Portal Gun a WMD?

[tkioz]

So I was thinking about Portal and how it's considered one of the best "non-violent" games around, not counting the last level... which is odd considering you're running around with a WMD in your hands.

Seriously I can think of 3 methods of incredible destruction just off the top of my head with that gun.

Method 1: portal in volcano, portal in major city.... bad juju happens.

Method 2: So objects retain their velocity when exiting a portal right? Everyone has done the one on the roof, one of the ground thing, imagine that with a 20kg chunk of metal, leave it there for a while until it builds up a nice and nasty relativistic speed, change the exit portal to a major city, watch city vaporise.

Method 3: Set a portal under a city in the storm drains, set another portal in the ocean, watch the city go shloooooooooomp.

So any other suggestions for making a WMD out of the portal gun?

 

[RathWolf]

That all relies on those places being "portal compatible", when clearly, not all surfaces are.

 

[tkioz]

That all relies on those places being "portal compatible", when clearly, not all surfaces are.

Ways around that, a slab of portal compatible material dip into whatever place you need.

 

[ciancon]

It isn't in itself a weapon of mass destruction. But think about the all out war that would be waged on a country if that country were to develop such a technology!

 

[Ekit]

What's a WMD?

 

[Om Nom Nom]

Portal on the moon (or otherwise in space), portal on Earth.

Bye-bye atmosphere.
._.

 

[Venerax]

Method 2 would fail due to terminal velocity.
But otherwise... Yeah, who cares? It's not like the game utilises or even implies these acts of violence. It's still a very peaceful game (last level notwithstanding).

 

[Lust]

Well if you're going to use it for that purpose, then, yeah it is.

 

[randomsix]

Assuming range is no issue, shoot the side of the moon, shoot the ground, lose atmosphere.

Edit: and method 2 could be achieved by evacuating the atmosphere out of the room the portals are placed in. Like a bell jar (except a room).

 

[tkioz]

What's a WMD?

Weapon of Mass Destruction.

Method 2 would fail due to terminal velocity.
But otherwise... Yeah, who cares? It's not like the game utilises or even implies these acts of violence. It's still a very peaceful game (last level notwithstanding).

It's fun to thing about these things? Coming up with ideas to destroy the world with fictional devices is entertaining!

You're right about method 2 but I'm sure there are ways around that.

 

[Space Spoons]

Well, assuming the portal fired out of the gun maintains its speed and trajectory, you could fire one at the sun, and the other at any surface on Earth. I don't know if, like, the sun's fire would come blasting out of the Earth-side portal or what, but it's somewhere in the neighborhood of 20 million degrees. Even just having a small, man-sized portal emitting that kind of heat in a localized area would be disastrous.

Hell, you could fire the gun pretty much anywhere in space and guarantee a disaster. You might not be sure where it'll hit, but chances are good it won't have oxygen. Anything close to the other end of the portal would get sucked out for sure.

 

[Chamale]

Have you ever read Armageddon? [http://bbs.stardestroyer.net/viewtopic.php?t=118771] or its sequel, Pantheocide [http://bbs.stardestroyer.net/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=134719]?

A major plot point is how humanity's enemies, which have portal technology but an otherwise inferior military, can use portals as superweapons. They use all 3 of your ideas at various points, but I won't spoil the story by telling you exactly how they use these ideas.

 

[Jehovatron]

