To steal from Niven again, “Just think of it as evolution in action.”
Ouch. Darwinism at it’s most aggressive.
How about a firearm that shoots magnetically sealed needles containing a very small amount of antimatter?
That’s a good point, we don’t know exactly how high-tech this hypothetical gun should be. I wouldn’t use the one I suggested unless your story was set at least 40 years or so in the future, though if you take the neural feedback element out it would be OK ten or fifteen years sooner.
The actual date doesn’t matter much so much as the general tech level of your setting - are we talking very near-future, i.e. the next 15 years or so? I imagine if things continue as they do now that weapons that have more than slight refinements over modern ones are not going to be available to civillians in most parts of the world, though I imagine electronic devices incorporated into a gun may be more common, simple sighting mechanisms or ways of locking the gun from being used by anyone but the owner (some of that is available now). Now, the military could well have some stuff that would be significantly superior to what is used now, light-weight weapons with large ammo capacities, high rates of fire, and nifty gadgets. I’m guessing that soon there will be much better grenade launchers, smaller and more accurate than those 30mm underbarrel ones that are common now. Some of this may have filtered down to the criminal element, depending on the politics of your setting.
You might start seeing more esoteric weapons as technology gets more advanced, if there is a practical application for them. I felt free making some really high-tech stuff for the setting of the story I linked to, which is set in the 2060s, because it’s set after a couple of World Wars that each dwarfed WWII in scope. They both kicked all the powerful industrialized nations into overdrive developing new weapons systems. In a case like that I could see versatile and devastating mass-drivers, lasers, plasma weapons, energy weapons that work on the target’s nervous system, handheld guided missile launchers, about anything that can be extrapolated from modern physics could forseeably be developed in the next 20-50 years under the right conditions.
If you have contact with alien civilizations in your story, who knows? If we do encounter another civilization odds are it’s going to be much older than ours, and I think the way technology is growing at an exponential rate in a few hundred years we could have about as complete a mastery of science as is possible in a few hundred years, possibly less, so whatever you can imagine as being possible through technology in your future is fair game. If you are adding new laws of physics to your universe, like FTL travel, controlled gravity, psionic powers, etc., have fun with it and make something that works with the story and adds to it.
Well, I went with the flechette rifle (because I like it) and a stun pistol (because it’s non-lethal and an SF staple so I won’t have to explain it) and I’ve reserved the right to add/switch weapons in the future by sneaking a line into the character description (it got approved, so GiC can’t object if I do!). If anyone wants to see the tech level of the setting, go here.
Some examples of current “futuristic”-looking weapons, for comparison basis:
The H&K OICW (Objective Individual Combat Weapon) system. An indicator of where modern firearms are headed.
Accuracy International’s AW50. I present that one primarily for the way the stock is designed, as an example of possible shock absorbers for high-recoil weapons. If that thing didn’t have that bracing setup, it’d take your arm off.
The P90 SMG. Presented as an example of “odd”-looking guns. A simple glance at it shows that it’s not your typical firearm design, even if it’s operation isn’t much different from conventional weapons.
And, of course, the obligatory Star Wars reference. Notice the difference in design (the whole thing is a glorified cylinder) compared to projectile-firing weapons. Also take note of the tiny clip size, and that it doesn’t need to be situated on the same axis as the barrel.
Railgun, from Eraser. Note that this one is much bulkier than conventional weapons, presumably to allow for all the battery power and electronics that it would need.
And Kat… a very interesting site. Maybe I’ll apply…
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- Flechette ammo exists; you can find 12-gauge shotgun shells loaded with it at gun shows (in the US, at least)… They’re packed with 30 or 40 straight nails with little fins stamped into the back ends. I have never seen these being used on anything live or inanimate, but pals tell me that at close range on most stuff, they do about the same damage as regular lead shot.
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- Flechette ammo exists; you can find 12-gauge shotgun shells loaded with it at gun shows (in the US, at least)… They’re packed with 30 or 40 straight nails with little fins stamped into the back ends. I have never seen these being used on anything live or inanimate, but pals tell me that at close range on most stuff, they do about the same damage as regular lead shot.
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- There was a Gene Simmons movie with little killer robots a few years back… They had pistols that shot little heat-seeking rockets, so that the shots almost always hit. They exploded when they did, but you could make that optional: have a button on the shooter’s gun that signals when the rocket has entered the target’s body, and the shooter can decide to blow them up or not. Maybe the rocket could also have a “tracking” feature, and the weapon was stolen from a police officer…?
