Archery Related Skills

By Isaac X-S.

Fletching

Character knows how to properly attach feathers to the ends of arrows. He can cut and burn all types of fletch shapes and knows how to make Greco. Base Skill: 35% +5% per level of experience.

Bowyer

Character knows how to build all different types of bows. This includes self, built, composite, backed and flat bows (not compound). He can make all the different kinds of limb curvatures and special features, and is proficient in making bowstrings. Base Skill: 30% +5% per level of experience.

Snap Shooting

This is the practice of firing arrows for the purposes of speed, sometimes not even bringing the bow to full draw. It is useful in situations where there are numerous opponents around and the archer is not so much concerned with accuracy, just body count.

Archery Rate of Fire reflects the speed at which an archer can properly and precisely fire an arrow. With snap shooting, the archer starts with being able to fire two snap shots per Archery Rate of Fire action (each shot is evenly distributed through the course of the action). Each of these snap shots incurs a -6 strike penalty. At levels 6 and 12, the archer can fire an additional snap shot per Rate of Fire action. Even as the number of shots increases, the penalty always stays at -6 to strike for each arrow. Remember that these are rushed and hectic shots made for speed, not quality. Though this skill effectively increases an archer’s Rate of Fire when he chooses to use it (like archery multi-actions), it is not usually advantageous to do so. Snap shots come at the cost of accuracy (strike penalties). In most circumstances, it should be preferable to use standard Archery Rate of Fire and forego snap shooting.

In addition, an archer levels 1-11 will only be able to fire his snap shots at half draw. This means that all of his snap shots will have only half range and half damage (half the bow’s base damage, not the arrow’s). Trying to fire a snap shot at full draw is not possible until level 12. At 12th level , the archer can now fire all his snap shots at full draw (full range and damage).

Some GMs may think this is too fast for an archer to move, as at higher levels the archer will become devastatingly quick with his bow. If you don’t like it, limit the number of snap shots the archer can perform per Rate of Fire action, or increase the penalty to strike. Better yet, if you think its unrealistic or unbalancing, don’t use it. Snap Shooting costs two skill selections.

Trick Shooting: Archery

Also called trick archery, this is the practice of firing an arrow with a bow in unconventional and unusual ways. However, this does not apply to all types of bows. Trick Shooting: Archery only applies to one bow type (short bows, longbows, or crossbows). To have Trick Shooting with more than one bow type, the archer must spend additional skill selections. Costs two skill selections per type of bow selected. Secondary skills cannot be traded for Trick Shooting.

It should be noted that some of the following tricks can only be used with certain types of bows. An archer who takes this skill can perform all the tricks applicable to his bow type.

1. Can fire a traditional two-handed crossbow with only one hand (assuming its light enough) without penalty (normally the shooter loses all bonuses to strike).

2. Can fire a crossbow bolt over his shoulder using a reflection of some sort to aim. Reduce bonuses to strike by half.

3. Accurately fire an arrow or bolt while riding a mount. Strike bonuses are halved. However, Rate of Fire is still halved and called shots are impossible (-8 to strike and strike bonuses don’t apply).

4. Shoot accurately while standing on head or hanging upside down. Bonuses are not affected.

5. Dodge, roll or somersault and come up shooting (normally a wild shot). No bonuses or penalties to strike; straight dice roll. For short bows and crossbows only.

6. Ricochet shot! The archer can bounce arrows and/or bolts off of a durable surface and angle the shot in such a way that the projectile ricochets/bounces off and hits a different/second target. Inflicts only one point of damage to the first surface and standard damage to the second. Reduce bonuses to strike by half.

7. Can fire more than one arrow at once. Firing two arrows simultaneously incurs a -6 strike penalty to each arrow. Firing three at the same time incurs a -9 to each arrow. However, any archer with this skill can still nock and fire all the arrows within one melee action. Archers without this skill can still attempt to shoot multiple arrow at once but it will take them two actions to set the arrows up and fire them. A bow must have the appropriate number of arrow shelves in order to fire multiple arrows (see Special Features for Bows in the Bow Construction section). Shooting multiple arrows without multiple arrow shelves is possible, but each penalty to strike increases by -5.

Mounted Archery

The full description of this skill can be found in Rifter #19, pg. 35. It helps to negate many of the penalties that archers incur when using the bow and arrow while riding a mount. Rate of Fire is returned to normal and the penalty to strike reduces by 1 every 3rd level of experience (3, 6, 9, 12, 15). Archer must have some sort of Horsemanship skill to begin with. Costs two O.C.C. Related skills.