The same role as a Corvette? Compensating for certain....shortcomings?

Seems I'm the early bird this morning, so I'll see if I can hold the fort until either Raygun or AE get here. '-)

Depends on what firearms you are talking about. Some of the really heavy caliber handguns (.500 S&W Revolver, Thompson Contender, etc.) were deigned for hunting, or for defense against large game (Bears, Lions, etc.). As for the design purposes of the really heavy automatics, I'll leave that to others much more qualified than me. However, I will say that weapons like the Desert Eagle .50 AE has a considerable range advantage over most other handguns. However if range is really a factor, you shouldn't be using a handgun in the first place.

It all depends on what you plan on shooting. For a defensive carry pistol, anything in .40 S&W, .45 ACP, .357 SIG is probably sufficient. Even a 9mm with expanding ammo should work for you. However, in a game like SR with the proliferation of concealable body armor and things like Trolls, I would probaby START with a 10mm Auto and work my way up from there.

Day to day basis? Like I said, in this world, probably a .45 ACP or something similar. In Shadowrun, at least a 10mm Auto. I would want something that is small enough to be concealable but not so small that it hurts my effectiveness with the weapon. For example, I used to own an HK USP .45, full size. Pretty large pistol, but VERY comfortable to shoot. A friend of mine owned a Para-Ordnance subcompact .45 pistol. His gun was about 1/3 the size of mine, but was a pain in the ass to shoot. My bottom finger had to dangle below the grip, and the recoil on such a small firearm was a beast. To me, it's not worth it to carry something you don't want to shoot.

Probably the same thing I would carry on a day to day basis. Either that, or I would ditch the handgun and carry extra Rifle/SMG mags.

But if I was Shadowrunning, I would probably carry a .45 ACP...preferably one with a threaded barrel so I could mount a suppressor. The .45 is one of the few calibers that is already subsonic, so it is pretty freaking quiet coming out of a suppressed handgun.

Though I've been playing SR for years, it's really hard for me to think that way. I've always viewed pistols as defensive weapons. It's something you use when it's all you have, or all you can take with you. If given a choice, I'd take a Rifle/Shotgun/SMG everytime. But if I was a "Pistol Adept", I'd probably carry something full-size, chambered in 10mm Auto.

Maybe. In your day to day routine, concealability and comfort are your primary concerns for a carry gun, especially since you won't doing more than just carrying it 99.9% of the time. I can't imagine something like a Desert Eagle being comfortable to carry for long periods of time. I would probably carry something chambered in either .40S&W or .45ACP, and it would have to be a compact model. Probably something like this.

If we assume that he'd be bypassing armor on every shot, I'd go for dual Baby Brownings, .25 ACP

In the world of SR with orks and trolls wandering about and the commoness of armor, I'd expect heavy hitters like 10mm auto to make a comeback. Also, I'd expect more interest in low caliber armor penetrators like 5.7mm FN.

In the modern day, .40 S&W, .45 ACP, and .357 SIG are all fine handgun loads. 9mm may be a bit too light a load, but with good ammunition you should still do fine.

Since it would be concealed carry, I'd go for a 'compact', but not 'sub compact', hand gun. It would be double action only (or an HK 'grip cocker' or Glocks semi-DA or some similar system) so that there would be no need to fiddle arround with external safeties. It would be chambered in at least .40 S&W, and if I could handle it, I'd be looking for something in .357 SIG to 10mm auto. Full sized tacital pistols like the USP are too big to carry concealed all the time.

In SR terms, a USP would probably have a conceal of 5, with a compact pistols a 6-7, and a subcompact pistol a 7-8.

If you have a long arm, there are few reasons to carry a pistol around as well. One might be to have a ready silenced weapon to take out guard dogs, sentries, etc. So something quiet. (The USP/Mk 23 with silencer would do fine).

If you are a pistol adept, you might want to look into something like the FN five-seven. If penetrates armor much better than a regular pistol, and your mad pistol skills should give you better shot placement, helping make up for the reduced damage.

For 'day to day' use, you need something comfortable and concealable, the full sized pistols (especially 2 of them) would be hard to hide on your person. Ideally, you would want your tactical pistol and your carry pistol to be in the same 'family' so that there will be no momentary confusion about the placement of the controls on the pistol, so going for a full sized USP for tactial and a USP compact for every day carry would be a pretty good deal.

Silhouette and target shooting fit in there somewhere as well, although you might be better off with a rather less powerful Desert Eagle (say, in .357 Magnum) for at least the latter.

