Canon

M45 shotgun

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A soldier of the UNSC Army holding an M45E shotgun.

The M45 Tactical Shotgun (formally Tactical Shotgun, 8 Gauge, Pump Action, M45) is a shotgun manufactured by Misriah Armory.[1][2] The M45 is commonly used by the United Nations Space Command alongside the M90 Close Assault Weapon System, a functionally identical copy designed by Weapon System Technology.[2][3][4]

Variants

Derivatives

DTM Series

Main article: DTM series

Due to the M45's popularity among UNSC service members during the Insurrection, Weapon System Technology opted to design a more affordable and more practical copy of the M45.[2] The resulting M90 Close Assault Weapon System is part of the DTM series, which is marketed to the military, law enforcement, and civilians. The standard model of the M90 Close Assault Weapon System is functionally identical to the M45E,[5] possessing a twelve-shell internal magazine, as well as matching the original in range, shot spread, and stopping power.[2] The M90A is based on the original M45 Tactical Shotgun and performs almost identically, despite its longer barrel; it too features a six-round internal magazine.[1] Although the M90 has since dominated both the military and private sector,[2] it is common for UNSC personnel (particularly Marines) to use both weapons concurrently.[1][2]

Non-canon and dubious canon appearances

Silver Timeline

HTV-SilverTeam logo.png
This article contains information about the Silver Timeline, and is not a part of the established Halo canon.

M45 Tactical Shotguns are used by Silver Team and other UNSC personnel in battles against the Covenant.[6]

Trivia

  • In the Halo: Reach Multiplayer Beta, the shotgun had cyan lights similar to those on the M90. The sights are red in the final game.
  • In Halo: Reach, the M45 is pumped at the end of every Spartan reload animation, whereas Sangheili cycle the action upon drawing the weapon. In reality, doing this with a loaded chamber would eject an unused shell.
  • In the Halo: Reach strategy guide, the silhouette used to mark shotgun spawns points on multiplayer maps appears to be missing their stocks. However, the M45 does not feature a collapsible stock and does not appear in the final version of the game.
  • In the second issue of Halo: Fall of Reach - Boot Camp, the captain of the UNSC Dartmouth retrieves several shotguns from a cryo chamber. In the first two panels, the shotguns appear to be M45s, though they appear to be M90s in subsequent panels.

List of appearances

Sources