Fixing the Weapons Table, Part 6: Medieval Gunpowder Weapons

Depictions of gunpowder weapons in fantasy RPGs are plagued by a number of issues, not the least of which is a general overestimation of their power and efficacy.  This is because people think, "Guns and gunners replaced swords and knights, therefore guns must be more powerful."  This is a reasonable line of thinking, but it is not correct.  The reasons why guns became the dominant weapon on the battlefield are many - too many to go into here, in fact - but for our purposes, it is important simply to recognize that guns did not become dominant because they did more damage than the other weapons of the period.  Even today, in this wonderful technological world we live in, I would rather be shot in the chest than be struck with a battle axe.

Knights actually co-existed with guns for centuries, and for the most part they could get by with only a few dents in their armour to show for it.  Even in the 17th century, many soldiers wore steel armour which protected them from bullets.

Royal Armouries - Leeds

Although later guns were getting better at penetrating armour, the decline of armour in warfare had less to do with the power of guns and more to do with the weight and expense of the armour itself.  It is only in recent decades that sending soldiers into battle in suits of armour has come back into fashion.

That said, you may be starting to guess that I have some issues with the way Pathfinder deals with gunpowder weapons.

Actually, not as many as you might think from the above paragraphs.  For the most part, the damage these weapons deal seems reasonable on the whole, with a few exceptions.  A lot of the weapons have x4 crits, which seems fine for modelling gunpowder weapons - if they hit you right, they can hit you hard.  Sure there are a lot of things I could nitpick (in what world does a musket do more damage than a rifle?), but I'd rather just scrap the whole thing and start over.  So let's kick off Part 6 of Fixing the Weapons Table.


The main issue I have with the Pathfinder firearms is their categorization.  In the category of early firearms, you find medieval weapons like fire lances and culverins coexisting with weapons of the Revolutionary and Napoleonic eras, several hundred years beyond the technological level of a medieval fantasy world.

Presented below is my own selection of early gunpowder weapons, restricted solely to those which were available in the historical time-span of the Middle Ages.  It is highly likely that sometime in the nebulous future I will release another selection of 'advanced' gunpowder weapons based on what was available in the 16th and 17th centuries for folks who want a high-gunpowder-tech-level fantasy setting (like that of the Empire in Warhammer).  And, of course, my Guns of the Western Kings campaign setting has its own table of firearms appropriate to the period, which I am keeping a proprietary secret until it is ready for release.

But first, a minor overhaul of the firearms rules:

The following weapons and homebrew rules given in gold text are available as Open Game Content under the OGL.  Open Game Content is (C)2014 Jonah Bomgaars.

Rules Changes for Early Gunpowder Weapons
Firearm Proficiency: Each separate gunpowder weapon requires a separate Gunpowder Weapon Proficiency feat (for example: Gunpowder Weapon Proficiency (hand cannon)).  Non-proficient characters still take the standard -4 non-proficiency penalty, and they also increase the chance of misfire to 10%.  Special gunpowder ammunition like fire arrows and fire bolts require both a Gunpowder Weapon Proficiency feat and proficiency with the base weapon used to fire them.  
    Gunpowder weapons fall into the following weapon groups for the purposes of the fighter's weapon training class feature: Bows (fire arrows), Crossbows (fire bolts), Hand Cannons (fire lance, hand cannon, three-barrelled hand cannon), and Muskets (arquebus, rocket gun).  

Range and Penetration: Pathfinder's rules for penetration - that early firearms attack touch AC within the first range increment - are fine enough, I guess.  But for simplicity's sake, my rule is that gunpowder weapons attack regular AC like any other weapon unless stated otherwise in the weapon's description.  That also gets rid of the problematic implication that guns are just as effective as magic rays against a stout wooden shield, a suit of +5 full plate, or even a red dragon's thick hide.

Loading a Firearm: Keep the Pathfinder rules as written.

Misfires: On a roll of a natural 1 (or 1-2 if the user is non-proficient), the gun misfires, gaining the broken condition.  Additional rolls to confirm a critical fumble occur as usual, and any effects of the critical fumble occur on top of the misfire.  While the weapon has the broken condition, its chance of misfire doubles.  A second misfire before the weapon has been repaired means the weapon explodes.  When the weapon explodes, the wielder takes damage as if he had been hit by the weapon; the damage type is 'bludgeoning and piercing and fire'.  All adjacent creatures take half damage (DC 12 Reflex Save negates).  A critical fumble result (as from a fumble table or the Critical Fumble Deck) that gives the broken condition to the weapon stacks with the broken condition caused by the misfire, causing the gun to explode.  

