Beam Weaponry

These are directed energy weapons. They include lasers, blasters, and other “death rays,” as well as stunners and other nonlethal energy weapons.

By spreading the time it takes to generate a energy beam or bolt over a longer period and therefor reducing the power load (the power supply has less wattage it needs to regulate, the cooling system has more time to vent waste heat, and so on), it is possible to reduce the size and cost of a given beam weapon (the main beam generator however would still have to be full sized). The trade off is a delay of several seconds between firings.

Unless you switch the weapon off, after firing the weapon will automatically begin charging up again. While charging the weapon will either have a visual indicator on it showing how much longer until it is charged or will transmit the information to your HUD. While charging you are free to do other actions. Once charged the weapon will either flash, send a message to your HUD or admit an audible tone or transmit one to any headphones you are wearing. If you are in the middle of battle or other high stress situations and do not have a clear line of sight to an indicator, you can figure time remaining by making an appropriate IQ based Beam Weapons roll.

If you have to power down the weapon without firing it, the built-up energy needs to be discharged first. This takes just as long safely discharge the weapon as it takes to charge it, except for plasma weapons, since they need to cool and vent the plasma. It takes plasma weapons 4 times as long to safely discharge, during which it will vent the cooled plasma as hot gas. This gas is vented away from the operator and is generally cool enough to be safe but can cause minor burns if your hand is held too close to the vents (treat as moderate pain, does 1d-4 burn if held against it for a full second).

Lasers are among the most versatile of beam weapons, with a wide range of offensive and defensive applications. Laser weapons can be broadly classified by the effect on their target:

Dazzle lasers cause temporary blindness.

Blinding lasers cause permanent damage to eyesight or optics.

High-energy lasers blind, and inflict physical burn damage.

A laser dazzler is a low-energy laser that fires a wide beam of coherent light. Dazzlers temporarily blind eyes and optical sensors, and are designed for personal defense and riot control. They also have a more sinister use: if the beam blinds someone performing a dangerous activity such as operating a vehicle or climbing, the target could suffer an accident. If the accident is fatal, there will be no evidence of the assault… unless the victim had laser sensors and recorded the attack.

A laser dazzler delivers a Vision-based affliction attack against anyone struck. To be affected, the target must be looking at the laser. The victim gets a HT roll to resist, at the penalty noted on the weapon table; add +3 to HT if he is beyond 1/2D range. DR has no effect, but Protected Vision adds +5 to resist. A Nictating Membrane adds +1 per level. Failure to resist inflicts Blindness for minutes equal to the margin of failure.

Laser dazzlers deliver cone attacks – see Area and Spreading Attacks (p. B413).

Dazzler Carbine: A long-range dazzler weapon, most often used for police or covert operations (disrupting crowds, blinding suspects, causing vehicle accidents).

Penlights, Flashlights, and Searchlights: Ultra-tech flashlights have a “laser dazzle” setting; see Flashlights for descriptions. The combat statistics are presented below.

Any high-energy laser may be designed with a dazzle mode. Switching to or from this mode takes a Ready maneuver. When in dazzle mode, the laser fires a low-power laser beam that is identical to the effect of a dazzle laser, except that it does not have a cone effect – it must strike the target’s face or eyes. A HT-5 roll is needed to resist the affliction. Dazzle mode uses up negligible power. The setting adds +10% to laser cost.

These weapons emit a medium-power laser beam that can cause permanent blindness, or fry optics, without burning flesh. The beam is wide enough that it need only be aimed at the target, not the eyes.

Dedicated blinding lasers are rare, since more effective high-energy lasers are also available. However, military active sensors, targeting systems, and electronic warfare systems that utilize lasers often incorporate a “high-power optical countermeasures” mode that is designed to blind sensors, including eyes.

A blinding laser delivers a Vision-based affliction attack. Anyone hit who is looking toward the laser can be affected. The victim gets a HT-10 roll to resist (HT-7 past 1/2D range). Protected Vision adds +5 to resist; a Nictating Membrane adds +1 per level. Failure to resist inflicts crippling Blindness.

Blinding Mode: A high-energy laser may be designed with a Blinding Mode, enabling it to fire a medium- power laser beam. Modify the laser’s statistics as shown on the table below when using this mode. Changing to or from this mode requires a Ready maneuver. This mode adds +10% to cost.

Military Ladar: These are military sensor arrays that can focus laser energy into a beam powerful enough to function as a weapon. The weapon statistics of these arrays are given here; the sensor statistics are covered in the Sensors section.

BEAM WEAPONS (PROJECTOR) (DX-4, or other Beam Weapons-4)

• [1] Use the high-energy laser’s statistics for everything noted as var., with the exception that each shot in blinding mode counts as one-tenth of a normal shot (i.e., it has 10 times as many shots).
• [2] Multiply range shown by the sensor system’s detection range, e.g., a ladar with a 100-mile range has a blinding laser range of 10/30 miles.

The generic laser weapon is assumed to be a high-energy laser. It emits near-infrared or visible coherent light in a narrow, tightly-focused beam that can burn through armor or explode flesh into steam. The beam usually has a duration of only a few microseconds; lasers cycle multiple times per second.

Lasers inflict lower damage than equivalent-sized projectile weapons, particle beams, or plasma guns, but they’re far more accurate and completely recoilless.

High-energy lasers are available in different sub-types depending on the frequency of light used, including infrared, blue-green, and ultraviolet. All inflict tight-beam burning damage, but with various armor divisors and damage modifiers.

