Tanker's Tuesday: Tank Warfare Explained

Combat Walker Construction Stargrunt II

This article was written with particular vehicle miniatures in mind. The author uses the old scale Heavy Gear walker miniatures as Combat Walkers for Stargrunt in the 25mm scale. These miniatures are about the right size in scale for a single-pilot vehicle. These "Mecha-style" vehicles often have weapons and equipment outside the main armour, either held in one of the "hands" or strapped to the back, mounted on a shoulder or leg, etc. The style is very common to combat walkers as depicted in Anime/Mecha style art, and as such is applicable to a wider range of models and miniatures than those produced by Dream Pod 9 for Heavy Gear.
Combat Walkers have several advantages to their design. Perhaps the main advantage is the ability to carry greater firepower than a conventional armoured vehicle of similar size, because the mounting and aiming mechanisms (their "arms") are part of the basic vehicle structure and because the weapons are carried outside the main hull. In some cases, the weapons are interchangeable, and the Walker pilot can choose from several different weapons, with the "arms" grasping the required weapon from a rack or mount on the back or leg.
According to the Vehicle Design rules in the Stargrunt II rulebook (page 31 - 32), a standard armoured vehicle may be fitted with 5 Capacity Points worth of weapons, equipment, or troop carrying space per Size Class of the vehicle. A size 2 vehicle, for example, has 10 Capacity Points for equipment and weapons.
Turreted weapons with wide arcs of fire take up a considerably larger amount of space than non-turreted weapons. A turreted weapon takes up three times the weapon size class in Capacity Points, while a fixed mount weapon requires only two times the weapon size class in Capacity Points. A turret mounted RFAC/2 would thereby take up 6 Capacity Points, making it impossible to fit this weapon system on a size 1 vehicle.
The "Heavy Gear" style combat walker design seems ill suited to this design methadology. These vehicles clearly cannot carry any infantry (they have room for only one pilot), but due to the nature of the design, greater flexibility in weapon and equipment capacity requirements should be considered.
For example, these vehicles have "arms" and a rotating waist as part of the basic vehicle structure. These mechanisms provide what is in effect a turret for weapons without taking up internal volume or detracting from carrying capacity. The weapons themselves are carried externally, requiring less internal space. As such, "turret mounted" weapons on these vehicles should cost less Capacity Points than the equivalent weapon on more standard armoured vehicles. However, there should also be a limit to the maximum size of weapon available for Combat Walker mounted weapons. As the weapons are mounted "off center" and the vehicles walk rather than roll on wheels or tracks (or a stable gravitic platform for grav vehicles), weight and balance would be a concern. A size 2 Combat Walker could theoretically mount a size 5 fixed weapon (10 capacity points), but if carried on one of the arms, the vehicle would be very poorly balanced. In addition, for game balance reasons I suggest there should be a limit to the maximum size weapon carried on a Walker.
These rules enable Size 1 and 2 Combat Walkers to carry a larger weapon load than equivalent size conventional vehicles, but places a strict maximum limit on the weapon classes carried.
Combat Walker Capacity for Weapons and Systems
Size 1 Combat Walkers
Capacity Points: 5
Maximum Weapon Size Class: 2
Size 2 Combat Walkers
Capacity Points: 10
Maximum Weapon Size Class: 3
On either Size 1 or Size 2 Walkers, each "arm" can carry only 1 weapon.
Weapon Capacity Point Costs
Size Class 1 Weapons: 2 Capacity Points
Size Class 2 Weapons: 4 Capacity Points
Size Class 3 Weapons: 6 Capacity Points
"SAW" type infantry support weapons: 1 Capacity Point
Vehicle Mounted Automatic Grenade Launcher: 2 Capacity Points
Heavy Flame Thrower: 2 Capacity Points
Also, GMS systems have "non-standard" space requirements:
GMS-L: 3 Capacity Points
GMS-H: 5 Capacity Points
In addition, shoulder mountings can carry 1 "SAW" type weapon "for free", including SAW, Multiple Launcher Packs (MLP - same as that found on PA) and single shot GMS/L tubes (may be used once during the battle, otherwise acts exactly the same as a standard GMS-L).
As with other vehicles, ECM, fire control, guidance systems, decoy launchers, smoke dischargers and other similar small external fittings do not require Capacity Points.
Arcs of Fire:
There are two ways to account for arcs of fire for this type of vehicles, and either is appropriate. Choose whichever suits your sense of aesthetics for these vehicles. The first is to allow all "arm" mounted weapons a 360 degree Arc of Fire (the arms themselves allow a 180 degree Arc of Fire to the side, and the waist can rotate 90 degrees in either direction, allowing a total coverage of 360 degrees). The second ignores the waist rotation, so arm mounted weapons have a 180 degree Arc of Fire to the side they are mounted on. In addition, all "shoulder" mounted weapons have a 180 degree Arc of Fire to the front only. In my gaming experiece, arc of fire on these type of vehicles rarely is rarely an issue and we generally do not worry about it, but either of these methods provides a simple justification for a GM to make a ruling on line of sight if necessary.
Drawbacks
The main drawback to this design methodology is that the exposed weapon systems are more likely to suffer damage in combat than equivalent systems on more conventional armoured vehicles.

