Editing Rocket launcher

[[File:Rocket launcher Doom II MAP06.png|thumb|A player, holding a rocket launcher, finds another one in a secret area of [[MAP06: The Crusher (Doom II)|MAP06: The Crusher]] from [[Doom II]].]]
[[File:E2M8_Battling_Cyberdemon.png|thumb|A rocket-to-rocket battle with the [[cyberdemon]] on [[E2M8: Tower of Babel (Doom)|E2M8: Tower of Babel]].]]
{{Weapon versions|disambig={{thisisabout|weapon|doom1}}|doom3=Rocket launcher (Doom 3)|doom4=Rocket launcher (Doom 2016)|doom5=Rocket launcher (Doom Eternal)}}
The '''rocket launcher''' is used to fire [[rocket]]s, missiles that fly in a straight line and explode when they hit anything solid. When picked up, the launcher contains two rockets (four at the I'm Too Young To Die and Nightmare! [[Skill level#Doom and Doom II skill levels|skill levels]]).

The launcher first appears in a [[secret]] area of the level [[E1M3: Toxin Refinery (Doom)|E1M3: Toxin Refinery]] and appears again in secret areas of the following three levels. It is finally found in a non-secret area on [[E1M7: Computer Station (Doom)|E1M7: Computer Station]].

{{Quote|Rocket Launchers deliver an explosive rocket that can turn several baddies inside-out.|[[Doom instruction manual]]}}

== Combat characteristics ==

Each rocket does 20-160 [[Hit point|points of damage]], in round multiples of 20, plus a maximum [[Blast damage|blast radius]] of 128 [[unit]]s. Thus the rocket launcher is approximately as powerful as the [[super shotgun]], but equally effective at long range and with a more rapid rate of fire.

It can be used for [[rocket jumping]] in some areas, for example to reach the secret exit of [[E3M6: Mt. Erebus (Doom)|E3M6: Mt. Erebus]].

== Tactical analysis ==
[[File:Doom 64 rocket launcher.png|thumb|Rocket launcher weapon and pickup in [[MAP18: Spawned Fear (Doom 64)|MAP18: Spawned Fear]] from [[Doom 64]].]]
The rocket launcher can inflict enormous damage against groups of monsters, and is often the preferred weapon for dealing with particularly tough monsters when [[Energy cell (Doom)|energy cells]] are low. The rocket launcher can also conserve ammo due to its [[splash damage]] which can deliver (roughly) the same damage to a large number of targets given that they are all close together in proximity to the rocket's blast. However, when using the rocket launcher at close range or within a confined structure, great care must be taken to avoid the effects of blast damage (even a player with 200% [[health]] and [[armors|armor]] can be killed by several such accidents). For this reason, using a rocket launcher around [[lost soul]]s or [[pain elemental]]s is hazardous. Novice players may also be caught off guard by the weapon's [[Autoaim#Horizontal autoaim|horizontal auto-aiming]] which sometimes causes a rocket to be launched a few degrees away from center.

== Notes ==
* As with the [[BFG9000]] and [[chaingun]], the full rocket launcher [[sprite]] (after pickup) is slightly too large for the screen, and can only be viewed with a level or resource editor.
* The rocket launcher has a "safety catch" similar to the [[BFG9000#Notes|BFG9000]]. When selected while the fire key is still pressed, the rocket launcher will not begin firing immediately like other weapons, but only when fire key is released and pressed again. It is likely this feature was implemented to prevent severe player injuries by accidentally firing the weapon at close range.
* Due to the rocket launcher's explosive force, it is often used in many [[speedrun]]s to propel the player to a faster momentum, or to slingshot the player over jumps that typically could not be reached by running alone.
* The rocket launcher's appearance in [[Doom 64]] is slightly different. However, not much has been changed, with the exception it delivers some knockback to the player when fired.
* In [[vanilla]] Doom, the rocket's splash damage does not take the vertical axis into account, and can in some cases be used to blow up enemies or barrels well above or below the rocket's impact.  Many ports change this behavior by default, however.

