Dust - Special Weapons

Copyright Paolo Parente and Dust Studio

Special Weapons

Some Weapons are subject to additional rules that represent their combat effects. These combat effects may be the result of VK-enhanced technology (i.e. Laser Weapons) or a function of how they operate (i.e. Grenade Weapons). The following are some common Special Weapons and the rules that govern their use.

Artillery Weapons

Artillery Weapons bombard the battlefield with huge shells that deliver massive payloads of explosives, damaging everything within their blast radius. These weapons can either fire at a Target Point they can see or be fired remotely by an Artillery Observer Unit with Line of Sight to the Target Point. Artillery Weapons are fired in a high-reaching arc, allowing them shoot over Buildings, Vehicles, Walls, and other Terrain. Artillery Weapons cannot be fired from inside Buildings or Bunkers.

Artillery Weapons have a Range of X-X, with the first number indicating their minimum Range and the second number indicating their maximum Range. When an Artillery Weapon is assigned an Attack or Sustained Attack Action, the player chooses a Target Point within the Artillery Weapon's Fire Arc, Range, and Line of Sight.

Gridded Play

The Artillery Area is the square containing the Target Point plus three adjacent squares that form a larger 2x2 square.

The adjacent squares are chosen by the player using the Artillery Weapon and do not need to be in Range or Line of Sight of the Artillery or Observer.

Free-form Play

The Artillery Area is centred on the Target Point and determined by the Artillery Template.

The player rolls separate Attacks or Sustained Attacks against every Unit in the Artillery Area (both enemy and ally).

Infantry in open ground do not receive their Infantry Saves. Improved Structural Save is reduced to saving on Army symbol only.

Smoke Screen

An Artillery Weapon can fire Smoke shells instead of explosives. If they do this, the Artillery Weapon does not Attack. Instead, the player rolls a die. On a roll of Army or Target symbol, the player chooses a Target Point (as described in Artillery) within the Artillery Weapon's Fire Arc, Range, and Line of Sight and places a Smoke Screen at that point.

The Smoke Screen remains in place, blocking Line of Sight and providing Cover until the end of the next Turn. A Smoke Screen cannot be fired into a Building or Bunker.

When playing on a grid, the Smoke Screen is the square containing the Target Point plus three adjacent squares that form a larger 2x2 square.

When playing free-form the Smoke Screen is centred on the Target Point and determined by the Artillery Template located on the Dust 1947 Universal Template.

Cutting Weapons

Cutting Weapons, like power saws, cut deeper the longer they are kept in contact with surfaces such as armor, and can cut through one Target to strike another when swung in an arc.

When a Cutting Weapon rolls a Hit, roll another die rolling a further Hit on a roll of Army symbol. Continue rolling an additional die for each Hit until the die rolls a miss.

If the Cutting Weapon has a special rule that allows it to Hit on a roll of Army and Target symbol , it only counts Target symbol as a Hit for the first roll. The additional rolls only Hit on a roll of Army Symbol.

A Vehicle with a Cutting Weapons can also perform Engineering Special Actions.

Flame Weapons

Flame-throwers, napalm throwers, sulphur jets, and other similar Weapons fire a spray of burning fuel, engulfing the Target Unit and any other Units in its path.

Units hit by Flame Weapons gain a Suppression token (removing an Under Fire token if the Unit has one) and do not receive a Structural, Infantry, or Cover Save against those Weapons.  Improved Structural Save is reduced.

Flame Weapons carried by S1 or S2 Infantry have very limited fuel; they do not benefit from a Sustained Attack and do not re-roll Failed dice.

Gridded Play

A Range 1 Flame Weapon targets any adjacent square, in Line of Sight and within Fire Arc to the square. Flame Weapons with Range 2 or 3 must target squares in a line, choosing the shortest path between the Attacking Unit and the Target Unit.

If several shortest paths are available, the Attacking player chooses which path.

