# What is your favourite fictional weapon? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 17, 2008, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947 "2008-09-17T03:35:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Nymphadora](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/aeb1de/32.png) [@Nymphadora](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nymphadora)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/101 "2008-09-19T11:24:38Z")
Sharks with fricken laser beams attached to their heads, from Austen Powers ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/102 "2008-09-19T13:00:16Z")
> [@OtakuLoki](#): > > You mean you want a SHEVA from John Ringo’s Posleen invasion books. Bun-Bun was the name of the one he followed in When the Devil Dances and Hell’s Faire. Not only is the tank (Land dreadnought?) nuclear powered, it’s armed with nuclear and anti-matter rounds for its 16 inch cannon, too. Nah, you want a [Bolo](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bolo_(self-aware_tank)). Firepower measured in megatons per second and the durability to match. Capable of shooting down ships in orbit. Fusion powered. An AI that thinks far faster than a human, and acts like the ultimate noble heroic warrior. And I’ll add “Bolo” to my list in the catagory of favorite fictional tank. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/103 "2008-09-19T13:16:15Z")
Keith Laumer came up with all manner of interesting weapons. He didn’t give many details on any of them, but I still want an infinite repeater, a Browning needler, and a Norge stunner. ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/104 "2008-09-19T13:45:27Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > Nah, you want a [Bolo](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bolo_(self-aware_tank)). Firepower measured in megatons per second and the durability to match. Capable of shooting down ships in orbit. Fusion powered. An AI that thinks far faster than a human, and acts like the ultimate noble heroic warrior. > > And I’ll add “Bolo” to my list in the catagory of favorite fictional tank. Good point. I should have remembered them, myself. ---
**Author:** ![RiverRunner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/977dab/32.png) [@RiverRunner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RiverRunner)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/105 "2008-09-19T13:57:47Z")
If you’re talking fictional tanks, there’s always [Ogre](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ogre_(game)). RR ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/106 "2008-09-19T14:04:38Z")
> [@Raguleader](#): > > Of course, the response from their enemy, the Havenites, was to field a class of LACs (the _Scimitars_) that were outmatched in every way by the Shrikes, but which carried a large battery of nuclear missiles which they would liberally pepper space with in order to take out attacking Shrikes en mass, thus highlighting the difference between the Manticorans and the Havenites. The Manties solve problems with a screwdriver and a set of precision pliers, the Havenites use a sledgehammer and duck tape. And the sledgehammer is occasionally duck-taped onto its handle. You sir, have insulted tac witch Shannon Foraker, by describing her genius as “sledgehammer and duck tape.” I demand satisfaction. Please familiarize yourself with the Ellington Protocol. My seconds will call on you presently. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/107 "2008-09-19T16:46:41Z")
> [@Grumman](#): > > …I nominate the Shokk Attack Gun - a heavy weapon that works by teleporting its ammunition - typically small goblin-like creatures - at the enemy. The target gets telefragged, or has to deal with a large number of snotlings, terrified by their sudden trip through _hell_, which are now tearing apart the sensitive insides of their tank. I love the idea as well. Totally out of left field and very Orky. Your tank has inpenetrable armor and an unbeatable cannon, eh? Well lets see how much good that does when we teleport a crazed snotling into the gunners coveralls. The latest model of the Shokk Attack Gun is hilarious. They’ve modelled a vacuum attachment in the gunners other hand that’s sucking up unwary snotlings that strayed too close. ---
**Author:** ![slaphead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9bcb4/32.png) [@slaphead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slaphead)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/108 "2008-09-19T17:43:29Z")
Can I be a bit more subtle than the mega-tanks etc. and opt for Shuriken from Neal Asher’s Polity series? A self-powered ninja star with variable-extension blades that can cut through anything, basic AI and a rudimentary personality best described as ‘cranky terrier’. What’s not to love? ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/109 "2008-09-19T18:21:48Z")
Honorable mention for Excalibur Greyswandir The Subtle Knife - one edge is so sharp it can cut the fabric of reality Brian ---
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/110 "2008-09-19T19:28:54Z")
The **Donut of Death** From the movie “Spaced Invaders” . It was a large ring about six foot in diameter. If you were inside the ring you were safe, but everything outside the ring within a half of a light year was obliterated. It was a totally useless since , if deployed, it would leave its occupants unharmed but also floating in space with no matter within hundreds of million miles. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/111 "2008-09-19T20:59:40Z")
There is a certain scythe, owned by one Bill Door… BTW–I win! ---
**Author:** ![Kyrie\_Eleison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kyrie_eleison/32/7682_2.png) [@Kyrie\_Eleison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyrie_Eleison)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/112 "2008-09-19T21:31:43Z")
I’m going to go with the Aludium Q-36 Explosive Space Modulator, with the Earth-shattering kaboom. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/113 "2008-09-19T21:35:48Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > [The Ultimate Nullifier](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultimate_Nullifier) is _my_ favorite weapon. Any weapon that can make Galactus piss his pants is tops in my book. Makes you wonder why he kept that thing in his ship in the first place. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/114 "2008-09-19T21:40:48Z")
> [@Icerigger](#): > > The Sandman blaster pistol from Logans Run: small, black, evil looking with flame jets no less. In the [novel,](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logan%27s_run) the Sandman’s Gun has six settings – Homer (a heat-seeker), Tangler, and I forget the others. ---
**Author:** ![A\_shameful\_cracka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ebca7d/32.png) [@A\_shameful\_cracka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A_shameful_cracka)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/115 "2008-09-19T22:04:16Z")
Reusable Monomolecular Thread Grenade. About the size of a baseball, it contains thousands of feet of carefully woven monomolecular thread with hundreds of carefully spaced beads of crystallized iron threaded on it. When it is set off, the beads are fired outwards by electromagnets, causing a net of unbreakable thread to expand at supersonic speeds into a sphere app. 10 meters across centered on the grenade, after which it is pulled back into the grenade. Everything within 5 meters of the grenade is cut into pieces no larger than an inch across, and the grenade can then be retrieved from the pile of rubble that it creates to use again. I think I came up with this myself, but it’s such a neat idea I wouldn’t be surprised if it has been “invented” before. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/116 "2008-09-19T22:05:05Z")
I want a [Gyrojet](http://davidszondy.com/future/war/mba_gyrojet.htm)! ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/117 "2008-09-19T22:12:35Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > In the [novel,](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logan%27s_run) the Sandman’s Gun has six settings – Homer (a heat-seeker), Tangler, and I forget the others. Ah, was going to be my little contribution - add needler, vapor, nitro and ripper. Wayyyy cooler than the movie. Other favorites have also been covered. What else is there…hmmm…let’s see… **Paste-Pot Pete** ’s glue-gun :p? ---
**Author:** ![A\_shameful\_cracka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ebca7d/32.png) [@A\_shameful\_cracka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A_shameful_cracka)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/118 "2008-09-19T22:13:40Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > I want a [Gyrojet](http://davidszondy.com/future/war/mba_gyrojet.htm)! This is about fictional weapons! When I first read about Gyrojet pistols, I thought they were fictional (it was in a SF story, and I thought maybe it was set in an alternate history when it referred to them existing in the 1960s). Now I want one. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/119 "2008-09-19T22:33:18Z")
I recall the _Flintstones_ episode where Fred and Barney meet the [Great Gazoo](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Gazoo). He explains he was exiled from his home planet because of a weapon he invented. GREAT GAZOO: It was a little button no larger than your fingernail, but if you pressed it, KA-BOOM! The entire Universe would explode in one cataclysmic disintegration! 😃 FRED & BARNEY: That’s horrible! GG: Well, I never intended to **use** it! It was a status thing, really. I wanted to be the first one on my block to have one. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947/120 "2008-09-19T22:37:25Z")
'nother one… Spaceman Spiff’s “Atom Blaster” sidearm. Known to have power/effect settings like “frappe.” And, if I recall a bonus illustration from one of the collections correctly, had the ability to leave a victim reduced to a scorch mark on the ground, and a few _seared, stripped clean, but whole, large, and identifiable bones_ scattered about the blast area. _ **Zounds…!** _ Make that two, actually. I just remembered an old favorite: the [Focusing Disintegrator Ray](http://teenagersfromouterspace.blogspot.com/2006/12/focusing-disintegrator-ray.html). “It projects an isolated beam which separates the molecules of living material in chain reaction. all but the solids: the skeletal braces.” And, apparently, enough connective tissues (or…something) to actually hold the bones together, so if you shoot someone, their defleshed skeleton will [stand there for a second, slump to it’s knees, and keel over.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rP-xF2vdIdg&feature=related) (The ray also seems to destroy like, shoes and pants and whatnot. So not only has the target been instantly reduced to a skeleton, they’re now a NAKED skeleton! Ha! How’s THAT for embarassing?) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-favourite-fictional-weapon/463947.md?page=7)