== Data ==
{{col-begin|width=auto}}
{{col-break}}
{| {{prettytable}}
!colspan="2"|Rocket launcher data (original)
|-
| [[Thing types|Thing type]]||2003 (decimal), 7D3 (hex)
|-
| [[Mobj|Enum]]||MT_MISC27 (75)
|-
| Appears in||[[Shareware]] Doom<br>[[Doom]]/[[Ultimate Doom]]<br>[[Doom II]]/[[Final Doom]]
|-
| Radius||20
|-
| Height||16
|-
| [[Thing types|Class]]||[[Weapon]]<br>Pickup
|-
| Flags||{{c|1}} (decimal)<br>{{c|00000001}} (hex)
|-
| Flags list|| 0: Can be picked up
|-
| Spawns||MT_ROCKET (rocket)
|}
{{col-break|gap=0.5em}}
{| {{prettytable}}
!colspan="2"|Weapon attributes
|-
| Weapon slot||5
|-
| Included ammo||2 (4 on [[Skill level|skills]] 1 & 5)
|-
| Max ammo||50 (100 with [[backpack]])
|-
| Ammo type||[[Rocket]]s
|-
| Shots per minute||105.0
|}
{| {{prettytable}}
! [[State]]!![[Sprite]]!!Frames
|-
| Before pickup||LAUN||1 [A]
|-
| Wielded||MISG||1 [A]
|-
| Firing||MISG||3 [BBB]
|-
| Refiring||MISG||2 [BB]
|-
| Flashing||MISF||4 [ABCD]
|}
{{col-break|gap=1em}}
{| {{prettytable}}
!colspan="2"|Ranged attack
|-
| Type||[[Projectile]]
|-
| Enum||MT_ROCKET (33)
|-
| Velocity||20 [[map unit]]s per tic<br>(700 map units per second)
|-
| [[Damage]]||20-160 (direct hit)<br>0-128 ([[Blast damage|blast radius]])<br>148-288 (direct hit + blast radius)
|-
| Radius||11
|-
| Height||8
|-
| Sprite||MISL
|-
| Frames||1 [A] (in flight)<br>3 [BCD] (impact)
|-
| [[Sound]]||DSRLAUNC (firing)<br>DSBAREXP (impact)
|-
| Flags||{{c|67088}} (decimal)<br>{{c|00010610}} (hex)
|-
| Flags list|| 4: No blocklinks (Inert)<br> 9: No gravity<br>10: Drops off ledges<br>16: Projectile
|}
{{col-end}}

{{col-begin|width=auto}}
{{col-break}}
{| {{prettytable}}
!colspan="2"|Rocket launcher data (Doom 64)
|-
| [[Mobj|Enum]]||MT_WEAP_LAUNCHER (82)
|-
| Appears in||[[Doom 64]]/[[The Lost Levels|Lost Levels]]
|-
| Spawns||MT_PROJ_ROCKET (rocket)
|}
Data not listed is the same<br>as for the original version.
{{col-break|gap=0.5em}}
{| {{prettytable}}
!colspan="2"|Weapon attributes
|-
| Shots per minute||100.0
|}
{| {{prettytable}}
! State!!Sprite!!Frames
|-
| Wielded||ROCK||1 [A]
|-
| Firing||ROCK||3 [BBB]
|-
| Refiring||ROCK||2 [BB]
|-
| Flashing||ROCK||4 [CDEF]
|}
{{col-break|gap=1em}}
{| {{prettytable}}
!colspan="2"|Ranged attack
|-
| Enum||MT_PROJ_ROCKET (25)
|-
| Velocity||30 map units per tic<br>(900 map units per second)
|-
| Frames||1 [A] (in flight)<br>7 [BBCCDEF] (impact)
|-
| Sound||SFX_041 (firing)<br>SFX_084 (impact)
|-
| Flags||{{c|66576}} (decimal)<br>{{c|00010410}} (hex)
|-
| Flags list|| 4: No blocklinks (Inert)<br>10: Drops off ledges<br>16: Projectile
|}
{{col-end}}

