Assault Phaser (photoshop work)

Alyeska · Post by **Alyeska** » 2006-09-03 05:45pm

I've shown part of this before, but I've done some new work and figured I would show some more.

That is the original picture. Standard Assault Phaser as seen in Star Trek 5 and 6.

First thing I did was move the handle back. But I didn't like the look it gave to the pistol. The grip was absurdly long in relation.

I simply cut out the bottom of the energy cell magazine making it flush fitting. I was really pleased with the final look. Makes the phaser look quite modern and lethal.

However, I also felt that this look changed the feel of the Type-2 phasers from the TOS movie era. There was something about the original design that I liked.

For this picture I just applied the shortened energy magazine to the grip and left everything else alone. I liked the change to the phaser. It maintains the look of the phaser but makes it more practical.

This is the final product. I felt that the top of the phaser was just too large. Makes the thing massive and feels clumsy in my opinion. So I cut out part of the top and shrunk the back section somewhat. Of all the versions I did, I like this one the most. It maintains the feel of the original phaser but makes it far more practical.

Original assault phaser side by side with my most recent version.

Einhander Sn0m4n · Post by **Einhander Sn0m4n** » 2006-09-03 06:02pm

Excellent work, Alyeska. I'll admit I don't like the roundtop 'slide' because it looks like there's no provision for aiming, but it's possible they're buried in a 'channel' just deep enough to prevent seeing them from the side.

Alyeska · Post by **Alyeska** » 2006-09-03 06:05pm

There is no channel for aiming what so ever. Thats the thing I hate about all Trek phaser designs. No iron sights. I have been trying to think up ideas how I can add in iron sights without changing the look and without making it a jarring photoshop job. When I do these mods I try and meld things as clear as possible. As it stands, the only photoshop lines you can see are ones you can see just because you know I did something.

Einhander Sn0m4n · Post by **Einhander Sn0m4n** » 2006-09-03 06:14pm

Yeah, I've always hated the no-iron-sights thing as well. A reflex (red-dot) sight, however small and subdued, would look jarring as well, ESPECIALLY if it were, by necessity, installed on the apex (tip-top) of the slide's hump.

wilfulton · Post by **wilfulton** » 2006-09-03 08:08pm

A comment if I may:

I notice that Star Trek weapons tend to forgo the trigger guard, which helps protect against one accidentally pulling the trigger. It also serves as a place to rest your finger when you have your weapon drawn, but don't immediately need to fire it (keep your finger off the trigger until ready to fire is one of the cardinal rules of firearms safety).

Alyeska · Post by **Alyeska** » 2006-09-03 08:30pm

I am well aware of that. The problem is a trigger guard is going to be about as difficult as iron sights. I have to figure a way to create something that matches the weapon in design and also get the color right. So far all I've done is cut and past parts of the phaser and thats fairly easy.

Alyeska · Post by **Alyeska** » 2006-09-03 09:51pm

Well since the Assault Phaser shamelessly copied the Beretta 92FS, I decided it could rip one more item.

Alyeska · Post by **Alyeska** » 2006-09-03 10:34pm

I enlarged and sharpened the nob in the rear trying to turn it into a rear iron sight. Not entirely pleased with the work.

Alyeska · Post by **Alyeska** » 2006-09-03 10:45pm

After talking with Einy, I've decided this is the current final build.

The aiming is done by an unseen but known technology.

The knob on the rear is actualy a reflex site. It opperates by displaying a red dot without paralex allowing you to aim with both eyes open. The red dot is displayed within a display that is grey in color allowing you to see if it is inside of the display. You draw the pistol and look at your target with both eyes open. Your right eye sees the red dot and the slight angle allows your left eye to see the target. Your mind melds the images and you see the red dot on the target. Built into the weapon encased within the barrel assembly.

Jack Bauer · Post by **Jack Bauer** » 2006-09-03 11:28pm

Excellent work, with solid improvements on the design. On a side note, how long were these phasers in service? Until the early 24th century perhaps?

Alyeska · Post by **Alyeska** » 2006-09-04 01:06am

These phasers, not sure. TNG had the TWOK era phasers show up on the Enterprise-C and the Search for Spock phasers showed up as weapons on a civilian shuttle. I imagine that non-Starfleet forces used them for some time as they are very well designed.

This particular phaser is what I consider the Assault Phaser Rebuild. The Colonial Marines (formerly Starfleet Marines before being disbanded after the Khitomer accords) considered the Assault Phaser to be the ultimate design and they paid to have it periodicaly updated and have new stock built every 20 years and they maintained it as their sidearm.

Kinda like how Marine Expeditionary Units today still use M1911A1s, the Colonial Marines picked a weapon that works very simply and kept it up to date with the times. They removed the aspects they didn't like and altered as necessary.

