Guns, Firearms and Modern Mayhem

[Wothbora]

While I am content to endlessly explore a Medieval type of world, my 11-year old wants to play something more modern for a break. I bought some Politically Incorrect Games (Coyote Trail, Ghostories, Hardnova and EarthAD) and have given them all a good read (interesting to see how far RPG's have come, but not my cup of tea)... One of my Arduin Books has some info on guns and such, but still it is hard to make a jump from what I am familiar with.

I also have a copy of Metamorphosis Alpha from RPGNow, but was wondering if anyone has created some charts for combat that they'd be willing to share. I guess what I'm looking for is a combat chart that breaks down armor class into a method that takes account for the size and damage of a modern weapon...

[murquhart72]

Not official, but I'd treat modern missile weapons the same as archaic ones. Give them maybe better range, perhaps a different rate of fire and go! Just a die for damage, like everything else. After all, a dagger thrown into one's chest will kill just as readily as a bullet.
P.S. Maybe treat grenades as Fireballs? Ray guns as Lightning Bolts?

[badger2305]

There is the Sturmgeschutz and Sorcery article from The Strategic Review; that has relatively modern weaponry translated into a D&D context. (I sent a copy to Wothbora already)

[Stonegiant]

There are also the two Ed Greenwood articles that are reprinted in the Best of Dragon #5; these two detail black powder firearms. Another one is the 1st edition AD&D DMG and the section on Gamma World and Boothill crossovers. In Dragon #100 (IIRC) is an article entitled Modern Monsters and that gives details like 9mm damage, being struck by a car, etc.

[Wothbora]

Many thanks to Badger! The Strategic Review hit the nail on the head.

And also a big thanks to Stonegiant! I dug around and found my Best of the Dragon Volume 5 and found the two articles AND the Modern Monsters in the same Volume 5... Jackpot!!! In fact, I forgot how excellent those old Best of the Dragon Mags are. Found enough to keep me busy for while...

And Themattjon's recommendation to treat a gun as a missile weapon is dead right! If it'd been a snake I'd be a goner...

Once I work through some similarities, differences and oddities of the various systems, I'll make up some stats for everyone and post them here.

Again, Thanks for Links and Info!!!

[Stonegiant]

Also in the Greyhawk supplement on the Weapon vs. AC chart they list the Arquebus stats. Historically these were shoulder fired .50-.60 caliber smooth bores with a serpentine matchlock. Everyone thinks they required a rest to fire but that didn't become necessary until you got over the .70 caliber mark and the gun became heavy and long enough to be called a musket. I will try and dig up some of the photos of our re-enactment that we do here every year of the 1586 attack on the town by Sir Francis Drake.

[wulfgar]

Coolness! I just posted pretty much the same question in the workshop forum last night, and now I see that people are already discussing the same thing. (Bad Wulfgar! Read old posts better!) Anyways, I'm definitely interested in seeing what you come up with Wothbora.

[Stonegiant]

Here are some of the photos that I have right on hand-

1. The weapon I am holding is a .72 caliber shoulder fired flintlock musket (circa 1740).



2. This party shows a 16th Century patrol (1565-1590), the soldier in the blue gray is carrying a .54 caliber arquebus with a fish tail stock, it was shoulder fired as well. (I am the one in the Red hat)



3. The cannon to the left of me is a 1 pounder breach loader. It could maintain a steady rate of fire of 3-6 rounds a minute depending on how many cups the gun was running and how well the breach seals held up.



4. Of course opposing the musketeer and the cannon was the Queen of the battle field, the pike block. This picture shows pikemen from the 1660's, The castle in the background is the Castillo de San Marco here in downtown St. Augustine (I pass it everyday going to work).

[redpriest]

It would be some work to convert, but ICE published Firearm Law for RMSS back in the '90s. There was a lot of legwork done on many different types of weapons, from stonegiant's era weaponry until modern firearms. I don't think that it would be too difficult though to convert the attack tables, which are already calculated against armor type, into a M&M Man-to-Man combat-type chart.

Oh yeah, there's a Blaster Law as well.

[jjarvis]

The Arquebus turns up on the greyhawk combat tables.

Improve that a smidgeon and you have a matchlock musket.

and COOL PHOTOS.

[korgoth]

jjarvis said:

and COOL PHOTOS.

Agreed. That looks like too much fun.

[Stonegiant]

Yes it is as much fun as gaming

[Finarvyn]

Another variant rule for modern firearms is to simply ignore armor, or to give it half-value. (That way platemail is a little better than no armor at all.)

[thorswulf]

Has anybody tried an adventure via the Sturmgeschutz and Sorcery article? The idea of starting off as WW2 soldiers travelling through some kind of Magical Fog and ending up in a fantasy world would be interesting. The problem being you will run out of ammo at some point. I've toyed around with the idea of using that article and D&D to do a WW2 game. But have never really got around to doing anything about it.

By the way, those photos are way cool! I work in a gunworks and have toyed around with the idea of making a medieval hand gunne a few times.

[darneson]

The pictures were great. I was an ACW re-enactor myself. Yes I have done S&S several times. Where did you think the tank parked in front Svenny's freehold came from.

To get there you can either take the 'bridge to nowhere, o jump out of The Comeback Inn while it is in transit. Well those are the 'easy' ways. ;-)

Dave Arneson
"Dark Lord of Gaming"