[[File:RocketHistogram.png|300px|thumb|none|''Damage done by a rocket impact (direct hit plus blast)'']]
[[File:BareRocketHistogram.png|300px|thumb|none|''Damage done by a rocket impact (direct hit only)'']]

{| {{prettytable}}
| '''Shots needed to kill'''<sup>1,2</sup>
| Mean
| {{wp|Standard deviation#Interpretation and application|Standard<br/>deviation}}
| Min
| Max
|-
|[[Barrel]]
|1.00
|0.00
|1
|1
|-
|[[Zombieman]]
|1.00
|0.00
|1
|1
|-
|[[Shotgun guy]]
|1.00
|0.00
|1
|1
|-
|[[Wolfenstein SS]]
|1.00
|0.00
|1
|1
|-
|[[Imp]]
|1.00
|0.00
|1
|1
|-
|[[Heavy weapon dude]]
|1.00
|0.00
|1
|1
|-
|[[Lost soul]]
|1.00
|0.00
|1
|1
|-
|[[Commander Keen]]
|1.00
|0.00
|1
|1
|-
|[[Demon]]
|1.13
|0.33
|1
|2
|-
|[[Spectre]]
|1.13
|0.33
|1
|2
|-
|[[Romero's head]]<sup>3</sup>
|1.76
|0.43
|1
|2
|-
|[[Revenant]]
|2.03
|0.16
|2
|3
|-
|[[Cacodemon]]
|2.35
|0.48
|2
|3
|-
|[[Pain elemental]]
|2.35
|0.48
|2
|3
|-
|[[Hell knight]]
|2.86
|0.41
|2
|4
|-
|[[Arachnotron]]
|2.86
|0.41
|2
|4
|-
|[[Mancubus]]
|3.24
|0.43
|3
|4
|-
|[[Arch-vile]]
|3.72
|0.55
|3
|5
|-
|[[Baron of Hell]]
|5.09
|0.50
|4
|6
|-
|[[Spiderdemon]]
|34.03
|2.60
|27
|40
|-
|[[Cyberdemon]]
|45.16
|3.09
|36
|52
|-
|}
<small>
#This table assumes that all calls to [[Pseudorandom number generator|P_Random]] for damage, [[pain chance]], impact animations, and backfire checks are consecutive. In real play, this is never the case: counterattacks and AI pathfinding must be handled, and of course the map may contain additional moving monsters and other randomized phenomena (such as [[Sector#Doom|flickering lights]]). It is also assumed that all projectiles are launched at nearly the same range, so that the various procedures call P_Random in the same ''sequence'' each time. Any resulting errors are probably toward the single-shot average, as they introduce noise into the correlation between the indices of "consecutive" calls.
#Assumes that all rockets actually strike the target.
#Assumes that direct hits are possible, which [[Icon of Sin|does not occur]] in any stock map.
</small>

== Appearance statistics ==
In the [[IWAD]]s the rocket launcher is first encountered on these maps per [[Skill level#Doom and Doom II skill levels|skill level]]:

