- Edited
Big, slow, multi-module armoured missiles with shield phasing and AOE.
Shield Phasing, what the hell is that? Stick with me a bit longer...
Torpedoes are big ship killers. Fired from a distance they can track a target but they can still be avoided by ships with moderate speed. Railguns are also fired from a distance and can dice up big ships in minutes (and small ships too). But Railguns don’t work well against shields. Electro bolts and even standard cannons and lasers can take down shields a lot quicker. But they all require getting into close (or closer) range. There is nothing too really threaten a shielded big ship from a distance, and that's where Torpedoes come in.
Torpedoes are multi-part weapons, consisting of nose, body (up to two) and engine.
Adding an extra body section is optional, but each part adds to the weight and slows the Torpedo down significantly. However, Torpedoes are big enough to carry a significant AOE explosive, a Shield Phasing device, or both.
The Shield phasing device would be an optional (and heavy) body part that allows a Torpedo to fly through shields without being stopped. This is obviously an extremely powerful ability and to keep things balanced, this is why Torpedoes are (relatively) slow and unmaneuverable, but also why they are big and expensive. Torpedo heavy, slow to reload and (depending on part) expensive too. But to stop torpedoes being a complete waste of time, they will also be big and very well armoured. The extra armour on Torpedos would render them nearly immune from standard PD, so but they would be vulnerable to normal weapons fire. Torpedos will have decent armour, somewhere in the region of 1-3k health. This means they would keep going even after several hits, meaning they would distract even battleship level fire-power for a second or two, which can be a decisive distraction in a heated battle.
Multi-part weapons are a great idea, and I hope we see many more of them. Even with just four interchangeable parts Torpedoes will have a lot of variation. But, with a couple more parts, they could be very versatile indeed.
Alternative Nose sections could be:
Standard (normal tracking)
Blind (no tracking, cheaper, increased damage)
Penetrating (no tracking, but increases armour and penetration)
Alternative Body sections could be:
Shield Phasing (expensive, allows Torp to pass through shields)
Explosive (Adds damage and AEO range)
EMP (Added Electro Bolt to damage and AOE range)
Armoured (heavy but adds a lot of armour)
Fuel (adds range)
Thrusters veins (adds manoeuvrability)
Dummy (cheap, slight armour boost)
Alternative Thruster sections could be:
Standard (normal range and speed)
Boosted (expensive, adds speed, reduces range, less armour)
Directional Thrusters (expensive, adds manoeuvrability)
Basic (cheap, no manoeuvring, slightly faster than standard)
Every part would add to the weight and armour value of the Torpedo. With the right parts the Torp could be fitted to chase faster ships, but it would never be as manoeuvrable as a missile, and those choices would also mean it has less armour and damage than usual. Expensive parts would mean expensive modules and longer reload times, tacking more resources. Damage, AOE range, Armour, Weight, Maneuverability, are all cumulative values affected by part choice. Only one Shield Phasing module would be needed, additional phase sections would have no effect other than adding to the cost and weight of the torpedo.
The Torpedo Nose ship module would have to be placed on the outside of a ship, but I’d allow it more health than a Railgun part, and make them cheaper than Railguns too. A torpedo with added range might be able to launch from beyond Railgun range, but they may need other ships or larger range sensors to provide LOS before they can launch.
