Shotgun

Lore & Background

Preceding smoothbore firearms (such as the musket) were widely used by European militaries from the 17th until the mid-19th century. The muzzleloading blunderbuss, the direct ancestor of the shotgun, was also used in similar roles from self-defense to riot control. Shotguns were often favored by cavalry troops in the early to mid-19th century because of their ease of use and generally good effectiveness on the move, as well as by coachmen for their substantial power. However, by the late 19th century, these weapons became largely replaced on the battlefield by breechloading rifled firearms shooting spin-stabilized cylindro-conoidal bullets. The military value of shotguns was rediscovered in the First World War, when American forces used the pump-action Winchester Model 1897 shotgun in trench fighting to great effect. Since then, shotguns have been used in a variety of close-quarters combat roles in civilian, law enforcement, and military applications.

In Their Own Story

The corridor reeks of sulfur and something sweeter, something organic. Three of them—mutants with too many joints in their arms—lunge from the shadows at the end of the hallway. Duke doesn't break stride. He racks the pump with a sharp *clack-clack*, tilts the barrel up, and lets go. The blast kicks his shoulder, the pellets fan out in a tight cone, and the three of them fold backward into the wall in a spray of black ichor. He pumps again, fires at the ceiling where a fourth is crawling, and the plaster crumbles. He spits on the floor, adjusts his sunglasses, and walks on. The shotgun's barrel is still warm. It's always warm.

Reader's Guide

Shotguns come in a wide variety of calibers and gauges ranging from 5.5 mm (.22 inch) to up to 5 cm (2.0 in), though the 12-gauge (18.53 mm or 0.729 in) and 20-gauge (15.63 mm or 0.615 in) bores are by far the most common. Almost all are breechloading, and can be single barreled, double barreled, or in the form of a combination gun. Like rifles, shotguns also come in a range of different action types, both single-shot and repeating. For non-repeating designs, over-and-under and side-by-side break action shotguns are by far the most common variants. Although revolving shotguns do exist, most modern repeating shotguns are either pump action or semi-automatic, and also fully automatic, lever-action, or bolt-action to a lesser extent. The smoothbore shotgun barrel generates less resistance and thus allows greater propellant loads for heavier projectiles without as much risk of overpressure or a squib load, and are also easier to clean. The shot pellets from a shotshell are propelled indirectly through a wadding inside the shell and scatter upon leaving the barrel, which is usually choked at the muzzle end to control the projectile scatter. This means each shotgun discharge will produce a cluster of impact points instead of a single point of impact like other firearms. Having multiple projectiles also means the muzzle energy is divided among the pellets, leaving each individual projectile with less penetrative kinetic energy. The lack of spin stabilization and the generally suboptimal aerodynamic shape of the shot pellets also make them less accurate and decelerate quite quickly in flight due to drag, giving shotguns short effective ranges. In a hunting context, this makes shotguns useful primarily for hunting fast-flying birds and other agile small/medium-sized game without risking overpenetration and stray shots to distant bystanders and objects. However, in a military or law enforcement context, the high short-range blunt knockback force and large number of projectiles makes the shotgun useful as a door breaching tool, a crowd control or close-quarters defensive weapon. Militants or insurgents may use shotguns in asymmetric engagements, as shotguns are commonly owned civilian weapons in many countries. In more modern and recent conflicts (such as the Russia-Ukraine war), shotguns have been found as one of the most effective tools to repel and shoot down enemy

Did You Know?

• The earliest known print use of the term 'shotgun' dates to 1776, though it is not specifically tied to Fort Boonesborough or Kentucky.
• The double-barreled shotgun has changed little since the development of the boxlock action in 1875.
• The largest shotguns, the punt guns, were used for commercial hunting.
• The term 'riding shotgun' originated from private guards armed with a shotgun riding next to the driver of stagecoaches and trains.