Iconic Small Arms

[LeperColony]

Which Traveller small arms stick out most in your mind?

To me, my "what Traveller is" was formed in the late 80's and early/mid 90's with the MegaTraveller computer games and TNE. For better or worse, when I picture Traveller weapons, I still see them in the 8-bit Zhodani Conspiracy versions!

The Body Pistol's blocky, squarish design is one I've always found memorable.

 

[Adam Dray]

This is no help, but I first read the topic as IRONIC small arms, and I was imagining a deadly pistol named The Pacifist.

 

[GypsyComet]

a deadly pistol named The Pacifist.

Or "Kindness."

The Snub Pistol has always been my go-to, but the Gauss guns are iconic in that Traveller was the first widespread use of the term for weaponry.

 

[whartung]

Gauss Rifle.

The ultimate slug thrower.

This is my rifle. There are many like it, but this one is mine…

 

[Timerover51]

The following antique equivalents are given in LBB Book 1.

Automatic Pistol: Equivalent to the Smith & Wesson Model 59 9mm or the Auto-Mag .44 Magnum.
Revolver: Equivalent to the Smith & Wesson Model 66 .357 Magnum.
Carbine: Equivalent to the Ruger 5.56mm Mini-14 or the Armalite 5.56mm
Ar-180.
Rifle: Equivalent to the Springfield 7.62mm MI4 Rifle or the Belgian FN FAL
7.62mm Rifle.

Not being a fan of the 9mm caliber, I would go with the M1911A1 .45 Colt Automatic (11.43mm caliber0. Being partial to the .45 caliber, I would go with the 1873 Single Action Army with a 7.5 inch barrel (I prefer a longer sighting radius0. For the carbine, again, I am not a fan of the 5.56mm caliber, so maybe a nice lever-action carbine in either .44 Magnum or .44-40 or the older Ruger semi-auto carbine in .44 magnum, and for the rifle, I would take the M14, but would also be perfectly happy with a nice 1903 Springfield with a good quality scope.

I have a tendency to like bigger bores ad nice large bullets.

 

[Condottiere]

Has to be the snub pistol, or revolver with the Sandman rounds.

 

[aramis]

For me, FGMP-15, PGMP-12, ACR-10, and Snub Pistol. Can you tell I bought merc early on?

 

[Jame]

Gauss rifle, gauss pistol, laser rifle, laser pistol.

 

[The Pakkrat]

Shotgun all the way. The variety of ammunition coupled with its medium damage and the fact that it can be considered a civilian's weapon and allowed in a Starport if kept out of sight in a bandoleer. Take off the stock and a Vargr with a decent Strength can wield one Dirty Harry-style.

I used to have the hots for the FN P90 submachinegun.

From the Highport Armory in orbit over Roethoeegaeaegz (Knoellighz 1726), this is the Pakkrat for Net-7 News.

 

[Enoki]

For some reason, Traveller seems to have a fixation with the bullpup configuration for rifles...

 

[flykiller]

For me, FGMP-15

does that count as small-arms?

shotgun. "shotguns in space ...."

 

[Magnus von Thornwood]

Lasers for the win.

In order: Laser Carbine, Snub Pistol, Gauss Rifles (from the minis), and the ubiquitous FGMP-12 (which the group that introduced me to Traveller had an entertaining nickname).

 

[Condottiere]

Shotgun in general, pan-RPGs.

A double barrel sport shotgun may have less impact, but tends to be more accurate, and less of a legal hassle.

 

[Timerover51]

Shotgun in general, pan-RPGs.

A double barrel sport shotgun may have less impact, but tends to be more accurate, and less of a legal hassle.

Shotguns are handy to have when the ranges are close, and the opponent is not using Cloth.

 

[nobby-w]

Hm. Iconic.

I see the ACR as the AK of the Traveller universe. Considered slightly obsolete by many, but tools of the trade for many a mercenary or adventurer as it's good against anything but heavy body armour and still marginally effective against that.

I liked the magnum revolver from Striker. A weapon for the frontier - lots of punch and intrinsically reliable.

Many players also had a soft spot for the shotgun. Quite deadly under Striker¹ and fairly innocuous.

There were a few other iconic handguns - snub pistols come to mind. Once I had a character who was quite handy with a laser pistol, although these didn't make an appearance outside of Striker until Megatraveller was published.

¹ Actually, many weapons were quite overpowered under Striker's Integration with Traveller rules. It needed quite a bit of nerfing; for example, I dropped the exploding round effects from laser weapons and snub pistol HEAP rounds and put a cap on the positive bonus to damage for armour piercing rounds (typically a maximum + DM of half the weapon's penetration).

 

[kilemall]

Snub pistol, lasers with backpacks, and PG/FGMPs are the iconic weapons to me.

That and good ol' shotguns will tear you up.

 

[Condottiere]

I thought about FGMPs, but they defy the concept of smallarms.

 

[Takei]

Snub pistols, ACRs and Gauss rifles top my list. PGMPs and FGMPs are also iconic but I'm not sure if they qualify as small arms or not.

 

[kilemall]

If they are man-portable and single man operable, they are small arms to me.

The threshold IMO would be something like MMGs and HMGs, or the crew served plasma equivalent, the higher tech RP-As and RP-Bs.

 

[nobby-w]

If you look at other genres you can see a variety of iconic small arms - Han Solo's Blaster (or the stormtroopers' blasters for that matter), Hand phasers from Star Trek, the Pulse Rifle from Aliens and so forth.