Missile Weapons

Missile weapons include numerous weapons that can be fired or hurled over a distance in order to cause damage. This includes found objects, such as stones, chairs, boxes or even a back pack. Missile fire occurs simultaneously with other forms of combat, as part of the expenditure of action points (AP); as with melee, the combatant identifies a target and then rolls to hit.

With all missile weapons, line-of-sight is normally possessed; see volley Fire, below. Hand-sized objects like natural or magic stones, chromatic orbs and flasks of oil have a range like any other weapon, as described below.

Bonuses

Depending on the character and the weapon, some combatants have hereditary bonuses that increase their chance to hit. Additionally a sufficient dexterity, 16 or more, also allows bonuses to hit with a missile weapon. Unlike their use in melee, strength bonuses don't apply to fired or hurled weapons.

Fired Weapons

Fired Weapons (range in hexes)

Weapon	Point Blank	Short	Medium	Long
heavy crossbow	2	3-14	15-28	29-40
light crossbow	2	3-10	11-20	21-30
long bow	2-3	4-22	23-44	45-66
short bow	2-3	3-16	17-32	33-48
sling	—	2-13	14-25	26-37
staff sling	—	4-18	19-35	36-52

Sometimes called projectile weapons, these launch solid projectiles at targets, usually with a much greater range than hurled weapons. Bows fire arrows, crossbows fire bolts and slings fire stones or metal bullets. Firing requires re-loading, which requires differing amounts of AP for each type of weapon. Normally, when loading a fired weapon, the character must concentrate on the task and nothing else. Since crossbows can be cranked and locked in place, often this task is assigned to one or more servants, allowing an entrenched crossbowman to fire once or even twice per round.

Because slings must be spun around the slinger's head, the whole combat hex is required when firing. Other persons entering or passing through the hex, or the presence of large objects like a doorway, wall or furniture, will foul a sling, disallowing its use. Slings are notoriously less practical indoors.

Ranges

The table shown gives ranges for missile weapons. Fired weapons cannot be fired against targets in melee range, or 1 combat hex, as it's presumed the enemy combatant is swinging a weapon that must be dodged. "Point blank" describes a distance so close that it's easier to hit; thus weapons fired at point blank are +1 to hit.

There's no penalty for firing at "short" range. Targets at "medium" range give a penalty of -2 to hit, while "long" range targets are -5 to hit.

Hurled Weapons (range in hexes)

Weapon	Point Blank	Short	Medium	Long
bola	—	3-9	10-16	17-23
club	2	3-5	6-7	8-9
dagger	2	3-5	6-9	10-12
dart	2	3-5	6-10	11-15
hand axe	2	3-6	7-9	10-13
javelin	2	3-9	10-18	19-27
object	—	2	3	4
rock	—	2-3	4	5-6
short axe	2	3-5	6-7	8-10
short hammer	2	3-4	5-6	7-8
spear	2	3-6	7-12	13-18
trident	2	3-5	6-9	10-13
warhammer	2	3-5	6-8	9-11

Hurled Weapons

Sometimes called thrown weapons, this describes weapons that are physically thrown at the target, so that the hurler disarms his or her self when attacking. Javelins, spears and tridents are thrown straight and true at targets; clubs, daggers, darts, hand axes, short axes and hammers, and warhammers, are thrown overhand with the balance of the weapon allowing it to flip and strike it's point or edge on target.

Bolas consist of three balls connected together by tethers, which must be spun in a circle like a sling — a bola requires three empty combat hexes when swinging the weapon before letting go. A bola has no point blank range.

Rocks and found objects also have no point blank range, and poor ranges altogether. A character cannot assign a weapon proficiency to either ... but the benefit of both is that they are plentiful or convenient at hand, when a better weapon isn't. Other weapons, such as swords, maces or pole arms can be hurled, but their effect range and damage is no different than other found objects.

Hurled weapons are subject to the same range adjustments as fired weapons.

Volley Fire

Indirect targeting of fired missiles has been used since ancient times; the tactic is to have a considerable number of archers fire in the same direction en masse, known as "firing a volley." The approximate location of the enemy to be fired at must be known and signalled . Conditions of use require that the approximate location of the enemy be known and signalled through reconnaissance; the enemy must be massed for battle; and for each "attempted hit," at least ten missiles must be fired. Direct line-of-sight isn't required.

For every 10 missiles fired, 1 chance to hit is granted against the enemy. The roll to hit is resolved normally. From this, it can be understood that thousands of missiles fired at an enemy army could be devastating.

See Also

• Ballista (siege engine)
• Bowyer (sage ability)
• Catapult
• Combat
• Cover (defense)
• Deflect Missile (sage ability)
• Dose Weapon (sage ability)
• Fletcher (sage ability)
• Giant
• Grenade-like Missiles
• Opportunity Fire
• Siege Engines
• Sight & Fire (sage ability)
• Strengthened Arm (sage ability)
• Trebuchet