01-24-2022, 10:24 AM | #41 | |
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Luxembourg
|
Re: Archery in this game kind of sucks.
Quote:
And of course, behind the other players. If they attacked a well situated outpost with no weak spot, crewed with well-armored ennemies in such number that they can overcrowd the other players and get to the archer(s)... well, attacking was probably a mistake. |
|
01-24-2022, 10:27 AM | #42 | |
Join Date: Dec 2020
|
Re: Archery in this game kind of sucks.
Quote:
Anyway the bow, even if itīs easier to learn than in 3rd Ed itīs a weapon for a specialist, and without quick draw arrow a very hard to play role which needs the whole team work together and swallows nearly all CP you can get. If you want a distance weapon but donīt want to put nearly all the points in this skills, use a crossbow, you will most likely have only one shot, but it does more damage than a bow and has also bodkin tips if you want. After that lay it on the ground and switch to close combat kit. |
|
01-24-2022, 04:07 PM | #43 |
Join Date: Jul 2015
|
Re: Archery in this game kind of sucks.
More clarification for those that care:
Players are 160 point characters including 25 point regeneration. So I don't have a lot to work with so far. My group was attacking a post. We started with two archers shooting before the melee charged in, I was one of the archers. When I attacked, the GM stated 30 yards away. My arrow bounced off the enemy's armor. The next round, my companions were attacking in melee range while I was stuck readying for another shot. It's a low tech level, almost primitive with stone arrows and weapons. It's a regular bow I have as my village doesn't know jack about weaponry. So no steel arrows, no armor piercing. This is the first we have even seen armor. I have ST 13 with strongbow, but nobody in the village is stronger than a 14 for bow use, so that's the best I could get at the time. Regular bow, TH+1. It just hasn't been fun having to attack every two rounds (skill 18, no weapon master or heroic archer yet, so I can't quick shoot effectively), and when I actually hit something that doesn't dodge, 50% of the time I don't deal any damage and the rest of the time I don't do enough damage to really matter. Our GM doesn't like changing things. He also doesn't like to allow much more beyond the basic book rules, so I'm stuck with what it is. I also can't discuss things with the GM as he's sensitive and takes everything as a criticism of his GMing ability. Thus the /rant. It's really all I can do. Last edited by Boge; 01-24-2022 at 04:40 PM. |
01-24-2022, 04:40 PM | #44 | |
Join Date: Oct 2019
|
Re: Archery in this game kind of sucks.
Quote:
What about the other archer? How has their experience been? Do either of you have other combat skills, or are you pure archery? What equipment do the melee characters have? Do they also only have stone weapons and no armor? What has their experience been? Again, it all sounds like the problem isn't simply that archery sucks, but that you have a GM that is doing everything they can to invalidate you. Intentionally locking you out of basic equipment and letting melee fighters essentially teleport into combat are things that really need to be addressed with your GM. EDIT: Saw your edits right after I posted. If your GM is hell-bent on invalidating you and impossible to communicate with... why are you still playing with them? No game is better than a game that makes you miserable. |
|
01-24-2022, 04:44 PM | #45 | |
Join Date: Jul 2008
|
Re: Archery in this game kind of sucks.
Quote:
(It's not a great setup for archery, since whacking mail with maces is probably one of your best options at that tech face-off, but you did nearly get the guy in the face on your first shot.)
__________________
I don't know any 3e, so there is no chance that I am talking about 3e rules by accident. |
|
01-24-2022, 04:53 PM | #46 | |
Join Date: Jul 2015
|
Re: Archery in this game kind of sucks.
Quote:
Some of the issues are because of the setting, a lack of decent equipment due to very low tech lvl. I'm guessing we'll eventually learn more and those options will become open to me. The GM is my brother. The group of players are my best friends. They don't have a lot of time to hang out doing other things. They enjoy Gurps, so I join them. I have fun overall, but I'll admit some changes would make a big boost to my enjoyment. There are a million things I'd love to discuss with our GM, but he's just too busy to take any new rulings into consideration. I'm "stepping on his toes" or "undermining" him if I know some things he doesn't. So I've taken a back seat approach recently, not saying anything about any rulings or anything really. Again, I feel like there isn't a solution and I didn't expect so many people to respond trying to help find one. Thus the rant. I'm just ranting as I know I can't fix the issue. What I've gathered from this post is that the effectiveness of archery in Gurps is very situational, and I haven't been presented with the proper situations for my character to shine. It just feels I still should be more effective with my current setup. But the ranged penalties, DR, and archery damage are just low without special advantages, techniques, etc. Last edited by Boge; 01-24-2022 at 05:22 PM. |
|
01-24-2022, 05:34 PM | #47 | |
Join Date: Jul 2008
|
Re: Archery in this game kind of sucks.
Quote:
This is completely reasonable by both realism and balance perspectives. Ranged weapons prior to repeating firearms just don't operate in the same timescale as melee striking. Swashbucklers run around with a sword for practical reasons, not for style points. A bow with fast draw and preferably Heroic Archer is closer than most things but it's still not going to catch up. It's just not the right comparison to make, and if the game you're playing demands that comparison, the answer is to either push back or switch weapons. Have your previous archers never brought this into focus? What did they have going to avoid being out-damaged?
__________________
I don't know any 3e, so there is no chance that I am talking about 3e rules by accident. |
|
01-24-2022, 06:07 PM | #48 | |
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Sydney, Australia
|
Re: Archery in this game kind of sucks.
Quote:
There are things you can do unless your GM just shuts you down. Harmony is good, and no GM wants to be under pressure all the time, but not taking any feedback isn't helpful.
__________________
Farmer Mortal Wombat "But if the while I think on thee, dear friend All losses are restored and sorrows end." |
|
01-24-2022, 06:19 PM | #49 |
Join Date: Jul 2015
|
Re: Archery in this game kind of sucks.
Off the top of my head, I had two previous archers in 4th edition. One never got much play with a bow. The other was highly cinematic (different GM) and he was quite effective. But the circumstances were different.
|
01-24-2022, 07:38 PM | #50 |
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Maitland, NSW, Australia
|
Re: Archery in this game kind of sucks.
Realistically archers are only going to be useful in a battle if there are lots of them. Consider Agincourt, which is supposed to be one of the best performances of English longbowman. The English had 5000 archers shooting 60 arrows each, which amounts to 300,000 arrows. We are told that they ran out of arrows during the battle so all 300,000 were shot, and more in addition as runners retrieved some from the battlefield. French casualties during the actual fighting numbered around 4,000 and that included all the ones who were killed in hand to hand. The number who were incapacitated by arrows can't be determined but it was far less. Even if all French casualties were caused by arrows, you are looking at around 1% of the arrows being effective. In reality it was even worse than that.
__________________
Compact Castles gives the gamer an instant portfolio of genuine, real-world castle floorplans to use in any historical, low-tech, or fantasy game setting. Last edited by DanHoward; 01-24-2022 at 07:42 PM. |
Tags |
bow, ranged combat |
|
|