History Main / TheMusketeer

* [[Literature/{{Sharpe}} Richard Sharpe]] carries a Baker rifle and a [[{{BFS}} 1796 pattern cavalry sabre]]. It's distinctive because rifles and muskets were only carried by the rank-and-file infantry, while swords were the WeaponOfChoice for [[UpperClassTwit gentlemanly]] officers. Sharpe's choice to wield both represents his [[FieldPromotion rise from "the ranks"]].

* ''MoriartyThePatriot'': As the series is toward the end of the 19th century, swords and guns were both quite common, but most characters favor one or the other. William, however, favors a SwordCane but breaks out a revolver for a number of engagements, particularly during ''The Two Criminals'', with no blade to be seen.

* In ''Film/SuckerPunch'', the girls, other than [[AcePilot Amber]], are this. [[TheLancer Sweet Pea]] uses assault rifles/[[SawedOffShotgun shotguns]] (for long-range) and a claymore (for melee). [[TheBigGuy Blondie]] uses {{BFG}}s (for long-range) and [[AnAxeToGrind an axe]] (for melee). And [[TheChick Rocket]] uses assault rifles/[[SawedOffShotgun shotguns]] (for long-range) and a short sword (for melee). [[TheHero Babydoll]] uses both her SwordAndGun straight-out.

* Common in ''VideoGame/EternalDarkness''; every character from the 18th century onward can wield a combination of a bladed melee weapon and a firearm. Maximilian Roivas has a saber and flintlock pistols; Peter Jacob has a bastard sword, a revolver and a rifle; Edward Roivas has the saber, a revolver, a double shotgun and an elephant gun; Edwin Lindsey has a [[KukrisAreKool kukri]], a pistol and a shotgun; Michael Edwards has his fire ax and an [[RareGuns OICW]]; and Alex Roivas has a gladius, a revolver and a shotgun.

[[folder: Western Animation]]

** ''VideoGame/DarksidersGenesis'' shows that Strife himself, in addition to carrying around Mercy and Redemption, also wields two swords for when something survives his barrage long enough to get into close range, meaning he was TheMusketeer [[{{Prequel}} before]] any of his siblings.

* Invisible Black Musketeers appear as enemies in Episode 1 of ''VideoGame/ScoobyDooFirstFrights''.

* SolomonKane's usual tactic when confronting multiple attackers is to discharge both his pistols, then draw his rapier and dagger.

* The standard for European gunpowder infantry in the 15th to 17th centuries was that they carried a musket/arquebus and a sword, popular variants including the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spada_da_lato sidesword]], [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basket-hilted_sword broadsword]], [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapier rapier]], [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sabre saber]], and [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katzbalger arming sword]]. The musket/arquebus was almost always a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matchlock matchlock]], though early flintlock mechanisms were infrequently used since the mid 16th century. The cavalry on the other hand carried a sword, multiple flintlock or wheellock pistols, and possibly a carbine, lance, and/or axe. After the invention and quick spread of the socket bayonet, swords were mostly restricted to the cavalry, the infantry by and large deciding that bayonets were adequate enough that carrying a separate melee weapon was unnecessary (exception: throughout the 18th century and well into the early 19th it was expected that grenadiers, officers, and sergeants would still carry a sword to use in addition to their bayonets).
* When gunpowder was first invented, pikemen were supposed to support the gunpowder units, which were separate from them. Later on, with the advent of socket bayonets, the pike element became less important until it was dropped entirely, as what both sides were holding were basically short spears that fired stuff.

* The standard for European gunpowder troops in the 15th to 17th centuries was that they carried a musket/arquebus and a sword, popular variants including the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spada_da_lato sidesword]], [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basket-hilted_sword broadsword]], [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapier rapier]], [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sabre saber]], and [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katzbalger arming sword]]. After the invention and quick spread of the socket bayonet this was mostly restricted to the cavalry, the infantry by and large deciding that that bayonets were adequate enough that carrying a separate melee weapon was unnecessary (exception: throughout the 18th century and well into the early 19th it was expected that grenadiers, officers, and sergeants would still carry a sword to use in addition to their bayonets).

