Fire Lance / Fire Spear

Timeline

1. 1101–1110Directorate of Armaments, Eastern Capital · KaifengBetween 1101 and 1110, based on the gunpowder formulas in the Wujing Zongyao, the Song court experimented with fire spears—gunpowder packed in bamboo tubes lashed to spear shafts (later called early fire lances)—used for close-range flame bursts and disrupting enemy formations; still at the stage of equipment exploration rather than army-wide issue.
2. 1105–1110Frontier commanderies and armies of Shaanxi · ShaanxiDuring this period, frontier garrison towns besides bed crossbows and bows and arrows were also equipped with thunderclap fire bombs, fire spears and other incendiary firearms, hurled down from the walls or deployed at close range when enemies attacked, forming a combined defense system with traditional cold weapons.