The plasma launcher is the only weapon I use. Once it's fully upgraded it is very effective, especially if you use all 4 super slots. It even mines better than a fully upgraded mining tool. You just have to be careful by not shooting anything too close and avoid upgrades with bounce potential. I've never messed with difficulty settings though so your experience may vary.

Some weapons work better on specific enemies. For example, your Mech suit will suffer severe damage trying to kill biological horrors but they are pretty easy if you just fly up on the roof and shoot them with the scatter blaster (shotgun).

So you may just be using the wrong tactic. The plasma launcher works great on the larger sentinel types but lousy if it is one of the support sentinels. Better to use a precise weapon on the little guys. The dog sentinels are a toss up. The plasma launcher works great but they tend to ram and you can actually damage yourself if you fire them at the wrong time when they are close in.

Originally posted by Mr. Bufferlow:

lousy if it is one of the support sentinels.

The trick for that is to aim for rocks or plants near them. With a high damage radius it will damage everything in the area and you can wipe out an entire wave in 4 or 5 shots.

Ok that's good to know, thanks yall.

I think if you are not braindead spamming the trigger you are using it wrong.

For Biological horror i found pulse spitter at cross range is the best answer.

Originally posted by Rastapopoulos:

Hey people,
I'm just interested in your take on the Plasma Launcher. For me it just doesnt seem to do any damage at all. It takes 4 direct hits to kill a single Biological Horror Creature with a class B Multitool and some mid tier Upgrades (in a supercharged slot even). Also it's kinda expensive to recharge, given that it sometimes only gives you a single grenade for some reason. Am I using it wrong or is it really that bad?
That being said I play on Hard damage and enemy strength settings.

Are you sure you are not using the paralysis mortar instead of the plasma launcher?
Both use the same ammo to reload.
Because the plasma launcher splatters a whole group of bugs, even on an C Class multi-tool. The paralysis mortar deals only a little bit of damage, but stuns everything it hits.

With the plasma launcher and S-Class upgrades, that also add radius, you can wipe Abominations as they spawn (all 4) in a single hit. That said, I never use it in permadeath, because self inflicted AE damage is responsible for all my deaths in the last 3 years.

There is some fantastic info in this thread. Thanks everyone.

If you get an enemy stuck inside a thick wall, or trying to get at you under a floor, your best bets are either the plasma launcher or the Neutron cannon. They give AoE damage that the piddly pirate-space-blast-proof walls and floors will not stop.

As was said before, though, beware of shooting too close to yourself, or too much bounce, however.

Also, vs Bio Horrors, plasma grenades tend to detonate upon DiRECT contact. So 1 grenade = 1 BH, + any friends of his that are passing/standing/spawning nearby. The grenades can destroy remaining eggs, however, so control your kill zone if you are collecting Larval Cores for nanites, etc.