Ammunition: Most gunpowder weapons require both black powder and shot.  The number of charges of black powder required, and the type of shot required, vary from weapon to weapon.  

Deflecting and Snatching Bullets: The Deflect Arrows feat and the Snatch Arrows feat cannot be used to deflect or snatch bullets.  (However, the upcoming Acrobat class, as those who have access to my playtest document already know, can gain the ability to catch bullets).

Early Gunpowder Weapons

Presented below in chronological, rather than alphabetical, order:

Fire Arrow
[Note: This weapon has been updated here]

Kai Hendry via Wikimedia

Not to be confused with flaming arrows, which are just arrows that are on fire, fire arrows are the oldest known gunpowder weapon, first used over 1000 years ago in China.  Combining the principles of fireworks and arrows, these rocket-propelled, explosive arrows were weapons of terror, often employed against invading barbarian hordes.  

The fire arrow is a normal arrow to which is affixed an explosive rocket, with a short fuse wound around the arrow shaft.  The rocket increases the flight range of the arrow, despite the added weight, and explodes upon - or shortly after - striking the target.  Lighting and firing a fire arrow is a full-round action.  

   The fire arrow deals fire damage like a splash weapon to all within the target square, and one point of fire damage to every creature within a 5-foot radius.  In addition, any creature struck directly with the fire arrow takes normal arrow damage, including any bonuses granted by enhancements to the bow or its wielder.  Fire arrows can be fired from shortbows or longbows, dealing normal arrow damage appropriate to the bow, and add 40 ft. to the range increment.  

Fire Arrows (5) - Ammunition Early Gunpowder Weapon
   Cost: 150 gp
   Dmg (S): 1d4 (splash)
   Dmg (M): 1d6 (splash)
   Range: +40 ft.
   Weight: 1 lb.
   Type: Fire
   Special: See Text

Fire Lance

via Wikipedia

The fire lance is often considered the earliest gun, although it was really more of a flamethrower/projectile thrower combination.  The earliest ones were made of bamboo and attached to spears.  They shot gouts of flame and pellets or darts, and there were numerous varieties.  They were also cheap, one-use weapons.  Later fire lances were made of metal and used higher grade gunpowder, becoming closer in style to hand cannons.  I chose to represent the earlier fire lances, spraying a gout of flame and a dart and only usable once.  

This primitive gunpowder weapon consists of a tube of gunpowder affixed to the end of a pole.  The tubes can also be attached to any spear or polearm so that the wielder can continue to fight after discharging the weapon, although if the fire lance explodes on a misfire, it deals damage to the weapon as well.  Any weapon with a fire lance attached to it suffers a -2 penalty to attack rolls until the fire lance has been discharged.  The fire lance is loaded with a small dart which is propelled by a gout of flame when the weapon is fired.  Creatures hit by the fire lance within the first range increment take half-again as much fire damage on a successful hit.  The fire lance is a one-use weapon that cannot be reused.  Because of its cheap construction and simple operation, it is favoured as a guard weapon.  
   The staff to which the tube is attached requires one hand to wield and aim, while the fuse must be lit with the off-hand.  The fuse is usually cut short so that the weapon fires almost instantly, allowing the infantryman to aim and fire rapidly.  However, cavalrymen often prefer a longer fuse, so they can light it and then charge, aiming it as they would a normal lance.  It is a free action to light the fuse at any length, though proficiency with the fire lance is required when selecting the match length, or the weapon may go off several rounds too early or too late (as per GM's discretion).  When a longer match is lit, the player must specify how many rounds there will be before it is to go off.  

Fire Lance - Two-Handed Early Gunpowder Weapon
   Cost: 10 gp
   Dmg (S): 1d4
   Dmg (M): 1d6
   Critical: x2
   Range: 10 ft.
   Weight: 4 lb.
   Type: P
   Special: See Text

Hand Cannon

Late 14th century hand cannon                                           PHGCOM via Wikimedia

Hand cannons were basically, as the name implies, tiny cannons that could be fired by one or two people.  They varied drastically in size and quality, but they were the first true firearms.  By the 14th century they were in use across China, India, the Middle East, and Europe.  