NRE Assault Lander

Some Air Support : Repainted STAR WARS REPUBLIC GUNSHIP
Being used as an NRE Assault Lander in 15mm, made from the
Transformers toy.

I need to find three more of these for my planed Air Assault unit.

To which I'll add two Red Faction VTOL Gunships for force protection ......)

Tanker's Tuesday: Griffin Technology Demonstrator

Defense contractor General Dynamics has unveiled a new armored vehicle designed to fulfill a U.S. Army requirement for a new light tank. The Griffin Technology Demonstrator is designed to be a lightweight, fast-moving vehicle with a powerful gun that's made to support light infantry troops on the battlefield.

General Dynamics Griffin

Terran Trade Authority - Spacecraft 2000-2100AD Video

The Terran Trade Authority is a science-fiction setting originally presented in a collection of four large illustrated science fiction books published between 1978 and 1980. This series was written by Stewart Cowley, the video is well worth a look.

Terran Trade Authority Video

Tanker's Tuesday : U.S. Army's New 84-Ton Prototype Ground Combat Vehicle

 

 

The Ground Combat Vehicle is pretty much the opposite of the original plan to replace the Bradley. A high-concept proposal called Future Combat Systems aimed to make all U.S. Army vehicles lighter. But during the long ground wars in Iraq and Afghanistan (in which IEDs were the top cause of fatalities), it became clear clear that heavier, not lighter, was the better vehicle design. The U.S. canceled the Future Combat Systems program, and work on the GCV began in 2009. The Pentagon is scheduled to award the first contract to manufacture GCVs in 2019.

 

Gound Combat Vehicle

WWPD: Wargames, Board Games, RPGs, LCGs, and more!: Leopard Arrives to Adrenalize Team Yankee

 

 

WWPD: Wargames, Board Games, RPGs, LCGs, and more!: Leopard Arrives to Adrenalize Team Yankee:   By Mitch Reed and Luke Melia   The good people over at Battlefront supplied us with an advanced copy of the first follow on module for ...

T90 Vs TOW

T90 vs TOW

15mm Scale Vickers Medium Mk.C

More from Peter over at "Shouting Into The Void" blog his
latest work that is now available from Shapeways, another
very hard to find 1920/30s item!

http://mojobob.blogspot.com/2016/03/vickers-mkc-painted.html

Modern Warfare: Paintup Review: Bannon's Boys for Team Yankee (M1A...

Modern Warfare: Paintup Review: Bannon's Boys for Team Yankee (M1A...: This week we take a look at an entire army set - the Bannon's Boys startup box. Rather than break these up into individual reviews, I t...

"War of the Worlds" 1971 Broadcast- Just Awesome.

