Vehicle:Monitor/Weapon1

The weapon classified IMPOSE STILLNESS is a Monitor-scale ion weapon, the Ion Pulse Cannon. Like other ion weapons, its function is to disable the systems of opposing ships, leaving them vulnerable to attack. However, where other ion weapons are directed-energy weapons, the IPC is one of the few examples of an undirected-energy weapon. It fires in a single, massive, omnidirectional pulse, unleashing an expanding sphere of charged particles to envelop every ship within range. No amount of maneuvering in realspace can evade the blast, unless one flies directly away from the pulse fast enough to escape it. The weapon leaves ships of all sizes dead in space, easy prey for a Monitor.

Fortunately for prospective enemies, the ion pulse cannon is only mounted on Monitors, which also appear to be the only Motive ships capable of withstanding the blast -- the weapon is truly indiscriminate. It is also possible to "dodge" the pulse by jumping into hyperspace before the wave arrives and re-emerging behind it, though attempting such a short-range jump has its own inherent hazards. The main weakness of the ion pulse cannon, however, is the simple fact that its omnidirectional nature means the particles constituting its discharge spread out over a distance, rendering it increasingly less effective as range increases.