Rules for Wingmen in Starfighter Combat

[CRMcNeill]

So, apart from the rules for external pods, this is the last thing I want to include in the Advanced Starfighter Combat book. I've already covered scanning in formation, but starfighters operating in pairs has additional advantages.

Cover - You can order your wingman to fall in close behind you and put its shields in the rear arc. This provides 50%-75% cover, with the attendant bonuses for your starfighter.

Break & Attack - If an enemy starfighter is on your tail, you can order your wingman to break off and circle around, coming up behind the enemy fighter. You yourself can improve his chances by leading the enemy fighter onto a course that decreases the difficulty of your wingman's Piloting roll to come around on the enemy's tail.

Double Merge - If multiple starfighters on your tail, you and your wingman can split up and circle around to go head to head with each other, setting up the enemy for a head-on shot.

Cooordinated Fire - You and your wingman can coordinate your fire at the same target at reduced difficulty.

That's what I can think of off the top of my head. Anyone else have any suggestions?
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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.

The CRMcNeill Stat/Rule Index

[garhkal]

One other thing would be if they fly close enough, they can look/appear to sensors as just one fighter. BUT that would require some damn good piloting!
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Confucious sayeth, don't wash cat while drunk!

[CRMcNeill]

[CRMcNeill]

Any instructions relayed to a wingman would definitely have to be based on a Command skill roll, but the Difficulty would likely be Very Easy. This would work with either a PC or NPC as wingman...
_________________
"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.

The CRMcNeill Stat/Rule Index

[atgxtg]

One thing wingmen could do is search for and intercept other enemy craft. In real life one of the biggest advantages to having a wingman is that he can keep an eye out for other fighters while you are preoccupied with the enemy your dogfighting.

Another thing they can do is something like the break & attack but in a defensive way. If a real dogfight starts going badly a fighter pilot can disengage and have his wingman break off in the opposite direction (high & low, left & right). That way, if the opponent wishes to keep on your tail he has to choose between the two of you, and the other one can circle around behind him. In those situations it is often better for the enemy to kick in the afterburners and put distance between the pair of you and then decide if he wants to come around for another try or not.

[CRMcNeill]

[Naaman]

This is something I wish I knew a lot more about, since it is such a staple of the Star Wars mythos.

[CRMcNeill]

[Luwingo_Spince]

You have probably already checked out this article on Wookieepedia but under tactics and maneuvers it has a lot of different tactics that wingmen use against enemies.

It seems most are covered by your examples .
http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Starfighter_combat

[CRMcNeill]

I decided I was going to limit this particular rule to general techniques that a wing pair could perform, rather than going into detail for all the individual methods and tactics. Mostly, in this topic, I was hoping someone could identify a general advantage that I had missed or hadn't considered. Apart from that, I'm still mulling over a method to simulate the how this could be applied in a rule without going overboard with dice rolls.
_________________
"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.

The CRMcNeill Stat/Rule Index

[Savar]

Simplify it greatly just make coordination type tests, like your coordinating troops. With some mods based on training and distance.

[CRMcNeill]

[Savar]

Maybe you could look at all the different types of maneuvers and brake them down by category. The just chart out effects for each category rather then each maneuver.

Smaller chart.

The problem is the complexity of 3D combat. To make good rules will be a lot of rules. So being the lazy person i am i just try for something quick and easy.

[CRMcNeill]

Ive already done that above. The two issues I'm looking for here are 1) any other ways wingmen can cooperate which I might have missed and 2) a streamlined rule system that allows the characters to actually issue instructions to their wingmen, not simply receiving a +1D coordination bonus.
_________________
"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.

The CRMcNeill Stat/Rule Index

[CRMcNeill]

Another potential variation on the Cover option would be to have a second starfighter fall in on your tail at a distance, so that any attacker who gets on your tail will automatically set up your wingman for a shot on the attacker. This allows the lead starfighter to make a strafing or bombing run without having to worry too much about being attacked from the rear. Of course, this can backfire if the attacking starfighters are fast enough to engage the covering starfighter from behind and then overtake the lead starfighter as well...

I would definitely like to incorporate a Tactics roll in here, somehow, as well. I'll probably have to go back and re-read my own rule write-up for using Tactics to generate a temporary bonus in combat first...
_________________
"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.

The CRMcNeill Stat/Rule Index