All Units, between the Attacking Unit and the Target Unit suffer damage from the Flame Weapon.

The Attacking Unit must have Line of Sight to all target squares; flames do not continue into squares that block LoS.

Free-form Play

Draw an imaginary straight line equal in length to the Range of the weapon starting from any part of the edge or base of the Unit (or Unit Leader for infantry) within the Fire Arc to either:

a) Any part of the target Unit
or
b) Any model in the target Unit
or
c) the Command Radius of the target Unit

Every Unit (enemy or otherwise) that is crossed or touched by the line suffer damage from the weapon. Units completely outside the Fire Arc or Range of the Flame Weapon are never affected.

The line does not extend beyond LoS; units that can't be seen cannot be targeted.

Flame Burst

A Flame Burst Weapon provokes a fireball of intense heat at its destination, engulfing the Target Unit and literally melting it in place.

Units hit by Flame Burst Weapons gain a Suppression token (removing an Under Fire token if the Unit has one) and do not receive Structural, Infantry, or Cover Save against those Weapons. Improved Structural Save is reduced.

The Units affected by the Flame Burst Weapon are determined by the Blast Template. When playing on a grid it attacks all Ground Units in one Target square.

Grapple Weapons

Jaws, power claws, and pincers grab Targets, limiting their ability to Move or Attack while the Target Unit is held. If the Target Unit is an Infantry Unit all Soldiers in the Unit are affected.

When a Grapple weapon scores a Hit, place a Grappled token on the Target Unit. While the Unit has the Grappled token, it may not be assigned a Move or March Move Action and must take its first Action as a Nothing Action when it is Activated. A Unit with a Grappled token cannot fight, including fighting back with a Retaliatory Attack if Attacked in Close Combat. Remove the Grappled token if the Unit with the Grapple Weapon is destroyed, takes any Action other than a Nothing Action or does a retaliatory Close Combat attack.

A Vehicle with a Grapple Weapon can also perform Engineering Special Actions

Laser Weapons

When Blutkreuz Korps scientists applied the technology they found in Antarctica to weapons development, they discovered the incredible destructive capability of intensely focuses beams of light. The resulting laser technology has created some of the most powerful Anti-Tank Weapons in the world. Capable of quickly cutting through any armor, the longer Laser Weapons are held on Target, the deeper they cut.

For each Hit the Laser Weapon rolls, roll one die scoring an additional Hit on a roll of Army symbol. Continue scoring Hits and rolling an additional die for each Hit until a miss is rolled for that die.

If the Laser weapon has a Special Rule that allows it to Hit on a roll of Army and Target symbol , it only counts a Target symbol as a Hit on the first roll. Additional rolls only Hit on a roll of Army symbol.

Limited Ammo Weapons

Some Weapons have limited ammunition capacity. Once all of its ammunition is expended, the
Weapon can no longer fire.

Limited-Ammo Weapons are indicated by check-boxes in the Weapons Table on the Unit Card. Mark one of these boxes each time an Infantry or Vehicle Unit makes an Attack or Sustained Attack Action with the Limited-Ammo Weapon. Once all of the check-boxes have been marked, the Weapon can no longer fire.

While a Soldier (individual miniature) in an Infantry Unit can only use the Weapons they are modelled with, they are assumed to pick up extra ammunition from fallen comrades that are part of their Infantry Unit. As long as there is a Soldier remaining in the Infantry Unit that is modelled with that Weapon, they still possess all of the Unit's remaining ammunition for that Weapon.

Phaser Weapons

Allied research into VK-powered Weapons started later than that of the Axis and took a very different path. Allied researchers developed a method of generating a coherent ball of chaotic energy that could be directed at a Target. When this energy ball comes into contact with a solid object it explodes, obliterating whatever it hits. It is impossible to build armor capable of stopping a full power Phaser Weapon. Even a concrete wall just melts away, providing no cover to a Target Unit attempting to use it for shelter.

