Questions tagged [weapons]
For questions about existing weapons or designing new ones.
1,088
questions
8
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6answers
435 views
What weapons would be used to kill giants by a viking era civilization?
(Vaguely related to What kind of equipment would a giant slayer use, but different premise enough)
In a somewhat Northern-mythology inspired setting, "viking" villages and cities huddle in fjords, ...
6
votes
6answers
1k views
Shooting through the earth
Due to reasons of magic an alien god that is about to takeover the earth in one year and can only be stopped by being shot through the entire earth.
Assuming modern day Earth (no magic other then ...
2
votes
1answer
159 views
A random sphere shows up in our atmosphere, and a nuke is fired at it. What happens to the sphere?
Assume that the ship is a perfect sphere, emits no radiation of any kind, and is made out of a material with equivalent strength to carbon nanotubes (both tensile and other). It is 1 kilometer in ...
7
votes
4answers
255 views
In a general sense, would it be better to equip troops with plate carriers, body armor, etc. if they’re fighting against zombies?
In a general sense, would it be better to equip troops with plate carriers, body armor, etc. if they’re fighting against zombies?
Right now, my Troopers (what someone in the US Garrison is called) ...
8
votes
6answers
2k views
How could liquid nitrogen weapons exist in a medieval society?
It’s been awhile since I’ve been on here, and in all that time, I’ve developed my fictional world by a lot.
But I’m still confused by something.
You see, the society of my world is one modeled on ...
6
votes
3answers
71 views
Kinetic magical boxers - consequences [closed]
I have little problem with physics and I do not know how to formulate question to get help of a google.
Say, in my settings I have a Boxers (and other street martial artists) which can store impact ...
1
vote
0answers
52 views
What kind of materials can micro humans harvest for survival? [closed]
I am currently working on a comicbook where humans ended up in another universe where they are smaller than ants. They're society has been living inside of a wall in a rural medieval home of a ...
3
votes
2answers
73 views
portal powered gun
Is a portal powered gun feasible? By portal powered I mean a projectile in dropped into one portal then goes through the portal into the other portal and is basically in freefall until the portal is ...
16
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16answers
4k views
Why bother with contractual summoning when sealing a magical creature into an inanimate object works just as well?
Set in the 12th century C.E. a trend seems to spread like wildfire across the kingdom: many young mages are practicing sealing a slain magical creature into all kinds of melee weapons, most commonly a ...
3
votes
3answers
123 views
Why give super weapons personalities? [closed]
Cover Story:
The minor arcana are four people, summoned from another world, that are prophesized to defeat the evil demon lord and bring peace and stability to this kingdom. Their weapons start out ...
10
votes
10answers
924 views
Would shotguns be a practical weapon to arm certain members of an anti-zombie military unit?
Let’s get some backstory first:
So I’ve recently came up with the idea of this combat support anti-zombie unit that’s dedicated towards fighting both human enemies and zombies (but mostly zombies (...
1
vote
1answer
120 views
Does this magic system stray way too far from the realm of medieval fantasy? [closed]
I have thought of a magic system, I’ve just thought about it so it’s not a system really. There is a special kind of metal that when a magical powder touches, a practicer of the arts can cast a spell. ...
2
votes
4answers
83 views
How to protect against an orbital strike? [duplicate]
How can I protect a country against an unguided orbital strike/"rods from god" style weapon?
I was thinking maybe stopping the launch would be easier than stopping/blowing up the actual rods in mid-...
4
votes
6answers
1k views
Would this presidential directive be practical to implement?
So I currently have something call the National Defense-Continuity Directive (AKA Directive 0), which is basically a national call to arms.
Directive 0 is only signed off on when there is a truly ...
-1
votes
9answers
227 views
how to siege a small island nation that is the most powerful country in the world [closed]
this question is linked to this question
The governments of the world have come together and decided to attack the small island nation after many failed attempts at stealing their technology.
...
3
votes
6answers
2k views
What would happen if a small island nation became the strongest country in the world? [closed]
What could happen if, say, a small island off of the coast of Africa became overnight the most powerful country in the world? Can we predict what would happen? Would the world's superpowers be nice ...
1
vote
1answer
136 views
Is a water-to-plasma gun feasible?
Would it be possible to turn water into plasma via hydrogen all in a compact gun like design, if not would it be possible at all? I know hydrogen plasma is a thing, so could it be weaponized?
