at that point we’ll see the end of armored vehicles. You won’t be able to make armor thick enough, so no point in having it at all.
You’ll still have to protect from the anti-tank gun, RPG’s, regular rifles, and .50 M2’s so armor isn’t going to go away.
Not necessarily. Remember, if the focused fusion devices work out, it won’t matter how big the tank is. You’ll be able to move something that’s the size of building, perhaps even on an air cushion a la David Drake.
Also, I don’t see energy weapons going man portable any time soon.(Not unless someone manages to make David Drake’s “powergun” real, and that’s probably never going to happen - the more so since *he* doesn’t believe it’s possible and specifically states that they’re only there so he can tell stories.) What I do see is tanks adopting more and more active defenses: Multispectral smoke from smoke projectors, already in use, scatters and diffuses lasers to the point where they are harmless to most armors. Active point defenses, like the Israeli Arrow system, can knock down incoming RPGs, guided missiles, and even deflect incoming recoilless rounds. The Russian “Arena” system can supplement this, plus take out anything that gets into your dead zone around the tank.
Not at all. Ever hear of mirrors?