Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
D&D Older Editions
3.5- Multiple shots with a bow?
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Man in the Funny Hat" data-source="post: 5254975" data-attributes="member: 32740"><p>IRL bowmen do NOT shoot thier bows when they find themselves in melee range of opponents - they draw a melee weapon and/or run away. Real world archers in combat were seldom making direct-fire shots at the enemy either - they were using indirect fire, at maximum range, from MASSED ranks of archers in order to kill the enemy by sheer volume of deadly hail. Direct fire situations would be more like... when the enemy is assaulting your castle walls and then you're firing your bow from battlements and arrow slits (that is, from a fixed position with MAXIMUM cover to protect you from counter-fire.)</p><p> </p><p>D&D structures combat in a wholly unrealistic way from top to bottom. In every edition. It may <em>mimic</em> reality occasionally but it is not now and never has been a MODEL of reality. If you want to argue against how it arranges the rules for bows in combat you're VASTLY better off arguing it from a strictly gamist viewpoint. Bows work the way they work in 3E D&D for no other reason than the game wants to encourage the use of melee weapons over missile weapons without making missile weapons actually pointless. If bows and swords were EXACTLY EQUAL in their utility in combat that would tend to result in EXACTLY EQUAL usage by PC's and NPC's/monsters. That simply would look and feel WRONG to have bows and arrow an equal partner to sword and shield.</p><p> </p><p>Ditto for two-weapon fighting, witch objectively is about the silliest notion you could care to dream up and lacks almost ALL basis in reality. But it looks cool. Therefore rules are adjusted to make it not just possible but practical - which in reality is just ludicrous.</p><p> </p><p>You think the rules for bows are stupid. You could be right. I might even agree with you. But there's objectively nothing wrong with how 3E handles it, just as there's nothing wrong with simply changing them to suit your own tastes. Just leave the comparisons between real life (even personal experience) and D&D out of it because reality and D&D combat have VERY little to do with each other.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Man in the Funny Hat, post: 5254975, member: 32740"] IRL bowmen do NOT shoot thier bows when they find themselves in melee range of opponents - they draw a melee weapon and/or run away. Real world archers in combat were seldom making direct-fire shots at the enemy either - they were using indirect fire, at maximum range, from MASSED ranks of archers in order to kill the enemy by sheer volume of deadly hail. Direct fire situations would be more like... when the enemy is assaulting your castle walls and then you're firing your bow from battlements and arrow slits (that is, from a fixed position with MAXIMUM cover to protect you from counter-fire.) D&D structures combat in a wholly unrealistic way from top to bottom. In every edition. It may [I]mimic[/I] reality occasionally but it is not now and never has been a MODEL of reality. If you want to argue against how it arranges the rules for bows in combat you're VASTLY better off arguing it from a strictly gamist viewpoint. Bows work the way they work in 3E D&D for no other reason than the game wants to encourage the use of melee weapons over missile weapons without making missile weapons actually pointless. If bows and swords were EXACTLY EQUAL in their utility in combat that would tend to result in EXACTLY EQUAL usage by PC's and NPC's/monsters. That simply would look and feel WRONG to have bows and arrow an equal partner to sword and shield. Ditto for two-weapon fighting, witch objectively is about the silliest notion you could care to dream up and lacks almost ALL basis in reality. But it looks cool. Therefore rules are adjusted to make it not just possible but practical - which in reality is just ludicrous. You think the rules for bows are stupid. You could be right. I might even agree with you. But there's objectively nothing wrong with how 3E handles it, just as there's nothing wrong with simply changing them to suit your own tastes. Just leave the comparisons between real life (even personal experience) and D&D out of it because reality and D&D combat have VERY little to do with each other. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
D&D Older Editions
3.5- Multiple shots with a bow?
Top