M6G Personal Defense Weapon System
Production information
Manufacturer	Misriah Armory
Model	M6G
Type	Magnum caliber pistol
Cost	cR. 1615[1]
Technical specifications
Size	Length: (o/a): 26.70 cm (10.5 in.)[1] (barrel): 11.7 cm (4.6 in.)[1] Weight: (empty): 2.7 kg (5.95 lbs)[1] (loaded): 2.95 kg (6.5 lbs)[1]
Damage Per Hit	High (shielded enemies) Very High or instant kill* (flesh damage, *headshots) Overall Damage: Medium-High
Magazine Size	8 rounds[1]
Maximum Ammunition	40 Rounds or 5 magazines (Single wielded) 80 rounds or 10 magazines (Dual wielded)
Fire Mode	Semi-Automatic
Ammunition Type	12.7mm x 40mm M225 Semi-Armor-Piercing High-Explosive/.50 Magnum Caliber Rounds[1]
Operation	Short recoil principle
Rate of Fire	About 120 RPM[1] (Halo 3) About 240 RPM (Halo: Reach)
Muzzle Velocity	427 m/sec (1302.35 ft/sec)[1]
Accuracy	Medium-High
Range	Close to Medium: 50 meters (152.5 ft) [1]
Usage
Era(s)	Human-Covenant war
Counterpart	Plasma Pistol
Affiliation	United Nations Space Command
[Source]

The M6G Personal Defense Weapon System,^[1] abbreviated as M6G PDWS and commonly referred to as the M6G Magnum Sidearm, is a United Nations Space Command infantry firearm, and is one of the variants of Misriah Armory's M6 sidearm series.

Design DetailsEdit

The M6G sidearm is a semi-automatic, recoil-operated, magazine-fed, large caliber handgun. It is a later model of the M6 series sidearms that was distributed to officers and vehicle/weapon crews.^[1] The weapon has a polymer handle, along with a titanium alloy body and what appears to be an anti-corrosion nickel-plate finish. The sidearm fires the M225 SAP-HE (Semi-Armor Piercing, High Explosive) rounds from an 8-round magazine at a velocity of 427 m/sec (1302.35 ft/sec).

Performance wise, the M6G sidearm has a relatively low rate of fire, being able to deliver two rounds per second or 120 rounds per minute. It could achieve a maximum effective range of 50 meters and is very accurate and precise, proving itself to be the jack of all trades for close-to-medium range operation.

AmmunitionEdit

The M6G uses 12.7x40mm M225 SAP-HE (Semi-Armor Piercing, High Explosive) .50 Caliber ammunition loads. These rounds have a jacket of copper or cupro-nickel around the projectile while the projectile itself is hollow and filled with an explosive compound and a delayed-detonation impact fuse. When the round impacts a target, the jacket will initially help the projectile maintain its shape, allowing it to travel into the target before detonating almost immediately after impact, causing massive tissue damage and system shock. Probable reasons for using semi-armor piercing rounds instead of armor piercing projectiles are both to prevent over-penetration of hostiles and decreasing the risk of friendly fire during CQB and urban combat, and their devastating efficiency against soft targets. The explosive properties of the rounds render them decently effective against personal shielding systems and are also capable of damaging lightly-armored vehicles.

AdvantagesEdit

The M6G is designed primarily for extreme ruggedness and reliability. It is a very useful sidearm for close quarter battles, and skirmishes. The UNSC has issued the M6 series of pistols as a standard sidearm because of its effectiveness against armor and shields, while retaining high impact force due to the high caliber and projectile mass. The M6G, like its predecessor the M6D, requires the same amount of skill to use, and a person who can effectually lead his shots, with a good understanding of how the weapon works will be able to take down targets with ease.