* While some of the earlier musketeers also carried a sword, which they would draw when closing in for hand-to-hand combat, most rank-and-file soldiers were too poor to own one. Instead, before the advent of the bayonet, they would simply wield their musket as a two-handed club by using the heavy stock to crush heads and limbs. After the advent of the bayonet, the basic musketeer fully fit the trope - musketeers armed with one became the standard infantryman and tactical doctrine held that infantry would shoot their muskets while defending against other enemies at range, but brace their bayonets against cavalry and charge with their bayonets to attack (due to the musket's low fire-rate lacking the same morale-breaking power as a horde of men charging at you to stab you). The earlier plug bayonet fit the trope even more starkly - troops had to place their bayonet into their musket's barrel, preventing them from shooting, making it especially blatant their two main weapons were the musket and bayonet.
* When gunpowder was first invented, pikemen were supposed to support the gunpowder units, which were separate from them. Later on, with the advent of decent bayonets, the pike element became less important until it was dropped entirely, as what both sides were holding were basically short spears that fired stuff.

* The Highland Charge was developed to give Scottish armies an edge against better equipped and better trained armies in this way. The enemy line could be broken up and their morale shattered while the Scots were just getting started with their new one-handed claymores. Against armies who held ranks they tended to get massacred though. In fact, the dreaded Highland Charge helped lead to the development of the socket bayonet, which unlike the previous plug bayonet, fit over the barrel of the musket and allowed it to shoot and stab all at once. Therefore, the English units were able to enter the battle with already fixed bayonets instead of having to equip them while a horde of screaming Scotsman with BFS bore down on them. The swords of this period were one-handed light swords similar to a later broadsword. It was certainly not the claymore most people envision when they hear the word. By the 17th Century, gunpowder had completely dominated the battlefield and any heavy infantry with armor and a BFS was a relic waiting to be slaughtered. The charge relied on a light targe, a broadsword or dirk, momentum, and a movement which left the English infantry helpless just long enough for them to be cut down.

* Early Russian riflemen would use a ''two-handed battleaxe'' as their melee reserve weapon, and as a gun rest to steady their aim.
* As soon as guns made it to Japan, the Samurai became Musketeers. Miyamoto Musashi's famous Book of Five Rings covers the importance of the gun and of using it well as an essential part of a samurai's training. Guns saw heavy action in the Sengoku Jidai period before the unification of Japan under the Tokugawa shogunate. The Battle of Nagashino is the most famous example of what happened to those who didn't see the writing on the wall, where already-common firearms were used by Oda Nobunaga from behind wooden fences in rotation to deliver devastating fire that destroyed Takeda Katsuyori's cavalry.

* While most warriors using both ranged and melee weapons in the ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' setting in the [[SwordAndGun pistol and close-combat weapon style]], it is possible to deck out most leader-type models with a rifle of some sort and a melee weapon on the ready. Certain other models, such as the Ta'u Empire's Kroot hunters does this as well - if only because the Kroot's melee weapon ''is'' their rifles as well.

* The titular character of ''Series/TheMandalorian'' is occasionally seen using a knife in combat, but he becomes this full on in Chapter 13, after receiving the Beskar spear. Becomes a CheckovsGun come Chapter 16, when he takes it to fight Moff Gideon... [[spoiler: and comes away as the holder of the ''freaking Darksaber'']].

** ''[[Franchise/ShinMegamiTenseiPersona Persona]]'': In the first ''VideoGame/{{Persona}}'', the playable characters can alternate between a melee weapon or a ranged weapon with the grid based battle system. The ability to equip every character with both melee weapons and firearms then disappeared from the series for a decade, before finally returning in ''Videogame/Persona5''.

* During the climax of the ''ComicBook/SinCity'' tale, ''Hell and Back'', the main character duel wields a pair of Colts and has a machete available. Incidently, he eventually [[ThrowingYourSwordAlawaysWorks throws the machete to kill a mook from a distance]].

