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Beams vs. Blasts

Beam or Blast

  • Total voters
    19
Magic Mayhem Maiden

Magic Mayhem Maiden

formerly CorruptionInTheGovernment
It has come to my attention that one of the members of Blast Nation Arcticblast has been spotted firing beams across the Smogoff. This has been a huge setback in the war of Beams vs. Blasts, so I shall rally the competition to prove that blasts are the superior energy attack.

You want to dodge a beam? That's easy as moving to the side or vertically. Blasts encompasses the area around your foe, practically guaranteeing a hit. Generation 9 has been a huge win with Tera Blast terrorizing metagames, while Hyper Beam has been floundering ever since Generation 1.

What's not cooler than utterly destroying everything in your vicinity, or launching an unsuspecting orb that spells impending doom? Blast also just sounds cooler than Beam. You're really being compared to a bean? Untainted by meme status, blasts retains all of it's potency.

I will admit leaving a trail of destruction is cool though. Um. Maybe I have to reconsider. I still like blowing shit up and walking away.
 
What if instead of beam vs blasts we discussed beans vs tarts and talked about which one's better between pies or beans
 
This is the future that Arcticblast wants


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Beams are the truth. When I was a child renting Pokémon Stadium, I was convinced that beam moves were simply the best moves in the games.

Look at Hyper Beam. That's the best move. It had to be when it's that cool. Surf? Forget that dude, we have Bubblebeam. Screw Psychic, Psybeam's OHKOing everything. The jury's still out on Ice Beam VS Aurora Beam.
 
Beams have several positive qualities that make them better for a variety of uses:

1. Precision. Have you ever been confronted by a foe who happens to be standing next to your child, spouse, or priceless antique backgammon set? Try defeating them with a blast and see what happens. It's simply not practical.
2. Panic mode. If you do actually desire wanton destruction, a beam is still more versatile. You have to aim a blast to actually hit something with it, and if you want to hit a larger area, you're stuck firing multiple blasts. For a beam, you can spin around wildly and cover a wide area as fast as your rotational velocity will carry you.
3. Energy efficiency. A blast's area of effect scales with its volume, whereas a beam's area of effect scales with its circumference. In order to hit a wider target area, then, the blast will require than the beam. For large coverage, a blast simply isn't practical. And again, beams are much faster to maneuver, meaning less size for equivalent coverage.
4. Challenge. Even if you have great aim, a blast is significantly easier to dodge. If you're firing a series of blasts (essentially forming a poor man's beam), the target still has the potential to slip directly through with proper timing. This is simply not the case with a beam.
5. Structural support. Beams are great at holding up roofs, bridges, and other critical infrastructure. I have never once heard of a blast doing such a thing.
 
Blizihguh said:
Beams have several positive qualities that make them better for a variety of uses:

1. Precision. Have you ever been confronted by a foe who happens to be standing next to your child, spouse, or priceless antique backgammon set? Try defeating them with a blast and see what happens. It's simply not practical.
2. Panic mode. If you do actually desire wanton destruction, a beam is still more versatile. You have to aim a blast to actually hit something with it, and if you want to hit a larger area, you're stuck firing multiple blasts. For a beam, you can spin around wildly and cover a wide area as fast as your rotational velocity will carry you.
3. Energy efficiency. A blast's area of effect scales with its volume, whereas a beam's area of effect scales with its circumference. In order to hit a wider target area, then, the blast will require than the beam. For large coverage, a blast simply isn't practical. And again, beams are much faster to maneuver, meaning less size for equivalent coverage.
4. Challenge. Even if you have great aim, a blast is significantly easier to dodge. If you're firing a series of blasts (essentially forming a poor man's beam), the target still has the potential to slip directly through with proper timing. This is simply not the case with a beam.
5. Structural support. Beams are great at holding up roofs, bridges, and other critical infrastructure. I have never once heard of a blast doing such a thing.
Click to expand...
Your "structural support" argument is exactly why Beams are failing. Beams are static, rigid, and belong in a ceiling. Blasts are dynamic.

The Intimidation Factor: A beam is just a glowing line. A blast is a statement. Nobody sees a Focus Blast (when it actually hits) and thinks "I should stand my ground." They think "I am about to become part of the scenery."

Efficiency: You mention spinning around with a beam like a lighthouse on caffeine. That’s just asking for a dizzy spell. One well-placed Explosion or Mind Blown solves the problem instantly.

The Name: "Solar Beam" sounds like a tanning bed. "Fire Blast" sounds like the end of the world.

Justice for Blast Nation. Stop the beam propaganda.
 
IronTide said:
Your "structural support" argument is exactly why Beams are failing. Beams are static, rigid, and belong in a ceiling. Blasts are dynamic.

The Intimidation Factor: A beam is just a glowing line. A blast is a statement. Nobody sees a Focus Blast (when it actually hits) and thinks "I should stand my ground." They think "I am about to become part of the scenery."
Click to expand...
You say rigid, I say stable. Beams are static because they're classic. Trying to top perfection is just folly. Blasts are just a foolhardy attempt to "reinvent the beam," as the saying goes.

It's interesting that you would cite Focus Blast, famously one of the least reliable offensive options of all time. You know what's reliable? A good, old-fashioned beam. No whistles, no bells, and certainly no balls. Just an austere cylinder, perfect in its simplicity and beauty. An elegant solution to so many of the world's problems.
 
I have been mistaken about the effectiveness of beams as a pinpoint straight shot. I have been Mindblasted. I apologize to ArcticBlast who have been unfairly discredited, and now will study the beam with my mentor.
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