Fire Lance
At a Glance
- Weapon: Fire Lance
- Campaign status: Established primitive gunpowder weapon
- 5.5e / 2024: Campaign conversion; javelin and fire charge
- 5e / 2014: Campaign conversion
- Pathfinder 1e: Early one-handed firearm; misfire 1–4
- D&D 3.5e: Campaign conversion from javelin and Renaissance gunpowder
The fire lance is a transitional gunpowder weapon: a tube fixed to a long shaft that throws flame and drives a javelin or dart forward when ignited. Its crude construction makes it one of the easiest firearms to encounter where black powder has only recently entered warfare.
Fire Lance Rules by Edition
Fire Lance — D&D 5.5e / 2024
Campaign conversion. 1d6 Piercing plus 1d6 Fire, range 20/60 ft., Ammunition (Javelin), Loading, Two-Handed, Slow mastery. Each shot consumes one javelin and a prepared gunpowder charge.
Fire Lance — D&D 5e / 2014
Campaign conversion. 1d6 Piercing plus 1d6 Fire, range 20/60 ft., Ammunition, Loading and Two-Handed. There is no Weapon Mastery.
Fire Lance — Pathfinder 1e
| Cost | 25 gp | Dmg (S/M) | 1d4 / 1d6 | Critical | ×4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Range | 10 ft. | Misfire | 1–4 (5 ft.) | Capacity | 1 |
| Weight | 4 lbs. | Type | Piercing |
Unlike most PF1e firearms, the fire lance attacks normal AC rather than touch AC. For misfire effects it is always treated as though it has the broken condition. It consumes one javelin and 2 doses of black powder.
Fire Lance — D&D 3.5e
Campaign conversion. 1d6 Piercing plus 1d6 Fire, 20-foot range increment, ×2 critical, 4 lb. The weapon holds one prepared shot and takes a standard action to reload.
What Changes Between Editions?
- PF1e provides the published extreme misfire behaviour and normal-AC exception.
- D&D tabs convert the weapon as a primitive gunpowder-assisted javelin rather than importing PF1e touch-AC or misfire rules.
Related Equipment
Sources and Licensing
Pathfinder rules derive from Ultimate Combat. D&D tabs are campaign conversions preserving the fire lance’s javelin-and-gunpowder identity.