Shotguns

[Firestorm]

Sorry if this has been brought up before; it seems like the kind of thing that would be, but a quick search of the forum found nothing.

Does it seem to anyone else that shotguns are under-represented in the game? I don't think they appear at all in winSPWW2, and they seem to be very rare in MBT. It's true that they were never mainstay weapons for those who had a better choice, but there have been many who didn't (pretty much any historic or current partisan/insurgent force), and even regular armies have generally found lots of niche uses for them.

I had equipped some units primarily with shotguns for scenarios set in the Malayan Emergency, Cuban Revolution or similar, but I immediately ran into problems with range. Fifty meters is realistic for buckshot. But seeing as how these will very often be "drafted" civilian hunting pieces, I'm wondering if I could somehow bring slugs into the picture.

[Imp]

Not really thats why as you say they are a niche weapon, useful in the odd place like jungles where combat can be close & you might well not be able to see your oponent, also in that sort of terrain come in handy for catching lunch.

[Suhiir]

Even with slugs about 50m is about right.
You're talking a smoothbore weapon without sights.

[Rosollia]

Here is a video about slugshot at 230 yards (~210 meters).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNTyCcip-ks

[Rosollia]

Ofcourse he has sights in that video. 90 meters or so would probably be more practical for a slugshot from a standard smoothbore shotgun without sights. However bear in mind in game terms that would be still be just two hexes.

[Imp]

I would agree with your assesment, shame he used chipboard looked like a old kitchen worktop so no way to gauge the power as you could break it with a solid punch. At that range the trajectory was obviously not good, he had a lot of drop off as his shots were widely spaced verticaly.
My other halfs brother is a hunter by trade & now uses a crossbow, its his job so hes a very good shot. Even so he reckons you really need to get the drop on anything over 60-70 metres as hitting a moving target past that is nigh impossible. With the heavy bolts he uses it will take down a deer at that range & I can remember he said the shot drops a foot at 70 metres.

[Firestorm]

I don't think I've ever seen a shotgun without any sights; all the ones I've ever owned had at least a simple bead on the front of the barrel.

My Browning Auto-5 has front and rear sights same as his Benelli. I'm half-blind but I can do almost as well at that range.

Incidentally, it's primitive hunting season in Georgia right now. I don't hunt very often because I don't have the attention span for it, but a lot of my friends do and many of them like to load their muskets with buck-and-ball. Kills at over 200 yards are not very common (for any weapon: lots of thickets here in the hill country and most kills are taken at half or a quarter of that) but not unheard of either.

In game terms, two hexes can make a lot of difference. It's the distance from one side a road to another for one—which matters quite a bit if SMG-equipped cops are standing on the other side and spraying down your shotgun-toting rebels—and in general it means that you're able to engage targets across open ground in otherwise built-up areas, without having to expose yourself in said open ground.

[Firestorm]

HICKOK45 has an interesting youtube channel, BTW. Going to watch more of his vids when I have a better internet connection.

I would agree with your assesment, shame he used chipboard looked like a old kitchen worktop so no way to gauge the power as you could break it with a solid punch. At that range the trajectory was obviously not good, he had a lot of drop off as his shots were widely spaced verticaly.
My other halfs brother is a hunter by trade & now uses a crossbow, its his job so hes a very good shot. Even so he reckons you really need to get the drop on anything over 60-70 metres as hitting a moving target past that is nigh impossible. With the heavy bolts he uses it will take down a deer at that range & I can remember he said the shot drops a foot at 70 metres.
My family raises cattle and we had a big problem with coyotes when I was growing up. My siblings and I used to take them on the run with our lever-action rifles (which also generally have crappy ballistics, and we were often on horseback when trying to do this too). You couldn't really bet on hitting them at more than 60 meters, but sometimes we'd get lucky.

[Kenny]

Not speaking in terms of SPMBT,but as to reality, a rifle company in an SBCT(Striker)is authorised and issued with 18 M26 shotguns,IIRC. Like many things in life,there is a place for almost everything,and almost everything this has it's place. At 25 meters, make mine the M26 over the M9 Beretta for the increased ability to hit and to keep a target down with a single shot. http://www.armyproperty.com/app/forum/m26-12-gauge-modular-accessory-shotgun-system-t190.html
:D

[Kenny]

Previous link not working,hopefully this one will. http://airsoftinformations.blogspot.com/2010/07/m26-12-gauge-modular-accessory-shotgun.html