Draft:Longbow

Omega 0.90.4

Longbow(Base damage rating12Base hit bonus+15Normal attack typeMissileHands2Weight100

A longbow is a two-handed launcher for arrows. It allows repeated shots without the separate loading action required by a crossbow, and contributes its wielded combat ratings to archery.

Generation

Longbows occur in random treasure, pawn-shop stock and acquirement. Their item level is 2 and base value 300 Au. Julie's does not stock them, so its normal equipment price formula does not provide a guaranteed longbow purchase.

A generated bow rolls blessing and enchantment independently of any ammunition. Acquiring a bow does not also create a supply of arrows; they are separate objects from the same weapon generation pool.

Shooting

Wield the bow in both weapon hand and ready hand, and keep arrows accessible for Fire/Throw. Select an arrow, then a target. The bow remains equipped while one arrow is fired; no loading action precedes the next shot. A separate shield can still be worn.

The hit check uses current character hit, including the active bow's +15 and enchantment. On a hit, the damage rating is current character damage + arrow damage + arrow enchantment + twice the Strength modifier. The arrow's own +3 hit rating is not added to the shot's hit check. Full formulas, projectile loss and obstacles are described in Shooting and throwing.

Bow shots deal ordinary physical damage. Enchanting the bow improves accuracy and the ordinary damage contribution, but does not defeat physical immunity. Firing a bolt while holding a longbow does not receive the arrow's launcher bonus.

Other uses

The bow can be used in melee through the saved attack sequence; that invokes an ordinary weapon hit rather than firing an arrow. It can also be thrown, at the cost of giving up the launcher and recovering it afterward. Tunneling uses its base damage without the thrusting multiplier and can damage it on a mishap.

Strategy

The longbow's main advantage over the crossbow is firing pace: it gives up eight base damage points, but weighs 50 less and requires no intervening loading action after a hit. Both have +15 base hit. When an enemy is closing, those extra opportunities to shoot or move may matter more than the larger crossbow damage rating.

Maintain distance and carry enough accessible arrows to avoid inventory work during the approach. A missed arrow normally remains recoverable, and even a successful hit only has a one-in-four projectile-destruction chance. Recovery can still expose you to the target or nearby enemies; do not count arrows on hostile ground as ready ammunition.