Gunman The gunman is a knight on the cutting edge of weapons development . He takes the newest technological inventions , and through a combination of innate skill and careful study , pushes them beyond the limits their creators imagined . While some warrior s favor the sword or the axe or the bow , the gunman favors guns - pistols , rifles , blunderbusses , he is adept at them all . He is capable of performing amazing stunts with his firearms that leave others staring with wide eyes . A typical gunman carries several weapons — almost all of them firearms . A long rifle and blunderbuss are slung across his back . Pistols rest in holsters on his hips , at his back , on his shins , and beneath his arms ( and in several other secret places ) . Bandoliers hold ammunition and gunpowder . Say the word and pistols leap into his hands , blazing fusillade of death . Gunmen claim that their abilities are purely the result of their skill , training and natural ability . Their accuracy and quickness are impressive , but not based on magic al enhancement or any sort of divine inspiration . However , gunmen are hard - pressed to say how their training makes the power of magic weapons cling to their hands , or how they are able to draw and fire over a dozen pistols in the space of a few seconds . Many gunmen are show - offs , prone to taking shots that are excessively difficult for no other reason than to display their skills . A stunt shot is such a shot . A stunt shot can take a variety of forms : behind the back , between the legs , while looking at the target in a mirror , while reading a book , tossing a pistol from hand to hand before the shot , spinning a rifle before the shot , dropping the firearm then kicking it back into one ' s hand , tossing a coin spinning before it strikes the target , firing from the hip , and similar displays of amazing marksmanship . A gunman can elect to make any attack with a firearm a stunt shot . Gunmen have the peculiar trait of creating deep , personal connections with their weapons . Some joke ( or complain ) that the gunmen love their weapons more than their spouses or children - and this claim is not far from the truth . Declaring a specific firearm to be a special gun involves an unofficial , hour - long ceremony in which the gunman cleans the gun and creates an attachment to it . The gunmen can only have one special gun at a time . Gunmen gain a supernatural ability , which they call " pistol swap " , allowing them to draw , fire and reholster any number of pistols over and over . In addition , the magic of an enchanted pistol clings to the gunman ' s hands and empowers the other pistols he fires . Some claim this feat occurs because the gunman ' s hands move so fast that the enchantments do not have time to leave them , and indeed some gunman ' s hands glow with colored light as they trade pistols , the light increasing in intensity as the gunman draws more and more pistols . When the gunman performs a pistol swap , the first pistol he fires transfers its magic properties to his hand . All subsequent pistols he draws and fires with the same hand bear the magical properties identical to the first pistol . The magic clings to only the hand that fired the pistol . If the gunman fights with a pistol in each hand , each hand retains different magic . Gunmen in the world . Gunmen are most common among the Ironforge dwarves , as the dwarves have a reputation as snipers and riflemen . Some credit the dwarves with the invention of the firearm , and Ironforge is proud of its gun - toting warrior s . Many human s and gnome s also take on the mantle of the gunman , using Ironforge or homemade weapons to annihilate their foes . Night elves prefer the bow , citing its faster reload time and reliability — but those who have seen gunmen in action have cause to doubt claims of the bows ' superiority . Furbolg s and Wildhammer dwarves avoid firearms , some seeing them as an affront to nature . Gunmen are rare in the Horde , but not unheard of . Most members of the Horde prefer melee combat to ranged , and those individuals who focus on ranged attacks favor thrown weapons or mighty bows — something to which they can apply some strength . Still , the power of the gun and the skill of the gunman cannot be denied , and a few members of the Horde — most among the Forsaken — are notable gunmen .