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ACES HIGH - A Weird Wild-West Supplement for the BRP System


Trifletraxor

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Thats really excellent. I'm impressed, and a little bit jealous. When I run Aces High most of the time the scenarios have been largely unconnected, they're a sequence of unrelated incidents. Same characters (mostly) but essentially no long term thread holding it all together.

I like the idea of progression through time too. My only fear with that in a historical setting is that you run the risk of running out of time and ending up in modern days!

But it does sound like you have a really interesting game going.

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  • 2 weeks later...
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See the downloads section for an expanded, revised and updated firearms list.

This is an experiment in trying to rationalise range, damage and calibre and completely scraps the list from the AH book!

The new list offers some (minor) differences for same weapon, different calibre, different barrel length.

Also, I have introduced a new stat, 'Availability' based on the production run of each weapon. The idea behind availability is that it is a GM tool to tell you how easily a particular kind of firearm is to get hold of. Low production run means there is a low chance of finding that gun in a gun shop. High production run, high chance.

Damage is directly linked to Calibre

Range is linked with Calibre and Barrel Length

Malfunction is linked with Year of manufacture

ENC is linked with Length and Weight

AP is linked with Length

I guess I'm looking for comments... are there any glaring omissions?

http://basicroleplaying.com/downloads.php?do=file&id=431

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Looks very good!

I assume the ranges are maximum ranges? So I just have to divide them by 4 to bring them in to the BRP mechanics?

Other than that I haven't noticed anything I can complain on. I really like the new availability stat! Most of the stats make much more sense now than the old stats. I'll take my time to study the stats more carefully to see if I have missed anything, but as I have said looks good so far.

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I assume the ranges are maximum ranges? ...

Yes... I'll have to sort that out! I've generally based all ranges on maximum effective range. I seem to have developed a blindspot for the BRP ranges. But this 1/4 range modifier does seem to fit...

I really like the new availability stat! ...

Good. I think it makes a lot of sense, helps bring things into perspective.

I'll take my time to study the stats more carefully to see if I have missed anything...

Please do. Definately be interested to see whether some detailed analysis brings up anything out of place :)

Thanks for looking.

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Well you can still use the maximum ranges as long as you remember that for each quarter of the maximum range the skill chance is halved. So normal chance for the first quarter, 1/2 chance for the second quarter, 1/4 chance for the third quarter and 1/8 chance for the last quarter. Also the damage beyond half the max range is halved.

Well thats the rule in the BRP book atleast.

Just thought it would be simpler for the players to have the base ranges. Saves them a lot of calculations.

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No, you're right. Its an oversight on my part (its my special power;D).

Simple is better and I re-found the Extended Range rule too... on p. 223 but I don't see anything about the 1/8 chance or reduced damage... where are you getting that from?

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At quadruple base range, the chance decreases to 1/8 the normal skill rating.
Quote from the same page containing Extended Range rule. Last part of the first paragraph.

For attacks at more than double the base range, the damage done by the missile is halved, after rolling. Damage is not reduced further beyond three or four times the base range.
Quote also from the same page containing Extended Range rule. Second paragraph.

Seems like your blind spot is still in effect. :P

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Aaaah man! You had me going for a minute there but You Have a Softcover BRP!

That whole paragraph that begins "For attacks at more than double the base range..." isn't in the Hardcover brp!

And the last two sentences in the paragraph above, starting "At three times the base range..." is completely re-written in the hardcover version.

You are out of date! I feel so much better :P to you too

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"EXTENDED RANGE

If your character is using a missile weapon, he or she may attempt to hit a target well beyond the base range. At the weapons' basic range, the skill chance is unmodified. At medium range (double the basic range), the chance becomes Difficult, and at long range (four times basic range) it becomes 1/4 the normal skill chance.

The Point blank Range Spot Rule on page 229 still applies: where range is less than DEX/3 in meters, attacks are Easy.

Small hand-propelled weapons such as the throwing knife and the throwing axe have no chance to hit beyond double base range."

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Ahh seems like it! Thank god I have the hardcover version already on the way with the snail mail and should arrive any day now. My softcover is already falling apart from some heavy use so I ordered the hardcover last week. I knew the hardcover had some errata but I never figured that the Extended Range Spot Rule was one of them. ;D

Well I guess that is settled then! :)

Edited by Chorpa
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Just wanted to give some input on the revised weapon tables. Noticed that Sharps and Enfield have 1/CR attacks. Isn't both breech loaders?

Then I think 1/SR would make more sense. But with 1 in ammo the effect wouldn't be noticeable since you normally just can shoot and reload in a combat round anyway.

Unless you have Dex SR of 1, then you would be able to squeeze of another shot but start the next CR with an empty rifle.

I don't remember if the Springfield was a breech loader. But if it is I think the same would apply there. I think the Ferguson musket probably would qualify for this being a breech loading musket.

1/SR I think should apply to any of the breech-loading weapons and this includes the Derringers too since I noticed that several of them have 1/CR as SR speed.

