Okay, maybe if it was a bow or crossbow, and you had a very precise ranged attacker you could use the strategy of shooting into melee. But even in the first mission we already had the instance of that backfiring as Ceann shot an ally (Rayvon) by accident in doing so. A blackpowder weapon has even less accuracy (incredibly less) and does far more damage. To try and shoot into combat with that would be liable to cripple an ally. THIS IS NOT ADVISABLE. So Raen. To have a cannoneer shoot ahead of the group with that before falling back in the midst of the party as the chargers charge forth is actually quite smart.