RE: (TFT) New weapon list for ranged weapons --> fine bows?

["rsmith" <rsmith@lightspeed.ca>]

Hi David,
	The fine weapon rules in TFT only allow
"...sword, polearm, hammer, mace or ax (but
no other weapons)..." to be made fine.

	AM page 22, first sentence in section
FINE WEAPONS AND ARMOR.

	(I've always wondered how a mace or hammer
could be made so fine that they do extra damage...)


	So I think that you have been very generous
when you allow fine bows.  They could be enchanted
of course.

	If you say a composite bow is a fine weapon
(since they take two years to make and season they
should be!) then adding +2 damage is reasonable.

	My feeling is that there is no reason that
bows could not be made fine, but being able to
project damage is so valuable that I've simply
gone with the rules as they exist now, and not
allowed it.  (My composite bows fly in the face
of reality and take more ST than the old longbows,
for playability reasons.)

	I agree about what you say on the advantages
of projecting damage.   I think this is the reason
that SJ put in the Reverse Missiles spell.

	Building a longbow is arguably already fine.
It is what is called a 'backed bow' made up of
layers of wood with a sinew backing that made it
stronger and more flexible.  The whole package
was then laminated together.  A long bow took a
fairly elaborate technology to build and I could
easily see 'less fine' version doing 2 less damage.
I could easily see someone arguing that longbows
and composite bows require Master Armorers to build.

	Longbows and composite bows should be much
more expensive.  I would suggest that a composite
bow cost $2000 and a long bow be $500.  These
weapons took weeks to build and usually had to
be allowed to season in order for the low technology
laminates to properly harden.

	Rick



-----Original Message-----
From: tft-owner@brainiac.com [mailto:tft-owner@brainiac.com]On Behalf Of
David Michael Grouchy II
Sent: Monday, June 03, 2002 4:54 PM
To: tft@brainiac.com
Subject: Re: (TFT) New weapon list for ranged weapons


>Rick Smith wrote...
>
>  Please let me know what everyone thinks.

Rick,
   The magnum bow in our campaigns was usually a finely made long bow of +2
damage.  Doing 1D+4 is sweet.  It has a minimum of 5 points of damage and
averages 3 points of damage through fine plate.
   Of course the obvious problem with this is... can one make a fine bow?  I
guess it could be argued that a fine bow is equal to a composite bow.  Not
sure.
   This magnum bow is before any enchantments are put on it for flaming or
extra damage.  One guy had a hobbit archer named "Conans" (strange name.
His personal name being a plural).  He had a long successfull carreer and
his magnum bow became the first super bow.  If I remember correctly it did
1D+7, he shot it twice a turn, oh.. yeah.. and he had a set of mage sight
goggles.
   On memorable sceen is him at the end of a dark tunnel and a whole platoon
of orcs coming toward him.  Some of them have torches to light their way.
He shoots two of them in the hand and they drop their torches.  One goes
out, the other doesn't.  Another orc bends to pick it up.  He gets shot in
the hand.  He dies on the spot.
   After two turns of these shots form the dark the orcs fled in terror.
The players telling me this story would begin laughing at this point.  They
relate how they found the orcs later in the very very back of the labrinth.
Their hands were bloody.  They were still trying to claw a way out through
solid rock.
   Anyway, story aside, I like the new bows you list a lot.  I KNOW my
players will love them.  But... well... what happens when they make magnum
versions of these weapons.  It may be a little too much damage.  In a pure
"game balance" sense I think ranged weapons are weaker because the ability
to project damage has huge advantages over having to deliver it in person.

Conclusions:
   I will allow players to use the new bow table you posted.  The limit
being that they will be less expesive alternatives to the finely made
weapons.  They can not be finely made themselves, they already are.

   David Michael Grouchy II


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