Re: [WW] Flame-throwers

[Soothsprayer <hercubadger@yahoo.com>]

Okay, this information is from:
http://www.geocities.com/Augusta/8172/panzerfaust11.htm

>>>
The Flammenwerfer 41 or FmW 41. It weighed 22 kg
(other sources: 21.3kg) and utilised two cylindrical
containers; it used hydrogene instead of nitrogene as
the propellant. Because of the extreme temperatures on
the eastern front which had led to ignition problems
when firing the liquid, the next step was the
Flammenwerfer mit Strahlpatrone 41 ("flame thrower
with jet cartridge") which had an additional magazine
with 10 ignition cartridges that ensured lighting of
the liquid when fired through the flamethrower tube.
The flamethrower contained enough fuel for about ten
seconds of fire; hence, if all ten ignition cartridges
were used up that made for ten one-second bursts.
However, the weapon of course was not limited to ten
bursts as the firing of the ignition cartridge was
optional. The weapon among other changes weighed 18kg
and had 7 litres of liquid; the liquid could be fires
at a range of up to 30m. It remained the standard
flamethrower type of the Wehrmacht until the end of
the war. A total umber of 64,284 of these weapons were
produced between 1942 and 1945. 

Intended improvements were the Flammenwerfer 43 that
could throw it's 9 litres of fuel up to 40m but was
too heavy at a weight 24kg and the Flammenwerfer 44
which was the exact opposite, because weighing only
12kg with it's 4 litres of liquid and a range of 28m
it was considered to be not effective enough.
Engineer units were equipped with the Mittlerer
Flammenwerfer. it weighed 102 kg and was pulled along
by two soldiers on a little trailer. It had 30 litres
of flaming liquid that lasted 25 seconds. It was too
cumbersome to prove really effective.
>>>

If you go for a really rough rule of thumb that one
litre of fuel equals one second of fire, then use one
second of fire as a “single shot”, you can ask your PC
how many shots they wish to expend against the target.
Perhaps using the automatic fire rules for multiple
shots.

Re: Chance of being hit

I’d rule this one depending on what position the PC
was in when they were hit. Charging directly towards
the enemy would has a lesser chance of having the
backpack hit than if you were shot from the rear. Same
goes for being prone, that very large tank on your
back does stick up quite a lot, thus increasing your
profile and making you a very good target. The
following is being pulled directly out my arse with no
access to any of the written gaming material, so the
mechanics are example only and not intended to be
considered foolproof.

Try this for size if the PC is hit

Position : 		D-20 Roll to see if the tank is the one
hit
Shot from front		1-3 (body mostly conceals the tank)
Shot from rear		1-10 (tank mostly conceals the body)
Shot while prone		1-10 (pretty even really)
Area effect weapon	1-10 (no idea but this will do for
the time being)

Now, if hit, tank must make a saving throw (DC 12?).
Treat the tank as a vehicle as in having differing
degrees of malfunction. You could go from a leak of
flammable liquid (whoops, the smoking light had better
be off) to the good old fashioned big boom and a bad
time to all those around at the time. Add modifiers to
the saving throw depending on the quantity still
remaining in the tank. A full tank is less likely to
explode and more likely to leak. However, a full tank
that does explode is going to make a far more intense
impression on all those around than a nearly empty
one. 

As a side note, flame-throwers draw fire. Your average
enemy infantry man understands what being burnt alive
would entail and is not keen on seeing the theory put
into practice. If your PC insists on carrying a
flame-thrower through every mission twist the balance
of incoming fire a little more in their direction.
Other PC’s in the group may want to keep their
distance also.

Re: Your PC and their tank encounter
Before worrying about the flame-thrower, did your PC
survive the tank shot as it is? If not, don’t worry
about the flame-thrower. If so, treat the shot as an
area of effect weapon and let the tank make a saving
throw. If it fails, things are really not looking good
for the PC. I believe that somewhere in the BotR book
there are rules for exploding flame-throwers. Perhaps
not. 

Cheers,
Mr. B

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