Crossbows and Arrows

[Hesha]

Building a crossbow with a simple trigger mechanism is quite simple, provided you have access to tools and a work bench. For the bow part you could either use metal or wood. A couple of guts should make a strong enough string. Reclaimed wood might be the easiest to use material for the stock, but fir would probably work as well.
Being a primitive crossbow, it would be very slow to re-cock/reload.

Required: 3 Scrap metal, 1 Reclaimed wood, 2 cured guts. Access to work bench, tools and hatchet.
To repair: 1 Scrap metal, 1 cured gut.
harvest yield: 1 Reclaimed wood, 1 Scrap metal

Why a crossbow when we already have the bow? Unlimited ammo. Crossbow arrows (yes, arrows. quarrels/bolts are something different altogether) are much easier to make than bow arrows, can be shorter, thicker and could arguable be made from sticks rather than one of those fancy saplings. Fletching could still be used.

Required: 1 Stick, 1 Arrow head, 3 crow feathers. Access to work bench and knife.
harvest yield: 1 Stick (ruined), 1 Arrow head, 3 crow feathers

[Fuarian]

I think a modern crossbow should be findable. Maybe the Machine Shop in Broken Railroad can serve some purpose. Maybe that could be the regions whole feature. Even on Interloper. 

But the bolts should only be finable and quite rare. But on Interloper this could be a godsend. The only way to balance it out would be to make the durability lower and have them be irrepairable. Or make the crossbow hard to get to.

This crossbow tool would be kinda like the Flare Gun in Interloper. A tool to help you get started. It takes a hassle to get there (through the Muskeg and the Railway along with wolves and the bear and freezing temperatures) and then the ammunition can run out quickly. 

[CitrinePeridot]

Aren't crossbows more accurate as well? That would be an added bonus if that's the case. With it being a more primitive crossbow, would the weight be close to or equal to the bow?

[Hesha]

15 minutes ago, CitrinePeridot said:

Aren't crossbows more accurate as well? That would be an added bonus if that's the case. With it being a more primitive crossbow, would the weight be close to or equal to the bow?

No, it'd be closed to the rifle, I'd say. 2-3 kg. Not sure if it would be more accurate, but it would be easier to aim / learn to shoot.

 

3 hours ago, Fuarian said:

I think a modern crossbow should be findable. Maybe the Machine Shop in Broken Railroad can serve some purpose. Maybe that could be the regions whole feature. Even on Interloper. 

But the bolts should only be finable and quite rare. But on Interloper this could be a godsend. The only way to balance it out would be to make the durability lower and have them be irrepairable. Or make the crossbow hard to get to.

This crossbow tool would be kinda like the Flare Gun in Interloper. A tool to help you get started. It takes a hassle to get there (through the Muskeg and the Railway along with wolves and the bear and freezing temperatures) and then the ammunition can run out quickly. 

Well, that's a very gamey way of seeing it. I'm coming more from the "if it would make sense IRL, I'd like to be able to do it". It is already absurd that we need "special trees" for arrows.

[Mroz4k]

I wonder how many of you actually held a real crossbow in your hands, let alone built one.
The mechanism of how it works is indeed not that difficult to figure out, for an averagely intelligent person. Now MAKING it is not that easy. Especially not out of scrap metal. Remember improvised tools... the smithing equipment doesnt really leave much of a leeway for some fancy smithing. 

Now, crossbows can come in various sizes, powers and shapes. We have the typical french one, which is so powerful it is impossible to be simply strung up by a hand, you have to put it to your knee, step on a iron triangle with your leg, and pull it with great effort with both hands, or use a stretcher, which is yet again something you would not be able to smith together on an improvised smithy.

Then we have that modern crossbow. Yea, powerful like a rifle, bout the same weight, infinite ammo... OR IS IT? As far as I know, the modern crossbows are so powerful you really have to have either alluminium bolts (which get damaged and good luck repairing that) or some precisely made wooden ones. Crafted wooden bolts will shatter instead of being shot out, at least mostly. But I admit this is just debates on what I heard. Could have one-handed crossbows, not that powerful, but powerful enough to make animals bleed heavily. 

Okay, lets say for the sake of it, crossbows can be in a game. What now? Bows are pointless. You have renewable weapon, useable on big game. Unlimited ammo and resources to make new ones. 

So, out of simply game balance reason, this is not a solid idea. It would make the game riddiculously easy, and consequiently, also boring. 

[Mroz4k]

3 hours ago, Hesha said:

This crossbow tool would be kinda like the Flare Gun in Interloper. A tool to help you get started. It takes a hassle to get there (through the Muskeg and the Railway along with wolves and the bear and freezing temperatures) and then the ammunition can run out quickly. 

Too bad you "spawn" in both of those locations during Interloper. And even if it was difficult to acquire, once the player had it, it would be impossible to surpass them. 
The whole point of Interloper is to be challenging, so rifles dont spawn at all and weapons (and tools) need to be crafted, not found. You are breaking that purpose.