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Zenwolf
Zenwolf
Level One
Level One

Beam-Tubes & Pulse-Wave Blaster(Legends) Empty Beam-Tubes & Pulse-Wave Blaster(Legends)

November 30th 2019, 1:38 am
Message reputation : 100% (3 votes)
I figured since I have made a lot of Non-Force User respect threads and migrating them over here. I do also for the weapons that Non-Force Users like to use, so this blog here will be looking at the workings of both the Beam-Tubes and Pulse-Wave Blasters that are found within the SWU(Legends). Now these weapons are archaic and thus don't really have many appearances, but you'll be able to get a rough idea of just how great these weapons were before the standard Blaster came along.

Plus I've found that some were rather intrigued with this information, so I figured I'd share it with everyone here. So let's begin.

==========



Beam-Tube



Beam-Tubes & Pulse-Wave Blaster(Legends) 5874735-149615979997602
Emperor-4 Beam Tube



Guide Quotes: General Description




The ancestors of handheld blasters were beam tubes, which gradually displaced heatbeams and plasma cannons(both which used lasers to heat plasma) because they were safer to carry and wield and required less maintenance.

- Taken from Essential Guide to Warfare

Pretty straightforward really, they displaced heatbeams and plasma cannons, being easier and safer to use.


Guide Quotes: Advantages



Over twenty thousand years ago during the days of barbarian warlords such as Xim the Despot and long before the rise of the Old Republic, projectile guns and magnetic accelerators ruled the battlefield. Despite numerous limitations, the first Beam Tubes changed the balance of power on those legendary battlefields.

Their energy-particle beams easily defeated the armor of the day, which had been designed to protect the wearer against the high-velocity projectiles, not energy beams.

- Taken from Essential Guide to Weapons & Technology



They changed the balance of power on the battlefields, easily destroying armor that was protecting against high-velocity projectiles and accelerator weapons.


The entire system snaps onto a heavy blast vest that is padded with several layers of composite ceramics to absorb and dissipate kinetic energy from high-impact projectiles.

- Taken from Essential Guide to Weapons & Technology



The whole system snaps onto a heavy blast vest, which has several layers of ceramics to protect against high-impact projectiles.


This beam tube's power system includes the backpack type power cell, a recharge port and a small refrigeration unit(to keep the cell within safe temperature levels.)

- Taken from Essential Guide to Weapons & Technology



Has a refrigeration unit to keep the power cell within safe temperatures.


The vest includes a reserve power cell and a comlink with a four kilometer range. A switch next to the comlink antenna activates an emergency homing beacon to guide rescue crews.

- Taken from Essential Guide to Weapons & Technology



It also includes a reserve power cell and comlink with a homing beacon to guide rescue crews.



Guide Quotes: Disadvantages




The Emperor-4 beam tube is powered by a massive backpack power cell that weighs over 30 kilograms but delivers less than one hundred shots. The weapon itself severely restricts the soldier's mobility because it must be fired two-handed and weighs over fifteen kilograms.

- Taken from Essential Guide to Weapons & Technology



The backpack cell weighs over 30 kilograms while the weapon weighs over 15 and needing to be fired with both hands and fires less than 100 shots.

In pounds that would be 66 pounds and 33 pounds respectively, so the trooper is lugging around a total of 99 pounds in just weapon equipment, this isn't even including any means of armor.


Another design limitation is manifested in the sensitive internal refinement tubes, which are easily thrown out of alignment, re-configuring them takes nearly 4 hours.

- Taken from Essential Guide to Weapons & Technology



The tubes(which there's 12 of them) can easily be thrown out of alignment and fixing that takes nearly 4 hours.


The Emperor-4 requires several seconds to process enough power for a blast, with an optimal range of twenty meters and max range of fifty. Because of the beam tube's limited ammunition and need for recharging, squads often carried a large power generator on a repulsorlift sled.

