[NetEpic ML] Re: Rules Questions for Everyone!

From: Warprat <warprat_at_...>
Date: Mon, 24 Jan 2000 02:09:20 -0800

Hi Andy,

Thanks for taking the time to help sort through these rules questions!


(Warprat)
I can understand Pods not being able to land in rivers and marshes, but
why can't the Pods land on the tops of buildings, or land in forests, or
difficult terrain. The pod does not move, only lands. Why can tracked
vehicles move in these kinds of terrain but not Pods landing.

(Andy)
The following are just my opinion on why the rules are like they are.
That is a good point, however when a pod lands on a building it probably
crashes through the top floor and down into the building somewhere, the
odds of it landing right side up and not being burried in the rubble in
creates are so small that it is easier to just say that by the time the
troops inside are able to get out, if ever, the battle has been
finished. As for the forest, the trees could possibly tip or damage the
pods. If they could land in forests it would make the pods more powerful
which would affect game balance. Also you could have the problem of
dropping pods on units you are unable to see. But I do agree that the
pods could have a possibility (1-3 or destroyed) of landing in the
forest, but that would entail new rules.

(Warprat)
That's a good point about the Pods crashing though the top floor, and
something I hadn't considered. I think that Pods landing in buidings,
forests, and difficult terrain are going to survive. In the case of
buildings, and being surrounded by destroyed buiding material, they
would have great difficulty opening up.

My opinion is that forests should not pose a great problem for Pods.
Pods landing on normal sized armored vehicles destroy them, is a tree
going to do any more damage than a armored vehicle? Difficult terrain
should not pose a great problem either. But Deathwind and Support Pods
landing in forests and perhaps difficult terrain would have thier LOS
blocked and be worthless.




(Warprat)
What about buildings that are occupied by enemy troops that are not seen
by any friendly troops. Can these buildings be targeted? How can your
artillery know that that is THE BUILDING to target, if the enemy trops
are not visable? Also, is it possible to target enemy infantry in
woods, when they are not visable to any of your own troops? How can
your artillery know THE PATCH OF TREES to bombard, if the enemy remains
unseen?

(Andy)
In all fairness, I would have to say that in the 41st century the
detection equipment / psykics would be advanced enoughto know general
locations of enemy units. They would probably know that enemy troops
are in a certain building and therefore could fire at the building,
however a forest is usually larger than a building and while knowing the
general area of the troops it would not be possible to target them
effectively. Therefore I would say that building could be targeted at
anytime, but troops in a forest would be off limits to enemy fire if not
visible. Once again this is an issue of game balance. If troops are
allowed to be bombarded in a forest, their value would be severly
diminished.

(Warprat)
Well, I read the rules a little more carefully. Troops in buildings
that are not visable to the enemy cannot be targeted. This IS how I
remember it in the "Old Days", and something that has always been a
problem with the Epic rules.

I'm sure you know the senario well:

Enemy troop charges into forest/building, friendly troops loses LOS, now
you can not bombard the troop indirectly.

You, The All Knowing General, can see the the enemy troop cowering in
the back of the building, but you cannot target it. You can target any
empty buildings on either side of the enemy occupied building, but not
the buiding in which the hidden troop is positioned in, (Even though, in
your troops eyes, all the building are empty).

I don't have a great solution to this problem, but I have a couple of
ideas.

1) Snap fire at the unit, before it enters cover.
2) Allow unseen units to be fired at by adding an extra scatter dice
roll, or maybe two rolls.


As a side note:

I once played a WWII type game with a local opponent. He was defending
a costal town with a forest around it. In front of the forest was a
long hill. Behind this hill I placed my heavily armored Joseph Stalin
III tanks. Out in the sea, I had my Battleship.

My observers on the hill ordered the woods to be targeted by the
battleship guns, tons of trees were hurled into the air.....

And then the enemy counterfired his artillery onto my beutifull tanks,
hidden behind the hill. Each shell was targeted exactly on the spot
where one of my tanks rested. I asked, "How do you know where to
target?", "How do you even know that I have any thing behind the hill?"

Answer: "I heard the engines."



(Andy)
I do not totally understand the Netepic version of titan vs. smaller CC,
could someone give an example of how this would work.

(Warprat)
In the old rules, titans fought smaller units by adding thier CAF and
two dice. The normal Close Combat. Netepic, changed this. Now, small
units attacking titans, must surround the very legs and attempt to ram
(for vehichles), or attack the foot (for troops). These units must
first survive the Titan Defense System, (a one in six chance). If the
small units survive the Titan Defence System, they get the chance to
damage the foot, modified by the small unit's CAF.

Titans MUST use this same system to ATTACK small units. And that is
where the problem is. If a titan chooses to attack a couple of small
units, the titan would recieve NO damage, under the old rules. But now,
there is ALWAYS the possibility of some small unit destroying a titan if
it gets very lucky.

That's why I think the titan should be able to turn OFF the Titan
Defense System, and use the old rules when it chooses to.



(Andy)
I did have one other thought that came up in a game a few weeks ago. Are
cavalry able to engage troops that are using forest for cover.
Technically they are inside the forest, and cavalry cannot charge into
forest, only advance through. Would the cavalry be able to initiate CC
with troops that are peeking out of forest?
 
(Warprat)
My feeling is that any mounted unit, such as Rough Riders, Boar Boyz,
and Beast Riders, should be able to charge though the woods. Bikes are
considered vehicles, but must advance through woods. Read the Netepic
description of Bike Squads, and Rough Riders. Read, also, the terrain
chart in the NetEpic rules.

A unit may not initiate close combat unless it has charge orders, and
can move through the terrain it wants to attack into. Consider that
vehicles may not close asault troops in buidings.



Let me know what you think!

Warprat ;)
Received on Mon Jan 24 2000 - 10:09:20 UTC