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I'll take the liberty to also design the weapon, since you didn't specify details of how it works:

Rather than attempt to melt the planet's entire surface up to a certain thickness, like other answers want to assume, I would instead blow up the piece of continent where sandy rocks are most prevalent, and rain down a glazing layer of glass over the rest of the planet.

It would look like ... a thick glaze. Made of glass.

• In the oceans and lakes, the glass would sink to the bottom.

• In the poles, it would melt the ice caps, and then sink to the bottom.

• In the deserts, it would settle as a clean sheet of glass.

• Everywhere else from forests to cities, it would cause fires and then settle in somewhat messier form, mixed with debris. Additional deposits either from hot glass returning from orbit or from a follow-up hit would then create a more uniform glaze over the ashes.

Terraforming would consist mostly of using explosives and bulldozing robots to remove the glassy layer, probably starting in food-growing areas.

This is obviously inspired by the Chicxulub Event and the K-T boundary, with a key difference being that a sci-fi weapon can be designed to achieve effects that a dumb rock couldn't.

I'll take the liberty to also design the weapon, since you didn't specify details of how it works:

Rather than attempt to melt the planet's entire surface up to a certain thickness, like other answers want to assume, I would instead blow up the piece of continent where sandy rocks are most prevalent, causing a storm of molten glass to rain down over the rest of the planet.

It would look like ... a thick glaze. Made of glass.

• In the oceans and lakes, the glass would sink to the bottom.

• In the poles, it would melt the ice caps, and then sink to the bottom.

• In the deserts, it would settle as a clean sheet of glass.

• Everywhere else from forests to cities, it would cause fires and then settle in somewhat messier form, mixed with debris. Additional molten glass drops returning from orbit after the initial explosion or a follow-up hit would then create a more uniform glaze over the ashes.

Terraforming would consist mostly of using explosives and bulldozing robots to remove the glassy layer, probably starting in food-growing areas.

This is obviously inspired by the Chicxulub Event and the K-T boundary, with a key difference being that a sci-fi weapon can be designed to achieve effects that a dumb rock couldn't.

I'll take the liberty to also design the weapon, since you didn't specify details of how it works:

Rather than attempt to melt the planet's entire surface up to a certain thickness, like other answers want to assume, I would instead blow up the piece of continent where sandy rocks are most prevalent, and rain down a glazing layer of glass over the rest of the planet.

It would look like ... a thick glaze. Made of glass.

• In the oceans and lakes, the glass would sink to the bottom.

• In the poles, it would melt the ice caps, and then sink to the bottom.

• In the deserts, it would settle as a clean sheet of glass.

• Everywhere else from forests to cities, it would cause fires and then settle in somewhat messier form, mixed with debris. Additional deposits either from hot glass returning from orbit or from a follow-up hit would then create a more uniform glaze over the ashes.

Terraforming would consist mostly of removing the glassy layer, probably starting in food-growing areas.

This is obviously inspired by the Chicxulub Event and the K-T boundary, with a key difference being that a sci-fi weapon can be designed to achieve effects than a dumb rock couldn't.

I'll take the liberty to also design the weapon, since you didn't specify details of how it works:

Rather than attempt to melt the planet's entire surface up to a certain thickness, like other answers want to assume, I would instead blow up the piece of continent where sandy rocks are most prevalent, and rain down a glazing layer of glass over the rest of the planet.

It would look like ... a thick glaze. Made of glass.

• In the oceans and lakes, the glass would sink to the bottom.

• In the poles, it would melt the ice caps, and then sink to the bottom.

• In the deserts, it would settle as a clean sheet of glass.

• Everywhere else from forests to cities, it would cause fires and then settle in somewhat messier form, mixed with debris. Additional deposits either from hot glass returning from orbit or from a follow-up hit would then create a more uniform glaze over the ashes.

Terraforming would consist mostly of using explosives and bulldozing robots to remove the glassy layer, probably starting in food-growing areas.

This is obviously inspired by the Chicxulub Event and the K-T boundary, with a key difference being that a sci-fi weapon can be designed to achieve effects that a dumb rock couldn't.

I'll take the liberty to also design the weapon, since you didn't specify details of how it works:

Rather than attempt to melt the planet's entire surface up to a certain thickness, like other answers want to assume, I would instead blow up the piece of continent where silicon-rich rocks are located and rain down a glazing layer of glass over the rest of the planet.

It would look like ... a thick glaze. Made of glass.

• In the oceans and lakes, the glass would sink to the bottom.

• In the poles, it would melt the ice caps, and then sink to the bottom.

• In the deserts, it would settle as a clean sheet of glass.

• Everywhere else from forests to cities, it would cause fires and then settle in somewhat messier form. Additional deposits either from hot lava in orbit or from a follow-up hit would then create a thinner glaze over the ashes.

Terraforming would consist mostly of removing the glassy layer, probably starting in food-growing areas.

This is obviously inspired by the Chicxulub Event and the K-T boundary, with a key difference being that a sci-fi weapon can be designed to achieve effects than a dumb rock couldn't.

I'll take the liberty to also design the weapon, since you didn't specify details of how it works:

Rather than attempt to melt the planet's entire surface up to a certain thickness, like other answers want to assume, I would instead blow up the piece of continent where sandy rocks are most prevalent, and rain down a glazing layer of glass over the rest of the planet.

It would look like ... a thick glaze. Made of glass.

• In the oceans and lakes, the glass would sink to the bottom.

• In the poles, it would melt the ice caps, and then sink to the bottom.

• In the deserts, it would settle as a clean sheet of glass.

• Everywhere else from forests to cities, it would cause fires and then settle in somewhat messier form, mixed with debris. Additional deposits either from hot glass returning from orbit or from a follow-up hit would then create a more uniform glaze over the ashes.

Terraforming would consist mostly of removing the glassy layer, probably starting in food-growing areas.

This is obviously inspired by the Chicxulub Event and the K-T boundary, with a key difference being that a sci-fi weapon can be designed to achieve effects than a dumb rock couldn't.