- Taken from Essential Guide to Weapons & Technology



It takes several seconds for a blast, the range is only up to 50 meters and with limited ammunition and needing for recharge, squads often carried large power generators.


The wasteful energy conversion process generates tremendous heat. The beam tube's sensitive electronic components are protected by twelve cooling motors, although they direct the hot air into the soldier's face, making it quite uncomfortable to use.

- Taken from Essential Guide to Weapons & Technology



The wasteful energy generates heat, which while the weapons electrical components are protected, the wearer gets a hot air blast in their faces making it uncomfortable.



Sidenote: Heatbeams



Xim Droids were virtually unstoppable in their day. The warlord was one of the first individuals to perfect mechanized combat, entire star systems surrendered in the face of his ruthless automated armies. Even by modern standards, the robots are remarkably resilient and impressively lethal.

Shielded apertures built into the arms and hands housed various chemicals and energy weapons, including archaic heatbeams and particle discharges.

- Taken from Essential Guide to Droids

To put the Beam-Tubes in perspective, Xim the Depost's army was considered virtually unstoppable, entire star systems surrendered.




Han had just begun to let himself believe they were clear, when a yellow heatbeam flashed out of the night. It scored on a rock two meters to Bollux's right, throwing up sparks and globs of molten mineral.

- Taken from Han Solo and the Lost Legacy



A heatbeam strikes a rock, melting it.


Defenders that were sufficiently well armed were putting up stiff resistance with rocket launchers, grenade throwers, heavy weapons, and crew-served guns.

- Taken from Han Solo and the Lost Legacy



To put better in perspective, a large group of Xim War Droids were later awakened in a mining camp, it takes the miners with rocket launchers, grenades launchers, heavy weapons and crew guns just to put up stiff resistance.


This isn't accounting for the blasters involved, which were able to take them out.(Gallandro's, Han's and Chewie's)


So the fact it took that kind of firepower, the Beam Tubes really did change the face of the battlefield since before they came around, it was just Heatbeams, plasma cannons, projectile and accelerator weapons.


======


Now let's see what the Pulse-Wave can do! These weapons placed the Beam-Tubes.


======


Pulse-Wave Blaster



Beam-Tubes & Pulse-Wave Blaster(Legends) 5874802-5678416669-latest
ATA Pulse-Wave Blaster


Quotes: General Description



Beam-Tubes were replaced by Pulse-Wave weapons, which were imprecise and lacked range; further improvements resulted in the mass production of weapons similar to the modern blaster by 4,000 BBY
- Taken from Essential Guide to Warfare

Straightforward, they replaced the Beam-Tubes and mass production of these soon saw weapons that were similar to the modern blaster by 4,000 BBY.




Quotes: Advantages of Pulse-Wave Blaster



Pulse-Wave blasters were the precursors to the modern energy weapons; they fired a packet of coherent energy that inflicted considerable damage to a target. Pulse-wave weapons operated much like disruptor weapons, causing the target's molecules to separate.

- Taken from Gundark's Fantastic Technology: Personal Gear



They were precursors to the modern energy weapons, operating similarly to disruptors where the damage was at a molecular level.


A pulse-wave pistol requires a power pack. After 100 shots, the power pack must be replaced. A pulse-wave rifle requires a power pack. After 50 shots, the power pack must be replaced.

- Taken from Kotor Campaign Guide



A pulse-wave pistol has 100 shots, while a rifle has 50. Compare this to the Beam-Tube which had less than 100 to the pistol, the rifle has less but it's more accurate and has longer range.


Although those pulse-wave blasters found today are ancient, many still work well enough and have been banned by most worlds.

- Taken from Gundark's Fantastic Technology: Personal Gear



Though ancient by the time blaster weapons are in full swing, they work well enough and have been banned on most worlds.




Quotes: Disadvantages of Pulse-Wave Blaster



Less powerful than blaster bolts, pulse-wave packets are nevertheless deadly at close range.

