TEXT: NEW WEAPON
  RAPIER
  by TOUMAS (TUBEI LAHDEOJA
  BACKGROUND
  The Rapier Laser Destroyer 
  is an archaic
  weapon 
  platform 
  widely 
  used 
  by 
  the
  Imperial Planetary Defence Forces. It is a self
  propelled 
  anti-tank gun originally 
  designed
  for defending cities and fortresses, with just
  enough 
  mobility 
  to move 
  into 
  ambush
  positions 
  in broken 
  ground 
  or forested
  afeas.
  It incorporates 
  a weak machine spirit which
  takes care oftarget acquisition and targeting,
  making 
  it 
  a semi-independent 
  weapon
  needing 
  operator 
  only 
  for 
  moving 
  and
  operational 
  mode selection.
  The Rapier Cannon 
  is considerably 
  more
  powerful 
  than the standard issue Imperial
  Lascannon used in a multitude of functions
  throughout 
  the Imperial 
  militartz machine.
  It's multi-barrel 
  design allows the adjustment
  of the optimal armour piercing according to
  the range to the target. The machine spirit
  adiusts 
  the 
  convergence 
  of the 
  beams
  according to the range to focus the beams on
  a single spot at the target, thus achieving
  beam 
  intensities 
  simply 
  not 
  possible 
  for
  single barrel weapons.
  The price of the power is more maintainance
  due to the moving barrels, heat build-up due
  to the proximity 
  of the multiple 
  laser
  chambers, 
  simple 
  size due to effectively
  having several hear,y weapons 
  on a single
  platform and power requirements 
  again due
  to multiple weapons.
  The most widely 
  used version 
  is a two
  chambered gun. It's drawbacks are lessened
  due to minimal 
  complexity, 
  but it still has
  enough power to pierce a Leman Russ front
  armour 
  at about 
  one 
  kilometer 
  range.
  Alternative 
  somewhat 
  widespread 
  design
  
  uses four convergent beams, but their
  maintainance is an almost lost secret and
  many which fail arc never restored to
  working order again.
  RAPIERS IN THE HIVE
  The Rapier is a very popular weapon among
  the Necromunda Defence Force, as a Hive
  offers numerous positions to place the
  weapon and abundant power and coolant
  supply. Should the possible fighting take
  place inside a Hive, the narrow fire corridors
  and confined spaces the attacking vehicles
  are forced to use make the Rapier a very
  deadly weapon indeed.
  'When used against raiding ash waste nomads
  or more seriously, off wodd invaders, the
  standard doctrine is to drive the Rapier
  squadrons in prepared emplacements with
  power and coolant feeds. If the attackers
  breach the defence line, the (surviving)
  Rapiers are driven backwards to new
  positions in the second defense line. V/hile
  in an emplacement, the Rapiers are set to
  defense mode, the machine spirit acquiring
  targets without a friendly lFF-transponder
  and firing at will. Against relatively slow
  targets such as main battle tanks the Rapier
  has a very high hit and kill probability It is,
  however, of very limited use against airborne
  targets or pure infantry only. It can't really hit
  an aftcraft, much less a space capable vessel.
  Against infantry targets it will only hit a
  single man at a time, even if the damage is
  almost always terminal.
  The Rapier is controlled by a remote control
  device. The standard issue control device has
  two control sticks, one of which is used to
  move the platform forwards and backwards,
  while the other controls turning. Other more
  and less sophisticated devices have also seen
  use, and some of the Rapiers have been
  reduced to being driven around. The remote
  control also has switches to set the weapon
  on various modes which vary from rapid fire
  to cool down. Some models also incorporate
  extensive programming 
  possibilities, 
  so that
  the weapon 
  may be set to fire, 
  change
  position 
  to a new one, fire again, change
  position again thus making it less nrlnerable
  to return fire.
  The weapon is used in such huge numbers
  that one goes missing every now and then. A
  few of those find their way into the Undehive
  and into 
  the possession of the gangs.
  Sometimes 
  only 
  the weapon 
  system is
  acquired by a gang, and either mounted as a
  fixed emplacement 
  or on a makeshift tracks,
  wheels or some more exotic carriage.
  RAPIERS AND A GANG
  The conditions of the Underhive are far from
  the ones found in the Hive City above. V/hile
  power 
  is relatively abundant, 
  coolant lines
  are virtually 
  nonexistent 
  and the shape of
  warfare quite different. 
