The increased fragment range made it only slightly more powerful, while making it even harder to use without causing collateral/self damage. Also, if it's supposed to be better than the Longbow, as its higher level and price suggest, the blast damage needs to be radius.
A lot of higher-level missiles lack failsafe. The KM110 also, as far as I know, does not have CanHitSource (if it does, it shouldn't).
In terms of being better, this is numerical, not related to the type of fragment. I think it's actually about right at the moment.
The fragments can still hit the firing ship.
Would you ever choose to buy them in the early game if there were Longbows, Stilettos, or Brutes available? Because I find the idea laughable, which is a pretty good indicator that they aren't balanced.
They're quite reasonable missiles. Fragmenting blast weapons hit swarms more effectively, and the KM110 has decent range. So yes, I do.
And, again, this missile does not have the CanHitSource attribute: it will not hit or damage the ship that fires the, unless something else in the game has broken.
Oops, you're right. I guess the times I thought I was damaging myself I was actually being hit by enemy fire and/or ejecta.
I still think Starbursts are worse than other missiles for their price, but it's not a huge deal, so I'll resolve.