Bow Techniques

[AlexanderHowl]

I was wondering if anyone had come up with offensive techniques for the Bow beyond the limited amount given in Martial Arts that they would be willing to share? I will get things started.

Arching Fire (H)

Defaults: Bow-2
Prerequisite: Bow; cannot exceed prerequisite skill

This technique involves releasing an arrow at an arching attack that uses gravity to assist you in avoiding your target's defenses. First, roll a Quick Contest of Arching Fire against your opponents best ranged combat skill before your attack roll. If you win, you may subtract your margin of victory from your victim's defense roll. If you lose, your victim anticipates your attack and adds his or her margin of victory to his or her defense. You may combine the effects with a Ranged Feint or a Ranged Deceptive Attack.

[Refplace]

I would just opt for the Attack from Above modifier.

[Rupert]

If you're far enough away for this to work, and it's just you firing, a bit of care would force the target to make a perception roll to realise they're under fire, and thus allow them no active defence at all if they fail.

There's no way I'd allow a technique that for 3 points gives you an automatically applied Deceptive Attack at double normal effectiveness. It's just too good, given it costs no time and against a melee combatant you're probably rolling your strongest combat skill vs. one of their weakest. I'd be highly dubious of even -1 defence per 2 points of success. At the very least they should be able to roll against Shield skill if they have it.

[Fred Brackin]

I would call this situation Aiming at a Hex for +4 but only the 9 or less to hit anyone in particular in that hex. Location will be random. Any Active Defense would require a Per roll except for using a Shield as Cover.

1/2 D range would be multiplied by 2/3rds to reflect the greater amount of air the arrow flies through.

This could still be the most efficient form or archery at long range.

There's no realistic way you can aim worth crap doing this but in a Cinematic campaign (and especially for Heroic Archers or Weapon Masters) a GM of a mind to be helpful could allow a Deceptive Attack using arcing fire as a rationale. It'd probably be at a much smaller arc.

[(E)]

What if even a successful arching shot used the scatter rules. Little chance of an actual hit, but it would make people want to raise their shields above their heads leaving the shields out of position to block other blows. You might even factor in a time delay on the arching shot to reflect travel time.

[DouglasCole]

Note Korean bow tourneys are conducted at 140m or so...or -11 to hot, with a fair bit of accuracy. It’s noncombat, but competitive, so fixed range and hex fire apply.

Accurate arcing fire is possible. It’s just hard, and of course the massed version of this is “hit the general area 200-275yds away.

[Tomsdad]

I think arching fire with the express intention to make it hard to defend against is basically just a deceptive attack? And I'd treat it as such.

The added complication here is that doing this at short range and at full draw is going to be really, really hard.

TBH the nature of aching shots and bow range are pretty tied together, in that at long range your going to be doing arching shots just to get there! (and I don't think I'd give all bow shots that are long range enough to require arcing fire to get some extra penalty on the target defence).


But as has been said if your doing this at long range and your target isn't immediately aware of the shot, they going to need to roll a pretty good perception roll to get a defence anyway!

I know there are stories about archery combat tactics that involved sending arching shots and then flatter trajectory shots that reach your target at the same time in order to get past shields. But I think the requisite precise timing needed would make make this very hard to pull off. That said I'd let people try (subject to max flight times) with a penalty, with the result being getting multiple defence pens*. Also even if you fail to execute it exactly, you still end up with two shots at your target so it's not a complete loss!


*EDIT maybe even getting an additional dual weapon attack type defence penalty on a good roll

[ericthered]

Rapid Light Fire (H)

Defaults: Quick Draw (arrow)-4
Prerequisite: Bow; Quick Draw (arrow); cannot exceed prerequisite skill; May only be performed at a bow with a ST rating of 5 under yours or less.

Otherwise known as the Lars Anderson stunt. This is a realistic technique, not a cinematic one, allowing arrows to be removed, knocked, drawn, and shot all in one fluid motion requiring an all-out-attack. Please note the strength rating on the bow.

I'm not really sure of the specifics on this one, but it seems to fit.