Modern Firearms for Pathfinder 2nd Edition

The Weapons We All Came Here For: Guns!

Let’s face it, you can’t talk modern combat without talking about firearms.  If there are heroes and villains engaging in physical conflict, sooner or later, guns will be drawn. 

(If you don’t want to read about my design reasoning and just want to get to the good stuff click here)

Guns have a long history in Pathfinder games, but so far, there are no rules for firearms in PF2e.  That means we get a chance to create them. Since we are looking for modern weapons, there are a few additional things we need to consider.

Realism vs Fun

First off, I want to address a concern that will invariably come up.  These rules are meant to fit in with the balance of the system and make it so firearms can be used alongside traditional fantasy weapons.  I recognize that modern guns, depending on caliber, are much more deadly than a dagger or a longbow.  But realism should never get in the way of fun.  In a modern game, guns will likely be the most abundant weapon, therefore, they can’t be too overpowered or the whole balance of the game will change. 

Besides, it’s still urban fantasy. Who doesn’t want to be the ninja taking out enemies with a well-placed silent arrow, despite their superior technology, or the crazed barbarian wading into a sea of bullets, armed with only his flaming battle axe?  It’s fun to have medieval weapons, especially magic ones, alongside more modern technology. 

As I’ve said before my core design philosophy is as follows:

Everything in this system will be focused on allowing the rules to be used directly with the more traditional fantasy rules of PF2.  This is for ease of incorporating them, and because the fun of urban fantasy is in mixing magic and modern.  In order for them to coexist in the game, they must be balanced with each other.  At the same time, there needs to be a clear difference between low technology and modern technology.

Guns, like everything else, will follow this core idea.

With that in mind, guns should definitely be deadlier than any non-magical traditional weapon.  They should work in a realistic manner as much as possible, meaning more shots before reload and generally faster reload times. But there need to be some drawbacks in order to balance them with swords and bows.

A small caveat I must add because of timing. These rules were written before the new Guns & Gears playtest began. My rules for guns managed to line up fairly well with Paizo’s, with exceptions for modern firearms. Even still, that may change in the future as a final product is released. If so, I will update these rules also.

So here it is, the good stuff

Rules for Modern Firearms in Dusk Veil

First off, we have several new traits:

Bolt Action: 

A rifle with this trait requires a manipulate action before it can fire again, to chamber a new round.

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Burst:

Some firearms allow you to fire rapidly, beyond what is normally possible.  A firearm with this trait allows access to the following action:

Burst

[Two-Actions]
[Attack]

Fire three shots for two actions with normal Multiple Attack Penalty applied to each shot.  Doing so causes increases your Clumsy condition by 1 (giving you Clumsy 1 if you didn’t already have the condition)

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Capacity:

This is how many shots can be fired before a firearm must be reloaded.  This trait will always contain a value.

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Superior Range:

Ranged Weapons with this property have their maximum number of range increments increased by the amount shown.    The -2 penalty for each multiple of the range increment still accrues.  For instance, a rifle with Superior Range 2 can fire up to 8 times it’s listed range with a penalty of -16 instead of 6 times with a penalty of -12

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Light Pistol:  Examples: .22, Deringer

Medium Pistol Examples: Glock 22, Colt 1911, 9mm, .40ACP, .45ACP

Heavy Pistol Examples: Desert Eagle, S&W Magnum, .357 Magnum, .44 Magnum

Medium Rifle Examples: Remington 700 Varmint, .223,

Heavy Rifle Examples: M1903 Springfield, Winchester 70 .308, 30-06,

Medium Combat Rifle: Examples: AR-15, Ak-47, 5.56, .223

Heavy Combat Rifle Examples:M240, AR-10, FN-Scar 17, 7.62 NATO, .308

Machine Pistol:  This weapon can be used one handed but is designed to be used with two hands.  If you are using it 1-handed you gain Clumsy 1 until the end of your turn. Examples: CZ Skorpion, FMK-3 Submachine gun, Tec-9,  9X19mm,

SMG Examples: M49, Colt Model 635, AK-74

Machine Gun Examples: Bren, M249 SAW,

Double Barreled Shotgun:  This weapon can be fired either normally using slug ammunition, or fired in a 15ft cone using pellet ammunition.  Switching ammunition is 1 action which includes the manipulate trait. Otherwise roll one attack roll against all targets.  When firing in a cone change Fatal d12 to Deadly d10.   This weapon can also fire both barrels simultaneously. Make two attacks as one action against the same target. Apply your multiple attack penalty to each Attack normally. Examples: Side by Side, Over Under

Pump Action Shotgun: This weapon can be fired either normally using slug ammunition, or fired in a 15ft cone using pellet ammunition.  Switching ammunition is 1 action which includes the manipulate trait.  Otherwise roll one attack roll against all targets.  When firing in a cone change Fatal d12 to Deadly d10 Examples: Mossberg 590, Remington 870

Tune in soon, when we will go over ways to upgrade firearms both magic and mundane, new property runes for firearms, and even unique magical guns.

As always, I welcome all feedback on any of these rules.

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