Rocket Launcher

The rocket launcher is the equaliser of the conventional ranged weapons. It's slow, it's heavy, but its severely limited ammunition is balanced by its sheer brute force. Although the alien Blaster Launcher is superior, the Rocket Launcher is cheap and ammunition is easy to obtain in large quantities.

The rocket launcher is the most accurate weapon that can be fired in a straight line, surpassing even the dreaded Heavy Plasma or the weak X-Com Standard Rifle. It's slow, but the amount of firepower packed into that single shot makes up for this many times over.

There are three rocket flavours, each with their own pros and cons. The launcher may only be loaded with one rocket at a time.

Small Rockets are literally light rocket propelled grenades (RPG). They are the lightest in weight of the three types of rockets and well suited for weak recruits. Unfortunately, Small Rockets do not work very well against heavily armoured units, like the Cyberdisc.

Large rockets are the mainstay ammunition of the rocket launcher. They are identical in function with the small rocket, but have twice the firepower and are slightly heavier. Strong soldiers should be equipped with a launcher and a full complement of large rockets (three in backpack, one in tube). If the soldier is mobile, then another soldier could carry another four for the heavy weapon soldier. Despite the extreme weight, the large rocket is the most destructive and powerful ranged weapon available to X-Com personnel at the beginning of a new campaign.

Incendiary rockets are special "Willie Peter" shots (White Phosphorus) that serve a variety of purposes, depending on the situation and the tactics employed. One of the most common uses is to illuminate a battlefield at night, the other primary use is to set fire to it. The one thing the incendiary rocket cannot do is provide instant kills on most enemies. The Large Rocket serves that role a lot better.

The incendiary rocket has the highest detonation radius of all the incendiary weapons, thus it will cause a lot of fire to form on the battlefield - Perfect for illumination, or to clear the battlefield of thick shrubs and to slowly roast aliens to death.

To better understand how the incendiary effect works, refer to the incendiary section.

Stats

Rocket Launcher:

Size: 3 high x 2 wide Weight: 10 TUs: Snap: 45% (Accuracy 55%) Aimed: 75% (Accuracy 115%) Cost: $4,000 Sell Price: $3,000

Small Rocket: Power: 75 HE Size: 3 high x 1 wide Weight: 6 Cost: $600 Sell Price: $480

Large Rocket: Power: 100 HE Size: 3 high x 1 wide Weight: 8 Cost: $900 Sell Price: $720

Incendiary Rocket: Power: 90 IN Size: 3 high x 1 wide Weight: 8 Cost: $1,200 Sell Price: $960

Tips

• Try to use Aimed shots. You don't have many reloads.
• Use in a support role, not for scouts.
• Don't bother saving time for reaction fire. Too much friendly fire risk. Move instead.
• Firing from an elevated position or Flying Suit at a downwards angle will guarantee an (eventual) impact with the ground.
• Since rockets explode, direct hits aren't compulsarary. If you think you might miss your target, try aiming for a nearby building instead.