What is “Close Quarters”?

[Hemdian]

T5.1 Book 1, p202: Mentions the different attack type, including, “… the Melee Attack (for close quarters grappling and fighting).”

T5.1 Bool 3, p108: The Gunmaker section mentions, “Close Quarters weapons are more usable in confined spaces (inside buildings and spaceships).” It goes on to list …

• Recoilless, VHeavy, VRF, AutoCannon, Cannon, and Gatling are unusable in CQ
• Snub and Projector are preferred in CQ
• Pistols and Revolvers have a positive CQ mod (EOU in CQ situations)
• Carbine, Designator, Gun, Launcher, Machinegun, Multi-Launcher, Rifle, and Shotgun have negative CQ mods (EOU in CQ situations)

… and on the next page says adding folding or collapsible stocks to a gun design grants a CQ mod of +2.

Launchers and non-SMG machineguns are allowed in CQ (albeit with negative mods) seems a little ... odd.


However, melee weapons and body weapons don’t have a CQ mod. This includes everything from a dagger to a pike. If CQ is range ‘0’ and ‘R’, why not?

 

[Spinward Flow]

Standard definition of Close Quarters Combat is anything from melee to 100 meters.
For gameplay purposes, it's basically places where there isn't necessarily a whole lot of space to work with for weaponry, so shorter/handier weapons are preferred due to terrain factors (use a pistol, not a rifle). Needless to say, weapons with a minimum range or a backblast danger space are not recommended for use in tight terrain locations.

Sounds like T5 could have used a bit more editing oversight on those bits you cite.

 

[aramis]

As used by the military? Typically short range firearms combat, but may also include melee.
A navy seal discusses it:

Close-Quarters Combat (CQC) Explained by Navy SEAL

Actual close-quarters combat varies a lot from its popular Hollywood depictions.

sofrep.com

Probbably "Effie" level leaked footage of US Army CQB training

List of courses from a PMC: https://www.insightstraining.com/catalog.asp?categoryID=5

CQB is not synonymous with melee, but melee is a subset of it.

 

[whartung]

Yea, close quarters is street to street, house to house, room to room, door kicking, hand grenades, every corner a surprise fun.

 

[aramis]

Yea, close quarters is street to street, house to house, room to room, door kicking, hand grenades, every corner a surprise fun.

It also can be tree to tree, tripping over roots, and hoping that no one gets a snakebite either.
It can also be tunnel to tunnel.
Most of the Vietnam conflict was close quarters battle...

It has as much to do with limited mobility and lots of cover as range.

 

[infojunky]

Note, when I was in the service, I usually was armed with a truncheon and a .38 revolver both on lanyards for boarding actions. For close shore occasionally a riot gun. Was primarily a Coxswain and while I know my way around a rifle, I barely qualified with rifles but did not have the same issues with pistols, shotguns, machine-guns and the M19. Oh and well qualified launching Jarheads on to a beach… .

 

[Condottiere]

Trench warfare did have options for spiked maces and spiked knives.

I think we might go back to really large calibre pistol bullets with armour piercing, that will stop someone really motivated and body armoured at short range.

 

[Ulsyus]

Trench warfare did have options for spiked maces and spiked knives.

I think we might go back to really large calibre pistol bullets with armour piercing, that will stop someone really motivated and body armoured at short range.

What counts for large-calibre pistol these days: 10mm+? At close range that could still upset the day of someone wearing BA, let alone if it hits the target outside the armour coverage. A lot of the CBA I've seen these days doesn't reach all the way to the belt in order to allow for more movement. The loss of coverage could be a game-changer at very close ranges, say 0-10m

 

[Condottiere]

Ten millimetres is bearable; I think within a trench the time and space factors are going to be make it snapshotty, so the shooter's instinct is probably centre mass.