/agree with the statements that scenario 2 can't happen due to terminal velocity... but the portal vacuum is rather inventive. You premise is flawed, however: if you agree with those who say that the portal gun should be considered non-violent then you have precluded the legitimacy of viewing the gun as a WMD- a thing designed specifically to destroy civilizations. The portal gun must be seen as nothing more than a tool, albeit a powerful one, that can only cause harm if used improperly. A pneumatic hammer can be used easily destroy people, structures, roadways, pipelines, etc., but has always been considered a tool- not a weapon. A thermonuclear device, being a WMD, has always been considered a weapon first and, perhaps, a tool second - not vice versa - and that classification separates it from the portal gun in terms of their intended uses, thus, their appropriate labels.
Also, the same examples that were used to show how the portal gun is capable of being used for destruction can also be slightly modified to serve a constructive purpose: 1. A portal could be installed next to a lava pool to serve as a port for a geothermal energy system. 2. A portal could replace inflatable bags to catch suicidal people jumping off of tall buildings or, perhaps, a large enough portal could be used to redirect an incoming asteroid. 3. A portal could be used to drain flood waters. 4. To suck harmful gasses (from a leak, maybe) out into space. 5. Near the sun to provide a cheap, effective means of waste disposal.

 

[crudus]

Method 1: portal in volcano, portal in major city.... bad juju happens.

I am not sure how portals react with fluids to be honest. I can't imagine it would be that dangerous though. If this existed then people would think of this and ways to stop it. Although, the inside of a volcano isn't exactly flat and you need a flat surface to place a portal.

Method 2: So objects retain their velocity when exiting a portal right? Everyone has done the one on the roof, one of the ground thing, imagine that with a 20kg chunk of metal, leave it there for a while until it builds up a nice and nasty relativistic speed, change the exit portal to a major city, watch city vaporise.

There is something called a terminal velocity. There is not "mass destruction" but something equivalent to vandalism sure.

Method 3: Set a portal under a city in the storm drains, set another portal in the ocean, watch the city go shloooooooooomp.

I am really not sure what you are getting at here

 

[Jo The Shmo]

I agree that the portal gun could be used violently, but that doesn't mean Portal is a violent game.

I mean, there are knives in Cooking Mama...

 

[tkioz]

Have you ever read Armageddon? [http://bbs.stardestroyer.net/viewtopic.php?t=118771] or its sequel, Pantheocide [http://bbs.stardestroyer.net/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=134719]?

A major plot point is how humanity's enemies, which have portal technology but an otherwise inferior military, can use portals as superweapons. They use all 3 of your ideas at various points, but I won't spoil the story by telling you exactly how they use these ideas.

mmm sounds interesting, I'll have to give it a read.

 

[Ekit]

What's a WMD?

Weapon of Mass Destruction.

Ok, thanks.

OT: It will be hard considering the portal gun only works on certain surfaces.

But maybe you could put one portal on the bottom of the ocean and the other on the street?

 

[tkioz]

Method 1: portal in volcano, portal in major city.... bad juju happens.

I am not sure how portals react with fluids to be honest. I can't imagine it would be that dangerous though. If this existed then people would think of this and ways to stop it. Although, the inside of a volcano isn't exactly flat and you need a flat surface to place a portal.

Lava is nasty stuff, set the portal to drop it in the middle of a large area, having it up high, for example a helicopter holding a slab of something with the portal on it, lava comes pouring out, dropping host nasty goo all over the city at a fairly fast rate.

Method 2: So objects retain their velocity when exiting a portal right? Everyone has done the one on the roof, one of the ground thing, imagine that with a 20kg chunk of metal, leave it there for a while until it builds up a nice and nasty relativistic speed, change the exit portal to a major city, watch city vaporise.

There is something called a terminal velocity. There is not "mass destruction" but something equivalent to vandalism sure.

True, I forgot about that when I was dreaming it up, but I'm sure there are methods around this, depends on how much you want to blow something up.

Method 3: Set a portal under a city in the storm drains, set another portal in the ocean, watch the city go shloooooooooomp.

I am really not sure what you are getting at here

Well massive underwater flood of the large city would disestablish the foundations of the city leading to buildings falling over At least I think that would be the case anyway.

 

[Nouw]

I agree that the portal gun could be used violently, but that doesn't mean Portal is a violent game.

I mean, there are knives in Cooking Mama...

/thread

Also, the Portal could be placed on a planet. You're in Space and pop a Nuke.

Place a Portal in a Car with the President. Place Rocket Launcher. Not WMD but killing the President can count in some ways.