Plasma Rifle (Fallout 3)

History
By 2277, it was widely used by Enclave Soldiers in the Capital Wasteland. It fires bright self-illuminated green bolts of plasma, utilizes Microfusion cells for ammunition, and reduces targets to piles of glowing green goo when the killing shot is a critical hit.

Item Locations

 * You can find this gun at Fort Independence inside a weapons armory. The key to the armory door is inside one of the foot lockers in the quarters.
 * You can find a plasma rifle lying on a counter in the Citadel Laboratory.
 * You can find plasma rifles as armament on Enclave troops clad in Tesla Power Armor.
 * Another early way of getting this powerful weapon is to complete The Replicated Man by completing the Harkness ending. This is a unique version with certain bonuses and can be repaired with standard Plasma Rifle parts. It is called A3-21's Plasma Rifle.
 * When finishing Project Purity, you are told to escape with Doctor Li. While going though the journey, you will come across Enclave troopers. At least 2 will have plasma rifles. Either get both and repair them, or sell one, or you can just get one. The weapons are held by the units in Tesla armor; their weapons may be located on the raised walkways out of normal reach if they didn't tumble down to the the level you're on when they died, so you may have to throw a few grenades up to get them.

Known Bugs

 * This weapon can cause Xbox 360 consoles to jam when fired repeatedly at point-blank range.
 * Goo Piles created by this weapon can simply not disappear in certain (outdoor) areas, and also seem to become "connected" with the next unit that respawns after them. This means that if you kill an NPC and turn them into goo, then come back when they've respawned, you can actually pickpocket them through the goo from their predecessor (and even kill them by Reverse-Pickpocketing explosives onto them).

Appearances
The Enclave Plasma Rifle appears only in Fallout 3, replacing the P94 Plasma Rifle from previous Fallout games.

Usage tips

 * Fire rapidly. The weapon's effective range is mitigated by the plasma bolts' travel time, but the rapid semi-auto fire and heavy damage compensate to do massive damage.


 * Aim for the target's center mass when firing from the hip or down sights. Aiming for particular body parts outside of VATS is difficult because the plasma trail behind the shot blocks your view.  The damage rate of this weapon makes headshots for fast takedowns largely unnecessary.


 * Have cover handy to duck behind. The magazine is fairly short and will be emptied quickly, and the reload time is somewhat lengthy (though not anywhere near the longest).


 * For the energy weapons enthusiast, holding both a plasma and laser rifle provides you with the best of both worlds, having the laser rifle for long range shooting, and the plasma rifle for places where firepower is a must. In general, any combat in enclosed spaces is better done with a plasma rifle, and due to its impressive damage headshots at close range are almost always lethal.