Anyone play with Blackpowder weapons yet?

[Nezeray]

So I'm doing a game demo on Wednesday and the players were asking about black powder weapons.  Anything look broken in your experiences?  I plan to run it like an Iron Kingdoms adventure.

James / Nezeray

[Crafty_Alex]

Some folks have remarked on the punch which they hadn't quite expected - shooting a standard character with a black powder weapon is pretty much a death sentence.

My tips:

1) Remind them these aren't modern firearms - They should not expect guns will be used more than 1-2 times a combat in most cases, due to the load times. That's OK, becuase they kill standard NPCs dead
2) Quick Draw is your friend - that said, 2 free handle item actions + a bandolier go a LONG way to making a gun-focused character pretty viable.
3) Don't forget your brace - of pistols, that is. Characters who want to shoot should be reminded they'll want more than 1 gun if they're serious about shooting.

[paddyfool]

You may find the discussion on this play thread helpful.

EDIT: Also, there's an Iron Kingdoms thread in License to Improvise you may find interesting.

[Coyote0273]

I've used them playing in a Wyrmstone demo. Like Alex said, they're not going to be used more than once or twice in a combat. Great if you hit, sucks if you miss. But, even in the party I was the only one using a gun, and it didn't affect our combats one little bit.

[ArawnNox]

Like Alex said, the Load Quality will really limit the destruction guns can dish out. Without an upgrade, most of them are also Unreliable (error range increased by 2).
I've generally had at least one player so far who brings along a pistol, but it hasn't been a deciding factor in combat. If anything, he was frustrated at how much time he has to spend making Handle Item Actions to reload.
I haven't seen what can happen with the Black Powder B/M/S feats or the Deadeye Class or even getting Quick Draw yet, but I can't imagine it being any more devastating than an archer focused build (and if the NPC in the Runelords PbP game is any indication, it's pretty friggen scary).

[Nezeray]

I know that at least one character is planning to have a bandoleer of pistols.   One was talking about an unborn with flight.  It's a one-shot so I'm not too worried about it.   

Good to know that shooting at PCs is deadly, since I think THIS group will enjoy the risk. 

I plan to run Darkest Hour with an Iron Kingdoms feel so thought about adding a Special to each group of standards they fight.  He would have a pistol or rifle.  I had also thought of the baddies using only arcane devices like wands.

James / Nezeray

[Krensky]

... (and if the NPC in the Runelords PbP game is any indication, it's pretty friggen scary).

Well, that NPC is really buff and is abusing Bow B/M/S and a few other NPC options.

[Mister Andersen]

You know, I look at black powder weapons and I think "I hope we get rules for sentient weapons sometime soon"

[Nezeray]

You know, I look at black powder weapons and I think "I hope we get rules for sentient weapons sometime soon"

And all of them have a UseMe-UseMe-UseMe attitude, "forget that sword, just reload me and fire again."

James / Nezeray

[paddyfool]

Meh, I prefer them as fire-and-forget.  The whole Bandoleer + Quick Draw deal will work out, but only if all you're doing is "reload and fire" each turn.  More fun to mix it up, imho.  (Although a little mixing does become possible with Surge of Speed besides... EDIT: also, Quick Draw is a fine and fun feat, and a bandoleer is cheap anyway, so you won't hurt yourself by gaining the option of doing this).

And the Deadeye class ability is pretty brutal with black powder weapons, especially Fire Lances.

[Psion]

Yep, my campaign is 11th level, in the Freeport setting (hence guns).

Two of the main players carry 3-4 pistols and have quick draw so they are pretty much shooting for the first round or two of combat.

Guns are death sentences for standards, but with crits, they can also be pretty scary for specials. I started using the tough quality more on specials lately.  

[Doublebond]

Two of the main players carry 3-4 pistols and have quick draw so they are pretty much shooting for the first round or two of combat. And they have quick draw, of course.

After reading this I am the distinct impression that one of your players might have the Quick Draw feat. Is this correct? 

[Big_Jim]

I had a blast playing a Pech dragoon with a riding dog in a  Siege of Vienna (fantasy elements, obviously) campaign. Dragoon gave me Quick Draw from my Origin and a brace of pistols was way handy.

[Catodon]

... (and if the NPC in the Runelords PbP game is any indication, it's pretty friggen scary).

Well, that NPC is really buff and is abusing Bow B/M/S and a few other NPC options.

I hate that guy.

Anyway, the guns look kinda 17-18th century. In my Gulliver's Travels game (in another system) the players soon learned the tactic of opening with one round of pistol fire then closing with cutlasses. Even a brace of pistols wasn't worth the effort.

[Sletchman]

Our groups experience has been fairly build dependant - characters who use them as an extra tool in a fairly varied box have had great experience with them, not game shattering, but better and more fun then a crossbow as the enemy closes, or to start an ambush.  Playing a Dragoon who rides in, quick draws and fires off a brace of pistols, and then dismounts to enter the fight with sword in hand is a playstyle that really works both mechanically and thematically.

On the flip side, my gun-focused Rune Knight was fairly mediocre - the problem stems from having one rune weapon that all your abilities key off.  This means you can't fire and forget a whole slew of them so you spend most the game loading with some occasional shooting - the straight Scout bow user made me look like a chump in combat.