> > At TL7 and TL8, attack helicopters were valuable support forces > > for the troopers on the ground. At early TL8, the US Army even > > designated them maneuver forces. But helicopter gunships have > > serious limitations as well. Their rotors are large, difficult > > to armor, and noisy. Unless they touch down, which leaves them > > vulnerable to sudden attack, they can't stay long in an ambush > > position. While modern tactics encourage the use of terrain > > for cover, there are still limits how low a helicopter can > > go -- the rotor shouldn't touch branches or power lines. > > > > These limitations will actually be LESS severe at TL9 than they > > were at TL8 or TL7, but TL9 might offer a system to complement > > or replace the attack helicopter forces: the Attack Walker. > > > > > Nonsense. The advantage of aerial forces is maneuverability, and the > ability to jump over ground held by the enemy, without having to move > through it. A ground vehicle of any sort is no match.
Equally arguable: Sensors now can spot aircraft faster than ground craft and from further away. So the aircraft advantage of approach will shrink in the future and their lack of unpredictable manoeuvrability due to their speed wil make them easier to kill with higher TL anti-air weapons. In time no vehicle will have the overall advantage > You think mecha are cool. That's enough justification. Totally. You want them , they are in. > I can't see a justification for a mecha much bigger than a battle suit, > say a ton or so. Until technology we don't yet have reveals itself you are almost certainly empirically correct. > don't forget that at TL9 you get really good indirect fire weapons, that > can do anything that a mecha can do. Only they will cost more - good missiles are horrible expensive, not actually work as well as they are jammable, more detectable, and need to be mounted on vehicles anyway... Missiles are like fighters - they can't take ground, only drive people off it. They are not multirole, so they can't do everything a mech or a tank or a chopper can - only scan or attack _once_. > Except fall over, not move, get stuck in the sand. Like tanks? They drive them into unknown culverts today and need recovery. Choppers and fighter get FOD problems. You assume immature technology And perfect is not fun to play with, is it? IMO, it's a better game if you struggle to win than if you stroll through. McE _______________________________________________ GurpsNet-L mailing list <[email protected]> http://mail.sjgames.com/mailman/listinfo/gurpsnet-l
