Difference between revisions of "Particle Projection Cannons"

Latest revision as of 07:18, 8 November 2024

Particle Projection Cannons, most commonly referred to as PPCs, are the energy weapon equivalent of a Gauss rifle. Unlike Lasers, which fire energy beams, the PPC fires high-energy ion bolts.

Overview

PPC - Particle Projector Cannon (Std)

There are six different PPC weapons in MWLL varying in range, damage and heat output. In addition of damage done to hit component, the PPC bolts 'explode' in contact causing splash damage to all components inside the splash radius.

The "standard" PPC is only used by Inner Sphere units and the Extended Range version differs from it only by having longer range and slightly increased heat output. The Clan ERPPC has the same range as its Inner Sphere counterpart, but does about 35% more damage in exchange for almost 70% more heat.

The Heavy and Light PPC are only used by IS units. Heavy PPC has a slightly shorter range than the standard IS PPC, but is capable of dealing massive damage - twice that of a regular or Extended Range IS PPC. However, this is balanced out by the immense heat it generates, as well as having longer recharge time. The Light PPC is a smaller version of the standard PPC having a shorter 450 meter range while damage is about half of the PPC.

The BA PPC can be carried by any Battle Armor and is frequently used weapon of dedicated infantry players.

In addition to simply dealing damage, PPCs are capable of causing screen shake, making it possible to throw off the enemy's aim with well-timed shots. Generally the heavier the PPC, the more shake it causes. the PPC ion bolts also cause EMP effect, which can disable target's night vision, and also disable any attached NARC beacons. Because PPCs deal splash damage this EMP effect can be useful for disabling NARC beacons on yourself or friendly units by carefully applying the EMP splash to the NARCed unit, while dealing little other damage. NARC beacon will be disabled only if the splash damage reaches the Mech's center torso.

Weapon Stats

Gameplay & Hints

• Like with all weapons capable of causing screen shake, it's often advantageous to chain fire the PPCs
• Although often not too useful against BAs jump jetting in the air, the PPCs can be effective against BA on the ground, where the large splash radius helps hitting them. Even if the BA survives the hit, its HUD will be disabled for some time, seriously hampering the ability to fight.

PPC, (C)ERPPC

• Compared to Gauss Rifles, the PPC bolts have slower speed (~1850 m/s vs. 2500 m/s) making it somewhat harder to hit fast moving targets like ASFs

HPPC

• The HPPC generates a lot of heat, if one's asset has a temperature much exceeding 350° C, it will overheat when the HPPC is fired. To avoid this, the pilot may use some coolant. Alternatively, if the asset has enough Heat Sinks, is on a cold map with high heat conductivity, or is standing in water, then overheating might not cause very much damage to its heat sinks and it may be prudent to save the coolant for another time.
• The massive splash radius almost lets you ignore an opponent's torso-twisting. It can easily damage the left/right torso from the opposite side, and can sometimes hit the back torso when firing at the front of a mech (and vice-versa).

BA mPPC

• The BA PPC is a dedicated infantry weapon, meaning that it cannot be taken inside any vehicle other than an APC.
• Because the weapon recoil throws the battle armor back when it is fired, it can double as a means of faster travel by jumping up and firing in the direction opposite of the intended direction of travel.

Canon

The first PPC was introduced by the Terran Hegemony in 2460 and quickly became a favorite "Big Gun" of many 'Mechs. Although they had targeting difficulties under 90 meters, since the particle fields were deliberately inhibited at such short ranges to avoid accidental damage to the firing unit as a result of unfocused static discharge. Because of their range, punch, and lack of dependency of ammunition they quickly became a favorite of lighter 'Mechs which couldn't fit a heavier Gauss Rifle or AC20.

By 2760 the Terran Hegemony had improved upon the design, releasing the ER PPC. In addition to having an improved range this weapon also solved the minimum range problem, making it just as effective under 90 meters as it was at longer distances. Unfortunately this came at a cost of higher heat, producing 50% more than the already hot-running PPC. Debuting just 7 years before Stefan Amaris launched his coup on the Star League, like most advanced weapons the ER PPC was lost during the Succession Wars which would follow (in 2860) although the Clans would refine and improve on the design, eventually having it replace the standard PPC completely in 2820.

The Draconis Combine managed to retrieve the knowledge to produce ER PPC's from the Helm Core, reintroducing them to the Inner Sphere in 3037, just in time for the war of 3039. By the time of the Clan Invasion ER PPC had spread to the other Successor States as well and was in broad production with Ceres Arms, Defiance Industries, and Johnston Industries being the chief producers.

More recently the Draconis Combine has introduced several new PPC variants (all in 3067). The Heavy PPC has the range of a standard PPC, but manages to match the damage dealt by the Clan ER PPC. This unfortunately also comes with the heat increase and also results in a heavier, more bulky weapon. The Light PPC is a move in the opposite direction, making the standard PPC lighter and more compact, resulting in a cooler running if less powerful weapon. Finally there is the Snub Nosed PPC, which originated as a Star League-era experiment to "overcharge" a standard PPC in order to gain the same power from a reduced weapon size. The result was a weapon which lost effect over range and lost much of its reach, however it had a much improved minimum range envelope.

Unlike MWLL, canon PPC's are not an EMP weapon, amounting to little more than a burst of static which harms enemy units through kinetic and thermal stressing.

BattleTech reference

Usage

The following assets equip PPCs: