FOO Target Designator

Burning Empires Tech Burner
1

Many times, hammer assets are forced to take positions in high orbit that prevent them from precisely pinpointing anvil targets. Often, even when in low orbit, or even in the atmosphere, the combination of ground clutter and ECM makes it impossible to find their objectives. And when you’re firing tactical nuclear missiles, it pays to put them where you want them. Thus, on occasion, hammer offices are grounded to act as fire control liaisons with anvil units so as to help facilitate communication between the two rival services. This duty is despised as much by hammer officers as anvil, but the rigors of the service sometimes demand these unpleasant decisions.

Grounded hammer officers are often equipped with a small, powerful, specialized, communicator that allows them to relay real time targetting data to hammers floating high above in space.

Artillery (missile) 8 points
Megablast
Indirect
Intelligent
Mounted
Mounted Limitation removed + 3 points
Categorical Limitation added (must have friendly hammer assets in orbit)-1

Total Obstacle: 10

I’d also like to add two further limitations. First, whenever this weapon is used, all units in the same position suffer from the megablast trait, friendly or not. This would be called ‘Danger Close.’

Second is that any shot opportunities allocated to the FOO Targeting Device get taken in the subsequent volley. This would be called ‘Splash in Fifteen… Fourteen…’

Not quite sure how to price these.

2

The delay is actually tricky: What if you’re using it for Suppressive Fire and spend your successes on something other than a Shot Opportunity? In that case the missile’s having an immediate effect. Or, you could apply the delay to all effects (e.g. degrading cover, applying obstacle penalties to target’s next action, etc.), but that begins to get really headachy. [EDIT: Remember Direct Fire requires a prior Observe action anyway.] I’d suggest making “Splash in 15…” pure color.

As for Danger Close, that’s a nasty one, but as written, it’s probably only a Categorical Limitation (-1 pt), since the obvious answer is never to get into the same Position as your target if you can possibly help it.

Now, to nastify it further, you could require the Forward Observer to make a Steel Check before he calls in fire on his own position – say, at an Obstacle of 3 (this isn’t routine difficulty!). That’s a 4-point Obstacle penalty, mitigated by advantagous Obscure Circumstances (i.e. it doesn’t come up a lot) to the tune of, oh, two points, making a -2 point cost break on top of the Categorical Limitation, three points total.

3

You’re probably right about the Splash in Fifteen…

I’m thinking I may change the categorical limitation regarding the hammer fleet to “User must have an agreement with the hammer captain that he will provide fire support”. Probably call it ‘Welcome to the Net’.