Moon wargaming - some thoughts.

[Cat]

The dust could be a big factor in painting figures.  But like WW2 desert gaming, I expect that most gamers will sidestep painting everything heavily weathered in the same colour dust and opt for somewhat cleaner painting with distinctive colours so it's easier to tell which side is which.

[anevilgiraffe]

Totally. It wouldn’t be workable as a mechanic. Just reminded me with all the dust talk.

[aliensurfer]

with regards weapons, couldnt just thrown or slingshotted sharp objects be just as useful/dangerous? I have a vision of people in astronaut suits, using a form of slingshot and picking up moon rocks to 'fire'. 

[Cat]

Rick's aiming for higher tech levels, but yeah a good old fashioned wrist rocket could do impact damage and maybe break vulnerable parts of suits/visors.
 
Bending over in current technology suits isn't easy beyond ~30º.  An ammo pouch would be quite helpful.

[Rick]

Yeah I'm assuming that the near (ish) future spacesuits designed for combat will be different from the 1960's spacesuits designed for exploration - toughened visors, more protection and minimising vulnerable points on the suit. Impact damage is likely to be minimal at low velocities (as I mentioned before, Alan Shepherd was only able to hit a golfball about 40 yards) so throwing and using slingshots probably will do very little (even if you were able to hold/use a slingshot in a bulky, awkward spacesuit).

[aliensurfer]

yes probably not. I wonder though if something like the eldar shuriken catapult might be something devised for low g / moon warfare - something that doesnt need oxygen to work, and can fire projectiles at dangerous speeds.

[Cat]

Weapons that don't penetrate nor explode will still have good value for fighting in or near habitats/infrastructure/ships what you don't want punctured.
 
Even kevlar won't prevent crushed lungs/ribs/concussions and muscular damage.  Maces were really good weapons for conking knights in armour and great helms.
 
Rapid fire impacts in a tight cluster will have an even stronger affect on the inhabitant of the suit.

[Rick]

Now Cat, I do believe you may be talking about high velocity impact damage there, whereas I thought we were still talking about low velocity impact damage!
As a matter of fact I think high velocity impact, in the right place, might be as dangerous as piercing damage but I'm not convinced that a person in a bulky spacesuit can swing a mace/blunt instrument hard enough to be effective - something along the lines of a military pick or sharpened rock hammer (both characterised by a heavy head, producing momentum, and a sharp spike, for the armour piercing properties) might be superior.
Aliensurfer - several pages ago I suggested a rocket projectile (like a gyrojet round) that could fire a shaped charge downwards, much like a modern top-attack missile, propelling shrapnel/flechettes into a small area, unlike a grenade that, on the moon, would have a massive area of effect, far wider than it could be propelled. I consider that more feasible in the nearish future than being able to miniaturise a mass driver gun down into a hand-held gun (Arnold Shwarzenegger notwithstanding). In 40 or 50 years we may get them developed for Battleships or Cruisers, 20 or 30 years beyond that we may get them down to vehicle mounted weapons, but what you're talking about would take a century or two.
A better alternative would be something like a compressed gas powered flechette-firing shotgun - that is something we could do today or tomorrow! 

[Cat]

The mace comparison was largely as historic example of not requiring penetration power to incapacitate.  But the trusty geology hammer should do the trick too.  How many smacks to bruise through kevlar or weaken and crack a faceplate?
 
How much velocity is required to damage on the other side of kevlar is an interesting question.  Shotgun firing a solid slug should be able to cause a pain that will linger.
 

[Aethelflaeda was framed]

Go for the weak joints.  Knees, elbows, neck, underarms. Kevlar isnt even mail.

[Rick]

I only used Kevlar as an example - for all I know the Duchy of Grand Fenwick may have returned to the moon, in which case their armour will be reinforced with chain mail. Fear the Mouse!