Spivelshot

Spivelshot, or Weavershot, is a specific type of ammunition used in conjunction with many types of blackdust weapons to serve as an early rangefinding apparatus. While some weapons were specialized to fire the ammunition, such as the Naval Bromstilk, a majority of spivelshot rounds were custom-tailored to fit specific models and makes of arquebuses and field-canons.

Spivelshot rounds were tightly-packed iron or lead bullets designed to unveil a stream of brightly-colored aerodynamic weave called "spivel" to help formations of gunmen more accurately adjust for elevation and wind-resistance. Due to the nature, and slightly higher cost, of spivelshot, in most cases a only one to three gunmen would be tasked with loading the round in a formation while other gunmen would observe or follow the elevation adjustments ordered by an observer or officer.

Production

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The process of making spivelshot involves hollowing out a premade iron or lead bullet. From there, the spivel (or spivel substitute) is tied to an internal loop and firmly packaged into the encasing before having water poured into the remaining fill of the shell and being wrapped around in a thin material, usually paper, and then thinly covered in a melted alloy to act as a protective shell which will be destroyed upon firing of the weapon.

Packed spivel itself can be anywhere from 40—600 feet in length for a regular arquebus round of roughly 0.4 claws, and is typically made from a thinly weaved, non-flammable material, usually a mix weave of tinsil and silk. The exact weight of spivel is generally 23mg per claw, or roughly 2.3g for every 100 feet in length. The weight of the spivel is increases and the flammability becomes dampened due to the water soaking into the strands of spivel itself.

Usage

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Through the ages of blackdust weaponry, a variety of cultures and militaries utilized spivelshot on various occassions for many different reasons.

Kryslogin

Spivelshot was extensively used by Western Line sailors to great effect against Dregovan ships. Due to a general poor quality in Kryslogin ship sturdiness and weight-limitations, canons could not be mounted to the sides or decks of ships, instead being replaced by lines of trained sailors who fired arquebuses at enemy vessels. Many of these sailors were issued specialized arquebuses that would fire spivelshot to help formations visualize successive shots.

Malazar

Malazaran field canons often took time to load large packed spivelshot rounds to keep gun emplacements more accurate while being capable of effectively firing from longer distance. The spivelshot used by Malazaran artillery officers and canonniers was commonly referred to as "Weavershot" because of a tendancy for loaders to substitute the spivel with a more common, locally-produced, silk weave which was more abundant and easier to source. While spivel remained in official use by gunmen and future naval emplacements, it was not uncommon for soldiers and sailors to craft their own weavershot with a variety of materials or weaves on hand.

Vermoni

Southern Burrow usage of spivelshot, while minimal, still exceeded neighbors by a wide margin. During initial border confronations with Western Line armies, following the occupation and annexation of most central Vermoni burrows in 1243 A.S., spivelshot was widely introduced into the service of Breekwood gunmen as a step by military leadership to remedy the lack of training and experience most Vermoni soldiers had with arquebuses, with even more experienced and veteran Breekwood soldiers still being more familiar with swords and billiards than blackdust weapons at the time. Breekwood units were outfitted with spivelshot continuously throughout the rest of the 1200's by the army, however most soldiers widely avoided using it altogether due to unreliability, as well as impracticality as soldiers who used the ammunition would become easy targets for returning enemy fire. The proccess of removing the spivel from the round with a knife or sharp object became common among soldiers being issued the ammunition en mass because of this.

Kargann

The Kargann navy, while never officially adopting or distributing any spivelshot for their vessels, often bought and used spivelshot. Captains especially were known to pay large sums of silver in exchange for spivel or silk weave to cram onto canonballs and canonshells. The exact quantity of spivel purchased by Kargann captains and sailors between 1200 A.S. and 1300 A.S. is disputed but believed to be somewhere around 47,000—63,000 lbs.