Smokepop pack

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The smokepop pack is a reusable utility item that releases a cloud of blind smoke on command, reducing ranged accuracy.

Acquisition

Smokepop packs can be crafted at a Machining table once the Smokepop packs research project has been completed. Each requires 20 Steel, 1 Component, 40 Chemfuel and 1,200 ticks (20 secs) of work.

They can also be purchased from traders or found on raiders.

Summary

A smokepop pack is worn at the waist and can be manually activated to create blind smoke around its user. The smoke multiplies the hit chance of any projectile that paths through it by ×70%. It does not affect melee hit or dodge chances. The smoke also prevents turrets from locking onto and firing at targets. Smoke has an effect even if the shooter and/or the target are outside it, so long as there's smoke in between. It dissipates after around 30 seconds.

The pack can be activated 3 times before needing to be reloaded for 10 chemfuel. Reloading smokepop packs always costs 10 chemfuel, even if there are charges left, as compared to the jump pack, which uses 20 chemfuel per charge restored. Because of this, it is obviously more efficient, if less safe, to spend 2 or 3 charges before reloading.

Like all utility items, a smokepop pack is treated largely like any piece of apparel, however some exceptions exist. Utility items are worn on the waist and are mutually exclusive only with each other, regardless of the layer or coverage of other apparel worn. Additionally, utility items never become tainted, deteriorate from being worn, or inflict a worn-out or tattered mood debuff when damaged.

Quality Table

On explosion, the smokepop pack covers an area with smoke. The radius depends on the quality of the pack.

Quality	Awful	Poor	Normal	Good	Excellent	Masterwork	Legendary
Explosion radius (tiles)	4.1	4.5	4.9	5.3	5.7	6.4	7.4
Market Value	83	125	166	205	250	415	830

Note that a larger explosion radius is not necessarily better, as smoke affects both sides of the battle.

Analysis

Smokepop packs are fast to research and cheap to craft, especially if you already have boomalopes or Biofuel Refining. The chemfuel cost isn't too expensive, and even in the extreme biomes, a hydroponics room should give plenty of extra supplies.

Smoke is very useful against turrets, such as in a mechanoid cluster - smoke completely negates their ability to target and fire. Other pawns can then destroy it, hit it with EMP weapons, or handle other threats. However, turrets easily outrange your colonists, and 3 charges is not likely to be enough to approach in melee. You can have your pawns use walls and other obstructions to their advantage, use locust armor or the skip psycast to bring important pawns in (EMP, smoke, or just high firepower), bring multiple smoke packs, or simply take the hit. Turrets are less accurate from further away, meaning that you should save smoke charges until you get closer.

Against humanoid raiders, smoke is more useful if your pawns are largely melee or otherwise low range group. They can allow colonists to approach enemies, which is very effective against tight groups of enemies with few or no brawlers of their own, which may include sieges. A melee alternative is the shield belt, which fully eliminates damage until it runs out. However, smokepop works after EMP attacks and applies to all pawns in an area, as opposed to needing one shield belt per colonist. Smoke will also apply to animals, which can be very useful in melee combat. Finally, only one colonist needs to wear a smokepop belt, meaning the rest can stick with a shield.

As covering enemies with smoke also greatly reduces effectiveness of your own gunners, it isn't very effective if you can outrange the enemy, or if you're otherwise in a firefight. But even with a ranged group, you can use the cover of smoke to reposition your group in a safer manner, or to approach turrets.

Comparison to Smoke Launchers

Smokepop packs have two major advantages over smoke launchers: they can be used with another weapon, and they deploy instantly. Meanwhile, smoke launchers have one of the slowest firing rates in the game, taking 210 ticks (3.5 secs) to aim and fire, even more time for the shot to actually land, and 420 ticks (7 secs) to fully cycle from shot to shot. The instant smoke is very useful for repositioning, but it also requires the pawn being where you want the smoke to be.

Smoke launchers use the weapon slot, so will definitely bring one colonist out of raw combat. However, smoke is useful even if the colonist is bad at combat, and the utility slot is freed for further support items like a psychic insanity lance. Turrets, one of the stronger cases for smoke, are entirely stationary, so players can prepare and fire a launcher in advance. Against a largely turret-centric force, a single colonist losing their weapon isn't as important as the smoke itself. Launchers can also be used at range and have no cost or limit for firing. Against large mechanoid clusters, which can have a large number of turrets with a variety of different firing angles, a smokepop pack may simply not provide enough time to destroy all the turrets.

In general, smokepop packs are much more flexible as they allow pawns to wield other weapons. Smoke launchers have the advantage of ammo and range, but their slow firing means that they are best against turret encampments and are fairly weak otherwise.

Version history

0.17.1546 - Added as the smokepop belt.
1.2.2719 - Renamed to the smokepop pack from smokepop belt, now has 3 charges instead of 1, no longer disappears on use, and can be triggered manually instead of automatically triggering when hit by a projectile.
1.2.2753 - AI will now only deploy an NPC's Smokepop pack if the offending attacker is hostile. This prevents friendly-fire from activating an NPC's Smokepop
1.4.3523 - Texture replaced.

Pre-1.4.3523 Texture

Utility

Utility: Firefoam pop pack • Orbital bombardment targeter • Orbital power beam targeter • Psychic shock lance • Psychic insanity lance • Shield belt • Smokepop pack • Tornado generator • Low-shield pack • Jump pack • Orbital mech cluster targeter • Bandwidth pack • Control pack • Tox pack • Biomutation lance • Deadlife pack • Disruptor flare pack • Shard insanity lance • Shard shock lance • Turret pack