Given the general unwieldiness of the arquebus, how would you make Bane's Adder a weapon that could have actually killed Azalin?
it still bothers me that the art isn't even the right kind of gun lmao
HI BUGG <3 So the killjoy answer to the question is that no matter what advancements or alterations I could feasibly make to a lich-slaying firearm to make it the perfect weapon for the job to definitively take down a corpse wizard permanently, unfortunately for everyone (and also himself), Azalin is among the Dark Powers' favorite chew toys so there's always the probability that he'll be back eventually even if he isn't the one willing it so.
HOWEVER I'm here for fun, so let's talk about shooting an undead wizard-king with a gun. Important note for everybody reading this before I get into my thoughts is that I am very much so not an expert on firearms or weaponry from any era of history in general, so take anything I say with a hefty grain of salt. This is probably going to be less about specific logistics anyway, but still.
In my opinion the process of reloading is probably the biggest issue with Bane's Adder as written. If you miss the shot or the damage isn't enough in only one go, then that's 10 minutes needed to clean the barrel and then reload You would very easily be reduced to a fine powder in less than half that time by a very angry lich, so I would say the solution there would to make it a firearm with:
a less arduous/shorter reload process,
more precise targeting, easier handling, or somehow ensuring this thing is perfectly stabilized so you're less likely to miss and the reload time won't be as much of a concern,
or silent enough that if you do miss the shot you aren't loudly broadcasting your location to everything in earshot, even if reloading still takes some time (casting Silence is an option if possible), in conjunction with being able to move yourself and the gun quickly enough elsewhere before you're caught
On top of that, the depiction of it as a blunderbuss rather than the described arquebus adds the additional complication of it firing in a wide, much less accurate range which, uuuhh, yeah no sticking the arquebus would be more sensible in comparison and that's saying something. When I brought the question up to @churchyardgrim their suggestion was a rifle; something high power and high precision. I agree that would be the best bet, a rifle would be more effective and have more accuracy than an arquebus would.
Obviously no matter what it'd still need to be a magic item, because otherwise it's entirely useless in any attempt to send Az' to an actual final grave. The main magical power of Bane's Adder is that different properties are imbued into the ammo based on the material used. That I don't really have any opinions on? Not really, and to be honest I'm unsure which of the mentioned materials was intended to be used in the attempt to assassinate Azalin that's described in the text. Platinum would make the most sense, the text says any creature able to cast wizard spells are especially vulnerable to it being used for the gun, but that's an assumption. Platinum bullets sounds like an arduous process to acquire in it of itself, but if its worth it to kill peepaw then whatever you gotta do I guess.
Really whatever kind of magic you could feasibly imbue into the damn thing (and the ammunition, the gunpowder, and the paper cartridges which the text doesn't mention but is how an arquebus would realistically work) and any alterations one could make to the firearm, you would need to account for his phylactery as much as you would the man himself. If you could somehow enchant a bullet to hit him and also have that be tethered to that big golden dragon skull too, or vise versa, then you're probably as good as you possibly could be in this situation outside of the inevitable cascade of subsequent consequences. I have no idea if there's any specific spells in all of DnD that can make damage inflicted on a target also effect an object elsewhere at the same time, but at this point I'm just kinda spitballing ideas. If that's not viable then the best I've got is that you do everything in your power to destroy the phylactery first; then, like, make peace with yourself and/or brace yourself for what comes next, and then shoot him.
To be honest that is kinda the best I've got. I could have put more actual research into firearms or DnD mechanics for this, even just purely for the fun of it, but alas. This was fun to try and put into words though!
Also for anyone who hasn't seen it, here's the art of Bane's Adder from Forged of Darkness, a 2e book of magic items for Ravenloft. Yes that is a weird little monster mouth with teeth around the muzzle, it is a very silly and impractical gun.
