Pistol/Doom 3

"All UAC Security and Military personnel are supplied with this basic projectile side arm."

- PDA Description

The Pistol is the basic firearm found in Doom 3, modeled after its iteration from the classic Doom games. It's the first weapon that the player obtains, aside from the flashlight.

Weapon schematics
The Pistol holds a total of 12 bullets. If 12 bullets are exhausted or the player manually reloads, the player character will move the weapon's slide and then place a new magazine below the weapon, before putting the slide back in place.

Ammunition for the Pistol generally come in individual Pistol magazines, which carry 12 bullets, or in large grey boxes that hold 24 bullets. They can also be obtained from Pistol Guard Z-Secs and Riot Shield Trooper Z-Secs upon killing them.

In comparison to the classic version, this Pistol is considerably more powerful and accurate, as it fires its own unique caliber of bullets (the classic pistol shares its own ammo pool with the chaingun), and makes headshots on certain enemies very easy to aim.

Despite this, each bullet lacks the sufficient firepower to take down larger, heavier targets, making it easily outclassed by many other weapons in the game. It is best used as a backup weapon when the player is in need of conserving ammunition of stronger weapons.

Tactical Analysis
As the first weapon the player is given in the game, the Pistol shines greatly against the earlier enemies the player comes across, such as Zombies and Pistol Guard Z-Secs. However, when fighting against the most basic demons such as the Imp, the player should switch to more powerful weapons like the Shotgun or Machine Gun.

It is also a worthy weapon against Trites, being able to kill one with two bullets, and against Lost Souls if your aim is reliable. But when they come closer, swap to something more powerful.

While the Pistol is unviable against majority of enemies, it is also convenient on destroying explosive barrels that are scattered throughout the game. If you can lure some of the stronger enemies such as Imps, Wraiths, or Cacodemons at the nearby barrels, you can rely on the Pistol to destroy them, causing the explosion to kill them instantly. Alternatively, some enemies like the Imp will usually be positioned from a distance where they are bound to that one area (they cannot approach the player as a ledge prevents them from closing in). Using the Pistol in this case can work wonders if you can constantly avoid their projectile attacks.

Trivia

 * The appearance of the pistol is influenced by the pistol that Harrison Ford's character Rick Deckard carries in the Blade Runner film.
 * In the BFG Edition, the Pistol's "prep" audio is replaced with a brief "swishing" sound from it's reloading audio.