"I mean, it makes an awful stink, for Grungni's sake, and smoke everywhere, stings your eyes something rotten it does. Still, they're better than those contraptions the Manlings cart about these days..."
- —Durgrim Redmane, Hammerer
A battleline of Dwarf Thunderers taking aim.
Thunderers are those Dwarfs that have been trained in the use and maintenance of a customized handgun or firearms, forming into their own regiments of armor-piercing missile infantry. It took many, many years after the Dwarfs had discovered the revolutionary use of black powder before the handgun became widely used as a weapon. Indeed, in these earlier times, these handguns were held with great suspicion by the highly conservative Dwarfs, with the earlier prototypes usually being only given to Dwarf Engineers. Now, however, nearly all the Dwarf Holds within Karaz Ankor can now field whole regiments of Thunderers -- the name given to handgun-equipped units.[1a]
Standing in closely packed ranks, Thunderers take aim and then discharge their handguns — unleashing a thunderous fury and a cloud of gun smoke. Although not quite as long-ranged as a crossbow, the sturdy Dwarf handgun packs an even deadlier shot, its bullet fired with such velocity it can tear through armour and better take down more heavily protected foes, such as Chaos Warriors.[1a]
Due to the cost in both creation and maintenance, handguns are usually only afforded by Dwarfs of fairly high status or wealth, and as common with their race, these Dwarfs often exhibit a great degree of affection and pride in their handguns. This affection usually results in further customization to the owner's preference, which usually results in Dwarf handguns being far superior in both firepower and accuracy than any other forms of firearms in the world. Although Dwarfs show great solidarity in the face of outsiders, it is commonly known that there has been a certain degree of rivalry between regiments of Thunderers and Quarrellers in many separate occasions. Given the Dwarfs' bitter nature and their overzealous pride in their preferred weapon, these arguments are usually not 'good-natured'. Although not prone to acts of murder or betrayal, many a good drinking session often erupted into a bloody brawl when the millenia-old question gets raised, which is better: the crossbow or the handgun?[1a]
However, these rivalries are often expunged when a greater enemy threatens to destroy the Kingdom of the Dwarfs. When called into battle, these Dwarfs would marshall around their own Clan regiments and fight in a tight-formation on the battlefield. When the enemy is within sight, these Dwarfs form up into ranks where each row of Thunderers will take aim and unleash a murderous barrage of armor-piercing bullets with deadly precision. Being methodical, the Dwarfs continue to load and fire in a disciplined manner, so long as their foes are within range. Even when the enemy advance close, almost right up on top of them, Thunderers will seek to get off one last shot. While the onset of bloodthirsty foes might cause lesser races to rush their aim, the steady coolness of the Dwarfs, not to mention the precision make of their weaponry, ensures that every volley is fired with the same lethal accuracy as the last, until the moment the Thunderers take up their axes and meet the foe’s charge in the bloody press of close combat. In short time, these Dwarfs transform into a shield-wall of axe-bearers who are just as durable as a regiment of Dwarf Warriors.[1a]
