Cyclic Ion Blaster

A Cyclic Ion Blaster is an experimental Tau XV8 Crisis Battlesuit weapon system developed during the Tau Empire’s Third Sphere Expansion. Early prototypes of the weapon were developed to combat multiple, lightly armoured enemies at short ranges, and functioned by generating a rapid stream of ion radiation before unleashing it through its four barrels. Though the extremely high rate of fire of this early prototype was stable, the ionisation effect on armour was variable. Later developments almost completely changed the nature of the weapon, mainly due to the discovery of a Mor’tonium power source which allowed for the efficient powering of smaller scale Tau Ion weapons. As a result, the Cyclic Ion Blaster changed its role to be more similar to the more stable Ion Rifle design, and now features a moderately high rate of fire with immensely more power per shot. The real similarities of later models with their older counterparts are their range and armour penetration capabilities. Current Tau ion weapon designs also allow for the weapons to be overcharged by exposing the reactive Mor’tonium power source to the environment, albeit this also exposes the user to the dangerous radiation given off from the Mor’tonium. Overcharging a Cyclic Ion Blaster allows it to generate an explosive blast with increased power compared to its normal fire mode. Due to the weapons experimental status, it is a special-issue weapon entrusted only to Battlesuit pilots of the rank of Shas’vre. It’s availability is usually limited to one per Hunter Cadre as a result of this.