{{col-begin}}
{{col-break|width=50%}}
{| {{prettytable}}
!colspan="4"|Single-player
|-
!Game / ''Episode''!!1-2!!3!!4-5
|-
|''[[Knee-Deep in the Dead]]''||[[E1M3: Toxin Refinery]]||E1M3: Toxin Refinery||E1M3: Toxin Refinery
|-
|''[[The Shores of Hell]]''||[[E2M2: Containment Area]]||E2M2: Containment Area||E2M2: Containment Area
|-
|''[[Inferno]]''||[[E3M1: Hell Keep]]||E3M1: Hell Keep||E3M1: Hell Keep
|-
|''[[Thy Flesh Consumed]]''||[[E4M1: Hell Beneath]]||E4M1: Hell Beneath||E4M1: Hell Beneath
|-
|[[Doom II]]||[[MAP01: Entryway]]||MAP01: Entryway||MAP01: Entryway
|-
|[[TNT: Evilution]]||[[MAP03: Power Control]]||MAP03: Power Control||MAP03: Power Control
|-
|[[Plutonia Experiment]]||[[MAP01: Congo]]||MAP01: Congo||MAP01: Congo
|-
|[[Doom 64]]||[[MAP32: Hectic]]||MAP32: Hectic||MAP32: Hectic
|-
|[[The Lost Levels]]||[[MAP34: Plant Ops]]||MAP34: Plant Ops||MAP34: Plant Ops
|}
{{col-break}}
{| {{prettytable}}
!colspan="4"|Multiplayer
|-
!Game / ''Episode''!!1-2!!3!!4-5
|-
|''Knee-Deep in the Dead''||[[E1M1: Hangar]]||E1M1: Hangar||E1M1: Hangar
|-
|''The Shores of Hell''||E2M2: Containment Area||E2M2: Containment Area||E2M2: Containment Area
|-
|''Inferno''||E3M1: Hell Keep||E3M1: Hell Keep||E3M1: Hell Keep
|-
|''Thy Flesh Consumed''||E4M1: Hell Beneath||E4M1: Hell Beneath||E4M1: Hell Beneath
|-
|Doom II||MAP01: Entryway||MAP01: Entryway||MAP01: Entryway
|-
|TNT: Evilution||[[MAP01: System Control]]||MAP01: System Control||MAP01: System Control
|-
|Plutonia Experiment||MAP01: Congo||MAP01: Congo||MAP01: Congo
|}
{{col-end}}

The IWADs contain the following numbers of rocket launchers per skill level:

{{col-begin}}
{{col-break|width=50%}}
{| {{prettytable|style=text-align: center;}}
!colspan="4"|Single-player
|-
!Game / ''Episode''!!1-2!!3!!4-5
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|''[[Knee-Deep in the Dead]]''||''6''||''6''||''6''
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|''[[The Shores of Hell]]''||''5''||''5''||''5''
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|''[[Inferno]]''||''10''||''10''||''9''
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|[[Doom|Doom (registered)]]||21||21||20
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|''[[Thy Flesh Consumed]]''||''11''||''11''||''13''
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|[[Ultimate Doom]]||32||32||33
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|[[Doom II]]||27||28||28
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|[[TNT: Evilution]]||31||32||32
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|[[Plutonia Experiment]]||31||32||32
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|[[Doom 64]]||30||30||30
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|[[The Lost Levels]]||7||7||7
|}
{{col-break}}
{| {{prettytable|style=text-align: center;}}
!colspan="4"|Multiplayer
|-
!Game / ''Episode''!!1-2!!3!!4-5
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|''Knee-Deep in the Dead''||''9''||''9''||''9''
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|''The Shores of Hell''||''7''||''7''||''7''
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|''Inferno''||''11''||''11''||''10''
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|Doom (registered)||27||27||26
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|''Thy Flesh Consumed''||''15''||''15''||''17''
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|Ultimate Doom||42||42||43
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|Doom II||36||37||37
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|TNT: Evilution||55||56||56
|-
|style="text-align: left;"|Plutonia Experiment||57||60||60
|}
{{col-end}}

==See also==
* [[Blast damage]]
* [[Rocket jumping]]
* [[Rocket passes through the player who fired it]]
* [[Rocket launcher (Doom 3)]]
* [[Rocket launcher (Doom 2016)]]
* [[Rocket launcher (Doom Eternal)]]

==External links==
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVEIXrY9tZQ In-depth analysis of explosion mechanics]

{{Doom weapons}}
[[Category:Rocket launchers]]