Posted 07 April 2013 - 02:56 PM
2000 rounds / 2000 lbs per ton = 1 machine gun bullet and casing w gunpowder is 1 lbs.
.50 cal machine gun = 10 per 1 lbs.
If these mech machine guns are just machine guns "like the .50", then one ton of ammo should be 10000 rounds to give a semblace of reality. versimilitude if you will. If the argument is that each machine gun "shot" is actually like 5 rounds in a huge burst, even though it doesn't seem that way... Well then I suppose 2000 rounds could make sense, cause its 2000 bursts... It just doesn't seem that way.
The problem comes with suspension of disbelief about the damage. Machine guns don't seem to be doing some 5 round burst increments, each staccato Dakka Dakka is rather one projectile as one can see and given the allotment of 2000 rounds per ton, that means a projectile that is the better part of a pound even considering weight of gunpowder/propellant, casing.
That must compare to something in the real world... But hey this is Battletech, and honestly I accept real world doesn't need to come into this in any hyper realistic sense. I can accept that all ballistics in the game are just barely able to pierce armor, and very quickly after being fired slow down enough that they do half or no damage after as little as a few dozen meters (machine guns). Yes, such is the battle tech world.
What I can't get over is those saying the machine gun is a light or support weapon/infantry weapon. It's not. One round is a pound. That's huge. It does compare with something in the real world though, just for reference. Auto cannons. Real 30mm auto cannons. Their rounds weigh about a pound a piece. Several 25mm rounds or 20mm rounds to a pound even, alternate weapons that some have likened Battletech machine guns to.
The problem is, if machine gun ammunition was 10000 rounds per ton, we would only need one ton of ammo even for those rare 4 mg mechs like the 4mg Cicada or the mg Spider,but it seems developers still want the down point of ballistics to be limited ammunition, the possibility of running out of ammunition with no resupply.
Even with 4 machine guns Dakka dakkaing out 10 rounds per second each x 4 machine gun, 40 rounds per second, it would take 4 minutes or so to empty the mech of ammunition. It still could happen in a match. Right now, at 10 rounds per second x4 machine guns = 40 rounds per second / 2000rounds = 50 seconds. So that ton only lasts 50 seconds, more to the liking of stat heads who want ballistics to be ammunition management limited. I can step back and not get too bent out of shape by weird things with range, but this is a bit much of a point where in my inner mech enthusiast get a bit of a break in suspension of disbelief.
Many who spent time in the military could tell you that 2000 rounds of .50 cal ammo is heavy, damn heavy for you and me... But it's still just a few relatively small boxes carrying either belted or loose ammo... No where near what one would expect to make a ton of space, nor supply the machine guns/cannons/whatever we see on mechs with the designation, meant to hurt other mechs.
One can point out the real world has nothing to do with battle tech, and be right, but suspension of disbelief is essential in any work of fiction, be it a novel, a cartoon, a movie. When certain aspects of the game are open to the player's view and do not hold up, such as with machine guns, ammo and weight, then you have a problem that will be pointed out. It has been and will continue to be.