Rules for TIE Phantom Cloaking Device

[CRMcNeill]

Real life has been keeping me very busy of late, but I do have several stat ideas on deck, one of which is the TIE Phantom, which I intend to post in the Fractalsponge stats page, using his excellent render of said ship.

However, any stat needs to be maximized for playability, and no Phantom stats have really done its Stygium Cloaking Device any justice, particularly how it is used in combat. I have an idea, but I'd like to get some feedback on it before I incorporate it into the stat.

For background, the TIE Phantom's cloak is basically a single-blind cloak, ala the cloaking devices in Star Trek. This contrasts with the more common double-blind Hibridium Cloaking Device that I'm using for my "Submarines in Space" concept, in that the cloaked ship can see out of the cloak, but can't fire weapons without dropping the cloak. The Phantom is equipped with a device that instantly shunts power from the cloak to weapons when the gunner pulls the trigger, which immediately drops the cloak, leaving a window of vulnerability for the Phantom to be detected and destroyed before it can recloak. It's also worth noting that the Stygium Cloak isn't perfect (much like the Trek cloak), leaving a vague outline that can be detected if a sensor operator is good (or lucky) enough.

So, here's what I'm thinking:

-The Phantom's Cloak provides a bonus to Stealth of +6D (low rolls represent the imperfection of the cloak being detected momentarily).

-When in combat, a cloaked ambush attack uses the Surprised rules from pg. 96 of the 2R&E Rulebook. The Phantom pilot rolls his Piloting skill plus the 6D Cloak Bonus against his target's Sensors. On a Success, the Phantom's target is Surprised, and cannot maneuver to avoid the attack; on a Failure, the target's Sensor Operator gets enough warning that an attack is coming, and can evade normally.

-Once the Phantom attacks, its cloaking device is immediately dropped, and it is detectable by Sensors as normal, and can be attacked normally, subject to the limitations of MAPs and declared actions that round. The cloak can not be brought back up until the Phantom pilot's first turn in the next round, leaving a window of opportunity for a normal attack if an enemy pilot or gunner wins initiative.

-Enemy pilots can still make an educated guess and attack the Phantom's approximate location (-2D to Gunnery) unless the Phantom pilot makes a course change to throw off their aim.

-Once the enemy is aware that a Phantom is attacking them, they may make preemptive evasive maneuvers, even if they can't detect the Phantom.

-While the Cloak is active, the Phantom can't use Shields, and is limited to Passive Sensors only. As such, it can't make use of the Lock-On Rules

-If hit for Damage while using the Cloak, use the Shield results on the Damage Chart, with any penalties applied to the Cloak's Stealth bonus.

That's what I have at the moment. I'm mulling over how to apply the Cloak's bonus to the Dogfighting Rules, but haven't nailed down something I like yet. Most likely, it will be a partial bonus (1/2 of the value of the Cloak) applied to the Phantom pilot's roll for Positioning, but I'm not there yet.

Anyway, let me know what you think.
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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]

nice work up. I may also suggest, if the ship get's ionized, the cloak drops...
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Confucious sayeth, don't wash cat while drunk!

[CRMcNeill]

[CRMcNeill]

Anyway, the stats are up in the Fractalsponge topic.
_________________
"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]

[CRMcNeill]

[garhkal]

Sounds like a plan..
_________________
Confucious sayeth, don't wash cat while drunk!