smoothbore Other Weapons

The matchlock was the first mechanism invented to facilitate the firing of a handheld firearm, representing a revolutionary advance in military technology during the late medieval and early modern periods. The design employed a slow-burning match cord clamped in a serpentine arm that, upon pulling the trigger, lowered the glowing tip into a flash pan filled with priming powder, which then ignited the main charge through a touch hole. The matchlock musket was the dominant infantry firearm in Europe from the 15th through the late 17th centuries, and in parts of Asia well into the 19th century. While simplistic and susceptible to wet weather, the matchlock transformed warfare by making firearms practical for mass infantry formations and marked the beginning of the gunpowder age on the battlefield.

The wheellock was a sophisticated ignition mechanism for firearms that used a spring-loaded serrated steel wheel spinning against a piece of iron pyrite to generate sparks, igniting the priming powder. Unlike the matchlock, the wheellock required no burning match, allowing firearms to be carried ready to fire at a moment's notice, which made cavalry pistols and the first true handguns practical. The mechanism was expensive and complex, requiring skilled clockmakers and gunsmiths to produce, which limited wheellocks to wealthy officers, cavalrymen, and nobility. The wheellock pistol became a status symbol of the European aristocracy and a transformative weapon for cavalry tactics, though it was eventually superseded by the simpler and cheaper flintlock.

The RPO-A Shmel is a Soviet single-shot disposable man-portable rocket flamethrower. Despite its flamethrower designation, it actually fires a thermobaric rocket warhead. The weapon is a sealed tube that contains the rocket, launcher, and ignition system. It was designed to engage fortified positions, bunkers, and personnel in enclosed spaces. The thermobaric warhead creates a high-temperature blast wave through fuel-air explosion. The RPO-A is significantly more powerful than conventional explosive rockets of similar size.