Laser eye injuries are especially dangerous. If an eye takes enough laser damage to cripple it, the result is always permanent crippling (giving the victim the One Eye disadvantage, or if he only has one eye, Blindness).

High-energy laser beams are silent and invisible, but in dusty air, there will be a slight glow from incinerated dust particles.

Rain, fog, smoke, snow, and similar weather or atmospheric conditions interfere with all high-energy lasers, adding extra DR to the target equal to the vision penalty (per yard). Thus, if a yard of smoke would be -10 to vision, then each yard gives DR 10; if every 100 yards of haze gives -1 to vision, then 1,000 yards provides DR 10.

A high-energy laser beam can pass through material transparent to its particular frequency of light, which includes most glass, plastic canopies, etc. Increase the laser’s armor divisor to (10) when it strikes glasses, visors, windows, etc. unless the material was specifically designed to be laser-resistant. Assume that modern transparent armor is laser-resistant.

Most mirrored surfaces are not effective against a high-energy laser: any laser powerful enough to inflict damage destroys the mirror, ruining its reflectivity. In cinematic games, however, a shield-sized mirror will provide its Defense Bonus vs. a visible-light laser.

Different beam colors will change the beam performance. Shorter wavelengths allow longer ranges, but attenuate more rapidly in air.

High-energy lasers inflict tight-beam burning damage with a (2) armor divisor.

The water attenuation range is that range at which water eats enough away at a lasers energy to halve its damage. Halve the damage again for each multiple of this range the beam reaches. If the water is murky then it acts just like rain, fog, smoke or snow using the rules found on pg. 114 of Ultra-Tech.

Wavelengths shorter than 1.5 microns (such as 1 μm, red, green, UV, etc.) are much more dangerous to unprotected eyes. Flash protection goggles will provide complete protection from accidental blinding from lasers (but not from direct hits to the eye). Anyone who is not wearing adequate eye protection and who can see the point of incidence (where the beam hits) of a non-eye-safe laser beam must roll vs. HT at a bonus equal to minus the Speed/Range penalty for the range to the point of incidence and a penalty equal to the damage on the Speed/Range table. If you are actually hit by the laser, the Speed/Range bonus is equal to your SM; if hit in the face, SM-5. Failure causes blindness for one minute for every point by which the roll failed. Failure by 5 or more causes lasting blindness. Treat this as a crippling injury, with effective injury for recovery purpose equal to the margin of failure (but no actual wound is taken). A hit to the eye which penetrates armor always causes permanent blindness.

A few early-era high-energy lasers are chemical lasers, as noted in their descriptions. They are continuous- beam weapons powered by highly reactive, energetic and corrosive chemicals – usually hydrogen-fluorine or oxygen-iodine. Chemical lasers are obsolete – all modern (TL9) lasers are solid-state, using a solid crystalline material as the lasing medium. They require no hazardous chemicals and are compact, light, and easy to use; another option is the free electron laser, usually found on vehicle systems.

Chemical lasers cost half as much as normal lasers, and weigh the same. They are highly dangerous; they are usually found in the hands of robots, troops in sealed suits, or used as boobytraps, as fumes from the exhaust inflict 1 HP of toxic damage per second to anyone within a yard of the weapon. Carrying a man-portable chem-laser poses similar risks to a flamethrower – if the chemical tank is damaged, the spill can injure the wielder.

IR lasers emit a coherent beam of near-infrared frequency light. They are the most common high-energy laser at TL9, and the only weapons-grade lasers available at TL8, as they are more efficient to generate than other frequencies and propagate well in both air and space.

Treat each yard of water as having a cover DR 40 that ignores any type of lasers armor divisor. This stacks with any additional cover DR granted by the water being murky.

Civilian laser weapons are required to be Eye-Safe. This lowers range to 2/3 of normal, but does not require flash protection goggles to use.

Treat each yard of water as having a cover DR 40 that ignores any type of lasers armor divisor. This stacks with any additional cover DR granted by the water being murky.

During TL8 and early TL9, blue-green lasers require more power to generate, but permit greater ranges, and can also propagate underwater. Blue-green lasers inflict the usual tight-beam burn damage with the (2) armor divisor. Double the Range, but halve the RoF; treat each shot as consuming two shots for purpose of power drain. Blue-green lasers can fire underwater. Blue-green lasers inflict half damage per 55 yards traveled underwater. It is possible to fire into or out of water (out to normal ranges) as long as the maximum range through the water is not exceeded.

During TL8 and early TL9, ultraviolet lasers require much more power to generate, but permit even greater ranges, and can also propagate underwater. Range is 3x normal, but Damage and RoF is halved; treat each shot as consuming three shots for purpose of power drain. UVA-B lasers are not intended for underwater use, and attenuate relatively quickly in atmosphere as well; they are primarily used in space combat.

Phased plasmonic nano-antenna arrays and similar developments being made practical allows for the maturation of laser technology, allowing for a laser to be made in any wavelength from 1.5 μm IR up to ultra-violet without affecting Damage or RoF. Exchanging the beam assembly from a weapon to switch to another wavelength is a favorable action (+1 to Armoury (Beam Weapons skill) that takes 10 minutes and requires replacement parts equal to 1/3 the cost of the weapon.

