Phase - pistol The phase - pistol was a type of phase - modulated energy weapon , a personnel sidearm characterized by a focused energy discharge in the form of a steady stream or a phase pulse . It was introduced in 2151 for use by Starfleet personnel as a replacement to the EM - 33 pistol . MACO utilized a different model of phase - pistol . ( ) Starfleet phase - pistol . The phase - pistol was equipped with two settings : " stun " and " kill " . ( ) The former could also be used to ignite a fire . ( ) The temperature to which the weapon was capable of heating a liquid was at least 398 degrees . ( ) It could be utilized in clearing obstructions of rock and earth , and as a cutting tool , its beam capable of slicing neatly through an enormous root . ( ) By cross - polarizing the power cell s to increase particle yield , the weapon could be modified to be more effective against shields . ( ) A phase - pistol could also be set to overload and function as an explosive device . ( ) Although phase - pistols handled similarly to an EM - 33 , they were different in that they did not require the user to compensate for particle drift , but to instead point straight at the target . ( ) The effects of a phase - pistol hit also differed from those experienced with other weapons of that era . 22nd century Suliban and Coridan weapons inflicted identifiable wounds , tearing through clothing and into the victim ' s flesh . ( ) The phase - pistol , however , was capable of having an effect more comparable to an electric shock , capable of causing severe injury without breaking , burning or otherwise damaging the skin . Along with the beam , a pulse would surge through it , causing more damage . ( ) It was also capable of making the rounds harmless for training purposes , possibly by setting the weapon to stun . ( ) However , it was possible for phase - pistols to inflict wounds . ( ) Crew members from first used phase - pistols in April of 2151 , when Captain Jonathan Archer infiltrated a Suliban helix . Aboard the helix , Archer was able to stun a Suliban soldier before having his own phase - pistol turned against him by Silik . Due to bizarre temporal effects within the helix ' s temporal chamber , however , Archer was able to literally dodge the phase - pistol beam and escaped relatively unharmed , while the beam ' s presence in the chamber caused a large shock wave to surge through it , as Silik had said it to be unwise to use the weapon in that room . ( ) " Enterprise " carried a total of fifteen phase - pistols on the ship during 2151 . ( ) Ensign Masaro committed suicide with a phase - pistol in 2155 . ( ) Starfleet phase - pistols were used as late as 2161 , when an away team from " Enterprise " fought against a group of alien s on the planet Rigel X . ( ) MACO phase - pistol . MACOs used their own model of phase - pistols as their primary sidearm as well . The pistols were similar in appearance to the EM - 33 pistols and were designed to fire blue phase pulse s , essentially bolts of energy , instead of beams like those fired by their Starfleet counterparts . The pistols were also equipped with both " stun " and " kill " settings . In 2154 , Talas was shot with a MACO phase - pistol set to kill . Although she was only grazed , she , being an Andorian , was especially susceptible to phase - pulse infection , and subsequently died of her injuries . ( ) Legacy . Sometime after the formation of the Federation in 2161 , the phase - pistol was replaced with a newer weapon . ( ) Appendices . Background information . Although similar , phase - pistols were not yet technically phaser s . According to Worf in , phaser weaponry was invented in the 23rd century . Phase - pistols were intended as an earlier version of phasers according to the text commentary on . Even though " Enterprise " carried both EM - 33 and phase - pistol weapons when it was launched – with both being used during " Broken Bow " – the EM - 33 pistols were not used by the crew again . The phase - pistols used by the MACOs in seasons three and four were re - used props of the EM - 33 pistols . The MACO weapons were identified as phase - pistols in " United " . Based on , the phase - pistols were not powerful enough to vaporize or disintegrate a person like a phaser could . In , Art Asylum produced a phase - pistol toy available at most toy stores at the time . The mold was so accurate that , although approximately twenty percent smaller than the prop created for the series , the producers of ENT ultimately used the toy versions as on - screen props , for stunts and , in some cases , for full - on " hero " shots . They were repainted because originally – i . e . , when the Art Asylum toys were released – they were not the same colors as the phase - pistol props used already on the set . While original " hero " props were built for US $ 2 , 500 , the toy version was priced at just US $ 20 and came bundled with a communicator . At a convention , actor Scott Bakula had an opportunity to pose with one of the toys and he apparently said that it felt even more realistic than the prop version . Several prop phase - pistols were sold off on the It ' s A Wrap ! sale and auction on eBay . The MACO pistol was called a hand gun and a plasma gun and was , in some cases , still identified as an EM - 33 energy gun in the auction .