Phasewater-charged weapons were not new.
The native aliens developed many different weapons that expended phasewater to temporarily increase a weapon's penetration power.
However, it was impossible for them to apply this tech on a large scale. Phasewater may be more abundant in alien space, but it was still a precious resource that had a lot of different uses!
In truth, there were more nefarious reasons why this known technology had not become as popular as it should.
Phasewater-charged weapons boasted enhanced lethality and could neutralize phasewater-based defenses a lot more effectively than usual.
This made them a lot more threatening when employed against phase lords and phase whales!
As the gods and rulers of the Red Ocean, these phase leaders would never allow their mortal subjects to build up a stockpile of weapons that could end their reign one day!