At TL9, lasers can be made multispectral. Although many combinations are possible, the one that seems most useful is a beam that mimics the solar spectrum. Treat this as a yellow beam as far as range. Its main benefit is that any target that has a Weakness, Vulnerability, Dread, or Phobia of sunlight will have that Disadvantage triggered by the laser. Lasers with this option may be very popular with monster hunters. Multispectral lasers can also project a targeting beam of a different color from the full power beam, which can make them useful even in settings without supernatural elements. The multispectral option increases the price of the laser by 10%. At TL 10+, the laser can switch between multispectral and single-color modes.

Some high-energy lasers fire a beam in the near-ultraviolet wavelength. An ultraviolet laser has superior range (in vacuum) compared to infrared or blue-green lasers, but its beam is rapidly absorbed by atmosphere. The beam is invisible, but it ionizes air molecules when fired in atmosphere of greater than trace density, producing a visible green glow along its path.

An ultraviolet laser has triple the usual Range, but due to its lower efficiency, its Damage is halved. Treat half-dice as a +2 modifier, e.g., 5d(2) becomes 2d+2(2). UV lasers are mainly used for space combat and on airless worlds. In atmosphere, the Range cannot exceed 500 yards divided by atmospheric pressure.

The standard high-energy laser is a beam laser. An alternative is the pulse laser, which fires a wider pulse of higher energy coherent light with an extremely short duration. A hit causes a surface explosion, concussion and blunt trauma – sometimes enough to knock a person down. Its range is superior to a beam laser, but it has less penetration. Pulse lasers aren’t listed on the weapon tables; rather, they’re available as an option that may be taken for all lasers except chemical and rainbow lasers. Change the damage from burning to crushing, add the explosive damage modifier, and remove the armor divisor. Double the range. The other statistics remain the same.

It’s also possible to design a laser that can function as both a beam and a pulse weapon. A pulse-beam laser is +100% to cost; switching modes takes a Ready maneuver.

Free electron high-energy lasers can easily vary their wavelength. As a Ready action, a user can switch a free electron lasers to any wavelength from 1.5 μm infrared to violet. At TL11 and higher it can reach up to ultra-violet (UVA) frequencies.

A high-output pulse laser, rather then firing a coherent beam of photons at the target, fires its energy in a series of densely focused nano-second pulses. Due to how tightly the pulse is focused, the small pulse is able to strip some of the electrons off of the matter the pulse comes into contact with. This area then flashes into plasma blasting out a small crater; the next pulse arrives just as the plasma flash fades, and then hits the same area unimpeded and blasts a little deeper then the first pulse, and so on, effectively explosively drilling its way into the target.

Each flash of plasma sends shock waves that compress the material being hit, causing it to fracture and crack; more elastic material (such as meat) expands, forming a temporary cavity, just like what happens when a bullet smashes its way through an object. To this end, high-output pulse lasers do not cause tight beam burning damage but rather a category of piecing damage depending on the beams damage (more power the beam the bigger the wound channel it's going to blast out!) with the incendiary modifier.

• For 3d or less, damage is small piercing (Pi-).
• If over 3d through 6d+2, damage is piercing (Pi).
• If at lest 7d-1 through 10d-1, damage is large piercing (PI+).
• If 10d or greater then damage is huge piercing (Pi++)

You can convert an existing laser to being a high-output pulse laser by multiplying is damage by 1.67, giving it the (3) AD, changing its damage type as shown above and then dividing its range by 36.

Area Defense Laser: This is built to engage lightly armored targets, such as spacecraft and ballistic missiles, at a range of a few hundred miles.

Point Defense Laser: This is a vehicle-mounted system. It is designed to destroy soft targets like missiles, aircraft, and personnel at a range of several miles, with minimal collateral damage.

Semi-Portable Laser: This continuous-beam chemical-powered weapon is the size of a heavy machine gun. Its chemical tank is separate, and has SM-2, DR 10, HP 12. If disabled, the chemical splash inflicts 2d corrosion damage over a 2-yard radius.

Laser Cannon: A large vehicle-mounted weapon. It is a standard spacecraft and air defense system.

Strike Laser: A smaller version of the laser cannon, often used by fighter aircraft, and as a defensive weapon for armored vehicles or spacecraft.

Gatling Laser: A rapid-fire laser weapon. Infantry use these on a tripod; they’re also often vehicle mounted or used as “small arms” by powered troopers.

GUNNER (BEAMS) (DX-4, or other Gunner-4)

Heavy Laser Pistol: A bulky but rapid-firing military-style laser sidearm, often used as an alternative to a machine pistol.

Holdout Laser: A favorite of spies and assassins, this is a tiny weapon disguised as an innocuous object, such as a wrist communicator or pen. Its mechanism uses nonmetallic ceramics and exotic composites, so with the power cell removed, an ordinary scanner cannot distinguish it from a civilian electronic device.

Laser Pistol: The basic laser sidearm. On some worlds, it may be as ubiquitous as six-guns in the Old West.

Laser Crystal: A tiny, one-shot device consisting of a 1/16“ focusing crystal and power cell, designed to be implanted in a fingertip or concealed in an object.

BEAM WEAPONS (PISTOL) (DX-4, other Beam Weapons-4, or Guns (Pistol)-4)

A two-handed weapon that is shorter than a rifle, resulting in a shorter sightline and focusing array, but more stable than an equivalent pistol, with a more compact frame with a lower bulk. Typical of PDWs, short carbines, and weapons designed for CQB.