2: Like Crusher Bob, I'd expect more powerful handgun calibers to have a surge in popularity -- people would feel better with something closer to a .41 Magnum than a 9x19mm, even if a more powerful handgun were not strictly necessary to stop an ork or a troll.

My view on "favorite" handguns will be a bit different from those of most of the other gun nuts here, since I cannot see myself ever having a handgun for anything else than target shooting. IRL, if I had to pick a gun for concealed carry, potentially for self-defense, I'd probably go with a compact Glock, for basically the same reasons Crusher Bob mentioned above, model 23 (.40 S&W) being the prime candidate with the 19 (9x19mm) also being considered -- I'm a rather small guy.

In the Shadowrun world, a 10mm Auto would certainly be a more likely choice. In an area where trolls would be a real threat, I might consider a 3-4" barreled revolver in .41 or .44 Magnum -- smaller capacity and greater recoil are necessary evils if a potential threat is highly resistant to less powerful firearms.

3: The same, except perhaps slightly more powerful guns -- obviously I'd be bigger and stronger if I were a shadowrunner.

4: Once again, I'll have to go with Crusher Bob on this. Something easily suppressed, for sure. It might as well be a full-sized tactical pistol, like the Mk 23 Crusher Bob mentioned, since you won't be concerned about concealability if you also have a long arm with you.

5: What kind of run? The right tool for the job, etc. I probably wouldn't take a Five-seveN or a similar high-penetration/minimal-wound-cavity handgun unless I knew I might have to penetrate heavy armor and I was unable to get anything heftier on site. If troll gangers on drugs were a potential threat, I'd carry something similar (in principle, at least) to .50 AE DEs. Lots of sneaking, little to no armor or metas = subcompact in 9x19mm or less. And so on.

Using similar guns to maintain familiarity, as mentioned by Crusher Bob, is a very good idea as long as those guns are otherwise good for whatever job you're going on. I suspect someone with an extremely high skill in pistols wouldn't have to be too strict about this, though.

I think it's silly to think you don't need powerful guns, or a lot of penetration, just because you're a damn good shot. No matter how good I am, I'm going to do everything possible to give me an even greater edge. Of course if I were extremely specialized with a certain model of gun, ie. I'd only ever really used that kind of gun, I might actually be better off with that instead of some gun better suited for the job but that I'm not familiar with. However, I would try to avoid that problem by training with a large variety of handguns.

6: As above, unless I were heavily specialized in using a particular model of pistol (Pistol/Ares Predator III-6/12 ), the pistol I'd carry day to day might vary a lot based on where, what's up, everything -- and the day-to-day gun would probably not be the same I'd pick for a run.

All but one of the current S&W .500 models come with muzzle brakes. Poking holes in a barrel is invariably going to bleed off propellant gases and thus reduce muzzle velocity, and the reduction in felt recoil will not be that great with a compensator already in place.

Magnum Research Big Fu... Biggest Finest Revolver, also available in .410/.45 LC.

I should have, having seen Three Kings again very recently.

For an extended operation, such as when you'll have no logistic support (ie. contacts) in the target area, it's something to keep in mind. The magazines for the pistol and the SMG won't be interchangeable (almost certainly not, anyway), so this only comes into play if you've got time to refill magazines.

It's definitely more of a concern for runners than conventional military. In terms of tactics and operating environments, runners are basically on the extreme end of special operations. While, ideally, they'll get in, get it done, and get out, the potential for things to go wrong is very real, and if things go very wrong, runners are basically going to be in a heavily populated and thoroughly hostile environment. In that regard, it's definitely worth considering keeping ammunition as compatible as possible; you never know when you're not going to be on the offensive anymore.

Yeah, I'm aware of the BFR, and I'm tempted to get one because it's available now, but it's almost TWICE the price of the Taurus. I'm sure it's well made, and it is more versatile with all of the different chamberings, but all I'm really going to use it for is skeet shooting the .410. Also, it doesn't look like you can get the BFR in smooth-bore, so I'd be paying extra for rifling that I would just be ruining with birdshot.

Gfen, that hurts. The Thunder 5 is a joke - it makes the .38 snub look like a viable firearm in comparison. The 44 Ten and the BFR may not have the range of a long-gun, but I'd bet they can reach out a good 30-40 yards before the pattern goes to crap. With the Thunder 5 you're probably looking at a decent pattern out to about 10 feet.

