Star Citizen Ship Weapons Guide

Ship combat in Star Citizen is truly fascinating, considering you already know which type of weapons are there for certain scenarios. Well, it isn’t a secret that the Star Citizen Verse is exceptionally versatile and there are a lot of mechanisms in the game to experience. Not to forget, the Verse is a dangerous place and you will have to depend on yourself and your precious ship at some spots.

For that reason, the knowledge about Ship Weapons is truly golden and essential to understanding the game. You will have to purchase some things, while other things are already provided to you in the game for you to use. To understand the Ship Weapons in Star Citizen, we have here an amazing Star Citizen Ship Weapons guide to help you understand the combat even more.

Various Weapons and their Size

There are various sizes when talking about the Ship Weapons in Star Citizen. These sizes are from Size 1 (S1) to somewhat around Size 7 (S7). The size of the weapon depends mainly on the ship type you currently have or are using. In case you don’t know what, a certain ship can accommodate in weaponry, you can check out Vehicle Loadout Manager.

Vehicle Loadout Manager

Through the MobiGlas you can open the Vehicle Loadout Manager which gives you details on your ship and also allows you to customize the ship loadout. Using this menu, allows you to check the details of ships related to weaponry.

Weapons Mount Types

There are three types of mounts for weapons in Star Citizen, namely;

1. Gimbaled

2. Fixed

3. Torrents

Gimbaled Mounts

Gimbaled Mounts, as the name suggests are mechanical mounts that stabilize the attached weapons controlled through the automatic onboard pilot or the manual man-held.

Because of these functionalities, the Gimbaled Mounts are exceptionally versatile and useful, as you can focus more on flying the vehicle, instead of worrying about weapons control.

For more accuracy, you can use the Manual Mount which enables the accuracy to improve even more. All in one, Gimbaled Mounts are perfect for beginners, allowing them to focus more on flying in combat.

Note: But, one thing to keep in mind is that Gimbal Accuracy Suffers above the SCM Speeds and you will have to sacrifice the size of the weapon to mount the Gimbal.

Fixed Mounts

The Fixed Weapons are attached directly to the ships and don’t have that great aim assistance. The assistance is only activated when our crosshair is very close to the target and you can fire at them.

On the good side, Fixed Mounts allow you to accommodate even the bigger-sized weapons easily. If the Hard Point is of Size 3, you can effortlessly use the Size 3 Weapon with that.

All in one, you are sacrificing the ease of use to gain higher damage in return. These mounts are also not in favor of the beginners, as skilled pilots mastered them with time and can use them accordingly.

Torrents Mounts

These Mounts are similar to the Gimbaled Mounts, but they shine in locking onto the target and their range of motion is enhanced than the Gimbaled Mounts. Torrents also suffer above the SCM Speeds.

There are two types of Torrents Mounts, one that comes with a Crew Gunner to Operate and the other with Automatic Operation. Here, we are talking about the automatically operated Torrent.

Types of Weapons

Star Citizen is changing with time, as new things are introduced by the developers, while old things are either removed or completely changed. Considering the state of Star Citizen as of now, there are two types of weapons we will discuss here in our Star Citizen Ship Weapons Guide.

1. Ballistic Weapons

2. Laser Weapons

Ballistic Weapons

Ballistic Weapons are ancient weapons that are also dependable. Just like we have Machine Guns in the real world, where bullets are fired from the fast-paced guns, the Ballistic Missiles work similarly.

Furthermore, there are certain improvements in the Ballistic Weapons, like the Explosive or Solid Projectile, they are unmatched in striking fear into the enemies.

Ballistic Weapons penetrate through the Shield to a certain degree, but the damage of the projectile is reduced. Well, it is a trade-off, if you want to fight against the fully shielded ships in Star Citizen.

One more benefit of Ballistic Weapons includes their low detection of IR and Electromagnetic Tracking Mechanisms. The reason behind them is their low power required to run and be the best choice for Stealth Ships or Missions.

Just like the name suggests, their main Drawback is that;

They are fed from the internal storage of the ship, just like the bullets. The Storage Space can always run dry and can be a drawback.

They are constantly required to rearm if you need to use them again and again. Therefore, they can be time-consuming and can sometimes the head aching of time-conscious players.

●     Ballistic Gatlings

Ballistic Gatlings are repeaters or chain guns that constantly fire rounds at enemies. They are much like the Machine Guns that fire rounds faster and used in Ships. They are quick-paced and therefore, are best to be used in situations where you don’t have to be pinpoint accurate.

