Attack value of a lightning bolt

[Stormcrow]

Chainmail page 31 says a lightning bolt from a wizard is "3/4″ wide by 6″ long, with an attack value equal to a heavy field gun." It also says that "both types of missiles can be thrown up to 24″, direct or indirect fire, with range being called before the hit pattern is placed" and "the head of the lightning bolt is placed at the number of inches called, so that its body extends 6″ behind it in a straight line from the wizard who threw it."

So you call out the range within 24″ you want to throw the lightning bolt and put your template or measure as directed and everything touched is killed, so... what exactly does "attack value equal to a heavy field gun" mean? Is it just saying that lightning bolts are the fantasy equivalent to a heavy field gun, or is it directing you to look up something about heavy field guns to get the same information about a lightning bolt—and what is that information?

[Deleted]

Here's from page 14:
"All figures touched by the named color on the dowell are eliminated."


Since for cannons you have the dowels colored with white and black sections and you have to call long (black) or short (white) I would say all figures touched by the 6 inch lighting bolt 3/4 inch wide dowell are eleminated except for the exceptions listed below the lighting bolt discription on page 31 which get saving throws.

[Deleted]

That is correct.

[Stormcrow]

Buuuuut... that doesn't seem to answer my question. With a heavy field gun you call white or black, put a 36″-long, 3/4″-wide dowel at the mouth of the gun, point it at the target, roll a die on the variation measure to check for deviation from the target, then look to see whether any figures or structures touch the dowel.

When throwing a lightning bolt you appear to call out a distance and direction from the wizard, measure this, put the end of the lightning bolt dowel (6″ long, 3/4″ wide) here in line with the wizard, then anything touching the dowel is hit.

You don't use the Heavy Field Gun dowel, because that's 36″ and a lightning bolt can only go 24″, and because lightning bolts presumably don't bounce up and down.

So aside from the fact that you're using a dowel, what is the connection with the Heavy Field Gun?

[Deleted]

The fact the dowell you use is 3/4 inch thick and all figures it touches are removed like the heavy field gun except those types listed below the discription of lighting bolt who gets saves. If the lighting bolt 6 inch dowell TOUCHES any figure they are killed, that's the attack value of the lighting bolt.

[Deleted]

Yep. Essentially like you had a 6" x 3/4" dowel. In fact I'd use a dowel as long as the range of the lightning bolt, and mark the last 6".

[Stormcrow]

Shrug. I guess I completely understand how it's done, and that mention in the book is meaningless. Thanks!

[Deleted]

"any figure touched is killed except as listed below" would have been clearer.

[Starbeard]

It is definitely less clear than it could be, but the way it is written is still useful for a couple of reasons:

1) it shows the background of the Wizard as heavy artillery dressed up in fantasy clothing.

2) by equating the lightning bolt's attack value to the heavy gun, my interpretation has been that the 'list of exceptions' should count for basic Chainmail artillery as well as Wizard missiles.