Actual laser turret

[Aru]

Living forests don't burn down very easily, since they're wet. But if you get a really, really hot, persistent fire going, the heat can boil away all the water in nearby trees, turning them into viable fuel. If enough catch, and weather conditions are right, it can create a firestorm that dries more trees, allowing it to spread through a green forest. So, that would make the 'laser turrets burning forests down' thing even better, as it requires continuous fire into the same area. Those bizarre dead forests though, they would go up fast.

MeduSalem showed a game with linked lasers, I think Command & Conquer has something similar with "prism towers". Perimeter towers shoot each other, contributing to a fight that is otherwise outside their range, occurring on just one side of the base.

[Orphauneus]

What about using a laser as defense it could be used as a constant beams and have far range and be manipulated by mirrors (Just thought of that while reading this). But on topic this is a good idea I think the current laser should definitely be a plasma turret and the Laser turret shoot a constant beam if it detects an enemy in it's line of fire and as soon as the enemy leaves the beam slowly dissipates starting form the turret to the end of the range until it's gone.
+ Good idea mate Zeblote

[Zeblote]

Living forests don't burn down very easily, since they're wet.

Surely it will burn if you aim this ridiculously powerful laser on it:



The beam in my image seems pretty accurate

[alan2here]

here here

Continuous lasers like a great idea.

[UndyingUndyne]

Something like this?

https://gfycat.com/DismalRigidIslandwhistler

Gif

I want this so much.

When I first heard of laser turrets, I imagined something like this. Needless to say, I was greatly disappointed when I found out they shot wimpy-sounding laser bolts.

[catdog2]

How about a pulsing effect?
https://gfycat.com/GleefulHelpfulGavial

I want that.

[Shin]

Yes please! This is amazing!

[alan2here]

Living forests don't burn down very easily, since they're wet.

Surely it will burn if you aim this ridiculously powerful laser on it:

In my experience, there Is a sweet spot. Very powerful lasers cut though things without heating them much.

[Slayn25]

+1 to changing laser beams to travel instantly.
+1 to changing laser beams to start fires.

[JoneKone]

In IRL we have 2 kinds of lazers, Chemical and Electrical

Chemical Lazers are more powerful than Electric Lazers

If there would be an implementation of chemical lazer to the game you would need large wads of chemicals to use from..

Also I believe electric lazers need cooling water...

[bobingabout]

Also I believe electric lazers need cooling water...

Or really nice heat sinks.

[TheVeteraNoob]

Also I believe electric lazers need cooling water...

And then you can use it to power steam engines. Hmm...

[zebediah49]

That would bring in an interesting new element, if implemented like so:

If there is much forest around such a laser turret, then there is a high chance, that he burns a tree. And eventually burns down the whole forest. Which is good. Or? Maybe not, cause that produces much pollution! If you formerly had luck, the biters will come then, cause the pollution spreads...

In other words: If you don't hit down enough (!) trees around a laser tower, it might bring you into deeper problems. Nice.

In a recent game I was playing, I had an oil outpost very close to a big biter nest. By "very close", I mean "I installed a flamer turret, and it started shooting at spawners". I left this, because I found it very amusing (and with a "biters drop artifacts mod, quite lucrative).

Thing is, I also had one of the "trees slowly spread" mods turned on. This resulted in a conic region with no trees, because the trees would spread until they got too close, then get burned back. Surprisingly it didn't start many forest fires though; I think the turret (with damage upgrades) destroyed the tree before it could catch fire (which makes no sense, but seemed to be what happened the couple times I was watching).

[Deadly-Bagel]

Each of the turrets currently have different mechanics... Gun turrets are high DPS but short range and require ammo feeding. Laser turrets are long-range but chew through power like crazy. Flamethrower turrets are AoE but low accuracy and require liquid ammo.

So what I would recommend is maybe a 3x3 "Laser Cannon" turret that damages everything in its line of fire. It aims for a biter (ideally clever mechanics to hit the most biters but this is optional) and everything in front of and behind it, up to its maximum range, takes damage. Maybe only affects living matter so walls and machines are unaffected, but the player better steer clear? ^^

A laser cannon wouldn't necessarily burn trees as much as it would obliterate them so maybe a nominal amount of pollution but it wouldn't spread fire.

Man I wish I could mod lol.

[aubergine18]

There's a mod that gives lasers proper beam graphics https://mods.factorio.com/mods/Klonan/L ... am_Turrets