A short-range, short-duration beam that causes heavy damage in a burst. Capable against armor, as far as beam weapons go.
This weapon is, at base, simply a laser beam with a tripled sapphire gain medium to ensure the highest possible weaponized wavelengths. The photons are fired through a hyperdimensional filter which outputs an energy beam that exists partially in p-space. The physics of the filter are not properly understood, and in laboratory settings the p-space components of a beam exceeding 6.66 giga-watts will sometimes flicker - as if blocked. Weapon mounts never use such high energy levels to ensure reliability.
–In-Game Description
The Phase Lance is a beam weapon with a strong alpha strike but relatively short range for a beam. With high burst damage, despite the primary role being described as general, it is more useful as a strike weapon, able to use its large burst damage to overload shields, or destroy armour.
Notes[]
Having 600 range, it can be hard to fit it on midline ships, and high tech ones aren't that needy for more anti-armour. But their perfect accuracy and strong punch makes them an incredible anti-fighter weapon. Other than that it is mostly used on strike builds and phase ships as assault weapons. In a pinch it can be used to overload shields of high flux opponents to give some breathing space.
Advanced Optics can give Phase lances just the range they need to be competitive with other anti-armour options, this combination may have a hefty OP cost, but for anti-frigate and anti-destroyer use, it provides excellent utility.
One must note that, unless its flux is managed very carefully, this weapon may do just as much damage to the ship yielding it as the ship on the receiving end of the beam. The massive amount of burst flux, especially when equipping multiple phase lances, can be devastating. As such, a high-speed, rapid-strike combat philosophy goes well with the phase lance; get in, do massive burst damage, and get out before the enemy can hit your shields hard enough to cause an overload.
Looking at the weapon data, the active phase of the shot lasts 1.75s (0.25 + 1 + 0.5 for charge up, main part and charge down) while the refire delay is 4s.
