M1897 Trench Gun

Lore & Background

The M1897 traces its lineage to the Winchester repeating arms works and the brutal trench fighting of the Great War, where soldiers needed something that could punch through mud, barbed wire, and the flesh of a man crouching in the next foxhole. In the lawless territories of Hunt Showdown, that same design philosophy endures: no clever bolt action, no fiddling, just a hard wooden receiver, a steel barrel, and the satisfying *thunk* of a pump handle driven home by a calloused hand. It is the shotgun of the common man, the trapper, the night-watchman who cannot afford a rifle and will not sleep easy without one.

In Their Own Story

The fog rolled off the bayou in a grey sheet, swallowing the cypress knees one by one. Kira pressed her back against the rotting wall of the abandoned sugar mill, the M1897 cold in her hands, the pump handle still warm from the last shot she had fired into the dark. Five shells. Four left. The sound of boots on wet planks echoed from the far end of the corridor, slow, deliberate, the gait of someone who knew there was nowhere to run. She counted the steps. Four. Five. Six. The doorway would appear in two seconds. She raised the gun, aligned the bead on the space where the silhouette would break the plane of the doorframe, and held her breath. The pump handle waited under her right hand like a second pulse. When the shape stepped through, she did not think. She simply pulled the trigger, felt the stock kick into her shoulder, and drove the pump home with a sound like a bone cracking. Three shells left. The corridor was silent again, and the fog kept rolling in, indifferent to what it had just buried.

Reader's Guide

Core stats: The M1897 Trench Gun is a pump-action shotgun with a 5-round magazine, a slow manual pump between shots, and very short effective range (roughly 10-15 meters before pellet spread renders it ineffective). Each shot delivers a dense, high-damage pellet pattern at point blank, capable of dropping a Hunter in one or two hits if the spread connects. Reload time is moderate; you must cycle the action for each round.

Ideal role: Pure close-quarters and opening. The Trench Gun is a doorway weapon, a room-clearing tool, and a last-resort panic option. It excels in tight interiors, narrow corridors, and ambush positions where the target is already within a few meters. It is the wrong tool for open swamp shots or mid-range duels; if the fight extends past fifteen meters, you are already losing.

Hunters who benefit most: Any Hunter who plays an aggressive, close-range style will get the most value. Hunters with mobility or defensive abilities that let them close distance quickly—such as the Wretch with her claw dash, or a Hunter who can flank through a doorway—can turn the Trench Gun into a one-shot kill tool. It also pairs well with Hunters who have a secondary ranged weapon, using the shotgun for the burst and the rifle for follow-up.

Practical tip: Always pre-aim doorways and window frames. The five-round magazine means you get exactly five chances; waste two on the air and you are reloading with a live target in your face. Pump fast, stay low, and move the instant the last shell is spent.

Did You Know?

• The M1897 Trench Gun is based on the real-world Winchester Model 1897, a pump-action shotgun that saw widespread military use in the trenches of World War I.
• In Hunt Showdown, the Trench Gun is one of the most accessible starting weapons, making it the first shotgun many new Hunters ever fire in a match.
• The pump-action design means there is no automatic cycling; every single shot requires a deliberate hand pump, making burst control and rhythm as important as aim.
• Despite its humble appearance, the Trench Gun's point-blank damage output is among the highest of any shotgun in the game, making it a legitimate one-shot-kill option at very close range.