Orion Weapon Options

[MajerBlundor]

Orion ships often have generic Weapon slots which can be armed with photon torps, distruptors, drones, etc.

If an Orion ship has multiple slots can the selected weapons be different or must they be the same?

For example, in Fleet Scale the Light Raider has two wing slots. Could one be a drone and the other a disruptor? Or must they be the same?

Thanks!

Tim

[Scoutdad]

Orion Attack has an expanding rule (5L1) which lists the available weapons for each option mount.

As long as you follow those options, you are not required to have identical weapons in opposing slots.

In your example, drones and disruptors are both allowable options for the fleet scale Light Raider and you could have one of each.

[mjwest]

Check out the CRUL in Commanders' Circle. It contains the updated (5L1) information for all Orion ships published prior to Orion Attack.

To answer your question, each box is independent. So, for example, the Orion LR could have a Ph-1 in the left wing, a photon in the nose, and a drone in the right wing. (I wouldn't do that, but you could.) The only exception is the "two box" weapons: Pl-S, PPD, ESG. In that case, if you use one of them, an adjacent box must be left empty.

[Hod K'el]

You have been told correctly. I am a Klingon player that has taken to Orion ships because we had a player that wanted to be Klingon and that was the only race he would play. As Soutdad will confirm, I like Orions and I play them well enough to win...a lot!

The only complaint that I have about Orion mounts is the lack of central Plasma D's. I can take drones that do 12 points of damage, but can not take PL-Ds that do 10 points maximum. I can take drones that do double duty just like PL-Ds, but I can not take PL-Ds. I can take drones that will continue the chase for three turns, but I can not take PL-Ds that deplete themselves in less than one turn. The logic for this escapes me!

Add to this the fact that I am a pirate! I smuggle, steal, and act as a privateer! I don't follow the rules, except I can not have certain weapons in certain slots...yeah, right!

[mjwest]

There are two issues involved here.

1) On the Pl-Ds, they need to be installed as pairs. They are not installed with (for example) FH or RH arcs, but are always installed as LS/RS pairs. Why? I don't know. That is just how they work. Because of this, they end up with deployment restrictions.

2) Option mount restrictions are primarily about game balance. It is to keep the Orion BC, for example, from taking six photons or six hellbores or whatever. They can still get some scary combos, but at least this way things don't get out of hand.

[USS Enterprise]

I see your point about not following the rules, but, as was said, its for game balance and probobly explained by the simple fact of the size of the weapon.