Mighty Crossbows

[Knight-of-Roses]

Mighty Crossbows

These crossbows are custom built using only the finest materials. It takes exception skill to make the weapon both accurate and hard hitting. In game terms, they must be master work in order to have a Strength bonus to damage.

Hand and light crossbow may be improved up to a +2 Strength bonus to damage, while the stronger heavy crossbow can be improved up to a +4 Strength bonus to damage. Unfortunately, these crossbows are notoriously difficult to recock.

User’s Str bonus compared to Crossbow’s...Load Time

Three times or more..................Normal
Equal......................................Doubled
Less........................................Triples

If the user’s Strength bonus is 1 or more less than the crossbow’s Strength bonus (2 for a heavy crossbow), then he cannot recock the crossbow at all. [This can be applied to all crossbows if one wishes, assume that a normal crossbow has a +0 Strength bonus.]

The Rapid Reload feat drops the reload time by one level. However, due to the difficult of reloading Strength bonus crossbows, it can never be a free action to reload one.

Each point of Strength bonus granted by a crossbow costs 150 gold.


To preempt some expected questions:
Q: Why give Strength bonuses to crossbows?

A: Why not? Bows have them and the same techniques can be applied to crossbows. Note that they are much more expensive than Strength bonus bows. Primarily they are a way to give out another type of weapon with a ‘coolness factor’.

Q: Is not the progression from light to heavy crossbow enough?

A: Yes, in its own way. But heavy and light crossbow represent very different styles of weapons. Light crossbows are personal weapons for hunting or combat, able to be used from horseback and cocked by hand or with a simple device. Heavy crossbows are siege weapons, big and cumbersome, and cocked by mechanical aid.
Note that a light crossbow with a Strength bonus has no better range than any other light crossbow, leaving the heavy crossbow as the longest range weapon.

Just as a note, in my campaign slings do more damage (I think that D&D seriously underrates them as weapons) and long bows can have Strength bonuses to damage as well.

 

[Aaron2]

What about the Great Crossbow from S&F?

Also, the way the spanning chart works, there is very little incentive to actually get a xbow that fits your strength bonus. Crossbows are mostly one shot weapons anyway.

Where does it say you can't use a heavy crossbow on horseback? That's what a cranequin was designed to do.


Aaron

 

[Knight-of-Roses]

What about the Great Crossbow from S&F?

Also, the way the spanning chart works, there is very little incentive to actually get a xbow that fits your strength bonus. Crossbows are mostly one shot weapons anyway.

Where does it say you can't use a heavy crossbow on horseback? That's what a cranequin was designed to do.

1) I'll look it up, thanks.

2) I am going to tinker with the chart in a bit, making all based on pluses and minuses against Strength bonus.

3) History and practicality? There may not be a rule against it, but that does not mean it is accurate. To my knowledge, heavy crossbow were not used from horseback but I am willing to be enlightened.

Thanks for your reply.

 

[Aaron2]

3) History and practicality? There may not be a rule against it, but that does not mean it is accurate. To my knowledge, heavy crossbow were not used from horseback but I am willing to be enlightened.

I guess you see a heavy crossbow as a siege weapon whereas I see it as a typical crossbow (the light crossbow being one that can be easily spanned by hand or with a simple belt and claw). IMO, your typical crossbow should do more damage than a longbow.

Both the cranequin and goat's foot lever could be used to respan a crossbow while mounted. The pistol quickly replaced all mounted archers and crossbowmen by the 16th century.

Here's a cranequin and a slightly-too-modern steel xbow.
http://www.peterfiner.com/catalogu/firearms/5/special1.html


Aaron

 

[AeroDm]

I think I'd simplify the load times down to it just being double. Then if your strength is higher than the bow's strength, it goes back to normal. If you are lower, you cannot use that xbow.

Crossbows having strength modifiers doesn't seem overpowering at all, and the increased cost balances out what little problems could arise. I don't really see a need to complicate things with a table when simply doubling it will do.

As a further benefit, this will cause people to take on xbows that are lower than their strengths so that they don't incur the double penalty. This even further limits the possiblity of balance problems.

Finally- I'd not apply the inability to reload a crossbow if your strength is lower than the bows to non-strength xbows because the xbow is a common weapon for people with negative strengths.

 

[Pyrex]

Instead of just doubling the reload time (which does not differentiate between a +1 hv xbow and a +4) I'd require an extra standard action worth of "cranking" for each point extra point of damage.

 

[AeroDm]

Instead of just doubling the reload time (which does not differentiate between a +1 hv xbow and a +4) I'd require an extra standard action worth of "cranking" for each point extra point of damage.

This seems like way too much to me. You are going to make someone spend 4 rounds reloading a xbow just for +4 damage. I know that people have said xbows are often seen as one shot items before entering into melee, but 4 rounds is awful awful harsh. At worst I'd make it move-equivalents... Of course, I still prefer the simplisity of doubling.

Now that I think more on it, I'd probably just increase it by one type. Move-equiv goes to standard, standard goes to full, full goes to double full... this way it keeps in line with Rapid Reload.

 

[Norfleet]

Or simpler: A character, by default, has one point of cranking. A crossbow, by default, requires 1 point of cranking. Heavy crossbows require 2. Each point of strength bonus the character has gives him one more point of cranking. Each point of mightyness the crossbow has requires that much more cranking. Crossbows not operated by cranking are inappropriate for those of lesser strength. So if the crossbow is at +4, it requires 5 points worth of cranking. Somebody with one cranking point can load it in 5 MEAs. Somebody with a +4 strength bonus has 5 cranking points, and can therefore crank the sucker up in one MEA. Rapid reload reduces the cranking points required of a crossbow by 1 + character's strength bonus. If the amount of cranking required by a crossbow is reduced to 0 as a result, then he can yank it back with, say, a goatsfoot tool and fire it as quickly as any other bow.

The rules for constructing such a machine are up to the DM and campaign, the materials available being the determinant of what the maximum amount of tension a crossbow could possibly be built to hold before it rips itself apart.

 

[Kemrain]

I'm not sure I understand what Strength has to do with the damage of a crossbow. If I can get it drawn, whether physically or mechanically, and I fire it, any 'strength bonus' to damage is already applied. That's how ballista work, isn't it? My strength is irrelevant if I can get the thing cocked somehow.

But isn't that represented by giving crossbows a bigger damage die? Just a little confused.

- Kemrain the... Confused.

 

[Aaron2]

I'm not sure I understand what Strength has to do with the damage of a crossbow. If I can get it drawn, whether physically or mechanically, and I fire it, any 'strength bonus' to damage is already applied. That's how ballista work, isn't it? My strength is irrelevant if I can get the thing cocked somehow.

There are many different ways to span a crossbow. First, you can simply grab the string and pull it back. You can also use a belt claw, a lever, or a mechanical winding device.

A goatsfoot lever creates a 5:1 force increase through leverage while a winding device, such as a windlass, produces an 18:1 advantage. Thus its possible for a very strong person to be able to span a crossbow with a goatsfoot while a normal person would require the much more complicated and time consuming windlass.

The user's strength is not irrelevant since it determines what device is needed which, in turn, determines how long it takes him to span it.

From what I've seen, the Strength requirement only affect how long it takes to reload. Anyone with any strength can fire it once its loaded. Correct me if I'm wrong on that.


Aaron