- Taken from New Essential Guide to Weapons & Technology



They aren't as powerful as blaster bolts.


The technological predecessor to the modern blaster pistol, the pulse-wave pistol was largely abandoned when blaster technology became common.

- Taken from Kotor Campaign Guide



Pulse-wave technology was pretty much abandoned when blasters came.


The pulse-wave blaster-the forerunner to the modern blaster-is virtually extinct. I've run into some worlds on the Outer Rim Territories where the natives are happy to get any kind of high-tech, no matter how primitive. There's good money to be made selling these archaic weapons to a bunch of nuclear-level warmongers.

- Taken from Gundark's Fantastic Technology: Personal Gear



It's virtually extinct and considered archaic/primitive by modern galactic standards, nuclear level societies are happy though in getting them.


Pulse-Wave Blaster/Cannon Feats

Spoiler:

Spoiler:

So the 1st scan shows a hand Pulse-Wave Blaster used by Naga Sadow, being powerful enough to destroy a prison door(you can see a sizable hole in the door) and showing some decent sized holes along the mountain walls.

The 2nd scan shows a two manned Pulse-Wave Cannon being able to punch through a mountain wall.

Spoiler:

Spoiler:

So these 2 show ship mounted Pulse-Wave Cannons, making sizable explosions, blowing apart buildings and statues.

Spoiler:

Showing warbeast mounted Pulse-wave weapons also making sizeable explosions too.

=====


I'll be putting up my Blaster & Slugthrower blog later on. Anyway, enjoy folks.
Zenwolf
Zenwolf
Level One
Level One

Beam-Tubes & Pulse-Wave Blaster(Legends) Empty Re: Beam-Tubes & Pulse-Wave Blaster(Legends)

December 2nd 2020, 3:52 pm
So bump as I realized re-reading through ToTJ that there are feats for the Pulse-Wave Weapons, so putting those here to bring more light. Considering that it's confirmed that Pulse-Wave weapons are inferior to Blaster tech, that's pretty impressive.
Nute_Chethray
Nute_Chethray
Moderator
Moderator

Beam-Tubes & Pulse-Wave Blaster(Legends) Empty Re: Beam-Tubes & Pulse-Wave Blaster(Legends)

December 3rd 2020, 7:16 am
Message reputation : 100% (1 vote)
Great work like always
HellfireUnit
HellfireUnit
Level Six
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Beam-Tubes & Pulse-Wave Blaster(Legends) Empty Re: Beam-Tubes & Pulse-Wave Blaster(Legends)

December 3rd 2020, 9:59 am
Message reputation : 100% (3 votes)
Zenwolf blogs are blessed
Zenwolf
Zenwolf
Level One
Level One

Beam-Tubes & Pulse-Wave Blaster(Legends) Empty Re: Beam-Tubes & Pulse-Wave Blaster(Legends)

December 3rd 2020, 4:03 pm
Message reputation : 100% (1 vote)
@Nute_Chethray @HellfireUnit Thank you, thank you. I've also note that the Ancient Sith Empire is pretty potent when re-reading through the series. A bit still technologically inferior to the Republic in that time, but what they still do accomplish is still impressive for the time period..
The Merchant
The Merchant

Beam-Tubes & Pulse-Wave Blaster(Legends) Empty Re: Beam-Tubes & Pulse-Wave Blaster(Legends)

December 4th 2020, 8:52 pm
Are you on Spacebattles, Zenwolf? I'm Inlove69
Zenwolf
Zenwolf
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Beam-Tubes & Pulse-Wave Blaster(Legends) Empty Re: Beam-Tubes & Pulse-Wave Blaster(Legends)

December 4th 2020, 9:18 pm
The Merchant wrote:Are you on Spacebattles, Zenwolf? I'm Inlove69

Ah yes hello! Yes I am, Wolfrazor on there. Ha didn't know you were there.
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