D&D General How would you describe a laser rifle in d&d?

[HammerMan]

”A magical crossbow that shoots Scorching Ray instead of bolts”

yeah maybe I would go more light/radiant... but something like this.

My biggest pet peeve was a 2e DM did this with a (then) modern M16 and said we couldn't figure out how to hold or fire it... i was like "Um, like a heavey cross bow. Should stock, handle, trigger"

 

[Jer]

I'd probably go with making it a magic wand that fires burning light. At least as the initial description in the heat of battle. Once they get their hands on one they can see the "crossbow trigger" on the base and maybe realize it's not a magic wand but a "magic crossbow" instead. Though figuring out what the trigger is for when there's no bowstring might present a puzzle.

I assume that the players would figure it out quick, but maybe not.

 

[Oofta]

The reason we think of lasers looking like modern day assault rifles is because it's what we associate with weapons of war. Advanced technologies could just as easily be head mounted, they appear to shoot lasers out of their eyes. On closer inspection, they wear an odd helmet and the eyes are completely covered. Unfortunately you have no way of knowing how to initiate the neural link that make these work.

But they could be just about anything. Although I think they look a bit dumb they could just look like staves that fire bolts of energy ala Stargate. They could be handheld gizmos like Star Trek's hand held phasers. I think both are a bit silly because the standard design of firearms gives you sights and is comfortable, so you have to decide what esthetic you're going for if they are manually aimed instead of using thought targeting like above.

As others have stated, if you're going with a more traditional weapon look I'd describe them as traditional crossbows with no bow or ammunition. The material can be just about anything you whish. It could be metallic, it could be some kind of composite. If the latter I'd probably describe it as a mix of some type of polished ceramic with other parts looking like a smooth grained wood that has been painted. It's odd material though and impervious to any attempts to scratch.

I'd also consider making them "intelligent" with a basic AI, you need the proper command sequence to activate them. No amount of tinkering will get them to work for you if you don't know the activation codes.

 

[Jer]

Also just for my own curiosity - are you planning on making the kopru alien invaders rather than Undersea dwellers?

I have a solo player doing a survival game on the Isle of Dread right now and the idea you just gave me of mashing up Isle of Dread with Expedition to the Barrier Peaks and having the kopru temple be a crashed spaceship might be too good for me to ignore...

 

[HammerMan]

The reason we think of lasers looking like modern day assault rifles is because it's what we associate with weapons of war. Advanced technologies could just as easily be head mounted, they appear to shoot lasers out of their eyes. On closer inspection, they wear an odd helmet and the eyes are completely covered. Unfortunately you have no way of knowing how to initiate the neural link that make these work.

But they could be just about anything. Although I think they look a bit dumb they could just look like staves that fire bolts of energy ala Stargate. They could be handheld gizmos like Star Trek's hand held phasers. I think both are a bit silly because the standard design of firearms gives you sights and is comfortable, so you have to decide what esthetic you're going for if they are manually aimed instead of using thought targeting like above.

in my own games I like the star trek route cause it takes longer to figure out... now I don't just take a type 1 or 2 phaser, but something just off... built into gloves (like ironman or like booster gold) works too.

 

[DEFCON 1]

The sad part is... with what magic can accomplish in D&D, a laser rifle isn't actually that impressive. A crossbow that fires a cleric's Guiding Bolt spell. Been there, done that.

 

[Oofta]

in my own games I like the star trek route cause it takes longer to figure out... now I don't just take a type 1 or 2 phaser, but something just off... built into gloves (like ironman or like booster gold) works too.

The problem I have with some of those is quite simple. How do you aim? With Iron Man you can say that he can use his helmet's interface - that he targets what he's looking at and can zoom in if he needs to. But Star Trek TNG hand phasers? Try hitting a target with a laser pointer with any real accuracy. You'll get close if it's within a few feet, but beyond that? You're just in the neighborhood. A weapon that's "kinda close" generally isn't as effective. There's a reason we have sights on weapons along with scopes.

Speaking of scopes, that's another tidbit you could add. With advanced technology I'd also give them darkvision while looking through it and automatically zoom in on targets. Perhaps even some way of "marking" targets like you can in video games.

Even to day we could have "smart" weapons that can be only fired by the owner of the weapon (not going into the politics of why we don't). So it's up to the DM how easy it is to just pick up the weapon and use it.

 

[not-so-newguy]

Also just for my own curiosity - are you planning on making the kopru alien invaders rather than Undersea dwellers?

I have a solo player doing a survival game on the Isle of Dread right now and the idea you just gave me of mashing up Isle of Dread with Expedition to the Barrier Peaks and having the kopru temple be a crashed spaceship might be too good for me to ignore...

I'm still unsure of how to handle the Kopru. We're focused on the Rakasta right now. That sounds awesome though and I might want to go that route. (I know the basic premise of Barrier Peaks, but I don't own the module)

The sad part is... with what magic can accomplish in D&D, a laser rifle isn't actually that impressive. A crossbow that fires a cleric's Guiding Bolt spell. Been there, done that.

I'm 100% fine with that. I'm adding bomb shelters, laser rifles, and space goggles for the spectacle and flavor.

Like pineapple on pizza. You either hate it or you love it.

 

[HammerMan]

The problem I have with some of those is quite simple. How do you aim? With Iron Man you can say that he can use his helmet's interface - that he targets what he's looking at and can zoom in if he needs to. But Star Trek TNG hand phasers? Try hitting a target with a laser pointer with any real accuracy. You'll get close if it's within a few feet, but beyond that? You're just in the neighborhood. A weapon that's "kinda close" generally isn't as effective. There's a reason we have sights on weapons along with scopes.

I assume they are more tools (especially star trek that can cut or heat a rock like a fire) mixed with short range point and click weapons (yeah pistols have sights but not really the default use). Also this seems like we are WAY too into the weeds on realism when I talk about my pretend elf hunting a dragon impregnated by a cthulu like monster with a star trek phaser...

Speaking of scopes, that's another tidbit you could add. With advanced technology I'd also give them darkvision while looking through it and automatically zoom in on targets. Perhaps even some way of "marking" targets like you can in video games.

or even old style (if you are an old man like me) Infravision that always seemed more scifi then fantasy anyway.

 

[TaranTheWanderer]

I did laser rifles for a game I ran:

Crossbow stats:
Pistol (hand crossbow)
Rifle( crossbows)
Sniper rifle (heavy crossbow)

I removed the loading property and gave them a 10 round clip. They did radiant damage instead of piercing.

When the PCs looted, they ended up with a bunch of these but the 'rounds' were limited and they didn't have the know-how to create more ammo. They are awesome against vampires.