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Alternative lasersight builds?


Susano

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Someone was looking over one of my designs and noted the stats for the lasersight (as presented in Dark Champions). He questioned the validity of the build, which leads me to ask -- is it too cinematic/powerful? Does anyone have any experience with using such a sight and what the practical range for such a device might be?

 

Personally, I'm considering halving the benefits from a lasersight, if only for game balance purposes. I also want to have the benefits for non-braced characters. i.e. if the sight gives you +2 OCV and +8 versus Range Mods, you only get +1 OCV and +4 versus Range Mods if firing without Set and/or Brace.

 

Thoughts?

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Re: Alternative lasersight builds?

 

In our Dark Champions campaign we rebuilt laser sights (actually we rebuilt just about all of the different sights).

 

Our laser sights grant a +1 OCV and a +1 RMod. We also cut back the range 32" for pistol/low-power versions and 64" for rifle/high-powered versions.

 

So yeah, I guess you could say that we believe that the default versions given in Dark Champions are way over-powered.

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Re: Alternative lasersight builds?

 

Mine is almost identical to Edsels, +1/+1 range 32 or 64, really the only difference is I use Dex modifiers for weapons (for initiative purposes) so if a weapon is equiped with a laser sight I give a +2 dex mod.

 

I personally have never used a laser sight but some of my friends have, none were terribly impressed and at least one complained it kind of confused him, he kept changing his focus between the sights and the laser sight dot.

 

I really think the movies have really played up laser sights, because laser sights are now very cheap (about $200) and very small (can fit along the trigger guard of a pistol) but they still really are not all that popular. I have a couple of friends who are police officers and I also work with quite a few police officers, very few use laser sights (in fact I don't think even one that I know does).

 

I like the idea for the split braced not braced, I was toying with a similar idea for telescopic sights, low power tend to be quick to use while high power are impossible without taking some time to stabilize it and get it on target. However with a laser sight the one advantage they seem to have is not requiring the gun to be at the plane of the eye (you can aim the gun from under a table or other location not visible from the shooters eye) and they can be a little faster than plain iron sights since you are just putting the dot on the target.

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Re: Alternative lasersight builds?

 

I'm still interested in your thoughts on splitting OCV / RMOD between braced, set and unbraced unset. I like the idea and have toyed with it but not really done much with it.

 

 

What I would like to do is have high power telescopic sights be a hinderance without taking time to aim properly (perhaps even a second set action for the really high powered 12x + sights), while low powered sights require only a brace action to get full effect. I would like sights to be much more than just a + OCV / RMOD, I have seen very few games that have penalties for high powered sights, but in reality there is a reason you don't see 16x scopes on assault rifles besides cost, even most sniper rifles are 10x or less. High power sights are bulky and slow to use but offer great advantage when the time is available to properly aim them. Also it could give an advantage to variable power scopes (3x 6x 9x) over fixed power scopes, again in real life there is a reason people will buy a more expensive, more complicated scope, they are adjustable allowing the best of both worlds, high power for range and low power for quick use. I have some hand wavium ideas but I would be interested in some within the rules ideas as well as other ideas along the same lines (either rules or concepts).

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Re: Alternative lasersight builds?

 

Primary Problems of Laser Sights:

 

1. Poor performance in daylight

2. Poor performance against back-lit targets

3. Reveals your position to the enemy (as one friend puts it on another technology, Tracers work BOTH ways!)

4. If you use Infra Red Lasers to negate #3, any enemy with night vision will cancel the benefit.

5. Breaks discipline of aiming with your iron sights. However you do get better peripheral vision.

6. Sometimes you can't see the dot on some surfaces making it a bit tricky in getting the dot on your target unless you revert to using the iron sight.

 

A good alternative to the laser sight is the under barrel flashlight. It illuminates the target, and gives you a general idea that you are aimed properly as well as allowing you to maintain proper aiming discipline.

 

I think the best way to depict laser sights is to give +4 vs. called shots with a SET/BRACE manuever.

 

Think of it this way, do you think they would help you shoot a half-dollar tossed in the air? How about shooting while dangling upside down from a helicopter? In a blizzard!

 

They also won't help you calculate deviation from wind, deflection from soft cover, etc.

 

Just some ideas!

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