Overcoming Combat Armor Near-Invincibility

[sshinn]

We recently had a military based fight between four PCs with combat armor vs. two NPCs with combat armor, and the fight took over an hour and 13 rounds. It was a Tech Level 12 setting, we had mostly laser carbines, and we'd often hit but with either not damage or only 1 or 2 points of damage. We were trying to retake a starship using a boarding action, so high explosives didn't seem like a good option.

Anyway, we came away feeling that combat armor made you almost invincible, and made fights take way too long.

How do folks deal with combat armor? Leave it outlawed due to law levels and/or Military restrictions? If you do have it, do you just do long combats, or maybe ensure you've got plasma weapons handy? Love to get folks feedback

 

[Old timer]

Gauss rifles or Heavy ACRs with AP ammo .
More seriously, Gauss rifle is already AP5, and with AP ammo that becomes AP9, heavy ACRs are not quite as good but cheaper. Also, were you adding effect to the damage rolls, that can make a lot of difference as well.

 

[sshinn]

Yep, we were adding effect. Not sure we always applied the 'any effect of 6+ does at least 1 point of damage' rule. Great feedback!

 

[arcador]

Keep in mind Combat Armor is military grade, which to my observations offers better protection per TL compared to the other armors (boarding, HEV, etc.)

 

[AnotherDilbert]

Laser weapons are made for boarding actions, low recoil and not too destructive to the ship. Just use heavier lasers, e.g. Laser Rifles.

Armour penetrating high energy munition can be a bit hard on the ship.

 

[alex_greene]

Or someone's ship dives out of the sky and offloads a blast of laser fire at the enemy, vapourising them in a split second.

 

[FentonGib]

I actually like that combat armour and battle dress are really tough to get through. In my game I had the players in a cafeteria with an allied imperial fugitive and a single soldier with a pulse rifle and battle dress turned up to arrest them (or rather, hold them there until the authorities turned up to do that). The players asked about their chances (they're new to Traveller and don't know armour and weapon scales yet) to which I replied "there's six of you, two of you with Gauss pistols, and only one battle dress imperial - you're notably outmatched and outgunned"

That of course made the players a lot more creative than "I shoot it" - one threw a ketchup bottle in the guy's face, they took cover behind the bar... and they RAN a lot! (they got away). lol

As the players arent' a group of mercs (they have military/imperial backgrounds, but they're traders and smugglers now), they generally don't wear combat armour (heaviest one I think has cloth, and the other has protec suit and subdermal armour) so hopefully I won't have those slogging matches - and if they go up against such heavily armoured opposition my players are likely to be well prepared... One of the players is specifically aiming to get a monofilament sword or other weapon simply to get something with high AP for those kind of situations. The npc marine has obtained some armour-piercing rounds, etc... My players know I won't put them in no-win situations, but I prefer getting them into situations where they have to think tactically or unorthodoxly to win, rather than rely on sheer firepower and every action being "I shoot it" which gets boring quickly.

 

[GarethL]

Armour should be effective against current-generation weapons (modern armour is predictably effective against the modern weapons it is designed to protect against),

As is noted above, it should add to players opportunities to be creative.... And also give them pause occasionally, which is no bad thing.

 

[Rikki Tikki Traveller]

I think the mistake made was in trying to take out someone in Combat Armour with a Laser Carbine. Use a Laser Rifle or a Gauss weapon. TL12 military weapons against a TL12 military armour.

 

[sshinn]

I think the mistake made was in trying to take out someone in Combat Armour with a Laser Carbine. Use a Laser Rifle or a Gauss weapon. TL12 military weapons against a TL12 military armour.

This about sums up the advice I needed -- thanks!

 

[Rikki Tikki Traveller]

Welcome!

 

[sshinn]

Thanks for the welcome. I'm in DFW (Wylie) like you. I'm friends with Robert Eaglestone (T5 and Mongoose contributor) who is also local to this area

 

[Rikki Tikki Traveller]

Rob and I worked on some stuff together several years ago.

We should get together - taking this to PM.

 

[-Daniel-]

Got to love it when you find someone in your area that you might be able to play RPGs with. :mrgreen: