"Why add any form of gun? Wouldn't that ruin the game?"
No, considering that TNT, fireworks, jukeboxes and a variety of other technologies exist in the game, Minecraft doesn't have a super specific theme. Combat is a mostly neglected area and it would be safe to say that 1700s gunpowder weaponry options would make a fine addition.
Guns may be loud and "scary," but in reality they are governed by physics like every other weapon and won't massacre an entire village in one shot. If this is not convincing enough, there is an entire dimension devoted to being hell themed so a gun is unlikely to make the game inappropriate to younger players.
Reminder that these ideas aren’t final and detailed feedback is appreciated. Don’t be that one guy that only puts Y/N because he is no use to anyone.
Physical projectiles
The "bullet": A physical projectile emitted by some of the weapons mentioned below. Its appearance is a small gray ball that emits a particle trail of sparks in its wake (similar to an arrow’s crit particles). It is affected by gravity like an arrow but cannot be retrieved after it hits a block. The bullet’s velocity is not affected as dramatically when it travels through water. Lastly, bullets have no knockback (with the exception of the blunderbuss).
The cannon ball: Used by handcannons (mentioned below). It is larger than the bullet but performs similarly. Being heavy, it travels slower through the air, allowing for arked shots. Upon hitting a block, it will create an explosion with a 3x3x3 blast radius.
Meet the arsenal
The following weapons reload similarly to the crossbow. There is a delay between shots so as to prevent players from rapidly switching hotbar slots for rapid fire. Note that the reload times aren't hyper realistic because otherwise you'd be sitting there forever reloading the next shot. Every one of the weapons below lose durability each time they are used. They cannot be fired underwater.
Flintlock pistol: A small, inaccurate pistol. It has a fast deployment speed and reloads in 10 ticks (I'm going off of repeater delays).
Black powder rifle (Or musket): More accurate/durable than the flintlock and uses the same ammunition. Its reload speed is 12 ticks.
Blunderbuss (Dragon): A multishot weapon that fires a spread of pellets with the possibility of knocking back enemies at close range. It has the lowest range of all the weapons mentioned here, and reloads in 16 ticks. It also uses its own unique form of ammunition.
Handcannon: Perhaps not the most realistic weapon but interesting nevertheless. As the name suggests, it is a small handheld cannon/bazooka. It takes 24 ticks to reload and has a small delay before firing and will make the player explode if it goes off while the player is switched to another item in their hand. It uses cannonballs for ammunition and will hurt the player if they fire it too close to themselves.
Pepper-box pistol (modified): A multi-barrel pistol that has a "staggered fire" effect that acts like rapid fire. It holds 7 rounds that deal a smaller amount of damage than flintlocks and black powder rifles. When the player right-clicks while holding this weapon, it will fire a stream of rounds (with a 1 tick delay between shots) until it is completely emptied.
Repeater Rifle
Possible enchantments:
Pinpoint I-III (Flintlocks and black powders only): Improves accuracy.
Duality (Blunderbusses only): Fires a second shot 1-2 ticks behind the first shot.
Fragmentation I-III (Handcannons only): The projectile will emit several shards of metal upon hitting a block or mob, damaging anything in the surrounding area.
Venting I-II (Repeater rifles only): Increases the amount of time before the weapon overheats.
Considering that TNT and fireworks exist in the game and that combat is a mostly neglected area, it would be safe to say that more gunpowder-based weaponry options would make fine additions. I will also list off some possible enchantments that could be applied to them.
Reminder that these ideas aren’t final and detailed feedback is appreciated. Don’t be that one guy that only puts Y/N because he is no use to anyone. For all these weapons, I need to know the crafting recipe and how much damage they do.
The Bullet: Renaming it to Cartridge would make it more fitting with early renaissance era guns. A small projectile used by some of the weapons mentioned below. Its appearance is a small gray ball that emits a particle trail of sparks in its wake (similar to an arrow’s crit particles). It is affected by gravity like an arrow Actually, I think it should be less affected by gravity than an arrow. but cannot be retrieved after it hits a block. The bullet’s velocity is not affected as dramatically when it travels through water.
The following weapons reload similarly to the crossbow unless stated otherwise*. There is a delay between shots so as to prevent players from rapidly switching hotbar slots for rapid fire. Every one of the weapons below lose durability every time they are used.
Flintlock: A small, inaccurate pistol. Would mostly be overshadowed by the black powder rifle.
Black powder rifle: Maybe call it the Matchlock? More accurate/durable than the flintlock and uses the same ammunition. Any drawbacks?
Blunderbuss: A shotgun-like weapon that fires a spread of pellets with the possibility of knocking back enemies at close range. Nice. It has the lowest range of all the weapons mentioned here. It also uses its own unique form of ammunition. Which is?
Handcannon: Perhaps not the most realistic weapon but interesting nevertheless. As the name suggests, it is a small handheld cannon. This weapon has a small delay before firing and will make the player explode if it goes off while the player is switched to another item in their hand. It uses its own unique type of ammunition Which is? that explodes and will hurt the player if they fire it too close to themselves.
Repeater rifle*: A rapid fire rifle that uses a slightly more expensive ammunition than the other weapons here. Its projectiles deal a smaller amount of damage than flintlocks and black powder rifles. Instead of having to be reloaded like a crossbow, it will continually fire. The drawback is that it will overheat and lose accuracy if fired for too long. If it overheats to a certain point, it will lose a significant amount of durability and the player will be unable to fire it again until a short time has passed. No Support, would be too modern.
Really, we only need one or two gunpowder weapons (perhaps the Matchlock and Blunderbuss).
Possible enchantments:
Pinpoint I-III (Flintlocks and black powders only): Improves accuracy.
Duality (Blunderbusses only): Fires a second shot 1-2 ticks behind the first shot.
Fragmentation I-III (Handcannons only): The projectile will emit several shards of metal upon hitting a block or mob, damaging anything in the surrounding area.
Venting I-II (Repeater rifles only): Increases the amount of time before the weapon overheats.
Fin
I Support the black powder rifle and blunderbuss, but not the others.
Considering that TNT and fireworks exist in the game and that combat is a mostly neglected area, it would be safe to say that more gunpowder-based weaponry options would make fine additions. I will also list off some possible enchantments that could be applied to them.
Reminder that these ideas aren’t final and detailed feedback is appreciated. Don’t be that one guy that only puts Y/N because he is no use to anyone.
The Bullet: A small projectile used by some of the weapons mentioned below. Its appearance is a small gray ball that emits a particle trail of sparks in its wake (similar to an arrow’s crit particles). It is affected by gravity like an arrow but cannot be retrieved after it hits a block. The bullet’s velocity is not affected as dramatically when it travels through water.
The following weapons reload similarly to the crossbow unless stated otherwise*. There is a delay between shots so as to prevent players from rapidly switching hotbar slots for rapid fire. Every one of the weapons below lose durability every time they are used.
Flintlock: A small, inaccurate pistol. Use?
Black powder rifle: More accurate/durable than the flintlock and uses the same ammunition. Not much detail
Blunderbuss: A shotgun-like weapon that fires a spread of pellets with the possibility of knocking back enemies at close range. It has the lowest range of all the weapons mentioned here. It also uses its own unique form of ammunition. **multishot**
Handcannon: Perhaps not the most realistic weapon but interesting nevertheless. As the name suggests, it is a small handheld cannon. This weapon has a small delay before firing and will make the player explode if it goes off while the player is switched to another item in their hand. It uses its own unique type of ammunition that explodes and will hurt the player if they fire it too close to themselves. Not enough detail, but somewhat support.
Repeater rifle*: A rapid fire rifle that uses a slightly more expensive ammunition than the other weapons here. Its projectiles deal a smaller amount of damage than flintlocks and black powder rifles. Instead of having to be reloaded like a crossbow, it will continually fire. The drawback is that it will overheat and lose accuracy if fired for too long. If it overheats to a certain point, it will lose a significant amount of durability and the player will be unable to fire it again until a short time has passed.
Possible enchantments:
Pinpoint I-III (Flintlocks and black powders only): Improves accuracy.
Duality (Blunderbusses only): Fires a second shot 1-2 ticks behind the first shot.
Fragmentation I-III (Handcannons only): The projectile will emit several shards of metal upon hitting a block or mob, damaging anything in the surrounding area.
Venting I-II (Repeater rifles only): Increases the amount of time before the weapon overheats.
Fin
This thread lacks in detail. Whenever posting a thread, try to focus on a smaller amount of suggestions and expanding upon them instead of posting a lot and barely giving any detail.
This thread lacks in detail. Whenever posting a thread, try to focus on a smaller amount of suggestions and expanding upon them instead of posting a lot and barely giving any detail.
Noted. I tried not to be super descriptive initially because people nowadays don't read long posts. Also, I'm not entirely sure what amount of damage would be considered too little or too much . Should I include a concept model for the weapons and their crafting recipes as well?
Noted. I tried not to be super descriptive initially because people nowadays don't read long posts. Also, I'm not entirely sure what amount of damage would be considered too little or too much . Should I include a concept model for the weapons and their crafting recipes as well?
Noted. I tried not to be super descriptive initially because people nowadays don't read long posts. Also, I'm not entirely sure what amount of damage would be considered too little or too much . Should I include a concept model for the weapons and their crafting recipes as well?
Giving you're best estimate for an appropriate amount of damage (and similar details) at least gives responders a basis from which to work…
This is the sort of thing discussion is supposed to refine in any event….
A concept model (assuming you mean a graphic) is unnecessary, but may be considered a nice addon… (Such can also help break up the text into less intimidating blocks )
Crafting recipes are another detail that can be refined by feedback, but having a defined base from which to start the discussion is helpful.
Not strictly relevant, but you may also want to refine your terminology:
Flintlock refers to a firing mechanism (as disticnt from matchlock, wheellock, and the more primative heated wire through hole)
Blackpowder refers to the propellent (for essentially all firearms through the mid 19th century)
Blunderbuss generally meant a shorter (carbine length) shoulder weapon with a flared barrel. (A pistol version was most commonly a dragon.)
Handcannon is typically used historically for very early firearms; basically a pipe (with one closed end) mounted on a stock that could be carried by one man and was fired by the aforementioned heated wire and hole (later evolving into match fired models).
Repeater rifle is typically used to describe a rifle (as distinct from a smoothbore) with magazine and thus capable of firing multiple tiems before being reloaded. The term is generally limited to models that require manual cocking (eg the Winchester '73) rather than the more modern semi-automatic weapons. [Both are one trigger pull equals one shot, but repeaters are most unlikely to overheat due to rate of fire – a problem generally limited to fully automatic fire (and some high end Gatling principle platforms).]
Staying with historical usage is helpful in convenying the intent of the item and avoids confusion arising when common historical and immediate usage do not coincide.
Realistically, the reload speed of a smoothbore muzzleloader would by on the order of 600 game ticks (30 seconds). [Assuming a skilled weilder and near optimal conditions]
Decreasing this by a factor of 5 [based on RL longbows being capable of ~6 shots per minute and skeltons firing every 2 seconds] would give a reload speed of ~120 game ticks (6 seconds).
This would make the rate of fire ~1/2 that of a MC crossbow.
Of the names listed, the historical handcannon would be least disruptive of current combat, the 'repeating rifle' the most.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"Why does everything have to be so stoopid?" Harvey Pekar (from American Splendor)
WARNING: I have an extemely "grindy" playstyle; YMMV — if this doesn't seem fun to you, mine what you can from it & bin the rest.
Giving you're best estimate for an appropriate amount of damage (and similar details) at least gives responders a basis from which to work…
This is the sort of thing discussion is supposed to refine in any event….
A concept model (assuming you mean a graphic) is unnecessary, but may be considered a nice addon… (Such can also help break up the text into less intimidating blocks )
Crafting recipes are another detail that can be refined by feedback, but having a defined base from which to start the discussion is helpful.
Not strictly relevant, but you may also want to refine your terminology:
Flintlock refers to a firing mechanism (as disticnt from matchlock, wheellock, and the more primative heated wire through hole)
Blackpowder refers to the propellent (for essentially all firearms through the mid 19th century)
Blunderbuss generally meant a shorter (carbine length) shoulder weapon with a flared barrel. (A pistol version was most commonly a dragon.)
Handcannon is typically used historically for very early firearms; basically a pipe (with one closed end) mounted on a stock that could be carried by one man and was fired by the aforementioned heated wire and hole (later evolving into match fired models).
Repeater rifle is typically used to describe a rifle (as distinct from a smoothbore) with magazine and thus capable of firing multiple tiems before being reloaded. The term is generally limited to models that require manual cocking (eg the Winchester '73) rather than the more modern semi-automatic weapons. [Both are one trigger pull equals one shot, but repeaters are most unlikely to overheat due to rate of fire – a problem generally limited to fully automatic fire (and some high end Gatling principle platforms).]
Staying with historical usage is helpful in convenying the intent of the item and avoids confusion arising when common historical and immediate usage do not coincide.
Realistically, the reload speed of a smoothbore muzzleloader would by on the order of 600 game ticks (30 seconds). [Assuming a skilled weilder and near optimal conditions]
Decreasing this by a factor of 5 [based on RL longbows being capable of ~6 shots per minute and skeltons firing every 2 seconds] would give a reload speed of ~120 game ticks (6 seconds).
