But yeah, from my estimation, the X-com teams for some reason and wandering around with Level II or IIIA at most, which brings up the idea behind the tactical armor mods.
@KingMob - What I gathered was that X-Com teams require high maneuverability, agility, and flexibility and they cannot be weighed down with bulky armor. Just look at the impact it has on your performance when you have a guy carrying too much stuff and he loses 25-35% of his TU.
One nice modification would be researchable armor like the Talon system - borderline nanotechnology - with liquid armor that hardens when shot. That would give armor that was flexible and light enough but comparable to Alloy Armor against certain damage types. But the Alloy Armor is still better because the Talon system wouldnt give good protection against anything heat related (plasma, laser).
but it was never assumed to be .50 bmg
@Dioxine
The Sniper Rifle Mod states clearly in the ufopaedia text that it is 12.7mm (which any day of the week is a .50cal). This being the sniper rifle mod that is in the Top 10 downloads slot on OpenXcom's mod hosting venue.
Screenshot From Mod SiteAnd its true that a .50 isnt necessarily a .50bmg . . . but thats what most people assume when they see that. Either that or 12.7x108mm russian which is a hair bit worse (by about 1500 ft-lbs).
Alternative .50cal rifles such as .50 Beowulf and the 12.7mm VSSK are obscure newcomers on the scene. And the .50 AE is known widely to be the "desert eagle bullet" and not associated with precision Rifle shooting in any way.
Im aware of the difference between penetration and damage, and I am happy that you are too.
In my own game systems im designing (predominantly RPG at this point) I have both stats. I tend to run penetration as a "compare vs armor, then assign a damage penalty". That way you can have armor that provides no protection whatsoever because the penetration was too high, or armor that stops all the damage completely. And for things that don't stop shots, they still contribute somewhat against Overpenetration.
For example a .50bmg in mine does AP 10, compared to a 5.56mm which does AP 7 and just about any other standard pistol or shotgun does AP 4. (an armor piercing bullet adds 1)
What is the difference compared to armor rating?
Every point of armor rating over the AP imposes a -1 damage point per die (basically -20% damage, after its rolled, and it scales with critical hit damage too). After about a difference of 4 or more it just hand-waives that the armor stops the shot completely, that armor is invincible against that weapon unless the shooter makes a called shot for a weakpoint.
Likewise if the AP = AR it gets no damage reduction. So a light kevlar vest might have like AR 7 which means a 5.56mm goes right through it. But it imposes -3 damage per die against a Glock9mm or Shotgun. Considering the damage dice are all some small pile of d10s which average about 5 points each thats most of the damage, and a fair bit of the time it will do 0.
so it was rarely that useful
@Vulgar Monkey - True, its just that we're handed these items as players and told to "have fun" and figure out how to use them on our own. So we come up with different strategies.
Me for example, I always use the Heavy Cannon as a multi-shot grenade launcher. As mama always said close counts when it comes to shotguns, and grenades. And its faster than tossing a Grenade so I always use HE rounds (and at least up until OpenXcom, you had to wait until the end of the turn for a grenade to go off). I always give the guy using it a Laser Pistol or comparable sidearm so he can shoot someone point blank without blowing himself up.
In TFTD I usually keep some AP rounds with him too. Because of all the close quarters action in that game and the numerous opportunities to close into close quarters, firing at someone only 4-5 spaces away makes up for the bad accuracy. But in TFTD the Gas Cannon is the way to go because the Autocannon equivalent only works underwater . . . so I might have 3 guys equipped with Gas Cannons (two of them using HE, one who is using AP and maneuvering for close range).
Against Floaters and Sectoids, who are some of the most common enemies in the game, Poor Accuracy is offset by "
if I get it within 2 squares of the guy he's dead". Plus it works marvellously towards getting rid of grass, hedges, fences, and blowing a hole in the side of a brick wall. Then the Sniper Guy I have armed with a good accuracy weapon has a line of fire into somewhere (but the Sniper usually has a Rocket Launcher with a pile of Large Rockets, so that way
close really does count).
For me the only weapon which makes the Heavy Cannon obsolete is the Heavy Plasma because I can just autofire until I hit something, one shot does the job, and it does a good job of blowing holes in walls. I dont need blast radius anymore with that. And in TFTD everyone has 3 sonic pulsers, for the grenade relay from hell.
For high damage output early in the game I give someone an Autocannon with AP rounds and I sneak them in within about 10-12 squares, or closer if I can manage it. Then they take 42 twice or three times in a row. And if im afraid one shot wont do the job and I dont wanna risk it . . . I do a Hand Grenade Relay.
Small Launcher (or Thermal Shok Launcher) is nice but it doesnt blow holes in walls . . . and I much rather prefer the Extra Points I get for KILLING an alien (sometimes as many as 25) compared to Capturing it (which is always 10). Nevermind its
slow as hell and doesn't have much ammo (two shots per 2x1 inventory space compared to 6, plus 15 TU reload after every single shot).
Often times I find myself moving a soldier over to the alien to use a Medi Kit to revive the sucker so that i can put a killing shot into them. And sometimes having to revive him again if he's stubborn. Because its hard as hell to coup-de-grace a Lobsterman with a grenade (alien or otherwise).
Its a pity you cant just do a Coup-De-Grace on something with a regular weapon.
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