Ammunition type overlap (and uses for such a thing)

Game Talk The Drawing Board
1

I was hoping there might be a viable way to make a given ammunition item count as belonging to multiple ammo types. This would open up a world of possibilities for ammunition and firearm tweaks.

Some examples of what could be done:

  1. Differences between military and civilian versions of a cartridge. There are minor differences between 5.56x45mm NATO and .223 Remington, the same goes for 7.62x51mm NATO and .308 Winchester. It mainly amounts to potential chamber pressure. A rifle designed for the military version of the cartridge can use the civilian version, but using the military version in a gun that DOESN’T specifically say it can handle the military version is considered unsafe. Overlaps would allow defining .223 as belong to both the .223 ammo type and the 5.56mm ammo type, and allow defining .308 as belonging to both the 7.62 NATO ammotype and the .308 ammo type.

  2. Magnum revolvers, for if we get .357 Magnum. Revolvers in .357 Magnum can also use .38 Special ammunition. .38 revolvers, obviously, can’t. Defining .38 Special as belonging to both the .357 and .38 ammo types would account for this. If we ever introduce .44 Special, the same would apply.

  3. Semi-auto ammo uses. .22 CB will not have enough kick to cycle a semi-auto .22 LR firearm, and .22 ratshot likely won’t either. Classifying the ammo types that will cycle as also belonging to a “autoloading guns can use this” ammo type will solve that. If we get a .357 version of the Desert Eagle, .38 Special could be excluded in the same way. Same applies to other existing ammo that has variants that might not cycle an autoloading gun.

  4. The derptastic thing that is the Taurus Judge. I would love some .45 Long Colt weapons, and .410 would also be good for giving more variety in shotguns. Judge would of course overlap and use both, ideally while being less than ideal at either. o3o

  5. +P loads and older firearms. Running, for example, +P .38 Special through an old .38 revolver would be a Bad Idea. Would have to look through the ammo list to see other examples that would be unsafe to use available overpressure ammo through.

  6. A few other ammo types should likely also be unfucked as a consequence of this. .45 Super can be chambered in .45 ACP firearms, but it can cause unsafe pressure. .45 Super is mainly for guns designed for it, or for .45 ACP guns that receive an aftermarket conversion. .270 Winchester also seriously needs its own guns. You CAN apparently chamber .270 in a .30-06 gun, but the result would be shittastic accuracy and a case deformed to be better usable as a .30-06 case. Variable accuracy based on the ammotype of the gun using it is potentially too complex to be worth coding, so just not having .270 usable in .30-6 guns would be saner.

But the first step is seeing if ammo-type overlap is at all possible or feasible to code.

2

I believe the game already does this, as both 5.56 and .223 are a part of the “.223” ammo category; same with .308 and 7.62x51 being in the “.308” ammo category.

And if you’re talking about defining the guns as Military or Civilian, I think the game assumes all guns are Military grade.

3

This would allow for guns only capable of handling the civilian version though. >w>

4

Possible, but probably very invasive and difficult to get working right.
The main thing though is the super-high level of detail seems unnecessary. Matching ammo type to the gun is pretty reasonable, although people complain about that being too complicated from time to time as well, but having a bunch of random gotchas about ammo that will fit in different guns but not be safe to use seems excessively unfriendly. If we added such a thing, I’d want it to at least have warnings about using the wrong ammo, at which point the impact on the game is basically nil.

5

True, though surely I can’t be the only person that thinks that would be interesting. ;w;

At present, I guess the only thing it’d be ESSENTIAL for is if we ever get .357 Magnum.