Weapons & Equipment

Weapons
-- Most of the heavy armament used in European wars was inappropriate for the rough terrain in the colonies. -- The flintlock was the first line of offense or defense in the arsenal of revolutionary war weapons. Both armies depended on this weapon. The British relied heavily on their “Brown Bess” which often found its way into American hands. Its lack of accuracy was minimized by its mass utilization in line formations firing simultaneous, rotating volleys. That same line could present a wall of bayonets, attached to the gun barrel, and on the order to charge, moved forward against a wall of opposing fire. Survival was purely a matter of luck. -- The weapon was loaded through the muzzle---front loaded. The metal ball, 2/4 inch in diameter, weighed about 1 ounce, and was contained in a paper cartridge. The powder was stored in a horn shaped object. When the ball struck the human body at a high velocity it tore a large hole in the victim. --The flint lock musket could be loaded in 30 seconds -- Battles in the 18th century took place on open plains. The brave, or not so brave, souls faced each others like gladiators across the field. Their muskets had minimal accuracy up to 100 yards. The time that was required to load meant that, at best, each shooter could fire 3 times without a fixed target other than shooting generally at a charging line of fixed bayonets. -- The 200 yard accuracy of the tooled bore rifle was a huge departure from the traditional flintlock. Newer technology produced a longer barrel that burned the powder more efficiently and increased the velocity of the projectile -- The “Kentucky”, however great that it was on the frontier, did not pass muster on the open battlefield. It took more than twice as long to load than the traditional flintlock, and was not equipped with a bayonet. -- The infantryman carried about 60 pounds of equipment. The musket weighed 14 pounds. Add to that the bayonet, cartridge pouch, water bottle, knapsack, 60 rounds of ammunition. -- The grenadiers, also infantrymen, had special functions. They were usually chosen for size and strength with the intention to intimidate the enemy. One of their duties was throwing a hollow metal ball with a lit fuse connected to an interior powder charge. -- The British infantry sword worn, depending on the regiment, was known as the “Infantry Hanger”. It was forged with either a straight or slightly curved blade and was shorter than the cavalry sword. The infantry companies equipped with these weapons were an alternative to the bayonet. -- Officers in both armies, and the cavalrymen, carried the highly inaccurate flint lock pistol in addition to their swords. Infantry officers used a lighter version with a straight blade which required training in the techniques of thrust and parry. The heavier, longer curved saber was constructed for slashing from horseback as was the shorter, single edged cutlass utilized by boarding parties in naval engagements. -- The incidental instruments of war were more personal than the gun. It required face to face interaction with the enemy. If the definition suggested is accurate, the bayonet, ax and tomahawk were highly personal. The latter was almost 2 foot long, and its head could run well over a pound. -- Cannon was the optimum ordnance of Revolutionary War weapons. Cannon - 3 pounder to 42 pounder - - description based on the weight of the shot with ranges up to 2 miles. -- Howitzer fired solid or grape shot at high angles - range over 2,000 yards. [Shorter barrel. Lighter?] -- Mortar fired at highest angles - range of 1300 yards. -- Metal balls and grape shot had a one mile plus range capable of inflicting death.

-- Mortars differed from cannon in both appearance and firing principles. A mortar was mounted on a flat bed, resembling a large block of wood. An elevating wedge raised the barrel, enabling the mortar to fire an exploding shell, called a "bomb," in a high trajectory. Fired properly, the bomb would fly over earthworks and explode while still airborne, raining shrapnel over the enemy. The howitzer combined the principles of both the cannon and the mortar. Mounted on a field carriage, the howitzer fired both bombs and cannon balls at a flat or high trajectory. -- Maximum Range Effective Range - CANNON 2,000 yards 1,000 yards - MORTARS 1,400 yards 750 yards - HOWITZER 1,300 yards 750 yards

-- The Brown Bess was the most commonly used musket by American troops, even though it was designed and manufactured in Great Britain. This type of musket shot a cluster-style shot that had an effect similar to today’s shotguns. The Short Land Pattern Brown Bess was not as common as the Long Land Pattern, but it was shorter and significantly less bulky. Long Land Pattern: This long and bulky musket was the most common firearm for American troops. -- Long Rifle: There were very strong feelings related to this rifle’s use because while its accuracy was much better than a musket’s, it took longer to reload. It also was unable to hold a bayonet attachment, so new tactics for use had to be developed. Kentucky Flintlock Pistol: American cavalry and military officers often used this pistol. -- Swords and Sabers: There were many close-combat situations during the Revolutionary War, and both sides used swords and sabers to this end. -- Bow and Arrow: While the range of a bow and arrow is significantly less than that of a musket or rifle, its silent use and ability to be reloaded quickly often provided an advantage. -- Tomahawks were used effectively by skilled handlers in close combat, but in the right hands, it could be thrown as a weapon as well.

