Should composite bows require an Exotic Weapon feat?

[pbd]

Not only...

do I agree that you should not have to take an exotic weapon feat to use a composite longbow effectively, I think that weapon focus/specialization for longbow (or shortbow) should cover the composite version also. I think it is unreasonable for an archer, who spends a great deal of time learning to use bows effectively, to be taken aback just because the new bow is harder to pull...

Composite and non-composite bows are not fundamentally different; the same mechanics for aiming and firing are involved.

 

[Jeff Wilder]

I've always thought a longbow (composite or otherwise) should be an exotic weapon. Real life-wise, it required a lot of training to use with any effect, and game-wise, it is a far superior weapon to crossbows.

Bows do require significant training (I say this as a long-ago champion archer), but I can't imagine they require any more training than effective use of a sword (I say this as someone who's never swung a sword in his life).

It's true, of course, that anyone can swing a sword, but it's also true that anyone can loose an arrow. Given a 25-pound fiberglass bow and a 15-yard target, I could have any person of average hand-eye coordination consistently hitting points with 90 minutes training, tops. (It gets much, much harder from there, of course.)

I agree with others ... the training to use a bow is adequately represented by making it a martial weapon.

As far as crossbows go, I think they should have an inherent +1 or +2 bonus to attack rolls, due to their flat trajectory and point-and-shoot nature. But that's a different issue.

 

[DanMcS]

As far as crossbows go, I think they should have an inherent +1 or +2 bonus to attack rolls, due to their flat trajectory and point-and-shoot nature. But that's a different issue.

Crossbows effectively have a +4 bonus compared to bows, since they're simple, not martial. That works for me.

 

[Darklone]

Except for that cute dwarven greatcrossbow

 

[Terath Ninir]

No.

-- Brief Spikey.

 

[Laurel]

I think that weapon focus/specialization for longbow (or shortbow) should cover the composite version also. I think it is unreasonable for an archer, who spends a great deal of time learning to use bows effectively, to be taken aback just because the new bow is harder to pull...

Wait they don't cover all the same ones- shortbow= regular and composite!!!! Grrr!!! Shoot! Dang! I guess I didn't read that one right, just assumed (I know bad idea) they would be covered the same :-( Time to look over that feat again :/

 

[disgruntledarcher]

As someone interested in the mechanics, I think that for Composite Longbows to be exotic, they'd have to deal at least 1d10 damage. Otherwise the Feat is wasted.

Hence the invention of the Great Bow