Firearms

A firearm is a portable gun (a barreled ranged weapon) that inflicts damage on targets by launching one or more projectiles driven by a variety of mechanisms, depending on the projectile.

It is unknown who invented firearms, as many cultures have either created them alone or adopted them from other species. Some, like the Daerraphere races, have had them for millennia, whereas it is a relatively new invention for other species.

Modern firearms can be classified by their type (plasma, ion, ballistic, etc.); by the type of action employed (muzzle, breech, lever, bolt, pump, semi-automatic, automatic, etc.); and by the usual means of deployment (handheld or mechanical mounting). Further classification may make reference to barrel length, the design's intended purpose, and the model's variation.

Shooter's aim firearms at their targets with hand-eye coordination, using either iron sights or optical sights, and many firearms have attachment rails and maglocks that allow for customization.

Plasma Firearms
Main Article: Plasma Firearm

The most common firearms in the known universe, and one of the cheapest. Plasma weapons usually have a magazine-style battery, inserted just in front of the trigger, and require minimal maintenance. By default, plasma firearms fire bright red bolts of energy, and are capable of almost any fire mode.

Ion Firearms
Main Article: Ion Firearm

Made for personal defense, ion firearms are not designed to be extremely lethal. Due to their incapacitating abilities, ion weapons are better suited for stripping energy shields and damaging electronic devices than blowing apart biological matter. By default, ion firearms fire pale blue orbs of energy, and are usually only capable of semi-automatic firing.

Ballistic Firearms
Main Article: Ballistic Firearm

Older than most firearms, ballistic weapons use mechanical gas compression to fire small bullets made of copper and lead. Referred to as more barbaric than other firearms, ballistic weapons are extremely cheap, but are illegal in most public spaces. Ballistic firearms are often capable of any fire mode.

Arc Firearms
Main Article: Arc Firearm

Often used by special ops groups, arc firearms fire small bolts of white energy (known as arc energy). Upon contacting solid material, arc bolts begin to tear apart the atoms of it's target, dissolving them. While most arc weapons are stable, meaning that the disintegration process will stop after a few seconds, several models have been turned unstable, and are considered weapons of mass destruction. Arc firearms fire bright white bolts of energy, and are capable of most fire rates.

Vex Firearms
Main Article: Vex Firearm

Nicknamed "vex firearms", focused electricity firearms are close-ranged and made with conductive coils in the barrel. While they are often rare in large organizations, many scrappers and scavengers use them. Vex firearms have to methods of firing; large arcs of continuous electricity and small bolts of contained energy. The color of the vex energy ranges from white-blue to a vibrant red, depending on how powerful the conductive coils are.

Photon Firearms
Main Article: Photon Firearm

Not to be confused with proton firearms, which launch highly explosive rounds, photon firearms are concussive weapons made to disable targets with a only a few combustive blasts. Generally speaking, photon weapons are non-lethal. However, if the user has the intent, these weapons could easily become lethal. Photon firearms fire yellow-orange "bombs" that have a significant range drop when exposed to gravity.

Proton Firearms
Main Article: Proton Firearm

Not to be confused with photon firearms, proton firearms launch highly explosive "rockets" of energy. Upon meeting their target, these rockets detonate, obliterating anything within it's blast radius. Because of this, many militant groups use proton firearms as demolition and anti-armor weapons. Proton firearms fire bright blue rockets of energy by default.

Configuration
Different firearms made for different purposes are given different features and names called configurations. Each munition type has it's own list of common configurations.
 * Sidearms
 * Combat Pistol
 * Light Pistol
 * Heavy Pistol
 * Machine Pistol
 * Revolver
 * Handcannon
 * Rifles
 * Assault Rifle
 * Battle Rifle
 * Pulse Rifle
 * Carbine Rifle
 * Marksman Rifle
 * Compact Rifle
 * Musket Rifle
 * Sniper Rifle
 * Anti-Materiel Rifle
 * Shotguns
 * Pump Shotgun
 * Auto Shotgun
 * Heavy Rifles
 * Light Machine Gun
 * Heavy Machine Gun
 * Gatling Gun
 * Explosive Firearms
 * Rocket Launcher
 * Grenade Launcher

Trivia

 * Firearms are one of the most used weapons among the known universe, right beside wielded blades.
 * The common design for humanoid-made firearms in the Psaella Ring system is based off of the Daerrapherian design. The design is made to be utilized by beings with at least 3 fingers and an opposable thumb.