Vehicles

Vehicle Classes
Type bike car truck boat helicopter small plane large plane HP 6 12 30 10 20 10 30 EWt 200kg 1,5t 6t 800kg 2,4t 1t 30t Load 100kg 500kg 4t 1t 2t 500kg 20t Freight 1P+50l 5P+500l 2P+20m 2P+2m 2P+8m 4P+1m 3P+50m Ac 10 8 5 5 15 20 35 Sp Range/Fuel 180 500km/20l 180 600km/60l 100 750km/150l 45 500km/100l 200 500km/500l 200 1250km/200l 400 2000km/20m Cost 5.000$ 20.000$ 50.000$ 30.000$ 250.000$ 300.000$ 4.000.000$

Properties

Most vehicle properties (Empty Weight EWt, Load Ld, Freight Fr, Range Rng and Cost) are pretty much self-explanatory. The stats in the table are given for a typical, simple mid-range vehicle of its class. After Range the necessary amount of Fuel for this distance is given.

Hit Points (HP)

Hit Points measure how much damage a vehicle can take before it becomes inoperable. A vehicle that has lost half of its HP has its Acceleration and Speed halved. Roll on the corresponding mechanic Skill (linked to Technics) to repair a vehicle (Car Mechanic, Boat Mechanic, Aircraft Mechanic). Each Success restores one HP and requires parts for 1% of the vehicle's cost. Each attempt at repair takes four hours.

Acceleration (Ac)

Acceleration describes how quickly a vehicle can change its speed. In each Round, it can increase its current speed by its Acceleration or reduce it by three times its Acceleration. To increase this rate, roll a [Vehicle] Check. Each Success increases this by one (but never by more than the vehicle's initial Acceleration.

Speed (Sp)

Speed gives the Travel Speed (in km/h) and Maneuver Speed (in m/Round) - yes, that's 20% more. Exceeding the Maneuver Speed is also possible, but only Successes from the Acceleration Check can be used for this, not the vehicle's base Acceleration. Exceeding the safe Maneuver Speed reduces the driver's effective Skill by one for each 5%.

Vehicle Armor

Vehicles can be equipped with armor. This works the same as for characters, with one exception: Since vehicles can not take Stun Damage, vehicle armor does not need a Hardness stat. Only Absorption is given.

Terrain
Bad terrain has a Terrain Modifier from one (dirt road) to six (ice or deep mud). Each point reduces the effective [Vehicle] Skill by one and Load, Speed and Range by 10%. Driving onto worse terrain requires a [Vehicle] Check. The driver needs to roll at least as many Successes as the Terrain Modifier to avoid losing control of his vehicle or getting stuck.

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Modifiers
The modifiers listed here can be applied to model vehicles differing from the ones given in the table above. By default, they are applied in the order they are listed here. They are only meant as a loose guideline for the GM. Percentages are multiplied one after the other.

Light/small
The vehicle is smaller than most in its category. HP, EWt -33%, Ld -20%, Fr -50%, Sp -20%, Rng +50%, Cost -50%

Heavy/large
The vehicle is bigger than most in its category. This modifier can be applied twice. Incomp. with light/small. HP, EWt +50%, Ld, Fr +100%, Ac -1, Sp -20%, Rng -25%, Cost +100%

High performance
The vehicle has a stronger engine than most in its category. This modifier may be applied multiple times. Ld +25% or Ac +2 or Sp +25%, Rng -10%, Cost +100%

All-Terrain
The vehicle is more sturdy and built for bad terrain. Only for land vehicles. There are five levels of all-terrain modification, each reduces the Terrain Modifier by an additional point: 4WD, improved suspension, extra large wheels, halftrack, tracked. Per level: HP +1, EWt +20%, Ld +10%, Sp -10%, Rng -10%, Cost +20%

Engine
The vehicle stats in the table above are given for vehicles using an internal combustion engine (kerosene for aircraft, gasoline for everything else). It is also possible to use other engines: Muscle: EWt -50%, Ld S*100kg-EWt, Ac S-EWt/100kg, Sp S*10, Rng -, Cost -90% Sail: Like muscle, but Skill for Strength, Sp < Windsp. (x2 for planes), Cost -80% Diesel: Ld +25%, Ac -2, Sp -10%, Rng +20%, Cost +20% Electric: Ld -50%, Sp -33%, Rng -50%, Fuel(l)->Battery(kWh), Cost +50% Jet/Gas Turbine: EWt -10%+2t, Ld +100%-2t, Ac, Sp +100%, Rng -33%, Cost +100%