DisadvantagesEdit

The M6G, unlike the M6D, has a slower firing rate ('C' variant), and as such downing an enemy will take considerable time. If the person wielding it does not take into account of how the weapon works, or is unable to dodge enemy fire, they will be killed quickly by their opponent. Its eight-round magazine also puts the user at a disadvantage should a couple of rounds miss its target. A user must be precise and know at what range to engage the enemy or risk being killed.

VariantsEdit

The M6G comes in two variants; the Army variant and the Marine variant.^{[notes 1]}

Army variantEdit

The Army variant is semi-automatic, and is also capable of firing almost twice as fast as the Marine variant. It is issued with a smart-linked KFA-2 x2 scope, has a shorter, stockier barrel, a different slide and grip, and an electroless-nickel finish.

Marine variantEdit

The Marine variant is of the same general size and proportions, with exception to a slightly longer barrel and is 'not issued with a smart-linked KFA-2 x2 scope, unlike the Army variant. Although still semi-automatic, the Marine variant has a slower rate of fire than its counterpart, but has increased accuracy.^[1]

Changes from Halo 3 to Halo: ReachEdit

• Features a usable KFA-2 x2 smart-linked scope above the barrel.
• Has reticule bloom, like most weapons in Halo: Reach.
• Higher rate of fire; about twice as fast.
• Is less accurate when fired rapidly.
• Has a differently designed slide, grip, and magazine.
• Slightly shorter barrel.
• Firing sound is different.
• Different reload and melee animations.

InfluencesEdit

One possible influence is the Desert Eagle. Though their outward appearances are different, both weapons are of similar size and caliber, and the slide of the M6G comprises the rear of the frame instead of the entire upper area, common with the Eagle. Another likely candidate is the H&K P7 series or the Steyr M. Another possible influence on the design of this weapon was the FP-45 Liberator, a weapon designed in the United States during World War II. The long handle and short barrel is an obvious feature. Another possible influence is the M1911 for its long use and durability under any conditions.

TacticsEdit

CampaignEdit

• The M6G is quite useful against most sparse targets that are encountered throughout diverse combat. Enemies such as Grunts and Jackals can be quickly dispatched with one well-placed shot to the head and enemies like Drones and members of the Flood can be dispatched in as little as 1-2 well-placed shots. The same can be applied to unshielded Brutes with one well-placed shot to the head.
• The M6G's high-caliber rounds give it the ability to stumble non-berserk, unshielded enemies. This is most effective fired at the feet, when enemies like Brutes suffer the longest injury recovery time.
• Experienced players can say that the M6G is one of the most underestimated weapons of Halo 3, and can make a solid headshot capable weapon if used correctly.

MultiplayerEdit

• Wielding a pair of Magnums performs quite well against shielded targets, but is restricted due to their rate of fire. Dual-wielding a Magnum with other weapons such as an M7/Caseless Submachine Gun or a Type-25 Directed Energy Pistol is also quite effective as the SMG depletes shielding quickly, while the Magnum finishes the target off; a Plasma Pistol's charged shot will completely drain any shielding system allowing the Magnum to perform the lethal head shot.
• In Halo: Reach the Magnum possesses a 5-shot kill on Spartan III's equal in power to the DMR with a higher firing rate at the cost of less ammo and higher recoil taking 4 shots to down the shields and either a single headshot or 3 body shots to finish off the enemy. The infamous Noob Combo can be used or the Plasma Pistol can be quickly fired 3-4 times to take down shields quickly before switching to a Magnum to deliver the killing headshot. At close range the Magnum is more effective than the MA37 Assault Rifle if fired quickly and is also more effective at Mid-range even as long as the shots are controlled. At long range shot placement and control is extremely vital due to the high recoil/bloom of the weapon and even so, the weapon may completely miss as despite the use of the scope, the targeting reticule is still large for a precision weapon.