...
4
votes
7answers
903 views
What should I consider when making walls or fortifications that can stand against zombies, bandits, and enemy militaries?
So recently I’ve decided to add a wall to Washington, DC and this is where the wall (named Federal Wall) would end up encircling, with the area being within the Wall being known as the Federal Defense ...
3
votes
4answers
149 views
a ranged weapon only powered by electricity [closed]
Requirements
must be powered just by electricity
must-have an effective range of 45 meters or more.
must be easy to repair no fancy parts unless they last for a long time
lightweight
must cause ...
16
votes
8answers
3k views
Would anti-personnel mines be useful in mermaid warfare?
In real life, mines (at their most basic, small containers filled with explosive, fitted with some sort of triggering mechanism, and left to blow up the unwary) are a mainstay of warfare both on land ...
14
votes
14answers
4k views
What is the realistic approach for a person from modern age to build a modern weapon factory in the Bronze Age?
I often read a light novel that tells a story about a person who is transferred from their high tech modern society Earth to a fantasy land. These persons often have some expertise in modern science ...
1
vote
2answers
102 views
Are there any historic armed combat sports that don't simulate sword-fighting (other than jousting)? [closed]
I'm focusing on a medieval warfare setting similar to Fire Emblem, and the tiresome abundance of swords has me thinking about alternative weapons to shine a spotlight on. I'm also thinking about the ...
-1
votes
3answers
86 views
Types of damage [closed]
Elemental damage in rpgs usually follows the Greek elemental philosophy as wind,earth,water etcetera being elements.
I'm trying something similar but more realistic.
Physical damage as in being ...
2
votes
2answers
125 views
How could the Kobold Cannon's munition work?
"That is a weapon, NOT a teleporter" - Samuel "Whyamieventrying"
Hayden
The concept is fairly simple. You have a crazy, but crazy talented kobold inventor with lots of spare time and junk. This ...
6
votes
7answers
1k views
How can these kinetic weapons be made more plausible?
I am looking for plausible mechanisms to legitimize (or replace) the physics-based weaponry used in the fictional world of my latest story.
My story utilizes a range of weapons (like Starship ...
9
votes
10answers
5k views
Why would an adventurer use a sword frog?
Historically, swords were most often worn at the hip in either a sheath or a scabbard. The purpose of a sheath or scabbard was primarily to cover the blade to prevent the wearer from injuring ...
2
votes
2answers
94 views
Would you be able to shoot a metal collar off? [closed]
Say one of your characters have a metal collar attached. One that acts like a tracker and an alarm if they manage to escape their cell. If they get their hands on a gun, would they be able to aim it ...
8
votes
8answers
1k views
How effective would a pole-arm blunt weapon be?
No metal weapons allowed I'm limiting this to wooden or composite ones only (for example the use of something as tough or harder than lignum vitae and other materials).
I accept far fetched answers ...
0
votes
0answers
41 views
Can a biological gun be evolved or exist [duplicate]
This might sound dumb but it was a question that popped into my head.
3
votes
4answers
161 views
Can a group grow a garden of organic weapons?
One of the tools associated to ninjas were the makibishi, which were meant to be used as a tool of hindering and slowing down enemy pursuit while escaping.
Based on this concept of organic tools, is ...
7
votes
2answers
171 views
How would underwater weaponry and technology look under high pressure?
Suppose we have a fictional water planet. Humans have discovered interstellar travel and have colonized the planet. They live in large underwater cities. Its oceans are under high pressure, say ...
5
votes
4answers
166 views
How to prevent bioweaponised animals from attacking friendly troops?
An organisation breeds surgically, virally and genetically enhanced animals called B.O.Ws (Bioweaponised Organisms of War) to bolster troop numbers and support them in the field. These B.O.Ws perform ...
8
votes
2answers
215 views
Could one grow an organic sword?
After the apocalypse event, humanity basically had to start from scratch. The systems made to store the information about modern technology were damaged beyond repair, with the new human race having ...
2
votes
3answers
89 views
What are the tactical advantages of having an attack animal that attacks in response to laser sighting?
In a world not too dissimilar from ours, a nefarious organisation fields various bioengineered attack animals (think B.O.Ws from Resident Evil) to support its foot soldiers in multiple situations. One ...
