After chem-propelled projectile weapons, the most common type of hand weapon in the galaxy at large is the blaster. "Blaster" is a generic term encompassing several different kinds of projected energy weapons, including lasers, phased and unphased plasma guns, and some hybrid plasma/particle-pulse weapons, but does not include phase-wave weapons ("phasers"), disruption helix projectors ("disruptors") or thermal weapons ("blazers" or the somewhat more prosaic "heat rays"). Following are short descriptions of some of the most common blaster types of the galaxy.

BlasTech DL-44

One of the definitive blaster pistols of all time, BlasTech's venerable DL-44's design originated on Earth in the Standard Year 1896, more than a century before that world's First Contact with the galactic community, as a projectile weapon, the Mauser C/96. The first DL-44s were handbuilt by Carl Blas, an engineer at Incom who was in on the Salusian secret mission to build the Z-95 Headhunter starfighter on Earth in the 1980s. After First Contact, he took advantage of the inside knowledge of advanced technology and his keen eye for puns to launch BlasTech, which, on the merits of the DL-44, became one of the most successful personal energy weapons manufacturers in the galaxy.

METANOTE: You all know this one, I'm sure - Han Solo's blaster from the original Star Wars films.

Bryar MD-11C

The MD-11C, the best-selling product of the old and prosperous Bryar weapons concern of Corellia, was originally developed and sold as the MD-11, an infantry rifle, in the 1920s. It was a disappointment in that role, underpowered and short-ranged, and looked like being a failure even though Bryar cut the price of the unit down to bargain-basement levels, barely turning a profit on an already inexpensive product. It wasn't until some enterprising, budget-minded soul cut an MD-11 down, installed an aftermarket boost pack, and turned it into a somewhat beefy pistol that the weapon really came into its own. Before long, Bryar released an official version of this popular conversion, the MD-11C. Within two years the MD-11 itself was no longer available, but the MD-11C kept going strong until 2119. Weapons collectors covet hand-converted MD-11s more than the factory 'C' models.

METANOTE: Kyle Katarn's signature sidearm from Dark Forces II: Jedi Knight. Gryphon has two of them in the Golden Age story Rite of Passage and through the Exile, and still owns one as of the beginning of the Symphony of the Sword.

Smith & Wesson Model 69901

A medium Phased Plasma Gun, this weapon is the standard sidearm of Earthforce Security, the Psi Corps Enforcement Division, and many other military and law enforcement agencies, most of them headquartered in the Earth Alliance. It is a simple, rugged, powerful weapon which won't penetrate spacecraft hulls, making it suitable for deployment as a security weapon about starships and space stations, but it is somewhat inaccurate and difficult to control thanks to the extreme thermal effects of its unshielded pulse.

METANOTE: The bigger PPG pistols from Babylon 5.

BlasTech E-11 / GENOM D.4

BlasTech won the contract to provide the GENOM Military Arm with the sidearms for its new White Legion in 2375 with the design for the E-11, which promised to be compact, powerful, easy to maintain, inexpensive to construct, and durable in the field. It was all that; unfortunately, it was also wildly inaccurate. (As the initial White Legion acceptance testing report phrases it, "This weapon exhibited considerable difficulty in successfully targeting the lateral elevation of an agricultural storage facility.") By the time the flaw was detected, tens of thousands of E-11s had been produced. GENOM gave BlasTech 30 days to come up with a fix for the problem; BlasTech failed and was acquired in 2378. GENOM reassigned model numbers to all BlasTech's products after the merger, and the E-11 became the D.4. An improvement program for the design became the D.4a, which was the White Legion standard sidearm for decades, but it was only adequate, and was in turn replaced in 2404 by the DC-15. Thousands of surplus and black-market E-11s, D.4s and D.4as can be found all over the galaxy. There are fewer A-models out there, but enough that facing off against someone armed with a blaster of this visual style is always a roll of the dice...

METANOTE: Standard Stormtrooper weapon from the first Star Wars trilogy.

GENOM DC-15

The replacement for the D.4a, GENOM's DC-15 looks very similar, but simpler, with all extraneous elements of its design stripped away. In its basic form, it is a compact, powerful and durable blaster carbine; its central mechanism can also be fitted with attachments that convert it into a full-size field rifle, greatly increasing its accurate range and striking power. Produced in relatively small quantities, the DC-15 is only slowly replacing the D.4a in the Legion and has not yet hit the civilian market, but some have leaked out of the organization nonetheless, and they are in great demand on the black market.

METANOTE: The clonetroopers' standard weapon in Attack of the Clones, it really does, paradoxically, look like an improved E-11.

Arakyd KYD-21

A very popular small arm, the KYD-21 is in the class of 'pocket blasters': bigger, more powerful, and more accurate than a hold-out, but smaller than a military or police-type sidearm. Available with or without muzzle brake (which alters the weapon's discharge note to a very distinctive squeal) and in a variety of barrel lengths and finishes, the KYD-21 is a well-made consumer good, but not up to the rigors of military use.

METANOTE: Also from Attack of the Clones, this is the little blaster that one of the characters early in the movie employs, which, for some peculiar reason, sounds exactly like a TIE fighter's guns.

Continuity Technologies ElectroMag 112

A WDF and WWWA standby for centuries, the E-Mag and its newer, more powerful brother the E-Max 520 are all but ubiquitous. Still sleek and modern-looking after all these years, the EM112 is a plasma/particle hybrid which can accept a wide variety of popular modifications and attachments, including flash and sound suppressors, range extenders, telescopic sights, and a laser conversion kit.

METANOTE: Kei's sidearm from the original Dirty Pair TV and OVA series.

>METANOTE: The clonetroopers' standard weapon in Attack of the
>Clones, it really does, paradoxically, look like an improved
>E-11.

Hell Gryph, most of the technology in the newer movies looks more advanced then the first trilogy.

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Matrix Dragon
Rabid Crack Weasel # 123
Director of the Okatu Intelligence Division
Approach With Caution
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Blessed be.
Nathan Baxter
(Not, however, that that should be taken as meaning that this isn't nifty.)