Where does plasma go from here?

For top tier guys (from what I can tell from YT stew pendous, TCB, adrian etc) seems plasma is still a cornerstone of their hanger. Saw Adrian running 2 plasma galahads, stew and warlock have said they prefers plasma variant too. Same for me. I like the constant suppression of plasma that allows you to just constantly shoot at people. Also tarans have such a cool sound effect!
Lots of shieldbots sure, but I reckon there's still more non-shieldbots (griff, fury, leo, carny) in gold tier. New cowboy bots don't have shield either.

This is good to hear, as I am getting my Galahad in 4 days now because I am planning on stepping into Low Gold at the end of the month.

I run 3 plasma bots in my hangar when running solo in gold. Trust me, plasma ain't going away . The reason people started running shield bots is because of plasma, and even with those shields, they certainly don't hold up forever!

plasma kills furies, griffins carnages and Leo's much more efficiently and easily than orkans/pinatas do. The Leo will just eat your first salvo of missiles because of its high health pool, the carnage will negate the majority of your first DB salvo if you do not take down the shield first, so is actually much easier to take out with plasma. The fury.. same problem as the Leo. Plasma may not be effective for taking out Rhinos, Lancelots and Galahads, but it is a surefire way to get their attention, as if they aren't facing you, they will be melted just as easy as any other bot.

Orkans and pinata a aren't the only way to play in gold tier, not by a long shot. I know that if all pilots used DB's instead of plasma bots, I'd be wiping out entire enemy teams with my griffins and Galahads.

Plasma is far from dead in top tier. It is "the" Griffin/Stalker killing setup. While Griffs can jump out of a DB strike, they're hamburger if caught by a PDB.

To be fair it really depends on play style and if you like using rockets, that's cool. For me, the long reload time is a huge disadvantage. I like being able to put non-stop pressure on reds. Also that extra 50m against DB is sometimes a huge advantage.

Its always good to have spares though as the meta always seems to change...

I think you guys are forgetting basic flanking tactics...

Plasma isn't really a head on weapon anymore, but you're practically guaranteed to win if you engage an enemy from anywhere but their front.

Certainly less plasma in high gold/top than in silver, but still very viable.
I run a galahad with maxed plasma and a rhino with either taran/aphid or full plasma. Compare this with my alternate account (phone) where I run 3 full plasma setups in high silver.
Overall, if you are planning to eventually move to top, you might want to consider leveling plasma only for two bots (so something like 3 tarans + 4 magnums). YMMV.
For what it's worth, I have a total of 9 tarans and 11 magnums and basically use 25-35% of those, the rest turned out to be pointless purchases.

I'm currently in silver or bronze (a little bit a problem wit Rhinos are coming). Should I buy plasma or rockets?

Honestly, I'm at two minds about my post (and hindsight is 20/20). It's not certain which direction the game will take in the future. At the moment though, while plasma's not going away, I do see it's use drop significantly in gold--mostly because of Brit bots and aphid buffs, which have also caused the decline in rhinos and lancelots and an increase in griffs and galahad.

I've got 8 tarans and 8 mags--all around lvl 9/11. So maybe the priority is balance and not going all out in any direction or you'll waste time and silver upgrading weapons you won't use. Then again, many of us play in 2-3 different tiers, so while you may not use plasma much in gold, your (ahem) Gepards are still going to need 15 mags in bronze and silver. So perhaps it's not a total waste.

The comments here were very good and useful--my thanks. It made me realize how much individual playing style constitutes much in the way you shape your hangar and select bots and weapons. And what works for some may not work for others.