Hunting is the usual excuse for most of them. But as has already been mentioned, the Desert Eagle was developed with target shooting in mind, particularly silhouette target shooting, in which the objective is to knock over a heavy steel target in the shape of an animal at considerable range. That kind of competition requires a pretty powerful cartridge, and before the Desert Eagle came along, mostly single shots like the Thompson/Center Contender, some revolvers, and only a very few other autos (Wildey, 44 AutoMag, LAR Grizzly), were used for that kind of thing.

Like Ronin said, it depends on the context. I don't carry a gun in public, but if for some reason I do decide to get a concealed carry permit, I'd probably pack either a Kahr K9 or a Glock 19, both of which are 9x19mm, DAO (no manual safeties to worry about) pistols. The Glock is bigger than the Kahr, but it is easier to handle because of that. I'd probably use a 147 grain JHP load in either. My own personal opinion is that more bullet is better and 147 is the heaviest bullet load commonly available for the 9x19mm.

If I were doing security or police work, or anything else that required possible defense against other human beings, I'd probably use either a Taurus 608 .357 Mag with 158 grain loads, a Beretta Vertec in .40 S&W with 180 grain loads, an EAA Witness (Tanfoglio Combat-Standard) in 10mm Auto with 200 grain loads, or the trusty 1911 in .45 ACP with 200 grain loads.

If I were hiking out in the middle of nowhere and was worried about running into a bear, particularly a grizzly (not uncommon around here), I'd probably take a 5" Taurus Raging Bull in .454 Casull with 360 grain loads. Otherwise I can practice with milder .45 Colt loads.

Usually my characters pack a .45 ACP or 10mm Auto because that's likely to be all you'd need in that kind of setting. If you have to worry about anything bigger than an ork, a handgun is pretty much not what you want to be stuck with. There are handguns out there that could put down a Troll if necessary, but for an average human, that kind of energy output is best dealt with with something fired from the shoulder. Like a 7.62x51mm auto rifle or a shotgun firing slugs.

Same as above.

If using pistols was my kung-fu forte, I'd probably carry a few of them for different purposes. A small pistol I could keep hidden easily, probably a couple of average defensive pistols, and one big one just in case.

Same as above. Because I'm a freakin' pistol adept.

Or one of these, only pointed sideways from under the doors.

Given it's childproofing features i always assumed it was meant for the soccer Mom that had seen one too many 20-20 carjacking "documentary".

EDIT: Check out their new "Can't see in the dark?" marketing pitch. It has been a while but i seem to remember in the 10 Commandments of Firearm Safety there was something about being sure of your target and beyond. Or is that just an old fashioned hang-up i have about being sure what or who the f-ck i'm about to shoot?

Yep. And even those hot loads put out ass terminal ballistics like this. And that example right there is exactly why after the 1986 Miami incident the FBI decided to start issuing something a tad more potent. Specifically the S&W 1076 (9 rounds of 180 grain JHP @ 950 fps), which eventually evolved into the .40 S&W. The .40 S&W, along with the 15-round Glock 22, is currently one of the most popular, if not the most popular handgun/cartridge combination in existence today, and it didn't get that way for no reason. Wank wank.

While you may be confident in your ability to get a decent hit in inside of five shots, I am not. And while I'm not planning on getting into any 86-Miami-style shootouts, I'm not going to carry a .38 J-frame on the premise that "it's all I'm likely to ever need" either. In short, that combination does not inspire confidence in me. At least, not as much as it appears to do so in you. And that is why I would rather have, at the very least, a more potent cartridge, and at most (IMO), about 15 of them to send out before reloading and another 30 after that.

I don't know. Do you know what's going to happen tomorrow? Considering the same level of training, (let's just eliminate that little caveat right now; we both know that more ammunition is not a substitute for training), if you can carry 17 rounds, why wouldn't you? Better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.

So does an 8-round .357 magnum revolver. So?

Great. And what happens when you fire all five rounds and miss, or hit and find out that it accomplished fuck-all? Looks like you'll be reloading and in the process taking up more time than it would to simply cycle a slide. What happens when there's more than one attacker? I hope you can talk fast.

I was specifically referring to the .38 snub nose, which I pronounce to be crap. Have you seen that famous picture of Jack Ruby taking out Oswald? That's how close you have to get to guarantee a hit with those things. The fact that Oswald died testifies to the power of the cartridge, and with a longer barrel I don't have anything against the .38, but those snub-nosed belly-guns are a freaking joke.