Tough

The vehicle is exceptionally sturdy and reliable. This modifier may be applied multiple times, but HP can not be increased by more than 50%. Per level: HP +1, Ld +5%, Cost +10%

Unreliable/old
The vehicle is either shoddily built or old. This modifier may be applied multiple times, but HP can not be decreased by more than 50% and Cost not below 10%. First level: HP -2, Cost -40%; Other levels: HP -1, Cost -10%

Tuning
Tuning is similar to modifiers, but applied to vehicles after design. The sequence in which tuning is done is irrelevant, percentages are relative to the vehicle's stats before any tuning. The names and descriptions are for land vehicles with a gasoline engine. Other vehicles can have similar options that work in a different way and have different names, but roughly the same effects. Some tuning options have a Weight. Every 20% of the Empty Weight reduce Acceleration by one and Speed by 10%. They will also increase Empty Weight and reduce Load by that amount. For each option there is also the penalty to the mechanic Skill and the required time given. Divide that time by the number of Successes.

Accessories
It is possible to permanently install devices like radios or sensors in a vehicle and have them draw their power from the engine/battery if necessary. Weight and Freight like device, Cost +50$, Mechanic 0/2h Version 1.01 EN

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Amphibious

The vehicle is waterproof and equipped with some means of propulsion in water. Each level (up to five) gives the vehicle one point of Acceleration and 5% of its land Speed on water. Aircraft only need the first level since they use the same propulsion as in the air. Per level: EWt +5%, Ac -1, Sp -5%, Cost 10000$; Mechanic Level/Level*12h

Armor

Vehicles can be armored to make them more resilient against damage. Each point of armor is roughly equivalent to 1.5-2mm of steel plates. Each side (front, back, left, right, top, bottom) must be armored separately. Modern composite armor weighs half of steel but costs twice as much. Up to ten points of armor can be hidden inside the vehicle; they can only be found by close inspection of the vehicle. Per level: Outside: Weight TP*2kg, Cost TP*100$, Mechanic 2/6h Inside: Weight TP*2kg, Freight -1l/TP, Cost TP*150$, Mechanic 3/12h

Chip Tuning
It is, within limits, possible to optimize the engine's operating parameters to increase its power. This may however affect its lifetime and reliability. If the mechanic achieves less Successes than the new level of chip tuning, the vehicle loses the difference in HP. These may only be restored after reverting the chip tuning. Per Level: Ac +1, Sp +10%, Rng -10%, Cost 100$, Mechanic Level/Level*2h

Nitrous Oxide Injection

Injecting liquid nitrous oxide ("NOX", "Nitro") together with additional fuel can massively increase the energy per cycle. While active, this option doubles the vehicle's Acceleration and allows it to be used to exceed the vehicles Maneuver Speed by up to 150%. This quickly overheats the engine. Using it for more than ten Rounds costs the vehicle one HP per additional Round. For each Round it is used, the engine needs to cool down for five Rounds. When switched off, the vehicle's speed will drop by 10% of its Maneuver Speed until it only exceeds that by 50%. Jet engines use an afterburner instead. Electric engines can be overcharged without any fundamental modifications; it may be necessary to disengage some safeties, though. Both use the same rules. Nitro: Cost 500$, Mechanic 2/6h Afterburner: Cost 500.000$, Mechanic 4/24h Overcharge: Cost 50$, Mechanic 1/2h

Seats

Additional seats allow a vehicle to carry more people, but less freight. Some seats may be folded (for about 250l of Freight), or removed completely. Per seat: Weight 50kg, Freight +1P/-500l, Cost 250$, Mechanic 0/2h

Tank
Enlarging a vehicle's fuel tank is the easiest way to increase its Range. The tank may also be mounted outside; in that case it does not reduce Freight, but is not protected by armor either. External tanks on aircraft use the same rules as weapon mounts. Per Liter: Weight 1kg (full), Freight -1l, Cost 10$, Mechanic 1/4h

