Make the bow useful

[johnwax]

Nearly all combat in Daggerfall is an up close and personal melee. The bow is a ranged weapon and is clumsy and slow in a melee. I'm usually dead before I can pump enough arrows to off my opponent. I can hit F6 to equip a melee weapon, but the equip time lag usually sends me to my pallbearers on the way to my burial crypt.,

Many games allow you to equip both a bow and a 1-hand melee weapon, with the ability to switch back and forth at need. In the classic and DFU, you can equip two 1-hand weapons and go back and forth (using the H key in DFU). The bow is a 2-hand weapon and equips in the left hand, with the right left empty (presumably to feed arrows). If you use the H key while holding a bow you get your right fist, which you can use hand-to-hand.

How about making the bow a one hand weapon which would allow equipping a second 1-hand weapon in your right hand and the use of the H key to equip it when needed. This would give the best of both worlds and keep some hardcore archers alive a lot longer!

[ftr89wgbtf4]

1

[Jay_H]

The bow is actually really overpowered if you have a high Speed strat. Not only does it have the highest base damage (as of classic at least) but if you move around correctly you can only ever be hit by enemy archers. I recently posted a topic about the need to weaken bows The community generally convinced me that they're okay the way they are, but they're still very strong if you're willing to move away from the enemy while firing.

[Aleryn]

Interesting discussion. I think making the bow a one handed weapon that can be paired with any other one handed weapon would be overpowered, but maybe if just the simple Dagger class weapon would be allowed it could be interesting.

Personally, I find the Bow powerful once I break around the 60/100 skill area. Before that its just... odd in hit rolls compared to the general feel of the melee weapons.

Is Archery chance to hit very dependent upon the Agility attribute?

[ftr89wgbtf4]

2

[Aleryn]

Thank you. That's what I've read as well. Good point on Luck, I should try a 100 luck build sometime.

I suspect we'll see an increase of additions and modification options once this incredible project hits feature parity with Classic.