Tanker's Tuesday: M1 Abrams

Production

Total : 8800 – 3273 M1 (US Army), 4796 M1A1 (US Army + USMC), 755 m1A1 co-produced in Egypt, 77 M1A2 for the US Army, 315 for Saudi Arabia, 218 for Kuwait.


http://www.tanks-encyclopedia.com/coldwar/US/M1_Abrams.php

GURPS Traveller STAR MERCS

A sourcebook for playing mercenaries in the Traveller
universe. An overview of the nature of war and those
who fight wars is provided, with notes on the Imperial
laws of war. There is a guide to running mercenary
campaigns, with a breakdown of weapons systems by
tech-level, from low TL black powder up to high TL
battledress and fusion guns. Weapons and vehicles are
statted out, and character templates are provided for
various military types. Sample missions are provided,
and some example units and characters.

GURPS Traveller GROUND FORCES

This is a sourcebook for regular army and marines in the
Traveller universe. A short history of warfare in the
Imperium is provided, and overviews of the organization
of the Unified Armies of the Imperium and the Imperial
Marines. Military equipment, character templates for
various army types, armoured grav vehicles, space
vehicles and some example characters are listed, and
a modular design system for grav vehicles is featured.

Upgunning Strykers?

Our Army infantry brigades need heavier firepower -- that means
the
return of the light AVF and upgunned Stryker infantry carriers, say
Maneuver
Center of Excellence senior leaders recently.

Stryker Brigade Combat Teams Strykers IFVs are infantry carriers
armed
with .50 caliber machine guns or MK19 automatic grenade launchers
 MCOE
Command Sgt. Major James Carabello claims this is in efficient. "The
 Stryker
needs to get up-gunned; a World War II weapon system on a Stryker?
 It needs a
bigger gun," Carabello said. "It needs something that is a better tank
killer than a MK 19 or a .50 caliber machine gun." The need is now
greater,
officials maintain, since the Army plain cutting the number of Strykers
 in a
brigade from 27 to 10 in the US Army. So Training and Doctrine
Command is
working with the Stryker program plan that could mean mounting a
30mm cannon
on to the remote weapons stations on Stryker infantry carriers.

This would give much greater firepower and still not require a turret be
mounted on the Stryker, Army officials say. The plan is to purchase a
company set of 30mm cannons, test them, and also try to determine
should they be
issued for every Stryker of have one per company, officials said.
 "Looking
at the fire fights we have had on a continuous basis … we see the need
 to
be able to provide an overmatch in the close fight as well for the purpose
of ensuring freedom of maneuver and action of our infantry squads
," McMaster
continued. While a .50 caliber machine gun can be very effective,
"but
you don't get a round that blows up and ends firefights."

The Army is approaching the problem with the Ground Combat
Vehicle (GCV)
to replace the M2 Bradley fighting vehicle and the Armored
 Multipurpose
Vehicle (AMV) to replace the old reliable M113 armored personnel
 carrier.
However, on April, 2nd, 2013, the Congressional Budget Office
(CBO) reported
on the progress of the GCV program. The report estimated the total
 cost $28
billion from 2014-2030, and instead suggested the possibility of alternate
vehicle options. While none of these will meet overall army goals desired
in the GCV, they offer advantages in being less costly and delayed. Current
GCV prototypes are heavy, weighing up to 84 tons, are to be better
protected and seat a 9-man squad. Knowledgeable persons have said that
 a vehicle
of that size would not be well suited to operations faced in Iraq or
Afghanistan. Alternate vehicles would be cheaper and more maneuverable
 in urban
settings. So the CBO report gave four alternative options:

1. Upgrade the M2 Bradley IFV - An upgraded Bradley with better armor and
better AT/Weapons would be more lethal than the GCV against enemy forces
and survive combat at about the same rates as would the GCV, saving $19.8
billion. Upgrading the Bradley would make it more capable than the GCV. It is
a proven design, and it is in place. Downside: The Bradley still only
carries a 7-man squad (2 F/Ts) and has less mobility than the GCV.