Laser PDW: A two-handed laser weapon using the same generator as the heavy laser pistol (GURPS Ultra-Tech, p. 115) with a higher rate of fire, mounted in a compact carbine frame with an integrated stock, pistol grip and foregrip, like an FN P90.

BEAM WEAPONS (SMG) (DX-4, other Beam Weapons-4, or Guns (SMG)-4)

A long, thin weapon of the size and shape of a staff, with the optics, accelerators, or other internal components distributed through the long haft. The lack of a stock or proper sights reduces accuracy, though advanced shooters can mitigate this by holding the staff over the shoulder like a rocket launcher to use the entire length of the weapon as a sightline.

Laser Staff: A long, two-yard staff with weighted heads on either end. One holds the emitter of a laser rifle and the other holds a power cell. The staff can also be wielded as a melee weapon, acting as a quarterstaff (GURPS Basic Set, p. 273) with +1 damage per die for swing attacks only. The staff is both Cheap (-1 Acc, -1 Malf., -0.5 CF) and Heavy (+50% weight, -0.25CF).

BEAM WEAPONS (STAFF) (DX-4, or other Beam Weapons-4)

[1] Malf. 16.

Assault Laser: This is an early-TL9 chemical-pumped laser. It is most often used for microgravity combat. If its chemical power pack is attacked, it has SM-4, DR 10, HP 7; if disabled, it inflicts 1d corrosion damage in a 1-yard radius.

Laser Sniper Rifle: A bulky but accurate chemical laser rifle, used as a battlefield sniping weapon. Its backpack chemical tank has the same vulnerability as the chemical laser carbine.

Dinosaur Laser: A big laser sniper rifle, capable of stopping a battlesuit or a dinosaur (hence its nickname). Also called a “heavy laser.” These are mostly military weapons, but are sometimes used as an “elephant gun” for big game.

Laser Carbine: A compact “assault” version of the laser rifle, favored by vehicle crews and special ops teams. Its low bulk makes up for its lack of range.

Laser Rifle: The standard infantry combat laser, capable of full automatic fire. In some areas, it is as ubiquitous as the flintlock rifle was in its day.

Survival Laser: A carbine version of the heavy laser pistol. Survival lasers are designed to be broken down into four pocket-sized components, which take one minute to assemble or disassemble. Although the survival laser is not very powerful, it is a good choice as a survival weapon due to its excellent accuracy (useful when shooting small game) and the modest drain it imposes on power cells. It is also a favorite weapon of assassins.

BEAM WEAPONS (RIFLE) (DX-4, other Beam Weapons-4, or Guns (Rifle)-4)

The Karpov Arms LBV-M47 (Lazernaya Bitva Vintovka Modela 47, or “Laser Combat Rifle, Model 47”) is a military-grade light laser carbine manufactured by the now-defunct Karpov Arms corporation. Karpov Arms went out of business at least forty years ago, yet newly-made LBV-M47s still show up in the hands of guerilla armies, criminals and mercenaries across the solar system, all either with the serial numbers filed off or with the stamp of some armory nobody's heard of.

Commonly described as “the Kalashnikov of lasers”, the anecdote goes that you could bury the LBV-M47 in fine dusty regolith on the Moon for a century and when you dig it back up, it'll still fire. You can keep your sandwich in the lasing cavity and as long as you take it out before firing (or don't mind a roasted sandwich), it'll still fire. The legends get more ridiculous from there: sliced in two, boiled on the surface of Venus, left in solar radiation, spat on by bioengineered acid beetles, orbital re-entry… it'll still fire. Every tall tale is backed up by someone claiming it's true, because they were there and they saw it.

The LBV-M47 has Malf. 18. If the roll indicates a malfunction, roll again. If the second roll is lower than 18, no malfunction occurs. If the weapon is overheating or firing hotshots, Malf. becomes 16 instead of 14. If the weapon is overheating while firing hotshots, Malf becomes 14 instead of 12.

This high reliability even while overheating or hotshotting makes it common to fire hotshots as standard, which increases damage to 6d(2) burn but halves the number of shots to 19. Another common modification is to jerry-rig a power cable into the power cell slot, connecting it to a thigh- or belt-mounted D cell, quintupling shots to 195 (changing weight to 5.1/Dp). This requires a successful Armoury (Small Arms) roll but gives a further -1 to Malf. unless the margin of success was 2 or more. With both options combined, the LBV-M47 can fire 97 shots per D cell at 6d(2) burn damage, making it a formidable weapon for its low price tag.

The given cost is the retail price of a new article bought legitimately from Karpov Arms. Given that all existing LBV-M47s are either old hand-me-downs or unlicensed copies, typical prices are between 40-60% of the listed price, or between $2,400 and $3,600.

The LBV-M47 was made using Eidetic Memory: Blaster and Laser Design in GURPS Pyramid #3/37 with 4.5 dice of damage and a small focal array. After it was made, the Cheap and Very Fine (Reliable) properties were added.

BEAM WEAPONS (RIFLE) (DX-4, other Beam Weapons-4, or Guns (Rifle)-4)

These weapons fire powerful nanosecond pulses of laser light. The light’s interaction with the atmosphere does most of the work of focusing the beam, so that laser needs only a small lens. A rainbow laser beam is polychromatic, appearing as a needle-thin line of blue-white light. A rainbow laser inflicts burning damage with a (3) armor divisor. It is effective in atmospheres with a density ranging from very thin through superdense. In vacuum or trace atmospheres, the laser defocuses. Its range is divided by 10, and its damage loses its armor divisor. Rainbow lasers have an underwater range of only two yards. Rainbow lasers come in similar varieties to visible light lasers.

