You will note the parenthesis around ‘giga’. We all know from movie trivia that Arnold botched his line in the movie (was supposed to have said ‘megawatt range’). 40 watts wont do much of anything. 40 Gigawatt, thats a rifle!
I did not know that about Arnold’s flubbed line.
However, in my investigation of plasma collator plates, I see the maximum rating is 73 Watts. 40 Watts is a good power level for plasma rifles. 40 watts may not seem like a lot, until you understand that the plasma slug will be impacting at a temperature of about 12,000 degrees fahrenheit.
It’s an extremely small slug, so the 40 watts is used to turn the slug into plasma (38.2 watts) and launch it (1.8 watts).
My credentials are, I am an E5 Specialist Armorer specializing in Plasma weaponry. I joined the Resistance in 2038.