Crossbow house rules?

[Achtung Panzer]

(02-04-2014 06:47 PM)soundguy Wrote:  i'd leave ammo cards as ammo cards, and include bolts and arrows.

That's certainly the easiest solution, but it takes away a sense that the crossbow is a different weapon to a gun. I guess that's a personal call in terms of house rules.

[ATOEtalGeek]

(02-04-2014 07:51 PM)Achtung Panzer Wrote:  ...it takes away a sense that the crossbow is a different weapon to a gun.

I think that's how we got started isn't it? Trying to come up with something that worked a little differently than a gun. Don't really need another gun item that just has a picture of a crossbow on it. Unless the goal is to get around some kind of a noise mechanic.

[ForestRunner]

(02-04-2014 09:57 AM)Achtung Panzer Wrote:  I want to keep things simple, keep the board clutter free, give parity with similar weapons but with a different feel. So:

* Range = 2
* Fire once per Ranged Attack
* Hits on a roll of 4+
* Starts with 5 bolt tokens (the statistical number of shots for a pistol before a 1 out of ammo is rolled)
* Only on a hit is the token placed on the target square - a miss is a permanent miss
* Bolt token automatically retrieved as Hero moves into / through square
* Discarded once all bolt tokens lost but treated as a Gun weapon for Pick up purposes

Does this give the right feel?

Howz about...

* Range = 2
* Fire once per Ranged Attack
* Hits on a roll of 4+
* Starts with 5 bolt tokens (the statistical number of shots for a pistol before a 1 out of ammo is rolled)
* Only on a hit is the token placed on the target square - a miss is a permanent miss
* Bolt token retrieved on a die roll of 3+ as Hero moves into / through square
* Discarded once all bolt tokens lost but treated as a Gun weapon for Pick up purposes

It's still simplistic... but the chance of failure (stuck/damaged bolt) adds some realism. Again... suggestion only.

[soundguy]

for a person that is a collector of guns.. a pistol to a shotgun to a rifle to a crossbow. there are significant differences.

the fact that an ammo card covers every type of 'gun item' in existance.. means there are some pretty rare and expensive, not to mention EXTENSIVE and large stashes of ammo hidden in the LNOE universe. not a far fetch to think there might be a bolt or arrow in there.

besides, give me a dowel rod and I can shoot a bow or crossbow. might take me a minute to improvise a lil with whittling a nock grove and a sharpend point. but it WILL shoot. ( yes. i've tested that theory ) Not only do i collect guns but am into archery too. have severall recurve and compound boys, several cross bows including compound and antique danish.

dowel rod fires just fine. ( short range.. but fires ) the old danish bow will fire a sharpened pencil!

contrast that to shotshell or metalic pistol / rifle ammo. With my relaoding press and tools i can take spent brass, deprime and resize it, trim it back to length, id/od ream the mouth, re-prime it, charge it, and then seat and crimp a projectile into it.

those steps take time and precision tools.

I'm WAY more likely to be able to improvise an arrow / bolt than work up some reloads on the run.

that's my take if you are looking for realism.

i shoot some rifles that likely DO NOT have a redy supply of ammo available int he consumer market.

i won't be finding any 'ammo cards' for those guns during the zed apoc.

i will be much more likely to find bolt/arrow ammo.

walmarts, lgs, cabelas, dicks sporting goods. most pawn shops..e tc. and the afore mentioned hardware or craft store for a shak n bake bolt.

PS.. I make all my own bolts for that danish bow. i affix my own fletching and make my own tips. I use either oak or cedar dowel rods. I use feather or palstic vane fletching. and yeah.. common feathers you can find in your yard work. I raise chicken and turkey.. and their feathers are fine. especially turkey.

tips are plentiful.. anything from sharpened wood, then dipped into epoxy, then filed down to make pratice tips, tot he glue on flat arrowheads made for wood arrows..e tc.

the more real you make a game.. the less playable it is.

look at the original 'dawn of the dead' game. lots of realisim rules. darn hard and 'less fun' to play.

(02-04-2014 07:51 PM)Achtung Panzer Wrote:  

(02-04-2014 06:47 PM)soundguy Wrote:  i'd leave ammo cards as ammo cards, and include bolts and arrows.

That's certainly the easiest solution, but it takes away a sense that the crossbow is a different weapon to a gun. I guess that's a personal call in terms of house rules.

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(02-04-2014 10:44 PM)ATOEtalGeek Wrote:  

(02-04-2014 07:51 PM)Achtung Panzer Wrote:  ...it takes away a sense that the crossbow is a different weapon to a gun.

. Unless the goal is to get around some kind of a noise mechanic.

that's deffinately a good way to look at it. It's a silent gun. perhaps in the pistol range category.

[Achtung Panzer]

Fascinating post Soundguy - especially for us in the UK where guns and weapons are far less common.

[soundguy]

if less common means less choices, then i'd even more so expect arrow/bolts to be found in an ammo stash.

[Achtung Panzer]

By less common I mean guns aren't found in the average home or on the average person in the UK. Guess we'd be limited to garden tools for our zombie apocolypse

[soundguy]

Hay. I bet a pitchfork and a machette would do real well!

[samuraitrev]

I have a katana and a 8lb/3.6kg sledge hammer. Maybe I should start fire arms training... I've fired double barrel shotguns whilst clay pigeon shooting but that's it.

Good cop if you're reading this come over to the uk and train me up!

[akaAelius]

Our Crossbow item text:
Range 3
Place three ammo tokens on this card. You may target one Zombie within range. Roll a D6. The Zombie is hit on a roll of 3+. Ammo may be recovered by ending your turn in target square.

So basically you shoot a zombie, you place an ammo token from the card into the square of the zombie you shot. To retrieve the 'arrow' you have to end your movement in that square. Only way to 'reload' on tokens is something like the building<general store?> that allows you to put more tokens on an item.