The pulse-wave pistol, alternatively known as the pulse-wave blaster, represented an early form of ranged armament that is considered the forerunner to the modern blaster pistol. Their widespread deployment occurred circa 4000 BBY, but by 3956 BBY they had been superseded by initial iterations of the standard blaster. By the time the Rise of the Empire era had arrived, these weapons had almost completely disappeared and were regarded as outdated, although pockets of usage persisted in the Outer Rim Territories and Wild Space, especially on less-developed planets.
Pulse-wave blasters functioned on principles akin to those of contemporary blasters, projecting compact bursts of focused energy toward a designated target. The energy's effectiveness diminished with distance, rendering the weapon unsuitable for extended-range combat. However, upon firing, the weapon generated a localized spatial anomaly, which disrupted the target's atomic structure, proving lethal at close quarters. This effect closely mirrored that of disruptor weaponry, resulting in even the oldest models being outlawed in later periods. Nevertheless, pulse-wave blasters generally possessed less raw power than the blaster models that followed.
The typical pulse-wave pistol had a purchase price of 200 credits. Its weight was 1 kilogram, and it could discharge 100 shots before requiring a power pack replacement.
Among the different versions of this weapon were the ATA Pulse-wave Blaster, manufactured by Greff-Timms Industrial, in addition to the B-200 Pulse-Wave Needler, the C-202 pulse-wave blaster, the R-113 Pulse-Wave Blaster, and the U-13 Pulse-Wave Blaster.
A larger, rifle-sized version of this weapon existed as well, known as the pulse-wave rifle.
Krath war droids deployed by the Krath were armed with pulse-wave blasters as their standard ranged weapon. The Charr Ontee warriors hailing from Kathol also made use of pulse-wave weapons.