  Instead of shooting
  at massed columns 
  on an open plain 
  at
  kilometer 
  ranges, the vicious fights between
  the gangs take place in cramped 
  maze of
  tunnels, pipelines 
  and industrial 
  structures
  and the targets are either human, or some
  mutated 
  monstrosities 
  crawling 
  from 
  the
  Hive Bottom.
  Overheating 
  and 
  the 
  somewhat 
  slow
  targeting response of the Rapier make it of
  limited use in the Underhive, but a hit from
  a Rapierwill 
  almost without exception take a
  ganger down. It is an item of high prestige
  value, both displaying the wealth of the gang
  and the connections 
  and ingenuity required
  to acquire such a rarity.
  
  The Rapiers used by the gangs are seldom in
  pristine condition, and even more rarely
  have all 
  the 
  normal 
  safeguards and
  automatic systems intact. Usually automatic
  heat monitoring systems are disabled, for in
  the Underhive often the rate of fire is more
  important 
  than 
  keeping 
  the weapon
  functional.
  The gangs make use of the cannon both in
  defending their home territory and on
  offense. A village, hole or fortress defended
  by the laser destroyer is a fearful prospect for
  an attacker, as on an open ground its
  machine spirit is often able to find its mark.
  In a raid a Rapier is of less use, as it cannot
  move and fire at the same time. Nevertheless
  it is often brought to the front lines by the
  owners, if for nothing else but the sheer
  intimidation value of an anti-tank weapon!
  RULES
  There can only ever be one Rapier owned by
  a garrg. A Rapier cannot be bought 
  at the
  beginning 
  of a carnpaign, but must be
  acquired over the course of a campaign. A
  starting gang cannot buy a Rapier.
  ACQUIRING 
  A RAPIER: In the Underhive
  Rapiers afe uncommon 
  but not unknown.
  Salvaged, surplus 
  or stolen 
  weapons 
  do
  come up for sale on the Black Market via
  arms traders 
  and 
  the 
  Merchant 
  Guild.
  Unscrupulous 
  Planetary 
  Defence 
  Force
  commanders 
  are not above lining their own
  pockets by selling off their units equipment.
  Rapiers can be bought 
  at the trading 
  post
  like other heavy weapons.
  Because a Rapier is a one offitems they come
  at a premium 
  price. They have a random
  price like a Rare item, but do not count as
  Rare.
  -{ Rapier costs 350 + 2D6 x 10 credits.
  {\trlto 
  ROLLS: As the Rapier does not roll
  to hit as such, ammo rolls are handled in a
  bit different way than usually. If the targets
  dodge roll comes up as one, the Rapier must
  make an ammo roll, which is passed on a
  + + .
  Of the Rapier fails its ammo roll the Isotropic
  Fuel rod used to power it is lost (or more
  like used up). The Rapier cannot be used in
  fi:rure games until the gang acquires a new
  one (or digs one up from its stash).
  ATTACKING 
  THE RAPIER: The Rapier can
  be shot at or attacked in close combat. In
  close combat all attacks hit automatically, but
  it can be only attacked if there are no other
  models 
  in base to base contact with 
  the
  attacker. The Rapier has Toughness 
  of 7,
  Armour 
  Save of 4+ 
  and 2 wounds. 
  After
  taking one wound 
  the Rapier must roll on
  the Malfunction 
  chart at the start of every of
  its turns.
  CONTROLLER: 
  The 
  Rapier 
  must 
  be
  controlled 
  by a Heavy (who has the remote
  control device). Alternatively 
  aHeavy in base
  to base contact with the Rapier can control
  it. An enemy Heavy in base to base contact
  with the Rapier must roll 5* 
  to figure out
  the proper 
  controls 
  and make the weapon
  do his bidding. 
  Technically 
  the remote
  control 
  device has an unlimited 
  range, but
  due to the obstacles and junk littering 
  the
  Underhive, the controlling 
  heavy must pass a
  Ld test to be able to move the Rapier if he
  does not have line of sight to it. Changing
  modes can be done without 
  LOS with no
  difficulty. 
  '$/hen 
  controlling 
  (driving,
  changing mode or programming) 
  the Rapier
  the healy may make a normal move, but may
  not do an)'thing else (such as shoot, run or
  hide).
  IFF TALISMANS: 
  Members 
  of the gang
  owning a Rapier are given Identi$' Friend or
  Foe Talismans, which are said to guard them
  from the Rapiers wrath. The existence and
  
  purpose of such talismans is well known in
  the Underhive tales, so an enemy may try to
  steal one of these from a downed ganger.