But as mentioned before the effect would only be a cosmetic one since you would normally still only be able to shoot and reload in a combat round so it really wouldn't make much of a difference. Just me being annoying. :P

Edited by Chorpa
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I think Springfield rifles were muzzle loaders. So 1/CR sounds ok. But then flintlocks and muskets in the BRP book are 1/2CR so maybe thats more appropriate... or is that just demonstrating an older technology?

Sharps and Enfield were both breech loaders, I don't have a problem with speeding them up to 1/SR. I may have been thinking of them as slow weapons in themselves while ignoring that they are slow because they are single shot weapons.

So we end up with something like...

Flint/Match locks - 1/2CR, Muzzle Loader - 1/CR, Breech loader - 1/SR

Hmmm, that will probably initiate a revision of the older firearms...

I'll double check the derringers, and the early pistols too, because I think you've made some insightful comments here.

Thanks. Really helpful!

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I think Springfield rifles were muzzle loaders. So 1/CR sounds ok. But then flintlocks and muskets in the BRP book are 1/2CR so maybe thats more appropriate... or is that just demonstrating an older technology?
Yes! 1/CR sound ok if it is a muzzle loader so no change on that one.

So we end up with something like...

Flint/Match locks - 1/2CR, Muzzle Loader - 1/CR, Breech loader - 1/SR

That is exactly along the lines I am thinking. I am still unsure about how to place the Ferguson since it was an early breech loader.

Hmmm, that will probably initiate a revision of the older firearms...

I'll double check the derringers, and the early pistols too, because I think you've made some insightful comments here.

Thanks. Really helpful!

I'll gladly help and do anything I can do to help making Aces High better in any capacity I can. It's a good monograph and deserves the attention. ;t)
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Any help always greatly appreciated!

According to wikipedia (the font of all true and accurate knowledge) the Fergusson rifle "... had an amazingly high rate of fire for its day". So I'm inclined to give that a 1/SR.

Wikipedia also says "...the guns broke down easily in combat" so I'm going to drop its Malfunction chance to 94%.

Making the Fergusson rifle one of the most expensive, least reliable, fastest shooting black powder rifles in the 1700's.

Glad thats sorted out, I'm moving on to the Nock Gun now http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nock_gun. Which looks quite exciting! Its kind of like a 7 barreled shotgun...

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  • 4 months later...

Noticed a small error in the Aces High book when I was fiddling around with my current groups Aces High Characters. Lasso have two different Base Chances listed. It's listed as 10% in the skill description but only as 5% in the Weapon List. Checking the Basic RolePlaying Core book it's listed as 5% so my first reaction is that this is the correct one.

But then again many other skills have higher base chances than normal since they are so common at the time (Drive (Wagon) and Ride (Horse) for example). So wanted to point out this error for the future give a chance to correct it and of course to figure the correct base chance myself. :horse:

So which is the correct Base Chance?

Edited by Chorpa
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Lasso appears three times as having a 10% base and only once, on the weapons table as 5%... Must have been some kind of brain stutter there. Like you say more common skills have a higher base %, that should have been true of Lasso. Many Thanks for spotting that. I'll add that to the list of revisions :)

I like the changes you've done to the character sheet, especially the categorising of the skills. Putting all of the skills on the character sheet was something I deliberately avoided, but having seen what you've done with it I may be revising my opinion...

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Lasso appears three times as having a 10% base and only once, on the weapons table as 5%... Must have been some kind of brain stutter there. Like you say more common skills have a higher base %, that should have been true of Lasso. Many Thanks for spotting that. I'll add that to the list of revisions :)
Thanks I had a feeling it would be something like that but now I know for sure. It was just a minor thing. But I am one of those peeps who just can't let even small things like that slide by. Something you can see on the constant upgrades on my own Character Sheets. Always find minor things I have missed that have to be fixed. :P

I like the changes you've done to the character sheet, especially the categorising of the skills. Putting all of the skills on the character sheet was something I deliberately avoided, but having seen what you've done with it I may be revising my opinion...
Well it was by no means intended to replace your character sheet. Just wanted to customize a sheet for my group and since I already had a generic one created on my hard drive it was an easy thing to modify it for our needs. The last thing where I added all the skill groupings was an experiment. Didn't think it would work and had to decrease the size of the text to the point I thought it would become to small to be able to fit handwriting in there. But after printing a sample sheet out and scrabbled down a character on it I realized it actually worked quite nicely. You are free to steal all you want for future use, I work on it in Word and still have that on my hard drive if anyone wants that one for further modifications just PM me and I'll send it.

I do what I can to support and keep Aces High alive! ;)

Edited by Chorpa
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  • 1 month later...

This is just some suggestions on expanding the rules of the Nock Gun in the Revised Firearms List we use as a standard in our campaign at the moment. Noticed that there where no particular rules on handling this interesting 7-barrel rifle.

As I understand from reading up on the construction of the gun you always fire all loaded barrels when you discharge the weapon. This is easily handled by considering it as a burst fire according to the rules on page 214 in the BGB.

