Snub Pistol

Generic Snub Pistol (SnP-8) or (SnR-8)
Generic Snub Pistol (SnP-8) or (SnR-8)
Group:	Ranged Weapon
Tech Level	TL–8
Size	100.0 mm
Weight	250.0 grams
Cost	Cr150
Ammo	10mm bullet (Special)
Manufacturer	Various
Generic Snub Pistol (SnP-8) or (SnR-8)

The Snub Pistol (280.0 grams loaded; Cr150; TL-8) is a small concealable weapon, which inflicts decent damage considering its size.

• It is a KEW weapon.

Description (Specifications)

"Snub Pistol:" The snub pistol is a low velocity firearm designed for use on shipboard and in a Zero-G environment. It fires 10mm, 7.0 gram bullets (depending on load) at velocities of 100 to 150 meters per second. In revolver variants, no magazine is used, six individual cartridges being inserted into the revolver separately. Reloading takes less than a minute, and around a minute if the firer is evading; automatic versions use a 10-round magazine, althought extended magazines are available. Standard rounds include a tranquilizer round, gas round, high explosive round, and a high explosive shaped charge round to defeat personal armor. The snub pistol is a standard shipboard security weapon generally loaded with five tranquilizers and one gas round. More expensive pure combat versions of the snub pistol are available, generally in the automatic pistol configuration with extended magazines holding up to twenty rounds. . A regular ball round is sometimes used, but its performance is only approximate to a TL 5 5mm autopistol round.

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Weapon Characteristics

Length: 100.0 mm. Weight, unloaded: 250.0 grams (weight of six cartridges, regardless of type, is 30.0 grams). Base price for revolver: Cr150 (six cartridges, regardless of type, cost Cr10). Combat version costs Cr150. Loaded 20 round magazines weigh 125.0 grams and cost Cr40. Tech level 8.

History & Background (Dossier)

As sophonts venture out of their gravity well into space, generally by the TL:7-9 epoch, they discover that conventional KEW weaponry does not function well in a vacuum environment. Lubricants tend to freeze and lose function, atmospheric air is often needed for mechanical moving parts, and many other problems are encountered.

Zero-G Combat

Several solutions to Zero-G combat include:

• One of the most obvious solutions is to create energy weaponry, but such weapons are often prohibitively expensive both to manufacture, to maintain, and to maintain energy infrastructure to recharge them.
• Low-momentum versions of Gauss Weaponry, also known as Mass Driver Weapons are another solution, but also involve expense and technological sophistication problems beyond many sophont civilizations.
• Self-propelled rounds, often known as gyrojets or rocket guns are one of the simplest and most durable solutions and the Accelerator Rifle is a prime example of this technology.
• Snub Pistols are another solution.

Ammunition Types

Most snub pistol types use caseless ammunition. The bullet is propelled by a small amount of electrically-detonated low-temperature explosive; some models employ simple pressurized gas, stored inside the magazine.

• Tranq rounds are commonly used by civilian shipboard security. However, dosage of each individual round needs to be rather low, because of possibility of an overdose, especially with traditional central nervous system depressants. More modern nanotech-based release systems do not suffer from this issue.
• Gas rounds produce less effective radius than those of a shotgun or other major weapons, due to the small payload capacity of the gun.
• HE and HEAP rounds are the standard military antipersonnel rounds. In some instances, HESH (High-Explosive Squash-Head) rounds are also used to inflict blunt trauma through heavy armor. Note that all explosive rounds are much more strictly controlled.
• Regular ball ammunition is also available, however its performance is fairly poor (treat as a 5mm autopistol -1), so it is mostly used for practice.
• On higher tech levels, electroshock rounds with a small superconducting capacitor firing a high-voltage shock through a pair of piercing needles may become available.
• Paintball or marker rounds are often used for training and for entertainment purposes.

Selected Snub Smallarm Models

• Snub Handguns:

1. Snub Revolvers (SnR) or (SnRvl)
2. Snub Pistols (SnP) (Semi-/Select Automatic)
   1. CP-03 class Pistol (TL-11)
3. Combat Snub Pistols (SnAcP) (Semi-/Select Automatic Snub Accelerator Pistol) (TL-13)

• Snubmachineguns: (SnSMG)

References & Contributors (Sources)

This list of sources was used by the Traveller Wiki Editorial Team and individual contributors to compose this article. Copyrighted material is used under license from Mongoose Publishing or by permission of the author. The page history lists all of the contributions.

• Frank Chadwick. Mercenary (Game Designers Workshop, 1978), 37, 50-52.
• Gary L. Thomas, Joe Fugate. The Travellers' Digest 17 (Digest Group Publications, 1989), 48-49.
• Marc Miller. Imperial Encyclopedia (Game Designers Workshop, 1987), 70, 75.
• Dave Nilsen. Reformation Coalition Equipment Guide (Game Designers Workshop, 1994), 43-45.
• Matthew Sprange. Core Rule Book (Mongoose Publishing, 2016), 120.