Difference between revisions of "Molotov cocktails"

Revision as of 10:00, 6 October 2022

Molotov cocktails are short ranged, thrown weapons that have a forced miss radius but deal flame damage and set a 3x3 "plus-shaped" (+) area on fire where they land.

Note that molotov cocktails, once equipped, can be thrown infinitely; they are not consumed by use.

Acquisition

Molotov cocktails can be crafted at a Machining table once the Machining research project has been completed. They require 25 Cloth, 80 Chemfuel and 6,000 ticks (1.67 mins) of work.

They can also be purchased from orbital pirate merchants and orbital combat suppliers, outlander faction bases, or obtained from the following raider kinds:

Raider Kind	Chance	Average Quality	Health
Grenadier	50%	Normal	70-230%

Summary

Molotov cocktails range and AoE

Molotov cocktails deal 10 Flame damage, with a very short range, moderate aiming time. The cocktail explodes on impact, affecting adjacent tiles in cardinal directions. Cocktails have a forced miss radius of 1.9 tiles. If unobstructed, they will always land within 1 tile of their targeted tile (including diagonals). The cocktails will not get any more or less accurate based on the skills or health of the thrower. Aiming time effects do still apply however.

Flame damage will possibly ignite pawns. The impact will create chemfuel puddles, which will then ignite and burn, causing general fires.^{[Puddle behavior?]} Pawns on fire will run wildly and are unable to attack.

Molotov cocktails are treated as proper weapons, so you can't wield another weapon. Each set of molotov cocktails can be thrown infinitely; they are not consumed by use. They are thrown like any shot, so cannot be used over walls and must have a direct line of sight. A circular zone will generate to indicate range, then another indicator with a circular center will become the aiming spot. The character cannot hold both the cocktails and another weapon at the same time.

When damaged with Flame damage^{[How much?]}, they may explode. The cocktails will spark and emit a hissing sound shortly before exploding some time later. The explosion deals 10 Flame damage in a 2.66 tile radius around itself.^{[Chemfuel puddles?]} They cannot be smelted in an electric smelter.

Molotov cocktails have no quality - every set of molotovs will have the same stats, regardless of the skill of the crafter.

Pyromaniac pawns equipped with molotov cocktails will have a +5 Pyromaniac has incendiary weapon mood buff.

Analysis

Combat

Molotovs are dubious in raw combat. Molotovs are better in a supporting role, being one of the few weapons that start fires - pawns that are on fire will stop attacking and run wildly, making them easy targets. However, using a grenade-type weapon without manual oversight is prone to vulnerable positioning, inefficiency against moving targets, and unwanted collateral damage. In addition, their low range makes friendly fire rather easy to do. Due to the forced miss, they can be a somewhat viable weapon for pawns with low shooting skill or health issues.

Fire becomes much less useful as you enter the mid- and lategame. Mechanoids are immune to fire, high-tech raiders start to wear more heat resistant apparel (which doesn't prevent ignition, just the damage), and there'll be too many tribespeople for a single blast to supress. Note that for humanoids, only phoenix armor will prevent guaranteed ignition, which raiders will not wear.

When throwing a cocktail down an 1-tile wide alley, a pawn can consistently throw a cocktail 4 tiles, not including the tile the pawn is standing on, without intersecting the two side walls. Beyond 4 tiles, there is a risk of hitting the wall and dropping short. This can be relevant to prevent friendly fire or damaging defenses during combat. Watch out when using these in place of frag grenades when melee blocking, as the fire can allow enemies to clip past your blockers, allowing them to surround the blockers or attack your backline.

Because it relies on fires, rain significantly diminishes its utility. Note that the game has a "firewatcher", and will automatically start rain if fires get too out of control.

As a Firestarter

Fire is very useful to dispose of flammable items, like corpses. Simply gather all unwanted items in a fireproof room (like using stone for walls and floor), draft a pawn, and throw the cocktail. Make sure to remove the Home Area around the room, so that pawns don't try and extinguish the fire. Molotovs throw faster and are significantly cheaper to produce than incendiary launchers, so are better for this purpose.

Fire may also be used to burn flammable structures and floors. Creating a wooden floor, luring and trappoing raiders in, and setting it on fire is a powerful, albeit costly tactic.

In extremely cold temperatures, fire can be a last resort in order to create heat. Use with extreme caution - fire can quickly go out of control, and temperatures easily get too hot. Typically, colonies with access to molotovs also have access to heaters.

Version history

1.0 - Received a crafting recipe.

