Ashot

“	This pistol, mass-produced in the Metro, is, despite being quite primitive, a powerful and reliable weapon that shines in close combat.	„
— Last Light in-game description

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The Ashot (Russian: Ашот) is a small, Metro-made shotgun-pistol that is introduced in Metro: Last Light and returns in Metro Exodus.

Overview

The Ashot is one of the simplest weapons found in the Metro series. A simple piece of pipe with a firing pin and a grip, the Ashot is common amongst all the poor areas of the Post-Apocalyptic world--from the bandits and gangsters of the Moscow Metro to the tribals of the Caspian Sea. The weapon fires a single shotgun shell in its most basic format.

Last Light

First introduced in Metro: Last Light, the Ashot is a useful weapon up until the end of the game. It is an adequate weapon for close combat, very slow, without question; but very economic in shots when taking down mutants like the Nosalis in Undercity. It has a higher damage output than the Duplet, Shambler or Saiga, which makes sense that the user only has one round before reloading; but lacks their range, rate of fire, magazine size, and versatility. While this makes the weapon evidently quite lethal at close range, it leaves Artyom very vulnerable - especially when under attack from multiple targets or vectors. It can be used effectively against shrimps, as seen in use by Fedor, but generally, the Ashot is an ineffective weapon in most situations and the player is recommended to swap the Ashot for another weapon whenever possible. At the beginning of the game, however, the Ashot is very common among Nazis in the early stage of the game, so the player may have to rely on it for a while due to the shortage of other types of ammunition.

Physically the Ashot is compact, yet unremarkable. These pistols may have been inspired by flare guns, as adaptors in real life can be purchased that can turn flare guns into shotguns. A notable feature of the pistol's design is the offsetting of the barrel during the reloading of each shot, reminiscent of a revolver's cylinder.

Kshatriya

The Ashot becomes very useful in the Faction Pack DLC mission, Kshatriya. Even as a starting weapon, it can fire the powerful 12x70 Dragonbreath rounds, capable of killing Nosalis in one shot on every difficulty. However, once again, it is outclassed by the Duplet and Shambler loading the same ammunition, as the Ashot is a poor choice during attacks by Nosalis hordes or when facing a Librarian. The same goes for the Tower Pack DLC, where the players may find using the Ashot risky.

Metro: Exodus

The Ashot returns in Exodus as one of two shotguns in the game. First encountered in the Volga level, the Ashot can be customised far beyond its pistol format. The addition of a hunting stock and an over-under double barrel put the Ashot into a situation similar to the Duplet in Metro: 2033 and Metro: Last Light. The Ashot can also be upgraded with four barrels and a heavy stock later in the game, significantly increasing the damage potential of the weapon.

Variants and Customization

Metro Last Light

The Ashot can equip six different attachments in three slots. Its attachments are similar to the ones available for the Shambler, but it can also equip a "Stock + forend" upgrade, which turns it from a pistol into a short rifle.

Available attachments
Slot	Icon	Name	Effect	Description
Optics		Reflex sight	Range +25% Accuracy +25%	This pre-war sight makes aiming the gun at close and medium range easier, without sacrificing much of the field of view.
		IR sight	Range +50% Accuracy +25%	A piece of pre-war military tech, this Night Vision sight allows for precisely hitting targets in the dark.
Barrel		Extended barrel	Range +50% Damage +25%	Makes shotguns more efficient at medium and long range by tightening buckshot spread pattern.
		Shotgun silencer	Range -25% Accuracy +25% Stealth +50%	Hides the muzzle flash and slightly muffles the shots, decreasing shot spread. Shot speed is also decreased, leading to more damage falloff.
Misc		Laser sight	Accuracy +25%	A pre-war laser sight facilitates aiming the weapon at close range, making precise snapshots easy to achieve.
		Stock + forend	Accuracy +50%	The stock and forend installed on the pistol essentially turn it into a short barrel carbine, reducing recoil and increasing accuracy greatly.

Metro Exodus

First two Barrel upgrades are shared with Shambler, some sights and extras (lasers etc.) are also shared with other weapons. Rest of the upgrades are unique to the Ashot.

