High Explosive Shells

High explosive shells are like grenades, only more so. Most shells will be fired from off-table ordinance and will enter the table under conditions special and peculiar to that particular game. These conditions must be set up by the game-master. Some shells may be fired from AFV main guns on the table or from light mortars or infantry support guns.

Anyone within the inner ring and the second ring will be knocked onto their back, even if not otherwise harmed, unless behind cover.

Anyone inside the blast template must test morale, hurt or not.

81mm Mortar Shells and examples

In our original rules set we showed 5 examples of HE shell blast templates. The one shown here is used for 81mm mortar bombs, and 85mm, 88mm, and 90mm H.E. Shells. all of the blast templates, including the ones not shown here, are the same, except that the rings vary in width.

• In Inner Ring (3" in diameter for the guns and mortar shown), all men have a 100% chance of being killed.
• In the Second Ring (2" farther out than the inner ring), for the guns and mortar shown, all men have a 90% chance of being hit with 30 rounds.
• In the Third Ring (2" farther out than the second ring), for the guns and mortar shown, all men have a 70% chance of being hit with 30 rounds.
• In the Outer Ring (2" farther out than the third ring), for the guns and mortar shown, all men have a 50% chance of being hit with 30 rounds.

1. An 81mm mortar shell explodes near a group of 3 men, Fonda, Ford, and Formicelli. All are upright with no cover.
   • Fonda is 2.5" from the center of the shell hit, in the inner ring. He has 100% chance of being killed, and without cover, is dead.
   • Ford is 4" from the center of the shell hit, in the second ring. He has a 90% chance of being hit with 30 rounds. The dice roll is 44, so he is hit (less than or equal to 90%). On the damage chart, that roll cross indexed with 30 rounds equals 60% damage. He is badly hurt and is blown onto his back.
   • Formicelli is 8" from the center of the shell hit, in the outer ring. He has 50% chance of being hit with 30 rounds. The dice roll is 71 so he is unhurt. Because he is inside the blast template of the shell hit, even though he is not hurt, he must test his morale. He roll the dice, needing half or less than his remaining life force (100%). He rolls 61 so must immediately fall prone.
2. An 81mm mortar shell explodes on the other side of a stone wall, behind which a group of 3 men, Baldwin, Bullitt, and Buckner are sheltering. All kneeling and are covered by the wall.
   • Baldwin is 2.5" from the center of the shell hit, in the inner ring. He has 100% chance of being killed, less the 40% cover provided by the stone wall, so a die roll of 60 or less will kill him. His die roll is 61 (lucky guy!) but he must test morale because he is inside the blast template of the shell hit, even though he is not hurt. His die roll is 44, less than half of his remaining life force (100%) so he does not even go prone.
   • Bullitt is 4" from the center of the shell hit, in the second ring. He has a 90% chance of being hit with 30 rounds, less the 40% cover provided by the stone wall, so a die roll of 50 or less will hit him. The dice roll is 34, so he is hit (less than or equal to 50%). On the damage chart, that roll cross indexed with 30 rounds equals 48% damage. He is badly hurt and must test morale to see if he falls prone. His die roll is 65, greater than half of his remaining life force (52%) so drops prone.
   • Buckner is 8" from the center of the shell hit, in the outer ring. He has 50% chance of being hit with 30 rounds, less the 40% cover provided by the stone wall, so a die roll of 10 or less will hit him. The dice roll is 48 so he is unhurt. Because he is inside the blast template of the shell hit, even though he is not hurt, he must test his morale. He roll the dice, needing half or less than his remaining life force (100%). He rolls 77 so must immediately fall prone.

Shell Size	Inner ring	Second ring	Third ring	Outer ring
37mm. shell 40mm Shell	1"	1"	1"	1"
50mm. Mortar	2"	2"	1"	1"
60mm. Mortar 75mm Shell	2"	2"	2"	2"
81mm. Mortar 85mm Shell 88mm Shell 90mm Shell	3"	2"	2"	2"
4.2" Mortar 105mm Shell 120mm Shell Small Aerial Bomb	3"	3"	3"	3"

We normally do not use bombs or shells larger than these. Scaling up the table for bigger weapons will create shell templates that will overpower a game table.

Other aspects of H.E.Shells

Shells 75mm or larger hitting a building of standard construction will have a chance of blowing the building down. Divide the size of the shell in millimeters by 4. The result is the percentage chance of the building being turned to rubble and all men in it killed instantly. Round down.

EXAMPLE: A 75 mm shell hitting a building of standard construction will have an 18% chance of destroying the building.

Buildings of stronger constructions (reinforced concrete) may be assumed to have only a 10% chance of being destroyed by a shell hit of 100mm size or greater.

EXAMPLE: A 120 mm shell hitting a building of stronger than standard construction will have an 12% chance of destroying the building.

Shells hitting the side of a building of standard construction will either penetrate or not. The chance of penetration is equal to half of the size of the shell in millimeters. Round down.

EXAMPLE: A 120 mm shell hitting a building of stronger than standard construction will have an 60% chance of penetrating to the inside of the building and detonating there. A die roll of 60 or less will allow the shell to penetrate the outside wall and detonate inside. A die roll of 61 or greater means the shell will explode ON the outer wall of the building and the fragments and rubble will make a pattern equal to a half circle, instead of a full circle.

Men inside a building of standard construction that is not penetrated must test morale, but are not otherwise harmed.

Men Outside a building that is penetrated are not otherwise harmed.

Men inside a building that is pentrated must test just as if they were in the open. The shell will be assumed to burst in the exact middle of the room. The game master must decide if furniture, interior partitions, etc, will constitute cover.

All buildings are of "standard construction" unless otherwise specified by the game master. He must set special game conditions for buildings of reinforced concrete, or bamboo, or with large glassed or open areas.

DAMAGE CHART

Return to SKIRMISH RULES' Introduction & Table of Contents

Return to the Jackson Gamers' Rules

Return to the Jackson Gamers' Homepage

Angelfire - Free Home Pages
Free Web Building Help
Angelfire HTML Library
htmlGEAR - free polls, guestbooks, and more!

Thank you for visiting The Jackson Gamers' pages at Angelfire. Please come back and visit again!