This would make the rate of fire ~1/2 that of a MC crossbow.
Of the names listed, the historical handcannon would be least disruptive of current combat, the 'repeating rifle' the most.
I was typing this from my phone at midnight and haven't had much time to edit the post until now. :/
Combat in MC can be somewhat intense and its unlikely that the average player would want to wait a relatively long time to reload. The handcannon was meant to be more of a bazooka-like weapon for players that like a heavier style of fighting. As for the repeater rifle mentioned here, I gave it that name because the original crafting recipe concept had redstone repeaters (like a rapid clock).
I was typing this from my phone at midnight and haven't had much time to edit the post until now. :/
Combat in MC can be somewhat intense and its unlikely that the average player would want to wait a relatively long time to reload. The handcannon was meant to be more of a bazooka-like weapon for players that like a heavier style of fighting. As for the repeater rifle mentioned here, I gave it that name because the original crafting recipe concept had redstone repeaters (like a rapid clock).
Depends on the situation, and a long reload could help balance the weapons. For starters, the Pepperbox would be more useful.
I'd recommend to make them specialized weapons that, rather than being good in a fight, tend to each be more suitable for a different situation. For instance, the pepperbox would be better at fighting crowds, and the blunderbuss would be better against airborne targets or if aiming precisely isn't possible.
The amount of damage each weapon deals should be described.
Finally, I recommend swapping the Handcannon for bombs, as the effect would be similar while also being more realistic and adding a thrown weapon.
I agree with you on adding guns, although I will say that 4 guns seem like a little bit much considering we only have 1 bow, soon to be 2. (Can you even really count a crossbow as a bow?)
I also agree with you that any of this crap about video games causing gun violence is unwarranted and silly, considering Lego Star Wars has guns, albeit laser guns. Censoring weapons from kids isn't going to stop accidental gun deaths, teaching people how to treat weapons responsibly will. (I could get into an argument about how taking guns from people is just ignoring the root problem of the violence, but I don't want to start yet another political argument like the last one that happened with the climate change suggestion.)
The two guns I like here are the Hand Cannon and the Blunderbuss, but I feel like going any further with that gets rid of the need to use a bow or a crossbow. I like the Blunderbuss because it shoots a spray of bullets, which means that it's great for crowd control. The Bow/Crossbow, on the other hand, can still be useful after getting a Blunderbuss to hit single targets.
The Blunderbuss also seems useful when fighting the Ender Dragon or the Wither, which moves quickly and might be harder to hit, but shooting a spray of bullets means they might fly through three or four when you shoot the weapon.
While you can shoot fireworks from a crossbow, I still like the idea of the hand cannon. Perhaps in addition to shooting cannon balls, the hand cannon could shoot magma charges like ghasts or blazes do, letting you set fire to an opposing castle from a distance. (While it's true this could be used to grief, remember that the hand cannon takes time to charge, and lightning has a similar effect. Also, for concerned server owners, protection plugins still exist.)
Another idea for the hand cannon shooting splash potions further! The current range of a splash potion is way too small, and rarely can you use one without getting the effect yourself, unless you drop the potion from the air. Shooting it from a hand cannon would fix this issue, although the effect of potion arrows should probably be amplified to balance this.
The enchantments seem useful too, like adding a larger area of effect to the hand cannon, although the pinpoint does lose it's purpose if flintlocks and black powders are removed...
Lastly, the cannons and bullets should be firable from a dispenser for consistency's sake.
The recipes of the items are crucial, though, and I'd put those in your post. For example, I'd make bullets require at least an iron nugget so that they're semi-expensive to use, and the accuracy of the bow is preferable when ammunition is limited.
Mostly Support.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
My avatar is a texture from a small block game I made in Python. It's not very good and it probably won't work if you install it.
I'm very alone in my Minecraft worlds as I don't have a very good internet connection to run a server. If you're like me, you might be interested in my Posse mod suggestion.
"Why add any form of gun? Wouldn't that ruin the game?"
No, considering that TNT, fireworks, jukeboxes and a variety of other technologies exist in the game, Minecraft doesn't have a super specific theme. Combat is a mostly neglected area and it would be safe to say that 1700s gunpowder weaponry options would make a fine addition.
Guns may be loud and "scary," but in reality they are governed by physics like every other weapon and won't massacre an entire village in one shot. If this is not convincing enough, there is an entire dimension devoted to being hell themed so a gun is unlikely to make the game inappropriate to younger players.
