Why not magnetic weaponry? Wouldn't assault-rifle sized rail guns be far more devastating and effective in combat? The projectiles of magnetic weaponry are pretty close to being as fast as lasers, and are better at piercing armor; not to mention most magnetic rounds have a farther effective range than laser weaponry. Overall, magnetic weapons are better than laser weapons unless you have a highly advanced laser weapon that fires ridiculously powerful blasts; and without a compact power source capable of containing ludicrous amounts of energy, that ain't happening.
TL;DR: Magnetic weapons > Laser weapons
Thoughts? Opinions?
-
To weaponize lasers takes a lot more power than we can pack into a gun. They aren't very practical either, since making a laser that would only penetrate armor and the person wearing it without over penetrating into the people behind the person would be nearly impossible. Plasma weaponry like in Halo is technically magnetic weaponry and would be much easier to control. Plasma is super-heated ionized gas, so it is affected by magnetic fields. It's why the plasma torpedoes on Covenant ships were so maneuverable, they would just change the magnetic field to direct it. It would take a lot of power, but considerably less than it would for lasers.