To further the thought, the Colonial Marines got nationalized by Starfleet for the Dominion war and this Assault Phaser saw action against the Dominion.

Jack Bauer · Post by **Jack Bauer** » 2006-09-04 01:18am

Are you saying these Colonial Marines were not an official part of Starfleet until the Dominion War? I've never heard of these Colonial Marines before, but I had always assumed that Starfleet maintained a force that was equivalent to it. On a related note, are these Marines the ground forces that the Federation used at AR-551 and other engagements? I tend not to think so, everything implied that these grunts were just regular goldshirts.

Alyeska · Post by **Alyeska** » 2006-09-04 01:26am

Its my own backstory entirely. Its bassed on a fiction written by Big Steve where he talks abou the slide of the Federation into idiotic socialism. Starfleet Marines are technicaly non-canon. All we know is that someone had the rank of Colonel.

I am taking the concept that Starfleet Marines existed in TOS (my own view, not canon) but were disbanded post TUC after the peace with the Klingons. The colonies are disgruntled by how the Federation is begining to treat them and it just so happens that the Marines were mostly recruited from the colonies. As a result the colonies band together with their slightly more soverignty over Federation members and the colonies form the Colonial Marines as their own branch of defense forces. They can't afford the newest weapon systems but they modernize the older effective weapon systems as possible (my phaser being one). When the Klingon incident in DS9 roles around Starfleet is faced with the fact that they are woefully unprepared for ground combat, so they nationalize the Colonial Marines and recreate the Starfleet Marines. Of course the colonies could never afford to maintain a very large marine force and so it didn't turn the tide for the Federation, but helped. Also explains why we never saw them in the series.

TheMuffinKing · Post by **TheMuffinKing** » 2006-09-04 02:48am

The phaser looks great! I like the backstory too.

Zed Snardbody · Post by **Zed Snardbody** » 2006-09-05 06:35am

All the improvements are sound and it looks good, for some reason though it just looks to small.

Stark · Post by **Stark** » 2006-09-05 08:02am

Alyeska, now that you've cropped the 'hammer' thing at the back, maybe you can move the grip back? The upper part will always look like a dolphin massager, but without the hammer tang at the back it might look more acceptable than when you tried it before. It is very phaser-like to have a bit sticking out the back, though.

Superman · Post by **Superman** » 2006-09-05 09:21am

Looks nice!

Personally (and this is not criticism, just personal taste), I think it looks better without that trigger guard, but you did a bad ass job.

Looks good!

Lord Woodlouse · Post by **Lord Woodlouse** » 2006-09-05 02:31pm

Looks like a big improvement, but then after doing that I can't help but think that it would be easier and more practical to get a normal gun and just say "it fires phasers".

Alyeska · Post by **Alyeska** » 2006-09-06 12:05am

Stark wrote:Alyeska, now that you've cropped the 'hammer' thing at the back, maybe you can move the grip back? The upper part will always look like a dolphin massager, but without the hammer tang at the back it might look more acceptable than when you tried it before. It is very phaser-like to have a bit sticking out the back, though.

I already tried moving the grip back and have since rejected it. I am trying to maintain the actual flow and look of the weapon. To do so I have to keep the grip where it is. Thats a base element of all phaser pistols. Grip in the middle.

Next time I take a crack I can consider moving back the grip somewhat, though with the trigger guard now merged its going to be somewhat difficult.

Alyeska · Post by **Alyeska** » 2006-09-06 12:07am

Zed Snardbody wrote:All the improvements are sound and it looks good, for some reason though it just looks to small.

Its not as small as it seems. Knowing what this gun was bassed on, it is equivilent to a modern full sized semi-automatic. The original model was so large its practicaly a club. The barrel housing so large as to make aiming difficult and the extended energy magazine makes holding the pistol in a double grip difficult.

Alyeska · Post by **Alyeska** » 2006-09-06 12:08am

Superman wrote:Looks nice!

Personally (and this is not criticism, just personal taste), I think it looks better without that trigger guard, but you did a bad ass job. Looks good!

Trigger guards exist for a very good reason though. Anyway the trigger guard I picked was for very good reason. The curved nature to the trigger guard actualy matches the curve of the pistol itself quite nicely.

Spanky The Dolphin · Post by **Spanky The Dolphin** » 2006-09-06 12:33am

I think the trigger guard might need a little work, because it doesn't really look like it's part of the aesthetic with the rest of the phaser, rather it looks like it was cut off and pasted from a real modern gun (which I know it was, yes).

Havok · Post by **Havok** » 2006-09-06 12:35am

I agree with Spanky. Maybe round the trigger into the handle. The curve of the bottom is good because it's similar to the curve of the "slide".