  Each time a garrger is taken Out of Action,
  leave a suitable marker to signifr the corpse.
  An enemy may search the downed warrior
  for the Thlisman, an initiative test being
  required to find and identi$' the talisman.
  V/hile searching the warrior may do nothing
  else, but is not likely be shot at by the Rapier
  as it reads the downed warriors IFF to
  belong to the searcher as well (see rules for
  shooting). Once a model has looted an IFF
  Thlisman, it counts as being one of the gang
  the Rapier belongs to for purposes of being
  shot at by it.
  MOVEMENT
  The Rapier is driven around in much the
  same fashion as radio controlled toys of
  Ancient Terra. The platform may move 4" per
  turn and turn up to 45 degrees during its
  move. There must be enough room on the
  tabletop for the Rapier model to physically
  fit through doors or other confined areas of
  the hive. The Rapier must fit completely
  onto a ledge, driving it with part of the other
  track hanging over nothing would only
  invite disaster. The Rapier cannot, obviously,
  climb ladders or stairs, but can be moved
  between levels by a lift or on a rarnp.
  MODUS OPERANDII
  Instead of driving the Rapier, the controller
  may set it on one of the following automatic
  modes of operation. In other words the
  Rapier can either move or carry out one of
  these activities.
  FIRE: If there are tafgets in its fire arc the
  Rapier will take one shot per turn. See
  rules for shooting later. If the Rapier has
  no eligible targets, this counts as Holding.
  RAPID FIRE: As Fire, but the cannon will
  fire twice per round. The drawback is that
  the cannon will overheat in this mode
  without the coolant feeds available in
  prepared emplacements. See rules for
  overheating and heat points.
  OVERWATCH: The Rapier follows the
  usual rules for Overwatch and Fire
  modes. Models 
  appearing to 
  or
  disappearing from view get an additional
  * 1 to the initiative test for diving out of
  harms way. The +1 for possible hard
  cover applies if the target either emerges
  or disappears behind hard cover.
  HOLD: The Rapier does nothing. The
  purpose of this is to cool down the
  barels.
  PROGRAMMING
  Instead of driving or shooting the Rapier, the
  controller 
  can program 
  the Rapier to c rry
  out 
  activities 
  in a sequence. 
  During 
  the
  controller's 
  movement 
  phase simply write
  down 
  the modes 
  in order 
  on a piece of
  paper. The Rapier will be in the first mode
  for the current 
  turn, 
  then in the second
  mode written 
  for the second turn etc. The
  operator can cancel the programming 
  at the
  beginning ofany ofhis turns and re-program
  the Rapier if he wishes. If not programmed,
  or if the program ends, the Rapier will stay
  on the mode 
  last used, or in case of a
  program, the last mode of the program. Note
  that the Underhive 
  versions of the Rapiers
  cannot be programmed 
  to move, as there are
  far too many obstacles and dangerous falls
  for programmed 
  movement.
  SHOOTING
  The Rapier has a narrow 45 degree fire arc
  (22.5 degrees to both sides from 
  a line
  directly in front of it). W.hen on fire or rapid
  fire mode the machine spirit will first target
  the closest model in its fire arc. If the closest
  model wears an IFF Talisman, roll a die. On
  a 2t 
  the Rapier will target the next closest
  model (or no-one. should there be no others
  in the fire arc). Continue 
  rolling 
  in this
  fashion until either an enemy is targeted or
  an IFF Thlisman fails. For the purposes of
  fights 
  in 
  the 
  cramped 
  underhive 
  of
  Necromunda 
  the Rapier has an unlimited
  fange.
  Once 
  locked 
  on 
  the 
  Rapier 
  will 
  hit
  automaticalbl 
  The target may, however, 
  try
  to dive out of the way, as establishing 
  the
  lock-on 
  will 
  take 
  a while 
  and an alert
  Underhiver 
  might 
  notice 
  the 
  vengeful
  machine 
  aiming at him. Diving out of the
  way requires an initiative test - rolling equal
  or less than initiative 
  on a d6. A roll of 6
  always fails. Being in hard cover (but not
  soft, as anlthing 
  classed as soft cover offers
  very little protection 
  against a Rapier) gives
  the model a bonus of + 1 to their initiative. If
  the model succesfully dives out of harms way
  it counts as being pinned just as if hit by any
  other weapon.
