Weapon Classes

Weapon Class refers to the different tech used for weaponry. Divided between Projectile, Energy, and Special categories, each weapon category is effective against different kinds of armour and protection, but may still have the same per-hit energy output as a weapon of the same size and a different category.

Note that this covers ranged weapons. Melee weapons, while using similar categories, are quite different in their tech levels and are covered here.

Projectile
Projectile weapons use some kind of propulsion or accellerating force to throw out a solid item or some kind of micro-warhead. The difference between projectile weapons and combined-tech weapons is that combined-tech weapons combine energy and projectile into the attack, while projectile weapons merely throw out the solid projectile.
 * String-fired - One of the oldest forms of weapon known to any sapient species, string-fired projectiles use a flexible object laced with a tight string that is then pulled back, or uses a system of pulleys, ropes, and other simple tech, to launch a projectile of varying length or scale. The most well-known form of this weapon is the bow, though crossbows and larger siege engines such as catapults or trebuchets.
 * Spring - An intermediate step between string and chemical weapons, spring weapons use high-tension springs to throw a projectile at high speeds. While not as powerful as most ballistic weapons, they are incredibly reliable and simple to fabricate.
 * Chemical - An incredibly broad category, chemically propelled weapons exist very early in development and well beyond even the development of all but the most advanced weapons. These weapons use a chemical reaction to propel a projectile or warhead. The sheer versatility of these weapons have them seen use across all tech levels, as the simple physics of throwing a solid object at high velocities has very few counters, and in cultures rife with energy weapons and shielding, many are unprepared for projectiles. Plus, most of these weapons are unaffected by electromagnetic weaponry that would disable electronic components.
 * Gyro - Technically a more advanced form of chemical propulsion, Gyro weapons are specialised in that they are able to be used in non-atmospheric environments. Rather than using a canister or caseless ammunition that uses a reaction force to effectively throw a solid projectile forwards, gyro weapons use small-scale rockets or other propulsion systems that keeps the projectile moving. Gyro weapons are usually sufficiently advanced that the chambers used to propel them are sealed, so they can be triggered in zero-atmospheric environments.
 * Magnetic - One of the most advanced tech for projectiles, this tech uses a series of magnets to accelerate a ferromagnetic element (such as iron, steel, Adamantium, and so forth) or a warhead made with a ferromagnetic coating, at incredible speeds. By principle, magnetically-propelled weapons are a lot longer than most chemical or gyro weaponry, as they need the distance to propel the weapon, and an improperly shielded mag-launcher may cause nearby ferromagnetic objects to be launched as well, but the sheer force and possible scale of the projectiles more than make up for it. Technically classified into two distinct forms, Railguns (which have the projectile moving along a rail system - these are more powerful but harder to maintain) and Coilguns (which have the projectile suspended through the barrel - these are more complicated and less powerful but much more reliable) The weapon class may use Rail, Mag, Coil, or Gauss as a prefix. Primitive Magnetic weapons also run the risk of overheating or warping the more they are used from the heat of the projectile moving, especially with Railguns.
 * Mass Driver - The most advanced form of projectile technology, Mass Drivers combine the principles of Magnetic weapons with Gravity weapon technology to propel a solid mass at similar or greater speeds than most Magnetic weapons. This weapon type is much more stable than Magnetic weapons and can propel non-ferromagnetic materials, but requires understanding of gravity manipulation.
 * Metaelemental Weapons - While they may be inherently similar to other weapons, these weapons are of a tier of their own for using particular elements. For reasons unknown, Rakad-steel or Rakadmantium, or any weapon constructed with Rakadium elements, seem to be a lot more powerful than weapons made with regular steel or Adamant-steel. Projectiles using certain equivalent metaelements to conventional element projectiles tend to have more punch or output.

