Can someone write a beam guide?

[Techercizer]

I'm getting very mixed results for these weapons when I use them. I've swept across 5 room segments and done 2 damage, and I've gone right down the middle of two rooms all the way through and done 1 damage. Can someone with a bit of beam experience tell me what they've learned about how these things hit?

[DarkTKnight]

well if they have a shield then most beams are useless.. you usually need a laser to pierce the beam or at least a missle to take out the shields.

So I usually run 2 burst lasers if I find them and a beam or a missle depending which I find.

So if it has 3 shields and you beam does 3 damage for each room then it will be useless. Just make sure your beam can do enough thru it.

[Unlucky Scarecrow]

The beams do damage per whole room, not just room segment. Also, as above poster said, shields will heavily decrease the damage they deal. It should be easy to hit at least three different rooms per shot, 4 is also somewhat common and 5 is rare but possible. Being able to land a solid beam hit after the shields are down can cause HUGE damage, with the best beam weapon (Glaive, 3 per room; at least that's the best I've found) and a very convenient room layout (5) dealing a whopping 15 damage at once.

It doesn't take the damage off in one big chunk though; just watch it tick down a couple points as a time as the beam moves across rooms. Also, the power of the beam can be affected mid-usage. The beam can be interrupted by damage to the weapons room or shields powering back on; likewise damage can go up if shield layers are removed while it is in use.

[Techercizer]

I know about shield usage and whatnot. What I want to know is how the game classifies a "whole room". How much of a room do I need to cross to do damage? I've gone around the fringes of 5 rooms, and gone straight through 100% 2 rooms, and only done damage for the first room; shields down and all that nonsense.

[Melacar]

Just a tiny segment, I find that if I aim a minibeam just right you can actually hit 4 rooms on some ships.

I suggest aiming for short corners and you can hit a regular 4-5 rooms, very rarely can you hit 6.

[Techercizer]

Just a tiny segment, I find that if I aim a minibeam just right you can actually hit 4 rooms on some ships.

I suggest aiming for short corners and you can hit a regular 4-5 rooms, very rarely can you hit 6.

As I've said, I have crossed 3-4 rooms with a beam weapon before and only received damage for the first room. Obviously there's more to it than what you're claiming.

[Melacar]

Where you going along the black borders or clipping corners?

[Techercizer]

Where you going along the black borders or clipping corners?

I clipped corners sometimes and bisected rooms other times. I never go along borders because I never know which room I'm on. Should I be doing that?

[Melacar]

No, I tried going along a black border once and it failed with no damage done to the ship, lemme play a game and take a quick screenshot with a minibeam.

[RynCage]

If you fire a beam and a ship manages to raise 1 block of sheilding in the middle of the attack, the damage will be reduced accordingly.

Beams are pretty simple and occasionally there is an in-game tip that explains how they work in better detail.
Every point of sheilding reduces a beams damage by 1.
Beams do a tick of damage for each room they touch. If you have a good eye for the hitboxes on rooms, you can do some mad damage with some practice.
Not much else to it.
I wouldnt know this for a fact, but id guess that the black borders to each "room" are actually a small empty space that divides them. if you shot exactly parallel along said lines you might end up doing no damage. But thats just speculation on my part.