TB- Weapon Categories / Skills

    One of the key parts of Travellers Beyond I'm trying to finish is combat - since that is such a core part of most games, it makes a good starting point.  So here is what I've worked up on weapons, how to classify them for skills and relevant rules.  you'll note there are still some blank spaces and question marks, TB is very much a work in progress, but I think you can see how comprehensive I'm trying to make it:

Weapons

    Every attack is made with some kind of weapon. Even if it is natural like a fist, or improvised like a frying pan. So let's look at how we define weapons:

    The first grouping is in how close to the user the weapon is. Weapons that are a part of the user, like Unarmed weapons, rely on the user's abilities (so H-Scaled users usually have H-Scaled attacks). However Contained weapons, like firearms, do not depend on the power/strength of the user to do their damage – and thus tend to be higher than H-Scaled in damage. At the farthest end, Independent Weapons might have their own targeting skill, and not need the user for anything (except maybe to pick out which target to shoot).

Weapon Types-

Unarmed – innate/racial attacks

Symbiotic – weapons that are tied to the body (ie, EA and CI abilities)

Extension – weapons that are extensions of the body (ie, swords and bows)

Contained – weapons that are separate from the body (ie, firearms)

Independent – weapons that act on their own with minimal direction/requirements from the user (ie, AI-driven auto-blasters, motion-sensing machine guns)

    In combat Range is a very important factor. If you can hit the other guy from farther away than he can hit you, you are almost guaranteed to win. So there are two classes of weapons representing this.

Weapon Classes-

Melee – work within short range / a few feet, or even direct contact.

Ranged – can travel farther than melee, even beyond line of sight.

Indirect ?? - I'm thinking we need another category for indirect weapons, like siege engines and artillery, since while they are ranged they work a bit differently

Placed ?? - also placed weapons, like mines and traps, seem like they could easily make their own category

    With those two types and classes, let's look at the different Weapon Groups:

Unarmed Weapon Groups-

Melee:

Strikes (?) – xxx

Kicks (?) – xxx

Grabs (?) – xxx

Ranged:

xxx – xxx (um, humans don't really have any ranged unarmed attacks ?)(what animal attacks maybe, like quills or spit ??)

Symbiotic Weapon Groups-

Melee:

xxx – xxx

Ranged:

xxx – xxx

[Patterns/spells? Cybernetic weapons, Extraordinary Abilities ? Anything else ?]

Extension Weapon Groups-

Melee:

Clubs – a solid weight used to hit / bash opponents. Does Impact damage by default. Little extra damage beyond the user's Strength.

Short blades – smaller edged weapons, one foot or shorter in length. Does Wounding damage by default. Difficult to parry with, but faster to use.

Long blades – edged weapons over one foot long. Does Wounding damage by default. The middle-ground weapon, neither exceptionally bad or good at anything.

Axes – a curved or perpendicular edge that is backed by weight. Does Wounding damage by default. Difficult to parry with, and a slow attack speed, but does high damage.

Shafted – a club or blade or axe mounted on a long shaft / handle. Greatest range, but very weak against opponents who close within that range. Slowest, most defensive type.

Articulated – a chain, hinge or some flexible material allowing extra speed (and therefore force) to be generated. Most difficult type to use, often potentially hazardous to the user.

Mixed – a single weapon that has two or more of the above types merged together, or a weapon that is capable of changing its type in combat.

Ranged:

Thrown – an object moved at range entirely by the user's Strength.

Slings – a strip of material used to propel an object.

Bows – bent wood under tension to magnify the user's Strength in damage – but still requiring sufficient Strength to draw / use.

Contained Weapon Groups-

Melee:

xxx – xxx (um, a lightsaber is the only kind of contained melee I can think of)(this is a hard one, because it has to not rely on the user's strength/ability – so a vibro-blade has its own power supply and cuts easier, but seems like it still relies on the user's strength, it just multiplies it better. The lightsaber, that seems like it does so much damage that no matter who wields it it is deadly, but other than something so specific, what is there?? maybe the WH40K Chainsword ??)

Ranged:

Crossbows – a bow mounted to a stock, using a winch or other device to generate the required tension, thus allowing weaker users to get off powerful shots.

Handguns – the smallest firearms, usually one-handed.

Sub-machine Guns (SMG) – larger than a pistol, and designed to fire multiple shots.

Shotguns – are larger firearms, rifle-sized, that fire large shells. They are usually mid-ranged, but the larger shell allows for more ammunition types than the typical rifle.

Rifles – are firearms with long barrels, allowing greater range and accuracy.

Man-portable Weapons (MPW) – like rocket launchers and grenade launchers, weapons meant to take on very large or tough targets (almost always V Scaled damage or higher).

Independent Weapon Types-

Melee:

Mines / Tripwires – these weapons are placed in one spot and wait for the enemy to come to them. Placement, stealth and guiding / forcing the enemy's movement are vitally important to the success of this type.

hover / personal shield / covering – weapons that move on their own around the user attacking anything that comes close ?? generally do not take any “hands” to wield, but have some type of time/power limit ??

Ranged:

Grenades (??) – xxx (they are kind of Thrown, yet also Contained – so do they really go here instead ??)

Guided – weapons that need the user to choose targets, but fire on their own.

Autonomous – weapons that choose their own targets and fire on their own.

Mobile – these look, move and shoot on their own.