Heavy Weapons

Heavy weapons are difficult to use, unwieldy, limited in how often they can be used, and devastatingly powerful in the hands of an expert. Only those specifically trained in their operation can do so effectively. The following are some example heavy weapons.

The M-100 Grenade Launcher fired unguided, unpropelled explosive projectiles a moderate distance, at a slight arc, allowing a crafty user to lob shells for a little extra distance or to circumvent cover. While a "dumb fire" weapon, the grenades themselves pack a decent punch. 8 rounds for the grenade launcher can be carried per mission.

The ML-77 is a compact guided munitions system. While not packing as much punch as the M-100, the rounds fired by this weapon are both self-propelled and guided. Once fired, a proximity detector will detect the nearest target not designated friendly and home in on it. The homing system is not perfect and if the weapon misses, the warhead will disable and the projectile will fly until it runs out of propellant or hits something. 18 rounds for this weapon can be carried per mission.

The M-451 Firestorm is a solid-fuel flame thrower, making it safer to handle than the liquid fuel variety. It projects a 30' by 4' cone of superhot chemical fire, overloading barriers and shields, eating through armor and incinerating organic materials. Two canisters of fuel can be carried on a mission, each one with roughly a minute and a half of continuous fire in them.

The Avalanche fires packets of supercooled subatomic particles to snap freeze a target hit with the packet. The packet fires in an arc, much like the Grenade Launcher, and it can be charged so the freezing effect can better penetrate/bypass defensive measures or freeze larger targets. Repeated shots or charged shots can freeze even larger targets. Per mission, a user can carry 24 shots for the avalanche. A charged shot counts for three.

The Arc Projector ionizes targets with a nonvisible laser to ready them for a high-voltage electrical attack. As the lightning-like bolt hits its first target, a sophisticated auto-targeting system paints succeeding targets with the ionization laser, allowing the electricity to take the path of least resistance and arc between them. Per mission, the Arc Projector can be discharged 12 times, though firing it requires a several second charge.

The Blackstorm is a very dangerous weapon that fires a synthetic version of a biotic singularity field. The singularity discharged from the blackstorm is far larger, about 20' wide when it detonates, and things near the center of the blast are subjected to several seconds of intense crushing gravitational force. The major drawback to the blackstorm is that most barriers and shield systems are built to withstand gravitic effects due to the prevalence of combat biotics. The blackstorm can be discharged 4 times per mission.

Often assumed to be a nuclear device, the Cain fires a 25 gram, high explosive, slug (as opposed to a slug the size of say, a nail clipping and only weighing a gram or less) at five kilometers per second. The resulting explosion is monstrously huge, ripping away any defensive layer and obliterating local structures as well. Per mission the Cain can only be fired once and has a few second charge time.