Gunpowder in Getninia
Originally developed by the peoples of Cyrenica, the discovery of gunpowder has been one of the most consequential developments of technology in the past few centuries in the known world. Gunpowder and devices that use gunpowder have spread far and wide from its origin point, and gunpowder technology, including advanced firearms are relatively widespread, at least in advanced societies, and especially for those bordering the Taelastrian Sea. The technology has, in particular revolutionized naval warfare, and changed the paradigms of shipbuilding. Other areas where gunpowder technology has had an impact include terrestrial warfare, and, especially in the southern dwarven holds, as an industrial, and mining resource.
Flame Projectors: The earliest use of the flame projectors was as tools against underdark creatures. These flame projectors were frightening to light sensitive creatures, and were effective, for a short while at burning hostiles. These designs however, proved virtually impossible to reuse and relied on earlier forms of the powder, and thus were mostly abandoned. The odd projector can still be found on some static defensive works, especially in small border garrisons of the dwarven holds.
Bombards: As gunpowder technology developed, bombards become on the earliest uses of gunpowder as artillery. These relative simple tubes were filled with powder and set off by a fuse. They were generally slow to load, and used complex projectiles, at least in earlier iterations. The ball ammunition shape, and improved casting of barrels improved the quality of bombards over the years and made them more effective, if still generally behind cannon and culverin. Their slower loading times however, were on account of tighter barrels that did technically make many bombards more accurate. In the modern world, Bombards are relatively rare among the advanced nations but still see use on the fringes of the advanced world.
Cannon: The gold standard of most modern gunpowder artillery, cannon are heavy guns that use a fuse and flashpan to ignite the powder and cast their generally ball shaped projectiles over great distances. Other ammunition types were developed, including grape shot which turns the gun into a scatter weapon for devastating infantry, and hotshot, which are either enchanted or covered in a flammable substance, which are used against other artillery generally.
Culverins: A parallels development to cannon, Culverins were first developed by Aeillans as a lighter form of cannon and bombards with the specific purposes of mounting on naval vessels. These weapons are similar to cannons in operation, but smaller in scale. Chain shot, something designed to destroy the masts of naval vessels, was developed primarily for culverins.
Mortar: A limited use of modern gunpowder artillery, mortars were developed first and foremost as siege weapons, with their high angle barrels used to launch projective over the walls of fortifications. They are otherwise similar to most other modern gunpowder artillery pieces.
Hand Culverins or Hand Cannon: Initially just a miniaturized outgrowth of the larger artillery pieces, hand cannon are fired from under the arm, and generally use the fuse and pan method of larger artillery pieces, and always requiring some bracing method. Hand Cannon are generally considered outdated as their slow reloading and awkward handling make them poor personal weapons, however, newer hand culverins and cannon have been constructed as highly specialized light portable artillery, with these primarily been seen onboard ships as dedicated anti-personnel weapons.
Harquebuses or Arquebuses: The first "modern" firearms, the Harquebus or Arquebus is a shoulder fired weapon that uses fuse and pan firing, or in more modern cases, matchlocks in a more compact package than artillery. Arquebuses usually require a stand to brace the weapon while firing, but some, especially those built for use by adventurers are light enough to be used without stands. This weapon has become widespread among most gunpowder using realms, with many of those land's armies having fully integrated these weapons into their tactical thinking.
Muskets: Making use of the most advanced gunsmithing techniques available, muskets are lighter, more powerful developments upon the Arquebus. They almost always use advanced matchlock firing methods, or the new (and often jealously guarded) flintlock, being fired over the shoulder, and generally being well balanced enough to not need a stand when used. These weapons are exceptionally rare outside the lands of Cyrenica, Aeilla, Aeillan company ports in Leandris, and in very recent times, among the Dotharans.
Pistols: Compact versions of their larger cousins, the musket, Pistols generally make use of flintlock technology (or advanced matchlocks otherwise), and can be wielded with one hand. These weapons are less potent, but can be easily carried and concealed making them invaluable for rakish types and nobles more concerned with appearances than power. Pistols, due to their natures are more widespread than muskets, but much more rarely utilized being seen as vanity projects for nobles, professional military officers and other assorted elite types, or as specialized tools for professional adventurers.