BEAM WEAPONS (PISTOL) (DX-4, other Beam Weapons-4, or Guns (Pistol)-4)

BEAM WEAPONS (RIFLE) (DX-4, other Beam Weapons-4, or Guns (Rifle)-4)

GUNNER (BEAMS) (DX-4, or other Gunner-4)

Electrolasers use a pair of low-power far-ultraviolet laser beams to create an ionized path through the air, then transmit an electrical discharge that follows this to the target. In effect, they’re an electric stun gun that uses a laser beam instead of a wire. They’re also called “zap guns” or “stat guns.”

These are non-lethal weapons. They deliver both an electrical shock and a minor laser burn.

The laser beam inflicts 1d-3 burn damage. It needn’t penetrate to carry the charge. Smoke, fog, rain, or clouds give extra DR equal to the visibility penalty. For example, if rain gives a penalty of -1 per 100 yards, a target 200 yards away gets an extra DR 2.

An electrolaser’s shock is a HT-based affliction attack with a (2) armor divisor (each 2 DR on the location struck provides +1 to HT). Add +3 past 1/2D range. If the victim fails to resist, the shock stuns him. He may roll against HT every turn at the same penalty (but without the DR bonus) to recover.

Electrolasers also affect machines that are Electrical. Electrolaser weapons produce a “zap” sound, no louder than a silenced pistol, and the beam is visible. They are most effective in dry climates. In humid conditions they are less accurate; the electrical bolt jumps off the laser path to paths of lower resistance. This gives a -2 to hit in moist, humid environments, and a -6 to hit in rain, drizzle, or heavy fog. In a vacuum or trace atmosphere, there is no air to ionize; the electrolaser only inflicts 1d-3 burn damage from the laser, with no additional linked effect.

Police and civilians often use electrolasers; they’re also popular for prisoner control, kidnappings and covert operations, and even subduing animals. Electrolasers are available in holdout, pistol, carbine, and rifle configurations at TL9.

Electrolaser Carbine: This compact rifle is one of the most common ultra-tech stun weapons. Police on patrol often carry one of these in their vehicle for use in long-range suspect takedowns.

Electrolaser Pistol: A wireless successor to dart-firing electric stun guns. It is popular as a police and prison guard weapon.

Heavy Electrolaser: A heavy-duty electrolaser used against armored foes or large animals. Its ultraviolet carrier beam causes a more severe burn than lower-powered weapons, so it’s best used on targets that have some protection (heavy clothes, fur, etc.).

Holdout Electrolaser: A palm-sized zap gun popular for covert ops, kidnappings, and self-defense. Its electroshock capabilities also endear it to slavers and torturers.

Underbarrel Electrolaser: This electrolaser is designed to be attached under the barrel of any weapon with Bulk -3 or more, providing a backup stun capability. Use the Bulk, ST, and sighting bonuses of the weapon it is installed in.

Semi-Portable Electrolaser: Also called a “tripod zapper,” this powerful long-range electrolaser is usually mounted on a vehicle or tripod. Like the heavy electrolaser, its carrier beam can inflict nasty burns.

Any electrolaser may have an optional “kill” setting that uses up two shots instead of one. It takes a Ready maneuver to change settings.

On “kill” the weapon transmits a higher-amperage current. Any HT roll that fails by 5 or more triggers the Heart Attack mortal condition (p. B428). For electrical machines, a “heart attack” results in the target’s electrical systems burning out until repaired.

These are popular assassination weapons. Lethal electrolasers are all LC2.

BEAM WEAPONS (PISTOL) (DX-4, other Beam Weapons-4, or Guns (Pistol)-4)

BEAM WEAPONS (RIFLE) (DX-4, other Beam Weapons-4, or Guns (Rifle)-4)

GUNNER (BEAMS) (DX-4, or other Gunner-4)

Electrobeam weapons are directed energy weapons that use the same technology as electrolasers (GURPS Ultra-Tech, p. 119) but with a much more intense bolt of electricity, strong enough to burn rather than just stun or cause a heart attack. Essentially, they're another step above lethal electrolasers. An electrobeam weapon may also incorporate a normal electrolaser mode for +1 CF.

Electrobeam weapons inflict burning damage with a (3) armour divisor and the surge damage modifier. If you're playing a cinematic or soft sci-fi game, electrobeam weapons may optionally treat any non-insulated metallic armour as DR 1 (ignoring the weapon's normal armour divisor). In a vacuum or trace atmosphere, there is no air to ionize; electrobeam weapons only inflict the linked burning damage from the priming laser, with no other effect. In all other respects, they act like electrolasers.

Beam Weapons (Pistol)

Beam Weapons (Rifle)

Electrobeam Carbine | 5d(3) burn sur | 8 | 1,000/3,000 | 5.4/2C | 10 | 14 | 5† | -3 | 1 | $8,700 | 2 |

Electrobeam Rifle | 6d(3) burn sur | 8 | 1,000/3,000 | 7.5/Dp | 10 | 42 | 6† | -4 | 1 | $15,000 | 2 |

Microwave weapons project electromagnetic beams with wavelengths longer than infrared light, but shorter than radio waves. Vehicle-mounted microwave beams first appear at TL8, followed by personal weapons at TL9+. Microwave beam weaponry is usually used to stun people or machines, depending on the frequency used.

