Personally, my vote also goes to the phase turret. I will briefly explain why I am voting for phase turrets by writing up my opinion on the other turret types.
Blaze Turrets
These are the basic weapons of EVO, available from an early stage and, at first glance, a very deadly weapon indeed. The range on them may not been incredible, but the rate of fire easily makes up for that lack, and you'll notice how much faster it fires than the neutron turret, and how much more it tends to hit.
Sure, blaze turrets are lacking in the damage department, and the range department, but they are cheap, a point most people seem to forget, reliable, as unlike phase turrets they don't have that nasty problem when targets are sitting right on them, and don't take up too much space, which is absolutely vital in many situations, as it gives you room for other upgrades. Also, blaze weapons fire in a spray, allowing you to sometimes hit multiple targets or hit one very fast one, such as an Azdara or Crescent Fighter.
However, blaze turrets really aren't the best in some other ways. On an unimportant scale, those red blasts look very basic and ugly, and they make a sound that quickly gets on your nerves, especially when going up against the Voinian Dreadnought. Also, they really do like the same punch as other weapons, and on slower ships you'll find yourself constantly out of range of targets. Blaze turrets are good for beginners and seasoned veterans who are out fighting Voinian fleet ships, but allround they just don't match up to some other weapons.
Rated 7/10
Neutron Turrets
The "next weapon up", as some people who have recently purchased Escape Velocity Override and have played the prequel Escape Velocity may think, and in some ways they are right. Neutron weaponry is derived from a militaristic race, arguably more advanced than humanity and clearly more advanced than the Emalghans, and it is therefore more powerful in brute damage.
However, like all aspects of Escape Velocity Override, it is not a completely clear thing. Neutron turrets are not really as accurate as they appear if you look at the accuracy information, as they fire too slow. Experienced fighter pilots can easily dodge individual neutron blasts, as I'm sure Ankh Starruner did when he defeated the Voinian Dreadnought in a Krait, unless he used the Monty Python. Also, the main problem with neutron weaponry is that they take up too much space. When I first saw that the neutron cannon took up a huge 15 tons I was amazed. That is far too much space, and they also cost far too much.
When you look slightly deeper, however, and think about neutron turrets en masse, you have a more than respectable force. Neutron turrets can smash through anything, and they are the only weapon in the game that can cause so much destruction to anything they come across. Blaze weapons are weaker, and phase and Emalgha weaponry is only effective against certain races. Neutron weapons will help you in any situation, no matter what. When you have four or five neutron turrets, the accuracy problem no longer exists as you are firing extremely quickly, and on a final note that little "pop" sound they make is far less annoying than the blaze cannons roaring.
Rated 8/10
Emalgha Turrets
What can I say? These turrets merely propel shards of metal, and are thus effective against armoured ships, such as Voinian craft. They were designed by a race not even ready for space travel, so no-one can expect them to be powerful.
On the other hand, those Emalgha turrets can seriously tear through Voinian fleet ships. The damage they do is spectacular, and when armed with a number of these turrets even the feared Voinian Dreadnought becomes a more managable target.
There are many more cons than pros, however. For one thing, against anything but Voinian vessels, which only account for about 20% or less of the entire galaxies ships, Emalgha turrets cause so little damage as to be truly pathetic. They can't even fire in a 360 degree arc, making them totally useless as targets, since you're getting only 1/2 the fire in each time two warships make a pass - you're firing only when you come head on, they're making Parthian shots as they move away with their back to you, meaning that not only does the Emalgha turret naturally do less damage, but it also has a halved damage in battle, making it extremely useless.
They also have mediocre firing rates, and less than mediocre range. They aren't particular good at anything, really, and aren't small enough considerably their firepower. The Emalgha turret is good at only one thing, and no doubt you'll only spend a small fraction of playing Escape Velocity Override fighting Voinian vessels. Even then, it's better to stick with more conventional weapons, like blaze weapons.
Rated 4/10
Phase Turrets
The beautiful phase turret, sleek bolts of energy, designed over hundreds of years by a race that is by far the most advanced in the galaxy - the people of Gadzair. A weapon that, quite obviously, made nearly a whole third of the galaxy free of other races, as that space is now colonized by those who followed the remnants of Gadzair, known as the Strand Races, is free of any other race but them, it seems.
Phase turrets offer you so much firepower. They can pull down human and Emalgha ships within seconds, and you'll find yourself constantly thinking that Crescent ships have lower shields if you enter Miranu space and buy phase weapons straight away. Everybody knows that phase weapons can cause true devastation.
When it comes to range they reign supreme. The mighty Igazra can fire off screen, and other ships, like the Lazira, can come close. With that range advantage you are getting in around 30% more fire on each pass than blaze weaponry, which makes a huge difference. Also, phase weaponry has a full 360 degree angle of fire, and a fast firing rate making it very accurate.
Phase weapons can quickly disable a ship, where you'll find yourself firing blast after blast of neutron, Emalgha or blaze fire just to bring down a freighter. In a ship armed with phase weaponry you just hold down spacebar for a second and the freighter is disabled or destroyed, with neutron weapons you have to align your ship or fire away blindly for ages as the inaccurate bolts miss, and with blaze weapons your weapon damage is spread out over a range, meaning that a few of your blasts will miss completely.
Granted, phase weapons are expensive, and they suffer against Voinian ships, but that's only 20% of all ships, and for the other 80% or so you have a reliable, powerful weapon. Phase turrets are also fairly small.
The only major problem with phase turrets is that other ships can sit right on top of you and fire away, if they have blaze weapons, while you will be unable to fire. On the other hand, most people who use phase weaponry have fast enough ships to break out and waste their opponent.
Rated 9/10
SilverDragon
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"That's all very nice, but where's the guns?"
- SilverDragon
(This message has been edited by SilverDragon (edited 05-29-2001).)