Blunderbusses: Initially a manufacturing accident, blunderbusses grew to become prominent weapons in naval warfare. Their wide, and bell shaped barrels can readily be loaded with multiple pieces of ammunition at once and are relatively tolerant of different ammunition. They have become "scatterguns" capable of spreading deadly projectiles over a wide area, making them extremely useful in clearing the decks of ships of hostiles.
Fireworks: Initially developed in Guandao these devices make bright, and usually colorful explosions in the sky. They can be made a number of ways and with a number of additives to alter the size, shape, and colors of the explosions.
Development of Gunpowder Technology
Initially developed by alchemist, Lucius Tullius Dorsuo, who was at the time looking for a way to provide light for streetlights in major dwarven settlements that didn't rely on the abilities of spellcasters to power, the powder was an experimental failure. However, as it did provide bright lights and loud noises, and when made to a lower quality useful as a flamethrowing implement. As a result the Dorsuo family began to sell "flash powder" in large quantities to miners as its properties made it highly effective in scaring away and dispatching the various underdark creatures that would disrupt mining operations. Refinements to the alchemical process however steadily saw less and less low grade powder and its utility in flame throwing implements slowly fell out use over the course of the first decades after its discovery. After the death of Tullius Dorsuo, the secret of "flash powder" was made public under Cyrenic law, and further developmental work was undertaken by several different alchemists. The most successful of these was Julia Alba Neta, who refined the process, removed most of the impurities in the experimental mixture originally made by Dursuo, and eventually simplified the process. This new powder's explosive properties were dramatically improved, and dwarven miners increasingly used it to obliterate rock in the more stable mining tunnels. Cyrenic military engineers also increasingly adopted its use, eventually discovering how to container the flash powder blast and use it to launch projectiles. Crude artillery was made first, though lighter handheld weapons were soon also developed. These devastating new weapons proved incredibly potent against the Aarumites moving into the Nabari Plateau, and although these first simple weapons weren't enough to stem the tide of the Aarumite migration they dramatically strengthened the badly weakened Cyrenic legions in their defense of the territory. The Cyrenic Royal Army made significant strides in these years, and began manufacturing the powder themselves in massive quantities. Cyrenic gunpowder would become invaluable in the stabilization of the post-Aarumite border, even as firearms technology improved rapidly. Though Cyrenica would initially hold a monopoly on the technology of gunpowder, spies from Volgeberg and Gorachenya would eventually obtain the secret of the powder, and of the weapons utilizing it, and shared those secrets with their homelands. From there, gunpowder was sold overseas, with Aeilla being a prominent non-dwarven early adopter of the technology and immediately putting it to use on board ships. In the past century, the proliferation of this technology has hastened its advancement with primitive bombards being replaced in advanced states by culverins and cannon, and the archaic hand cannon being improved upon or outright replaced by harquebuses and muskets, even seeing small concealable weapons and portable scatterguns in use. Outside of its use in warfare better and better explosive charges have been developed for mining and industrial applications, and far from its point of origin, gunpowder has been used to create impressive displays of light and color in the skies over Guandao.Types of Gunpowder Device
Artillery
The first uses of gunpowder were used to create artillery. These large crew served weapons have evolved over time from slow burning flame projectors into powerful pieces of weaponry capable of destroying stone walls with relative ease. Gunpowder artillery can be loosely classed into the following elements.
Flame Projectors: The earliest use of the flame projectors was as tools against underdark creatures. These flame projectors were frightening to light sensitive creatures, and were effective, for a short while at burning hostiles. These designs however, proved virtually impossible to reuse and relied on earlier forms of the powder, and thus were mostly abandoned. The odd projector can still be found on some static defensive works, especially in small border garrisons of the dwarven holds.
Bombards: As gunpowder technology developed, bombards become on the earliest uses of gunpowder as artillery. These relative simple tubes were filled with powder and set off by a fuse. They were generally slow to load, and used complex projectiles, at least in earlier iterations. The ball ammunition shape, and improved casting of barrels improved the quality of bombards over the years and made them more effective, if still generally behind cannon and culverin. Their slower loading times however, were on account of tighter barrels that did technically make many bombards more accurate. In the modern world, Bombards are relatively rare among the advanced nations but still see use on the fringes of the advanced world.
