10 Favourite Weapons from Science Fiction

Inspired by this post, I decided to compile a list of my top ten science fiction weapons.
If you have any other suggestions for inclusion in any future revision of my list please feel free to comment (actually, just comment anyway *smile*).

10 : Phasers
Phasers are common directed-energy weapons first seen in the original Star Trek and later seen or referenced in almost all subsequent films and TV spin-offs except for the phase cannons of Enterprise. Phaser is a backronym for PHASed Energy Rectification.

09 : The Lawgiver
It’s every big kid’s dream gun, a veritable Swiss army knife of projectile weapons and in the capable hands of Judge Dredd, an instrument of execution of his final sentence. The Lawgiver has a standard execution setting (normal bullets), as well as armour-piercing and incendiary rounds. It can also fire high explosive and ricochet shots at the mere flick of a switch. The best things about it of all, though, is that the Lawgiver has the owner’s palm print encoded into its computer memory, and any unauthorised attempt to use the weapon will result in it exploding in their hand.

08 : Minbari Fighting Pike
In its closed state, it is quite compact and easy to carry, but can open up to be a formidable weapon. The weapon is not dependent on an energy source.

07 : Zat nik’tel
One shot from a zat gun temporarily paralyses the victim, or disables electrical equipment. Two shots kills the victim. Three shots disintegrates the victim, or any inanimate object. Zat guns, like staff weapons, have to be opened up by pressing them before they can be fired, by squeezing the handle.

06 : Deckard’s Blaster
‘Nough said. (8+)

05 : Death Star
A satellite, moon-sized warship is a jolly big target that requires some serious back-up, and a big laser always does the job nicely. A super laser backed up by 10,000 turbo laser batteries, 700 tractor beam projectors and allegedly enough ships to occupy the galaxy. The skeleton crew alone was nearly 500,000, and did I mention that the Death Star could destroy entire planets, regardless of shielding, in a single shot?

04 : Tron Disc
The discs were thrown like Frisbees (in fact the cast were trained by a professional Frisbee team) and traveled in a way that implied they were remotely controlled by their user, the initial throwing doing little more than providing momentum and general direction. The discs would curve, turn, and gain altitude in a way that was clearly unnatural for a regular Frisbee. In fact, in Tron’s final confrontation with Sark, the discs could make multiple passes and strikes per throw.

03 : PPG
Fires a small charge of superheated gas. This gas retains both its shape and small volume via a residual magnetic field. Upon impact with an object, the magnetic field is dissipated and the heat discharged. PPG bolts cause significant visible distortion as they travel through air.

02 : Lightsaber
In an era that outdates the last practical use of a bladed weapon by several millennia, you’d’ve thought that even a melee weapon formed out of a loop of folded plasma energy would be obsolete on a futuristic battlefield. But just as the Katana is every bit as effective in the hands of a skilled Samurai today, the Lightsaber is lethal when wielded by a Jedi or Dark Knight. Projectiles are deflected effortlessly when combined with Jedi reflexes and the searing edge of the beam can slice through solid metal and armour plating.

01 : The Force
“It’s an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us, penetrates us, and binds the galaxy together.”
Some think of the Force as a sentient entity that may be capable of intelligent activities, pervading and infusing the material universe as a sort of panentheistic god, while others consider it merely a resource that can be manipulated and used. A common compromise is that it is an “energy tool” but one which forms a fundamental part of the universe. Fundamental to its nature are certain practical aspects such as its ability to cause change within the physical realm. An analogy is a sword with no handle—it can only be used by gripping the blade and therefore any attempt to strike someone would result in similar harm to the hand of the striker—the sword itself has no sentience or morality, but nevertheless exacts a price on those who use it unethically.