* ''VideoGame/{{Bayonetta}}'' being something of a SpiritualSuccessor or {{Expy}} of [[VideoGame/DevilMayCry Dante]] also fights like this. Unlike most Musketeers, she also has guns on her ''feet''.
* Kenji from ''VideoGame/BattleRealms'' gains a pistol halfway through the campaign to complement his sword, and will fire it when he's not engaged in a melee or ordered to attack.
* A variation in ''VideoGame/StarcraftII'': While all units have a single damage value (sometimes two for different target types), they can use a hidden animation if attacked in melee that does the same damage but isn't considered a ranged attack (i.e. hydralisks, queens and roaches who normally spit needles or acid will use their massive, otherwise unused except for cutscenes claws).
* ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2SonsOfLiberty'' plays with this a lot. [[SupportingProtagonist Raiden]] uses guns for most of the game, but is able to quickly master using a [[KatanasAreJustBetter katana]] near the end. Likewise, Solidus Snake, the game's BigBad, prefers to fight DualWielding but is capable of using the P90.
* ''VideoGame/StarTrekOnline'' allows this, as the player character can equip two weapons and switch between the them while in combat. It's completely possible, and often very helpful when fighting enemies that like to get in your face, to pair a standard issue Federation phaser with a Klingon bat'leth, or any other combination of ranged and melee weapons.
* Common in ''VideoGame/EternalDarkness''; every character from the 18th century onward can wield a combination of a bladed melee weapon and a firearm. Maximilian Roivas has a saber and flintlock pistols; Peter Jacob has a bastard sword, a revolver and a rifle; Edward Roivas has the saber, a revolver, a double shotgun and an elephant gun; Edwin Lindsey has a [[KukrisAreKool kukri]], a pistol and a shotgun; Michael Edwards has his fire ax and an [[RareGuns OICW]]; and Alex Roivas has a gladius, a revolver and a shotgun.
* In the ''[[Franchise/AssassinsCreed Assassin´s Creed franchise]]'':
** [[Videogame/AssassinsCreedIII Connor]] can use up to two guns combined with either a tomahawk, a sword or even an axe.
** [[Videogame/AssassinsCreedIVBlackFlag Edward]] can use four of them (Understandably as he is a pirate) combined with two swords of different kinds.
** [[Videogame/AssassinsCreedRogue Shay]] can use either normal guns or a GrenadeLauncher combined with a sword and a small dagger.
** [[Videogame/AssassinsCreedUnity Arno]] uses pistols and rifles as well as rapiers.
** [[Videogame/AssassinsCreedSyndicate The Frye twins]] carry revolvers as well as Kukris and {{Cane Sword}}s.
* ''[[Videogame/MountAndBlade Mount & Blade: With Fire & Sword]]'' is set in 17th century when firearms technology were at its early stage and coexisted with older combat weapons & tactics. As such, there are lots of combatants capable in fighting with both of these weapons, like the Musketeers itself, obviously with their muskets & swords, the Russian Streltsy which is armed with older guns but carries a large battleaxe, the Zaporozhian Cossacks, formidable swordsmen who also had handmade carbines, and the heavily armored Reiters, gunpowder-era knights who traded their lances with pistols.

* The Pirates from ''VideoGame/PiratesVikingsAndKnights'', in particular TheCaptain and the Skirmisher, who use cutlasses in combination with a blunderbuss and pistol, respectively.
* ''VideoGame/{{PAYDAY 2}}'' allows for this to an extent, as the player characters are equipped with two guns and a QuickMelee weapon. Normally the melee is just PistolWhipping or even putting the gun away for a second to engage in GoodOldFisticuffs, but they can also take anything from small knives to heavy great swords and katanas.
* The Stranger, the protagonist of ''Videogame/{{Furi}}'', uses a pseudo-laser katana and a laser pistol. You can switch between them fast enough, but since he two-hands both of them, he never dual-wields them.f
* Rachel from ''VideoGame/NinjaGaiden Sigma 2'' fights with a large hammer and a machine gun. She also uses this combo as a guest fighter in ''VideoGame/WarriorsOrochi 3''.
* The {{Ranger}} class in ''VideoGame/XCOM2'' wields a shotgun and a machete-like sword. The Slash ability allows them to close in and attack even if they have to dash (use two action points to cover distance) to do so.
%%* As of ''VideoGame/MonsterHunterWorld'', all Hunters are this by necessity. Because of the New World being a DeathWorld, the old classification of Blademaster and Gunner is dropped, allowing all Hunters access to the entire arsenal. It's downplayed in a way, because you can only use either a melee weapon or a ranged weapon at a time.
* ''VideoGame/{{Darksiders}}''
** The first game has War starting out with his [[{{BFS}} Chaoseater]], but he'll eventually acquire [[HandCannon Mercy]], one of his brother Strife's guns.
** ''VideoGame/DarksidersII'' has Death starting out with his SinisterScythe and acquiring various other melee weapons, but he'll canonically acquire [[HandCannon Redemption]], Strife's ''other'' gun as well.
** ''VideoGame/DarksidersGenesis'' shows that Strife himself, in addition to carrying around Mercy and Redemption, also wields two swords for when something survives his barrage long enough to get into close range, meaning he was TheMusketeer [[{{Prequel}} before]] any of his siblings.

* ''LightNovel/TheAmbitionOfOdaNobuna'', the titular character uses both a [[KatanasAreJustBetter sword]] and a rifle alternately for different types of engagements.

* During the climax of the ''ComicBook/SinCity'' tale, ''Hell and Back'', the main character duel wields a pair of Colts and has a machete available. Incidently, he eventually throws the machete to kill a mook from a distance.