Would I hope that I never have to fire a shot in self defense? Absolutely. Would I be willing to bet my life that I need only 5 shots when I can just as easily carry a gun that can hold 12+1? (My USP .40 Compact) Oh hell no. I want as much as I can throw downrange within reason. Period. I'm a very good shot, but that's no reason not to carry the best I can, heck, those extra shots if nothing else are insurance. If I need them I have them.

Statistically when you get in a gunfight your fight or flight reaction kicks in and your accuracy goes to hell in a handbasket. More shots in your gun is a better chance to hit your opponent. I mean if ytou can carry 17 rounds as easy as 5, why on earth would you carry 5 instead of 17?

A competent person carrying a gun will be doing failure drills with it. He will have practiced racking the slide in case of a misfire. A good way to do so is to have a friend load your clips and every so often add a snap cap in the middle of the clip which forces you to rack it. It works wonders for creating a muscle memory for racking the slide when a shell doesn't fire. That being said, I have 30,000+ rounds through both my HK's and I have never had a single misfire.
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The only good reason is storage. It is difficult to fit a shotgun in your nightstand or under your pillow. Of course, if you don't care about storage you can just put the shotgun on the floor by the bed.

Well, in comparing the .38 J-frame to a shotgun or carbine in a home defense type of situation, I would say that manuverability would be the number one advantage of the handgun, then storage. The downside, especially for the carbine, is wall penetration. Light shot (#7 1/2 to 6) in a shotgun is supposed to be better for that. You may tear up your wall, but you'll do relatively little damage beyond it.

It's easy to get around corners with a handgun. But when you compare the .38 J-frame to other handguns, especially compact 9mm and 40 S&W DAO autos, or even a handgun with a light mount, there's really no advantage there at all.

Not guaranteed. Lots of people prefer birdshot or other shot smaller than the 'combat standard' 00 buck for home defense, and that stuff's not going to penetrate very well at all. Even 00 buck isn't going to do great (each pellet's going to penetrate a bit worse than a .32ACP bullet). 5.56x45mm carbines don't do great for penetration, either; up against drywall and other common building materials, the Box o' Truth showed some surprisingly poor penetration thanks to tumbling, destabilization, and fragmentation. Caveat: depends on the ammunition you're using, naturally, and there's been a lot of exaggeration of 5.56x45mm's 'inability' to penetrate.

Of those three, .38 special just might penetrate the most.

Personally, for home defense, I think I'd prefer a short barreled shotgun and a full size pistol in .45ACP (maybe a USP45f). Though I must admit I find the idea of a suppressed Mk23 for home offense rather amusing.

Manuverability and less chance of overpenetration are important if you have children or other dependants in seperate bedrooms. If you live alone it is a simple matter to just set up an ambush and wait.

In the event of a daytime home invasion getting to the weapon quickly is most important. Storing it in a place that is realitivly easy to access from any room in the home and difficult to block access to is important. Of course, even with the best planning one might have to fall back on a kitchen knife in a pinch, unless the homeowner is as paranoid as Patrick Stwewart's character in Safe House.

Or one of these:

OOOHHHH YEEAAAHHH!!!

Best of all they're legal and you don't need a license to buy one...

This is based on the assumption that those who would be willing to join Wounded Ronin in bed must all be of right mind to begin with. However, those of different mind may be turned off by the lack of items they expected in the room. Of course, this can be evaded by having the neccessary hardware for both concepts of "THE ROOM OF PAIN" that might become relevant.

Really, hob, you're just dating the wrong kind of girls.

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Austere: aren't 12ga slugs rated against IIA, let alone IIIA?

Unless you live in, say, an apartment, condo, town home, etc... with a shared wall to a place in which other people, who are not your children or dependents, live, anyway. I don't know too many single people who have their own homes and as such have the opportunity think in terms of "simply setting up and ambush". And while I'm sure there are people out there who would rather just let someone ransack their home while they sit in a bedroom and wait for them to come in, I'm not one of them.

What good is it to be able to get to the weapon if, when you do get to it, you can't point it at the target? Again, it's a major advantage of a handgun. And it's really not that difficult to make a shotgun easily accessible, even if you don't live alone. Mossberg's Loc-Box is a good example of that.

NIJ IIIA has always been certified to stop most slug threats, AFAIK. Check it. And if it's NIJ-certified, it does it within backface deformation limits. The BoT tests are, obviously, a little less-than-scientific.