New Munitions Types (Upgrades)

[spiceracksargent01]

So, having gone over the Combat Guide again, I've revised my Explosive Ammo proposal from last year to fit the combat guide's damage type bonus specifications, as well as come up with possible templates for a couple of other potential ammo types.

• Explosive Rounds: Swaps out a firearm's base ammunition with explosive rounds, allowing the weapon's fire to cut corners and deal damage hidden enemies. While less powerful than a bazooka, these rounds are useful for areas where heavy weapons are less viable.

[/b] immune to interception
Price: 150 credits x tier
Incompatible With: Artillery Weapons

[li]EMP Warheads: Swaps out the base warheads of rocket-propelled munitions with EMP warheads. These specialized warheads emit an Electromagnetic Pulse upon detonation to disrupt Mobile Suit electronics.  Caution is advised in clustered combat environments, however; like conventional explosives, EMPs affect everyone equally.[/li]Effect: +Shock Damage (Opponent rolls DC12 CON save: -2 ER and Redirection on failure; Critical Hits stun for 1 turn)
Price: 150 credits x tier
Compatible With: Bazooka and Launcher Weapons
Note: Will replace Explosive Damage with Physical/Shock Damage
Bonus: Shock Damage bonus affects covered targets benefitting from Small Cover
Warning: Non-Critical Shock Damage effects will affect ALL Mobile Suits within Close Range of target

[li]Cryo Rounds: Swaps out a weapon's base magazine and ammunition for specially crafted, refrigerated magazines loaded with Liquid Nitrogen-filled Cryo Rounds. While more expensive and unconventional compared to other types of munitions, these rounds are highly effective at making weaponry and delicate MS internal mechanics more brittle, making them more easily damaged and destroyed in combat. The complex mechanics behind the magazine's refrigeration systems prevent these rounds from being loaded into rocket-based and high rate-of-fire weaponry.[/li]Effect: +Cold Damage (+50% damage when Sundering, +25% damage when Crippling)
Price: 200 credits x tier
Incompatible With: Automatic, Bazooka, and Launcher Weapons

[li]Mine Shells: swaps out a weapon’s base ammunition with Mine Shells. These high-capacity, High-Explosive rounds rely almost entirely upon the fiery and concussive force of their detonation, rather than a fragmenting shell, to deal damage. This makes them powerful anti-air or anti-fortification rounds, depending on the equipped weapon’s type. Their lower mass compared to conventional rounds results in a higher initial muzzle velocity, which is offset by an increase in bullet drop, however.[/li]Effect: +Explosive Damage
Bonus (Automatic): shots deal critical damage against Light Armor and Flying enemies
Bonus (Cannon): Explosive damage becomes Explosive(+), double damage to Cover
Quirks: Accuracy profile modification:

• Close Range: +1
• Mid Range: -1
• Long Range: -2

Price: 200 x tier
Compatible With: Automatic and Cannon Weapons[/ul]

[Kagimizu]

• Explosive Rounds: Approved on my end. They're an established type of ammo seen even in the early UC weapons.
• EMP Warheads & Cryo Rounds: Both get a "nay". Unfeasible and to my knowledge no basis in the Gundam multiverse.
• Mine Shells: I think these need to go back to the drawing board. it's an interesting option and I don't think there's anything that would specifically refute it. But with different effects based on the weapon and altering range modifiers, I think right now it's a somewhat overly complex upgrade. Streamline it or separate its effects, then it could do with another look over.

Edit: In addition, explosive damage doesn't actually inflict any damage to cover whatsoever. Damage to cover reduces its duration by one turn, and explosive has 50% of its damage bypass cover. So as it is.... Explosive (+) doesn't actually do anything, and having it bypass cover completely would be treading dangerously close to overpowered.

So I'm going to say "No" with the caveat that it's strictly to its current iteration; refine and streamline the idea, and I'll happily give it a second look.

[spiceracksargent01]

I could care less about the Cryo Rounds since I will happily admit that they're a stretch, even for me.  I'm not writing off the EMP Warheads just yet, so don't even try arguing with me about it a second time.  I'm already having to restrain my frustration from the first time, and I don't know how well I could keep my composure on a repeat.

On the topic of Mine Shells, Artillery Weapons wear down cover's max duration with each hit.  Mine Shells were originally designed as anti-fortification rounds in WWII, so the way I see if, the effect of doubling the duration damage to cover still makes sense for a Cannon-type Weapon given the roots of the Mine Shell.  The anti-air effect is also based on real-world applications of Mine Shells.  For the sake of making things easier to understand, however, I would have no problem with going over Mine Shells again and dividing them into specific ammo upgrades for different caliber weaponry.

[spiceracksargent01]

• Electrostatic Warheads: Replaces the base payload of rocket-propelled ordinance with specialized Electrostatic Warheads. Considered something of a resurrection of ancient, pre-MS era EMP technology and derived more specifically from the electroshock function of the Gouf's Heat Rod, Electrostatic Warheads release a burst of electricity on impact, shocking the pilot within the Mobile Suit.  Due to the general ineffectiveness of EMPs themselves in Mobile Suit warfare, these warheads aren't as useful against the hardened electronics of Mobile Suits as they are against pilots, though the physical contact required for the shock to happen in the first place means that the impact will still deal damage.   These warheads are harder to manufacture than traditional warheads due to their technological origins, however, making them more expensive than any other form of special munitions.

