Drones currently explode near the target rather than striking them directly. The proposal is meant to allow them to actually strike the target and explode at that point.

Proposal:
Kinetic Missile Option. Available to any drone using unit.

Operation:
Upon launching the designation is made that the drone is being fired as a contact weapon instead of normal operation.

Upon impact roll 1d6:
1 does .5 warhead strength
2-4 explodes normally
5-6 does 1.5xwarhead damage
7+ does 2xwarhead damage

Restrictions:
Weapon must be intially launched at range zero to it's intended target. If distracted then returned to the original target it operates as a normal drone.
Targeted Unit gets limited AEGIS against that particular drone.
Crew/Pilot modifiers affect the die roll on BOTH launching Unit and Target.

By Robert Snook (Verdick) on Wednesday, January 21, 2004 - 12:29 pm: Edit

Why would a ship's weapons get two chances to fire at this thing if they normally don't? Plasmas have to physically hit their target and ships don't get to fire twice at them.
The second half of the first restriction, when in light of the first half seems like a highly unlikely event. The only way it could happen would be if the target launched a wild weasel, then fired direct fire weapons in the same impulse.
Does EW affect the impact die roll?
How does it interact with the cloak? Is it even able to be used against a cloaked ship?

By Douglass E. Howard (Doug_Howard) on Wednesday, January 21, 2004 - 01:13 pm: Edit

My thought for the limited AEGIS was that it would be because the drone is coming closer than under normal circumstances.
The second half could also under a few other limited circumstances. Perhaps I should justchange it to "If the drone does not impact the next impulse then it operates as a normal drone" and take that out.
All other rules interactions are per normal drone rules.

By Douglass E. Howard (Doug_Howard) on Wednesday, January 21, 2004 - 01:28 pm: Edit

Revision:
Kinetic Missile Option. Available to most drone using units.

Operation:
Upon launching the designation is declared openly that a particular drone is being fired as a contact weapon instead of normal operation.

Upon impact roll 1d6:
1 does .5 warhead strength
2-4 explodes normally
5-6 does 1.5xwarhead damage
7+ does 2xwarhead damage

Add 2 to the die roll if the target unit has no warp or impulse capability discounting AWR.

Restrictions:
Drones as contact weapons must be intially launched at a true range of zero to the intended target.

If the drone does not impact it's target on the impulse following launch then it operates as a normal drone.

Crew/Legendary Officer/Pilot modifiers affect the die roll on BOTH launching Unit and Target.

Drones as submunitions may not be used in this manner, ie no multiwarhead impacts.

Drones without explosive warheads cannot be used in this manner.

All other rules interactions are per normal drone rules. Note that a cloaked Unit may be fired on in this manner if the launching Unit has a true range of zero, ie has a lock on and is at range zero, however the cloak rules for reducing damage and EW may reduce the effectiveness of the strike.

By Loren Knight (Loren) on Wednesday, January 21, 2004 - 03:08 pm: Edit

I have a proposal on the list for an Anti-Ship Missile that works a little like an ADD. It is a kinetic damage device. SVC mentioned something of hand and I ran with it.

The thing is that in this game it is easy to forget that everything is zipping around at trans-light speeds and that computer calculations happen at light speed at best. This can be countered some by a high degree of parallelism but really it's a miracle anyone ever hits anything!

By George M. Ebersole (George) on Wednesday, April 27, 2005 - 01:05 am: Edit

Bring back the Exo-drone! Woohoo!

...off to the booth with me...