Editing Beam Overview (section)

==Comparison of Beam Weapons==
''The information for [[:Category:VB6|VB6]] can be found [[Beam_Overview/VB6|here]].''

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The following is an analysis of the beam weapons with exception of CIWS, which cannot be used for offensive measures.

Also see [[Beam Weapon Range]].

The weapons use their 6th tech level of research in caliber and range, where applicable. The Particle Beam has 12 Strength and 320,000km Range, and Gauss Cannon is using RoF 4 and Launch Velocity 40,000. All weapons (excepting Gauss Cannon) use Capacitor Recharge Rate 6.

Since HPMs have the same damage drop-off and range as mesons of equivalent technology, they're not listed separately. Anything that applies to mesons will apply to microwaves here.

These are the relevant stats of each weapon system examined:

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Weapon !! 30cm Laser !! 30cm Railgun !! Strength-12 Particle Beam !! 30cm Meson !! 40cm Plasma !! Gauss
|-  
| Base Damage || 24 || 7 || 12 || 1 || 42 || 1
|-
| Amount of Shots || 1 || 4 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 4
|-
| ROF (5sec increments) || 4 || 5 || 5 || 4 || 7 || 1
|-
| Range Modifier || 6 || 6 || 32* || 6** || 1 || 4
|-
| Size (in HS) || 10 || 9 || 6 || 9 || 6.25 || 6
|- 
| Cost || 176.4 || 165 || 240 || 176.4 || 77.8 || 48
|-
| Crew || 30 || 27 || 18 || 45 || 19 || 12
|-
|colspan="7" |* At 320km the damage of this Particle beam drops to zero. 
|-
|colspan="7" |** Meson caliber does not affect damage, but it still influences the range.
|}

These are fairly mid-game weapons, with enough research to let each of them settle into their respective niche. The total research costs for the weapons and BFC are included in this table:

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Research !! BFC !! Laser !! Railgun !! Particle Beam !! Meson !! Plasma !! Gauss
|-
| RP Cost || 241.5k || 121.5k || 93k || 180k || 121.5k* || 126k || 43.5k
|-
|colspan="8" |* Armour Retardation technology not included; with it, Meson would have an additional 31.5k RP cost
|}

[[File:Damage_per_Shot_CSharp.png]]

The first thing to look at is the pure damage per shot for each weapon. Here, the Plasma Carronade shows its strengths, being able to put out a lot of damage at point-blank range; however, it drops off very quickly, negating its effectiveness across longer ranges.

The railguns and lasers follow suit, railgun having slightly higher overall damage due to having four shots per salvo. They follow same drop-off rules, so their effectiveness drops at similar intervals, with lasers overtaking railguns at certain brackets.

After them, the particle beam follows. While the damage point-blank is unimpressive, the particle beam doesn't lose it with range, allowing it to be much more effective in medium-to-long-range combat. Still, past 320,000 km the damage drops to zero, allowing other weapons (even carronades) to take potshots without reprisal.

Then, Gauss Cannon makes its showing with 4 shots of 1 damage each. It is not meant to be an anti-ship weapon, and both the range and damage show it... but, as can be seen later, gauss cannons shouldn't be underestimated.

Final, and last, weapon to cover is meson (and HPM). It only has ''1'' point of damage, and one shot, resulting in anemic performance close by, but as a small mercy, it maintains said point across the entire range band, allowing it better performance at range. HPMs get by being only able to target specific - and oftentimes critical - systems of warships, though shields will stop them dead.

[[File:DPIS_CSharp.png]]

The next step to cover is look at the density of fire. After all, most battles are not decided by a single salvo in perfect conditions, but by consistent volume of fire bringing the shields down and shredding the armor to pieces. For that purpose, the weapon size is taken in consideration in addition to their recharge time (BFCs, reactors and crew quarters are not accounted for, as they tend to be a small, yet annoyingly varied part of the volume).

Due to being half the size of equivalent laser caliber, Plasma Carronades shoot up in this graph, even though more damage means needing to take more time to reload. This makes them a good choice whether you want one large powerful strike (with bigger carronades), or a consistent stream of damage that's hard to reach with other weapons (with smaller carronades). Of course, all of this hinges on you taking your fights in ranges from 0km to 10,000km, as immediately after the damage drops by half and only gets worse from there.

After the Carronades come Gauss Cannons. Despite their lower damage per shot, they have many shots, and quick rate of fire, and even smaller volume, compared to the laser and railgun, allowing them to output really good amount of damage in range. That said, they're easy to outrange.

After that comes the laser and the railgun, dependable all-rounder weapons. They both are good to use at most ranges, and the best at extreme ranges, on the account of their competition not having range to reach that far, but railgun, needing an extra increment to reload due to increased power draw, has a smaller gap between it and the laser on this chart.

The next up is the Particle Beam. The consistent, 6 HS volume helps it get an edge over bigger weapons, but it still suffers in both close and extreme ranges. It is still exceptionally good in mid-long ranges; a perfect choice for kiting.

Mesons would be good for kiting too, if not for their low damage. They're still better in longer ranges, and ignoring shields and some armor allows them some niche, but... Their DPS will, unfortunately, be low no matter what you do.

[[File:DPIS_Range_Adjusted_CSharp.png]]

The final chart will show the effects of Fire Control on the accuracy, and consequently, DPS of the weapons. Naturally, it has more notable effects at longer ranges, with the Particle Beam being impacted the most. Crew grade and Tactical skill can alleviate that to some degree, but combat at longer ranges will still suffer from frequent misses.