Firearms

A **firearm** is a novel type of ranged weapon, that relies on a quickly combusting compound to propel a small, but dense projectile at immense speeds, through a metallic tube. While their main users and supposed creators are the New Millennial Empire, they have found their way into the armies of other human kingdoms (primarily Elpia) and the hands of private individuals. It is also known that some extradimensional and ancient civilizations also developed and utilized firearms, unrelated to the Empire.

## Overview

Firearms are primarily produced in the Empire, and most of the advanced examples of such come from there, being produced in large cities like Nyurkail and Sengast. Imperial weaponry is often mass-produced, and operate with a flint striking mechanism, igniting a powder trail that goes inside of the barrel, setting off a larger compacted powder charge loaded into the weapon through the muzzle. Some weapons even have grooves on the inside of the barrel that facilitate better accuracy and range. However most firearms used by Imperial infantry have smooth barrels and are accurate to around a distance of twenty meters at best. Imperials often use both alchemy and spells to enhance their ammunition, making it bear curses, explode on impact or simply fragment inside of the wound, causing grievous injuries. Firearms have the allure of simplicity and ease of manufacture of ammunition (at least for the smoothbore types). Firearms normally have the drawback of having to be loaded manually in a four-step process that cannot be done easily under duress, limiting their usefulness in a skirmish.

Ancient firearms, or those found in other dimensions are often much more sophisticated, with rifled barrels made of unknown alloys and ammunition compacted into small yellowish cylinders and the possibility to be fired more than a few times per minute, some of them even being able to produce several shots per second. However such weapons are hard to find and impossible to maintain-as they come from a time of much greater sophistication. This, however does not prevent them from being weapons of awesome power, especially in the correct hands.

## Types of Firearms

A list can be made of all the known patterns of firearms-both currently made and ancient.

### Imperial

The main provider of firearm types in the world is the New Millennial Empire, producing both muskets and rifled muskets, as well as more advanced one-off types of repeating weaponry.

#### **1190-Pattern Nyurkail Arsenal Rifled Musket**

The primary armament of the Imperial stormtroopers and other elite troops, this weapon is both simple and deadly-accurate up to a range of over a hundred meters, with an unpretentious firing mechanism, wooden furniture and using a cleverly-designed conical bullet that expands to ride out on the rifling once fired. Its wooden furniture is black to distinguish it from regular muskets.

#### **1100-Pattern Nyurkail Arsenal Musket**

This weapon is the mainstay weapon of the Imperial army-made of good, resillient steel and using the same mechanism and barrel length as the more advanced rifles, distinguished by its brownish wooden furniture, which denotes its smooth barrel. Significantly less accurate than any rifled firearm, it can still be deadly in ranges of up to twenty meters, though this range increases if the weapon is loaded well and in the hands of an above-average shooter. While not sophisticated, it is still very reliable and well-manufactured.

#### **1200-Pattern Neijar Armory Rifled Pistol**

A significant step-up in terms of sophistication from most Imperial firearms, this weapon is a short, concealable pistol with a rifled barrel, that uses fulminating caps to ignite its charge, lowering significantly the risk of malfunction.

#### **1160-Pattern Neijar Armory Pistol**

A well-loved civillian weapon, reliable, simple, easy to clean and deadly up close. Often in use by detectives, duelists, criminals and homeowners. With its smoothbore barrel and flintlock mechanism, it can easily be provided with ammo.

#### **House Lamany Custom Rifle**

A one-off weapon manufactured by skilled craftsmen for Lord Taklet Lamany, it can be loaded from the back, drastically reducing reload time, and allowing for simpler ammo to be used, even with a rifled barrel. It is richly decorated with golden scrollwork reminiscent of rolling waves.

#### **House Lamany Custom Shotgun**

A sister piece to the custom rifle, it has a smooth barrel and a simpler loading mechanism, and was specialized for firing shot, even if it could also handle solid slugs, similar to musket ammo. It has silver scrollwork, matching to the rifle's golden one.

#### **House Asanyur Custom Repeating Pistol**

This weapon is a highly complex pistol comissioned by the royal house of Asanyur, exhibiting a system allowing the weapon to produce repeated shots, via an internal feeding chain. In the right hands it can reach a fire rate of above ten shots per minute, becoming an immensely devastating weapon. Unfortunately, it has several drawbacks, such as the fact that the shooter cannot reliably track how many rounds there are in the weapon, the fact that it has to be partially disassembled in order to be reloaded, alongside a lengthy reload time and also that ammunition for it needs to be specially manufactured as to conform with its complex firing mechanism.

### Private

While the Empire is the main user of firearms, many private individuals know how to manufacture such weapons and often use them for their ends. Some of these weapons are highly sophisticated in their own right.

#### **Archaeorifle**

An oversized device made from a scavenged rifled barrel, left behind by the same civilization that is responsible for the ruined cyclopean buildings that dot Europa's countrysides, this weapon is devastating. Having a large bore size and excellent rifling it is accurate up to a kilometer and strikes with immense force. While Yuliko was one character shown to have manufactured an archaeorifle by herself, such were seen in the hands of various other individuals. As archaeorifles were all one-offs, only sharing a single component-the barrel, each had its unique markings and idiosyncracies.

#### **Parasol-Shotgun**

A covert weapon, produced by Luther Redgaze for Adaleth Makela, it was a powerful muzzle-loading shotgun disguised as an oversized parasol, using a caplock mechanism.

### Earth Unity

The Earth Unity is known mainly through erroneous accounts and sparse ruins, and even then-known by few. During the course of the story, however, several advanced weapons, courtesy of the long-dead civilization appear, being discovered both in the alternate dimension where Verde lies, as well as on Earth itself. All Unity weapons are incredibly advanced, using ammunition in metal casings and mechanisms allowing for repeated fire.

#### **EVZ-11**

A small and compact pistol capable of holding twelve rounds in an internal magzine, this weapon is both accurate and capable of firing as fast as one can pull the trigger. While only a few examples have been discovered, all of them have proven incredibly deadly, outclassing any contemporary weapon.

#### **Flare Gun**

A peculiar device, capable of launching a low-speed incendiary projectile. Being single-shot and using paper cartridges it is significantly more familiar to anyone acquainted with Imperial weaponry.

#### **EVZ-8**

A weapon equivalent to Imperial rifles in role, and seemingly the most common armament for Unity soldiers. Much more compact that Imperial weapons of similar role and comes with a detachable magazine, holding thirty shots. Possessing several fire options, the weapon can be made to fire every round in its magazine, by holding the trigger down or fire each time the trigger is pulled.