You do require much more space in the Ship to contain more ammo for this weapon, as they tend to fully get emptied faster. The best use for these types of guns is at close range and on smaller ships, as you can damage the components of enemy ships with these high-velocity rounds.

You can clock the Ballistic Gatlings to increase the rate of fire, even more, resulting in less accuracy but faster close-range penetration of enemy ships.

The most popular models of Ballistic Gatlings include the Tactical System GT Series including S1 GT210, S2 GT215, and S3 GT2 220. For even bigger categories, the Apocalypse Arms Revenant in S4 makes things easier.

●     Ballistic Repeaters

Ballistic Repeaters come with larger caliber rounds but come with a medium rate of fire. This means that the Ballistic Repeaters in contrast to the Ballistic Gatlings do come with less fire speed but have more damage to the enemy ships.

The drawback of larger rounds is that they tend to take much more space in the Ship Cargo Space, while the Ballistic Gatling rounds take less space and allow for more ammo. In close to medium range, you can use these Ballistic Repeaters for Hit and Run, as you can run out of Ammo Real Quickly.

Just don’t engage in Extensive Combat and you are good to go with the Ballistic Repeaters. Further, you can damage the ship components and shields due to the high velocity of these weapons. Finally, you can overclock them for even better velocity, resulting in a Higher Rate of Fire, but your ammo runs out even quicker.

The most popular choice for Ballistic Repeaters includes the Behring Applied Technologies SW16 line, coming with the S1 SW16 BR1, S2 SW16BR2, and S3 SW16BR3.

●     Ballistic Cannons

The definition of Ballistic Cannons is hidden in the name itself. These are the cannons in the weapon category as they have a slower rate of fire, but deal tons of damage to enemies. When your job is to dismantle the ships quickly, you can use the Cannons and this paves a way for big combat games in Star Citizen.

For the Larger Ships, you can use these Ballistic Cannons easily, but for the agile ships, you can be in a lot of trouble. Ballistic Cannons come with larger projectiles that take a lot of time to get out of Ship Weapon, resulting in a dodge chance.

Because of the powerful shots, you can use these weapons for longer range and combat and ships with stronger armor.

The Ballistic Cannons further include a category of Mass Drivers that use the Rail Guns to proper projectiles Magnetically at the target. With that much energy, you can be easily tracked with Electromagnetic Tracking Mechanism, but the damage is astonishing in return.

One of the most prestigious Ballistic Cannons includes Sword Series by the Knight Bridge Arms including the S1 9 Series, S2 10 Series, and S3 11 Series. You can also go for the Gallenson Tactical System like the Tarantula GT870 Line or the ones from Klaus and Warner Sledge Series.

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●     Ballistic Scatterguns

These Weapons fire in a spray pattern, resembling the Shotgun. At close range, they truly shine because of multiple shots at once in bulk. While, for the long-range, they aren’t much suitable.

You can damage the components of enemy ships including thrusters in a single go and can be the best choice for close-range slower ships. These things are one of the most difficult weapons to use in the Ballistic Category as they require you to keep the thrusters on, close the range to enemies all the time, and shoot in a way that all the pallets hit the target.

Some of the famous choices are S1 Havoc, S2 Helion, and S3 Predator from the Apocalypse Series. All of these choices have exceptional damage but have lower ammo, making them effective for players that can end the dog fight faster than it started.

Laser Weapons

Moving forward to the futuristic weapons in Ships, these Laser Weapons are more on the Complex Side as they fire Superheated Energy Projectiles at the enemy Ships. Being super strong, they can deplete the Ship Armor within seconds.

The only drawback here is that the Ship Shields are made to cover the Laser Damage first, meaning when firing the Laser Weapons at the target, their shields will first get depleted then the damage to the body of the ship will start.

On the good side, you don’t have to worry about the Cargo Space or Ammo, as the weapon is directed from the Ship’s Power and doesn’t require anything else to work. Well, you do require an incredible amount of power and cost to work this out, but still, there isn’t that headache of worrying about your ammo.

Note: For the full Laser Weaponry Loadout, you need to make sure that your Ship has enough power in the Power Plant to work accordingly. If your Ship doesn’t provide enough power to the Laser, it becomes a hurdle in the way. For the Stealth Ships, it is recommended to stay away from Laser Weapons at all costs.

●     Laser Repeaters

These come with a faster to medium rate of fire and have somewhat average to decent velocity on rounds. Laster in general is great against shields but having faster rounds results in effortless depletion of small ship shields.

You can overclock the Laser Repeaters even further to enhance their Fire Rate, providing a big boost in the recharge time as well. Well, you do overheat much faster, but the rate of fire is incredibly enhanced.

