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2 years ago ::
Jul 28, 2011 - 7:03AM
#1
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Date Joined:
Oct 22, 2009
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This came up in a recent game and I was looking for clarity
Starships have 'autofire' - as I read it, this only applies to character scale (a tie fighter could auto-fire against people on the ground) and NOT to starship scale (an xwing can't auto-fire against two tie fighters in adjacent squares)
It seems clear to me but my friend running the game said it wouldn't have 'autofire' in the vehicle blocks if it only applied to starships firing at character scale.
Thanks
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2 years ago ::
Jul 28, 2011 - 9:11AM
#2
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Page 173 of the core rules makes it UTTERLY clear that autofire with vehicle weapons ONLY works as area attack at character scale.
There are several options in Starships of the Galaxy for weapon batteries to affect an area in starship scale, but that's it.
Winner of "You Make The... Contest #1: Starfighters"
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2 years ago ::
Jul 28, 2011 - 10:30AM
#3
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Generally a starship only get to apply the area effect of autofire in Character Scale. Have have toyed with the idea of allowing autofire to be used against a single target in starship scale such that you're firing a bunch of shots at a target so some of them are likely to hit but you are much less likely to deal full damage (thus DR/SR are more effective) but not even in that case would I let you hit multiple targets.
While autofire's area only applies in character scale there is a BIG reason to use autofire when operating at starship scale: BURST FIRE. With your (typically) fighter's lasers set to autofire you may have a lower chance of hitting but when using the Burst Fire feat you get to do two additional dice of damage which comes in BEFORE the multiplier. Using autofire with a 4d10x2 laser system and combining that with Burst Fire will let you deal 6d10x2 damage; defense scores are relatively low for starships so the extra damage often outweighs the reduced chance to hit especially when you consider that more damage means more gets through SR/DR.
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2 years ago ::
Jul 28, 2011 - 1:54PM
#4
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Yeah... Burst Fire... Someone REALLY needs to explain to me why you need STR 13 to get this feat for use with ship-board weapons.  Anyway, yeah, what StevenO said. In fact, if your guns are 5d10x2 or 6d10x2, those additional 2 dice push the damage into the all-important one-shot-kill range for TIE fighters. That can make Burst Fire quite useful.
Winner of "You Make The... Contest #1: Starfighters"
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2 years ago ::
Jul 28, 2011 - 2:13PM
#5
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Date Joined:
Oct 22, 2009
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Yeah... Burst Fire...
Someone REALLY needs to explain to me why you need STR 13 to get this feat for use with ship-board weapons.
Anyway, yeah, what StevenO said.
In fact, if your guns are 5d10x2 or 6d10x2, those additional 2 dice push the damage into the all-important one-shot-kill range for TIE fighters. That can make Burst Fire quite useful.
I'm sure you know this, but this was errated where it doesn't *require* the STR (it just gives an added penalty)
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2 years ago ::
Jul 28, 2011 - 3:59PM
#6
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Yeah... Burst Fire...
Someone REALLY needs to explain to me why you need STR 13 to get this feat for use with ship-board weapons.
Anyway, yeah, what StevenO said.
In fact, if your guns are 5d10x2 or 6d10x2, those additional 2 dice push the damage into the all-important one-shot-kill range for TIE fighters. That can make Burst Fire quite useful.
I'm sure you know this, but this was errated where it doesn't *require* the STR (it just gives an added penalty)
This. Errata altered Burst Fire allowing you take take it (and Rapid Shot as well) without the previous STR requirement. If you happen to be using non-vehicle weapons however there will be a -10 penalty.
A pilot who has Vehicular Combat (and thus "heavy weapon" proficiency when firing the pilot controlled weapons) can take Burst Fire but will only be able to use it when firing his pilot controlled weapons.
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2 years ago ::
Aug 07, 2011 - 8:39PM
#7
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Date Joined:
Apr 10, 2011
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Just a clarification, when you have a fight between 2 starfighters or even airspeeders in character scale, could you use autofire to make an area attack?
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2 years ago ::
Aug 07, 2011 - 9:53PM
#8
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Just a clarification, when you have a fight between 2 starfighters or even airspeeders in character scale, could you use autofire to make an area attack?
Yes but if you're having a fight between two starfighter/airspeeder at speed it is usually MUCH better to run it at starship scale.
When the parties involved have starship scale movement rates it is usually going to be better to use starship scale than character scale. Generally, the only time character scale would be used is when those vehicles are being used against characters.
To put it another way, you should NOT be allowed to change a starship scale encounter into character scale just so that you can "legally" use autofire to hit the enemy.
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2 years ago ::
Aug 08, 2011 - 10:20AM
#9
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- Here be Dragons next 100 km
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One thing worth noting is that the mass combat rules from the Clone Wars Campaign Guide work at starship scale, and mass-combat troop units take more damage from area attacks (which still only affect a single starship-scale square), so if you have a starship strafing a mass-combat battlefield, there's some advantage to it making an autofire attack.
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