Firelance

	For an overview of alien blaster models in the Fallout series of games, see Alien blaster.

 

Firelance is a weapon in Fallout 3. It is the unique variant of the alien blaster.

CharacteristicsEdit

In addition to its 100% critical chance and high damage, the Firelance sets its target on fire upon strike, causing 2 points of damage every second for 5 seconds. Both the Pyromaniac and Xenotech Expert perks affect this weapon and it uses the rare alien power cells as ammunition.

DurabilityEdit

Firelance can fire 63 shots, the equivalent of 7 reloads, from full condition, before breaking.

VariantsEdit

• Alien blaster - The common variant in Fallout 3.
• Captain's Sidearm - A unique, cleaner, shinier alien blaster used by the alien captain.

ComparisonEdit

Legend
	- Weapon name (melee or unarmed)			- Attacks in V.A.T.S.
	- Weapon name (gun, energy or explosive)			- Action point cost
	- Damage per attack (damage per projectile)			- Damage per action point
	- Damage per second			- Weapon spread
	- Area of effect damage			- Magazine capacity (shots per reload)
	- Effect damage & duration			- Durability (number of attacks before breaking)
	- Bonus effects			- Weight
	- Attacks per second			- Value in caps
	- Critical chance % multiplier			- Value to weight ratio
	- Critical damage			- Skill required
	- Critical effect damage & duration			- Strength required
	- With all mods attached

Alien blaster	100	300		3	x100	100	20	5	0.0	10	125	2	500	250
Firelance	80	242	+2/5s	3	x100	80	20	4.5	0.0	10	63	2	750	375
Captain's Sidearm	35 (5.8x6)	105		3	x1	40	20	1.8	3.0	30(10)	714	2	500	250

LocationsEdit

The Firelance can only be obtained in the "Unidentified Flying Debris" random encounter or through console commands. See Fallout 3 random encounter locations (Type A) for locations where this event may take place. The encounter occurs only once per game (character playthrough).

NotesEdit

• There is no guaranteed location and the ammunition scatters across the general area of the event which can make recovering it a difficult task.
• The Firelance event produces a brief radiation field which is usually centered on the weapon itself. The weapon may not always be found within the irradiated area but will usually be very nearby.
• The Firelance can get stuck on buildings, such as a water tower.
• If the Firelance event took place near hostile non-player characters, they may utilize the Firelance. If the Firelance has fallen on top of a building the non-player character will take the Firelance to use, even if it couldn't normally be picked up. It will be retrievable by simply killing them and taking it off their corpse.
• Normally, this weapon is weaker (but still very hard-hitting) than the alien blaster due to its burning effect. However, with the Pyromaniac perk, its power exceeds that of the blaster. It still wears down significantly faster, though.
• The Firelance and the Experimental MIRV break down faster than any other weapon in the game.

Behind the scenesEdit

• The Firelance is a reference to an identically named martian weapon appearing in the Wasteland paragraph book, in the red herring Mars plot.
• Both the Firelance and the alien blaster resemble Commander Adams' pistol from the 1956 movie the Forbidden Planet, both in design and firing. The "bullets" disperse in a very similar way when they hit solid objects, such as walls.

SoundsEdit

GalleryEdit

The Firelance event

Add an image to this gallery