However, the actual effects of “stopping power,” “knockback” or “takedown power” are largely produced by a combination of other factors – I would certainly agree with you that it is *not* solely the result of “hydrostatic shock” (theoretic and arguable to begin with,)and transfer of kinetic energy upon impact – in and of itself insufficient to actually “bowl someone over” solely by virtue of applied kinetic force pushing against them. The .45 round still achieves penetration in most cases (again depending on various characteristics), *without overpenetration* which results in a variety of physiological results subject to the nature of the wound inflicted as well as further immediate psychological affects resulting from the experience. Various anesthetic effects (alcohol, drugs, extreme adrenalin and other chemicals produced by the body, etc.) can reduce this. In the simplest terms, less pain = less physical shock and trauma and therefore results further in reduced psychological reaction to being shot – possibly even absence or at least delay of the target’s awareness of having been shot. I realize that I am in many ways oversimplifying an extremely complex matter of inter-relating factors, some of which are debatable in terms of theory regarding to the actual “mechanics” involved (not merely ballistic and other kinetic force variables upon impact but variance in tissue damage, blood loss, etc.. . .). The upshot however being that actual field results have clearly shown the .45 and its standard round to have been the best weapon for actually “dropping a target in its tracks” for well over half a century, with only recent developments providing arguably better results.

In terms of the initial gaming description, “blowing him back through the door” is unlikely to reflect in a narrative manner what would happen if the door were closed – he would appear to have been “blown back against the door” before falling. If the door where not fully closed however chances are he would stagger, if not fall, backwards through the door*way.* It would have to be an absurdly flimsy (possibly on old screen) door for the target to actually break through it. In this sense the description in game does not technically describe the effects correctly, but could readily be granted narrative accuracy – this is what appears to be happening (hence the frequent misuse of terms such as “stopping power,” etc. outside of the industry and professionals who rely upon it) and the basic result is as described – the target has moved back through the door as a result of being shot.

FWIW, I am a fan of the .45, and have probably put over 25,000 rounds through my 1911A1. Firearms are my other hobby.

BTW – .45′s DO knock their targets down – that is what they were originally intended to do! Granted, now there are further factors to consider regarding characteristics of specific ammo loads and penetration versus impact. The the old army service .45 was developed and issued to officers specifically to protect them from charging enemies – specifically in the Philippines. Filipino fighters would wrap themselves in layers of heavy hemp rope coiled tightly around their chests. This was a rather effective form of body armor which light rounds had difficulty penetrating, doing far less damage to the target when they did. As a result, officers being charged by someone so protected were often killed after shooting the approaching attacker repeatedly without stopping him. The army replaced the lighter sidearm (I think it was around a .32) with the .45 specifically for it’s knock-down power – the round still might not penetrate the layers of rope significantly but it *would* stop/drop the charging enemy preventing him from reaching and harming the officer. While a modern round might often go through the target it will have significant knock-back effect in doing so and someone in kevlar or similar body armor that will stop the round will suffer knock-down as described above.

My problem is, I’m more of a swashbuckler than my players, and it’s no fun to have the NPCs pulling crazy stunts if the PCs aren’t. I think they would if they could, but most of them just don’t have an eye for the possibilities like I do. Now how do you solve that problem?

*Assuming the sails are down for some reason, and I’m up in the crow’s nest or the rigging