On the other hand the rate of fire of 1/CR should be applied to a single barrel. Reloading all 7 barrels would result in a RoF of 1/7CR. Which I think it reasonable. It's a powerful single shot weapon but reloading all 7 muzzle loading barrels must me a pain.

From what I understand you should still be able to fire the weapon even if you haven't loaded all of the barrels. For example if you have loaded only 4 barrels you should be able to discharge the weapon as a 4-round burst.

Edited by Chorpa
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The Nock Gun is a particularly interesting weapon which definately needs some kind of clarification. I especially liked the wikipedia entry which states that the reload rate, muzzle velocity and effective range are all variable...

I really like the idea that it takes 1/7CR to fully load it, 1/CR per barrel. That makes perfect sense. And the ability to only load some of the barrels when time is an issue also works really well.

Having just re-read the burst rules I guess that does seem to fit too, although I had only thought of the nock gun as either an area effect weapon, or probably more like a shotgun effect with scatter shot. Over distance the damage is reduced, up close you get the full 21d8+7 =O

You may have noticed that shotguns aren't covered in the revised firearms list and that's because they're going to get their own little section, clarifications, steroids.

I do like the way you think. It makes me question the rationale behind some of my more spontaneous thoughts. But what you're saying slots in pretty closely to my own thoughts, which makes me happy. Kind of offsets the wait for New Mexico...

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Yeah I decided to make an enemy interesting in our campaigns next adventure and this weapon fitted the bill.

I was thinking about treating it as an area of effect weapon too but somehow felt that the burst rules felt more appropriate and would differentiate it from the shotguns. Either way you go it's easy enough to make the changes that suit our campaign and tastes.

Will be interesting to see the new treatment on shotguns. One thing that came up in our last adventure was actually how big an area a shotgun blast covers! Couldn't find anything about it, but my own experience it shouldn't be much more than the area of the target. Another person in close combat with him would be in big problems though.

Can hardly wait for New Mexico. Really looking forward to it!

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Nock's idea was to post a sailor armed with this weapon in the crow's nest and fire down onto the deck during boarding actions. The idea never panned out because - apart from being terribly heavy & a beast to reload - it set fire to the ship's rigging when discharged!

I'd treat it as a really big shotgun instead of using the burst rules. This was a smoothbore and designed as an "area attack" weapon. At point blank range you'd cut anyone you pointed at in half. At longer ranges the bullets would spread and it would be most effective against a tightly packed group of opponents. I think the damage is a little high too. My recollection is the Nock was a 0.45 caliber weapon and no individual ball packed the punch of a Brown Bess musket.

The Nock Volley Gun was invented in the late 18th century. Ace's High is set in the 1860's so this would be a one of a kind weapon.

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Nock's idea was to post a sailor armed with this weapon in the crow's nest and fire down onto the deck during boarding actions. The idea never panned out because - apart from being terribly heavy & a beast to reload - it set fire to the ship's rigging when discharged!

I know a about this! Luckily my NPC is not gonna be in a Crow's Nest and risk setting fire to the rigging/sails and he will also be a big guy to so he can handle the infamous recoil from firing all barrels at once. He will be part of a team that attacks a town to gather subjects for their demon master. And the adventurers will just happen to be imprisoned in that town. As you said it is a perfect weapon against crowds and that was the idea and regardless if I rule it as an area of effect or burst weapon it will be an intimidating single shot weapon. Not sure about the caliber though, the wikipedia page on the weapon lists it as .52 inches which ofcourse it less than the .64 listed in the so I agree that the damage might be a bit high. According to the calibre damage used for the rest of the revised weapon list the damage should be 2D6+1 same as the other .52 weapons. Thanks for pointing that out, completly missed that! I am sure MrJealousy appreciates you spotting the error too for future reference.

I still think the autofire rules are still better for the Nock Gun since they can also handle large groups too according to the rules. But it's just my opinion and I do think Area of Effect rules does give a similar effect but wanna reserve that for explosions and similar effects but would understand if people would prefer it above the other.

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Balls!

Can't find any references to a .65 Nock Gun but I have found .52 and .45 'sporting version'. I must have imagined the .64... I'll update the list.

I included it in the revised weapons list because it is a firearm created after America was settled and I forsaw it as a fantastic weapon to scare the willies out of anyone it was pointed at!

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More reasons to lower damage:) The barrel length of the weapon is 20 inches or so and the powder charge per barrel was pretty light. An individual barrel would likely do damage similar to a carbine/musketoon. A Brown Bess musket is in the 40-inch range barrel range. Black powder has a comparatively long burn time so barrel length would make a big difference on range and muzzle velocity.

I totally agree with the coolness/intimidation factor. Wave this in the face of any cowpoke and he'll need to clean out his britches! Inclusion of weapons like this is also nice for GMs who'd like to set their campaigns earlier than the default year. Imagine Aces High: Zorro or Aces High: The Alamo.

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