Units Hit by Phaser Weapons do not receive a Structural or Cover Save, but Infantry Units retain their Infantry Save.

Power Scopes

A Weapon with a Power Scope Hits on rolls of Army as well as Target symbol when making a Sustained Attack Action.

Reload Weapons

Some Weapons, such as Artillery, require ammunition to be manually loaded before firing. These Weapons must be reloaded after every shot. At the beginning of the game, use a Loaded token to indicate that the Reload Weapon is loaded. When the Reload Weapon is used for an Attack or Sustained Attack Action, remove the Loaded token. The Unit with the Reload Weapon, must be assigned a Reload Special Action to return the Loaded token to the Unit before the Weapon may be fired again. A Unit may perform an Attack Action and a Reload Action during the same Activation, allowing it to complete an Attack Action each Activation.

Salvo Weapons

Salvo Weapons can fire at a controlled rate, or they can fire everything at once, emptying their magazines.

At the beginning of the game, use a Loaded token to indicate that the Salvo Weapon is loaded. When a player makes an Attack or Sustained Attack Action with the Salvo Weapon, they can choose to make a normal Attack or a Salvo Attack. If the Unit makes a normal Attack, the Unit retains the Loaded token. If the Unit makes a Salvo Attack, roll twice the normal number of dice for the Attack, removing the Loaded Unit token. The Unit with the Salvo Weapon, must be assigned a Reload Special Action to return the Loaded token to the Unit before the Weapon may be fired again.

Sniper Weapons

In the hands of a trained sniper, Sniper Weapons can be used to selectively Target specific individuals in a Unit. When declaring the Target of a Sniper Weapon's Attack or Sustained Attack Action, the player may specify a miniature in the Target Unit. All unsaved Hits from this Attack are assigned to the specified miniature. The only exception is that the Sniper Weapon cannot Target the Unit Leader unless it is a Hero or the last remaining Soldier in the Unit taking Damage.

Sniper Weapons negate Structural, Cover and Infantry Saves.

Spotters

If a Spotter does not use a Weapon, the Sniper Weapon in the Unit that makes a Sustained Attack Hits on rolls of Army as well Target symbols.

Tesla Weapons

Soviet scientists have experimented with electrical Weapons for decades, but always encountered problems with developing an adequate portable power source. With the recent discovery ofVK, these scientists were able to overcome this challenge. Inspired by the research of the famed Nikola Tesla, the Weapons they developed emit a concentrated bolt of electricity capable of destroying anything it strikes. Those it doesn't destroy, are left stunned from the electrical discharge.

When a Unit takes Damage from a Tesla Weapon, it receives a Stunned token. A Unit with a Stunned token cannot fight, including fighting back with a Retaliatory Attack if Attacked in Close Combat.

When a Unit Activates while it has a Stunned token, it performs a Nothing Action as its first Action, then removes all Stunned tokens.

If a Unit with a Stunned token attempts a Reactive Attack, it rolls a single die rather than two to see if It can make a Reactive Attack, removing the Stunned token whether or not it succeeds in making a Reactive Attack. A Unit with both a Suppression token and a Stunned token loses only a single Action.

Volley Weapons

Some rocket launchers have the ability tb fire single rockets or ripple-fire multiple rockets. launching them one after the other. Likewise, some Aircraft can drop all of their bombs at once.

A Volley Weapon is a Limited-Ammo Weapon that can fire any or all of its remaining bombs or rockets simultaneously. The player selects how many bombs or rockets to use in an Attack Action, and marks the same number of ammo boxes to indicate that they have been expended. The player then multiplies the number of dice the bomb or rocket would normally roll by the number of ammo boxes marked.

Wire-guided Weapons

Recently developed and experimental, Wire-Guided Weapons allow a gunner to guide projectiles in flight, ensuring they hit the intended Target. If a Unit is assigned an Attack Action with one Wire-Guided Weapon and no other Weapons, it re-rolls misses for that Weapon as if making a Sustained Attack.

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