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From:	Mike Elkins <MikeE@*********.COM>
Subject:	New Spell: GunJam
Date:	Fri, 8 Nov 1996 14:04:18 -0500

Message no. 1 What do people think of this spell in regards to game balance. My character who
wants to be able to escape combat situations before they start thought of it.

GunJam
Physical Manipulation Spell
Drain (F/2)+2 M Permanent (Base time 5 turns)
Range LOS
When cast on a gun, it causes the next bullet to fire to expand slightly, causes the
primer or charge to innert, etc, so that the next time the trigger is pulled, the gun
will not successfully fire. Note that you can't tell the gun has been jammed until
you try to fire it. The spell caster won't know if he succeeded or not, either.

The target number for the spell is as follows:
Cheap or poorly maintained guns: 3
Average guns: 4
Military Quality Guns: 5
Caseless Ammo +1
Gun capable of FA +1
Machine Pistol -1
Per previous casting of this spell on this bullet: +1

The Results:
1 Success: Bullet is dud. Revolvers just treat as a miss, other weapons require a
Ready Weapon action to chamber another round.
2 Successes: Minor Jam. As above plus: Revolvers: You can't reload that cylnder
until you fix it (Firearms B/R complex action). Other firearms: Takes 2 ready
weapon actions to clear.
3 or more successes: Jam: Revolvers, treat as 2 successes. Other firearms:
Weapon won't fire until someone succeeds at a Firearms B/R task, base time 5
minutes, TN=number of successes (3+ in other words).

Miniguns are treated like revolvers.

This spell can be cast multiple times on a gun, the successes adding, but each
additional time you add one to the target number.

Double-Domed Mike

From:	mike.paff@*****.COM
Subject:	Re: New Spell: GunJam
Date:	Fri, 8 Nov 1996 12:27:47 -0800

Message no. 2 > From: Mike Elkins <MikeE@*********.COM>
>
> What do people think of this spell in regards to game balance. My character who
> wants to be able to escape combat situations before they start thought of it.
>
> The target number for the spell is as follows:
> Cheap or poorly maintained guns: 3
> Average guns: 4
> Military Quality Guns: 5
> Caseless Ammo +1
> Gun capable of FA +1
> Machine Pistol -1
> Per previous casting of this spell on this bullet: +1
>
These target numbers seem rather low, especially since there doesn't appear to be
a roll to resist the spell.

> Miniguns are treated like revolvers.
>
I don't know much about miniguns, but I would think that if a bullet could get
jammed in the barrel, it would cause severe damage to the weapon as the bullet
either got caught on the ejection mechanism, or as loading mechanism attempted
to force the next bullet into the barrel. I don't think the mechanism is
capable of skipping a clogged barrel like you can with a manually loaded
revolver.

Also, for revolvers, a jammed bullet would interfere with the use of a
speed-loader.

Mike Paff

From:	Mike Elkins <MikeE@*********.COM>
Subject:	Re: New Spell: GunJam
Date:	Fri, 8 Nov 1996 15:44:47 -0500

Message no. 3 Mike Paff wrote:
>These target numbers seem rather low, especially since there doesn't appear to
>be a roll to resist the spell.

They might very well be. My thinking was that it was a very specific manipulation,
and very small in scale, yet the spell has the same drain as broader manipulations
(such as Makeover), therefore makeing a target number less than the "Tech
Object Resistance Chart" would give justifiable. Even still, though, just to make a
good assault rifle not fire (1 success, no jam even) will take about six dice.

How much higher would you make them?

Double-Domed Mike

From:	"Paul J. Adam" <shadowrn@********.DEMON.CO.UK>
Subject:	Re: New Spell: GunJam
Date:	Fri, 8 Nov 1996 21:41:43 +0000

Message no. 4 In message <s28347b6.028@********.dragonsys.com>, Mike Elkins
<MikeE@*********.COM> writes
>What do people think of this spell in regards to game balance. My character who
>wants to be able to escape combat situations before they start thought of it.
>
>GunJam
>The target number for the spell is as follows:
>Cheap or poorly maintained guns: 3
>Average guns: 4
>Military Quality Guns: 5

Why does the _gun_ make a difference? You're casting against the
_cartridge_. And this, if you want the pure rules-based explanation, is
out for the same reason as a "Burst Tyre" spell is for cars: you can't
subdivide the aura of a mechanical device thus. Also, how can you get
LOS on the currently chambered cartridge?

>The Results:
>This spell can be cast multiple times on a gun, the successes adding, but each
>additional time you add one to the target number.

Sorry, but I really don't like this one. It doesn't fit either the
rules, or any particular sense of logic: it smacks of the "Rust" spell
one player wanted, to (you guessed) destroy guns more easily than by
powerbolting them. If you want to jam a weapon, a spirit's Accident
power seems the best approach.