* The Marvel Comics {{Elseworld}} ''The 5 Ronin'' transplants familiar Marvel characters to Japan under Ieyasu Tokugawa's rule. The series' version of the Punisher is an expert swordfighter and an ace gunman, but depending on the situation he will only use one weapon, his rifle or his katana.
* ComicBook/{{Deadpool}} is very agile and has a teleporter, allowing him to swordfight against modern-day opponents while still having guns and grenades as projectiles.

* In ''Film/TheLastWitchHunter'', when fighting the witches, Kaulder alternates between his CoolSword and HandCannon.

* ''Literature/TheThreeMusketeers'' do this, though they're better known for using swords. Since swords were the standard sidearm of the day, most of the book isn't spent in line combat, and guns of the day were single-shot weapons, it's quite understandable.

* ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'': Both the Knights of the Cross and the Wardens carry magical swords (holy swords for the Knights, AntiMagic swords for the Wardens) as their primary weapons. However, the Knights' swords lose their power if used in a way that contradict their principles[[note]]e.g. the user breaking a promise will depower the Sword of Faith[[/note]] and killing a human with magic is punishable by death, so both groups round out their arsenals with firearms and high explosives.

* In any game of TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons or TabletopGame/{{Pathfinder}} where guns exist, this trope will be ubiquitous. Due to the ClassAndLevelSystem, a character's chance to hit is highly dependent on whether they belong to a fighting class and their level, barring GameBreaker exploits of the system. Every character is going to carry at least one hand weapon and at least one missile weapon, even the SquishyWizard. Many characters are far more powerful at range or in melee, and many other characters would only resort to physical attacks when desperate, but they ''all'' will still follow this trope. If there are no guns, expect BowAndSwordInAccord to be just as common, with characters who can't use bows using slings, crossbows, or anything else they may have.

* ''Franchise/StarWars''
** Possible in ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'' with a blaster and a melee weapon. There's not always a lot of point to it though, unless you're far enough away from the enemy to get in two shots before melee begins.
** ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublicIITheSithLords'' makes this easier than the first game by making guns more useful through a host of new feats and damage boosts. It also features a weapon swap hotkey so you can quickly swap between ranged and melee weapons if you want to.

* ''Franchise/RatchetAndClank'' is mostly known for its bigger weapons, but the wrench is not to be lightly discarded, especially in the early game. There's also the Plasma Whip from ''[[VideoGame/RatchetAndClankUpYourArsenal Up Your Arsenal]]'', basically a vamped up, longer ranged version of the wrench, and the Shock Ravager in ''[[VideoGame/RatchetAndClankFutureToolsOfDestruction Tools of Destruction]]''.

