Heavy Thermic Lance

General Information

Heavy Thermic Lance
Size (h x w)	3 x 2
Weight	15
D. Threshold	20
Sale Price	$2,000
Research	Thermic Lance
Damage	150 Drill
Action	TU Cost	Accuracy
Attack	20%	160%
Manufacture Cost $20,000 Technician Hours 300 Workspace 3 Materials 2 Zrbite

Key Features
Melee range only
Pros		Cons
Can easily one hit the majority of alien units (even Lobstermen) Mind controlled units can't use it on your troops Can be a lifesaver in narrow passages during Cruiser Terror Missions, Colony Assaults and Artefact Sites		Medium damage per Time Unit consumption compared to Vibro Blade and Thermic Lance With 15 weight units heaviest of the 3 melee weapons and rather cumbersome for low strength soldiers Cannot destroy terrain

As is common practice with practically all weapons of alien design, to get more power out of something the most common solution is to just make it bigger. As a result, the Heavy Thermic Lance is the heaviest, largest and slowest drill weapon to date. On the bright side, it has the potential to produce enough power to put even the Sonic Cannon to shame.

The Heavy Thermic Lance becomes available for research after completing research on the Thermic Lance.

The tradition of the first two drills continues with the aliens not having a clue how to use these devices as weapons. Again the drills will not activate when pointed at an inanimate object like a wall.

The drill-based weapons were introduced in Terror from the Deep. They are the only forms of equipment to have no direct equivalents in the previous game, UFO: Enemy Unknown.

Usage notes

• Compared with the Thermic Lance and Vibro Blade at a total use of 60% Time Units, the Heavy Thermic Lance places second in terms of damage with a total of 450 damage (3 uses), while the Thermic Lance places last with only 440 damage (4 uses) and the Vibro Blade dealing most damage with 480 damage (6 uses).

• The inhuman power available to the wielder of a Heavy Thermic Lance is offset by the rather cumbersome weight of the device. At 15 weight units, it weighs as much as a Torpedo Launcher loaded with a Small Torpedo and just a bit less than a loaded Disruptor Pulse Launcher. As such, the Heavy Thermic Lance should only be distributed to strong soldiers who can handle it.

See Also

• Weapons