Weapons

Melee | Neolithic: Breach axe • Club • Ikwa • Knife (Jade) • Spear

Medieval: Gladius • Longsword • Mace • Axe • Warhammer

Ultra: Eltex staff • Monosword (Persona) • Plasmasword (Persona) • Zeushammer (Persona)

Improvised: Beer • Elephant tusk • Thrumbo horn • Wood

Ranged | Neolithic: Greatbow • Pila • Recurve bow • Short bow • Flamebow

Industrial: Assault rifle • Autopistol • Bolt-action rifle • Chain shotgun • Heavy SMG • Launcher (EMP, Incendiary, Smoke, Toxbomb ) • LMG • Machine pistol • Minigun • Pump shotgun • Revolver • Sniper rifle

Spacer: Charge lance • Charge rifle

Consumables: Doomsday rocket launcher • Triple rocket launcher

Throwables: EMP grenades • Frag grenades • Molotov cocktails • Tox grenades

Mechanoid: Heavy charge blaster • Inferno cannon • Needle gun • Thump cannon • Beam graser • Charge blaster turret • Hellsphere cannon • Mini-flameblaster • Mini-shotgun • Slugthrower • Spiner • Toxic needle gun

Structures: Autocannon • Mini-turret gun • Mortar (Weapon) • Uranium slug cannon • Auto-mortar • Inferno cannon (Turret) • Light charge blaster • Mini-slugger • Tactical turret gun

