Skeleton bowmen

[Corporal Chaos]

Silly question but.... I know it would make them very dangerous yet I would like to have the random monster show up with a bow. There is no mention in the rules but do you, the cumulative group, think a random skeleton with a bow would be over the top? Add a bit of distant danger. Just asking. I will add 1 or 2 just for shock. Thanks.

[monkeylite]

Nah, it would be fun.

[tyrionhalfman]

Would definitely add an extra surprise element to the game, helping to keep things interesting. Thanks for the idea. May have to house rule that if it doesn't appear in the upcoming supplements

[Urquhart]

I think there isn't a problem to the adventurers face a bow in the hands of a skeleton. Their Shoot stat is zero (+0) and all soldiers have at least +1 in his Fight Stat.

The only dificult is how to manage the performance of the esqueletal archer. In the rules there is no mention of shooting creatures, so you have to apply some house rules. In other thread (link) this issue was treated:

ACTIVATION: RANGED-DOMINANT CREATURE
1) Is the creature in combat? FIGHT.
If the creature is currently in combat with a member of either player's warband, it will use its first action to fight. If it wins the combat, it will step back 1" directly away from its opponent. If it loses the combat and is pushed back, or if its opponent steps back, it will use its second action to WITHDRAW (see below).
2) Does the creature's weapon need to be reloaded? RELOAD.
3) Is there an enemy in line of sight? SHOOT.
If a creature with a shooting attack is not in combat, it will shoot at an enemy that is in line of sight. If there are multiple enemies in line of sight, then run through the creature's Target Priorities, in order. After resolving the attack, run through these steps again to determine its next action.
4) Is there an enemy in 10" and in line of sight? WITHDRAW.
If a creature with a shooting attack is not in combat, it will move away from any enemies that are within 10" and in line of sight, withdrawing, without coming within 1" of an enemy, to a position that is as far away as possible from enemies. After resolving the movement, run through these steps again to determine its next action.
5) Are none of these situations applicable? PATROL.
If a creature with a shooting attack is not in combat and there are no enemies within 10" and/or in line of sight, the creature will make one move in a random direction. If the creature hits any obstacle that must be climbed or jumped, it will stop. If the creature is still not within 10" and/or in line of sight of an enemy, it is done for the turn and takes no additional action. If an enemy presents itself, it will Shoot if possible or Withdraw if not (see above).

[joe5mc]

There are no rules for them in the new book...however, there will be rules for them in a short article coming out soon in Wargames Illustrated.

[Koyote]

The Hunt For The Golem mini-campaign includes rules for a creature armed with a ranged weapon. 

[Corporal Chaos]

Thanks all for the replys. I'm going to use them until I see the supplement Joe mentioned.then I'll refine the way I use them.

[Elbows]

This is another reason why the group I played with (my only game of Frostgrave) agreed that a deck of monster cards would be splendid..particularly if you felt like making up a heap of new monsters.

[Le Korrigan]

There are no rules for them in the new book...however, there will be rules for them in a short article coming out soon in Wargames Illustrated.

Cool :cheers:

[Urquhart]

Now I realize that there is a creature that shoots in the rules. The Genie!

The genie follows the standard rules for creatures with the following exceptions:
If the genie spends its first action moving towards a figure, but does not end up in contact, it will use its second action to shoot a fire arrow at the closest target (a member of either warband). This counts as a standard shooting attack using the genie’s Shoot stat, and has a maximum range of 10”.

[Darkson71]

Nah, it would be fun.

This.

There are no rules for them in the new book...however, there will be rules for them in a short article coming out soon in Wargames Illustrated.

Can you give us a heads up when the issue is due, as I don't read (or even get a chance to see it!) that often.

[monkeylite]

Now I realize that there is a creature that shoots in the rules. The Genie!

That would be a really poor strategy for genuine missile troops, though, as they would find themselves in melee too often.

[sulecrist]

That would be a really poor strategy for genuine missile troops, though, as they would find themselves in melee too often.

Yeah, we found that out while playtesting my creature behavior rules (which Urquhart very graciously linked and quoted above). Hence the distinction between Ranged-Dominant (wants to be shooting and not getting in combat) and Melee-Dominant (throws a javelin or whatever on the way in, but mostly wants to beat the crap out of someone with a mace).

Skeleton Archer is classic Ranged-Dominant, where a Boomer-style vomiting zombie hulk would be a good thematic example of Melee-Dominant.

[Awesome Adam]

Honestly, I think something like the Genie rules would be fine for skeletal archers.

If it can see something: shoot at it, then move closer.
If it can't see something: move randomly.

Skeletons have no sense of self preservation and are not mentally agile enough for advanced combat tactics, like kiting.

[Corporal Chaos]

Adam I agree. A simple use. I just have a couple of skeleton bowmen that I wanted to use and like the idea of a random snipe from a bone bowman from across the board if you expose yourself . All good fun.