Soft targets seem to fare better initially against the weapon in �laser only� mode. While it is obviously very painful to be hit, it is neither necessarily immediately lethal nor debilitating. Serina survives long enough to be lifted back to the life center before dying (LG), and while Bojay was in obvious pain, would probably have been able to mount an effective last stand after being shot in the leg (LL). The beam cauterizes the immediate tissue of contact, so while severed or nicked arteries will still bleed profusely (what apparently happened to Bojay), muscle wounds will bleed very little. However, extensive tissue damage around the wound due to �cooking� could cause even relatively mild wounds to become life threatening due to chemical imbalances that may result, leading to potential organ failure.
The chemical reaction that generates the laser also generates an exhaust gas. This gas is extremely dangerous (hydrogen fluoride, perhaps radioactive due to the solium component, which dissolves readily in water to form hydrofluoric acid. If the fumes are breathed, the compound will dissolve into the water in the lungs�you figure out the rest�) and must be sent through an intercooler and then a scrubber that breaks it down into harmless components. The gas is then ejected out the front of the weapon at considerable velocity, resulting in tangible recoil.
Soft Target Mode: Given the lasers� performance against soft targets, there is a need for a weapon that can deliver a more immediately debilitating strike. To meet this need, the Colonial weapon incorporates an ionic plasma projector. This utilizes part of the hydrogen in the fuel cartridge, ionizes it, spins it in a magnetic cyclotron, and heats it to a plasma state using radio waves. The plasma is then ejected out the front of the gun just behind the laser pulses (with a potential velocity of up to 8000 mps for the beam of plasma, there is no discernable time lag between laser beam and plasma beam). In doing so the plasma ignites the waste gasses of the laser shot (the yellow/white halo). The plasma remains coherent after leaving the confines of the magnetic containment by riding down the ionized tunnel begun by the passage of the laser through the air and augmented by the plasma�s rotational velocity and bias (this is the red beam we sometimes see). Alfv�n de-tuning keeps recoil manageable for plasma shots. Upon striking the target, the plasma adds to the damage caused by the laser beam through thermal, impact, and superficial radiation trauma.
It should be noted that this mode of operation is only truly viable in an atmosphere, and if used in a vacuum will result in a cloud of expanding and rapidly cooling plasma. Total range in a vacuum is no more than five meters with an effective range of less than two meters.
Stun Mode: Lastly, the laser utilizes both of these mechanisms in generating a stun effect. By effectively placing a �step-down� filter in place, the effective laser energies are lowered to (usually) non-lethal levels. The laser alternates its pulses between diffused laser blasts, still in the high blue range, and an EM pulse modulated to interfere with neural activity. The plasma projector generates plasma in the 20 KHz range, and then projects it at the target, where it impacts like a body-wide baseball bat. The combination of over-driven vision, neural disruption, and sonic plasma impact usually renders the targets unconscious. The maximum effective range of the stun effect is twenty-five meters. While the focus cone would allow for the stunning of a single individual out to approximately three meters, beyond that multiple targets in close proximately will be struck with a single shot.
The stun mode is not to be used casually, however, as it can cause permanent injury. It may also not be 100% effective, which would mean it would not be used when the subject HAD to be incapacitated at all costs.
