Arc Missile

"The Arc Missile is a strategic Explosive weapon that fires in formation. It's also optimized for combat against shielded enemies."

General
"The Arc Missile is an explosive weapon that is optimized for combat against shielded enemies, and fires in formation for maximum coverage."

- Sybil

The Arc Missile is a specialised Explosive weapon that boasts increased shield bypass and extra long range.

It fires 5 missiles in a fixed fan-like formation that detonate with a large explosion.

Advantages
"Have your ships fire in perfect formation with the Arc Missile."

- Event Store

Arc Missiles have a set spread and large AoE, making them extremely difficult to dodge especially when equipped with Sweep Launcher, AM Warheads or Volatile Fuel. Their spread makes them perfect against enemy line formations which are commonly used for battleships.

Arc Missiles have extremely long range, allowing ships equipped with this weapon to outrange even Vector Torpedoes and ECHO Rays equipped with Focused Optics V. They also readily travel beyond maximum range, allowing you to damage targets that are otherwise out of range by shooting at closer targets such as squadrons.

Their shield bypass is very useful in situations where both sides trade fire intermittently and have regenerating shields (basically battleship fights); the opponent's health is slowly chipped away until their ships eventually die. This effect can be magnified through the use of Spectral Warheads.

Disadvantages
Arc Missiles take up a lot of mass and have low damage output - this is further complicated by the fact that the damage is spread between each of the 5 missiles. They will surely lose to any other ship weapon of its tier if both sides are in range of each other.

Arc Missiles have a large minimum range and are rendered useless in close combat.

Trivia

 * The Arc Missile was rarely used until its discovery on PvP battleships long after its initial release, before becoming increasingly popular due to their effectiveness in that aspect.