These “pain beam” weapons use microwaves to heat the surface of the target’s skin to about 130ºF, activating pain receptors without causing actual burning. The sensation is similar to touching a hot light bulb all over the surface of the body. MAD weapons are often used for riot control: they can disperse a crowd without leaving piles of unconscious bodies or messy clouds of gas.

MAD beams deliver a HT-based affliction attack (modifier varying by weapon) with no armor divisor; add the target’s DR to HT to resist. If he fails to resist, he suffers from the Agony affliction (p. B428) for as long as he is in the beam, and for one second afterward.

MAD beams are ranged cone attacks – see Area and Spreading Attacks (p. B413). Due to the need for a large antenna to focus the beam, the projectors are vehicle or tripod-mounted.

Portable MAD (TL9): A weapon the size of a light machine gun, used as a portable anti-riot device. It’s sometimes built into vehicles as a secondary weapon.

Tactical MAD (TL9): A large semi-portable projector capable of breaking up a crowd at a thousand yards. It’s usually tripod-mounted or built into a vehicle.

BEAM WEAPONS (PROJECTOR) (DX-4, other Beam Weapons-4)

GUNNER (BEAMS) (DX-4, or other Gunner-4)

These are refinements of the single-shot explosively-pumped high-power microwave pulse weapons of TL8. They generate a directional pulse that can scramble and overload electronics and electrical systems. Criminals use them to hijack robots for later resale, while saboteurs and terrorists use them to attack vital circuitry. Microwave disruptors project ranged cone attacks – see Area and Spreading Attacks (p. B413). Any target in the cone is struck by an affliction attack. This only afflicts electrical systems and those with the Electrical disadvantage. Make a HT roll or be shut down (or unconscious) for minutes equal to the margin of failure. Add +3 to resist beyond 1/2D range. The target’s SM adds to the HT roll to resist.

Microwave disruptors are contact agents that ignore DR unless the target is sealed. Disruption can propagate along radar or communications antennas, power lines and communication cables. Treat a target with unshielded electronic access as unsealed.

Microwave disruptors come in holdout-sized “scramblers” for sabotaging computers or other electronics, and heavier carbines and semi-portable weapons for disabling robots and vehicular targets. Very large microwave disruptors are rare, since most large vehicles are sealed; EMP warheads (p. 157) are more effective.

Most microwave disruptors are personal weapons requiring Beam Weapons (Projector) skill to use.

EMP Gun (TL9): The basic portable microwave weapon, capable of stopping a robot or vehicle, or frying a room full of electronics.

Pulse Carbine (TL9): A more compact version of the EMP Gun, primarily used as an anti-robot weapon.

Scrambler (TL9): A pocket holdout microwave pulse weapon, useful for disabling a small security robot or performing sabotage on computers or other electronics.

Tactical Disruptor (TL9): A semi-portable microwave cannon, usually tripod-mounted or installed in a vehicle or robot. It requires Gunner (Beams) skill to use.

BEAM WEAPONS (PROJECTOR) (DX-4, other Beam Weapons-4)

GUNNER (BEAMS) (DX-4, or other Gunner-4)

Sonic beam weapons project focused sound waves to hurt, incapacitate or kill. Their range is multiplied by air pressure in atmospheres, up to a maximum of two times the listed range. They won’t work in a vacuum or trace atmosphere unless physically touching the target (range C).

Sonic weapons will work underwater if designed for that medium. Underwater sonic weapons get double range, but their statistics are otherwise identical.

These weapons use acoustic heterodyning technology to process ordinary audible sound into a complex ultrasonic signal. The original sound is bound within the column of ultrasonic frequencies, becoming a tight beam that can travel hundreds of yards with no distortion or loss of volume. It causes pain, temporary hearing loss, and nausea. The weapons are not as reliable for self-defense as other weapons, but are effective for riot control.

Nauseator beams are audible only to the target, and the beam is invisible. Nauseator range is multiplied by air pressure in atmospheres. It has no range in vacuum or underwater.

Nauseators emit a cone attack – see Area and Spreading Attacks (p. B413). The effect is a hearingbased affliction attack that ignores DR, but has no effect on someone who cannot hear. A victim gets a HT roll to resist at the penalty noted for the weapon; add +5 for Protected Hearing and +3 beyond 1/2D range. Failure means suffering the disadvantages Hard of Hearing and the Moderate Pain (p. B428) irritating condition for minutes equal to the margin of failure on the target’s HT roll. Failure by 5 or more results in Deafness (making the target immune to further attacks) and retching (p. B429), plus loss of sphincter control, resulting in the Bad Smell disadvantage until cleaned up. The weapons are sometimes nicknamed “bowel disruptors” due to these unpleasant consequences.

These weapons are usually deployed as an alternative to electrolasers (p. 119), with a shorter range but wider beam and different effects.

Nausea Carbine (TL9): A short rifle-sized weapon. It is often used by police or troops assigned to riot squads.

Nausea Pistol (TL9): A handy pistol-sized version.

Tactical Nauseator (TL9): A tripod or vehicle-mounted riot-control weapon. It’s often installed in specialized antiriot vehicles, or set up to defend embassies and similar buildings that may be threatened by mobs of civilian attackers.

These lethal sonic weapons fire a beam that vibrates, heats, and even liquefies the target. Although the primary beam is an inaudible subsonic or ultrasonic frequency, the nickname comes from a tooth-jarring whine produced as a side. Particularly baroque sonic designs may even have an audio trigger, modulating the user’s battle cry or singing into an energy pulse!

