Interesting. When I visited a few years ago I was told that you were required to carry a rifle outside of town to protect from the bears and that a handgun wouldn't be sufficient to protect from a mature polar bear. I guess the guide exaggerated.
That isn't necessarily a contradiction.
A handgun may well not have the stopping power. But something like pepper spray (bear mace) might.
There are levels of risk I am not prepared to accept. I'll carry an assault shotgun, an assault rifle, and a dedicated ammunition-hauling dog with me if I go outside a town in Svalbard.
I hope not: although, say, an M16 is a good weapon, you'd do better with something chambered in a full rifle cartridge (e.g. .30-06) against a bear rather than an intermediate cartridge
Alright, fine, then an FGM-148.
If a polar bear is charging me, I want his ancestors to feel what I'm going to do to him.
You can skip the dog. A polar bear can sprint at 40 km/h, so if you're attacked by one, you'll be lucky if you can squeeze off more than one or two shots.
What is an assault shotgun, one painted black and with a bayonet mounted? I think you can have something like this in Fallout.
That's not quite what it says. Firearms are only a recommendation.
> Due to the polar bear threat in Svalbard, anyone travelling outside the settlements must be equipped with appropriate means of frightening and chasing off polar bears.
> The Governor of Svalbard also recommends having firearms with you.