List of upgrades
Slot	Icon	Name	Effect	Description
Stock		Grip only	None (default)	Basic metal grip without any attachments.
		Grip and handguard	Stability +1	Basic grip and handguard combo that makes the weapon more comfortable to use.
		Hunting stock	Stability +4	Hunting stock decreases recoil with its sheer heft and makes aiming more comfortable.
		Heavy grip	Stability +8	Heavy metal grip with hand guard and additional forward grip for better recoil control.
Barrel		Short barrel	None (default)	Shortest possible piece of pipe that could serve as a shotgun barrel without endangering the shooter. Extremely easy to handle.
		Short barrel and suppressor	Damage -2 Accuracy +1	Barrel with an improvised suppressor mounted to it. Useful for stealth.
		Double barrels	Damage +2 Accuracy +1 Stability -2 2-round magazine	Double barrels allow chambering two rounds, which can be shot in a salvo or separately.
		Four barrels	Damage +4 Stability -3 4-round magazine Fires two shots at once	Significantly increases the shotgun's firepower by firing two barrels of its four at once, which leads to correspondingly increased recoil.
Sights		Iron sights	Aim with iron sights	Standard sight used to assist in aiming.
		Reflex sight	Iron sight replaced with reflex sight	This pre-war sight makes aiming the gun at close and medium range easier, without sacrificing much of the field of view.
		NV scope	Iron sight replaced with night vision scope	This night-vision scope allows for accurate placement of shots even in complete darkness.
		Closed reflex sight	Iron sight replaced with closed reflex sight	Closed collimator sight provides a clearer view of the target.
Gadgets		No gadget	None (default)	Less gadgets, less problems.
		Red laser	Crosshair replaced with red laser dot	Made from a cheap laser pointer that was heavily modified to increase power output at the cost of reliability.
		Green laser	Crosshair replaced with green laser dot	High visibility laser sight reassembled in a custom-made body along with a bunch of modifications.
		Infrared laser	Crosshair replaced with IR laser dot with NV active	The IR laser sight's invisible beam produces a very small dot on the target, which is only detectable with a night vision device.

Related Achievements

Metro Last Light

	Gunslinger	Bronze Trophy - 15
	Kill at least one Enemy with each Weapon available in the game.

Metro Exodus

	Professional	15
	Make at least one kill with every ranged weapon.

Trivia

Ashot variants in Metro: Last Light

• In the previews of Last Light, Khan was seen as owning a special version of the Ashot featuring the pistol grip and forend which is unobtainable in the final game. It was planned alongside with other attachment combinations seen in concept arts.
• With the Ashot, you can aim down the sights while reloading.
• Most Ashots acquired from enemies have stocks, however in Last Light Redux at the Nazi section at the start, a pistol grip version can be found.
• The Ashot is sometimes confused with Revolver due to their similar appearance.
• Ashot, originally an Armenian given name, is a common nickname, that native Russians give to the immigrants from the Caucasus. This indicates that this weapon was possibly constructed by one of the surviving immigrants.
  • The gun's name may also be a play on words, getting its name from the amount of the ammunition it can hold (A-shot). It could also be a reference to a Russian Internet slang expression based on the same name: "Ashot Oneshot", which certainly fits this weapon.
  • Fans of 4A may recall that Ashot is also the name of the Freedom Trader in S.T.A.L.K.E.R: Clear Sky, who sells weapons, suits, and various items to the player (Mercenary Scar). He also engages in bizarre and at times hilarious arguments with the base mechanic Uncle Yar which can be listened to here.
• If left idle, Artyom will study the gun. If it is equipped with a stock and forend he will put his finger in front of the hammer, only to have it close on him and hurt his finger.
• When viewed in slow motion, the idle animation for the Ashot with a forend and stock, and when reloading, the hammer sometimes doesn't move. This could be an oversight or a glitch, though the reload animation is very fast, so many players would not have noticed.
• The Ashot can be seen in the Metro 2033 Redux in Market level on the guard that Bourbon calls Mike, but is unobtainable. Another is also seen in Lost Tunnel, with its grips removed and used as part of a tripwire trap.
• The weapon itself appears to be loosely based on a modified 1883 Reichsrevolver, the similarity best seen in the arrangement of the grip and the two screws holding it, on both the in-game model and in the concept art.

Gallery

The Ashot offered by a weapon vendor

In-game Ashot, as seen from the first person perspective in Metro: Last Light.

As seen in the pre-alpha teaser trailer

As seen in E3 2011 demo

Khan shooting the Ashot in the E3 demo

An Ashot modified with pistol grip, extended barrel, laser designator and an IR scope.

This one is modified with suppressor, red dot sight, stock and forend and a laser designator.

Artyom reloading his shotgun that is equipped with the stock and forend, showing part of the Ashot's "swing out" mechanism.

Concept Art for the Ashot

The Ashot in pistol form

The Ashot in Metro Exodus