3
votes
3answers
142 views
What would happens if a human was compressed to the shape and size of a volley ball?
Imagine a device that forms a spherical electromagnetic barrier around an average human, and rapidly shrinks until its approximately the volume of a volley ball. What would be the aftermath other than ...
5
votes
6answers
215 views
Can flags be used as weapons? Has this been done in real life?
Simply put, what I'm imagining would be something like a quarterstaff or bo staff, except with a rectangular flag attached at one end (it would take up half of the staff's length). These would be used ...
17
votes
12answers
4k views
Silver needs to make contact with the skin to be effective, but vampires are wearing armor. What now?
So, if this is a science-based world, why are vampires, werewolves and other entities associated with the dark side so sensitive to silver? Well, it has nothing to do with the metal, but rather its ...
4
votes
2answers
813 views
Can a heat-seeking missile track a target in “Hell”? [closed]
Air laden with sulfur, boiling seas of lava, acid rains on areas that aren’t molten and when you think you’re safe, you hear the screams of the damned coming after you. This is Hell.
Or is it?
...
1
vote
0answers
73 views
Can a group of sufficiently trained and armed high school seniors form an ad hoc force and defend against a battalion of militiamen? [closed]
Yeah this sounds really crazy but hear me out.
So I’m working out this semi-alternate history and post-apocalyptic story that’s essentially similar to The 100, The Division, The Hunger Games trilogy,...
2
votes
2answers
147 views
How would weaponry develop differently in a world where you have total technological superiority?
In today’s modern military, massive things are generally frowned upon. They’re simply too big of a target.
Oh! You have a big tank that could easily beat my tanks?
Apply aircraft.
Oh God! Oh no! ...
4
votes
4answers
169 views
Can Magic Enhance the use of 19th Century Firearms?
The setting is a post-apocalyptic Earth, a few hundred years after a "world-ending" war. What remains of humanity is beginning to emerge from Fallout-esque shelters, but (more importantly) magic ...
15
votes
4answers
5k views
Dragons can spray up to 5 liters of concentrated sulfuric acid. How screwed is a dragon slayer if it gets on them?
The answer, of course, is very screwed; however, I want to elaborate on that more.
Background
Despite what common propaganda (D&D, Tolkien, etc...) might have taught you, dragons rarely ever use ...
2
votes
0answers
105 views
If humans had evolved with “natural forcefields”, would blunt-trauma weapons replace spears as dominant battlefield weapons? [closed]
EDIT: I now realize that asking for a logical extrapolation from the consequences of auras upon ancient, post-classical, and modern warfare was far too broad considering warfare in these periods ...
33
votes
17answers
8k views
How long could a late WW2-era battleship last under sustained ship of the line cannon fire?
In an alternate world of magic, a battleship similar in design to the Bismarck is stopped in the middle of the ocean. It was built by a society of Earth humans who moved to this world. All other ...
2
votes
6answers
322 views
What is the best way to eliminate guns in a near future cyberpunk setting? [closed]
So I've asked a question about powered armor specifically as a solution here, and largely rejected that solution, but I can’t shake the feeling that I want a setting without guns. What is the best way ...
2
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4answers
261 views
How do I build a heart attack gun?
So hearing conspiracy theories about heart attack guns led me to try and come up with an explanation for how to build one.
Is there some combination of heart attack causing factors that could be semi-...
9
votes
6answers
2k views
How to trap and kill a T-Rex-like creature?
The story: in a fantasy iron age world, a T-Rex-like animal (actually more like the size of allosaurus) has emerged from the forest and started killing people. The animal always retreats to the forest ...
2
votes
5answers
193 views
What makes magic artillery more powerful than a non-magic gun?
Magic (which is just ancient technology and not supernatural mumbo jumbo) in this setting is close to what you'd find in the anime Grimoire of Zero. That is to say it has a set of rules and the list ...
1
vote
4answers
305 views
Could a steel cylinder punch through plate armor?
I want to be a bit more creative in my design of medieval weapons, and have begun looking into the creation of an Arbalest that instead of shooting traditional crossbow bolts, shoots metallic ...
4
votes
3answers
109 views
Strength of a fictional armor against a crossbow bolt
So, in my story, there is a fictional material called master cloth with about 10x the strength of Kevlar, and an average thread thickness of 1/8 inch diameter. The cloth is as light as most fabrics, ...
