ARCH - History repeat itself

[Harry C. Billings]

Try ing to soot at an opposing fighter while he is looking at you is an
exercise in exercise, if he is futher than 15 feet away you have about 1
chance in 100 of hitting him under our combat archery rules.

>3.  Is the act of archers firing into melees period?  I was under the
>impression that archers on both sides fired arrows at the opposing army
>during the charge phase of a battle, and refrained from firing into melee
>combat to avoid hitting men on their own side.  Granted there were the lords
>who opened fire regardless, but here's my thinking....A bounce-back injury
>is an accident, and accidents are more likely to occur when a person's
>attention is focused elsewhere (ie melee).  Now, if we grant archers a
>combat phase prior to melee, the heavy fighters will be able to focus their
>attention on protecting themselves from arrows, thereby reducing (not
>eliminating) bounce-back injuries.  Granted ricocheted, spinning arrows may
>cause some injury, but I think the risk is reduced if the targets are
>focused more on the arrows coming at them than their enemy's sword.  Then,
>when the melee combatants reach a designated distance from one another, or
>the first swords are swung, a marshall can call out for archers to cease
>fire.  Then if they wish, they can dispose of their bow, grab up a sword and
>charge in to aid their comrades.   Now when attacking a structure housing
>archers, the archery phase could end when the structure is breeched, or the
>first swords are swung.  These are just my ramblings, but the premise of my
>idea is that if those on the receiving end of an arrow aren't distracted by
>melee, injury risk is reduced, and I think this idea is more in keeping with
>maintaining period archery.
>
>Best regards,
>Alden Drake
>Barony of Stagate
>
Plachoya Sobaka insignificant archer; Ravens Fort, Kingdom of Ansteorra

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