1) Size is power. The bigger the weapon looks, the more powerfull.
2) Color is power. The weapons all have their own color based on their tier.
3) This allows the player to instantly recognize generally what type of weapons are in use.
I also think I got the dimensions down pat to give the lasers more momentum by cutting their length in half. In my opinion the lasers were too long, therefore looked like they moved slower, and also overwhelmed all other graphics.
Comments are appreciated. [:D]
Here is a sample of the new weapons, area effect weapons are untouched.

Sample of the beam_2 in action, along with the new torpedo effect.

The File weapons.zip
Before installing make sure you back up your c:\Matrix Games\Distant Worlds\images\effects\weapons folder.
Then extract the weapons.zip to c:\Matrix Games\Distant Worlds\images\effects making sure you overwright all files.