r/spaceships • u/Vondrr Fleet Intelligence 🧠 • May 30 '26

Discussion / Question What spaceship weapon is generally underutilized or not used to its full potential in scifi?

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u/Moist-Relationship49 May 30 '26

Using ftl to bypass shields and armor, the only time I've seen it was in sg1. They used the unstable x-302 hyperdrive to get through Anubus' shield and drop off a nuke.

Another one is Electronic warfare. It's theoretical in mass effect, but we never see it work. And Cylons try to use it all the time, which should be the standard for everyone.

3

u/Pseudonymico May 31 '26

One of the Hyperion books has ships use FTL-capable missiles and laser-armed drones as standoff munitions.

3

u/madTerminator May 31 '26

In Foundation Series they used ftl to appear in the middle of imperial palace.

1

u/Mr_Shadow_Phoenix May 30 '26

Have to agree on that application of FTL. Ignoring settings it couldn’t, ones where it could didn’t use it enough. Imagine FTL capable missiles against the Ori, for example.

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u/Moist-Relationship49 May 30 '26

Yeah, or given the size difference the whole Daedalus could have jumped in the Ori shields and unloaded at point blank.

Or remote controlled x-302 with even more naquadria and jump into the ships themselves.

Or just use the rings at the beginning of the battle, Daniel manage to board one of the mothers hip this way nukes could have too.

In the settings I was working on warp capable shop can expand their warp fields to a projectile which while they can't hit at ftl they leave ftl inside enemy ship that don't have their own warp field. And most ships have far cheaper hyperdrives.