The .22 pistol is a recoil operated, locked breech, semi-automatic pistol, with an integrated silencer. Accordingly, it is classified as a silent weapon, and will allow you to attack a target while sneaking without alerting other nearby non-player characters or creatures of your presence. The weapon's usefulness for stealth players is further complimented by its relatively high critical damage of 18, double the weapon's base damage. With the Better Criticals perk, a sneak attack critical from the silenced .22 pistol can cause (9+18*1.5)*2=72 points of damage. The .22 is also the only holdout Gun available in New Vegas itself, making it desirable for activities within the New Vegas Strip.
Outside of stealth situations, the silenced .22 pistol is lacking, primarily because of its low base damage of 9, making it the second weakest Guns weapon behind the BB gun. This low damage is somewhat offset by the weapon's 3x critical chance multiplier. A silenced .22 pistol can fire 495 standard rounds from full condition before breaking, and is notable for being the only silenced weapon usable for Gun Runners' Arsenal'sDeathclaw Pro Hunter challenge.
Locations[]
Camp McCarran - located on a table inside one of the tents on the west side of the camp.
Camp McCarran - located in a locker in the prisoner building where Silus is held prisoner.
Honest HeartsGeneral Store - can be found on a display counter.
Goodsprings - can be purchased from Chet or stolen from counter in his store.