Weapon Classification

From SSNTWiki

[edit] Guns

Guns are anything that mostly remain inside the vessel while it does its work. They work very differently from Missiles. Those familiar with Games like EVE would probably be surprised at how different they are. Gun categories are not dependent on size, but rather, their logistic needs.

Clarification: ROF accounts for each bore independently.

Tactical weapons

Tactical weapons are monstrous devices that often require entire vessels to be built around them. They are at least a significant issue in the vessel’s design. They usually can only be installed on specific vessels. And with exception of elite units and flagships, vessels that carry tactical weapons do pretty much just that. Firing a tactical weapon usually require the vessel to align itself with the target.

See Tactical Weapons

Heavy Weapons

Heavy weapons require their own support reactors, targeting sensors and fire control computers and magazines, sometimes even their own fuel tanks to support the auxiliary reactors. Baring a direct strike on the weapon itself or completely demolishing the vessel it’s installed on there is little way one can do to silence one. Heavy weapons are usually built for hitting power rather then rate of fire or accuracy. Therefore they usually have the lowest rate of fire compare to other weapons that operate on the same principle. Laser is an exception because a laser can fire continuously until its gain medium begins to change phase.

Bores per turret: 1-2

ROF: Slow

Support reactor: Yes

Support fuel reserve: Maybe

Dedicated Sensor: Yes

Dedicated Fire control: Yes

Dedicated Magazine: Yes

Medium Weapons

Medium weapons have their own magazines, fire control computers and sometimes targeting sensors. Medium weapons can be suppressed by knocking out their connection to the vessels’ power grid. Medium weapons have less hitting power, intuitively, but can make it up with much higher rate of fire and accuracy (mainly because the turret have much less rotational inertia). Since the concept of DPS don’t exist in SSNT (you either penetrate the armor or just heat it up slightly) Medium weapon can fire a LOT fast and still be balanced.

Bores per turret: 3-4

ROF: Moderate

Support reactor: No

Support fuel reserve: No

Dedicated Sensor: Maybe

Dedicated Fire control: Yes

Dedicated Magazine: Yes

Light Weapons

Light weapons have their own magazines but draws power from the vessel’s grid and use the vessel’s sensor system and computers for tracking. Jamming the sensors on a vessel and its communication will also jam all its light weapons. Light weapons do not often only fast, but also have multiple barrows that allow them to launch incredibly volume of fire. Light weapons can be used for PD/Space superiority.

Bores per turret: 6+

ROF: FAST

Support reactor: No

Support fuel reserve: No

Dedicated Sensor: No

Dedicated Fire control: No

Dedicated Magazine: Yes

Point Defense

Dedicated Point defense are very small weapons that are often installed as an afterthought. Most vessels can install an astonishing number of them thus they put out a lot of fire, but most of them would not even tickle anything bigger then a drone. Most races uses laser for this so PD fire constantly. For a few civilization that does not use laser or don’t like them, their PD also fire extremely quickly to compensate for the lack of continuous fire. Almost any damage to a system will disable PD connected to it.

Bores per turret: 1

ROF: continuous

Support reactor: No

Support fuel reserve: No

Dedicated Sensor: No

Dedicated Fire control: No

Dedicated Magazine: No

[edit] Missiles

Missiles are usually so big that the vessel cannot afford to carry more then one set of launch tubes. The tubes are jettisoned or recycled after they fire. The only exceptions to this rule are carriers with engineering systems that could assemble missiles in fight. Because missiles are vastly different between civilizations, they are roughly classified by the principle of operation of their payload.

Tactical missiles

Tactical missile are some of the most destructive weapons constructed by any civilization. They often carry most exotic devices that operate on esoteric principles and can annihilate an entire fleet in one spectacular volley. The smallest of these devices comes with more then a thousand gigaton equivalent of demolition power – Not a good thing to be on the receiving end of.

See Tactical Weapons

Heavy Missiles

Heavy missiles usually operate on nuclear reactions of some sort. Since Hydrogen is somewhat abundant in the universe, many civilizations, unsurprisingly, have Heavy missiles that use fusion. Heavy missiles can melt or outright vaporize almost any vessel on a direct hit. Because of their electromagnetic radiation spectrum, they can still be disastrous to their target even if they go off a fair distance from it. Mines and items like “torpedoes” are often placed in this category as well.

Principle: Nuclear reactions

Power range: 100MT-10000GT

Tsiolkovsky Velocity: ~1C

Medium Missiles

Unsurprisingly medium missiles are usually metal rods with engines strapped to them; they usually operate by colliding with their target. Since many of these missiles have nuclear engines and move at relativistic velocities, these collisions can’t be pretty. Vessels with Correct armor might resist one or two hit of these, if they are lucky.

Principle: Kinetic Impact

Power range: 10KT-100MT

Tsiolkovsky Velocity: ~1C

Countermeasure missiles:

These are missiles used to chase down strike crafts and intercept other far uglier missiles. They usually carry chemical warhead and use chemical engines. They cause barely a scratch for larger vessels and can be easily outrun by them if they are launched at a distance. Although they have very good instantaneous acceleration – their engines are often little more then just another explosive device. Countermeasure missiles can often be used in Electronic Warfare, or as flares.

Principle: Chemical Reaction

Power range: 0-10KT

Tsiolkovsky Velocity: ~1000km/s