2. Purchase the Namer APC - From the Hebrew "Leopard, " the Namer IFV is
based on the Merkava Mark IV chassis. It already has numerous American
components and General Dynamics Land Systems had been chosen to
 negotiate a
contract to manufacture and integrate an unspecified number of vehicle hulls
at the Joint Systems Manufacturing Center in Lima, Ohio. Seats 9 soldiers
with combat survival rates expected slightly higher than the GCV, and costs
$9 billion less. Namer has been designed for survivability and rapid
repair, with modular armor, V-shaped belly armor pack, and NBC protection.
Because the turret weight is gone the armor has been increased, and Namer is
better protected from IUDs. Namer is armed with either a M2 Browning machine
gun 50 cal or a Mk 19 grenade launcher mounted on a Samson Remote
Controlled Weapon Station, like the Styker, as well as a 7.62 mm (FN MAG)
machine
gun, and a 60 mm mortar. Smoke grenade launchers are also carried.
Currently
an external remote controlled 30-mm autocannon and Spike anti-tank guided
missiles is also being considered to be added later. Downside: The Namer
 has
less ability to destroy other enemy vehicles and is less mobile.
Production would be conducted in part domestically, but fielding would require
collaboration with foreign companies and governments. And its not American
designed.


3. Purchase the Puma (IFV) - More lethal than the GCV, combat survival
and
protection at better rates, and just as mobile. Purchasing the Puma would
save $14.8 billion and is considered the most capable of the vehicles.The
Puma IFV is a German infantry fighting vehicle designed to replace the
aging
Marder IFVs currently in service with the Bundeswehr. Its weapon is the
superb Rheinmetall 30 mm MK 30-2/ABM (Air Burst Munitions)
autocannon,
which has a rate of fire of 200 rounds per minute and an effective range of
3,000 m. There are currently two ammunition types directly available via the
autocannon&# 39;s dual ammunition feed. One is a sub-calibre,
 fin-stabilised
APFSDS-T (T for tracer), with high penetration capabilities, mainly for use
against medium armoured vehicles. The second is a full-calibre,
multi-purpose, Kinetic Energy-Timed Fuse (KETF) munition, designed with
 the air burst
capability (depending on the fuse setting) for ejecting a cone of
sub-munitions. The ammunition type can be chosen on a shot to shot basis,
as the
weapon fires from an open bolt, meaning no cartridge is inserted until the
trigger is depressed. The ammunition capacity is 400 rounds; 200 ready to
 fire
and 200 in storage. The secondary armament is a coaxially mounted 5.56
 mm
HK MG4 machine gun firing at 850 rounds per minute and with an effective
range of 1,000 m. The ammunition capacity is 2,000 rounds; 1,000 ready to
 fire
and 1,000 in storage. While this is a smaller weapon than the western
standard secondary armament (7.62 mm caliber MG), it offers the advantage
 that
the crew can use the ammunition in their individual firearms. In situations
where the lower range and penetration of the 5.56 mm rounds is an issue,
the high ammunition load of the main gun enables the vehicle crew to use one
or two main gun rounds instead. The gun housing can also host the 7.62 mm
MG3. The German Puma vehicles are equipped with a turret-mounted
EuroSpike
Spike LR missile launcher, which carries two missiles. The Spike LR
missile
has an effective range up to 4,000 m and can be launched in either the
"Fire and Forget" or "Fire and Observe" mode. There is a 6-shot 76 mm
launcher at the back of the vehicle for close-in defense. The back door
can be
opened halfway and enables two of the passengers to scout and shoot
WITH
moderate protection. The Puma was designed to accommodate additional
armor,
initially planning to offer three protection classes which are wholly or
partly interchangeable. Protection class A is the basic vehicle, at 31.5
metric
tons combat-ready weight air transportable. Protection class C consists
 of
two large side panels that cover almost the whole flanks of the vehicle and
act as skirts to the tracks, a near-complete turret cover and armor plates
for most of the vehicle' s roof. The side panels are a mix of composite and
spaced armor. It adds about 9 metric tons to the gross weight. The Puma
is protected by AMAP composite armour, the AMAP-B module is used for
protection against kinetic energy threats, while AMAP-SC offers protection
against shaped charges. It can resist direct hits from 14.5 mm (.50 Cal)
rounds, The front armor offers protection against medium caliber projectiles
 and
shaped charge projectiles. In protection class C, the flanks of the Puma
are up-armored to about the same level of protection as is the front, while
the roof armor is able to withstand artillery or mortar bomblets. The Pumas
of the German Army will be equipped with a softkill system multifunction
self protection system, MUSS, which is capable of defeating ATGMs. The
whole
vehicle is protected against heavy blast mines (up to 10 kg) and
projectile charges from below, while still retaining 450 mm ground clearance.
 Almost
all equipment within the cabin, including the seats, has no direct contact
to the floor, which adds to crew and technical safety. All cabin roof
hatches are of the side-slide type, which make them easier to open manually,
even when they are obstructed by debris. The exhaust is mixed with fresh air
and vented at the rear left side. Together with a special IR-suppressing
paint, this aims at reducing the thermal signature of the IFV.
Downside: Puma IFVs only carry six infantrymen (1 F/T), which would
require five vehicles to replace every four Bradleys. Development and
production
would require foreign companies and governments. The US Army already
said
that the Puma "wouldn&# 39;t meet their needs" but an 85 ton IFV
does?

