Weapons

The Weapons console is in charge of phasers, torpedos, and other weapon management on the ship.

Role
The weapons console is in charge of: Weapons can also raise shields and control the Main Screen.
 * Targeting enemy ships and incoming enemy torpedoes
 * Fire beams and set beam frequency
 * Fire torpedoes from the torpedo tubes
 * Managing weapon stocks, as well as converting torpedoes to energy (and vice versa)

Armaments
Based on the ship type that you pick, your ship will have a distinct number of Beams and Torpedo tubes. Each ship has a different range of Beams and capacity for carrying the different types of Torpedos and Probes, so explore and choose wisely.

Beams
Beams use energy to fire on enemy ships. The range of the ship's beam(s) can be seen as an arc in front of the ship. Science can relay the weakest (lowest) frequency to Weapons and they can set their own frequency to that for maximum damage. Weapons can also manually target beams to target specific systems on enemy ships to disable them, however this is considered advanced play and should be used only by experienced weapon officers.

Torpedoes
Your ship will have a number of Torpedo tubes that can be loaded with any combination of the items below. Remember that it takes time to load the torpedoes before they can be fired.
 * Homing Torpedoes are the most common torpedoes found in the sector. They do a decent amount of damage and have a decent targeting range. Since Weapons can convert energy to homing torpedoes, it's suggested that Weapons use time in dock to restock homing torpedoes (as docking is already recharging the ship's energy reserves.) Due to their ability to be constructed from pure energy, it's not suggested to ask stations to make more Homing Torpedoes.
 * EMPs have the same targeting ability as Homing Torpedoes, but will halve the maximum shield capacity of ships and lower the shield frequency to make beams more damaging. EMPs have a splash damage radius, so multiple ships (including your own) can get caught in it's blast.
 * Mines don't require a target and are fired backwards from the ship. They provide high damage near the explosion, but detonate when any ship enters it's range. Mines will be shot out with enough force to get them far enough away from a stationary ship that they won't detonate when armed, but it's still suggested that the ship be moving at some speed while laying mines.
 * Nukes are the most powerful item in the game. It has the same targeting capacity of a Homing Torpedo and splash damage of an EMP, but has the damage capacity of a Mine. They are the least common weapon in the sector, as the Artemis can only carry a few, stations can also only carry a few, and stations take a very long time to build them if requested.

Non-Combat Torpedoes
Your ship will also be supplied with various probes and other equipment to aid in exploration and scouting. Also, Fighters are a special player controlled weapon. Fighters are single seat ships controlled by extra players who picked the Fighter console on startup. While not controlled by Weapons, this is mentioned here since it's an option for combat, and fighters are replenished while docking like the other weapons.
 * Probes are used in games where the ship's scan range has been set to something other than Unlimited. Probes will extend the range of your sensors, but can't be locked onto anything so they only fire in a straight line.
 * Tags are used to tag any Monsters so that Science can gather useful information on the creature, including health. Tags do not do damage.
 * Beacons are used to attract Monsters (as well as other effects in scripted games.)

Controls
Weapons can use the mouse and/or keyboard to control their console.
 * Clicking on enemy ships will target them. Enemy ships cannot be targeted while docked.
 * Selecting a torpedo and clicking on load will load that weapon into the tube. It takes time to load and unload torpedoes, so plan accordingly (Engineering can speed up the loading time). Weapons can also use 1-4 on the keyboard to select the weapons and Shift-1 to Shift-4 to load the selected weapon into the corresponding tube.

Tips

 * Weapons should communicate frequently with Helm to make sure the ship is always within beam range or the ship is shooting the correct shield side on enemy ships.
 * Weapons will be the first to know if the ship enters the enemy's attack range, so they should raise shields if the captain forgets.
 * After a few missions, Weapons should learn what armaments the Captain prefers to use, so Weapons should always keep those items ready to use at a moments notice.
 * Before the mission, talk to the captain so you're clear on what "fire" means. Does it mean fire torpedoes or fire beams? No one wants to fire the wrong weapon and get the Artemis caught in the blast

More Info

 * Advanced Weapons
 * Weapons page on the Artemis PBWorks Wiki