This primitive gun consists of a short (6"-12"), thick metal barrel attached to a long wooden or metal stock.  It fires a heavy stone or iron ball approximately one to one-and-a-half inches in diameter.  The powder is ignited by touching a fire source (a slow-burning fuse called a 'match' or 'punk') to a small opening in the rear of the barrel.  The hand cannon requires two hands to aim properly, or one hand and something sturdy to prop it against.  As such, it is often held and aimed by one person and fired by a second person holding the match.  It can be fired one handed, with the stock steadied under the armpit, at a -2 penalty to hit.  Reloading a hand cannon requires two hands and three full-round actions, though the Rapid Reload feat reduces this to two full-round actions.  A hand cannon takes two charges of gunpowder.  
   A hand cannon can be loaded with a handful of rocks instead of a hand cannon shot, decreasing the damage dealt by one step and the range increment to 10 ft.  

A two-man firing team     deadliestwarriorwiki

Solo operation                   Viollet-le-Duc

Hand Cannon - Two-Handed Early Gunpowder Weapon

   Cost: 500 gp
   Charges: 2
   Weight: 10 lb.
   Special: See Text

Hand Cannon Shot (5) - Ammunition
   Cost: 5 gp
   Dmg (S): 1d10
   Dmg (M): 2d6
   Critical: x3
   Range: 20 ft.
   Weight: 5 lb.
   Type: B and P

Three-Barrelled Hand Cannon

Royal Armouries - Leeds

This heavy gun has three hand cannon barrels arrayed around the end of a long metal stock.  Each barrel can be loaded and fired independently, allowing the wielder to potentially get off three shots before having to reload.  While making a full-attack action, you may fire a three-barrelled hand cannon as many times in the round as you have attacks, up to the number of barrels that are loaded.  Like a regular hand cannon, the three-barrelled hand cannon is very heavy and requires two hands to aim properly, or one hand and something sturdy to prop it against.  As such, it is often held and aimed by one person and fired by a second person holding the match (when firing multiple barrels as part of a full-attack action, the rate of fire is based on the character with the lowest Base Attack Bonus).  It can be fired one handed, with the stock steadied under the armpit, but at a -4 penalty to hit thanks to its great weight.  Reloading each barrel requires two hands and three full-round actions, though the Rapid Reload feat reduces this to two full-round actions per barrel.  Two people can load the weapon at a time if they are each loading a different barrel.  Each barrel takes two charges of gunpowder.  
   On a misfire, only the barrel being fired is broken.  If a barrel explodes, it deals damage to the other two barrels.  Each barrel has a hardness of 10 and 30 hp.  

Hand Cannon, Three-Barrelled - Two-Handed Early Gunpowder Weapon
   Cost: 1,250 gp
   Charges: 2 per barrel
   Weight: 20 lb.
   Special: See Text

Hand Cannon Shot (5) - Ammunition
   Cost: 5 gp
   Dmg (S): 1d10
   Dmg (M): 2d6
   Critical: x3
   Range: 20 ft.
   Weight: 5 lb.
   Type: B and P

Fire Bolts
[Note: This weapon has been updated here]

Feuerwerkbuch - Royal Armouries - Leeds

Why fire regular old bolts out of your crossbow when you can fire exploding bolts?

The fire bolt is a special crossbow bolt packed with gunpowder.  A short fuse, lit before firing, causes the bolt to explode upon impact or shortly thereafter.  Lighting a fire bolt is a move action, independent of the time required to load the crossbow.  

   The fire bolt deals fire damage like a splash weapon to all within the target square, and one point of fire damage to every creature within a 5-foot radius.  In addition, any creature struck directly with the fire bolt takes normal bolt damage, including any bonuses granted by enhancements to the crossbow or its wielder.  Fire bolts can be fired from light or heavy crossbows, but not hand or repeating crossbows.  They deal normal bolt damage appropriate to the crossbow.  Their weight subtracts 20 ft. from the range increment.  

