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Old 01-10-2018, 11:52 AM   #1
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Default Countering archers and bows?

Hey there, I am playing a swashbuckler and I have been struggling a lot, against archers and their bows. They are in the hills, then far away behind rocks, then we have those heroic archers that run away and shoot.

Normally it is 3-8 archers, against a party of 4.
None of us has ranged attacks (this setting was for testing purposes; however, it got fun and then this happened).

I need to something to stop this, but I would not like to employ a bow (bows are nice, but I don't want to employ bows).

What can I do?
-Hide

Last edited by Hide; 01-10-2018 at 12:04 PM.
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Old 01-10-2018, 11:59 AM   #2
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You have two options. Either the party needs to get really good at Stealth and get close to the archers before they get a chance to turn you into pincushions, or, you need to convince your GM to do something besides try to turn you into pincushions as you spend the entire game just trying to catch an archer.
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Old 01-10-2018, 12:00 PM   #3
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Originally Posted by Hide View Post
Hey there, I am playing a swashbuckler and I have been struggling a lot, against archers and their bows. They are in the hills, then far away behind rocks, then we have those heroic archers than run away and shoot
Are you a party of one or do you have support? Generally, a single melee fighter against a group of archers, starting at range, is not going to go well for the melee fighter. Sounds like a firing squad.

If you have a typical DF party, a Wizard or Cleric could use spells like Shield, Missile Shield, Deflect Missile, etc. to protect you, a Knight could use Shield-Wall Training and a large shield to Block for you, a Scout could fire back at the enemy, a Druid could summon animals to stand in front of you and soak attacks, etc.

If you're alone, you'll want Acrobatics (to make Acrobatic Dodges), a high Basic Speed (for a good Dodge), a shield (for the DB, and so that you can Block as well as Dodge), enough FP to use Extra Effort for a Feverish Defense whenever you're allowed to, Acrobatic Stand (to get up quickly after a Dodge-and-Drop), a high Move (to close distance quickly and also to potentially increase effective range for the archers if your Move is 10+), and a decent HT (so that you make your knockdown and stunning rolls when you're inevitably hit).
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Old 01-10-2018, 01:16 PM   #4
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There's no sensible way for an obligate melee guy to be advantaged against multiple shooters starting the engagement from good positions. That's a fight you have by all rights lost before you draw your blade.

You could try going hard into Parry Missile Weapons, though.
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Old 01-10-2018, 02:05 PM   #5
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Originally Posted by Ulzgoroth View Post
You could try going hard into Parry Missile Weapons, though.
This would be my suggestion as well. Or alternatively pick up a big shield and block the shots.

...possibly both.



Also note that it takes 3 turns to fire an arrow. You can advance at half-speed using All Out Defense: Dodge. And run when they are reloading. So they can't really run from you AND shoot at you.
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Old 01-10-2018, 02:20 PM   #6
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Also note that it takes 3 turns to fire an arrow. You can advance at half-speed using All Out Defense: Dodge. And run when they are reloading. So they can't really run from you AND shoot at you.
A bunch of Heroic Archers aren't likely to spend time reloading that way.
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Old 01-10-2018, 02:37 PM   #7
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Magic or not? Cinematic or realistic?
Shields are an option, ranged counter attacks are a better one.
If you dont want to use bows, how about spears or slings? Heck, if their close enough even throw rocks and sticks hoping to mess with their aim.
Evasive maneuvering and cover can help too.
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Old 01-10-2018, 09:11 PM   #8
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Originally Posted by Ulzgoroth View Post
There's no sensible way for an obligate melee guy to be advantaged against multiple shooters starting the engagement from good positions.
Agreed. If shooters didn't enjoy a significant advantage over melee fighters when properly shooting from far off, people wouldn't use ranged weapons.

Solutions for the swashbucklers are as everyone has suggested: get behind cover, or counterattack as quickly as possible, or don't get ambushed in the first place.

Shields are a help, though as noted, they can only block one arrow per turn. One aid to the swashbucklers might be rules that allow shields to act as cover, not just tools for active defense. That allows a shield to stop multiple arrows per turn – or even stop an arrow when the fighter doesn't have an active defense (something not possible under RAW, I believe).

I don't think there are any published options for treating shields as cover. You can read my take here; others might have alternate takes. In any case, such an option might make a difference when shield-charging those pesky bowmen!
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Old 01-11-2018, 04:09 AM   #9
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Magic exists, but it is not widely employed right now; the campaign is more or less cinematic...
OK if you can't persuade the GM to allow parrying arrows as a setting tweak, you could go with Parry missile skill (I guess you have a good basic DX). Tie that with Enhanced parry and trained by a master for multiple parries.

Acrobatic dodge is good

Does "Dodge this" in Pyramid 57 allow for parrying arrows (I don't have access to it where I am right now)

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But, can't a buckler or a shield block an attack just once?

- Hide
MA allows for multiple blocks but at a hefty -5 penalty.

Last edited by Tomsdad; 01-11-2018 at 07:41 AM.
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Old 01-11-2018, 05:04 AM   #10
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Default Re: Countering archers and bows?

The pavis was specifically designed for this situation. It should be treated as movable cover. You stand it up and duck behind it until they shoot a volley. Then you advance a few steps and do it again. This tactic won't help you catch the archers but it will let you capture and hold ground.
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