In this category of Weapons, the best bet is Klaus and Werner CF series including the S1 CF117, S2 CF227, S3 CF337, S4 CF447, S5 CF557, and S6 CF667. Furthermore, you can also go for the Hurston Dynamics Attrition Line Laser Repeaters.

There are further various types of Laser Repeats like the;

Distortion Repeaters: These repeaters do the distortion damage, draining the power system from the impact and components start misworking. Most popular include Associated Science and Development XJ Series like S1 XJ1, S2 XJ2, and S3 XJ3.

Neutron Repeaters: These Repeaters fire Neutron Projectiles having more damage than the typical Laser Damage but the rate of fire is decreased and the chance of being tracked with EM is increased. Most popular include MaxOX NDB Line like the S1 NDB26, S2 NDB28, and S3 NDB30.

●     Laser Cannons

Just like the Ballistic Cannons, the Laser Cannons come with more energy person in exchange for a slower fire rate. Each shot is much stronger and when you place the shot well on enemies, you can kill the shields on enemies with few shots. Further, you can use these Laser Cannons to pass through that thick armor of Ships quite effortlessly.

Because of their slow speed, you can’t use them against agile fighters but work flawlessly against larger ships with a slower pace and thick armor. Most popular Laser Cannons include Behring Applied Technologies Manufacturers M series like the S1 M3A and all the in-between to S7 M9A.

You can also go for the Amon and Reese Omnisky series like S1 Omnisky 3 and all the in-between to S6 Omnisky 17. Lastly, if both of these are not in your favor, you can go for the Kroneg FL Line.

The deadliest Laser Cannon is from Kruger Intergalactic, named the Quarreler. This is a Size 3 Laser Cannon that has the most damage output in contrast to any other laser cannon.

There are four categories of Laster Cannons, namely;

Tachyon Cannons: They fire faster projectiles and instantaneously hit the enemy ship at a longer range. You can find them in Banu Defenders.

Plasma Cannons: These are the superheater version of Laser Cannons that hit plasma on enemy ships. You can find them mostly in the Vanduul.

Neutron Cannons: These Cannons fire the Neutron Projectiles at the target and come with incredible damage, but a slower rate of fire in return. MaxOx has these Nseries that make the best Neutron Cannons like S1 NN13 and S2 NN14.

Distortion Cannons: Distortion Cannons just drain the power from enemy components leaving them dry. You can find the best ones from Joker Engineering Sucker Punch Series. Other than that, you can find some good ones from Behring ECSD Distortion Cannon.

●     Laser Scatterguns

Just like the Ballistic Scatterguns that shoot like Shotguns, here are the Laster Scatterguns that fire Laser in a bulk. They are exceptionally good for close range and require a trained pilot to be used efficiently.

In contrast to the other Laser Weaponry, when you hit a target with all the lasers at once at close range, they take massive damage. The only downside is that they are useless in the long range and do pathetic damage in the medium range.

The best ones are made by Hurston Dynamics Dominance Line which is similar to the Hurston Dynamics Attrition Line. Furthermore, the different types of Laster Scatterguns are;

Plasma Scatterguns: These shoot super-heated Plasma on target, causing detonation on impact. Amon and Reese S3 Pyroburst Scatter gun is the best one to get for this type.

Distortion Scatterguns: They are a mix between cannon and repeaters, as they deal exceptional distortion damage, taking away the power from enemy ship components, and shutting them down. Preacher Armament S4 to S6 are the best Distortion Scatterguns to get.

Tips for Choosing Star Citizen Ship Weapons

1. For 1v1, it is always recommended to grab something with higher Damage and Rate of Fire like the Repeaters (Overclocked) or Gatling.

2. For the Support Role with your friends, you can bring cannons to take down bigger ships

3. Tailor the loadout depending on the current task you have. Always experiment with the Star Citizen Ship Weapons.

4. You can change the Weapon Convergence from the settings to have a better convergence at various ranges. For close combat or faster rate of fire, draw convergence inwards/closer and for ranged combat or slower rate of fire, draw the convergence outwards/further away.

Final Verdict

To defend oneself from the fierce enemy ships, it is always important to know which type of weapon will work flawlessly. For smaller/agile ships, there are different weapons and for the larger/slower ships there are different choices. It depends on you as well; some people favor mostly the close combat and some favor the ranged combat. Star Citizen has a variety of Ship Weaponry to choose from and they mostly cover all the play styles, coming with their set of drawbacks and benefits. Here we have the Star Citizen Ship Weapons Guide to help you understand all of this effortlessly in a single place, along with a few combat tips.