Fire Bolts (5) - Ammunition Early Gunpowder Weapon
   Cost: 200 gp
   Dmg (S): 2d4 (splash)
   Dmg (M): 2d6 (splash)
   Range: -20 ft.
   Weight: 2 lb.
   Type: Fire
   Special: See Text

Arquebus

Viollet-le-Duc

Arquebuses (also called Harquebuses or Hackbuts) developed in Europe out of earlier hand cannons during the 15th century.  They featured longer barrels and a more ergonomic grip.  The major innovation which made them outstanding (not seen in the early arquebus illustrated at left) was the matchlock (or serpentine) mechanism, a simple device that held the slow-burning match in place and touched it to the firing pan when a trigger was pulled (usually the crossbow-style lever trigger, not the finger trigger we are used to on modern firearms).  

This gun is the most technologically advanced of the early gunpowder weapons.  It consists of a long metal barrel set in a heavy wooden stock.  The gun is fired by a matchlock - a slow-burning fuse held by a serpentine  mechanism which rotates to touch the firing pan when the trigger is pulled.  The arquebus fires smaller shot than the hand cannon, but it fires it at a greater velocity, increasing its range and penetrative power, and it is faster to reload and easier to aim.  The arquebus can be loaded with small shot instead of its regular shot.  Small shot consists of a handful of small lead balls that spread out when fired, increasing the chances of hitting a vital spot, though decreasing the overall power of the shot and its effective range.  Reloading the arquebus requires two hands and two full-round actions, though the Rapid Reload feat reduces this to one full-round action.  

   The arquebus is heavy, and requires a support stick to steady it while aiming, which takes a move action to set up, and must be repositioned every time the arquebusier moves to a different firing position.  The arquebus can be fired without the support stick at a -2 penalty to hit.  Those with a Strength score of 16 or greater can aim and fire the arquebus without the support stick at no penalty.  

Arquebus - Two-Handed Early Gunpowder Weapon
   Cost: 3,000 gp
   Charges: 1
   Weight: 8 lb.

Lead Shot (10) - Ammunition
   Cost: 1 gp
   Dmg (S): 1d8
   Dmg (M): 1d10
   Critical: x4
   Range: 60 ft.
   Weight: 1 lb.
   Type: P
Small Shot (10) - Ammunition
   Cost: 2 gp
   Dmg (S): 1d6
   Dmg (M): 1d8
   Critical: 18-20/x2
   Range: 10 ft.
   Weight: 1 lb.
   Type: B and P

Rocket Gun

Edo-period woodblock via Wikimedia

After the Japanese acquired Western-style arquebuses from Portuguese traders in the mid 1500s, they modified them to work with fire-arrow-type ammunition.  The result was the hiya-zutsu fire arrow gun.  Technically, as this weapon comes from 16th century Japan, it falls outside my self-imposed window of Medieval gunpowder weapons only.  But the 16th century is widely considered part of the Medieval era of Japan, so I stand by my decision.  

This variant of the arquebus is used to fire explosive rockets similar to fire arrows.  The gun rocket is affixed to the end of a long pole; the pole is loaded into the barrel of the gun, while the rocket sticks out the front.  The firing of the gun propels the rocket out of the muzzle and ignites a short fuse, causing the rocket to fly toward the target and explode.  The rocket deals fire damage like a splash weapon to all within the target square, and one point of fire damage to every creature within a 5-foot radius.  

Rocket Gun - Two-Handed Early Gunpowder Weapon
   Cost: 2,000 gp
   Charges: 1
   Weight: 8 lb.

Gun Rocket (1) - Ammunition
   Cost: 40 gp
   Dmg (S): 2d4
   Dmg (M): 2d6
   Range: 80 ft.
   Weight: 2 lb.
   Type: Fire (splash)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Those are all the hand-held medieval gunpowder weapons that I know of.  Hopefully this will allow GMs to include gunpowder in their campaign settings without having to shoe in all the way-post-medieval stuff that Paizo for some reasons thinks fits in fine with the rest of Pathfinder.  It's also quite useful for Eastern-themed campaign settings, as a lot of these weapons were developed in China.  My India-inspired Chattara campaign setting, for instance, has fairly widespread use of early gunpowder weapons.

Someday soon I will probably write a post about various ways of incorporating gunpowder into your campaign setting, including some new feats and other gameplay goodies to help integrate gunpowder weapons into the world.

-your pyrotechnic d20 despot