20-lber Unicorn

Wonderfully versatile and breathtakingly powerful, the unicorn is the crowning achievement of Russian artillery.

This impressive piece of artillery, named for the unicorn traditionally engraved on the barrel, has fantastic range capabilities and fires a wide array of shot types. A howitzer and cannon hybrid, the unicorn is operated by skilled artillerymen who, although expertly trained in the firing of cannons, lack skills required for effective defence in melee. However, the power and versatility of the unicorn guns on the battlefield more than make up for this weakness.

The first unicorn was cast by Andrey Chokhov, a Russian gun founder who began his career during the reign of Ivan the Terrible (1547-84). He supervised the creation of many of Russia’s most famous artillery pieces including the behemoth “Tsar Pushka”, or Tsar Cannon. This masterpiece was commissioned by Tsar Feodor and weighed a whopping 38 metric tons. It originally sat on a wooden carriage that was later destroyed during Napoleon’s attack on Moscow in 1812. It now sits in the Kremlin next to the “Tsar Bell”, the biggest bell ever made but never rung.

20-lber Unicorn have a range of about 2,300 meters when firing standard shot. Its most accurate range is at around 550 meters.