Firearms

Ordinary Guns

Firearms are a rare type of handheld machine that a select few have access to. Muskets, simply referred to as guns in-universe, are the only regularly accessible firearm on this plane, though specialists can also craft more powerful ones for a high price. Because they are expensive to produce and only marginally more effective than bows and crossbows, they have not yet entered popular use. The only groups that seem to favor them are hobbyists that call themselves Gunslingers and Artificers, who craft these firearms from salvaged machine parts for research and self-defense purposes. These guns typically use electromagnetism rather than gunpowder because the electromagnetic versions are easier to create with the salvaged parts Artificers have access to.

Other Firearms

If your character has a military background or is engaged in scientific or magical study, they have heard stories of more powerful firearms that shoot radiant energy. These weapons are all artifacts of the time before The Cataclysm and cannot be produced except by conjuration. The few working examples of such weapons that have been documented are kept under lock and key by Universities, though there are likely other examples that have escaped the notice of sages and scholars.