Firearms in the Pokemon world

[FourCartridge]

So, I've recently been wondering about guns and such in the Pokemon universe. It's pretty much a given (because of Pokemon abilities) that they are very rare, if they even exist at all. So, if they exist, who would own them, what with Pokemon being a good alternative? What would be the general opinion of them? Are they as effective against Pokemon as they are against humans? etc.

 

[Killjoy]

There's been a few episodes that have had firearms in them, two that I can remember (both of which were taken off the air..)

In real life though a firearm would be the obvious choice over a Pokémon, as a weapon. Even against a Pokémon, a Pokémon simply couldn't be armored well enough to withstand any kind of highpowed ammunition, while still being light enough to stand under it's own strength.

 

[Elite Overlord LeSabre™]

My Pokemon fan fictions involve heavy use of firearms. They would be effective against most Pokemon that aren't Rock or Steel type, and personally it makes much more sense for the evil teams to use guns instead of Rattatas and Zubats. But, since it seems that every conflict in the world of Pokemon just has to be settled with Pokemon battles, I don't think guns will make more than just a passing appearance in any part of the franchise.

 

[psyanic]

There were a few episodes in the anime where some people whipped out a few guns, especially one of the banned episodes. Though most of these were present only in the first season. I think people who own the Safari Zone and its attendants would need some kind of weapons, I mean rocks won't do too well for you in reality. Throw a rock at a Rhyhorn and watch it charge.

But some Pokemon won't win against bullets. Raichu's can't stop bullets with a constant wave of Thunder attacks or something. Eventually it'll get tired. Though there are a few exceptions, like say Golem or Steelix (the latter getting a few dents maybe...), but in the majority firearms will be effective.

 

[Niprop]

Your average Onix that's "weaker" then a Ponyta would mash a rifleman to a pulp if he tried to battle it one on-one. Rock types, Steel Types, and a select other Pokemon such as ghosts in general would laugh at firearms as their bullets harmlessly glanced off their armor/phased through their body. This likely explains why the Magnemite line is so common among most veteran soldiers such as Lt. Surge and Watson, due to the fact it can take bullets.

Weight also isn't always an issue, as some Pokemon are made out of extremely strong materials for their mass, such as Porygon2, able to withstand explosions and SE attacks from Mewtwo while weighing less then 100 pounds, Metagross, weighing a mere 1018 pounds while effectively having the armor of a main battle tank, and Registeel, which is even lighter for similar durability. Metagross would likely be in a poor position fighting against a Gunship armed with HEAT charges (think Skarmory, but with offensive capabilities), but properly supported, it could easily match the devastation level of an armored fighting vehicle on the battlefield.