Tech Talk

[Corwyn]

Originally Posted by Draconigenaarma

((Just curious about the gattling gun...is this a homebrew item? Because I was just thinking that due to the current rules if you hit every bullet hits and if you miss every bullet misses...but that's not really how a machine gun works does it. I dunno the first thing I think of when I think of a machine gun going off your rules is '6 attacks with 1d4 damage per attack' yaknow? I guess in the long run you're less likely to hit with every bullet but it would also make more sense like say if you were just strafing the cannon across a group of orcs holding down the trigger some would fly over a shoulder other into the dirt some would be flying before the gun ever get to the orcs but then some would hit yaknow? With these rules I could point once at each orc in a line in a continuous stream of bullets and every someodd one could come out without a scratch. Not asking you to change the rules, just chatting.))

[Corwyn]

The crit range is listed. It's 20/x2. I just write x2, when it's like that.

[Corwyn]

A little known concept about D&D and the d20 system, for combat, is the attack representation. It is assumed that each attack actually represents a few swings of your weapon, as many as half a dozen. Pretend you are wielding a sword, swing it around as if attacking. While you are doing that, count off sx hippopotomaus or mississippis or whatever. Now I know you are not a level 6 fighter in RL. How many sword thrusts did you get in 6 secs?
So, it is assumed that for each potential hit (the combat roll) there were plenty of definite misses. For ease of the game, this is not altered when striking helpless objects or whatever and so you still get only so many rolls per round.
A character's skill progression is defined by how many of those swings are potential hits, as he gains more attacks. Hence the maximun number of attacks in a round. I guess they are saying that there is only time for so many swings or whateverm and that when you have that many attacks, every swing is a potential hit.
Also for ease, ammunition only applies to those attacks in which rolls were made.

Therefore assume that there are always bullets that miss, or glance off armor. It's just those six that actually have a chance to strike the enemies flesh.
Really I have it that your chain gun can fire about 200 rounds a minute, or 20 bullets in a single round. Therefore, if you have 2 attacks, you are firing 20 bullets, with 12 of them having a chance to strike the target. This also means that with out some sort of magic (haste) you will only ever be able to fire the chain gun three times in a round...