Plasma Laser

### Damage

875 total (ramps up and down between 0 and 40 per tick over the duration of the salvo)

## Construction

### Scrap income

500 Metal / 3000 Energy / 8 s

The **Plasma** **Laser** is a heavy weapon that fires a perfectly accurate insta-hit beam of highly damaging burning plasma.

## Overview

The Plasma Laser is characterized by its devastating direct damage focused on the point of impact. Coupled with its perfect accuracy and no drop from gravity, it allows surgical strikes at the weak spots of the opponent's fort, and is a prime tool for door sniping. At 875 total damage, a direct hit from Plasma Laser deals more than enough damage to destroy any weapon or device in the game, and by itself can punch through 5 wood braces (150hp each), and 2 layers of armor/door (400hp each)

The weapon works well in tandem with the Firebeam. After weakening a part of fort structure with a Firebeam shot, hitting the same spot with the Plasma Laser allows it to burrow very deep, often collapsing an entire fort with a single blast.

In an emergency, Plasma Laser is sometimes used as a haphazard form of anti-air, as the beam is easily capable of intercepting destructible projectiles - like Warheads, or Howitzer/Deck Gun shots mid-air

## Costs

Plasma Laser is a heavy weapon which requires a Factory to be built before it can be accessed. As one of the most expensive weapons - both to build and maintain, it requires a powerful economy to field.

Building the weapon requires 1000 metal and 6000 energy, which - before the weapons from High Seas DLC have been introduced - made it the 2nd most expensive weapon in the game after the Howitzer. Aside from the high resource requirement alone being prohibitive, acquiring the weapon is further complicated by the sheer cost making it necessary to build 2 Metal Stores, and 2 Batteries.

Aside from heavy build cost, the weapon is also extremely power hungry. With 5000 energy per shot required, it is the most expensive weapon to operate before High Seas content, and even then, it is only outclassed by the Orbital Laser. Factoring in the reload time, the weapon requires an input of ~193 energy per second in order to keep firing non stop after every reload. Since a 100% efficiency Wind Turbine produces 45 energy/s, it means that - coupled with the Reactor output (110 energy/s) firing the Plasma Laser alone as fast as its cooldown allows requires at least 2 max efficiency non-upgraded turbines.

Like other beam weapons, the Plasma Laser can be fired even when there's not enough energy, but the beam will shut down the moment energy reserves hit 0.

With 250hp, the Plasma Laser can be destroyed by a Sniper in two shots.

## Weaknesses

As stated above, the Plasma Laser requires a powerful economy to acquire and support. Taking a hit on energy production may be more disastrous than with other weapons, as losing any significant number of Turbines or Smoke Stacks can result in being unable to fire the Plasma Laser at all.

The Plasma Laser is totally useless against energy shields, as the beam will deflect off them without dealing any damage (and can potentially damage a friendly fort). It relies on other weapons to help cracking the shield.

As a heavy weapon, it will violently explode on being destroyed, severely damaging the structure and hardware around it. Consequences of placing a Plasma Laser anywhere near the reactor and having it destroyed can be catastrophic and may very well end the battle.