Severe lack of Ion Weapons?

[Nekira Sudacne]

just kinda flipping though my books for weapons again, I've noticed there are not very many Ion weapons at all.

every book seems to have a new Rail Gun, several new laser guns, a new particle beam and plasma gun or two.

but only a few have Ion weapons. their my favorite

is there any book with lots of them?

and why are they so danged rare?

[Temporalmage]

Why are they your favorite? Seems that most lasers can do the same if not more damage, at least the pulse type can. Lasers usually have higher ranges. Particle beam weapons do more damage. Just curious.

[Nekira Sudacne]

Why are they your favorite? Seems that most lasers can do the same if not more damage, at least the pulse type can. Lasers usually have higher ranges. Particle beam weapons do more damage. Just curious.

why? because?

why do some prefer 9mm to .45's when the 45's are obviously more powerful?

they're just cooler than the others. that's all

and you also didn't answer my question.

[Dr. Doom III]

Because most lasers can do the same if not more damage, at least the pulse type can and usually have higher ranges and Particle beam weapons do more damage.

[Nekira Sudacne]

Rifter #4 has the Archie weapons and others. I like the Arch-27.

thanks. . .though out of date, out of stock rifters don't help me much sadly

I think it was out of print and stock before I'd even heard of rifts, sadly.

thanks for the tip though.

[JohnS]

Juicer Uprisings has my favorite Ion weapon of all time. I think it's called the IP-10 Bullup Rifle. It's like a small ion carbine rifle but it has a pulse burst mode that does 1D4x10MD, looks cool and is lightweight and easy to conceal.

--JohnS

[Mack]

I used to have a personal rule that all Ion rifles were fully automatic as a way to compensate for their shorter range and lesser damage. I applied my own rules based on weapon type that went like:

- Lasers: Single Shot, Double-Shot (ala GM's Guide), or pulse (if applicable)
- Ion Beams: Single Shot or Fully Automatic
- Particle Beams / Plasma Cannons: Single Shot only

This kinda gave each weapon-type its own niche. It was an effort to simplify everything, but I've since dropped it.

[Temporalmage]

Because most lasers can do the same if not more damage, at least the pulse type can and usually have higher ranges and Particle beam weapons do more damage.

Good looking out Doom!

[Borast]

I think ion weapons are pretty cool too.

Feh... I prefer P-Beams and missiles.

Sadly, they're not given any dues in the rifts setting.
Should they fry electronics? At least create possible malfunctions...
I've always rolled on a malfunction table with ion weapons. P-Beams too!

Maybe... P-Beams, hell yes... There is one tank in Battletech that carries three PPCs (Particle Projection Cannons). The flavour text indicates that you can cause any 'mech or fusion powered vehicle to shut down if you successfully hit with all three cannon! (Screws-up the com gear and computers too...)

Also, I'd bet they are some kind of Maser.

Nope, a MASER is a Microwave LASER. It's a beam of coherent microwave radiation.

This would really screw up cybernetics, radio communications...
EBA protection? Even if the body armor stopped most of the megadamage, the skin beneath would still fry a little. I'd suggest having the person take SDC damage 1:1 from MD. If that is too extreme then 1:2 or even less.

Not really...it seems to be some sort of electrical effect.
As for the "sunburn," it's not a UV or microwave effect.

The point being when some one sees an ion wepon pointed at them they think "ok damage, short range, low payload". In our games it's "If that thing hits me I'll use half of the party's healing salve and our operator's going to be cussing at how much time it'll take to reset the electronics in this suit".

I'd look at it more like a bombardment on your armour and stripping electrons from the armour, causing it to degenerate, possibly even without visibly damaging it.

[Nekira Sudacne]

On a similar note...Ion weapons; vampires hurt by "ions of free flowing water" (rubbish)...no one modified an ion gun to hurt vamps?
We don't have water dissolving-cotton candy vamps where I'm from but I'm surprised no one did this before.

they arn't hurt by the ions of free flowing water? what in blazes gave you that idea? it's just the water.

[Dr. Doom III]

I think it implies in "Vampire Kingdoms" that Vampires are partially elemental and so are their weaknesses.

Water hurts because it's water.

That said, if a Vampire falls into a pool of still water, it's no longer still because the Vampire landing in it, displaces the water and causes it to move.

RIFTs doesn't go into it in any details, but I believe the original intent of the 'running water' specification was that if a pool of water was still (like an abandoned fountain, or a mud puddle) the Vampire could travel OVER it (jump, fly over as a bat, etc...) not that he could travel IN it.

I've read a couple of Vampire books where this was specified. Basically the Vampire is supposed to be trapped inside a castle with a moat, where the moat 'flows' around the castle like a river. However the intake gets clogged over a period of centuries, the water stops flowing, the fish and stuff moving inside of it eventually die when the water goes toxic, and the Vampire is eventually able to leave his prison.

Nothing to do with Palladium, but just my thought processes when it comes to the intent.

>>>----Therumancer--->

Makes sense to Doom.

[Sir Neil]

is there any book with lots of them?

IIRC, both Aliens Unlimited and Triax & the NGR have ion weapons.

[The Raven]

and why are they so danged rare?

In my opinion, Ion weapons should be more common in an atmosphere then laser weapons. They are better suited to it. I think people just use lasers more because they "think" they know how they work in an atmosphere. Most players and writers I have dealt with treat lasers like weapons from Star Trek/Wars.

And if people want, I can post part of an article I have written and have been meaning to send into Palladium for the Rifter that goes over how ion weapons work according to physics.

[Svartalf]

and why are they so danged rare?

In my opinion, Ion weapons should be more common in an atmosphere then laser weapons. They are better suited to it. I think people just use lasers more because they "think" they know how they work in an atmosphere. Most players and writers I have dealt with treat lasers like weapons from Star Trek/Wars.

And if people want, I can post part of an article I have written and have been meaning to send into Palladium for the Rifter that goes over how ion weapons work according to physics.

Could you please tell us more? I mean, laser works independant of atmosphere...
but ion weapons... well, the reason why it has such short range, I guess, is that it has to ionize a path between itself and the target... and as such, the atmosphere works at least as much against (wasted energy used to ionize the path in the air) as for it (presence of atoms to ionize, potentially improving the damage over what the weapon might do in a vacuum)...