  
  lf the Rapier hits, it automatically 
  does d6
  srounds to the target with no saves for normal
  armour allowed. Unmodifiable 
  saves offered
  bv power fields or skills may be taken. Any
  model reduced to zero wounds by a Rapier is
  automatically 
  taken Out of Action (it's NOT
  just a flesh wound...). 
  In addition, 
  the
  devastation caused by a hit from a dedicated
  anti-tank weapon 
  is quite unnerving 
  - any
  fighters 
  testing 
  for broken 
  nerve 
  due 
  to
  ganger going out of action after a hit from a
  Rapier suffer an additional -1 to Ld.
  In rapid fire mode the Rapier will target a
  second target if the first one was disabled (ie.
  taken Out 
  of Action). 
  If the first target
  successfully dives out of the way or otherwise
  miraculously 
  survives, the Rapier will fire at
  the same target agair.
  Only techno skills affect the performance 
  of a
  Rapier. A Rapier counts 
  as being 
  a heatry
  r\-eapon for purposes of allocating equipment
  and skill 
  effects. Due 
  to 
  the 
  advanced
  mrgeting 
  system of the Rapier and general
  care given to it by the owning gang stray shot
  rules and w€apon explosions do not apply to
  the weapon.
  Should you need normal weapon stats for the
  Rapier (for some scenario involving tanks or
  st-rLlctures, for which the rules above do not
  apply, or very long open fire corridors) 
  it has
  range of 100", strength 
  10, does 2d10
  sr-ounds and has -6 armour save modifier.
  OVERHEATING &
  MALFUNCTION
  -\s mentioned above, the Rapier on Rapid Fire
  builds up heat. Normally the heat build-up is
  controlled by thermal fuses, but in the
  Lnderhive these are usuallv disabled or
  simply broken.
  Eserv turn 
  used in Rapid Fire mode
  accumulates one heat point. Every turn spent
  holding removes one heat point. On normal
  fue mode or if moving, no heat is dissipated.
  lf the Rapier has one or more heat points at
  rhe start of its turn, roll a D6. If the score is
  egual to or less than the number of heat
  gxrinr. a malfunction has occurred. Roll 2D6,
  edding any heat points accumulated to the
  roll and consult the table below.
  2-+ HEAT SHUTDOWN.
  The machine spirit overheats, a power
  coupling loses conductivity or the laser
  chambers lose coherence. The net effect is
  to render the Rapier to hold mode until all
  the 
  accumulated 
  heat 
  points 
  have
  dissipated.
  5 THERMAL NOISE.
  Thermal noise in the machine spirit make
  it work unreliably, making it confuse friend
  and foe. The IFF Thlismans will only work
  on 4+ instead of 2* for the rest of the
  game.
  6-7 OVERHEATING
  Overheating of the wide-spectrum target
  acquisition machine spirit eye leads to
  unreliable lock-ons. Instead of hitting
  automatically the controlling player has to
  roll 4* to achieve a lock-on.
  8 WARPED OPTICS
  Beam coherence and convergence systems
  are damaged by the heat, warping the
  delicate machinery and magno-optics. The
  laser loses much of its coherence and
  powe! but spreads to a wider area. For the
  rest of the game follow the normal
  targeting procedure for a Rapier, but
  instead of automatic wounds it counts as
  having strength 4, does one wound with
  save modifier of -1 and has 1.5" blast
  marker (which is centered on the targeted
  model).
  9 BURNOUT!
  The laser chamber is burnt out by the
  intense heat. The Rapier is useless for the
  rest of the game, but will be repaired for
  the next one.
  10+ MELTDOWN!
  The energy stored in the laser chamber
  and power cells is released as a critical
  control circuit melts. The Rapier explodes
  in a blast of superheated chemicals and
  flying shrapnel. The Rapier is destroyed
  (for good) and any model within 2" takes a
  55 hit 
  (with 
  normal shooting rules
  applylng, including pinning).
  Because the Rapier is a highly pized piece of
  equipment and it can be dragged off the
  scene of an encounter by gangers or juves,
  different rules for the Post-Battle sequence
  apply If the Heary is killed or captured (in
  the serious injury chart), the Rapier is NOT
  lost if the owning gang won the fight. If the
  owning gang lost the battle, follow the
  normal rules for death of a ganger and
  captured fighters.
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Warhammer/40k/Necromunda/02 Necromunda - 1st Edition (1995)/Hired guns/rapier weapons plattform.pdf