Hello everyone and thank you for taking the time to review this post. I wasn't sure if this what this would be exactly so I decided to post it here in Research since it sort of is research. We are all familiar with the whole knife to a gun fight comment and the perpetual debate of which is better(guns of swords)among other things. Oh the horror! Well I'm here about that very subject. Swords were used in armed conflict for a very, very long time and even long after the first rifles. Heck we still see some of them floating around the battlefields of today in certain places. When exactly have swords generally been considered to have lost their usefulness? How could it regain its usefulness with in a fictional story where six shooters, shotguns and rifles are common place? I thought about just pulling the whole "explain it away with magic" since the world is of a deeply magical nature. As usual I'm stuck in conflict, mid development, without a very good way out. Could it be possible that a culture simply developed down this route, would it really be that unlikely? I really look forward to any replies and thanks again for taking the time to look at this.
Hey, I think the difference between a gun and a blade is the up close and personal aspect of a blade compared to a bullet. Another thing to consider you can run out of bullets but your blade will always be useful. Your story could explain that only cowards use guns and even though they are available to buy they are considered and inhumane weapon (like mustard gas is).
Bayonets on firearms were still very common even as of WWI, and can be seen as the logical descendent of the sword in battle. A bayonet makes a rifle continue to serve as a weapon long after the ammunition is exhausted. Create a situation where ammunition is hard to come by or create, or where your hexslingers can neutralize the explosive power of gunpowder, which is how projective bullets do what they do.
Guns take ammo and unless the one using it is barbaric enough to use it as a club, it is essentially useless. A sword can be used as a weapon as well as a tool, that will never run out of ammunition. Look at the lore of Warhammer 40K, they have both guns and swords and other melee weapons. (This is a three part series on the topical lore, but this is the first of them.) Even though in modern day we don't use bayonets anymore, we still issue combat knives. A guy could simply use a piece of pararcord and bind his knife to his rifle, and now he has a dual function weapon. This is a little strange but they actually make bayonets for pistols with lower rails. So after looking into the practicality of having swords in a world of ranged weapons, you find that they are useful if you employ them skillfully. Even during the revolutionary and civil wars in America they used swords even though they also had cannons and muskets. I hope this has been helpful to you in your exploration of incorporating blade weapons in a range weapon arena.
As far as I'm aware, spears more than swords were used in most of pre-musket warfare. Less metal meant they were far cheaper to make en mass, as well as quicker for blacksmiths to forge. Swords were more of a societal thing - only the rich could afford them, making them a sign of wealth and prestige. Also, if you take a look at swords throughout history, you'll see that they reflect the cultures and attitudes of the time. The efficiency of the Roman gladius, the artistry of Japanese katanas, the I'm-bigger-than-you-ness of Scottish claymores, the elegance and pomp of later-medieval rapiers. You get the idea. In the early years of gun warefare, almost every officer would have a sword at their hip - and not just for symbolic reasons. When you're out of ammo and in the midst of battle, much better to have a blade than be forced to use your gun as a club. So they keep their relevance there, at least. And then there's the cultural argument. In a culture where swords have an importance place - symbols of power or authority - they might still be used alongside guns, even if they aren't particularly useful in battle. See here for an example. 'In with the new' will always be a thing, but some people are more attached to 'the old' than others and simply don't want to see it go. If in doubt, watch The Last Samurai.