Energy
Energy weapons forgo projecting a solid mass towards their opponent, and instead focus intense light or ionised matter toward the target. Unlike projectile weapons, which tend to have similar effects for similar scale strikes, energy weapons have a much clearer scale of damage but equal scale of difficulty of construction and maintenance.
 * Flame - Fire has been part of most sapient societies for millenia, and has easily been weaponised. Flamethrowers throw gouts of flammable chemicals outwards, coating the target in intense flames, and as a spray weapon is able to get through cover. However, it has short range and primitive versions of flamethrowers are dangerous to wield, as large canisters of explosive gas or liquid are exposed to enemy attacks.
 * Electric - Electric weapons ionize gas into an offensive attack, effectively creating lightning, and/or cause a burst of electromagnetic energy that causes additional affects. Electrical weapons are notoriously difficult to control, and usually are short-ranged but quite dangerous. Electrical weapons, in particular electromagnetic ones, also have the additional effect of causing instabilities to improperly-shielded electronics, shorting out computers and advanced weaponry.
 * Radiation - Radiation is another fundamental principle, though it does require a certain understanding to utilise. Primitive radiation weapons are large-scale explosives propelled chemically, though these are more devastating explosive weapons and radiation damage is merely a lingering effect. Radiation-launching weapons are quite sophisticated and difficult to make in a way that doesn't cause lasting damage to the user and anything that isn't the target of the weapon.
 * Laser - Laser weapons focus light in such intense power that it is able to cause damage. Properly designed laser weapons are also quite reliable (just under certain ballistic weapons) and pose almost no danger to the user, and are generally equivalent to most firearms of the same scale.
 * Thermal - A strange sort of mix between Laser and Plasma, Thermal weapons channel intense heat into a beam, imparting a considerable amount of energy into a single direction. While short-ranged, it is more stable than Plasma and has more energy than Laser weapons.
 * Plasma - Plasma weapons fire bolts of ionised gas or superheated matter (reaching the state of plasma, hence the name). Notoriously temperamental but very dangerous, and difficult to maintain, and only become mainstay weapons if the tech level is sufficiently high. Usually, Plasma bolts are blue, though other colour variations do exist based on temperature.
 * Fusion - Fusion weapons use advanced scientific principles to direct fusion energy into an opponent, causing massive damage. While far less dangerous to the user if poorly maintained, fusion weapons are very complicated to manufacture and generally used by only the most advanced tech levels.
 * Gravity - Gravity weapons utilise gravidic technology in a weaponised form. Most gravidic weapons are massive concussion wave projectors, focussing anti-grav repulsion into a narrow channel. Some, usually more advanced, are able to create temporary crushing forces or singularities in a local area, and a rare few weapons can create a beam of devastating forces.

Special
Special weapon types have properties that don't quite fit into the other category types. Most of them are usually combinations of projectile and energy, utilising both kinetic impact and energy to enhance their damage, while others are altogether much more esoteric.
 * Particle - Particle weapons fire a high-density mass of particles surrounded in a field of energy. The particles are close to plasma in form, but are much more condensed and fired at higher velocities, and the energy field is a combination of acceleration force and the plasma returning to a less-condensed state. The combined effect makes Particle weapons excellent against most forms of defence, shorting out or bypassing energy fields and burning through physical protection. However, they are energy-draining and quite difficult to manufacture compared to Plasma.
 * Antimatter - Similar to Particle weapons, Antimatter weapons are similar in that it is a core of solid matter surrounded by an energy field. However, in the case of Antimatter weapons, the core is an incredibly small amount of Antimatter, and the energy field is a containment field that prevents the Antimatter from detonating prematurely, the containment field breaking upon impact. While it has less penetration than Particle weapons and is both complicated to design and extremely dangerous to build, Antimatter weapons cause such intense damage over a large enough area that they are still quite effective.
 * Concussion - Concussion weapons are a particular form of gravity which essentially throws out a blast of concussive force outwards. Unlike most gravity weapons, concussion weapons are actually a lot simpler to manufacture, and some have been known to be made from repurposed gravplates or even more primitive materials.
 * Sonic - Sonic weapons use the principles of soundwaves in a weaponised form. Some combine this with Concussion to create a constant barrage of noise and force, while others simply channel sound in such intensity that it causes discomfort or even physical harm.
 * Rotation - Rotation weapons are so incredibly rare and requires an understanding of principles so abstract and uncommon that very few have managed to make any. Most Rotation weapons are actually augments infused with Spinite, which allows the users to channel their own Rotation energy into cybernetic limbs, and even fewer are equipped weaponry which allows the user to channel their Rotation energy into a short-ranged and somewhat less effective projectile attack. Only a few weapons exist that allows a user to fire Rotation energy in a ranged format without having to have Rotation already, and these are are rare and fragile as a large portion of the weapon is made from the notoriously delicate Spinite and powered by an exceedingly rare Rotation crystal. As with Rotation itself, Rotation weapon power is directly tied to the user's willpower.
 * Bolt - Bolt weapons are very powerful and rare weapons. Bolt weapons use a combination of Particle, Gravity, and incredibly rare Dimensional technology. They work by channeling energy from energy-rich microdimensions, either pre-existing or created, into a solid and condensed projectile, and uses gravidic manipulation to propel said particles at incredibly high speeds and to keep the projectile from expanding. These projectiles are able to reach near-light speeds and can breach through shields and armour with ease, and frequently (or always depending on tech) cause a massive burst of concussive and thermal energy upon penetration. The main manufacturers of Bolt weapons are the Ascended, though much more primitive, unstable, and rare versions exist in civilizations that understand dimensional tech.