From:	David Hinkley dhinkley@***.org
Subject:	Smart Guns/Smart Ammo
Date:	Thu, 25 Feb 1999 03:24:08 -0800

From: David Buehrer <dbuehrer@******.carl.org>
Subject: Re: Smart Guns/Smart Ammo
To: shadowrn@*********.org
Date sent: Wed, 24 Feb 1999 06:55:14 -0700 (MST)
Send reply to: shadowrn@*********.org

> Some comments on the APDS thread regarding smartguns and variable ammo
> types sparked an idea.
>
> Take a revolver (6 rnds/cy), smartgun it, and load different ammo types in
> the cylinder (say three standard rounds, two APDS rounds, and a gell round).
> In combat you can spend a free action to rotate the cylinder to the round
> you want.
>
> Can you imagine the look on the PC/NPC's face when you follow up a gel
> round, that bounces right off their armor, with an APDS round? <EGMG>

Yes I can. But more important it establishs a rational reason to pick one
weapon over another. One roleplaying drawback of quantifing weapon
performance stats into a game system is that you either end up with a lot of
weapons that are alike in game stats or you get one clear "best" weapon.
Neither portrays real life. People's choice of a particular gun over another
are based on a wide variety factors some logical some not. I once met some
one who did not like Smith and Wessens because the cylinder turned the
wrong way and others picked a gun because it felt right in their hand. And
then there is the question of which is better 9mm or .45ACP, I have one
opinion and I know that there are others on the list that disagree. But this real
life aspect is missing from most all role playing game systems and with it a bit
of variety and color.


David Hinkley
dhinkley@***.org