TriviaEdit

• Like the M6D, the M6G has Asian calligraphy stamped on the barrel, but in this case, they are Korean Hangul, not Chinese Kanji. It is also featured on the bottom of the magazine. The symbol 일곱 (il-gohb), when reflected, translates to 7.
• The words 'Misriah Armory' are written on the side. Similarly, the M6G has a Marathon symbol on the grip near the back.
• Aesthetically, the M6G seems to be a combination of M6C's way of being held, and the M6D look and structure.
• It is incorrectly labeled in the instruction manual as having 12 rounds per magazine, instead of the actual 8 rounds it has in-game.
• Unlike the M6D, when a full magazine is emptied, the slide of the M6G(C variant) does not lock back to wait for another fresh magazine to be inserted (but the M6G(B) does).
• It costs 1615 cR. to make one Magnum pistol, more than a Flamethrower, which costs 1520 cR.
• A single M6G shot does 15 damage points to a player, based on the 115 hit points a player is given (70 shielding points, and 45 body points).
• The M6G pistol does about twice as much damage as the MA5C Assault Rifle; on Heroic difficulty, a human Marine dies after 24 assault rifle shots, or after 12 pistol shots.
• A shot from the M6G pistol is marginally less damaging than a 3-round burst from the Battle Rifle; it takes 12 pistol shots or 10 3-round bursts from the Battle Rifle to kill a human Marine on Heroic difficulty.
• In an old poster related to the human weapons of Halo 3, the M6G is incorrectly labeled as an M6C.
• This variant of the M6 appears to be a homage to the 44 Magnum Pistol in Marathon. Using the same number of rounds per magazine, the same rate of fire, dual wield capability and sporting an unusable scope. Even the reload time is the same.
• The M6G in Halo: Reach has a nearly identical melee animation to the M6D pistol in Halo: Combat Evolved.
• People argue that the Halo 3 pistol is more powerful than the Halo: Reach pistol. This is untrue but may be due to the fact of how the Halo 3 pistol sounds.
• In Halo: Reach, Spartan players hold the pistol and reload with both hands, but Elite players use only one hand.
• When fired by an Elite character in multiplayer, the gun's reticule will "jump" and refocus if the scope is zoomed in whereas a Spartan III zooming in will keep the reticule steady. This may be due to the Elites' larger hands making it harder for them to hold human weapons, as well as the fact they hold the weapon with one hand, while a Spartan-III holds it with two.
• The M6G in Halo: Reach may have been intended to have iron sights instead of the scope, this is because there is a small light visible under the "hood" which is very similar to the lights on the rear sights.
• Of all the Bungie-made games, the M6G is the first pistol and the last pistol model used in the games chronologically.
• After Reach's title update in 2011, the M6G will retain most, if not all, of the characteristics of Halo Combat Evolved's M6D.
• In any game mode, when the player draws their weapon, the player seems to turn off the safety switch.
• In Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn a SPARTAN-II (presumably the Master Chief) is seen wielding a black-steel model of the M6G. More likely it is the M6H. 

GalleryEdit

First person view of the M6G in Halo: Reach.

Reloading the M6G in Halo: Reach.

Reloading an empty M6G in Halo: Reach.

Side profile of the M6G as seen in Halo: Reach.

M6G (Army variant) Left.

M6G (Army variant) Right.

M6G (Army variant) Front/Back.

M6G (Army variant) Top/Bottom.

An in-game profile render of the M6G from Halo 3.

Concept art of the M6G for Halo: Reach.

The M6G is Kat's preferred weapon.

The M6G firing.

Add a photo to this galleryAdd a photo to this gallery

List of AppearancesEdit

• Halo 3 (First appearance)
• Halo: Reach

NotesEdit

1. ↑ The conflicting visuals printed on Halo 3's M6G and Halo: Reach's M6G lead to the assumption that the sidearms used in both games are of two different sub-models. However, the printed names are in the format of variants of the M6, rather than sub-variants of the M6G. No other piece of evidence has been given as to naming these sub-variants.

SourcesEdit

See alsoEdit

• M6 Series
• Misriah Armory
• M6D