the streetsjust before the NOVAG News did. So if you like the idea of better grunts, but want the official rules, check out the new supplement. There are a lot of great rules addition and changes, and a few bad ones, but it's all level three and completely optional. By the way, I just got back from GENCON and there are big things happening with the clans. Expect some house cleaning over the next year or two. New products over the next few weeks are Glory Road and the Mercenary Field Manual.

Now, let's play games. Try this variant. It makes for quicker, deadlier games and fits well into campaigns. First assume as long as a weapon is in range it is not impossible to hit any target and there are no automatic hits. The roll to hit will affect the outcome of the hit. Consult the table below after rolling.

A roll of 2 always misses. The weapon firing "jams" (for energy weapons, a circuit fries). That weapon is unusable for the rest of the battle, but may be repaired in a campaign.

A roll of 3 always misses.

A roll of 11 always hits.

A roll of 12 always hits with a possible critical. Yes, this means if you roll a 12 to hit, a 2 (center torso possible crit) and penetrate the torso armor, you get three rolls for critical hits.

Another variation takes into consideration the size of the target. It always seemed strange that it was no easier to hit a 100 ton bipedal mech than it was to hit a 5 ton low profile vehicle. Just add the size modifiers below as you would for movement or terrain.

Building sized targets -4
Assault mechs -3
Heavy mechs and Assault vehicles -2
Medium mechs and Heavy vehicles -1
Light mechs and Medium vehicles 0
Light vehicles and Battle Armor +1
Infantry +2

Personal gripe of the month

A mech can attempt to jump on an active, moving, firing opponent, and if the jumper hits or misses, the jumper gets a piloting roll to determine if he falls after the attack. A mech can also run through a building of any strength value, smashing the wall as he goes. Again, the pilot rolls to see if he remains standing.

Why, I asked many times, does a mech that jumps on a building automatically fall? I been told it's because the pilot is unprepared for a fall through the roof and is unaware of the basement that he falls into. Since the same can be said for smashing through walls, AND there are rules for determining if a basement exists, the argument seems invalid. I suggest that in this situation, or any similar situation, piloting rolls should always be made.

Lastly let me suggest a new weapon: the Gatling Gun. This is basically a multi barrel machine gun and so uses standard MG ammo. The extra mechanics and faster firing rate cause heat and ammo is burned faster, but the the design is more efficient and does more damage. Custom designs can be made following these guide lines:

1) Decide on a number of barrels (maximum of 12?)
2) Damage is equal to the number of barrels plus two.
3) Weight is 1/2 ton per barrel.
4) Critical hits are up to 4 barrels: one critical, up to 8 barrels: 2 criticals, up to 12 barrels: 3 criticals.
5) Ammo used is equal to the number of barrels x5.
6) Cost is a base of 5000 plus 5000 x number of barrels.
7) Combat value is 10 times the number of barrels.

The chart below gives some examples.

type	heat	damage	short	medium	long	weight	crit	ammo	cost	cv
3GG	2	5	1	2	3	1.5	1	15	20,000	30
6GG	5	8	1	2	3	2	2	30	35,000	60
8GG	7	10	1	2	3	2.5	2	40	45,000	80