Reminder that these ideas aren’t final and detailed feedback is appreciated. Don’t be that one guy that only puts Y/N because he is no use to anyone.
Physical projectiles
The "bullet": A physical projectile emitted by some of the weapons mentioned below. Its appearance is a small gray ball that emits a particle trail of sparks in its wake (similar to an arrow’s crit particles). It is affected by gravity like an arrow but cannot be retrieved after it hits a block. The bullet’s velocity is not affected as dramatically when it travels through water. Lastly, bullets have no knockback (with the exception of the blunderbuss).
The cannon ball: Used by handcannons (mentioned below). It is larger than the bullet but performs similarly. Being heavy, it travels slower through the air, allowing for arked shots. Upon hitting a block, it will create an explosion with a 3x3x3 blast radius.
Meet the arsenal
The following weapons reload similarly to the crossbow. There is a delay between shots so as to prevent players from rapidly switching hotbar slots for rapid fire. Note that the reload times aren't hyper realistic because otherwise you'd be sitting there forever reloading the next shot. Every one of the weapons below lose durability each time they are used. They cannot be fired underwater.
Flintlock pistol: A small, inaccurate pistol. It has a fast deployment speed and reloads in 10 ticks (I'm going off of repeater delays).
Black powder rifle (Or musket): More accurate/durable than the flintlock and uses the same ammunition. Its reload speed is 12 ticks.
Blunderbuss (Dragon): A multishot weapon that fires a spread of pellets with the possibility of knocking back enemies at close range. It has the lowest range of all the weapons mentioned here, and reloads in 16 ticks. It also uses its own unique form of ammunition.
Handcannon: Perhaps not the most realistic weapon but interesting nevertheless. As the name suggests, it is a small handheld cannon/bazooka. It takes 24 ticks to reload and has a small delay before firing and will make the player explode if it goes off while the player is switched to another item in their hand. It uses cannonballs for ammunition and will hurt the player if they fire it too close to themselves.
Pepper-box pistol (modified): A multi-barrel pistol that has a "staggered fire" effect that acts like rapid fire. It holds 7 rounds that deal a smaller amount of damage than flintlocks and black powder rifles. When the player right-clicks while holding this weapon, it will fire a stream of rounds (with a 1 tick delay between shots) until it is completely emptied.
Repeater RiflePossible enchantments:
Venting I-II (Repeater rifles only): Increases the amount of time before the weapon overheats.Fin
I'm actually in favour of adding early renaissance era guns.
I Support the black powder rifle and blunderbuss, but not the others.
My suggestions: Enhancements - Throwable Fire Charges - On Phantoms and Elytra. Also check out The Minecraftian Language. This signature is not here to waste your space.
This thread lacks in detail. Whenever posting a thread, try to focus on a smaller amount of suggestions and expanding upon them instead of posting a lot and barely giving any detail.
Noted. I tried not to be super descriptive initially because people nowadays don't read long posts. Also, I'm not entirely sure what amount of damage would be considered too little or too much . Should I include a concept model for the weapons and their crafting recipes as well?
Yes.
My suggestions: Enhancements - Throwable Fire Charges - On Phantoms and Elytra. Also check out The Minecraftian Language. This signature is not here to waste your space.
Formatting can be quite helpful in getting people to read longer posts ( qv. https://www.minecraftforum.net/forums/minecraft-java-edition/suggestions/2893770-muskets for a nicely done and relevant example ).
Giving you're best estimate for an appropriate amount of damage (and similar details) at least gives responders a basis from which to work…
This is the sort of thing discussion is supposed to refine in any event….
A concept model (assuming you mean a graphic) is unnecessary, but may be considered a nice addon… (Such can also help break up the text into less intimidating blocks )
Crafting recipes are another detail that can be refined by feedback, but having a defined base from which to start the discussion is helpful.
Not strictly relevant, but you may also want to refine your terminology:
Flintlock refers to a firing mechanism (as disticnt from matchlock, wheellock, and the more primative heated wire through hole)
Blackpowder refers to the propellent (for essentially all firearms through the mid 19th century)
Blunderbuss generally meant a shorter (carbine length) shoulder weapon with a flared barrel. (A pistol version was most commonly a dragon.)
Handcannon is typically used historically for very early firearms; basically a pipe (with one closed end) mounted on a stock that could be carried by one man and was fired by the aforementioned heated wire and hole (later evolving into match fired models).
