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Destruction Measurement
Disclaimer: DM is NOT a system use to pit damage versus defense versus etc.
Destruction Measurement is a method of measuring the effective level of havok a singular weapon can wreak. It is a very loose method, and is not based on damage over time or singular rounds, but the amount of damage it can do to a single generic, unaltered human (and the collateral, if applicable). It exists to give writers an easy way to gauge how destructive a gun or bomb is without having to pour through the whole article.
Apply common sense in dealing with the destruction a weapon can do. A pistol is not going to pierce the armour of a tank, but the right rocket sure will! Additionally, when factoring in DM for cybernetics or sturdier races, again use common sense. Most things will not shrug off a rocket to the face, but a person made of metal will be able to take anything under a 4 no problem.
| Stage | Level of Destruction | Usual Causes |
|---|---|---|
| U | Unique. Used for specialized weaponry that has strange effects, such as irradiation-based weapons. Can be used in conjunction with the below stages. | Tasers, dirty bombs, flamethrowers |
| 0 | It is effectively like firing foam darts at the person, not even bruising their skin. Congratulations, it's useless. | A foam dart gun |
| 1 | Can cause slight bruising. Maybe even give a black eye. | |
| 2 | Heavy bruising or skin-breaking. | A good punch, a paintball gun |
| 3 | Will cut deep or cause large amounts of trauma | |
| 4 | Likely will cause a person to pass out entirely from trauma/blood loss | A pistol |
| 5 | Has the potential to outright kill a person on contact | A standard rifle |
| 6 | Will definitely kill a person on contact, body intact | |
| 7 | Person is dead, body is a bit mangled, warped, or otherwise damaged | A shotgun at close range |
| 8 | Person is dead, body is heavily destroyed. | |
| 9 | The person's body is gibbed and there's a great big mess of things. | A frag grenade |
| 10 | There's gibs and a small crater | A landmine |
| 11 | There's no body, just a crater. usually. | |
| 12 | Whatever has killed the person has taken a wall with it. | |
| 13 | And there goes the small cottage the person was standing in | |
| 14 | The cottage is now a crater | |
| 15 | The cottage is destroyed and the surrounding buildings have taken heavy damage. | |
| 20 | If the cottage had been a city block, the that entire city block is reduced to rubble. | |
| 25 | An entire town is wiped off the map. If in a city, it's an entire district. | A small nuclear bomb |
| 30 | An entire city is gone | A heavy nuclear bomb. |
| 35 | An entire region is laid to waste. | |
| 40 | A whole continent has been cleansed. | |
| 42 | Whatever has been destroyed is basically so destroyed that their soul has witnessed life, the universe, and everything in their final moments. | |
| 45 | A weapon of such magnitude that not only is the person wiped from existence, but so is their whole planet. | A Murderball |
| 50 | This weapon has wiped out the entire star system a person was in. | Star-exploding weapons. |
| 51 | Congratulations. You ruined it for everybody. | You are not allowed to make weapons this strong. |