US mil is currently trying to make self-guided anti-aircraft shells, so heat-seeking bullets wouldn’t seem to be too far into the future. - MC
And, of course, the obligatory Star Wars reference.
This is based on the British Sterling SMG (IIRC, they actually started with the Canadian SMG C4 version) with bits scabbed on. The larger weapons were based on the MG42/MG1 German machine gun.
For a much more futuristic look in real life military weapons (IMHO), see http://www.remtek.com/steyr/index.htm. The Steyr AUG is the sleek looking assault rifle in the middle and bottom, and has been in Austrian army service since the late '70s.
That idea of a miniature rocket launcher with tiny rockets you could detonate remotely would make an excellent police weapon. If you get shot by one of those, you just want to lay down and put your hands on your head and hope the cop that just got you isn’t in a bad mood tonight.
Bookkeeper, the link you want is here: http://www.remtek.com/arms/steyr/index.htm and an even better link can be found here: http://www.remtek.com/arms/steyr/aug/auga1/a1.htm
Trust me, I’m quite familiar with the AUG (I spend many hours surfing the 'Net looking for gun pictures. I include firearms in many of my drawings, and I like having reference material). The reason I don’t consider the AUG to be that impressive is because, A: the bullpup design has been around for a while, and B: aside from moving the clip, there’s really nothing new to the design. Sure, the bullpup allows the same barrel length as a “traditional” rifle in a shorter overall design, but it’s basically the same mechanics.
Conversely, the P90 has a vastly different look and feel to it, from a completely different means of holding it and a completely different way of adding a clip. And it is VERY compact, showing how efficiency in design can increase the effectiveness of a firearm.
But, then again, you do have a point… the AUG looks hellacool.
Other bullpup designs: The French Armed Forces service rifle, FA MAS, The K-Var AKU 94, Bushmaster Bullpup, Pancor Jackhammer Shotgun (a VERY cool-looking weapon), and TKB-022 USSR Bullpup (this is one odd-looking gun). That’s just to give you an idea for the diversity that you can get in gun designs.
Oh, and if you really want to include railguns in your sci-fi setting, here’s a picture of a real-life railgun being fired. Hmm… the SecurityArms website is very nifty… I’m going to have to spend more time there.
Oh, and for an idea of a truly “futuristic” gun, take a look at the H&K G11. It was designed to use caseless ammunition, but unfortunately the German government dumped the project since it was too expensive.
You’re thinking about the movie “Runaway” Gene Simmons, Tom Seleck, and Cynthia Rhodes, writen & directed by none other than Michael Crichton. The projectiles that Gene Simmons was firing weren’t heat-seekers, they were homing in on transmitters that had been secreted on the victim’s person.
H&K G-11 rifle
I’ve actually fired that one, and it’s pretty sweet (Dad was part of the team evaluating it for the Army).
Joint Service Combat Shotgun is pretty ugly, but interesting. (Requires PDF viewer)
The SAIGA-12 is kinda interesting, and might serve as a base for launching guided bullets of some kind.
The A3P3 ‘Supergun’ looks to be a very promising SF sidearm:
Set lasers on “Paralyze”, Mr. Spock…
The Tetanizing Beam Weapon is no-faeces, real-life paralysis “ray”. It’s still in development because they don’t have a excimer laser with sufficiently high pulse rates in a hand-held size, yet. Since this is a SF scenario, we’ll just assume that in ten or so years, the issue has been solved (it likely will have been, anyway).
Uhmmm. No, they were actually heat-seeking. They made a point of pointing it out. The key was that everyone’s heat signature was different and the bullets could be keyed to specific signatures.
I know too much about that crappy movie.
Anyway, back on topic…
I’ve always been partial to the Logan’s Run pistol. I want it to look like the gun they used in the movie, but to shoot like the gun in the book.
Hmmm…
How about time-travel based weaponry? Put a device that projects a pre-programmed object from any point in time.
Think of the possibilities. T-Rex in a can.
Force fields are always fun. They can even be used offensively. Think of a wall of force bearing down on your opponent like a frieght train. It would keep his bullets from hitting you, too.
Nanites (via needles or DMSO) can cause all sort of nasty things.
How about a gun that stimulates the centers of the brain concerned with love. Like the pleasure gun, but the vic is instantly (if temporary) in love with you.
Yes, you do. I though I was the saddest guy on the planet IRT that movie, but you just trumped me.
If we’re talking nanites, why stop at needles? Think how many nanites you could pack into a 200 grain (.45 acp) bullet? You could set them to doing everything from blocking nerve impulses to actually disassembling the victim. That would be nasty way to go…!