Is this a stupid idea for how to include guns in a low fantasy

>>50139361

I'd say it's fine. Maybe guns are primitive in this setting, and people are still figuring them out, but that'll take decades to work out. The logistics and infrastructure aren't there to support them, the professional troops look down on them, and they're not refined weapons so they suffer from technical problems and inaccuracy.

Instead of having a whole setting operate on this principle, just have it be the prevailing conditions of the times. Guns have been invented, but they're still somewhat new, predated by the cannon but now they're man-portable. Could be that some of the older guns, even those still in poorer city-state's armories, are one-shot weapons that are basically a cast-iron chamber on a pole like the earliest firearms.

>>50139472
Does the cannon have to precede the hand-cannon?

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>>50139361
Ideally since you're going this far, you should cover what the political system is so that how state-owned armaments are funded, particularly what is defined as professionally trained and raised troops and why is it that everyone is not just hiring mercenaries to get the required manpower are explained.

Guns not being considered suitable for campaigns is a bit odd given that they're actually easier to accumulate and deal with transporting around the supplies for than say, suitable amounts of arrows, since balls and powder won't break in transport. 'peasant weapon' status is a little odd given that warfare is basically the ultimate arbiter of use-what-works, and guns require skilled use to get the best effects out of them (proper reloading, speedy reloading under pressure, coordinating as a group for maximum impact...)

The rest of it seems logical enough.

>>50139497
Generally yes, it's harder to make suitably strong barrels that are small with the level of metallurgy in question. Also cannon are immediately more useful than smaller arms, even if they don't yet have the power to render traditional fortifications irrelevant.

>>50139497

Not necessarily, but generally it's easy to work something out on a larger scale before refining it.

Also the kind of value for the weapons vs. its inadequacies. A weapon that takes a minute to reload is not something for a close-in melee or a fight where you can be charged by anyone who isn't hit by the firing line. And if it's wildly inaccurate, it's useless unless employed in a firing line which can be charged after its initial shots. A cannon, however, can be more accurate because of the weight or spread of the projectile(s) either a ball or shot and that minute of reloading time can wipe out more enemies and destroy more powerful things.

Also the metal is a problem. If the metal isn't hard enough to survive firing at a small scale, then cannons are probably the only feasible option. It's why canons can be made of cast iron, but casting a handgun in cast iron is going to net you a face full of your own shrapnel.

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>>50139601
I figured a simple oligarchy would work, with enough money and resources to build up a supply of stored weapons between campaigns. Professionally trained would probably be like a militia, maybe to the level of an ancient Roman legion - citizens doing military service for their city-state, and probably gaining a level of wealth and prestige for their service.

They might not store powder correctly, they might fear the risk of an explosion at camp. Maybe there's too much humidity to make them viable unless carefully stored. I figure officers and nobles might make use of pistols, but larger rifles would be considered for siege defense, with bows and crossbows being more common for offensive armies due to inertia and traditions of military service and training. The pistols would really only be used because they could be used in melee, which is a bit more prestigious.

The guns would likely be used most for defenders by taking a shot over the battlements, bunkering down and reloading before trying again. This would be before the development of lines and volley fire, since they reload so slowly and no one's come up with the idea of lines of rotating men. And I imagine the guns would not be of great quality, so there could be risk of harming the user.