Talk:Directed energy weapon

ship mounted directed energy weapons
Concerning shipmounted directed energy weapons: With both Phasers and Photon torpedoes, I think canon has been writen without to much thought to the origin of the weapon being discribed. I have not ready the tech manualsbut I can make some arguments regading the weapons discribed on the various ships found in Star Trek.

First: Phasers and Photon torpedoes are Federation weapons. Unless it is a very easy technology to replicate. the extent wo which the other space faring races have these weapons is ludicious.

In TOS, the Klingons had Disruptors, and the Romulans had Plasma torpedo technology. No Phasers, no Photons. However there was a Klingon/Romulan alliance where the Klingons got cloaking technology and presumable Plasma technology as well. The Romulans getting Battle cruiser size vessels and disruptor based weapons.

Jump ahead a hundred years: It only figures that both races would work on enhancing the technology they already had, namely disruptor and plasma based weapons. Looking at the K't'ing class ship (or Drell-7M and I can't figure out why there is any question about the D-7M evolving from the D-7, whos being stupid here?), the frontal tube ( which was a sensor array) is huge. Almost as big in diameter as the neck of the boom. It only makes sense that the "Red sphere" being launched is not a "Photon Torpedo" but a plasma torpedo, while keeping the disruptors on the engine nacells. Same with the Bird of Prey. The Romulans, have now upgraded and centralized the disruptors to the central array on the face of the "Warbird" While keeping the plasma torpedo previously developed that could shatter "Neutronium: Balance of Terror". frankly the most powerful weapon short Husnock. Where and why would they start working with Phasers and Photon torpedoes? Just "cuz" the writer was to lazy to put in the right nomenclatur or using some other name like a PPG, or PPC" "partilcal projection cannon? Sorry I don't by it. Then just about every race had Phasers and Photons. Cardassians, Bajorans, Klingons, Romulans and the Dominion, ect. As far as the Klingon ships, they all have that big hole in the front of the ship. Photon Torpedoes are what 2,5 meters long, maybe a half meter wide, and a third of meter deep. And the Klingons need a hole that is several meters in diameter to launch one of these thing? Lets get off the pot and look at what is happening. That big hole, or in the case of the Vorcha, a bi-lateral gauss system in the armatures, is for launching system for an energy weapon, not a mechanical device. Lets stop being so "by the letter of the word of the writer" and think about it.

Next: Photon Torpedoes. A mechanical device for delivering a 1.5Kg matter/anti-matter warhead, with a guildance sysem at warp1+ speeds. If you want a higher yield warhead does it make sense to build a whole new level of technology to double the Yield, or "and this is a big step" make the Photon Torpedo warhead bigger? As is, the Photon Torpedo has a 65Megaton warhead. that that stupid "Iso" ton thing times 25. Lets just try sometime a bit bigger. like a Hellfire missle with a 27lbs warhead on a six foot tube. What would that yield? By my calculations it would yield at least 4 times the amount for power, with no new tech.

Just because the writers wrote it, don't make it so.

Shaggrat


 * I only glanced through this, but I will reply to some of what you wrote anyway. First, Klingons had photon torpedoes as early as the 22nd century; in 2151, an away team from discovered that the IKS Somraw was equipped with photon torpedoes, although they (including Malcolm Reed) had no idea what type of weapons they were. The torpedoes were subsequently used to help the Somraw escape from the clutches of a gas giant. Secondly, in reply to your final comment, since this is a canon encyclopedia, if the writers wrote it, then that makes it so. You may not agree with what they wrote (I don't some of the times myself), but them's the rules of the game, my friend. --From Andoria with Love 21:43, 26 October 2006 (UTC)