Sawed-Off Shotgun (Fallout)/FalloutNV

Information
The sawed-off shotgun is a break action, 12 gauge shotgun with most of the original barrel and stock removed to make it smaller and more easily concealed at the expense of range. Pulling the trigger fires both barrels at once, unleashing 14 pellets instead of the typical 7. While its damage-per-second is low, it inflicts incredible burst damage at close range. The shotgun's base damage in Fallout: New Vegas is double that of its counterpart in Fallout 3 - in fact, it inflicts more damage per shot than any other non-unique shotgun (Big Boomer inflicts an extra 20 points), and is second only to the anti-materiel rifle as the most powerful non-unique conventional firearm in the game.

However, its incredible damage is offset by the fact that it has an extremely wide spread, the highest in the game. In addition, because it fires both barrels at once it wears out fast, eats up more ammo than other shotguns, and must be reloaded after each shot, leaving the player vulnerable between shootings (even with its fast reload speed). Thus, the shotgun is best utilized as an unconventional melee weapon rather than a gun: used either in cramped quarters such as tunnels and caves, or taken out to finish off a charging enemy before they get too close.

Furthermore, it is also considered an improved holdout weapon, and can be concealed and carried into weapon-free locations, so long as your Sneak skill is 50 or greater.

The sawed-off shotgun can fire a total of about 395 times, or 790 standard rounds, the equivalent of 395 reloads, from full condition before breaking. This amount is exactly the same as its unique variant.

Big Boomer
The Big Boomer is a sawed-off shotgun with the same break action, 12 gauge that fires both shells at a time, delivering 14 pellets at a time instead of the typical 7 of other shotguns.

As compared to the standard sawed-off, the Big Boomer has a much darker color scheme with heavier rusting, and the words "Big Boomer" stenciled onto the grip in faded white paint. It excels over its default counterpart when it comes to sheer damage, delivering 20 more points of total possible damage. In addition, Big Boomer also has a slightly tighter spread, lower AP cost, and fires slightly faster. The only major drawback is that the common sawed-off shotgun is classified as a holdout weapon, whereas the Big Boomer is not.

Big Boomer can fire a total of about 395 times, or 790 standard rounds, the equivalent of 395 reloads, from full condition before breaking. This is exactly the same amount as its common variant.