Space combat is fought with a vast array of weapons and at many ranges, from point blank with perhaps only a few ship lengths between two vessels striping the outer layers of their hulls with lasers, to extreme distances with tens of thousand of kilometer between two vessels launching relativistic munitions at each other, and everything in between. At each of these ranges, different weapons dominate; the spinal mass accelerator decides any confrontation at long or extreme range, while missiles and broadside guns do at medium ranges, and laser and torpedoes do at close range. All warships equip a number of different weapon systems to allow them to engage at many ranges, though most have a range they are most effective.
EXTREME range is the farthest any space battle can take place without the use of FTL. Frigates will keep to this range while doing reconnaissance on Dreadnought laden formations, using their mobility to dodge even Dreadnought rounds while collecting intelligence. Dreadnought rule at this range, no other ship type able to hit anything consistently with their shorter mass accelerators, allowing the powerful vessels to pick apart formations lacking an opposing Dreadnought while they desperately close range. Carriers which operate with a formation will deploy formation at this range, staying back while its Fighters close in on the enemy. While larger missiles may be launched at this range, the long travel time leaves them vulnerable to interception, making such an attack only worth it if a formation has an overwhelming number of missiles or to distract an enemy while the force closes in.
LONG ranges of a few thousand kilometers see the spinal weapons of Cruisers become useful, able to strike at targets with reasonable accuracy. Fighters and Frigates will be engaged by the inner Frigate spheres of the opposing forces, while Interceptors attempt to hunt down Fighters or missiles before they can close on their fleet, while protecting their own Fighters and missiles from enemy Interceptors. Most skirmishes occur at this range, opposing Cruisers pelting each other with fire, hoping to get enough consecutive shots to penetrate the other's shields and hit their hull, prepared to flee if things don't go their way. Frigates will close to this range when scouting formations that lack any Dreadnoughts, still safe from the shorter range guns of Cruisers.
At MEDIUM ranges of under a thousand kilometers, broadside guns, short range munitions, and lasers become effective. Destroyers engage and it becomes difficult to retreat in the frenzied melee, all while Frigate packs hunt down any ships that lose shields, falling upon them like sharks who smell blood in the water. Munitions and Fighters are struck by point defense lasers, their power too dispersed to damage warships, but more than enough for the lesser targets.
CLOSE ranges of under 10 kilometers see Fighters and Frigates as the only common combatants. Fighters loose their payloads, devastating vessels or stripping them of their shields, while Frigates dance under their prey's guns, ripping into their hulls after their shields are lost. Engine plumes become deadly weapons as any ship caught in one is quickly turned to molten slag.
SPINAL MASS ACCELERATORS are the main weapons of most large warships. Running through 70 to 90 percent of a ship's hull, they accelerate small projectiles to relativistic velocities, making them valuable weapons at long and extreme ranges impossibly far for most other weaponry. Most such weapons fire rather rapidly (sending 20 to 30 rounds down range in a minute) as a length of accelerator can only accelerate a munition so much, and heavier, more powerful rounds require massive capacitors to fire, while doing more damage to the accelerator.
BROADSIDE MASS ACCELERATORS, usually called broadside guns, operate on the same scientific principles as their longer brethren, but are deployed on turreted mounts, allowing them to be used at a number of angles, unlike the fixed spinal weapons. To compensate for the slower velocity of the projectiles caused by shorter barrels (a necessity of their turreted mounting), broadside guns are used in great numbers, and either fire larger rounds, fire faster, or both. They are most effective at medium ranges where their lower velocities are less problematic, yet their ability to riddle an enemy ship full of holes is useful. After the invention of the disruptor torpedo and the rise of Frigates to prominence, a new variant of broadside gun called a Lance began to see use. Far longer than most broadside guns (sometimes even repurposed Corvette or Frigate spinal mass accelerators), Lances can strike at Frigates at ranges broadside guns would struggle at, while not needing the entire ship to turn to engage a relatively trivial target like with the spinal mass accelerators.
LONG RANGE MISSILES are expendable guided munitions used at extreme and long range. Most long range missiles are not equipped with conventional warheads, instead carrying electronic warfare equipment (like expendable disruptive items like condensed ionized plasma used to disrupt sensors) or short range missiles, acting like a rocket booster for the more numerous munitions. Most with conventional warheads are meant for orbital bombardment or beyond extreme range attacks (the latter usually being kinetic kill missiles instead of holding an explosive nuclear or otherwise).
SHORT RANGE MISSILES are used at medium ranges in vast swarms designed to overwhelm point defense networks. They are usually equipped with disruptor warheads, greatly improving their effectiveness compared to their older iterations. This has seen the amount of short range missiles in use rise greatly, with the Javelins in use by the Alliance proving to be one of the more effective versions.
TORPEDOES are commonly mistaken with missiles, mostly due to their similar designs and purposes, with some militaris like the Alliance not differentiating between them. A torpedo is different from a missile in that most of its velocity is not gained through its own power, but the velocity imparted by its launching craft, usually a Frigate or Fighter. They are rather cheap and powerful for their sizes compared to their missile counterparts, and are launched in great numbers at close range to overwhelm the defenses of a target.
GUARDIAN LASERS, also called point defense lasers, are the main defense of a warship against incoming munitions besides its shields. The guardian laser has gained a new importance with the rise of the disruptor warheads, with ships being equipped with far more of them than vessels of older design, and said older vessels being refitted to carry more as well. While effective against Fighters and munitions, guardian lasers are only useful against other warships at close range.
BATTLE LASERS are of far greater size and power than their point defense counterparts, being designed to damage warships at medium range. While certainly effective, their high level of heat and cost limit their effectiveness, with only the Salarian Armed Forces using them in any great numbers. They have become more common among the galaxy's warships in recent decades, serving as anti-Frigate weapons.