Re: archery commentary

[Wright Frazier <khelek@ns1.cioe.com>]

> So, lemmie get this straight ... with a variety of rate 6 to rate 12
> spells, or a base cost 500, restricted, skill (assume you meant
> assassination for the autocrit skill), you feel the bow is justified.

I'll take my chances against an assassin, he has to hit, make his skill,
and roll well on the crit.  My chances against the divine word aren't
so good, and can reach just as far.

> 
> I can see your arguement as far as:
> Yes, these things exist.
> Yes, they too can become a pain in the GM's ass
> Yes, they wield a tremendous amount of power, much more than 1d6 at 720
> feet.
> 
> However, they also cost a good amount of experience to get hold of.
> 
> The bow merely needs to be obtained.

The bow will take a great amount of experience to get ahold of as well.
War is a fairly common feature of the past 30 years of history in Geleia.
These folks who DO carry them(no they are by no means standard issue),
know what they are doing and while a rate 40 character can probably wack
without a lot of difficulty, the average kieron soldier, you are gonna
have more headaches from what that character can do otherwise beyond
being unskilled with a bow.  He'd STILL have to find someone to train
him to use the thing, or research it.

> 
> 
> 
> By your admission, these are ISSUED (I presume not standard issue) to
> SOLDIERS
> 
> Soldiers die
> Soldiers get overrun on the battle field without chance to withdraw.

Absolutely true, and who says the king doesn't have folks going around
the island buying back lost bows or destroying them?

> 
> pick up bow from dead soldier.
> 
> bows are manufactured ... ie, they exist in some appreciable number.
> bows must be kept SOMEWHERE.
> break in and steal one (or 5)

Go for it, I'll be happy to run the adventures.  I love running breakins, they
are my favorite kind of adventure just about.


> 
> I'm just saying that with all the stories about characters being jumped by
> other characters to get magic items, what's gonna happen when a party
> encounters an ACTOR with one of these (7 ft tall and presumably
> unhideable and unmistakable) bows?  Hell, they may be jumped simply for
> the monetary value of the bow (i.e. the scarcity is an incentive to go
> after them not a deterrent)

There is intimidation factor as well.  A person carrying one of these weapons
is not your standard joe.  Further attacking someone just for their weapon
or magic item does not occur very often.  Also, Geleia is not Rougtero, there
are consequences there.  Fuck with the king's soldiers, you fuck with the
king, and thereby fuck with the King's mage's guild or torites.  Everybody
gets pissed off at you.  Further a potentate of some other power in the
Isles could garner good will from the king by returning recovered bows.

> 
> What happens when the party offers the bowyer half a million silver to
> leave geleia and come with them?  (bringing his nearly finished bow, of
> course)?

Then they get a bow.

> 
> Granted in an earlier post, you presume a character would be stupid or
> nuts to steal one of these bows, or kill over it ... However:
>  
> > A bow with a big range is not unbalancing unless you are a poor GM who
> > can't handle the situation, or a GM who hates to let players exercise
> 						   ====================
> > some free will and acknowledge that shit happens and players do some
>   ====================================================================
> > completely insane things. 
>   ========================
> 
> How, exactly, were these things going to be kept out of public
> consumption again?

See above.  I don't care if they get out into player hands, and as I
said before, they are quasi-magic items.  Like steel and adamantite weapons.
You don't see terrific numbers of these running around, and for a tough
warrior a +1 or +2 to damage is pretty mega.

> 
> Perhaps my motivation IS from laziness, and not wanting to run combat
> rounds from 720 feet in ... but I would still like to see the ranges on
> most or all the new bows cut back some ... ESPECIALLY if they run the risk
> of having something deferred on them, AND if the x2 range option is kept.
> 
> And if we decide to not reduce the ranges ...
> Well, I am putting together a new character with a bow, anyway ... :)
> 

Feel free to put one together and run him in Geleia.  The best missile
weapon you can start with is a normal bow or crossbow.  Further don't
expect to be seeing one of these anytime soon.  As I've said before,
I've been playing my ~60 rating character in Geleia and I have enough
a fairly considerable resource/contact pool, but I still have a very
low chance of getting one of these things.  So low that in 2, almost
3 months of trying every week, I have failed.

Also, as far as starting combats at 720 feet? What? thats a crock to
think it'll happen ever time, or even commonly.  720 is a ways, and
the average combat starts at 200 or less, ususally less.  I've in game
had a bow capable of shooting 700' before at a d6+3 damage.  The _ONLY_
times I got to use it were in ship battles, and when the bad guy
was running away.  Combats just do not start that close, and for ship ones
they always grabbed cover behind barrels, masts, etc... so the only
guy I could really shoot at was the guy at the wheel.  And he after the
1st shot got the idea of having some friends get some cover for him.
Actors aren't dumb, they will take cover just like players will if they
are getting plinked at from a long ways away.

Wright