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10-29-2019, 04:01 PM | #1 |
World's Worst Detective
Join Date: May 2011
Location: Columbus, Ohio
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(Semi-)plausible plasma weapons, plasma powers, and plasma damage?
Let's say I need stats for plasma damage and (semi-)plausible plasma weapons and powers. For weapons and powers, I'd prefer local plasma generation and not laser-induced plasma at a distance, etc. (or sneaky comments about how metal is like a plasma). I'm not trying to emulate traditional plasma weapons; I'm working from the other direction and trying to use plasma as a weapon—if it could be weaponized.
I admit that I don't know more about plasma other than what Wikipedia (including the 'Plasma weapon' article that includes a list of related real-life devices) and a few Youtube videos have taught me, so forgive me. I struggle to conceptualize what a (semi-)plausible plasma generation/manipulation power would look like. It seems like a lot of (artificial) plasma generation involves electric arcs, so it feels like electricity generation/manipulation would be a part of that power too in order to justify it. Or maybe magnetic field powers or even laser powers for containing and/or directing the plasma. Whether it's "arc" plasma or "jet" plasma, the big problem seems to be getting it where I want it to go. It's my impression that something like a realistic lightning bolt shot (or even a much smaller plasma streamer, like those from a Tesla Coil) from the hand of a super wouldn't go very far because it would try to ground itself. Right? It's also my impression that a plasma flamethrower wouldn't work very well because plasma is so light and energetic that it wouldn't have a long reach because it would dissipate quickly. Right? Then, it seems like there are mixed feelings about plasma "bolts" being able to be fired as toroids from weapons like the MARAUDER. Even if it works, it takes a lot of energy, but I find it easier to handwave the energy requirements (for powers) than the rest of the process. And, of course, there's always ball lightning—whatever that actually is. So, how far could I get a lightning bolt or plasma streamer and how accurate would it be if I wanted to hit a specific target? What about a plasma jet? What about a plasma toroid? What would be the damage ranges for these attacks? What other effects would they have? Ideally, I think I'd want to scale the MARAUDER back from a 1m diameter to about half that for a more "classic fireball" feel with more science and less(?) magic. Some GURPS Plasmas
My goals are to understand what the range of plasma's effects in GURPS would be, to figure out how to justify a usable (semi-)plausible plasma generation/manipulation power, and to better understand plasma in general. As always, your help and input is greatly appreciated. Just go easy on me! Thanks.
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Raekai's links: My blog about conlanging, GURPS, and other stuff! — Using Knowing Your Own Strength with Conditional Injury Simulating multiple attacks Wildcard Power Pool: a flexible magic/powers system Magic to RPM complete conversion v2 (incomplete) Perussinexian Magic 2 (outdated) |
10-29-2019, 09:33 PM | #2 |
Join Date: Jun 2013
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Re: (Semi-)plausible plasma weapons, plasma powers, and plasma damage?
While lightning produces plasma, this is just a side effect of the massive energies involved, and it's the electricity causing the damage. Lightning is as much a "plasma attack" as it is a "sonic attack." That said, there's no reason the electrolaser mechanism couldn't be upscaled to be as powerful as a lightning bolt if you wanted it to be. An electrolaser weapon of that power would probably be a mounted weapon, of course.
A "realistic" plasma-using super would probably bring in atmosphere, superheat it into plasma in some fashion (heat powers, electricity powers, hell air powers to supercompress it), and then either release it in one direction or all around. These would be burning Innate Attacks, either with Cone (probably a rather wide one) and Dissipation; or Area Effect, Dissipation, and Emanation (honestly, Explosion would probably be more realistic, but I don't think that's compatible with Cone - or if it is, it should be a Limitation, not an Enhancement). You could probably concentrate it down enough to function like a plasma torch, for maybe Reach C,1, with either magnetic powers or air-manipulation powers (in the latter case, you're just making a small amount into plasma at a time and throwing it forward, kind of like how a plasma torch operates normally). Something akin to telekinesis that can work on plasma (I believe magnetic manipulation and air manipulation would work) could probably allow you to make a jet of it.
