this post was submitted on 06 Aug 2024
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[–] rumschlumpel 40 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (3 children)

The biggest advantage of bows in a gun setting would be stealth, can't shoot what you don't know is there. Makes the superhero stuff a bit difficult, though.

[–] Tar_alcaran@sh.itjust.works 42 points 3 months ago

But what if you put a boxing glove on your arrow? Surely that would help

[–] unexposedhazard@discuss.tchncs.de 9 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Also going through kevlar body armor with ease.

[–] masquenox@lemmy.world 5 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Not stab-resitant armour, though. They can easily swap one out with the other.

[–] RizzRustbolt@lemmy.world 4 points 3 months ago

Or put on a jean jacket over the kevlar.

[–] CheeseNoodle@lemmy.world 7 points 3 months ago (2 children)

I'd still go with a repeating crossbow though, more power while being easier and faster to use.

[–] isles@lemmy.world 15 points 3 months ago (1 children)

According to un-sourced Archery Heaven, regular crossbows are as loud as a lawnmower, nevermind repeating. Not quite the stealth you might be looking for.

[–] roguetrick@lemmy.world 9 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Bowstring twang is going to be loud no matter what at high draw weights. A high draw weight recuve would be loud too.

[–] isles@lemmy.world 13 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Yep, that's what the linked articles' conclusion was. But 80dB vs 120dB is a huge difference, jackhammer compared to a dishwasher. Anyway, I'm out of my depth, I shot a bow last 30 years ago. And never as a stealthy assassin nor archery-based superhero.

[–] rumschlumpel 3 points 3 months ago

TIL the movies lied to me! I vividly remember John Rambo stealth-killing a camp of enemy fighters with a bow.

[–] rumschlumpel 3 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

"easier to use" shouldn't really matter for Particularly-Good-At-Archery-Man. It's not like a bow is a particularly slow weapon, either (medieval archers were probably doing about 10 shots per minute), and you don't really need the additional power of crossbows - medieval war bows were able to kill armored knights, they were pretty much only limited by the archer's strength. Whether you need high power pretty much depends on the setting - if you're mostly fighting against human thugs who maybe wear a protective vest you don't need extremely high draw strength. If the setting is more fantastical, why WOULDN'T "particularly good at archery" include absurdly strong muscles that make the additional power of crossbows unnecessary?

[–] Anticorp@lemmy.world 1 points 1 month ago

Medieval archers weren't really aiming as much as just lobbing the arrows in a general direction.

[–] SlopppyEngineer@lemmy.world 38 points 3 months ago (2 children)

So many heroes only attach blue-collar crime, and never tackle white-collar crime. It's classicist.

[–] masquenox@lemmy.world 13 points 3 months ago (1 children)

So many heroes only attach blue-collar crime, and never tackle white-collar crime.

Sooo... no different than the police, then.

[–] SlopppyEngineer@lemmy.world 10 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Cue police with punisher badges

[–] Anticorp@lemmy.world 1 points 1 month ago

That's a villain, not a hero.

[–] wjrii@lemmy.world 10 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

It’s classicist.

Crimen Omnia Ex Se Nata Vitiate.

[–] HubertManne@moist.catsweat.com 7 points 3 months ago

love that one.

[–] TheObviousSolution@lemm.ee 7 points 3 months ago

Being a sneaky archer is incompatible with hero monologues.

[–] Anticorp@lemmy.world 1 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

I'm sure there are plenty of other enemies he cannot defeat, like Just Bought a Pistol woman, or In Melee Range with a Dagger Man.