Difference between revisions of "Smoke launcher"

Revision as of 04:58, 4 February 2023

The smoke launcher fires smoke bombs that explode on impact, covering a small area with smoke equal to a 5x5 square without corners, regardless of item quality.

Acquisition

Smoke launchers can be crafted at a Machining table once the Gunsmithing research project has been completed. They require 75 Steel, 4 Components, 30,000 ticks (8.33 mins) of work, and a Crafting skill of 4.

Smoke launchers can also be purchased from outlander and orbital combat suppliers or outlander faction bases.

Summary

Smoke launchers create blind smoke.

Blind smoke reduces accuracy of any regular projectile, player or enemy, by ×30%. Most explosives have a Forced Miss Radius; they are mostly unaffected by the gas. The smoke does not have to cover either the shooter or the target; any smoke in the way will cause the accuracy reduction. In addition, turrets cannot target any creature in or in the way of smoke.

Smoke launchers of all qualities are functionally identical, except for their melee damage and AP and their market value.^[Verify]

Analysis

Smoke launchers are useful when fighting turrets, since the smoke can totally prevent them from locking on. Since the smoke blocks line-of-sight, you don't need to directly blanket the turret with smoke - as long as there is smoke between you and the turret, the turret will not lock on. By inching closer with a smoke launcher, you can approach safely. Continuously firing smoke at a turret can keep it blinded indefinitely - allowing others to safely destroy it or handle other threats. This is far easier to do with a smoke launcher than a smokepop pack due to the latters limited number of charges.

Smoke is also useful in preparing for a melee rush. By reducing the accuracy of ranged weapons, your melee fighters will find it safer to charge in, without making your melee pawns give up a shield belt or better armor as with the jump pack or locust armor. Once you've closed with an enemy, the smoke grenadier can either continue to put down smoke, retreat, or engage using the weapon and any body part weapons in melee.

Smoke launchers deal no damage to pawns or structures, even on direct hits. Therefore, they are a purely support weapon. As accuracy is not important for smoke to function, smoke launchers are useful for pawns with low combat skills. These pawns would otherwise contribute little to combat. Like with other launchers, pawns with the trigger-happy trait can fire it much faster with essentially no downsides due to the forced miss radius.

Training

Because it does no damage but trains shooting skill, you can use this to train low shooting skills by shooting colonists, animals, prisoners, etc.

Melee quality table

Template:Weapon Quality Table/Melee

Version history

1.1.0 - Added

Weapons

Melee | Neolithic: Breach axe • Club • Ikwa • Knife (Jade) • Spear

Medieval: Gladius • Longsword • Mace • Axe • Warhammer

Ultra: Eltex staff • Monosword (Persona) • Plasmasword (Persona) • Zeushammer (Persona)

Improvised: Beer • Elephant tusk • Thrumbo horn • Wood

Ranged | Neolithic: Greatbow • Pila • Recurve bow • Short bow • Flamebow

Medieval: Nerve spiker

Industrial: Assault rifle • Autopistol • Bolt-action rifle • Chain shotgun • Heavy SMG • Launcher (EMP, Incendiary, Smoke, Toxbomb ) • LMG • Machine pistol • Minigun • Pump shotgun • Revolver • Sniper rifle • Hellcat rifle • Incinerator

Spacer: Charge lance • Charge rifle

Consumables: Doomsday rocket launcher • Triple rocket launcher

Throwables: EMP grenades • Frag grenades • Molotov cocktails • Tox grenades

Mechanoid: Heavy charge blaster • Inferno cannon • Needle gun • Thump cannon • Beam graser • Charge blaster turret • Hellsphere cannon • Mini-flameblaster • Mini-shotgun • Slugthrower • Spiner • Toxic needle gun

Structures: Autocannon • Mini-turret gun • Mortar (Weapon) • Uranium slug cannon • Auto-mortar • Inferno cannon (Turret) • Light charge blaster • Mini-slugger • Tactical turret gun

Related | Body part weapons: Prosthetic arm • Bionic arm • Archotech arm • Power claw • Field hand • Drill arm • Venom talon • Venom fangs • Knee spike • Elbow blade • Hand talon • Flesh whip

Integrated weapons: Grenadier armor • Phoenix armor

@@ Line 70: / Line 70: @@
 Smoke is also useful in preparing for a melee rush. By reducing the accuracy of ranged weapons, your melee fighters will find it safer to charge in, without making your melee pawns give up a [[shield belt]] or better armor as with the [[jump pack]]{{RoyaltyIcon}} or [[locust armor]].{{RoyaltyIcon}} Once you've closed with an enemy, the smoke grenadier can either continue to put down smoke, retreat, or engage using the weapon and any [[body part weapons]] in melee.
-Smoke launchers deal no damage to pawns or structures, even on direct hits. Therefore, they are a purely support weapon. The smoke launcher usually ignores accuracy. Thus, they are useful for pawns with low combat skills, who would otherwise not contribute much to combat. As with other launchers, pawns with the [[trigger-happy]] trait can fire it much faster with essentially no downsides due to the forced miss radius.
+Smoke launchers deal no damage to pawns or structures, even on direct hits. Therefore, they are a purely support weapon. As accuracy is not important for smoke to function, smoke launchers are useful for pawns with low combat skills. These pawns would otherwise contribute little to combat. Like with other launchers, pawns with the [[trigger-happy]] trait can fire it much faster with essentially no downsides due to the forced miss radius.
 === Training ===