4. Cancel the Ground Combat Vehicle - If the Army reconditioned its
current Bradley instead of replacing them, the current capability of the IFV
fleet could be maintained through 2030. The Army could continue to
investigate
ways to improve the current Bradleys, but it would not field any new or
improved vehicles. The $24 billion saved in funding could be used on other
programs.

On July 30th 2013, Army Chief of Staff General Odierno warned that the GCV
program may be delayed or possibly even cancelled because of the
sequestration budget cuts. The GCV is high-priority for the Army to give better
protection than the M2 Bradley, but because of the sequester cuts everything is
being considered. Not pursuing the GCV would allow the money to be spent
elsewhere.

But maneuver leaders maintain that the Army cannot forget about lighter
units such as Stryker and the infantry brigade combat teams (IBCT) that
currently are not equipped with enough potent firepower to win fights quickly.

Leaders at Maneuver Center of Excellence: "Across all of our formations
we need the right combination of mobility protection and firepower," he
said. "We need to emphasize what is next. What is the light tank that …
we can
give our infantry freedom of maneuver in action? And we want to up-gun
our
Strykers. We can see the enemy; it would be nice to be able to kill them."

Lightly-armed IBCTs also need mobile protected firepower such as a light
tank for forced-entry style Rapid Response missions, Army leaders began
saying earlier this year. The 82nd Airborne Division was equipped with the
M551 Sheridan Armored Reconnaissance Airborne Assault Vehicle until the
 mid
1990s. Developed during the Vietnam War, the Sheridan featured a 152mm
main
gun capable of firing standard ammunition or the MGM-51 Shillelagh antitank
missile. The Sheridan was used in the Invasion of Panama in 1989 and
Operation Desert Shield/Storm in 1991, but it was considered ineffective as a
true AFV since its lightweight, aluminum armor was thin enough to be pierced
by heavy machine-gun rounds, and the vehicle was particularly vulnerable to
mines. Maneuver officials say they would want a platform that could be
air-dropped from a C-130 aircraft. It should have a base armor package capable
of defeating 14.5mm ammunition. Once follow-on forces arrive, addition
armor packages could be bolted on as necessary.

One option could be to take another look at the Armored Gun System (AGS,)
of which the M8 Bradford is the result. The complete AGS was never
successfully developed. The substitutes did not provide the capabilities
envisioned by the original concepts.And these failures deleted the division' s
development. The one successful component the M8 requires a crew of three
through
the use of an autoloader. Its main armament is the 105mm Rheinmetall XM35
tank gun. The M-35 cannon is a low-recoil gun. The autoloader holds 21
projectiles with nine more stowed forward near the driver. Fire control is
provided by a digital fire control system with microprocessors and a databus
similar to the suite on the M1A2. The gunner's primary sight is a day/night
thermal sight and integrated laser range-finder in a stabilized mount.
It has modular bolt-on titanium armor that is not used in a load-bearing
transport. Instead it is transported separately and bolted on later. The
M8 can be fitted with three levels of protection: Level I against shell
splinters Level II against armor piercing small arms and light A/T weapons,
Level III against cannon up to 30mm. The 105mm Rheinmetall XM35 meets
the
requirement to kill t72 tanks. Since this was the AFV most likely met by a
rapid response group in combat.

