Gunpowder

Gunpowder and firearms typically appear in fantasy settings that gravitate toward late-medieval, renaissance, or swashbuckling themes, though they can appear in any setting where alchemists or tinkerers have access to sulfur, charcoal, and saltpeter. Presented here are rules for incorporating gunpowder and firearms into your games.

The first gunpowder weapons included the pistol, musket, and blunderbuss, among others. These early firearms were matchlock, muzzle-loaded weapons. A curved lever held a burning slow match or length of cording. When the trigger was pulled, the lever dropped into the firing chamber, igniting the gunpowder and propelling the ball down the barrel of the firearm.

The firearms in this book use the loading and gunpowder properties. You can find the statistics for the firearms and the details for the gunpowder property in the Weapons section of this chapter.

Loading a Firearm.
Early firearms use a paper “cartridge,” a paper cylinder packed with an iron or lead ball, gunpowder, and a primer. To load a firearm, the wielder opens the paper cartridge, pours the gunpowder into the end of the barrel, followed by the ball and the paper. A rod is used to ram the ball and paper down the barrel. Hit or miss, ammunition from a firearm is destroyed once expended.

Obvious Weapons.
More than almost any other weapon, firearms draw attention when they are used, and they are loud. When a character makes a ranged attack with a firearm, the firearm releases a thunderous boom audible out to the weapon’s maximum range. In addition, firearms release a small puff of smoke when fired. Characters hoping to move or fight undetected would be wise to use other weapons. For game masters, be aware of the sight, sound, and smell of firearms and the possibility of such effects alerting other nearby creatures, but also be aware these effects are just as likely to startle or scare away creatures as it is to draw them.

Proficiency.
A “firearm” is any ranged weapon with the gunpowder weapon property. Firearms are designated as simple or martial ranged weapons similar to crossbows and other ranged weapons. A character with simple or martial weapon proficiency also has proficiency with simple or martial firearms, respectively. However, it is up to the GM if gunpowder and firearms are available in the campaign or in a region to which the character has access. If gunpowder and firearms aren’t available in the campaign, a character can’t use firearms, regardless of the character’s weapon proficiencies.

Optional Gunpowder Rules

Throughout history, gunpowder and firearms saw varying levels of distribution and reliability. If your game takes a more historical approach to gunpowder and firearms, here are some optional rules to represent such history. Misfire. Historically, early gunpowder weapons were very lethal but inaccurate and prone to malfunction. Misfires bring this element of unpredictability into the game. If using this optional rule, all weapons with the gunpowder property have the following additional rule: • When you roll a 1 on the d20 for an attack roll with a weapon with the gunpowder property, the weapon misfires. The attack misses, and you can’t use the weapon again until you spend an action to repair it. Repairing a firearm requires a successful DC 10 Intelligence check using gunsmith’s tools or tinker’s tools. If the check fails, the weapon is jammed and can’t be used again until the jam is cleared. Clearing a jammed weapon takes 10 minutes of work using gunsmith’s tools or tinker’s tools. Special Training. In campaigns where firearms exist but aren’t widespread, a character might need a mentor to teach them the proper use, care, and maintenance of firearms. At the GM’s discretion, a character can spend downtime training to gain proficiency with simple firearms. With additional training, the character can gain proficiency with martial firearms. Alternatively, training might result in the character becoming proficient with one or more specific firearms.

Wet Ammunition. In the real world, black powder is ruined once it comes into contact with water. In campaigns where scrolls aren’t ruined in the rain or are assumed to be safe in scroll cases or pockets, you can safely assume the same for gunpowder and its paper cartridges. However, if you want to include this limitation in your game, a character with a firearm would need to keep paper cartridges in a waterproof container or risk losing the ammunition each time the character is in the rain or goes for a swim.