Cinematic Archery: How to fire multiple arrows with a single shot

[Kromm]

Originally Posted by tbone

Dungeon Fantasy 11: Power-Ups has the Double-Shot ability, which draws and fires two arrows at once.

You specifically mention wanting to fire 3+ arrows, though, so maybe you're already using this? (If so... perhaps it can be adapted for use with 3+ arrows.)

Extend the penalties per arrow as far as the GM is willing to tolerate and redo the math on the power-up, which has two chunks:

1. Fast-Draw at -2 × (total number of arrows) to ready more than one arrow at a time: -4 for two arrows, -6 for three, -8 for four, and so on. This comes from Martial Arts, p. 103. The penalty is halved for either Heroic Archer or Weapon Master (Bow): -2 for two arrows, -3 for three, -4 for four, and so on. It's divided by 4 and rounded in the character's favor for both: -1 for two or three arrows, -2 for four or five, and so on. The associated Hard technique is nonstandard, and requires a Unique Technique perk and Heroic Archer. This leads to:

Prerequisite: Heroic Archer.

Unique Technique (Double-Draw) [1]

Either:

Double Draw (H) Fast-Draw+0 [3] for two arrows, [4] for three arrows, [5] for four arrows, and so on without Weapon Master

or:

Double Draw (H) Fast-Draw+0 [2] for two or three arrows, [3] for four or five arrows, and so on with Weapon Master

2. Bow at -4 per arrow after the first, on all attacks, to shoot more than one arrow at a time. This is normally limited to -4 for shooting two arrows at once; see Martial Arts, p. 83. The GM could allow -8 for three, -12 for four, or whatever suits the campaign. Heroic Archer halves the penalty: -2 for two arrows, -4 for three, -6 for four, and so on. The associated technique is Hard and requires Heroic Archer or Weapon Master (Bow). This leads to:

Prerequisite: Heroic Archer or Weapon Master (Bow).

Either:

Dual-Weapon Attack (H) Bow+0 [5] for two arrows, [9] for three arrows, [13] for four arrows, and so on without Heroic Archer

or:

Dual-Weapon Attack (H) Bow+0 [3] for two arrows, [5] for three arrows, [7] for four arrows, and so on with Heroic Archer

→→

The Double-Shot power-up assumes the character has Heroic Archer, might have Weapon Master, and is shooting two arrows:

Unique Technique (Double-Draw) [1]

Double Draw (H) Fast-Draw+0 [3] for two arrows, or [2] with Weapon Master

Dual-Weapon Attack (H) Bow+0 [3] for two arrows with Heroic Archer

That's 1+3+3 = 7 points without Weapon Master, or 1+2+3 = 6 points with Weapon Master.

→→→

Tri-Shot (like in the film) would assume the character has Heroic Archer, might have Weapon Master, and is shooting three arrows:

Unique Technique (Triple-Draw) [1]

Triple Draw (H) Fast-Draw+0 [4] for three arrows, or [2] with Weapon Master

Triple-Weapon Attack (H) Bow+0 [5] for three arrows

That's 1+4+5 = 10 points without Weapon Master, or 1+2+5 = 8 points with Weapon Master.

→→→→

Quad-Shot would be the sanest limiting case for human hands. It would assume the character has Heroic Archer, might have Weapon Master, and is shooting four arrows:

Unique Technique (Quadruple-Draw) [1]

Quadruple-Draw (H) Fast-Draw+0 [5] for four arrows, or [3] with Weapon Master

Quadruple-Weapon Attack (H) Bow+0 [7] for four arrows

That's 1+5+7 = 13 points without Weapon Master, or 1+3+7 = 11 points with Weapon Master.

—

I wouldn't back-calculate bonuses for using just two arrows with Tri-Shot or just three with Quad-Shot. Too bad, so sad. You're a machine gun, so stop complaining.

And as Double-Shot says, you get full range and damage, but need Enhanced Tracking to get Accuracy for more than one target. If it all seems too generous, requiring Enhanced Tracking 1 (Multiple Lock-Ons, +20%) [6] for Double-Shot (making the real cost 13/12 points), Enhanced Tracking 2 (Multiple Lock-Ons, +20%) [12] for Tri-Shot (making the real cost 22/20 points), or Enhanced Tracking 3 (Multiple Lock-Ons, +20%) [18] for Quad-Shot (making the real cost 31/29 points) seems like a completely justifiable control. It would also explain actually hitting several people.

If you decide to use this with quick-shooting, remember to apply its penalties, or slap on the Quick-Shot power-up for another 5 points (3 points with Weapon Master).