Rules Modifications - MDC Ratio Change

This section deals with my own modifications to the Palladium Rules system. None of these changes are official or support or endorsed by Palladium Games. Most of the changes stem from inconsistances in the game or my percieved unworkability of the rules as they stand.

M.D.C.

Armour Rating

Natural 20 & Critical Strike

Combat Rules Modifications

• Mega Damage Capacity MDC

  The biggest gripe people have with the Rules system is the invulnerability MDC bestows on they wearing it. I don't have a problem with the concept behind MDC armour - technologically we not far off it as we go into the 21st Centuary - what I do have a problem with is the ratio of SDC to MDC. At 1:100 it unworkable as even a single point of MDC damage will kill even an above average human. The answer I've found very workable is just to change the ratio to 1:10.

• Armour Rating AR

  The purpose of wearing armour is to protect the wearer from damage. How ever the energy/force of an attack has to be absorbed/disipated some how and the only thing that can do this if not the wearer is the armour. Under the basic rules only SDC items have an AR, MDC items are so tough they never wear out. If this were the case SDC things would never wear out and hitting a suit of chaimmail with a sword wouldn't blunt the sword or break the links in the armour.
  Unfortunately reality isn't like that; even in a fantasy game. The exact amount of damage inflicted to the armour from a hit is upto the invidual GM, I use 100% but I'd not recommend less that 50%. For SDC items the AR's remain as they are in the books. MDC items/objects now gain a variable AR according the their state. The states are

  • Undamaged (76% to 100% original MDC value)
  • Lightly Damaged (51% to 75% original MDC value)
  • Moderately damaged (26% to 50% original MDC value)
  • Heavily damaged (6% to 25% original MDC value)
  • Unrepairable <5% or less original MDC Value)
  These states equate to an AR of

  	State	AR
  	Undamaged	20
  	Light	18
  	Moderate	15
  	Heavy	12
  	Unrepairable	8

  Any to-hit roll which exceeds the AR of the armour hits the occupant or contents of the armour/vehicle and inflicts damage to said occupant or contents. Rolls under the AR but above the required to-hit target strike the armour and inflict damage to the armour.
  Force Fields and Magic/Psionics which create Force field effects (Armour of Ithan, etc) have an AR of 20 until the force field/magic is depleted.

Natural 20 and Critical Strikes

A Natural 20 or a roll which yields a Critical Strike inflicts double damage on the target. For SDC weapons add any PS bonuses if a hand wielded weapon and then double the total and apply except as detailed below. For MDC weapons double the total damage and apply except as detailed below.

If a Natural 20 is required to penetrate the armour (ie it has an AR of 20) then

• Roll the weapon damage, double and apply the damage as normal to the armour.
  Roll damage again and multiply by three. This is the damage as SDC damage (do not multiply by 10) that the occupant/contents of the armour takes as a result of the penetration.
• If MDC armour has been damaged such that its AR is 15 or lower then SDC weapons will penetrate on a Natural 20 or Critical strike inflicting normal (not double) damage to the occupant/contents. If the AR is 8 then SDC weapons will penetrate on a Natural 18 or higher and inflict double damage on a natural 20 or Critical Strike.

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