I have a question about the “stun” upgrade on weapons.

I have a question about the “stun” upgrade on weapons.

I have a question about the “stun” upgrade on weapons. It’s always seemed to me like its somewhat punishing to have it cost an upgrade, since its more like a sidegrade to me, as stunning an enemy can be better than killing them, but isn’t always. As well, some weapons make sense to have the stun tag and another tag (namely how they stun), like Chemical, Concussive, or Shock. But a taser doesn’t really strike me as a class 2 weapon, even though it would be Stun/Shock. Any opinions that can help me wrap my mind around this?

7 thoughts on “I have a question about the “stun” upgrade on weapons.”

  1. Weapons are dangerous. Even in real life we have a lot of difficulty making non-lethal weapons.

    If you’re making a Taser, it’s actually more like it has stun/shock but then has a downgrade of needing to be tethered and have both leads make contact. So it has a flaw, which we can assume drops it to class one.

  2. Gas grenade. Like, a gas grenade launcher. The rules seem to say that should be class 3 (Launcher, Chemical, Stun) but that seems a little odd to me

  3. I feel like you’re having an issue with rule minutiae that doesn’t need to be there. If you feel like a given weapon at Class 3 shouldn’t be a Class 3, then make it a Class 2 and move on.

  4. I’d point out that the Stun upgrade provides a vanilla incapacitation effect. It’s a nimbus of disruptive energy that knocks out living targets. It’s entirely possible for a Chemical, Shock or Concussive weapon to also incapacitate (“stun”) someone in a different way, but (and this is important) it will also have different potential applications and different potential consequences.

    Shock weapon could likely stun someone, but without a Stun upgrade the Shock weapon doesn’t have an inhibitor that prevents it from frying the victim or causing brain damage. Applying just enough shock will be tricky (and a 7-9 might cause… well… bacon)

    A gas grenade might incapacitate, but the way it does so is very different from a stunner, making it useless against foes with gas-masks/Sealed attire (conversely, Stunners can easily stun through such armor, but will likely have trouble against Shielded attire).

    Concussive… well, yes, theoretically, but usually only if the armor they’re wearing absorbs most of the bone-breaking force.

    Through situational descriptions, you definitely can stun someone. The Stun upgrade is just the safest and most efficient way of doing so.

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