These are superscience weapons. One possible explanation is that high levels of pulsed power are used to create discharges between electrodes in an insulating tube. The arcs ionize the air within the tube, causing a sudden expansion that generates a pressure pulse. Rapidly cycling these pulses creates a powerful acoustic wave in the form of a traveling vortex strong enough to damage the target.

Screamers deliver a cone attack – see Area and Spreading Attacks (p. B413) – that “shakes and bakes” victims, doing corrosion damage. Living targets suffer the symptoms of Hard of Hearing (p. B109) if the damage exceeds 1/2 HP or Deafness if over 2/3 HP; this doesn’t heal until the injury that caused it recovers.

Screamer Carbine (TL9^): A short, stubby weapon with a large, bell-shaped aperture; this is the most common screamer. Its short range limits its military utility. Like a shotgun, it is used for close-range hunting, home defense, and house-to-house combat.

Screamer Pistol (TL9^): A pistol-sized version, also called a “sonic disruptor pistol.”

Tactical Screamer (TL9^): A heavy semi-portable weapon used by powered troopers, or mounted on a tripod or vehicle. It’s also called a “tripod screamer.”

An evolutionary improvement of sonic screamers, sonic disruptors use “saser” technology. High-energy discharges from two electrodes are used to heat air in pulses, causing it to expand rapidly. More pulses create expansion waves to reflect the pressure pulse back and forth while building more sound waves in phase, releasing the coherent beam of sound towards the front of the weapon once it's reached a threshold of strength – essentially producing a sound laser. Since the sound beam is highly-focused, sonic disruptors are not projectors; they use the Beam Weapons (Pistol) and Beam Weapons (Rifle) skills.

Heavy Sonic Disruptor (TL10^): A heavy weapon that might serve as a squad support weapon, or mounted on a technical. It's ability to erode armor makes it useful against battlesuits and light military vehicles.

Heavy Sonic Disruptor Pistol (TL10^): A “magnum” sonic disruptor that can easily carve a cavity in the chest of an unarmored human. Its bulk makes it hard to conceal.

Holdout Sonic Disruptor (TL10^): A palm-sized disruptor, useful for boring holes in things discretely.

Sonic Disruptor Carbine (TL10^): A compact assault weapon with slightly reduced stopping power and range than a rifle. Popular with vehicle crews and special ops teams.

Sonic Disruptor Pistol (TL10^): A standard pistol. It's most often used for personal defense or as a military sidearm, since the erosion of armor can be useful in a pinch.

Sonic Disruptor Rifle (TL10^): A bulky rifle capable of destroying most civilian armors in one or two shots. It's often used against heavily-armored combatants due to its ability to chew through armor.

These advanced stunners fire a narrow, intense beam of ultrasonic sound that can shut down the target’s nervous system. Unlike a nauseator, a sonic stunner can affect someone who is deaf.

A hit requires a HT roll to resist at the penalty noted for the weapon. Add +3 beyond 1/2D range, and +1 per 5 DR the victim has at the point struck. If he fails, he suffers the Unconsciousness (p. B429) incapacitating condition for minutes equal to the margin of failure on his HT roll. The beam is narrow enough that if a limb or extremity is hit, it is incapacitated instead of the victim being rendered unconscious.

Sonic stunners may supplant nauseator (above) and electrolaser (p. 119) weapons.

Sonic Stun Cannon (TL10): A semi-portable weapon, usually tripod- or vehicle-mounted. Like the tactical nauseator, it’s used by anti-riot vehicles and for nonlethal perimeter defense.

Dinosaur Stunner (TL10): A powerful stunner capable of stopping an elephant. Hunters use it to capture big game.

Sonic Stinger (TL10):A nonlethal alternative to the holdout laser, the stinger is a tiny sonic stunner that can be disguised as an everyday item or strapped to the wrist.

Sonic Stunner (TL10): An effective palm-sized stunner, this self-defense weapon is also popular for covert operations. It has no grip and is held like a small flashlight or attached to the wrist.

Sonic Stun Pistol (TL10): A handgun-sized sonic stunner. It is effective enough that it can be issued as the standard sidearm for police or security guards.

Sonic Stun Rifle (TL10): A basic stun rifle. Like its electrolaser equivalents, it may be general issue to security and police.

BEAM WEAPONS (PISTOL) (DX-4, other Beam Weapons-4, or Guns (Pistol)-4)

BEAM WEAPONS (PROJECTOR) (DX-4, other Beam Weapons-4)

BEAM WEAPONS (RIFLE) (DX-4, other Beam Weapons-4, or Guns (Rifle)-4)

GUNNER (BEAMS) (DX-4, or other Gunner-4)

Real plasma torches are short-range cutting tools; these weapons use plasma superscience to fire coherent streams or bolts of ionized gas.

These weapons fire a low-velocity jet of high temperature plasma. Hydrogen fuel is fed into a magnetic containment chamber, heated and compressed to form a plasma, and then released as a continuous stream.

Flamers are effective incendiary and terror weapons, with a role similar to that of the flamethrower. They’re also useful for disposing of vermin or microbot swarms. Flamers inflict burning damage, but not tight-beam burning damage.

Assault Flamer (TL9^): This rifle-sized plasma weapon is often used by armored infantry involved in spaceship boarding actions and house-to-house fighting.

