When a cask is worn on a person's back it is rotated 180 degrees so that the handle is at the bottom, within easy reach of the wielder's hand. If the cask is on the ground the crank is positioned near the top. The cask either sits in a fixed position from which the wielder of the dragonsfire rod can move no further than 10 feet, or else the cask is strapped to the wielder’s back using a special rig which is included in the price of the weapon.
#Dmg 5e firearms how to
If firearms are very rare, then firearms are only martial weapons to characters who have had the opportunity to learn how to use them a character can either select individual firearms using the Weapon Master feat, or select the Renaissance (Wo)man feat presented in the sidebar of this article to become proficient with all firearms. If firearms are common in your world, treat them as though they require martial weapon proficiency. Substitute references "smoke powder" for "black powder" in other settings.
One quick note before you dig in: these were written with the Forgotten Realms in mind. Since I was on a roll, I created some fantastic siege weapons for good measure. Not content with relatively minor tweaks to two firearms, I also wrote adjustments to explosives, came up with an expanded list of fantastic firearms with various special properties, and designed a few modifications that might be applied to a characters' ranged weapon. This weapon is intended to represent a prototype making occasional faults a suitable side effect of use, and its advantages remain clear even with a potential downside. Similarly, the musket's 2d6 does a slightly better job of making up for the difference between it and a longbow or crossbow.Īlthough I did say above that I'm not a fan of misfires, I did make an exception for the repeating musket listed below. Thus, a pistol can deal 2d4 damage which is not just a slightly higher maximum and average damage than a 1d6 hand crossbow, but also a slightly higher minimum damage. This ticks both boxes, since very few weapons in the game deal two dice worth of damage instead of one, and those that do are melee weapons. These weapons deal two dice of damage, rather than one. The solution I went for in the end can actually be found in the DMG, under the modern firearms. And two, what makes the weapons special should be a positive, not a negative.
So I'm left with a couple of thoughts to inform my design: one, I want firearms to stand out from other weapons in some way. I'll stick to the weapons that'll let my character shine consistently, thanks!
Sure, misfires might be historically accurate, but are they fun? Do they tempt people to use the weapon? I love firearms in fantasy, but I'd never bother making a gunslinger in a Pathfinder campaign. I don't like these rules for one simple reason: misfires. Meanwhile, the takes on firearms I've seen on DMs Guild all seem to be conversions from Pathfinder, or built along similar lines. The reason: renaissance firearms (those that I'm concerned with) don't feel special enough: a slight damage bump over bows and crossbows is fairly dull, and arguably not enough of a boost to make the cost in reduced range worthwhile. The firearms in the DMG are serviceable but don't quite do it for me. There have been a lot of takes on 5th Edition firearms rules already, from the examples in the Dungeon Master's Guide to various incarnations over on. Lantan, the source of firearms and other more advanced technologies in the Forgotten Realms, is one of my favourite places in that world. Just like marmite, people either seem to love it or hate it. Today I present an expansion to the arsenal of weaponry available to a 5e character, with my take on firearms.įirearms in fantasy are always divisive.