[Kanly]

First of all I know there was a thread about a somewhat similar question, but that was for SR4 and I'm looking to discuss it from another angle.

My question is this: how to suppress an area for a combat turn with the least amount of ammo used? (or rather, for how long can I suppress the bad guys with my finite ammo).

Problem: If my drone doing the suppressing gets more than 10 on initiative (which it will), do I have to spend 20 round each pass to keep suppressive fire up for the whole turn?

Possible solutions:
1. make suppressive fire a sort of an overwatch action, where you state that you start it, and you have to state again when you finish it. Until then, you expend 20 rounds / turn (and it consumes all you action phases, of course, at least for the attack actions. I assume you could move a little as in dodging and talk - really anything that doesn't disrupt your suppressing action).

2. Heavy handed / tricky solution: I make it so that I waste enough initiative so that I only get 1 IP, thus making my 20 rounds last 3 whole seconds. Like going full defense every turn (and in my case, with the drones, full matrix defense as well if necessary).

What do you guys think? Thanks for any help or opinion!

[martinchaen]

My question is this: how to suppress an area for a combat turn with the least amount of ammo used? (or rather, for how long can I suppress the bad guys with my finite ammo).

Answer: Page 179:
"The suppressive fire zone lasts until the end of the Combat Turn as long as the firer does not move or commit to any other action."

[Xenon]

suppressive fire cost 20 rounds of ammo and last until the end of the combat turn (you can end it earlier).
with rcc you can send message to multiple drones to use suppressive fire over an area - pretty darn powerful


suppressive fire is also quite good for people that normally does not have a lot of meat world initiative (technomancers?)

[Kanly]

Thank you both!

[martinchaen]

Suppressive fire is also good for characters with high initiative (as characters with lower initiative then have to react immediately before getting to do anything), and by extension for characters that choose to use Blitz or Seize The Initiative (if they normally have low initiative scores). You might forgo several initiative phases, but the opponents must take an immediate dice pool penalty to ALL actions equal to the shooters hits, as well as choose to either drop prone or roll Reaction + Edge (+ full dodge if taken), which is pretty darned powerful for a single complex action costing 20 rounds of ammo. For a whole combat turn, you might be able to wound, kill, or simply incapacitate (through inaction), several of the opposing characters.

It's not very subtle, though, which is something to keep in mind as well