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No! Leave my pretty blue beam alone!

It needs a little more damage: 110 Dps, 85 Fps

It needs a bunch more damage: 125 Dps, 100 Fps

Keep it the same, reduce OP to 9.

Keep it the same, recuce OP to 8.

Other!

[Thaago]

Hey everyone: How do you feel about the current graviton beam balance? I feel that its very light on damage for 10 OP and a medium slot. However, it is very efficient, accurate, long ranged, and deadly to fighters. I vote for option 2: a little more damage at the cost of a little efficiency (110 Dps, 85 Fps).


I'm going to let people change their votes, so if people have other ideas just post and I'll add them to the options.

[Upgradecap]

Well, the lore in the codex clearly states that the graviton beam is used as a shield-buster, NOT as a anti-fighter weapon, which it excels at now.

[Vandala]

I say, leave it alone.

It deals 200 point of damage to shields for only 75 flux, more damage if you are at high flux. (300 damage/75 flux)

Plus it has a damn fine range and is fast enough to catch fighters with.

Be afraid of any ship that can hold a multitude of these and bring them to bear on your shield. Or many small craft that each bring one.

Now all we need is a fighter wing that brings this weapon to bare. Be afraid, be very afraid.

[Alrenous]

What ships are you trying to use the graviton on?

It works great on the Eagle. I've sort of tried it on an assault-type Medusa. Before the burst PD buff, I sometimes used it as an anti-fighter system. That's all, though.

[Catra]

graviton beam does 200 shield damage due to being kinetic, this is fairly good when you look at the phase beam which only does 150 shield damage for 12 OP, at 200 shorter range + double flux cost.

i don't think anything about this weapon needs to be changed, it's good as is.

[Anysy]

Doesnt the graviton also have a secondary effect of slowing the target? Didnt seem like much when I used it, but id be interested in seeing that be stronger

[Upgradecap]

Do remember that the graviton beam does soft flux to target ships, which means that the kinetic damage is disspatible instead of permanent.

[Wyvern]

Doesnt the graviton also have a secondary effect of slowing the target? Didnt seem like much when I used it, but id be interested in seeing that be stronger

It does.  Not much - you generally won't even notice it if you're actively thrusting - but a few of them will fairly quickly stop a frigate if you try to coast past an eagle at zero-flux speed boosted speed.  Much more notable is the "make fighters spin" effect; it's as good at shutting down fighters as the EMP damage from a phase beam.

On the main topic: While I wouldn't complain at a graviton beam buff, I don't think it's necessary - they're exceptionally good support weapons; highly efficient, long range, very accurate... Yes, they don't do perma-flux, so you usually don't want to mount just graviton beams.  But, say, a mix of graviton beams and ir pulse lasers... good stuff.

[BillyRueben]

While I wouldn't complain at a graviton beam buff, I don't think it's necessary.

What he said.

[hadesian]

Do remember that the graviton beam does soft flux to target ships, which means that the kinetic damage is disspatible instead of permanent.

I feel stupid for asking but I clearly missed the thread spreading the good knowledge of soft and hard flux

But, soft is beam based slow increase or fast increase but it takes a big hit from a ships flux dissipation and hard flux is like firing a heavy blaster or being hit with one, it's a big chunk

[Wyvern]

The big difference is that soft flux (generated by firing your own weapons, or taking beam hits to your shield) can be dissipated while shields are active.

Hard flux (generated by taking projectile hits to shield or manually boosting your flux levels with 'f') cannot be dissipated unless 1: shields are down, and 2: you have zero soft flux.

Flux bars in game display a mark to show where the hard flux level is; it's easy to spot if you know it's there, but easy to miss if you don't.

[Reshy]

I say, leave it alone.

It deals 200 point of damage to shields for only 75 flux, more damage if you are at high flux. (300 damage/75 flux)

You forget that shields have damage reduction on most of them.  Most decent ships take only 80% of that so it's 160, and if it's a really good ship like a Tri-Tachyon it can get as low as 30% or 60 damage per second which makes it terrible inefficient when combined with it's soft flux.  Why not make the 'Shield Buster' Graviton beam generate a small amount of hard flux, like 10-20% of it's damage is turned into hard flux.  To be honest I believe all BEAM weapons should generate a small percentage of the damage as hard flux.

[Vandala]

You forget that shields have damage reduction on most of them.  Most decent ships take only 80% of that so it's 160, and if it's a really good ship like a Tri-Tachyon it can get as low as 30% or 60 damage per second which makes it terrible inefficient when combined with it's soft flux.  Why not make the 'Shield Buster' Graviton beam generate a small amount of hard flux, like 10-20% of it's damage is turned into hard flux.  To be honest I believe all BEAM weapons should generate a small percentage of the damage as hard flux.

That's why you change weapons and hull modification to adapt to what you are fighting.

[Kommodore Krieg]

I think it's fine as is.  Making it any stronger would make it OP if you ask me.  It's basically constant damage that you can keep on the target from extreme range for almost no flux cost.  It shreds fighters and smaller craft, and given enough time, which you should have plenty of because you can fire it forever from a very long way off, it will melt into bigger ships as well.

[Catra]

I say, leave it alone.

It deals 200 point of damage to shields for only 75 flux, more damage if you are at high flux. (300 damage/75 flux)

You forget that shields have damage reduction on most of them.  Most decent ships take only 80% of that so it's 160, and if it's a really good ship like a Tri-Tachyon it can get as low as 30% or 60 damage per second which makes it terrible inefficient when combined with it's soft flux.  Why not make the 'Shield Buster' Graviton beam generate a small amount of hard flux, like 10-20% of it's damage is turned into hard flux.  To be honest I believe all BEAM weapons should generate a small percentage of the damage as hard flux.

160 is still good enough to where 2 will cause damage / severely cripple the dissipation of frigates and destroyers and 3 will cause damage / cripple cruisers.

30% is abit dishonest, the AI will very rarely break the Elite crew requirement ceiling plus you would have to do that with the ships with .8 dissipation, and will at best only achieve veteran which brings it up to 80. while this isn't all that impressive, it will atleast cause high-tech ships to reach high flux levels much faster and start having to fire at a reduced rate or back off and vent, leaving it exposed.