Turbocharger
Turbochargers increase the pressure of the fuel-air-mix injected into combustion engines, and thus their power. It can be mounted in five levels. Other types of engines may also offer ways to increase their power. They use the same rules as turbochargers. Per level: Ac +1, Sp +10%, Rng -10%, Cost +10%, Mechanic 3/6h

Tools

Each mechanic Skill (Car Mechanic, Boat Mechanic and Aircraft Mechanic) require tools weighing 1kg and costing about 100$. The GM may reduce effective Skill for improvised tools. Better tools may be available in more advanced worlds. For each additional increase in Skill, cost and weight are multiplied by ten. Version 1.01 EN

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Use of Vehicles
GMS has three main uses for Vehicle Skills: Races, Chases and Vehicle Combat. A Race is resolved as an Extended Check, with a fixed amount of Successes assigned to the track (or each lap). The GM may distribute these Successes along landmarks on the track. A Chase is basically a Race without track or finish line. It is resolved as Extended Contest. While Vehicle Combat is mainly targeted at damaging the other vehicle and not changing the distance, which would make it unnecessary to keep track of the total Successes, the line between Chase and Combat is often blurred, with one serving a tactical purpose in the other.

Mean Maneuver Speed

For determining the vehicles' relative positions, speeds and maneuver advantages, their mean Acceleration and mean Maneuver Speed must be calculated. Each point of Acceleration and 10% Maneuver Speed above the mean (but not more than what can be effectively used in the situation; GM's call) give an additional die for the above Checks; every two points of Acceleration or 20% of Maneuver Speed below remove one die. The relative distance between two vehicles in a Chase can be estimated at 10% of the mean Maneuver Speed in meters, times the difference in total Successes. Their relative speed is 10% of the mean Maneuver Speed times the difference in Successes rolled in this Round.

Ramming
Whenever a vehicle is closer to another than its Acceleration in meters, its driver may try to ram the other one. If two vehicles collide, both lose one HP per 10m/Round difference in velocity, but not more than the other vehicle's HP. Roll a [Vehicle] Contest between the drivers. The winner may spend his Net Successes to reduce his damage, increase the opponent's damage or to try to force the opponent off the road. Each Success spent on the latter reduces the opponent's Successes in the next Round by one. He will lose control of the vehicle if his effective Successes become negative that way.

Combat Maneuvers

In Vehicle Combat, each driver may roll a [Vehicle] Check to place himself in an advantageous position or become harder to hit. Attacks between vehicles are modified by the difference in Successes. Nobody in a vehicle may take an action before its driver does. In a Chase, the driver must split his Successes between Combat Maneuvers and changing the distance.

Evasion

The pursued in a Chase may try to get away using risky maneuvers. For this, he may reduce his effective Skill in the next Check as much as he likes. The pursuer must choose between staying safe and foregoing to roll for Successes this Round or trying to keep up and rolling the next Check with the same penalty as the pursued. Everyone failing to roll any Success in this Check loses control of his vehicle. How many total Successes are required to finally get away depends on visibility. About ten Successes are reasonable in a city with moderate traffic, twenty or more on open terrain.

Regain Control
A driver losing control of his vehicle must roll one Success per 20% of its Maneuver Speed he is currently driving at in a [Vehicle] Check. If he fails, his vehicle crashes and loses one HP for each missing Success.

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Vehicle Weapons
Military vehicles are often equipped with weapons. Weapons mounted on a vehicle are used with Gunnery. If those weapons are not mounted on a vehicle (and not already covered by another Skill), they are use with Heavy Weapons. Both Skills are linked to Ranged and use the rules from the Module Modern Firearms.

Penetration Factor
Vehicle weapons use a Penetration Factor instead of actual Penetration since vehicle armor does not have a Hardness stat. Vehicle armor is divided by this factor before being applied. The actual Penetration can be calculated as Damage*PF/2; this should exceed the Hardness of any imaginable body armor by a huge margin for most vehicle weapons, making the calculation of this stat obsolete in almost all cases.

