A time on target salvo is an attempt to hit a target simultaneously with multiple weapons. The advantage of using one is that, unlike in normal starship combat, all damage from the attack is totaled and applied as a single amount. This has the potential to inflict a great deal of damage on large and/or heavily armored targets that would normally shrug off lesser hits. The disadvantage is that the time on target salvo requires coordination and precise timing to work. A TN-6 is applied to all Gunnery Tests contributing to the salvo. If even one of the Tests fails, all of the attacks are resolved as normal.
Multiple ships may participate in a salvo as long as they are all in communications with each other and are less than 12 Spans apart. A multi-ship salvo uses the lowest Initiative Rating of all of the ships taking part in it. Ships with higher Initiative Ratings must defer their actions until the lowest Rating is reached, however, their Initiative Ratings are not reset to the new, lower Rating. For example, a trio of ships launching a time on target salvo and having Initiative Ratings of 10, 7 and 3 would attack on Rating 3 but the first two ships would keep their Initiative Ratings of 10 and 7 instead of having them changed to 3.
All damage from a successful salvo is totaled as a single amount. The total is reduced by the armor value (AV) of any energy shields and armor and the remainder is deducted from the target’s Hull value. If detailed damage rules are being used, reduce the damage done by each attack by a proportional amount of the total AV and then consult the relevant damage tables.
In most cases space and other debris will have little effect on starship combat because the volume of a Span is too great for it to be much of a problem. At the GM’s discretion exceptions can be made. For example, in the case of a ship that has lost all of its Hull value, its wreckage will continue on its current vector with its existing Move Value. Any ship attempting to attack through the wreckage incurs a TN-2 penalty to any Gunnery Tests. A ship attempting to fly through the debris field suffers its Move Value x 2 in damage.
A ship that has been rendered immobile during combat cannot bring fixed weapons to bear nor can its pilot make defensive Piloting Tests as part of a Gunnery Test.
Space stations are assumed to lack the capacity to quickly change their orientation during combat. As a result, a station is not permitted to fire more than one third of its fixed weapons and one half of its turreted weapons at the same target during the same Round. Energy lances are considered to be fixed weapons in this context. Missiles remain unaffected. The GM, as always, has the latitude to alter or ignore these rules based on his conception of the station’s design.
Certain weapons can be technology bumped, (see Chapter Four of Starships), to make them capable of automatic fire or autofire.
“Standard” weapons (fusion beam, laser, maser cannon, particle beam and plasma cannon, gauss gun, mass cannon and rail cannon): Increase Tons, Cost and Power by 50%.
Heavy weapons (heavy laser, heavy maser cannon, heavy particle beam, heavy plasma cannon and heavy mass cannon): Increase Tons, Cost and Power by 75%.
Gravity rams, energy lances and spinal mounts are not capable of autofire.