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Fallon Kell
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Joined: 07 Mar 2011
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Location: Tacoma, WA
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 Posted: Sat Aug 20, 2011 6:52 pm Post subject: The big bad recoil thread |
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There's been some discussion (read: quote wars) about how much recoil blasters have. I just wanted to try and get all the info down in one clearly organized spot.
The two primary positions, are championed by myself and atgxtg.
If I understand correctly, atgxtg's belief is that blasters have generally similar recoil to firearms, and that this is supported by film evidence and by behind the scenes films.
My position is that the mass and velocity of a blaster bolt is low enough to have most man-portable blasters topping out at the approximate recoil of a .22, with a few rare exceptions. I say that the high recoil shown in the movies comes from the same place as the speed of the Kessel run being measured in parsecs, and the easiest retcon is to explain it away with "cowboy-style" shooting where the shooter lifts the gun, mixed with blasters being generally lighter than firearms, maximizing "felt recoil".
We agree that kinetic energy= 1/2 mass x velocity squared, although there may be some confusion on the extent of this formula's application...
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CRMcNeill
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Location: Redding System, California Sector, on the I-5 Hyperspace Route.
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| Posted: Sat Aug 20, 2011 10:18 pm Post subject: |
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I believe that blaster recoil in the SWU is directly proportional to the improvisational skills of the actor or extra who is observed to be firing said weapon.
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Fallon Kell
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| Posted: Sat Aug 20, 2011 10:34 pm Post subject: |
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Yeah, that's the "cowboy-style" shooting... Nothing handheld in SW really looks like the recoil of a real gun.
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CRMcNeill
Director of Engineering
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Location: Redding System, California Sector, on the I-5 Hyperspace Route.
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| Posted: Sun Aug 21, 2011 2:05 am Post subject: |
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| Fallon Kell wrote: | | Yeah, that's the "cowboy-style" shooting... Nothing handheld in SW really looks like the recoil of a real gun. |
By real gun, you mean something that fires bullets? Perhaps that might indicate that might indicate that blaster weapons have different (reduced?) recoil characteristics than modern firearms?
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"No set of rules can cover every situation. It's expected that you will make up new rules to suit the needs of your game." - The Star Wars Roleplaying Game, 2R&E, pg. 69, WEG, 1996.
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Naaman
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Joined: 29 Jul 2011
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| Posted: Sun Aug 21, 2011 2:32 am Post subject: |
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Actually...
In our games, we use shell casings and "real life" recoil for our blasters. We base the blaster options on firearms from real life and assume that recoil is the same.
The shell casings are explained like this: instead of a powerpack, the blasters use magazines which are loaded with individual power capsules that are chambered, drained, converted and fired, and then ejected. We do this PURELY for cinematic effect. We also say that weapons have ammo ratings more like firearms in real life (pistols, for example, don't get 25 or 50 shots. They get 6-15 depending on the model).
I think this comes down to group preference. The more characteristics to be considered when choosing equipment (especially weapons), the more fun the game is, as the different choices become tactical decisions on the part of the players.
So, for pure FUN sake, I say recoil is in. |
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jmanski
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Location: Kansas
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| Posted: Sun Aug 21, 2011 11:11 am Post subject: |
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| Fallon Kell wrote: | | Yeah, that's the "cowboy-style" shooting... Nothing handheld in SW really looks like the recoil of a real gun. |
I know in ANH the E-11's fired blanks.
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Whill
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| Posted: Sun Aug 21, 2011 12:38 pm Post subject: |
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| Fallon Kell wrote: | | Yeah, that's the "cowboy-style" shooting... Nothing handheld in SW really looks like the recoil of a real gun. |
| crmcneill wrote: | | I believe that blaster recoil in the SWU is directly proportional to the improvisational skills of the actor or extra who is observed to be firing said weapon. |
Exactly. Blaster weapons are often portrayed to have recoil in the films, so they must have recoil. Not necessarily as much as a real world firearm, but they do have some recoil. In universe, a blaster bolt is a packet of high-energy particles, so at least some some weapons referred to as "energy weapons" actually shoot energy and matter both. Newton's law, equal and opposite reaction, recoil. I think Harrison Ford fairly sucessfully captured that cowboy shoot 'em up movie feel in his portrayal of Han Solo firing his blaster. Out-of-universe, I'm sure it was intentional to give the action in Star Wars a greater sense of realism. The more elements of quasi-realism you can sneak into the films, the easier it is to suspend disbelief of all the incredibly fantastic elements and gain greater enjoyment out of the story. Some actors were more sucessful at portraying recoil than others.
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Fallon Kell
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Joined: 07 Mar 2011
Posts: 1846
Location: Tacoma, WA
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| Posted: Mon Aug 22, 2011 3:59 am Post subject: |
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| Naaman wrote: | Actually...
In our games, we use shell casings and "real life" recoil for our blasters. We base the blaster options on firearms from real life and assume that recoil is the same.
The shell casings are explained like this: instead of a powerpack, the blasters use magazines which are loaded with individual power capsules that are chambered, drained, converted and fired, and then ejected. We do this PURELY for cinematic effect. We also say that weapons have ammo ratings more like firearms in real life (pistols, for example, don't get 25 or 50 shots. They get 6-15 depending on the model).
I think this comes down to group preference. The more characteristics to be considered when choosing equipment (especially weapons), the more fun the game is, as the different choices become tactical decisions on the part of the players.
So, for pure FUN sake, I say recoil is in. |
I have very powerful blasters use individual single-shot power packs, usually ranging in approximate size from .44 magnum to 12 gauge, with most being roughly the size of a AA battery. Normal guns like a DL-44 still have multi-shot power packs.
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