Repeater rifle is typically used to describe a rifle (as distinct from a smoothbore) with magazine and thus capable of firing multiple tiems before being reloaded. The term is generally limited to models that require manual cocking (eg the Winchester '73) rather than the more modern semi-automatic weapons. [Both are one trigger pull equals one shot, but repeaters are most unlikely to overheat due to rate of fire – a problem generally limited to fully automatic fire (and some high end Gatling principle platforms).]
Staying with historical usage is helpful in convenying the intent of the item and avoids confusion arising when common historical and immediate usage do not coincide.
Realistically, the reload speed of a smoothbore muzzleloader would by on the order of 600 game ticks (30 seconds). [Assuming a skilled weilder and near optimal conditions]
Decreasing this by a factor of 5 [based on RL longbows being capable of ~6 shots per minute and skeltons firing every 2 seconds] would give a reload speed of ~120 game ticks (6 seconds).
This would make the rate of fire ~1/2 that of a MC crossbow.
Of the names listed, the historical handcannon would be least disruptive of current combat, the 'repeating rifle' the most.
I was typing this from my phone at midnight and haven't had much time to edit the post until now. :/
Combat in MC can be somewhat intense and its unlikely that the average player would want to wait a relatively long time to reload. The handcannon was meant to be more of a bazooka-like weapon for players that like a heavier style of fighting. As for the repeater rifle mentioned here, I gave it that name because the original crafting recipe concept had redstone repeaters (like a rapid clock).
Depends on the situation, and a long reload could help balance the weapons. For starters, the Pepperbox would be more useful.
I'd recommend to make them specialized weapons that, rather than being good in a fight, tend to each be more suitable for a different situation. For instance, the pepperbox would be better at fighting crowds, and the blunderbuss would be better against airborne targets or if aiming precisely isn't possible.
The amount of damage each weapon deals should be described.
Finally, I recommend swapping the Handcannon for bombs, as the effect would be similar while also being more realistic and adding a thrown weapon.
Suggestions:
New Death Animations. "Mr Amppl50, I don't feel so good" -fishg
Lead Ore
Wind revamp and hot air balloons.
I agree with you on adding guns, although I will say that 4 guns seem like a little bit much considering we only have 1 bow, soon to be 2. (Can you even really count a crossbow as a bow?)
I also agree with you that any of this crap about video games causing gun violence is unwarranted and silly, considering Lego Star Wars has guns, albeit laser guns. Censoring weapons from kids isn't going to stop accidental gun deaths, teaching people how to treat weapons responsibly will. (I could get into an argument about how taking guns from people is just ignoring the root problem of the violence, but I don't want to start yet another political argument like the last one that happened with the climate change suggestion.)
The two guns I like here are the Hand Cannon and the Blunderbuss, but I feel like going any further with that gets rid of the need to use a bow or a crossbow. I like the Blunderbuss because it shoots a spray of bullets, which means that it's great for crowd control. The Bow/Crossbow, on the other hand, can still be useful after getting a Blunderbuss to hit single targets.
The Blunderbuss also seems useful when fighting the Ender Dragon or the Wither, which moves quickly and might be harder to hit, but shooting a spray of bullets means they might fly through three or four when you shoot the weapon.
While you can shoot fireworks from a crossbow, I still like the idea of the hand cannon. Perhaps in addition to shooting cannon balls, the hand cannon could shoot magma charges like ghasts or blazes do, letting you set fire to an opposing castle from a distance. (While it's true this could be used to grief, remember that the hand cannon takes time to charge, and lightning has a similar effect. Also, for concerned server owners, protection plugins still exist.)
Another idea for the hand cannon shooting splash potions further! The current range of a splash potion is way too small, and rarely can you use one without getting the effect yourself, unless you drop the potion from the air. Shooting it from a hand cannon would fix this issue, although the effect of potion arrows should probably be amplified to balance this.
The enchantments seem useful too, like adding a larger area of effect to the hand cannon, although the pinpoint does lose it's purpose if flintlocks and black powders are removed...
Lastly, the cannons and bullets should be firable from a dispenser for consistency's sake.
The recipes of the items are crucial, though, and I'd put those in your post. For example, I'd make bullets require at least an iron nugget so that they're semi-expensive to use, and the accuracy of the bow is preferable when ammunition is limited.
Mostly Support.
My avatar is a texture from a small block game I made in Python. It's not very good and it probably won't work if you install it.
I'm very alone in my Minecraft worlds as I don't have a very good internet connection to run a server. If you're like me, you might be interested in my Posse mod suggestion.