Caster Rifle

Caster rifles were first developed as a response to the Maelstrom as a combined effort between the Darthanians and Shal-Hadir. The idea behind the weapons was to use the ancient techniques of Enchanting to make weapons capable of channeling arcane energy, similar to how a mage does. The reasoning behind this was that they could mass produce these weapons so that they could be given to soldiers who lack Arcane Power so that they would have more of an advantage against the undead, rather than risk fighting them in melee combat. Caster rifles fire Caster Shells which are inserted into the top of the rifle and have various different effects depending on the shell.

Construction
The main body of a caster rifle is made up of wood and a light alloy, making the weapon both durable and easier to carry for man portable use. Most rifles are fairly plain as the outside serves little to no purpose, but rifles are often adorned with decoration amongst the nobility as a sign of status. However, the inside houses a trigger mechanism that, when pulled, strikes the back of any shell that is loaded into the break-barrel mechanism at the top of the rifle. In theory, the back of the shell could be struck with any object, which would make the rifle redundant. However, discharging the shell in this way would result in the round spiralling out of control or explosion. This is why, along the inside of the barrel, arcane glyphs are carved at various intersections to simulate the spell being cast by a trained mage, preventing the spell from losing control on the path to its target, which is what makes these weapons stand out over using a bow or crossbow.