Guns in D&D?

[DJCupboard]

The thing about guns is that we don't really want super-realism (unless in your campaign you do), we want fun mechanics that fit fantasy/classic archetypes. We want guns that are easy to use and can help model everything from the bookish mage/scholar with an old muzzle loader to the gunslinging cowboy/frontier outlaw. ["Cowboys?! That's hardy period!!" So are longbows and platemail in the few-centuries-before-the-renaisance setting that seems to be implied in the RAW.]

Not only should the rules not hinder actually using them in combat to some degree, but should also have some ability to allow multiple shots per round (even if it does require owning more than one gun and some version of quick draw/rapid reload or somesuch).

Personally I'm all for saying timeframe be damned and moving staight to six-shooters with a prestige class (that I haven't worked up yet) that plays of the mythology of the cowboy/gunslinger who at high levels can even get get extra shots out of his pistol. Something like a Last Shot ability, when reduced to 0 or lower hp by an attack the character can take one last shot with his pistol at the attacker (at some kind of penalty) regardless of whether or not he has any bullets left. And so on.

 

[Ed_Laprade]

Now if we're talking matchlocks, that's a 'nother ball game. Lit matches and powder bags, oh boy! (I normally don't allow guns in my fantasy games, but if a player really, really wants one I'll give it to them. After explaing about all the horrible things that can go wrong. For some inexplicable reason, no one's ever taken me up on it. )

 

[iwatt]

2. Explosive misfire chances. Unless you're already using some kind of fumble rules (which personally, I don't feel are worth it in the end--I don't think the d20 offers enough variation to make the chance realistic, which is also why I don't consider the 1 an auto miss and a 20 an auto hit) it seems odd that firearms carry this danger and other weapons don't. It seems odd to me that if you have 20 riflemen line up fire their weapons, one will have his gun blow up in his face every time. But maybe it's years of playing Rolemaster long ago that have turned me off of that kind of thing.

1 in 20 isn't nice. If I really wanted to keep a misfire chance, I'd have the PC reroll a d20 if he rolled a 1. an explosive misfire will take place if you roll another 1. A Normal misfier on any other number. That'll give you a decent chance of msifire and a very small chance for an explosive misfire (1 in 400)