crossbow vs bow and arrow

[berzum]

The world of skyrim really botched this imo. So do you prefer crossbow or bow and arrow is what I want to know and why. In other games that offer the choice the crossbows are more powerful (damage wise) but are slower than bow and arrows, which is true for real life as well. Now I understand that bows fire faster but generaly do less damage than crossbows. However skyrim seems to me that crossbows fire slower and do less damage, while bows fire faster and do more damage with one arrow, WTF why did they make it this way?

 

[CosmicExplorer]

They didnt . Crossbows are affected by the archery tree and do a lot of damage don't they?

 

[berzum]

They didnt . Crossbows are affected by the archery tree and do a lot of damage don't they?

they do a lot of damage but no where near what a deadric bow does....just felt like the balance was broken

 

[Joker]

Where & when do you get to carry & use a crossbow?

 

[TheRedGoblin]

You have to have the Dawnguard DLC. If you join the Dawnguard you get one for free.

 

[sticky runes]

Well, if you're using a daedric bow, which has been crafted from 3 chunks of ebony, and infused with a magical demonic heart, then of course it's going to cause more damage than a regular steel crossbow.

Where & when do you get to carry & use a crossbow?

When you download Dawnguard.

 

[Nord Warrior]

You can also get an enhanced dwarvern crossbow that not only does MORE damage than a daedric bow, but also cuts through 50% of an enemies armor AND can shoot enchanted bolts.

 

[Joker]

You can also get an enhanced dwarvern crossbow that not only does MORE damage than a daedric bow, but also cuts through 50% of an enemies armor AND can shoot enchanted bolts.

Enchanted bolts??????? Please tell me more.....

 

[annelid]

Like, does he have a car?

(sorry, couldn't resist)

 

[Nord Warrior]

SPOILERS: When you join the dawnguard you are given a basic steel crossbow, as you progress through the dawnguard you will need to find more members. One of those members is a woman who specializes in crossbow designs, she will give you quests asking you to find schematics for crossbow improvements, eventually she will ask you to find a schematic for enchanted bolts. They come in fire, frost and lightning and vary in power and radius from 5 points on contact to 25 points in a 10ft area wherever the bolt strikes, be it a animal or an inanimate object.

This enchantment stacks with whatever the crossbow is enchanted with.

 

[Gunnbjorn]

they do a lot of damage but no where near what a deadric bow does....just felt like the balance was broken

That's because you're comparing a Daedric Bow to a Dwarven Crossbow.

If you were to compare a Dwarven Bow to a Dwarven Crossbow you would find that the stats are true to your theory, the Dwarven Crossbow has 22 Base damage with a much heavier weight, whereas the Dwarven Bow has only 12 base damage with a much lighter weight.

In Conclusion, comparing anything Daedric to anything Dwarven is going to result in Daedric having the higher statistic in every category. The best possible crossbow you can get in Skyrim at this time is the Dwarven Crossbow, which was maybe valuable at levels 15-20, but if you completed a majority of the game by the time the Dawnguard DLC was released, and had Daedric weaponry, then the Crossbow would probably be useless to you in terms of damage. From an RP perspective, you may still find use for it, but unless they come out with a Daedric Crossbow, you'll probably end up a lot better sticking with your Daedric Bow.

 

[Daelon DuLac]

Having used both, I will admit that the crossbow (enhanced, of course) and, particularly the dwarven enhanced bolts are quite effective. I think that I waited too long for it to be all that much use to me though (I was higher level when I joined the Dawnguard). While I like the look and feel of the crossbow, it is just so slow. That's why I stuck with my bow. I only wish the console had other types of crossbows. Frankly, even enhanced the crossbows look like a piece of firewood with a bunch of steel on them... oh wait, that's exactly what they are! There are so many other games that handled the crossbow better.

 

[Ritterkreuz]

I've used both, and overall, I prefer the Bow. I just feel like it's a better stealth weapon whereas the crossbow gives me a single shot and then the enemy is on to me.

 

[sticky runes]

Well I must admit, I do tend to use my crossbow more often these days. It's probably my favourite thing about Dwanguard. And those exploding elemental bolts are a lot of fun. And I like to watch my followers using them as well, the reloading animations are kinda sexy.

 

[berzum]

TES Skyrim really flffd up on the crossbows, they should of made it so you can make them out of ebony and daedric as well even dragon bone would of looked nice....I dunno why they stopped at dwarven

 

[sticky runes]

Probably because it's still a relatively new weapon to the people of Skyrim, and only known to a small group of people at that, so they didn't want to overdo it.

 

[Remington721]

I've used both, and overall, I prefer the Bow. I just feel like it's a better stealth weapon whereas the crossbow gives me a single shot and then the enemy is on to me.

Bow is what I used , hard to beat for follow up shot's with the 30% faster fire rate. The cross bow felt slower for me even the better one.

 

[Death405]

they do a lot of damage but no where near what a deadric bow does....just felt like the balance was broken

The standard Crossbow has the same base damage as the Daedric Bow, while the Dwarven Crossbow does more. I suggest getting your facts straight before typing something.

 

[Slith]

here is the best answer i can give... Bow + arrows for Stealth sniping and crossbow for sniping and quick fire

by mean quick fire is reload then click while on bow u need to reach the max string extension to achieve max range

 

[Dagmar]

That's because you're comparing a Daedric Bow to a Dwarven Crossbow.

A Dwarven Crossbow has higher damage than any bow in the game, Daedric or otherwise (base damage is 3 points higher than a Daedric Bow). Even the weaker crossbows have the same base damage as a Daedric Bow.

by mean quick fire is reload then click while on bow u need to reach the max string extension to achieve max range

The crossbow's fire rate is still slower than several bows. In addition if you have Steady Hand perks, the draw time for a bow is in real time while everything else is in slowed time making the rate of fire even faster. Because the crossbow has different mechanics it doesn't get this benefit. Basically a crossbow is better for one shotting targets but a bow is better for open combat if the goal is to take down multiple targets without having to draw a melee weapon.