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[PreConceptor]

So the Phase Lance is a cool weapon, but it feels like one of the least appealing options for medium energy most of the time. Pulse Laser is more efficient and more DPS and hard flux dmg, Heavy Blaster has way more DPS and hard flux with comparable efficiency, Ion Pulser has EMP and more DPS with only slightly less range, Mining Blaster is dedicated to cracking armor, etc. Phase Lance is basically a scaled down Tachyon Lance with few of the things that make the Tachyon Lance so appealing.

Beams are generally supposed to have more range than projectile energy weapons, so I propose a modest range increase from 600 to 700 to make the Phase Lance the 'long range' or 'sniper' non-suppression option for medium energy slots. I think it would better define the Phase Lance and make it much more competitive with other options without degrading or over-enhancing its current role as the highest burst damage option.

[Grievous69]

If anything it needs less range and then some sort of other buff. It's an energy burst beam, so almost a strike weapon. But AI just fires it whenever it can, I'd use it even less with 700 range.

It was an okay pick before when everything else was equally bad, Then finally medium energy weapon redemption arc happened and Phase Lance got the middle finger. It has small niche uses on Phase ships with the Phase Anchor hullmod.

[Princess of Evil]

I would actually prefer it to get more direct damage without changing DPS. It is basically a melee range strike weapon, like AMBs. Better to make it better at that than buff other stats and have to either walk back, or remove the one thing it's still good at.
EDIT: Hell, make it do more damage and make it less flux efficient, kinda like a strike Heavy Blaster.

[PreConceptor]

I would actually prefer it to get more direct damage without changing DPS. It is basically a melee range strike weapon, like AMBs. Better to make it better at that than buff other stats and have to either walk back, or remove the one thing it's still good at.
EDIT: Hell, make it do more damage and make it less flux efficient, kinda like a strike Heavy Blaster.

But its the same range as the Pulse Laser and Heavy Blaster, far from being 'melee range'. Why would any other stat need to be walked back if one small change makes it slightly more competitive with other options it has a hard time competing against right now?

If medium really needs a true point-blank strike weapon like the AMB, instead of shoehorning a beam into that role there should be a separate AMB analogue for medium.

[Grievous69]

Can you argument for your choice then, what would 700 range exactly accomplish? On high tech ships you don't need that since it clashes with standard and strike ranges. Beam builds are also out of the question since then you're too short. Midline ships really don't want a "spend more flux than your opponents shields will even take" weapon. I'm just curious where do you see a 700 range Phase Lance making a difference.

[Alex]

I'm definitely open to buffing the PL in some way. I also don't want to make it "smart" re: not firing on shields etc; that feels like something to be *extremely* sparing with. (Not that this came up here, but that idea has come up before.)

I feel like the reason it's in a worse spot now is not so much other energy weapons getting strictly *better* as its niche getting encroached on from two sides - by the IR Autolance as anti-fighter, and by the changed Mining Blaster as comparably efficient anti-armor. It has some edges on either, and it can do both jobs, so it still has a place, just less of one, imo. And of course the Graviton getting better does hurt it, too.

I wonder if something like a fairly hefty reduction in flux cost might be sufficient. It does good burst damage already, I don't think that needs to change. But if it went to .8 or even .6 (instead of 1.2) flux/damage, then the anti-shield use would be more ok, and it'd get a boost as an anti-fighter option, and it would further be solidified as a low-flux option (that still has some punch) for a medium slot.

[Lawrence Master-blaster]

PL is supposed to be an anti-fighter weapon?

[Alex]

I don't know if I'd go that far - that's not meant to be its primary role - but given how it works and its stats, that's something it's always going to be pretty good at. It's probably one of the better means available for swatting Broadswords and similar, for example.

[Grievous69]

Not really, it's mainly used to burst down smaller ships but anti-fighter was a nice secondary role. I can see how IR Autolance and Mining Blaster kinda stepped on its toes. But many other things just got more efficient.

Imagine a world where Phase Lance has 0.8 efficiency, you get a nice Rift Lance from [REDACTED] only to see it has 1.0 efficiency lol. I wouldn't mind it getting a flux cost reduction, I'd just be careful not to go too far.

[CapnHector]

You could make this one also deal EMP damage, like a baby Tachyon Lance, with the same mechanics. EMP arcs that penetrate shields is actually a very interesting niche that brawler ships could use. Currently if you want that your only options are Ion Beam (long range, no damage) or TL. Especially interesting with HSA so the weapon could arc by itself. I think that's a mechanic that almost never gets mentioned despite existing and being interesting.

[PreConceptor]

I wonder if something like a fairly hefty reduction in flux cost might be sufficient. It does good burst damage already, I don't think that needs to change. But if it went to .8 or even .6 (instead of 1.2) flux/damage, then the anti-shield use would be more ok, and it'd get a boost as an anti-fighter option, and it would further be solidified as a low-flux option (that still has some punch) for a medium slot.

I like the flux cost reduction idea, probably no less than 0.8 tho

You could make this one also deal EMP damage, like a baby Tachyon Lance, with the same mechanics. EMP arcs that penetrate shields is actually a very interesting niche that brawler ships could use. Currently if you want that your only options are Ion Beam (long range, no damage) or TL. Especially interesting with HSA so the weapon could arc by itself

But I also like this idea

Can you argument for your choice then, what would 700 range exactly accomplish? On high tech ships you don't need that since it clashes with standard and strike ranges. Beam builds are also out of the question since then you're too short. Midline ships really don't want a "spend more flux than your opponents shields will even take" weapon. I'm just curious where do you see a 700 range Phase Lance making a difference.

You're right, the only thing it would synergize with in vanilla is Railguns and Needlers, which would be good on some ships but not many. Range buffing probably isn't the answer.

[Gothars]

Just thinking of the phase aspect of this weapon, it would be cool if it slows down time for a target while it hits (armor) - the inverse effect of phase cloak. It fires for just a second or two, so the effect would not be too dangerous, just add a neat support function.  The dime dilation effect of multiple beams should probably stack, to make alternating vs. linked fire a real choice.

[PsychoThruster]

Give it 1k range, spread it's damage out over a longer firing interval, and maybe reduce tracking speed a bit?

[Alex]

Just thinking of the phase aspect of this weapon, it would be cool if it slows down time for a target while it hits (armor) - the inverse effect of phase cloak. It fires for just a second or two, so the effect would not be too dangerous, just add a neat support function.  The dime dilation effect of multiple beams should probably stack, to make alternating vs. linked fire a real choice.

This sounds super cool! ... for, like, a large [SUPER REDACTED] weapon

[prav]

I'd love to see another 100-200 range on it so it'd get along better with kinetic ballistics.