Become the Crisis
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
- Intent: To develop a standard light beam cannon for use as the primary armament on Cruisers and artillery frigates.
- Image Source: http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8RHNF5stR-s/VY7nIXLKLTI/AAAAAAAANkE/FXNNUgg4NkE/s1600/Star%2BWars%2BDeath%2BStar%2Bgun.JPG
- Canon Link: N/A
- Restricted Missions: N/A
- Primary Source: N/A
- Manufacturer: Defiance Consolidated Multipurpose Manufacturing
- Model: SBeam(Small Beam)
- Affiliation: Open-Market
- Modularity: No
- Production: Mass-Produced
- Material: Energy Crystal(power source), Duranium-Adamithium composite(framework), Diatium(internal circuitry and electronics)
- Classification: Beam Weapon
- Size: Very Large
- Weight: Extreme
- Ammunition Type: Ship Reactor
- Ammunition Capacity: Infinite(connected to ship's reactor)
- Reload Speed: Low(20 seconds)
- Effective Range: Average
- Rate of Fire: Low
- Stopping Power: High
- Recoil: None(Beam Weapon)
- Beam weapon
- The SBeam is capable of causing high damage to enemy warships of Heavy Cruiser size and below.
- The SBeam's focusing of the weapon's power to a single point means more likelihood of hull and shield penetration given the focus on a single shield quadrant, draining it more effectively than a turbolaser barrage spread across the entire ship. This also has the effect of focusing the power of the beam at a very specific point on the ship's hull, allowing for pinpoint damage to ship subsystems.
- The SBeam's damage over time is comparable to dozens of turbolasers firing over the same timespan, meaning that the per-shot damage is incredibly high for the weapon's size and capabilities.
- Unless fitted in a dedicated turret, which would minimize the armament on the rest of the warship, the weapon is semi-fixed within the side/top/bottom of the ship and will have an extremely limited field of traverse(approximately 10 degrees in any direction for a 20 degree 'cone' of fire that increases at maximum range). In some ships, the weapon may be properly fixed and unable to move. This requires the ship to maneuver and ensures that even a non-turreted ship fitted with beam cannons will never be able to bring its full armament to bear on a single target.
- Being rather large weapons in contrast to turbolasers and other primary armament of warships, the SBeam will realistically be more likely targeted by enemy bombers and warships. The elimination of a single beam cannon deprives a warship fitted with the weapons of far more of its effective primary armament
- Beam fires for a span of 2.5 seconds instead of the 4 seconds of its larger counterparts
- The rate of fire in comparison to a turbolaser battery is abysmal. It twenty seconds for the weapon to recharge after a burst - in comparison
- Smaller and more maneuverable ships, such as some corvettes and frigates, can outmaneuver the beam, as it will remain static while firing.
Vanessa Vantai had for years researched prototypical beam weaponry. From the composite beam lasers used as turret armament on the LAAT gunship and the great superlaser weaponry used by the Death Star to Geonosian handheld beam cannons and prior capital ships fitting beam weaponry, both larger and smaller in size(as well as particle beams like the Emeritus Rad-Rifle), the rediscovery of beam cannon technology as a useful anti-ship weapon was slowly but surely realized. Early prototypes of beam weaponry, primarily proton type, found themselves mounted on Subach-Innes ships, while the refined variation relies more on a beam generated using a sudden power surge from an energy crystal fitted within the cannon, drained of power in a two and a half second burst before being reenergized by the ship's main reactor after half a minutes. Initially, there is a sign the weapon is firing - a gleam of greenish plasma begins to form at the end of the barrel before the beam exits the end of the array, flying out a vast distance into space before impacting an enemy ship's shield and boring through it and the hull with intense potency.
The SBeam is the weakest and smallest capital ship beam cannon produced by DCMM. Visibly smaller than the LRBBeam and LBeam, it has a reduction in power output compared to the LBeam, but has no range deficit, intended to allow for engagement with beam weapons of both types at standard combat range. It has the fastest refire rate of all the beams(20 seconds), but the beam itself lasts for less than two-thirds the time of the larger ones(2.5 seconds compared to 4 seconds for the LRBBeam and LBeam). This reflects its position as a weapon for use on ships that require a more varied armament - secondary weapons on Star Destroyers, or the main weapon of choice on ships such as cruisers. Designs for artillery frigates and cruisers have considered using this weapon above all others given its potential for functionality in sub-kilometer warships compared to the other larger beams. Of note, this beam cannon is the only one found on non-Sith warships produced by DCMM.
