User:Erin Umbreon/Sandbox/Gunbreaker/Lore
The Hrothgar of northern Ilsabard have passed the art of the gunblade from one generation to the next. The weapon itself combines a sword with a firing mechanism, emitting a range of magical effects by utilizing aetherially imbued cartridges. Originally employed by Queen Gunnhildr's personal guard, they were once known as "Gunnhildr's Blades" and differ greatly from the similarly named weapons used in the Garlean Empire.
A Gunbreaker's Panoply
Form & Function
While they fulfilled a role similar to the Sultansworn, the royal protectors of Queen Gunnhildr eschewed each plate and chainmail as Ul'dahn paladins prefer. The reasons for this are twofold: Firstly, the Bozjan monarch was, above all, a shaman whose religious duties required concentration in silence—a silence too fragile to survive the ambient clanking of armored guards. Secondly, the annealed metals of traditional armor are poor conductors of aether, so those legendary gunbreakers chose to clothe themselves in long leather coats more appropriate to their craft.
While trends of fashion come and go, this fundamental preference for leathers over steel has survived, and modern gunbreakers strike a silhouette shockingly like that of their precursors.
— Encyclopædia Eorzea Volume III, p. 250