Low Tech cannons mortars and shells

[Ulzgoroth]

Originally Posted by Polydamas

My understanding is that it was only after WW II that engineers go through every exploding munition and systematically design it to kill and maim as many people with fragments as possible, Eg. the old 'pineapple' grenades were designed to be easy to grip with a wet or muddy hand, any benefit to fragmentation was accidental. Its just so much harder to make anything other than a simple casing, and gunners are really really concerned that you get "does not explode in the tube" right.

If you mean 'carefully tweak the material properties and fine structure of fragmenting casings', you're likely right, but the 18th century shrapnel shell is right there.