Directorate Officer
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
- Intent: To provide a radiation weapon that can act like an "ion weapon" except for against unusual, biological foes.
- Image Source: here
- Canon Link: N/A
- Permissions: N/A
- Primary Source: N/A
- Manufacturer: Lucerne Personal Defense
- Affiliation: Directorate, Silver Jedi Concord, Lucerne Personal Defense customers
- Market Status: Closed-Market
- Model: LPD-54 Neutroburst Radiation Grenade
- Modularity: No
- Production: Mass-Produced
- Material: Agrinium shell, Detonite priming charge, plasma main charge, Instant Adhesive Bottom, typical grenade components
- Classification: Radiation Grenade
- Size: Average
- Weight: Average
- Explosive Type: Plasma
- Delivery Method: Thrown / Launched
- Effective Range: Average
- Area Of Effect: Point Blank (1 meter blast radius)
- Damage Output: Very High
- Variable Timer: Rotating the black ring around the top of the grenade sets a mechanical timer, with the lowest settable time being 5 seconds, and the highest being 15 minutes. This allows the grenade to be used for immediate tactical use or be set as part of a tactical maneuver. The grenade can have a timer set but NOT activated by keeping the grenade's safety pin in place. Once the pin is removed (by hand, tripwire, etc), the timer countdown starts.
- Radiation Burst: The detonite priming charge (whether ignited by fuse or by physical impact) further energizes the swirling plasma already contained within the grenade and simultaneously ruptures its casing. This causes the plasma to become much more unstable and begin to emit a highly potent dose of Neutron radiation. With the plasma no long contained by its casing, it rapidly dissipates into the atmosphere and combines with existing elements in most atmospheres to become nonhazardous. This means the Neutroblast has a relatively small blast radius and the radiation itself only lingers for a few seconds before completely disappearing. The high dose of radiation released though makes it very dangerous, typically giving living beings not shielded from radiation severe radiation poisoning. While not typically immediately lethal, its effects typically immediately manifest as cognitive impairment, general weakness, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headaches, and the general disruption of many creature's unusual physiology. For example, a Yammosk exposed to radiation might not be able to effectively coordinate friendly units whereas a Mynock might find that its ability to feed on energy greatly reduced or even impossible. Radiation exposure from the Neutroburst can often be treated successfully with intense and sustained medical care.
- Adhesive Bottom: The bottom cap of the LPD-54 can be screwed off to reveal a pad covered in instant adhesive, which allows the grenade to be solidly attached to a variety of objects, whether it's to a wall as part of a boobytrap or directly onto an opponent's armor.
- High Stopping Power: Neutroburst provides an intense burst of radiation, often making it severely debilitating to most organics exposed to its intense radiation waves.
- Small Blast Radius: The radiation burst from the Neutroburst is very small, being approximately 2 meters in diameter, meaning that it must be precisely and accurately detonated, unlike most grenades.
While common during the Clone Wars, radiation grenades have largely fallen out of the use of most modern armies because of concerns of collateral damage among nearby civilians who might get caught up in fighting. However, with the menace of the Bryn'adul incursion, Lucerne Personal Defense resurrected the concept with an eye to neutralize many of the inherent advantages of the force's unique, biological make-up - massive doses of radiation are often quite capable of severely disrupting cellular functions, and thus disrupt the organ systems that make many of these unusual abilities possible. Such a weapon could help level the playing field against the genocidal threat to the galaxy's many species. However, traditional radiation weapons were unpalatable to the Silver Jedi Concord and their allies due to the possibility of effecting nearby civilians. To that end, Lucerne Labs based their radiation weapon on a scaled down version of the T-33 Plasma Torpedo but carefully calibrated the plasma inside to produce only a short-living burst of radiation that quickly dissipates in order to prevent it from affecting others nearby the target. This technology combined with Lucerne Personal Defense's standard grenade technology resulted in the Neutroburst, a weapon that while potentially game-changing is rarely lethal by itself on the battlefield. Instead, by degrading enemy performance, it makes its targets more vulnerable to other weapons and prevents many special abilities from being as effectively used. While designed with the Bryn'adul threat in mind, the grenade has obvious potential uses against other enemies that prefer to use biological based weapons, whether it is Yuuzhan Vong warriors, Sithspawn, or any number of unusual but deadly wildlives found within the galaxy. The potential of this weapon against a variety of exotic threats means that it will likely stay in production for a long time to come.
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