22 replies to this topic

[De La Fresniere]

HarmAssassin, on 27 December 2012 - 02:52 PM, said:

Machine guns were never designed (in battletech) for use against mechs. They were intended to use against infantry

I read that the original BattleTech rules included MGs... and had no infantry units.

I wish a had a source so this stupid debate could end once and for all.

[Crashingmail]

Its not a myth "The Machine Gun is the quintessential anti-infantry weapon, issuing a stream of bullets at a high rate of fire to cut down opposing soldiers." => http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Machine_gun

But also that the dmg output the same as for AC/2 is the same => http://www.sarna.net/wiki/AC/2. Both do 2 damage on TT, so i also appreciate that they do something to get the MG valuable for MW:O. I really loved my Cicada 3C with 4MGs and Large Pulse, and very often i "dumped" 3 tons of ammo in the back of heavier mechs. I as quite funny to see and Awesome or Atlas trying to get the "Flea" of his back

Edited by Crashingmail, 28 December 2012 - 03:15 AM.

[stjobe]

Crashingmail, on 28 December 2012 - 03:14 AM, said:

Its not a myth "The Machine Gun is the quintessential anti-infantry weapon, issuing a stream of bullets at a high rate of fire to cut down opposing soldiers." => http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Machine_gun

It is a myth, because of a number of things:
1. The MG does as much damage as an AC/2 to a 'mech in BT.
2. The MG gets a *huge* buff versus infantry (2d6 per shot? I can't remember exactly, but it's big.)
3. Being good at one thing doesn't automatically mean being bad at all other things.
4. Lots and lots of 'mechs mount MGs as secondary or tertiary weapons; yes, in some cases the fluff says it's to fight infantry, but they can also be used against 'mechs.
5. There's plenty of infantry-only weapons in BT that *can't* damage 'mechs. The MG isn't one of those. If it had been an anti-infantry-only weapon, it wouldn't have a damage value against 'mechs.

So no matter how much that "quintessential anti-infantry weapon" line gets trotted about, MGs were mounted on 'mechs to fight anything the 'mech would fight, including other 'mechs.

Same damage as an AC/2, 2/3rds of the damage of a Light Laser. Against 'mechs.