Range
Every multiple of the weapon's Range the target is away from the shooter reduces his effective Skill by one (most vehicle weapons use targeting systems to compensate for this). Targets further away than ten times the Range can not be engaged with direct fire. Indirect fire is possible for up to 20 times the Range. For this, an observer seeing the target has to roll a Navigation Check. The gunner can not exceed the Successes of this check. The impact is 1D6m from target for each km of distance, divided by the number of Successes. If no Successes are rolled, the distance is doubled. Projectiles travel five times their Range and lose 20% of their PF each Round.

Cannons
Firearms with a caliber of at least 20mm are referred to as cannons in this Module. To determine a cannon's stats, Caliber and Length are most relevant. The Damage is equal to its Caliber in mm (or about 25 points per inch). The PF is its Length divided by 50 times its Caliber. A cannon's Range is equal to 150 times its Length. If you can't find any information about its weight, it can be approximated as (Caliber/mm)x(Length/m)x0,035kg. A cannon with a Caliber of 50mm (2") or less can fire one shot per Round ("S"). Every 25mm (1") increase in Caliber requires an additional Round to reload. Cannons with a Caliber of 40mm or less can be modified to fire in automatic mode ("A"). This doubles their weight. Bigger cannons may be equipped with an autoloader that allows firing one shot per Round without reloading but increases their weight by 50%. A cannon costs roughly 5000$ plus 50$ per kg. It can also be modified to fire rockets and missiles of the same Caliber for another 5000$. Ammunition weighs roughly (Caliber/cm)x15g per shot and costs 10$ per kg.

Rocket Launchers
Rocket Launchers are the second most common vehicle weapon after cannons. They use the same rules as cannons, but PF, Range, weight and cost only depend on the rocket/missile. Typical values are a PF of 0.5 and a Range of 500m. The launcher costs and weighs the same as its ammunition (half, if disposable). Missiles have a Level that's added to the gunner's Skill. They cost an additional 1000$ per Level. A rocket weighs the same and costs ten times as much as the ammunition for a cannon of the same Caliber.

Ammunition

The cannons' stats are given for solid projectiles (called AP) that became increasingly uncommon with new technology. Today, the most common types are HE, APFSDS and HEAT. Armor Piercing Discarding Sabot (APDS) rounds double PF, increase Range and cost by 50% and reduce Damage by 20%. AP Fin Stabilized Discarding Sabot (APFSDS) increase Range and cost by another 50%. High Explosive (HE) rounds have their PF limited to 0.5 but their Damage is doubled after subtracting armor. If they do not penetrate, they detonate outside with the same effect as an explosive charge with half their Damage. High Explosive Anti Tank (HEAT) rounds use high explosives to propel a jet of metal at hypersonic speeds through the armor. They are treated the same as HE rounds, but their PF is 1.5 against steel and 1 against composite armor. They cost twice as much as regular ammunition. Version 1.01 EN

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Weapon Mounts
Weapon mounts are required to install vehicle weapons or small arms (usually machine guns) on a vehicle. All weapons on mounts are used with Gunnery. Each external mount on an aircraft reduces speed and fuel efficiency by 5%.

Hardpoint

Hardpoints are fixed weapon mounts (usually) pointing to the front. They weigh about 5% of the mounted weapon. A hardpoint uses 1l of Freight per 10kg of the weapon's weight if it can be manually operated from the inside of the vehicle. A weapon that is retractable or mounted completely inside the vehicle uses 1l of Freight per 2kg. A hardpoint costs 5% of the mounted weapon (10% if the weapon can be controlled remotely). Bombs and heavy missiles do not require a launcher in most cases, but can be directly attached to a hardpoint. Vehicle weapons on a hardpoint can usually be aimed by up to 5-10, small arms can be rotated as far as the space inside the vehicle allows (usually about 60 in every direction). They may also be placed on a freely rotating mount, which weighs about 50kg extra and makes it impossible to use them from inside the vehicle.

Turret

Turrets are the preferred method to allow vehicle weapons to be freely rotated. They are treated as an independent vehicle with its own HP, EWt, Load and Freight; in particular, they use the same rules to mount hardpoints, seats, armor and even smaller turrets. A retractable turret requires twice its own Freight to store. Remotely controlled turrets cost 50% more. Per HP: EWt 50kg, Load 200kg, Freight 100l, Cost 10.000$

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