New 'Notes from the Bunker' up on the WotC site

[chatdemon]

THis time, Rich Redman covers the fine art of selecting a weapon for your Hero, looks pretty good so far, but I've only skimmed it, I'll download and print it out for later when I can give it a thorough read.

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=d20modern/article/20030325a

 

[Plane Sailing]

Having read it, I'm surprised at how lightweight it was really - he just seems to state the obvious about different kinds of weapon.

I think it would have been much more interesting and valuable if he had used his experience to explain why someone might choose a Colt double eagle over a Colt M1911 for instance. It is the finer divisions between weapons within a class (such as sidearms) which is more confusing for those of us who are not particularly gun-literate.

Cheers

 

[Ranger REG]

Should it matter? I mean should there be such a distinction for gamers so they can choose which one has the larger damage potential of that firearms category to go with?

 

[Plane Sailing]

Should it matter? I mean should there be such a distinction for gamers so they can choose which one has the larger damage potential of that firearms category to go with?

The article (and my comment) both revolve around the whole point that it is *not* about the larger damage potential!!

The article makes the point that weapons of the same calibre have the same damage, so choices have to be made on other grounds. My point is that if there are two or more weapons with otherwise similar characteristics, it would be helpful to be given considerations why someone might choose one over another.

Giving us a distinction between longarms and sidearms is pretty pointless because it is so obvious. He would have been better putting his experience to use in helping to understand when you would choose a sidearm with a 40ft increment over a 30ft increment, or one with a slightly higher magazine capacity.

Similarly the licensing levels of a weapon would, I would think, have a potential impact on choices, as would cost.

The two guns that I mention above have identical damage and range. One has an extra two rounds in its clip, but costs 1 wealth point more (16 as against 15). Beyond that, is there a style issue? A "service" issue?

I applaud the target that the article is aiming at, but I'm frustrated that he simply picks the low hanging fruit and leaves us none the wiser about the finer distinctions.

Cheers

 

[takyris]

Ditto that. I don't know much about guns, and I was looking forward to that article as a neat idea on how to choose a gun for a character. I knew that I wanted a handgun and that I was comfortable with anything in the 2d6 range, but beyond that I wanted to pick something that would suit my character's style. That article doesn't really put me in a better place. I KNEW that my character wasn't buying a shotgun or a bazooka.

-Tacky

 

[Ranger REG]

Giving us a distinction between longarms and sidearms is pretty pointless because it is so obvious. He would have been better putting his experience to use in helping to understand when you would choose a sidearm with a 40ft increment over a 30ft increment, or one with a slightly higher magazine capacity.

So, basically you want the pros and con of choosing handguns when the stats are different, such as range increments, correct?

Wouldn't that makes it more of a min/maxing-related article and less of a roleplaying article?

BTW, you can reach Rich Redman on the Game Mechanics company web site (it has a messageboard), if you prefer NOT to use Wizards'.

 

[Plane Sailing]

So, basically you want the pros and con of choosing handguns when the stats are different, such as range increments, correct?

Wouldn't that makes it more of a min/maxing-related article and less of a roleplaying article?

No no no no no!

Maybe I wasn't writing clearly enough!

I want the pros and cons of choosing between named handguns when the stats are the *same* (or as near as dammit the same)

I can minmax on the rules as well as the next guy... I want to know the RPing difference between choices.

 

[Ranger REG]

I want the pros and cons of choosing between named handguns when the stats are the *same* (or as near as dammit the same)

I can minmax on the rules as well as the next guy... I want to know the RPing difference between choices.

Well, barring the additional information from Ultramodern Firearms d20 (by d20 Modern co-designer Charles Ryan) and Redman's material on Ammunition Variants (you can download FREE on the Game Mechanics web site), I see no RPing difference between choices of guns with nearly identical stats used in d20 Modern ... outside of combat, that is.

 

[Plane Sailing]

I see no RPing difference between choices of guns with nearly identical stats used in d20 Modern ... outside of combat, that is.

But that was the whole point of the article we're discussing, wasn't it?

It deals not so much with the numbers as with what's important to your hero, and what those values mean in terms of weapon selection.

Hence the above statement and the parallels drawn with clothing.

If two guns have nearly identical stats, then surely the only effective difference *becomes* RPing differences, no?

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Well, if there are no stat differences, you take the weapons that looks better (which requires you to have images of them, check this web site:
http://www.gweb.de/ttt/d20/d20.htm
Click on "Aussehen der Waffen"

I read the article and found it thousand times better than anything I ever found in Shadowrun Sourcebooks (especially the Cannon Companion), which is quite sad, because Shadowrun and most of its weapons are out since 1989, and D20 Modern is out since 2002/2003 ...

Mustrum Ridcully