Hand Flamer (TL9^): This large pistol is used as a military sidearm or a terror weapon.

Heavy Flamer (TL9^): An energy-based flamethrower with a backpack power supply.

Semi-Portable Flamer (TL9^): Also called a tripod flamer, this heavy, semi-portable infantry weapon can be terrifying even to a fighter in heavy armor. A heavy flamer can be mounted on a tripod or carried by a soldier in powered battlesuit. They are also popular in combat engineering and urban assault vehicles.

BEAM WEAPONS (PROJECTOR) (DX-4, other Beam Weapons-4)

GUNNER (BEAMS) (DX-4, or other Gunner-4)

Ordinary beam weapons have cooling systems, but sustained fire can overheat them. The GM can ignore heat in most situations, but have the weapon overheat if dramatically appropriate. However, for crunchier rules, read on.

For a given type of energy weapon at its TL of introduction (see here for some guidelines on what TL counts as a given energy weapons intro TL), with a standard barrel, you can sustain the following rates of fire:

Sustained Fire: Bursts of less than RoF in length, with pauses of 4-5 seconds; overheats after 600 shots.

Rapid Fire: Bursts of less than RoF in length, with pauses of 2-3 seconds; overheats after 300 shots.

Assault Fire: Long bursts or bursts of less than RoF in length, with no pauses (as in typical action-movie scenes); overheats after 150 shots.

Multiply these values by 2/3rds for early versions of a given energy weapon that are available one TL early, by 1.5 for a TL+1 version and by 2 for TL+2 and higher versions.

Note that these are estimates, and that specific weapons may be able to have slightly higher or lower levels of sustained fire.

If you exceed these values, drop the weapons Malf. rating down one level (and -2 to Acc if a plasma weapon). If you let the weapon cool down for at least 15 minutes, these penalties will pass but if you exceed the sustainable fire limit by 3 times or more this penalty becomes permanent, and you must make a HT check for the weapon, on a failure the weapon burns out and needs to be replaced.

For a greater sustained rate of fire, heavier or more barrels are needed. We'll cover more barrels in a second but if you want an energy machine gun, use the following options.

Standard Energy Machine Gun Barrel: Increase weapon weight and cost by ×1.5 but double the weapon's sustainable rate of fire.

Heavy Energy Machine Gun Barrel: Increase weapon weight and cost by ×2 but quadruple the weapon's sustainable rate of fire.

This can be combined with Swapping Barrels, below.

One common trick used by regular machine guns to let them keep firing without risking barrel damage is to give them quick-swap barrels. If you want to design an energy weapon that can swap barrels, assume that an extra barrel or focal array is half of the weapon's weight and cost. It takes 5 ready actions to swap a barrel at TL9; at higher Tech Levels better modular technology drops this to 4 ready actions at TL10 and smart matter modules drops this to 3 ready actions at TL11+.

So what advantage does having a Gatling-style action give energy weapons? For conventional firearms, a Gatling action lets a weapon cycle rounds faster and lets it sustain fire for longer by using many barrels. With energy weapons, cycling the action isn't a problem since it's all electrical (well, with the exception of plasma weapons) with the limiting factor being how robust of a power supply it has. This leaves the increased ability to sustain fire. While this limits the usefulness of this option for energy weapons, it is is still a very viable option if you need a weapon that needs to be able to fire continuously (such as a support/suppression weapon or a point defense gun) since, while still fairly heavy, adding more barrels with the Gatling option is lighter and cheaper then making high-RoF weapons with heavier barrels.

To add a Gatling action, simply design an energy weapon as normal. Just keep in mind that you'll want a high rate of fire, and keep in mind that gatling weapons don't need super heavy barrels, so to save weight, a normal or a standard energy machine gun barrel is all you usually need.

For safety reasons as well as maximizing the weapons usable lifetime, beam weapons often only fire shots at half their barrel and cooling systems' max output. Due to this it is possible to “hotshot” your weapon, modifying it to increase its performance at the expense of making it more likely to malfunction.

Beam weapons can be modified to fire hotshots. A hotshot counts as two shots. Multiply damage (or radius of effect, or HT/Will penalty) by 1.3, or add +1 damage per die, and multiply range by x1.7. When firing a hotshot, the weapon has a base malfunction number of 14 (modified upwards if Reliable).

Plasma guns that use power cartridges cannot fire hotshots, but can be loaded with “hot” power cartridges (p. 127) which have the same effect.

Effects of Overheating: If a beam weapon has overheated, it can still be fired, but will malfunction on a 14 or more (12 or more if firing hotshots while overheated) until it has been allowed to cool for at least a minute.

If a beam malfunctions, roll on the table on p. B407.

Modifying for Hotshots: To modify a beam weapon for hotshots, choose whether you want the weapon to always shoot in hotshot mode or if you can switch it off and on.

To set it to always on requires a relatively simply procedure; it takes 10min and roll against Armoury (Small Arms)+1. If you want modify it so that can switch the hotshot effect off and on, this is an average procedure and it then takes 12hrs and a roll against Armoury (Small Arms). It takes a ready action to switch between modes unless you have the Lightning Fingers Perk. Alternately, either option can be built at the factory for no additional charge (beyond any costs for Reliable weapons, to reduce the chances that it'll blow up…)

Legality of hotshotting depends on where and when it was performed, but generally has an LC one less than the base weapon.

Weapons with extended cooling systems can fire hotshots without overheating, although the Malf chance is still there; see Cooling Systems.