Colonel Autumn's Laser Pistol (Fallout 3)

Summary
A weapon found on the Enclave Leader, Colonel Autumn. Bears very similar resemblance to the standard laser pistol. It is probably the single best weapon in the game because it is fully automatic, does 37.5 damage per shot (75 damage per VATS at 2 shots each), has a 30 round magazine, runs on easy to find energy cells, uses very few action points, and is repaired with the common laser pistol.

Weapon Details
Colonel Autumn's Laser pistol is a modified, fully automatic version of the standard pistol. Its rate of fire is comparable to the Gatling laser.

The laser pistol does 75 damage, a drastic increase over the normal Laser Pistol, while using the same Energy Cell ammo as a standard pistol. This version also has a weight of 2, compared to the standard version's 3. This unique pistol is considered a Quest Item; similar to Donovan's Wrench, and cannot be dropped or removed from the players inventory in any way.

The weapon (being a quest item) can only be repaired manually.

While the pistol may appear to deal 75 damage, its actual damage output is set to 10 in the construction set. Any attempt to modify the base damage will result in an equally multiplied output in-game (i.e. setting the damage to 20 in the construction set will make the pistol appear to deal 150 damage in-game). Many players have noted that the weapon does not appear to have an elevated amount of damage, and it is therefore possible that the pistol is even weaker than an ordinary laser pistol.

The damage rating displayed by the Pip-Boy 3000 is based on a weapon's damage per second. While Autumn's laser pistol does the same amount of damage per shot as a standard laser pistol, it's high damage rating derives from its incredibly high full-auto rate of fire, which allows it to fire almost a dozen shots per second.

Getting the Weapon
It is possible to get this pistol and use it in the wastes. You must be a little careful to leave the Take it Back! quest in the correct state, otherwise you will not be able to leave the Rotunda with the weapon.

It is only found on Colonel Autumn in the Jefferson Memorial Rotunda during the final quest. As such, unless you cheat to get it, the only way to get it on the console versions, is to glitch up a rock and get through a tiny opening in the barrier and kill him prematurely (after speaking to Elder Lyons and before launching the assault) and leave, there is no other way to get it. (THIS IS FALSE: THERE IS ANOTHER WAY - SEE BELOW) It is possible to jump between a gap in the laser fence and the high scaffolding like bridge. Sometimes Colonel Autumn will drop his pistol after being killed. You can also shoot his arm, causing him to drop the laser pistol, using V.A.T.S and take it and leave without killing him. The way to get around the force field barrier can be seen in this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ad8HUcxKUSs *Warning, this video contains many spoilers*

TO OBTAIN WEAPON WITHOUT KILLING COL. AUTUMN: Use a stealth boy to enter the Jefferson Memorial. Make sure you have at least 3 on you. Creep all the way into the Rotunda, making sure to stay hidden. Enter the Rotunda. Make sure your stealth boy is still working. Use a weapon, I used Sydney's SMG and in the V.A.T.S. fire the Colonel's laser. It will drop to the ground. Here's the tricky part. Pick up the weapon and find a column close to the Colonel's original position where you can hide. He will fire with an Assault rifle. Make sure you remain in stealth boy mode - refresh if needed. The "danger" will remain, as long as you are not in a shadow, then it will change to "caution" and eventually back to "hidden". Note: in my attempt, my stealth boy ran out while I was in "caution" and then I quickly used a stealth boy and that is when it changed to "hidden". Maybe this is the trick. Once "hidden", keep an eye on the Colonel and make sure he resumes his initial position. After I obtained Colonel Autumn's laser, I saved and reversed pickpocketed to get his coat.

Colonel Autumn is only in the Rotunda after you have started the Take it Back! quest. You must take the option to prepare for battle when speaking to Sarah Lyons, thus leaving her in a waiting state and not causing her to order the launch of Liberty Prime and begin the assault. You can then go to the Jefferson Memorial and find the Colonel (if you go before this, he will not be there). If you go after the assault on the Memorial, the doors lock behind you and you can not leave thus making it so you have to end the game and you do not get to use the pistol elsewhere. If you get it early, then you are able to have his clothing and his pistol for use out in the wastes.

Important note: If you kill Colonel Autumn, when you return with Sarah Lyons, he will still be dead and you will have to start firing on the enclave soldiers in order to start the last part of the game. NOTE: If you pickpocket the ammo after glitching in, leave the room, and go back in he will have un-equiped the pistol, allowing you to pickpocket it.

It may be possible to get this weapon when the new DLC pack Broken Steel comes out, as it expands the story line of the game.