[/b] Will replace Explosive damage with Physical/Shock
Warning: Single Target.  Shock Effect will not affect targets in cover.  Can still be intercepted.

[li]Mine Shell (Gun): Mine Shells chambered for regular Mobile Suit projectile weaponry.  Derived from tidbits of pre-MS era technology, these super high-capacity explosive rounds rely almost entirely upon the explosive and concussive force of the detonation, rather than a fragmenting shell, to deal damage.  With the smaller caliber of gun-type weapons, these Mine Shell are most effective at aerial interdiction, and the higher than average explosive force of the shell at point blank also poses a threat to lightly armored machines.   Their lighter mass than even regular explosive rounds leads to a more rapid decrease in bullet velocity once the shot leaves the barrel, however, and the thin shell surrounding the explosive material means a more rapid damage falloff when the shot finally detonates.[/li]Effect: +Explosive Damage
Price: 150 credits x tier
Incompatible With: Artillery and Beam Weapons
Bonus: Critical damage to Light Armor and Airborne targets. Immune to Interception.
Warning: Decreases the bonus damage of Explosive weapons to targets in cover by 1/2.
Accuracy Profile Adjustment:

• Close Range: +1
• Mid Range: -1
• Long Range: -2

[li]Mine Shell (Cannon): Mine Shells chambered for heavy ordinance Mobile Suit projectile weaponry.  Derived from tidbits of pre-MS era technology, these super high-capacity explosive rounds rely almost entirely upon the explosive and concussive force of the detonation, rather than a fragmenting shell, to deal damage.  With the higher caliber of Artillery-type weapons, these Mine Shells are bunker busters, ripping apart cover more efficiently than any other type of heavy ordinance.  Their lower mass than even regular explosive rounds leads to a more rapid decrease in bullet velocity once the shot leaves the barrel, however, and the thin shell surrounding the explosive material means a more rapid damage falloff when the shot finally detonates.[/li]Effect: +Explosive Damage
Price: 150 credits x tier
Incompatible With: pre-existing Explosive Damage, Guns, and Beam Weapons
Bonus: Each successful hit reduces the duration of enemy cover by two turns instead of one. Immune to Interception.
Warning: Decreases the bonus damage of Explosive weapons to targets in cover by 1/2.
Accuracy Profile Adjustment:

• Close Range: +1
• Mid Range: -1
• Long Range: -2

[/ul][/font]

[Kagimizu]

Electrostatic Warheads: These.... well I still can't necessarily sign off on them, but for different reasons. The idea is relatively solid- though honestly I think your color text actually hurts your cause given the setting rather than helps it- but I'm just not entirely sure about shock ranged weapons as a whole. Even in real life outside of EMPs- which we've gone over enough- all electronic ranged weaponry are along the lines of stun guns; firing a wired projectile and then forcing a current directly through the target. However melee weapons that require only a brief period of contact to inflict their effects do exist in the Gundam multiverse, though these warheads do not. So while I can't sign off and approve, I won't give an outright "nay" either.

Mine Shells (Gun): .....I still feel like they're a bit too complicated. Moreover, I think it gives a little too much. Explosive damage and critical damage against light and airborne suits? Plus the accuracy changes, it still feels like a bit much for a single upgrade. If you have high enough Aim, why ever use the regular Explosive upgrade over this? Here's my counter:

• Mine Shells
  Explosive shells specialized to focus on raw concussive force rather than explosive fragmentation. Though powerful against lightly armored targets, their reduced mass also makes them less accurate.
  Effect: -1 accuracy, -2 at long range. Inflicts critical damage against light and flying mobile suits.
  Incompatible with: Non-explosive weaponry.

Like this, the upgrade serves its own unique purpose and the intended design theme, without impacting other upgrade options (though I feel my flak rounds upgrade is getting its toes stepped on a little). With the removal of the +Explosive and the change to accuracy penalties, the reduction of damage bypass seems a little excessive.

Mine Shells (Cannon): Second verse, same as the first. Too much, too complicated for a single upgrade option. Your explosive rounds upgrade can be applied to most cannons, so my suggestion would be to rewrite this one almost from the ground up to achieve the desired effect.

• Anti-Fortification Rounds
  High-capacity rounds specifically designed to break through enemy fortifications and protective cover. Much like mine shells, their increased penetrative power comes at the cost of accuracy and velocity.
  Effect: Enemies gain a +2 bonus to interception against this weapon. If redirected to cover, reduces the duration of cover by two turns instead of one.
  Incompatible with: Non-artillery weapons, beam weapons.

Cannons typically inflict a -2 penalty on attempts to redirect, so when equipped to a cannon this breaks even. On other artillery weapons, it makes attempts to shoot them down even easier. But if you're willing to take those risks and are dedicated to flushing enemies out of cover, you can use this upgrade to punish anyone who tries to hide from your onslaught. Think you're safe behind cover? How's about I break it down while dishing out some damage anyways?

Being entirely honest I have- or at least had- my own ideas for a "Bunker Buster" upgrade for artillery myself, and I still might make use of it. But in the interest of achieving the functional intent behind your idea, I don't see a problem with sharing one of my own as a suggestion for yours instead.

[spiceracksargent01]

... huh... guess my attention to detail when it comes to writing really is working against me here... making a note of that for the future.  I'll give it some more thought and try again when I can think of a better way to make this work...