9mm Pistol (Half-Life 2)

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9mm Pistol
Production information
Faction	Combine
Model	9mm Pistol
Type	Handgun
Technical specifications
Damage	5 (8 in HL2DM)
Magazine/reload type	18 round box magazine
Max ammo	150 rounds
Modes	Semi-automatic
Weapon category	2
Ammo type	9x19mm Parabellum
Rate of fire	Low to medium
Recoil	Low
Spread	Low to medium
Projectile speed	Hitscan
Accuracy	Good
Range	Short to medium
Usage
Used by	Civil Protection Gordon Freeman Combine Assassin (cut)
Game information
Entity	weapon_pistol (weapon entity) item_ammo_pistol (ammo entity) item_ammo_pistol_ large (ammo entity)

 

The 9mm Pistol is a semi-automatic handgun and the first firearm Gordon Freeman acquires in Half-Life 2.

Overview

Metrocops shooting at Gordon Freeman at the back of the City 17 Trainstation.

The 9mm Pistol is the Combine's standard sidearm and is often carried by Civil Protection officers. It is a reliable and accurate weapon with a high firing rate, a sizable 18-round magazine but relatively poor damage. It is a useful all-rounder and is particularly effective against weak or slow enemies, such as Metrocops, Headcrabs, Barnacles, Zombies and Scanners. The weapon's features include a metal grey slide and a prominent black muzzle compensator that reduces muzzle climb.

The player first acquires the 9mm Pistol at the start of the Half-Life 2 chapter Route Kanal, after defeating the Metrocops beating a Citizen in a maintenance tunnel near the City 17 Trainstation. However, it is possible to obtain the gun earlier than this near the end of the chapter A Red Letter Day by stacking up crates and killing the Metrocop on top of the trains. In Episode One, it is found in the City 17 Underground. In Episode Two, it is found early on while trekking through the Victory Mine.

Tactics

The 9mm Pistol is not particularly effective against multiple targets, and is better used when facing only one or two targets at a time. The recoil makes it difficult to quickly fire the gun while retaining any accuracy past short range, so shots should be fired at a lower rate to hit enemies at medium to long range. When engaged in a firefight using the 9mm Pistol, aiming at the target's head is advised, as it normally takes only two headshots to kill. On the other hand, aiming for the body is not very effective, especially if the target is wearing body armor, and it can take up to seven shots at medium range to score a kill. Despite the lower damage, it is significantly more accurate than the Submachine Gun and does a little more damage, making it convenient as a backup weapon if the other weapons are running low on ammo. Ammunition for the pistol is plentiful in the early chapters while battling Metrocops in the Canals, but it becomes slightly harder to come by in later chapters, where it is usually only found in some supply crates and abandoned outposts.

Both Metrocops and Combine Soldiers can be killed by a single headshot if they are unaware of the player's presence, even in Hard mode. This can also be done with other weapons.

The 9mm Pistol is one of only two ranged weapons that can be used underwater, the other being the crossbow.

Behind the scenes

Combine Assassin with dual 9mm Pistols.

• The 9mm Pistol appears to be based on the real-world USP9 Match by Heckler & Koch.

• The Combine Assassin was to use dual 9mm Pistols, as they are the successors of the Black Ops and the 9mm Pistol, respectively.

• In the playable Half-Life 2 leak, the 9mm Pistol has a larger texture and ejects spent cartridge casings.

• The leak 9mm Pistol uses some sounds now used by the Submachine Gun; its reloading sound, and its firing sound when fired by an NPC.

• Textures for an earlier 9mm Pistol model can be found in the playable Half-Life 2 leak files.

• While the leak 9mm Pistol and the Submachine Gun share the same ammo shell model when firing (similar to the Pistol and Submachine Gun in Half-Life), in the final game it was removed for 9mm Pistol, while kept for the Submachine Gun.

• The 9mm Pistol was originally to feature a burst fire mode as the secondary attack. Seemingly being a leftover from this cut feature, a bug existed where players could hold down the secondary and primary fire to "charge" their next shot (it would fire several shots at once at the same angle, essentially creating one extremely powerful shot). The bug has been fixed in the May 26, 2010 update applied to Half-Life 2 and Episode One.

Trivia

• When the 9mm Pistol is fired by the player, no spent cartridge casings are ejected, while it does when fired by an NPC. This is most likely a development oversight, while in the beta the Pistol fired by the player ejects a spent cartridge.

• Sometimes, there is a glitch that the CPs will shoot his "Invisible" pistol, this can be seen in the chapter Route Kanal when the CPs rush to the player on the train track at long range.

Gallery

Pre-release

• 

  Texture for an earlier 9mm Pistol model - the magazine.

• 

  Early texture for the grip (H&K's name can be seen on it).

• 

  Early texture for the hammer.

• 

  Early texture for the slide.

• 

  Early texture for the weight in front of the barrel.

• 

  Viewmodel.

• 

  Leak shell model used when firing, also used for the leak Submachine Gun.

• 

  Gordon watches the Hydra impaling a Combine Soldier while holding his 9mm Pistol.

• 

  Early Zombies in the early Ravenholm, with the 9mm Pistol in use by the player.

Retail

• 

  HUD icon, from "HalfLife2.ttf".

• 

  HUD pickup icon, from "HalfLife2.ttf".

• 

  HUD ammo pickup icon, from "HalfLife2.ttf".

• 

  Worldmodel.

• 

  Viewmodel.

• 

  Ammo box model, labeled "20 cartridge 9mm-M82 cartons LC-93E123-112", most likely a reference to a real-life M882 NATO military ammunition.

• 

  Ammo crate model.

• 

  The first 9mm Pistol of the game that is intended to be obtainable by the player, held by the left Metrocop.

• 

  Metrocops shooting at Gordon Freeman at the back of the City 17 Trainstation.

List of appearances

Main games

• Half-Life 2 (First appearance)
• Half-Life 2: Episode One
• Half-Life 2: Episode Two

Other

• Half-Life 2: Deathmatch (Non-canonical appearance)
• Half-Life 2: Lost Coast (Non-canonical appearance)
• Source Particle Benchmark (Game files only) (Non-canonical appearance)
• Ravenholm (Non-canonical appearance)
• The Final Hours of Half-Life: Alyx (Non-canonical appearance)

See also

• 9mm Pistol (Half-Life)
• Alyx's Gun

References

Combine OverWiki has more images related to 9mm Pistol (Half-Life 2).