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 == Summary ==
 [[File:Molotov cocktails.png|thumb|left|200px|Molotov cocktails range and AoE]]
-Molotov cocktails have very short range, moderate aiming time, and no delay before exploding on the target and 1 additional tile in each of the cardinal directions, causes {{P|Damage Base}} [[Damage types#{{P|Damage Type}}|{{P|Damage Type}}]] damage to targets in its area, possibly igniting them, and creating [[Filth#Chemfuel puddle|chemfuel puddles]] which will then ignite and burn.{{Check Tag|Puddle behavior?|Are there always 5 puddles, do they always ignite etc.}} Each set of molotov cocktails can be thrown infinitely; they are not consumed by use.
+Molotov cocktails deal {{P|Damage Base}} [[Damage types#{{P|Damage Type}}|{{P|Damage Type}}]] damage, with a very short range, moderate aiming time. The cocktail explodes on impact, affecting adjacent tiles in cardinal directions. Cocktails have a forced miss radius of 1.9 tiles. If unobstructed, they will always land within 1 tile of their targeted tile (including diagonals). The cocktails will not get any more or less accurate based on the skills or health of the thrower. [[Aiming time]] effects do still apply however.
-They are thrown with the same animation as of shooting, they cannot be used over walls and must have a direct line of sight. A circular zone will generate to indicate range, then another indicator with a circular center will become the aiming spot. The character cannot hold both the cocktails and another weapon at the same time.
+Flame damage will possibly ignite pawns. The impact will create [[Filth#Chemfuel puddle|chemfuel puddles]], which will then ignite and burn, causing general [[fire]]s.{{Check Tag|Puddle behavior?|Are there always 5 puddles, do they always ignite etc.}} Pawns on fire will run wildly and are unable to attack.
-Cocktails will always land within 1 tile of their targeted tile, including on the diagonal, unless the path of the cocktail intersects with a wall or object. This forced miss radius means that [[Skills#Shooting|Shooting]] skill and [[shooting accuracy]] of the grenadier is irrelevant. The cocktails will not get any more or less accurate based on the skills or health of the thrower. [[Aiming time]] effects do still apply however.
+Molotov cocktails are treated as proper weapons, so you can't wield another weapon. Each set of molotov cocktails can be thrown infinitely; they are not consumed by use. They are thrown like any shot, so cannot be used over walls and must have a direct line of sight. A circular zone will generate to indicate range, then another indicator with a circular center will become the aiming spot. The character cannot hold both the cocktails and another weapon at the same time.
-When throwing a cocktail down an 1-tile wide alley, a pawn can consistently throw a cocktail 4 tiles, not including the tile the pawn is standing on, without intersecting the two side walls. Beyond 4 tiles, there is a risk of hitting the wall and dropping short. This can be relevant to prevent friendly fire or damaging defenses during combat.
-When damaged with [[Damage Types#Flame|Flame]] damage{{Check Tag|How much?|Any damage? Below a certain threshold? What threshold?}}, they may explode. The cocktails will spark and emit a hissing sound shortly before exploding some time later. The explosion deals 10 Flame damage in a 2.66 tile radius around itself.{{Check Tag|Chemfuel puddles?|Does this explosion leave chemfuel puddles like throwing it will?}}
+When damaged with [[Damage Types#Flame|Flame]] damage{{Check Tag|How much?|Any damage? Below a certain threshold? What threshold?}}, they may explode. The cocktails will spark and emit a hissing sound shortly before exploding some time later. The explosion deals 10 Flame damage in a 2.66 tile radius around itself.{{Check Tag|Chemfuel puddles?|Does this explosion leave chemfuel puddles like throwing it will?}} They cannot be smelted in an [[electric smelter]].
 Molotov cocktails have no [[quality]] - every set of molotovs will have the same stats, regardless of the skill of the crafter.
-They cannot be smelted in an [[electric smelter]].
 [[Pyromaniac]] pawns equipped with molotov cocktails will have a {{+|5}} ''Pyromaniac has incendiary weapon'' mood buff.
 == Analysis ==
+===Combat===
 {{Stub|section=1}}
-A dubious combat weapon, accuracy is poor on moving targets and damage is slow over time. Molotovs are significantly cheaper to produce and fire faster than an [[incendiary launcher]], but have poor range and projectile speed.
+Molotovs are dubious in raw combat. Molotovs are better in a supporting role, being one of the few weapons that start fires - pawns that are on fire will stop attacking and run wildly, making them easy targets. However, using a grenade-type weapon without manual oversight is prone to vulnerable positioning, inefficiency against moving targets, and unwanted collateral damage. In addition, their low range makes friendly fire rather easy to do. Due to the forced miss, they can be a somewhat viable weapon for pawns with low shooting skill or health issues.
+Fire becomes much less useful as you enter the mid- and lategame. [[Mechanoid]]s are immune to fire, high-tech raiders start to wear more heat resistant apparel (which doesn't prevent ignition, just the damage), and there'll be too many tribespeople for a single blast to supress. Note that for humanoids, only [[phoenix armor]]{{RoyaltyIcon}} will prevent guaranteed ignition, which raiders will not wear.
+When throwing a cocktail down an 1-tile wide alley, a pawn can consistently throw a cocktail 4 tiles, not including the tile the pawn is standing on, without intersecting the two side walls. Beyond 4 tiles, there is a risk of hitting the wall and dropping short. This can be relevant to prevent friendly fire or damaging defenses during combat. Watch out when using these in place of [[frag grenades]] when melee blocking, as the fire can allow enemies to clip past your blockers, allowing them to surround the blockers or attack your backline.
-As with all Flame damage, it will ignite basically any non-mechanoid target that it successfully damages because a [[Flammability]] of under 30% is needed to prevent guaranteed ignition, and this is only present on mechanoids, who are immune to Flame damage anyway, and pawns wearing [[phoenix armor]]{{RoyaltyIcon}} which does not spawn on enemy pawns. Note that is ''damages'', and not hits. As such, good heat armor, such as from [[devilstrand]] or [[hyperweave]] clothes, can make this significantly less reliable by negating the damage. A mitigation will not prevent ignition however.
+Because it relies on fires, [[rain]] significantly diminishes its utility. Note that the game has a "firewatcher", and will automatically start rain if fires get too out of control.
-Watch out when using these in place of [[frag grenades]] when melee blocking, as the fire can allow enemies to clip past your blockers, allowing them to surround the blockers or attack your backline.
+===As a Firestarter===
+Fire is very useful to dispose of flammable items, like [[corpse]]s. Simply gather all unwanted items in a fireproof room (like using stone for walls and floor), draft a pawn, and throw the cocktail. Make sure to remove the Home Area around the room, so that pawns don't try and extinguish the fire. Molotovs throw faster and are significantly cheaper to produce than [[incendiary launcher]]s, so are better for this purpose.
-Good for disposing of corpses or equipment rapidly, though be aware of flammability of nearby flooring and walls; using a large, natural area of [[rough stone]] as your disposal zone is handy and safe.
+Fire may also be used to burn flammable structures and floors. Creating a wooden floor, luring and trappoing raiders in, and setting it on fire is a powerful, albeit costly tactic.
-One way to defend a base using molotovs is to drop some on stone floors/walls so that enemies have a difficult time getting in and are "softened" when passing through the flame, without burning the base itself.
+In extremely cold temperatures, fire can be a last resort in order to create [[temperature|heat]]. Use with extreme caution - fire can quickly go out of control, and temperatures easily get too hot. Typically, colonies with access to molotovs also have access to [[heater]]s.
 == Version history ==