* In the first two ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'' games, it was possible to switch quickly between two weapons without AP costs if equipped for that. Too close? [[DropTheHammer Drop The Sledgehammer]]. It's still possible, but not as intuitive, in the [[VideoGame/{{Fallout 3}} third]] and [[VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas fourth]] games (you have to assign weapons to number keys, like in traditional FPS games, and ''New Vegas'' takes away one possible slot to use its key for an entirely different mechanic instead).
* ''VideoGame/ArcanumOfSteamworksAndMagickObscura'' permits this combination.
* ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}: VideoGame/DawnOfWar 2'' has Tactical Marines which are durable units that shoot at enemies by default, but actually achieve a better damage per second with melee attacks, and have a 'Melee Resistance' aura for themselves that reduces melee damage taken (all other melee units in the game has this).
** A number of units in the ''Dawn of War'' series are like this, in fact, armed with both a long-range firearm and some form of melee weapon, with the player given the choice to make them use one or the other depending on the situation. They also automatically switch to melee if attacked at that range, which creates quite a headache when CripplingOverspecialization happens. Interestingly, the Tau commander has no melee attack, so he flies up, shoots at the ground, and lands, then starts again.
* Captain Titus in ''VideoGame/Warhammer40000SpaceMarine'' can attack equally effectively with his ranged weapons and melee weapons.
* ''VideoGame/AgeOfEmpiresIII'' had musketeer units - true to the trope, their ranged attack is useful against melee-based units, but their melee attack is what makes them good against cavalry and had a better damage per second statistically.
* ''VideoGame/BorderlandsThePreSequel'' has the PlayerCharacter Athena's Xiphos tree (having skills to make enemies bleed from your melee attacks and then also causing your shooting to benefit from that), Nisha's Order tree (largely increases survivability from taking lots of damage, but has melee and gun damage-related skills to benefit from that as well), and Claptrap's Fragmented Fragtrap (skills that relate to ''pretty much everything'', at the cost of the mechanics causing the bonuses being {{Random Effect Spell}}s with appropriate drawbacks as well that the player must constantly adapt to to maximize).
* ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyModernWarfare2'' has the Commando perk that make your knife attack from farther away at no cost to your ability to shoot down range, and the 'Tactical Knife' attachment for {{Handguns}} that allow you to hold your knife while using a handgun to make your knife hit faster, also at no cost to your ability to shoot with it. ''World at War'' allows for bayonets with most rifles, and the trench gun.
** These are actually part of the reason for some players' dislike of ''Modern Warfare 2'', where the knife has an infamous reputation for being ''[[GunsAreWorthless better]]'' than firearms, due to the knife's instant-kill property no matter where it hits on an opposing player's body, whereas almost all firearms take multiple hits to kill unless they hit the head, which is rather difficult to do intentionally.
* In ''VideoGame/SidMeiersPirates,'' your character can have a flintlock pistol to fire at the opponent before a sword fight, having them start out pushed back.
* Every [[PlayerCharacter Tenno]] in ''VideoGame/{{Warframe}}'' can be equipped with a melee weapon, primary ranged weapon, and secondary firearm. The former often sees just as much use as the latter two, especially with the right mods equipped.
* In many ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei'' games, the player character can use both swords and guns. Swords are typically preferred for raw physical damage, while guns tend to be more specialized in party-targeting attacks, elemental damage, and inflicting status ailments.
** ''[[Franchise/ShinMegamiTenseiPersona Persona]]'': In the first ''VideoGame/{{Persona}}'', the playable characters can alternate between a melee weapon or a ranged weapon with the grid based battle system. The ability to equip every character with both melee weapons and firearms then disappeared from the series for a decade, before finally returning in ''Videogame/Persona5''.
** Raidou Kuzunoha XIV of ''VideoGame/RaidouKuzunohaVsTheSoullessArmy'' and ''VideoGame/RaidouKuzunohaVsKingAbaddon'' uses both Sword and Pistol when going against demons, and while generally the sword does better damage, guns are very useful in both games due to their secondary properties (ability to load elemental bullets in ''The Soulless Army'', the ability to stun foes in ''King Abaddon'').

* Lightning from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII'' is an interesting case because her sword and gun are combined into [[SwissArmyWeapon one weapon]] that changes between the two.
* Alph from ''VideoGame/LuminousArc'' mainly uses a sword, but he pulls out a rifle for his special attacks.
* ''VideoGame/AgeOfWonders2TheWizardsThrone'' has [[http://aow2.heavengames.com/gameinfo/units/humans.shtml#swashbuckler Swashbuckler]] unit, good both in melee with his cutlass and ranged attack with a pistol.
* Kyle Katarn and his apprentices Mara Jade and Jaden Korr, the protagonists of the VideoGame/DarkForcesSaga, are lightsaber-wielding Jedi who also make use of blaster weapons, heavy machine guns and rocket launchers.
* The Kid of ''VideoGame/{{Bastion}}'' is capable of using both a variety of guns and various melee weapons. In the setting, the Slingers were known to use machetes and dual revolvers.
* Several of the musket units in the ''VideoGame/TotalWar'' series are pretty good in melee, such as the Matchlock Samurai in ''VideoGame/TotalWarShogun2''. Same with the Shinsengumi Police in ''Fall of Samurai'', a special unit of "Battlefield Police" who are armed with both Katanas and modern rifles.
* The Dwarvish Thunderer line of units in ''VideoGame/BattleForWesnoth''. While their primary weapons are definitely their single-shot "thundersticks", their backup daggers aren't too shabby in melee either (indeed, the basic Thunderer's dagger attack is straight-up ''more'' powerful than the human Bowman's short sword).
* The O'Carroll brothers in ''[[VideoGame/SangFroidTalesOfWerewolves Sang-Froid: Tales Of Werewolves]]'' carry an axe and either a rifle or a musket as their personal weapons switching between the two at need.

Not to be confused with SwordAndGun, which is when this trope meets DualWielding. Subtrope of ChoiceOfTwoWeapons. See also BowAndSwordInAccord, which often serves the purposes of this trope in older settings.

** Main character [[BadassLongcoat Dante]] always fights with his [[GunsAkimbo dual]] [[TheGunslinger handguns]] [[NamedWeapons Ebony & Ivory]] and his sword [[{{BFS}} Rebellion]]