Re: [DS2] Vacuum

On Sun, 11 Apr 1999, Laserlight wrote:

> Alarishi troops have a fondness for Fusion Guns (DFFG).  Since there's
no
> atmosphere to scatter the bolt, i presume the range would increase?

i hypothesise that DS/SG DFFGs and FT beam batteries are one and the
same
thing. given that beams seem to do a lot of damage, which lasers in
SG/DS
conspicuously do not, and that DFFGs have improved range in a vacuum,
there is a bit of a match. it also explains how screens can work against
beams, as there is no anti-laser screen which matches FT's screen within
the grasp of modern science.

the main objection comes from the hard-sf crowd (yes, this includes me
...) in that any reasonable technology for beams has to be
near-lightspeed, whereas plasma, at least as supplied by DFFG, usually
isn't. well, i suggest that ship-mounted DFFGs have an additional
accelerator stage beyond the classic expansion chamber. so there.

> (Of
> course, as John Atkinson points out, it's not like I have any notable
> distance to the horizon anyway).

get a big enough DFFG and you can make your own horizons :-).

Tom