>TML nightly Wed Jun 26 20:32:25 PDT 1991 Volume 21 : Issue 13
>
/* Bertil's posting ---------------------------
>Subject: (2462) Guns and stuff
>
> If we look at the number of different weapons per TL in the lists of
>Traveller weapons we will notice one curious thing. There is a lot of
>'contemporary' weapons, and the number of weapons per TL goes down as the
>the timedistance ('timedistance'?:) from today gets greater.
Could this be caused by downright unimaginitiveness on the part of GDW's staff?
I am not saying I would have done any better....:) Perhaps whoever was
compiling lists of weapons per tech level, just didn't imagine those dozen or
so weapons we could have come up with if we'd thought about it?
Are those people who were involved in the TDR sig for new weapons still around?
Did you'ns compile a list of new weapons? Can we see it?
>
> So, what is my point with all this? The point is that a lot of weapons that
>logically (In my opinion, at least:) should exist on the higher TL's doesn't
>exist in Traveller. Where is for example all the caseless versions of
>contemporary weapons? Where is the light manportable pulse laser support
Here is a question for all you military types (or armchair weaponeers). Do
cased rounds have any inherent advantages over caseless rounds? In my game
(which I hope to start up again *REAL SOON NOW* :)), I have arbitrarily
decided that all explosively-propelled slug throwers tech 9 and above use
caseless ammo. Does this sound reasonable? Arguments for? Against?
>
> So my recommendation for a relatively small very high rate of fire weapon h
>wit
>resonable penetration would be a number of gaussrifles strapped togeather:)
Sounds like something Arnold Schwartznegger (sp?) might use. Or in Aliens
where whats-her-name strapped two of those assault rifles together....
/* Scott Kellog's post---------
>
>#766 Laser powered boiler. Solar cells would get burned off to easily, but
>suppose you have a non X-ray laser captured by a parabolic mirror and focused n
>o
>a collector (perhaps defocused to prevent burning the plant to slag) again
>planetary range restrictions (beam columation problems)
>
This was proposed as a power scheme for jet airliners what, 15 years ago? The
idea was to leave enough jet fuel for takeoffs and landings and a margin for
emergencies if the beam cut off. Once you got high enough the laser satellite
cut in and you turn off the jet engines. The laser beam heated the atmosphere
for propulsion. It was supposed to use frequencies that wouldn't penetrate to
the ground in case something went wrong (like terrorists, or aiming problems).