These are the standard equipment loadouts for personnel on missions or while simply on duty. Commanding officers may give special exceptions for personal weapon / equipment choices, so long as they are comparable to the standard issue. While a standard duty officer does not wear a utility vest (as shown to the right), they do wear a version of the utility belt (also shown to the right).
Standard for All Personnel
Certain specific missions may require deviations from this equipment set, such as a stealth mission or other covert operation. Some instances may also require that an energy weapon cannot be used, and thus the Mark II-PX Railgun can be used instead. The S&W 500 pistol is an often used alternative with a variable ammunition, though this is not a suggested weapon as it has a limited carrying capacity before it requires to be reloaded. This is, of course, not an exhaustive list.
- Sidearm (Standard is a Type II Assault Phaser Pistol)
- Backup Weapon (Standard is a Type I Phaser)
- Standard Issue Survival Knife
- Solas Tempus Communicator
- Tricorder
- Multi-Tool
- Tactical Flashlight
- Extra Power Packs / Ammunition
Effectiveness of Energy vs Projectile
It should be noted that many the utility of the standard energy weapon based Phaser (or other cohesive particle beam weapon) is unparalleled. While personnel are welcome to choose their own sidearms, they are required to maintain at last one particle energy weapon - be it their backup weapon (suggested Type I Phaser) or their primary sidearm (suggested Type II Phaser). This is because the phaser is useful not only as a weapon but as a tool, the nadion particle beam is able to heat objects to provide heat in cold climates, melt obstructions, a wide-beam stun setting can incapacitate small to medium sized crowds without causing physical harm, and is effective against shielded objects. Conventional propellant based weapons such as the explosive propelled projectils common in firearms are not effective in the same way.
A particle beam can also be used as a cutting torch, power cells can be extracted to power most emergency transmitters, and to power door locking / unlocking mechanisms during missions. This is why it is standard equipment. Under General Order 3A Solas Tempus personnel are free to choose their own sidearms and other equipment with comparable capabilities, the popularity of propellant based firearms or the more advanced railgun cousins has been on the rise since. General Order 79 specifies that all personnel must have a particle beam weapon on hand, even if their primary choice is that of a projectile weapon, unless deemed unsafe or impossible by specific mission parameters. Extended preference toward projectile based weapons should also be investigated as a potential opportunity for additional training.
Causes for General Order 79
This is due to an increasing number of incidents where security or other officers chose to carry the less-useful projectile firearms and were unequipped to handle situations as they unfolded. In one particular case, the entire security team of 6 was killed when an unruly mob on Gamma Kappa VII could not be incapacitated in time and beat the security team to death. Another less tragic incident 5 members of an away team were lost due to hypothermia on an arctic world when they were trapped in an ice-cave by a cave in. No member at the time had a particle weapon on hand to heat stone within the cave or melt the ice walls sufficiently to escape. Both would have been possible with a particle energy weapon.
Security / Guard Duty
- Ocular Head Up Display
- Class 1D Body Armor
- Wrist Restraints
Heavy Guard Duty
- Type III Assault Phaser Rifle
- Class 1M Combat Armor
- Wrist Restraints
Light Assault Mission
- Ocular Head Up Display
- Class 1D Body Armor
- Standard Issue Plasma Grenades (Total of 2)
- Thermolyte Explosive Clay (Total of 2, 1 Pound Bricks)
Standard Assault Mission
- Type III Assault Phaser Rifle
- Class 1M Combat Armor
- Standard Issue Plasma Grenades (Total of 4)
- Thermolyte Explosive Clay (Total of 4, 1 Pound Bricks)
Heavy Assault Mission
Heavy assault missions may require more weapons power, thus the standard pistol can be swapped out for a heavier duty weapon.
- DRX-23 Compressed Positron Beam Rifle or Mark IX Railgun
- Type II Assault Phaser Pistol, DPX-09 Compressed Positron Beam Pistol, or Mark II-PX Railgun
- Class 1K Advanced Cybernetic Exoskeleton
- Standard Issue Plasma Grenades (Total of 4)
- High Explosive Ultritium Grenades (Total of 2)
- Thermolyte Explosive Clay (Total of 6, 1 Pound Bricks)