Before the AD&D® Oriental Adventures
volume came out, buying
arrows was a breeze. You just went
to a weaponsmith and asked for
arrows (there was only one type). Now,
the weaponsmiths in Kara-Tur ask which
type of arrow you want. You want the one
that does the most damage, right? Well,
not always. Suppose a kappa is terrorizing
a local village. You?re going to have a hard
time punching through its AC -2 shell, let
alone doing massive damage to it. What?s
needed here is an armor-piercing arrow.
Unfortunately, Oriental Adventures
doesn?t give modifications for armor-piercing
arrows other than the change in
damage ? and damage was lowered!

This article suggests a better method for
conducting missile combat; four new types
of arrows are also introduced. Note that
the damage ratings for arrows given in
Oriental Adventures remain the same.
What has been changed is the focus of the
armor-class adjustments, which has been
moved from the different bows to the
various types of arrows. Despite this
change, the bow distinctions are retained
through the creation of a separate modifier
table for each bow.

The four new arrows types are
described as follows.

This arrow looks much like the humming bulb arrow, 
having a large, rounded tip instead of a point.  This arrow 
is mostly used on birds or small creatures which would 
be sliced in half by a standard arrowhead.  Although seldom 
used against human foes, this arrow has been 
employed on occasion when nothing else was available.  
This bird arrow does 1-2 HP damage against any size of 
creature.

The TARGET arrow is designed for USE in the training of 
younger warriors.  This arrow lacks a metal arrowhead; 
instead, its tip is simply fire-hardened wood.  This arrow is 
rarely used in normal combat, but (as with bird arrows) it 
is useful when nothing else is available.

This arrow can only be made by the best of the arrowsmiths.
It should be extremely rare, difficult to purchase,
and available only in large cities. The hollow-tip arrow is
commonly thought of as a ninja weapon and carries penalties
to honor for its use (see Oriental Adventures, page
36), although any class of character can use it. The arrowhead
of the arrow is replaced by a finely balanced piece
of pottery, usually in the shape of a small bulb. This pottery
bulb is secured to the arrow with tree sap and
thread. The bulb is usually filled with grenade powders.
The following are some substances for possible use in
these arrows, with appropriate modifiers:

Acid: The target area affected by the acid is a 5' -
diameter circle. See the Dungeon Masters Guide, page 80,
for the effects of acid on various materials; the arrow will
do an additional 1-3 hp damage from acid to living targets.

Dust: The target has a + 2 on all saving throws vs. the
effects of magical or mundane dusts contained in this
arrow bulb.

Flash: The target is blinded for 1-6 rounds by flash
powder.

Gas: Gas is expelled from the bulb upon striking the
target. The gas affects the target in the same round,
expanding out in a 5' radius centered on the target. All
others within that area are affected by the gas on the
next round. The gas dissipates on the third round, affecting 
no one.

Pepper: The target gains a +2 on any SAVE vs.
the effects (usually a save vs. poison or else sneezing for
2-8 segments, preventing spell-casting and placing a - 1
?to hit? penalty on attacks for that round).

Poison: The target area affected by the poison is a 5?-
diameter circle, large enough for one being. Note that
only insinuative poisons work with this arrow. See pages
20-21 of the DMG for more information on poison and its
effects.

This arrow was originally made by fishermen, who would
tie thin cords to the ends of the arrows and fire them into
the water in an effort to spear fish. The archers would
then haul in the lines and their catches. Over the years,
this arrow has been modified for use in warfare. The
arrow does little damage when it hits, but the small barbs
along its length cause terrible wounds if the arrow is
removed improperly. Ninja have put this arrow to another
good use by tying a silken rope to the arrow?s end, then
firing it into a wooden building or tree. This arrow
catches better in wood than a standard arrow. A person
of normal weight (i.e., up to 200 lbs.) who climbs a rope
tied to a normal arrow pulls the arrow loose on a roll of
1-4 on 1d6. A fishing arrow, on the other hand, comes
loose only on a 1-2 on 1d6.

Crossbow bolts are only rarely specialized because bolts
of unusual shapes would not slide across the firing groove
of the crossbow, making it impossible to fire. Special
crossbows may be custom made to accomodate special
bolts, with the price being 2-8 times the normal cost of
the item and requiring twice the amount of time to complete.
In so doing, a bowyer has a -4 on his roll for successfully
making the weapon. In the event of success, the
resultant crossbow is capable of firing only one type of
special bolt, which must also be custom made by the
crossbow maker.

Table 1 shows the costs of these
special arrows. Tables 2 and 3 are
for the daikyu (great bow) and
hankyu (little bowl, respectively.
For the short composite bow, use
Table 3 with a - 1 on all figures.
For the short bow, use Table 3
with a - 2 on all figures. Table 4
shows the damage done by the
new arrows.

Table 1
Costs of New Arrows

Arrow	Cost
Bird	5 yuan
Training	1 yuan
Hollow-tip, acid	3 ch'ien
Hollow-tip, dust	13 yuan
Hollow-tip, flashpowder	5 tael
Hollow-tip, gas	3 ch'ien
Hollow-tip, poison	2 ch'ien
Hollow-tip, pepper	2 tael
Fishing	2 yuan

Table 2
Arrow Adjustments for Daikyu                            Armor class of target

Arrow type	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
Armor piercing	+2	+2	+2	+3	+3	+4	+4	+4	+5
Frog crotch	-1	0	0	0	0	+2	+3	+3	+4
Humming bulb	-2	-1	0	0	0	+1	+1	+2	+3
Leaf head	0	0	0	+1	+2	+3	+3	+4	+4
Standard	0	0	0	+1	+2	+3	+4	+4	+4
Bird	-2	-1	0	0	0	+1	+1	+2	+3
Training	0	0	0	+1	+2	+2	+3	+3	+4
Hollow tip	-1	-1	0	0	0	+1	-1	+2	+3
Fishing	0	0	0	+1	+2	+2	+3	+3	+4

Table 3
Armor Adjustment for Hankyu                                                        Armor Class of Target

Armor Type	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
Armor piercing	-2	-2	0	+1	+2	+2	+3	+4	+4
Frog crotch	-4	-2	-1	-1	0	0	+1	+2	+3
Humming bulb	-4	-3	-2	-2	-1	0	0	+1	+1
Leaf head	-4	-3	-2	-1	-1	0	0	+1	+2
Standard	-4	-4	-2	-1	0	0	+1	+2	+2
Bird	-4	-3	-2	-2	-1	0	0	+1	+1
Training	-5	-4	-3	-1	-1	0	0	+1	+2
Hollow tip	-4	-3	-2	-2	-1	0	0	+1	+1
Fishing	-5	-4	-3	-1	-1	0	0	+1	+2

Table 4
Damage for New Arrows                Target size

Arrow type	S-M	L
Bird	1-4	1-2
Training	1-3	1-2
Hollow-tip	1-2	1-2
Fishing*	1-6	1-4

* This arrow does an extra 1-6 hp damage 
if removed without the proper precautions.  
Careful removal takes 2-5 rounds.

JUNE 1989