"It's not my preferred mode of self-defense, but I assure you that I am perfectly capable of operating this primitive firearm."

Smaller bodies of men would skirmish around these columns, firing with crossbows or primitive muzzle-loading firearms called the arquebus.

They poured over the side of the Viking dragon-ship, one or two with primitive firearms, most of them hefting a weird variety of edged weapons.

Heavy rain slowed Padilla's infantry more than the royalist cavalry and rendered the primitive firearms of the rebels' 1,000 arquebusiers nearly useless.

"In other words, they're primitive firearms."

It is cheerfully anachronistic and light-hearted, set in a fantasy Great Britain of long ago, with mythical creatures, medieval knights, and primitive firearms.

The primitive firearms available in the more civilized countries increased the soldiers' abilities to terrorize and extort the population, but gave little power to the civilians' abilities to resist.

At that time, they had compelling advantages over the primitive firearms of the day.

Inside the house, Radcliffe had earlier seen to it that his primitive firearms and other weapons were loaded, and was keeping them within reach.

Those were six or eight men clad in archaic clothing, bearing swords, what were probably some sort of primitive firearm, and at least one big, broad-bladed ax.