Unless you're Ash who can dual-wield a sawed off shotgun and a chainsaw.

The only person (IMO) who can shoot a ( pump ) shotgun one handed is the Terminator. And you know which one I mean.

OMFG FORGOT ABOUT ASH! Hes just got like 8 points in duel wield weapons. That hacker....

+1

also gameplay wise, gunslinger would be too strong then

Still a rifle, just like the Obrez is still a rifle (albeit, a very short one)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9jScOyH7TM

I am really wondering how many people here have actually fired a short barrel shotgun? Yes a shotgun with 12 gauge can be fired one handed. Even a mossberg 500. The only shotguns I have fired that have huge kick come with 28" barrels, and firing that compared to the one with a 8" barrel was a completely different story with the exact same ammo. The 8" barrel was easy as pie one handed, the 28" barrel kicked like a mule.

They only "kick" more because they weigh a lot less. I have a .44 Magnum rifle that weighs about 5 pounds, and it's a pvssycat compared to the same round fired from a 2 pound S&W 629 - even though it has 3 times the barrel length to "use" the explosive power. A typical .44 Magnum will rock about 900 ftlbs of energy at the muzzle of a 4" barrel, while a 9-ball 12ga 00 Buck will be more than twice that from an 18" barrel. A 1 oz Foster slug will be three times as much.

The question becomes how much that might drop off as barrel length gets into the ridiculously short realm that the pistols we're discussing would have, and the resultant loss of power as it is expended as a fireball instead of pushing the projectiles. GonZo says it's a lot, and I'll have to take him at his word because I've never fired anything under 18" because they are illegal here. But the important point is that reduction in recoil comes at the price of a corresponding lack of power/lethality.

As far as gameplay is concerned, letting it be affected by gunslinger means letting get a substantial range boost. That would maybe be unbalanced, but even with longer range before damage starts dropping you still have that spread to deal with, and no slug shells in fallout 4.

Well, I suppose the real difference between two-handed weapons and handguns (but let's face it, they're all two handed with the exception of competitive/CA shooters and emergency situations), is the presence of a forearm (or forend) on the weapon. If it requires the off hand to go forward of the action to be placed on a fore end, it's officially a two-handed weapon. If it is meant to be fired with a two-handed grip (weaver stance) then it is more than likely a handgun.

All shotguns in FO4 carry a forearm or forend.

Forearm:

http://f.tqn.com/y/hunting/1/W/z/X/stock-forearm-forend.jpg


Two-handed grip (Weaver/Isosceles) stance:

https://www.handgunsafetycourse.com/images/drawings/handgun_body_position_two-handed_weaver.jpg

https://www.handgunsafetycourse.com/images/drawings/handgun_body_position_two-handed.jpg

And for the heck of it:

http://www.friedmanhandguntraining.com/images/Frontal-Jack-Weaver-Stance.jpg

@ Brewergeorge I assume you are Canadian like me since you said 18". Technically not illegal just restricted with less than a 18.5" barrel as long as it's over 4.25" then prohibited shorter than that. We in Canada actually have it better than Americans when it comes to short barreled shotguns.

Seraphim armoury is going to be selling a shotgun pistol up here soon. Restricted but a double barrel shotgun pistol.

From Pokemon?

American. The 18 inch limit is in my state.

Same here and yep. 18" is the standard NFA rule. States can set more restrictions of course. I never lived in a gun restricting state, so I don't pretend to understand what (say) CA laws, or such actually are, since they are the exception by far. Of course, you can have pretty much whatever you want (SBRs, autos, sawed-offs--I think 41(?) states allow private ownership of suppressors[mine does]) as long as you pass a BI, are willing to register it, and pay for the tax stamp.

No. From Evil Dead. Ash is the name of the main character who was played by Bruce Campbell.

Sawn off double barreled should be a pistol, mad max style

I know, I'm a big fan of the films and waiting for the tv series to mature a bit more before I settle into it. The image of Ash Ketchum with double borrel shotguns and a chainsaw was just a bit comical in my head.

Just add a modified flare gun that shoots shells.