Not quite getting the arquebus

[phiwum]

The arquebus takes four turns to ready, because it's clumsy and fired from a stand.

However, that term "ready" is a technical term, far as I understand it, meaning the time to move a weapon from ground or belt to a position to fight. In normal (that is to say, labyrinth and hence abnormal) situations, characters have a weapon readied at all times.

So, suppose a PC is walking around with an arquebus in his hands and finally spots something to shoot. Does he get to shoot on the first turn? That is, is his "readied weapon" readied? Or does he have to deploy his stand, which is what the four turns to ready refers to?

I'm guessing that RAW means if the weapon is not in hands, it takes four turns to ready it for a shot. If it's in hand, then a shot may be immediately taken. I just don't get how that makes much sense if a stand must be set up.

Thanks.

[larsdangly]

That's a good question. I think it should be possible to move around with a readied arquebus and shoot it on short notice, provided you keep the match lit and are not being radically messed with (like, someone attacking you with a sword).

[phiwum]

I was thinking that maybe one or two turns to set up a readied arquebus, with four turns including the hassle of getting out both large weapon and stand and then putting them together.

But I don't know nothin', hence the question.

Five seconds to set up the stand and take the shot just sounds pretty quick to me.

[TippetsTX]

Quick point of clarification from official errata...

"The arquebus and blunderbuss are flintlock weapons; they don't require a lit torch."

[JimmyPlenty]

My "non-expertise" in old firearms talking here, but I think it is good verisimilitude;

If in your hands already, one turn to ready on the mount. Four to reload.

[phiwum]

Originally Posted by JimmyPlenty

My "non-expertise" in old firearms talking here, but I think it is good verisimilitude;

If in your hands already, one turn to ready on the mount. Four to reload.

The rules say twelve to reload but four to ready, so your suggestion (perhaps unintentionally) is a big change in reloading.

Here's my suggestion, in sum:

(1) If not ready, three to ready.
(2) If readied, one to set up to shoot.
(3) If readied, three to return to "belt". (If it takes time to get it from belt, it should take time to replace it to belt. I don't care much about the time to change from set up to unreadying. As usual, this would be three turns unengaged.)
(4) No change to reloading, twelve turns.

I'm not at all set in this interpretation. I figure the number of turns could be two to ready, two to setup, so an increase of one turn in the setup. The rules seem to be one fewer turn in the setup.

I started this thread thinking I was misreading RAW, but I don't guess I was. I'm afraid these suggestions are closer to house rule than I first reckoned and maybe this thread should go there.

I'm still wondering if someone more knowledgeable could make an argument that five seconds is enough time to deploy the stand, aim and shoot. I'm not trying to nerf the arquebus but just understand how it works.

[Shadekeep]

I get the feeling that the arquebus is almost intended to be a tactical weapon, like the anti-cavalry pike. It is deployed when there is time and space to set it up against advancing enemies, and then abandoned when melee commences.

[hcobb]

If it is a flintlock musket then it should take one turn to ready, have no stand, and 10 turns to reload. Five turns to reload for highly trained gunners, which is an adjDX thing in TFT.

The match lock is entirely different.

[phiwum]

I'm okay with simplifying it with a flintlock while still requiring a stand.

Shadekeep, that certainly seems how it is intended, but the question is whether we think that it takes four turns to set up a shot when the weapon is already in hands (readied) or it can be fired immediately when it is in hands or (as I'm strongly leaning) something in between.

[Shadekeep]

Originally Posted by phiwum

Shadekeep, that certainly seems how it is intended, but the question is whether we think that it takes four turns to set up a shot when the weapon is already in hands (readied) or it can be fired immediately when it is in hands or (as I'm strongly leaning) something in between.

It's a good point, and really depends on what is intended by the setup. It might be that even with the weapon in hand it takes four turns to set up the stand and lock it to the recoil hook before firing. That's how I would read it, since all weapon times in TFT are considered to be for readied weapons unless otherwise stated (it says how long it takes to reload a crossbow, but doesn't stipulate a second prep time for a cocked bolt). Since this has both, I read it as "four turns to prepare an already loaded arquebus to fire, twelve to reload and ready again". I would allow a player to fire it immediately without the prep time of setting up the stand, but with a DX penalty and possible recoil consequences. This would be similar to some of the "fire from the hip" rules you see in other games, where speed is valued over accuracy.