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GURPS Overhaul |
10-29-2019, 09:50 PM | #3 |
Join Date: Feb 2016
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Re: (Semi-)plausible plasma weapons, plasma powers, and plasma damage?
Fire is plasma, it is just nonmagnetic and low energy (usually). In the most intense fires, you get more classic manifestations of plasma, like with fire tornados and the like. Anything more intense than that is probably superscience though.
A possible exception is a plasma lance munition. It would function similar to a shape-charged explosive, but it uses a fusion detonation instead of a chemical detonation (the classic Casabaw Howitzer). At TL9, it should be possible to use a Mininuke in a sharpcharged fashion, with a plasma lance damage equal to twice the explosive damage (with only the linked damage dealing damage to the area), with a maximum range equal to square root in dice of damage (1/2D equal to 50% max). |
10-30-2019, 10:25 AM | #4 |
☣
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Southeast NC
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Re: (Semi-)plausible plasma weapons, plasma powers, and plasma damage?
Flame is mostly incandescent gas, not plasma. Magnetic is one of the defining characteristics of plasma.
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RyanW - Actually one normal sized guy in three tiny trenchcoats. |
10-30-2019, 11:21 AM | #5 |
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Berkeley, CA
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Re: (Semi-)plausible plasma weapons, plasma powers, and plasma damage?
What sort of thing are you looking for? Is this something supers related, or weird ultratech, or something else?
Broadly speaking, plasma is what happens when you ionize a gas, and for situations where its magnetic and electrical properties don't matter, can be treated as hot gas. This is usually not very useful as a weapon, because it will prefer to spread out until it reaches equilibrium with surrounding pressure, at which point it's rather diffuse and thus not that dangerous. This is similar to flame, which is also not terribly effective as a weapon; there is a reason effective flaming weapons rely on burning liquids or solids, rather than direct application of flame. In most weapon applications, plasma, if it occurs, is a side effect of something more dangerous, most often an electric spark but possibly a particle beam or laser, and the plasma is just what happens when the dangerous thing hits air. Non-conventional explosives might also be hot enough to have substantial plasma generation, but again, the hazard is the explosion. Plasma is sometimes deliberately generated as a guide for something else (e.g. an electrolaser), but again, the hazard is the something else. |
10-30-2019, 12:29 PM | #6 | ||||
World's Worst Detective
Join Date: May 2011
Location: Columbus, Ohio
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Re: How to create/justify a "realistic" firebending power? Fire, plasma, etc.?
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I arrived at a similar conclusion about Cone and Explosion, but in the reverse order where Cone would be a limitation for Explosion. I appreciate your ideas about magnetic manipulation and air manipulation too. It got me to thinking about the base power being an ionization power to justify generating plasma and electricity. Does that sound right? Of course, it doesn't sound like it would shape it as well as air or magnetism, but I'd prefer to keep those powers separate. Quote:
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What you say about thinking of plasma as a hot gas resonates with what I read about plasma weapons here, which is why I mentioned that it would dissipate so quickly (which is presumably why the Plasma Flamers wouldn't work very well). What you said about plasma typically occurring as a side-effect of something more dangerous and that fire likewise wouldn't be a great weapon on its own is exactly what I was afraid of. If I could re-title this thread, it would be "How to create/justify a "realistic" firebending power? Fire, plasma, etc.?" EDIT: Waterbending and earthbending are covered by some handwaving around telekinesis while airbending is covered by altering local atmospheric pressure. (Though, I also wouldn't mind extra ideas for those...)
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Raekai's links: My blog about conlanging, GURPS, and other stuff! — Using Knowing Your Own Strength with Conditional Injury Simulating multiple attacks Wildcard Power Pool: a flexible magic/powers system Magic to RPM complete conversion v2 (incomplete) Perussinexian Magic 2 (outdated) Last edited by Raekai; 10-30-2019 at 12:41 PM. |
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Tags |
plasma, plasma arc, plasma jet, plasma weapon, powers |
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