Stephen Phenow
Modern Crossfire Yahoo Group 

  Modern Crossfire _Volume of Fire G

Tank Nut Dave!

 

 

Welcome to The Armoured Essentials Online Encyclopaedia of military vehicles!!

TankNutDave.com is an online military vehicle encyclopedia spread over a thousand articles categorised by type and generation. It is written by an international staff of combat experienced servicemen and civilian specialists. We have consulted for and featured on TV/movies, including the BBC and attracted the attention & respect of the Bovington Tank Museum’s director for the educational content of our articles.

 

http://www.tanknutdave.com/

Traveller 5

“This is Traveller’s 35th year, and Marc has worked for several years on what he calls the Ultimate Edition: Traveller5. It includes so many things that players have asked for, or that have been imperfectly handled previously. In fact, Marc recently said there are now systems and chapters that he didn’t know how to design way back then. But he does now, and they are included. T5 has technology beyond TL 15, clones, robots, computers, artificial intelligence, QREBS (!), alien senses, Flux. It has a whole series of easy-to-use Makers: GunMaker, VehicleMaker, ArmorMaker, RobotMaker, SophontMaker, ThingMaker. It includes mapping of star systems and worlds; there's ever the MOARN caveat: Map Only As Really Necessary, or referees would spend all their time just making maps of worlds and systems. There's a rationalized section on Psionics, and more, much more.”
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/traveller5/traveller-5th-edition

Paleogamer

paleogamer, paleogame, to paleogame, n. 1. a gamer who has been gaming since
before 1985; from paleolithic ("old stone"). 2. any game, usu. from a micropress,
published before 1985. 3. any game that uses a lot of D&Disms, regardless of the
date of publication. 4. game supplement or milieu that is obviously designed for D&D
or AD&D. 4. (mild perjorative) a game product that appears to have been published
before the widespread use of desktop publishing software. [JPW]
*******************************************************************************************************
Addendum: Today's gamers use "paleogamer" to refer to players who've been gaming
since the early eighties. When I started gaming (in the late seventies), the term referred
to gamers who started in the early seventies, and is still sometimes used that way.
*******************************************************************************************************
and a friend put it this way and I quote,"

Paleogamer? Does this make me Neolithic, I wonder, been Gaming since back in the

Sixties! In fact I was "playing with soldiers" (spit) with an age in single figures, in the

Fifties! In the early 60s (My teens) the hobby took off with the advent of cheap plastic

figures and Donald Featherstone, and I realised there were RULES to do this properly,

WOW, you could actually bring to life all those Movies that were constantly playing on

the back of my eyelids. I was a Wargamer per se until discovering D&D, the basic game

that was a re-engineered set of Wargame rules, then AD&D in the late Seventies; after

that never stopped! I figure I am at least Early Stone Age - keep banging the rocks

together, guys! - and may even be a surviving Dinosaur.... though I know gamers older

than me! (Well, knew, they are probably dead by now, or took too many casualties!)

Just call me a late developer! Ian Winterbottom"

GURPS Mecha

The Mecha Are Here!

From battlesuited space marines making an orbital drop to cinematic Japanese anime action featuring giant walking tanks piloted by beautiful alien princesses, GURPS Mecha covers the entire genre of mecha action! In the pages of Mecha you'll find:

• An easy-to-follow step-by-step guide to building mecha.
• Advanced rules with a plethora of options like transforming and combining machines that can turn into cycles or fighter planes, overload boosters, psionic mecha, energy battlesuits, giant swords and shields, even steampunk mecha!
• Character creation rules for mecha-genre characters and cinematic aliens.
• Advice on using mecha in everything from alien invasions to superhero campaigns, and suggestions for running anime-themed adventures.
• Special combat rules that emphasize the cinematic nature of mecha combat, as well as realistic rules for sensors, weapons and orbital drops.
• Sample mecha and battlesuits.
• And a detailed campaign world, Cybermech Damocles!

http://www.sjgames.com/gurps/books/mecha/