These are reactive shields that are ablative like the 'screen' version, but at a much lower stopping power. It costs 1 cp per SP of protection. The advantage to this is that you may recharge these shields though the use of energy points, the same ones as utilized in Energy Pools. It takes one Energy Point(EP) to regenerate one SP that was lost by damage.
Regenerating Reactive shields act like Screens in that every hit to them reduce their SP by the same amount. A 2 kill weapon hitting with a burst of five will drop the shield by 10 SP.
Regenerating these shields require a backup energy source. A fully loaded Energy Pool Battery would provide 50EP as a backup, or you can use 'Energy Reactors'. In the case of a Battery, the battery will automatically supply replacement energy to the Shields one time at the beginning of the turn. All other additional recharging takes an action per recharge.
Energy Reactors cost 1CP and take up one space per 2EP of recharge per turn. This recharge is automatic per turn, counting the recharge at the end of the turn. Energy Reactors are smart enough not to 'Overcharge' the reactive shields or Energy Pools that they are 'Linked' to. They have one kill per 2EP which counts for weight purposes only.
Energy Storage costs 1CP and one space per 10 energy points that it can hold in any one time. It has one kill per 10 EP that counts for weight only. Energy storage is the same exact thing as the battery version of an Energy Pool. RAM armor or Energy Reactors can link to it and it can link to either Energy Pools, systems that have the 'Requires Energy' multiplier or Regenerating Reactive Shields.
Linking costs are reduced by one CP for any one system per energy system. This effectively makes the linking free to one system that is in the same servo or only cost one CP for one that is in another servo.
Multiflex is similar to Energy Pools. It is both more flexible though a tiny bit stripped down. Multiflex is more flexible because you can use it with ANY system. You may also determine the exact number of portfolios and cp that can be used to create systems. The only thing stripped from it is the capacity to have the system 'pumped' to god like levels by the incursion of massive amounts of Energy. For Referees allowing players to design their own mecha, this is probably a good thing.
First thing to know is what exactly is going to be the highest cost of a system in the Multiflex? Determining this will give you your base CP for the system. Next thing you need to know is the number and types of systems that you want represented by the Multiflex.
Your portfolio level depends on both the number of seperate systems it can switch to as well as the number of different TYPES. For each additional type of system after the first, you add one to the effective portfolio level.
Portfolio Multiplier- Level 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 ... Multi 1.00 1.22 1.41 1.58 1.73 1.87 2.00 2.12 2.24 2.35 ... (Multi = sqrt((1+level)/2)
Example: If you buy three different types of beam weapons, you have a portfolio level of 3 (with a system multi of x1.41). One for each beam weapon. If you want to represent 3 beam weapons, 2 energy melee weapons and a projectile weapon, that counts as a level 8 Portfolio (with a system multi of x2.12). 3 beam + 2 EMW + 1 Projectile + 2 one for each system type beyond the first. It might be noted that Ammo must be bought separately for each type needed. Though, there could be such thing as multiflex ammo clips...
These weapons may target and fire on any enemy in a 360 degree angle within range. This should not be confused with the wide angle fire option for beam weapons. (Which fire on ALL targets with in their range.) The cost to the weapon is (x1.3). The weapon is not considered to be protected by the servo that supports it. The weapon takes up only one space. (But the servo still must be able to support the weapon space. Treat it like a hand held weapon.)
I really would not like to assume that the sensors in Mekton Z are Protected equally by the armor that protects the rest of the servo it is housed in, at least not to a called shot. This shot is aimed at the unprotected part of the sensors that views the outside world. In general, there should be a good reason to buy backup sensors other than getting your entire mecha's head blown off.
Each five missiles in an attack against a single target gives the target a -1 penalty to the evasion/dodge roll. (AMS and ECM still get full value.)
Reason: I would imagine it would be more difficult to avoid any damage from a swarm of 20 missiles coming at you than a single missile. As written in the rules for MZ it is just as easy do dodge a mass swarm of missiles then it is a single one. It just hurts more if you don't make the dodge.
You may use any projectile Ammunition option as part of a missile warhead. If the Ammo type used has a multiplier greater then x2, divide the multiplier by 2. (Except for nuclear, as it already an option in Missile Weapons. One other multiplier for missiles is Nuclionic. (This is from the old MTS book.)
Nuclionic is similar to scattershot in that it hits all locations of the target, but it hits at full damage for each location. Use the rules for Mega-beam in the beam weapons. The Nuclionic multiplier is x10.
There is no strike roll as it is automatically assumed that the attack roll is a 10+WAx3 This gives it a range between 9 and 21. There are no modifiers for weapon skill or MV for the attacker. Reason ( A wide beam attack is not really controlled by the pilot or the mech in the locations of the area covered. ) There is of course still the penalty for longer than effective combat range.
The effect of wings realistically do not make a vehicle go faster. (They actually add drag.) Instead, they add to the lift and the handling of the craft. (If a fighter form craft doesn't have wings, and is not VTOL, add 2 to the minimum airspeed of the craft, making it fly at 6 hexes minimum.) Instead of adding a +2 Flight MA, give it a +1 Flight MV Bonus. This is optional with the standard +2 MA.
Non-VTOL aircraft need a minimum length of runway of twice their minimum Flight MA to both take off and land. (ie. about 400m for your standard fighter) Landing is an Easy check on a runway 200% of the minimum, average roll for the minimum, difficult at 75%, very difficult at 50%, Nearly impossible at 25%. None of these take in to fact of ram assisted takeoffs and arrester cable landings.
With the listed cost, no one in their right mind will take a backup generator if they can get another VMAX. With its limited duration and flexibility, it costs way too much. (How many multiplier systems can you get to add up to the cost of that one system?) Instead it should be a 0.3 cost multiplier system.
Assume that a combustion power plant has about 10 hours of continuos use. With this in mind you could buy extra endurance in the forms of the fuel tanks used in the propulsion rules. Each tank would add on another 10 hours of endurance. In addition, for an extra multiplier of x.08 to the power plant, the fuel types could be interchangeable with the thruster fuel. (At a trade off of about 50km of flight per hour of operation.)
1/4(10) of forty missiles is good. This could even be 1/10 of ten missiles allowing only one missile to be fired off per turn. Umm... 1/20 of ten? One being fired off every other turn.) Now we can find the cost multiplier.
Fraction of missiles 1/2 1/3 1/4 1/5 Multiplier .75 .67 .63 .60For those who have gotten to know that I like having neat little equations for figuring out things, (such as the range modifier for weapons,) Here is the one for up above.
Multiplier = (fraction+1)/2
Simple?
It is the same as the range multiplier.
This multiplier is effective for both the cost and the space of the missile system. The weight is figured out normally.
These propulsion units fly the line between standard thrusters and gravtics. They follow the rules of inertia, make lots of noise, and act like jump jets if the MA is below 8, just like thrusters do. On the other hand, they do not require a propellant, they may be used to exit the atmosphere if they have a MA of at least 16 (It would take a very long time, but eventually you would even be able to escape a planet's gravity well.), and they may enter the atmosphere without reentry multipliers or options (with the same rules as gravtics). The Multiplier for a MA of 8 is (x0.35).
Other RPG problems fan jets might have is the inability to protect them in most environments such as desert or arctic. Grit can still find its way in and they are not 'hot' enough to melt ice that might cause a freeze up of the fan turbines.