| wactac |
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wactac wrote:
Furthermore the description for arquebus given in the playtest says "...the long barrel makes the weapons particularly unsteady unless a tripod or other stand is used to stabilize it". A description far more accurate for the "musket", which in the days of the arquebus was the designation for a firearm larger than an arquebus or caliver. In fact next to the size of the firearm, the necessity of a "fork rest"(the tripod in this example) to brace it is what differentiates a musket from a contemporary arquebus.
(the arquebus is also described as a "long rifle" despite predating and falling out of use before the invention of rifling but thats a different - and I would say semantic - complaint)
Muskets stayed in use far longer than the arquebus and were originally just a heavier arquebus. The definition of a musket changed over time, while the arquebus did not, however, and round about the time that matchlocks became standard, any long gun with a flintlock was commonly referred to as a musket.
The name arquebus actually comes from the word haakbus, referring to a variety of gun that had a stabilizing hook along the bottom. Since the arquebus is the gun literally named after needing a stabilizing element, I decided it made the most sense as the long gun to apply the sniper and unsteady traits while the musket can be seen as the more common type of smooth bore long gun typically produced in the foundries of Dongun Hold for the humans and other residents of Alkenstar.
Good news, by the way! We'll be talking about the history and development of firearms in Golarion and how it diverges from the real world in the final release for Guns & Gears!
ah, that's fair I was looking at them as contemporary firearms developed side-by-side instead of guns at different levels of tech progression. your statement about the the "haakbus" (hook gun) helps to clarify what you were going with your descriptions. I am also stoked to hear you'll be giving some development history for in setting firearms, as if I already couldn't wait for this book to come out!
Also upon review I feel like my previous posts may have been a little condescending/whiny. With how frequently firearms in fantasy are misunderstood, misrepresented or just plain abused like a red-headed stepchild (if you'll excuse a very dated idiom), I can get a little HEATED about the subject and it's execution. Sorry if it felt a little "know-it-all fan goes REEE over tiny details", I may have gotten a little over zealous.