--The main weapons of the American Revolution were the muzzleloading flintlock musket, its attached bayonet, and the cannon. Secondary weapons were the rifle and pistol, swords and other cutting weapons. By far, the most common weapon was the smoothbore flintlock musket, of a large caliber, .62 to .75 inch bore, or equal to 16 to 11 gauge shotguns. Soldiers were expected to be able to fire a shot every 15 seconds for at least 4 minutes before needing to slow down because of the fouling in the barrel. -- Rifles, while much more accurate than muskets, also were loaded much slower. It would take almost 30 seconds, and sometimes a minute or more, to reload a rifle. In that time they were often charged with the bayonet, and since rifles were not equipped with bayonets, riflemen usually had to yield to musketmen. -- The Muzzleloading cannon used were smoothbores, and smaller than used in later wars. Most were 3, 4 or 6 pound guns, mounted on wooden carriages with large wheels. Some 3 pound guns had iron legs to stand on and were called "grasshoppers". Larger guns of 12 pounds were sometimes used in the field, and even larger guns were mounted in fortifications and ships. The cannon fired either solid ball, various small shot, or sometimes shells. Shells are a hollow iron ball filled with blackpowder and fitted with a fuse. The shot used could be buckshot, musket balls or grape shot, which are larger iron or lead balls about 1 inch in diameter. Cannon had a range of several hundred yards. A 3 pounder ranged about 800 yards with solid shot, and 2 hundred yards with grape shot, maximum. At close range, loaded with shot, it could destroy an enemy company.

Weapon Charts

 * Firearm || +1 || ||   || Balanced by: 1 or 2 rounds to load
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Balance Weapons: a new player in an advanced campaign may be given a "balance weapon" which adds (7 - STR) dice to attacks, has 0 weight, and looks like a normal weapon of its type. This weapon begins with a quality of 18 dice and decreases 3 dice with each "breakage", but the weapon never actually breaks until its quality reaches 0, and its bonus to attacks never changes.

Armor
Armor exists only in full suits, no shirts or breastplates. For purposes of Encumbrance, any armor (but not shields) worn while on horseback counts as ⅔ its normal weight. Full Plate is normally worn only on horseback.

Balance Armor: a new player in an advanced campaign may be given "balance armor" which provides (7 - DEX) dice to armor, has zero weight, and looks like studded leather. This armor begins with a quality of 18 dice and decreases 3 dice with each "breakage", but the armor never actually breaks until its quality reaches 0, and its bonus to defense never changes.

Weapon and Armor Quality
Each individual weapon, shield and suit of armor has a quality rating which affects item performance. These ratings are measured in multiples of 3 dice and range from 3 to 30+. Exceptionally fine craftsmanship can produce superior weapons. Items with a quality >= 21 weigh 25% less and give Bob a 1 die bonus. Items with a quality <= 9 give Bob a 1 die penalty. Item quality will decline as a result of breakage.

Weapon and Armor Breakage
Step 1: Check for breakage only when a melee attack achieves 4 or more victories. Step 2: Check the Magic-Number to find which item is threatened.

Step 3: Compare the original roll to the threatened item's damage threshold. If the original roll exceeds the threatened item's damage threshold, the item is broken. The item can be repaired, but its quality is permanently reduced by 3 dice.

A broken item can be used but until it is repaired its bonus/penalty is reduced by 2 dice (but not to less than -1 die) and its quality is reduced by half without any change to weight. However, if an already broken item is broken again its quality is permanently reduced by an additional 3 dice and it becomes completely useless until repaired at 3 times the normal repair cost.

A hit which breaks armor has its damage reduced by 1 victory.

Missile Combat
Missile attacks may only be dodged.

Missile Range
Normally missile attacks can target only those foes who could be targeted at the start of the round. Distance for a missile attack is the greater of the distance at the start of the round or the distance at the time of the attack. The Guard, Delay and Change Action options allow missile attacks on targets not in range at the start of the round.

Quick Resolution for Missile Combat
Each player should know his missile Threshold in advance so no time is lost during his turn.


 * If Bob's Action Roll is below his Threshold, he missed and his turn is over.
 * If Bob's Action Roll is lower than his target’s Dodge Roll, he missed and his turn is over.
 * Compare Bob's Action Roll to his target’s Dodge Roll and calculate Victories.

Distance, Size, Time and Cover
Issues of distance, size, time and cover are reflected in the Threshold. Represent size and cover by modifying range: 25% cover => 75% size; 50% size => 200% range. Note that not all weapons can reach all ranges. Longer ranges are included to accommodate the modifications for size and cover.

Hint: To quickly determine the threshold for a missile attack, divide the distance in feet by 10, then round to the nearest multiple of 3. Eg. at 50' the threshold is 5 dice, which rounds to 6 dice. Exact borderline results (eg. 75') round up.