Andromedan Power Absorbers

[cnuzzi]

"(3G2b) Burn Through" states the following:

"As with shields, if a given
volley scores ten or more points of damage, one of
these points is not absorbed by the power absorber
bank but is instead distributed by the Damage Alloca-
tion Chart as internal damage. If the volley includes
damage caused by disruptors, then every tenth dam-
age point of the volley burns through the panels."

Why are disruptors mentioned in particular? It sounds as if they behave the same as other weapons for PAs, just as they do for shields. Is there a misprint?

Note: the above quote is from the rev. 6 Reference Rulebook.

[Scoutdad]

During play testing, it was found that on average - disruptors did not pack enough of a one-time punch to overwhelm the PA panels in the same way Photons and Plasmas could. Yes... you could hit them every turn, but due to redistribution rules and bleeding into space rules - pretty much the only thing disruptors did was provide energy for the Andros to use to throw back at you.

If I'm not mistaken, it was our Battlegroup that originally suggested the every 10-point burn through as opposed to only a single 10 point burn through, But that was many years (and many game systems) ago - so I could be mistaken.

Anyway, allowing every tenth point to burn through with disruptors allows the Klingons to go toe-to-toe with the Andromedans.
If you're curious as to why, you can always fight a one-on-one battle between Klingons and Andromedans and NOT allow every 10th point to burn through.

[mjwest]

To stress the mechanical answer, the reason disruptors are specifically mentioned is because they operate differently. All weapons other than disruptors do one point of burn-through for a volley that is at least 10 damage points. So, whether the volley is 10 or 100, that is a single point of burn-through. Disruptors, on the other hand, do one point of burn-through for every 10 points of damage in the volley. So, if the volley is 10, then that's one burn-through, but if it is 100, that is 10 burn-through.

So, they are specifically called out because they operate differently.

[cnuzzi]

Wait a minute...are you saying that with shields, a weapon hit (any weapon - phasers, disruptors, plasmas, etc.) that produces a volley of, say, 24 points, does only one point of burn-through, not two? Because if you are...I'm ashamed to admit that I've been playing wrong all this time!

[cnuzzi]

I just re-read (3C8) and I think I *have* been playing incorrectly! I've been scoring *every tenth hit* as an internal! That's wrong, isn't it?

[Scoutdad]

I just re-read (3C8) and I think I *have* been playing incorrectly! I've been scoring *every tenth hit* as an internal! That's wrong, isn't it?

Yes. That is indeed incorrect.
It's only one point of burn through per volley.

[mjwest]

Wait a minute...are you saying that with shields, a weapon hit (any weapon - phasers, disruptors, plasmas, etc.) that produces a volley of, say, 24 points, does only one point of burn-through, not two? Because if you are...I'm ashamed to admit that I've been playing wrong all this time!

It is only a single point, so, yes, you have been playing it wrong.

However, there is absolutely nothing to be ashamed of. A little embarrassed? Sure. But certainly not ashamed. I guarantee you most of us here misread our own share of the rules at different times, too. Just part of the process.

And, as long as everyone was playing by the same rules and having fun, no harm, no foul.

[cnuzzi]

I think I was getting it mixed up with the old "leaky shields" rule from SFB, where every fourth hit was an internal.

Now the quote from the rulebook makes sense.