--
"There are four kinds of homicide: felonious, excusable, justifiable and
praiseworthy."
Ambrose Bierce, "The Devil's Dictionary"

Paul J. Adam paul@********.demon.co.uk

From:	Sight Unseen <toabo@****.UTEXAS.EDU>
Subject:	Re: New Spell: GunJam
Date:	Fri, 8 Nov 1996 21:37:37 -0500

Message no. 5 >The Results:
>1 Success: Bullet is dud. Revolvers just treat as a miss, other weapons
require a
>Ready Weapon action to chamber another round.
>2 Successes: Minor Jam. As above plus: Revolvers: You can't reload that
cylnder
>until you fix it (Firearms B/R complex action). Other firearms: Takes 2 ready
>weapon actions to clear.
>3 or more successes: Jam: Revolvers, treat as 2 successes. Other firearms:
>Weapon won't fire until someone succeeds at a Firearms B/R task, base time 5
>minutes, TN=number of successes (3+ in other words).
>
If you get enough successes, could a potential effect be the gun
would fire, but the bullet would get lodged in the barrel, with all the
unfortunate consequences that result from such?

>This spell can be cast multiple times on a gun, the successes adding, but each
>additional time you add one to the target number.
>
Don't repeated attempts generally add +2?

Peace and Long Life,

Scott

From:	Gurth <gurth@******.NL>
Subject:	Re: New Spell: GunJam
Date:	Sat, 9 Nov 1996 13:50:44 +0100

Message no. 6 Mike Elkins said on 14:04/ 8 Nov 96...

> What do people think of this spell in regards to game balance. My character who
> wants to be able to escape combat situations before they start thought of it.

I came up with two similar spells about a year ago, one illusion and the
other manipulation. For completeness, I'll post them here...

JAM WEAPON I
This spell is cast on people, not weapons. If the Spell Success Test
succeeds, the character thinks his or her weapon jams, and so won't fire
it until the "jam" has been cleared. As long as the spell is sustained,
clearing the fake jam requires an Intelligence test with a target number
equal to the Force of the spell, requiring more successes than were rolled
on the Spell Success Test. Once the spell is no longer being sustained,
the character is able to use the weapon normally again, as if the jam
miraculously disappeared.
Type: Mana
Range: LOS
Target: Firearms skill
Duration: Sustained
Drain: [(F/2)+1]L

JAM WEAPON II
While Jam Weapon I only fakes a jam, Jam Weapon II actually creates a jam
in the weapon. The spell is permanent in that the weapon must be cleaned
before it can be fired again.
Type: Physical
Range: Limited
Target: Object Resistance Table
Duration: Permanent (5 turns)
Drain: [(F/2)+2]M

> GunJam
> Physical Manipulation Spell
> Drain (F/2)+2 M Permanent (Base time 5 turns)
> Range LOS
> When cast on a gun, it causes the next bullet to fire to expand slightly, causes the
> primer or charge to innert, etc, so that the next time the trigger is pulled, the gun
> will not successfully fire. Note that you can't tell the gun has been jammed until
> you try to fire it. The spell caster won't know if he succeeded or not, either.

Sounds good.

> The target number for the spell is as follows:
> Cheap or poorly maintained guns: 3
> Average guns: 4
> Military Quality Guns: 5
> Caseless Ammo +1
> Gun capable of FA +1
> Machine Pistol -1
> Per previous casting of this spell on this bullet: +1

Why not simply use the Object Resistance Table? That avoids having to
calculate a TN for every gun separately. BTW, since the description states
the spell messes with the ammo, why does the quality of the gun have
anything to do with the TN? The quality of the ammo would be more logical
in this case.

> The Results:
[snipped]
> Miniguns are treated like revolvers.

Maybe say that miniguns ignore the 1 success result? After all, an
electrically-driven gun doesn't care if the round fails to fire, it just
ejects it as if it were an empty casing.

--
Gurth@******.nl - http://www.xs4all.nl/~gurth/index.html
Don't be stupid, Beavis. There's always been TV; there's just more
channels now.
-> NERPS Project Leader & Unofficial Shadowrun Guru <-
-> The Plastic Warriors Page: http://www.xs4all.nl/~gurth/plastic.html <-

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From:	Loki <loki@*******.COM>
Subject:	Re: New Spell: GunJam
Date:	Tue, 12 Nov 1996 11:52:09 -0700

Message no. 7 <SNIP>
> The target number for the spell is as follows:
> Cheap or poorly maintained guns: 3
> Average guns: 4
> Military Quality Guns: 5
> Caseless Ammo +1
> Gun capable of FA +1
> Machine Pistol -1
> Per previous casting of this spell on this bullet: +1

I'd say you need to go off the ORT more than these T#'s, they seem rather
low in comparison to most manipulation spells.

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