| Anti-Replicator gun | |
|---|---|
| |
| Production information | |
| Manufacturer | |
| Designer | |
| Model |
Personal weapon |
| Type | |
| Technical specifications | |
| Discharge |
Disruption wave |
| Usage | |
| Affiliation | |
- "They're energy weapons. They disrupt the link between the nanites’ cells. The Replicators literally fall apart when you fire on them."
- — Rodney McKay
An Anti-Replicator gun (or ARG, for short) is a weapon designed to destroy the Asurans, a form of Replicators found in the Pegasus galaxy. It was designed by Colonel Samantha Carter, based on the disruptor technology designed by Colonel Jack O'Neill using an Ancient Repository of knowledge and put into mass production by the Asgard.
History[]
Sheppard's team, Elizabeth Weir and Dr. Carson Beckett took several of these from Stargate Command and used them to infiltrate Starbase Atlantis after the Asurans had taken it over. They removed the control crystals from them and interfaced them with the shield emitters so that when the Asurans activated the shield it created a wave that destroyed all of the Asurans on the starbase. An ARG was used against a Replicator created by the Asgard computer core but it had been programmed to resist the weapons effect.
Rodney McKay used ARG control crystals to convert a Puddle Jumper's cloaking field into an Anti-Replicator field in order to provide protection for John Sheppard and Ronon Dex; eventually they began to attack the field and learned how to resist its effects. When Major Evan Lorne was being affected by an energy being, he believed that Sheppard was a Replicator and demanded that an ARG be brought down to shoot him. When McKay and a Wraith were working on a way to disable the Asurans, McKay suggested trying to use ARG technology. Dr. Richard Poole created a Human-form Replicator that was resistant to ARG technology.
Overview[]
- "They emit a directional energy beam that disrupts the connection between nanites."
- — Rodney McKay
The ARGs, like the original Replicator disruptor, emit a directional energy pulse designed to disrupt the subspace link that allows Replicator cells to communicate, reducing the target to a harmless pile of individual cells. Unlike the original, the ARG has been scaled down into a much more compact design. It is built much like a small rifle, with the emitter placed at the end of the barrel. The emitter is also much smaller, being only slightly larger than an actual gun barrel would be. The weapon has a retractable stock, allowing it to be wielded either as a bulky pistol or with more precision as a rifle. Each ARG includes a control crystal that can be directly interfaced with Ancient systems, and can be used to apply the same disruptive properties to Ancient shield technology. (SGA: "The Return, Part 1", "The Return, Part 2")
Functionally, the ARG does not appear to have been altered much if at all from the original design. Though the Asurans differ in their construction, they still use a subspace link to communicate, which is what the device disrupts. The device is effective on both the original Replicators and the Asurans; though the one Milky Way Replicator it was tested on was immune, this is because it had been intentionally designed with an immunity to the weapon. Like the Milky Way Replicators, the Asurans were eventually able to develop an immunity to the weapon, and were able to do so much quicker than the Milky Way Replicators. (SGA: "Lifeline", SG1: "The Ark of Truth")
A much larger satellite version of the ARG was also being developed, based on a Replicator disruptor satellite designed by the Asgard. It would have been capable of destroying Replicators on a planetary scale, vastly reducing the chances of a Replicator being able to adapt to the weapon. With their subsequent adaptation to the disruptor technology, followed by their destruction through alternate means, the likely development of the satellite became a low priority. (SGA: "First Strike")
Ships that have ARGs in armories[]
Gallery[]