Cannon: The gold standard of most modern gunpowder artillery, cannon are heavy guns that use a fuse and flashpan to ignite the powder and cast their generally ball shaped projectiles over great distances. Other ammunition types were developed, including grape shot which turns the gun into a scatter weapon for devastating infantry, and hotshot, which are either enchanted or covered in a flammable substance, which are used against other artillery generally.
Culverins: A parallels development to cannon, Culverins were first developed by Aeillans as a lighter form of cannon and bombards with the specific purposes of mounting on naval vessels. These weapons are similar to cannons in operation, but smaller in scale. Chain shot, something designed to destroy the masts of naval vessels, was developed primarily for culverins.
Mortar: A limited use of modern gunpowder artillery, mortars were developed first and foremost as siege weapons, with their high angle barrels used to launch projective over the walls of fortifications. They are otherwise similar to most other modern gunpowder artillery pieces.
Personnel Devices
Culveriners by Unknown (presumably H. Chartier)
Harquebuses or Arquebuses: The first "modern" firearms, the Harquebus or Arquebus is a shoulder fired weapon that uses fuse and pan firing, or in more modern cases, matchlocks in a more compact package than artillery. Arquebuses usually require a stand to brace the weapon while firing, but some, especially those built for use by adventurers are light enough to be used without stands. This weapon has become widespread among most gunpowder using realms, with many of those land's armies having fully integrated these weapons into their tactical thinking.
Muskets: Making use of the most advanced gunsmithing techniques available, muskets are lighter, more powerful developments upon the Arquebus. They almost always use advanced matchlock firing methods, or the new (and often jealously guarded) flintlock, being fired over the shoulder, and generally being well balanced enough to not need a stand when used. These weapons are exceptionally rare outside the lands of Cyrenica, Aeilla, Aeillan company ports in Leandris, and in very recent times, among the Dotharans.
Pistols: Compact versions of their larger cousins, the musket, Pistols generally make use of flintlock technology (or advanced matchlocks otherwise), and can be wielded with one hand. These weapons are less potent, but can be easily carried and concealed making them invaluable for rakish types and nobles more concerned with appearances than power. Pistols, due to their natures are more widespread than muskets, but much more rarely utilized being seen as vanity projects for nobles, professional military officers and other assorted elite types, or as specialized tools for professional adventurers.
Blunderbusses: Initially a manufacturing accident, blunderbusses grew to become prominent weapons in naval warfare. Their wide, and bell shaped barrels can readily be loaded with multiple pieces of ammunition at once and are relatively tolerant of different ammunition. They have become "scatterguns" capable of spreading deadly projectiles over a wide area, making them extremely useful in clearing the decks of ships of hostiles.
Other Uses
Blast Charges: Simple charges composed of a wood or cloth encasement, filled with powder and topped with a fuse, these blast charges are extremely effective as tools in mining and in other industrial applications. These devices are used relatively commonly in dwarven lands, but are rare outside them.Fireworks: Initially developed in Guandao these devices make bright, and usually colorful explosions in the sky. They can be made a number of ways and with a number of additives to alter the size, shape, and colors of the explosions.
Manufacturing
The process of manufacturing gunpowder is an alchemical process where charcoal, saltpeter, and sulfur are mixed, and ground into a one of the several types of powder that have different uses. Several types of gunpowder are manufactured, often with the process of mixture being one of the key components in the type of powder manufactured. Most modern processes involve introducing (usually alcoholic) liquid to the mixture before being mixed into small balls which are then ground into individual grains, often by the user, shortly before the use of the powder. Others prefer to continue using more traditional methods including directly grinding the powder without further processing and including unusual elements such as herbs and iron shavings into the powder.
Gunpowder devices are usually made up of cast iron or, especially in the case of larger pieces cast bronze, and wood implements that require the use of special gunsmiths and gun foundries. These are usually made barrel first, with the barrels generally forged as single solid pieces before being fitted to wooden support structures. Further fittings usually made up of cast iron are often mated to the tube. Explosive devices are generally more simple in construction with charges usually being incased in some form of wooden or cloth encasement with a fuse used to delay the detonation of the powder.
further refinement by Julia Alba Nata
Access & Availability
Widespread throughout Southern Galisea, Leandris, and Northern Felora, less common elsewhere.
Complexity
Simple, though technologies utilizing gunpowder, and better refined powder are more complex.
Discovery
Lucius Tullius Dorsuo - ER 178
