system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: Why did so many pirates use swords when firearms existed?
gpt
Firearms existed, but were hard to reload. What you would likely have at the time period you are referring to is a flint lock pistol. It took about 90 seconds to reload, could not hit a person across the length of a ships deck, could not be wet, were not powerful enough to reliably kill someone, might not go off at all and blinded you first with a flash and then with a huge cloud of smoke. So if you were able to get a shot off you would likely be charged and had to find another weapon within seconds. Some people carried multiple pistols which allowed them to fire multiple rounds before reloading. However you would have to rely on close combat weapons that did not have any of the problems of a gun. Even as guns improved soldiers were still using knifes to fight in WWI. However in WWII guns and tactics had changed so soldiers rarely relied on their knife, although they were used in some situations where guns were inferior.