Unique weapon of the Ming Dynasty — Yi Wo Feng (一窩蜂)

MINOR UPDATE OCTOBER 1, 2026

Yi Wo Feng (一窩蜂, lit. 'Nest of bees')

Drawing of a Yi Wo Feng, from 'Wu Bei Zhi (《武備志》)'.

The famous Nest of Bees was a thirty-two shot multiple rocket launcher. Although often lauded as the "first handheld multiple rocket launcher", the Nest of Bees was more often used as a wagon-mounted weapon. Unlike most other Chinese multiple rocket launchers that launched smaller rockets, the Nest of Bees carried thirty-two full sized Shen Ji Jian (神機箭) rockets, and said to have a maximum range of three hundred paces.

Read more