Crossposted to [livejournal.com profile] fanficrants

Aug. 9th, 2004 11:22 pm
camwyn: (renfaire)
[personal profile] camwyn
Because I haven't geeked out properly about my Dangerous Pointy Objects habits and hobbies recently...

The thing about a setting like The Lord of the Rings is that it takes place in an era when weaponry was truly old-school. For the most part, this meant swords and other edged pointy things, at least as depicted by Tolkien. However, even then, there was a need for projectile weaponry. In LOTR, this sometimes meant catapulty things (mangonels, possibly, but bugger if I know my siege weaponry). More often, though, it meant bows.

Now, any goober with $150 and a Renaissance Faire nearby can pick up a sword. Heck, if they've got $30 they can get one from the scratch, dent and rust bin, at least at the New Jersey RenFaire (sadly, this is over for the season). True, they won't answer to the same description or behave in the same way as the swords in LOTR. Most of 'em will come with a note saying 'sharpen this, and your guarantee's shattered, mate'. But at least there'll be a swordy-looking thing close at hand that'll give the aspiring writer a general idea of what's involved in describing and possibly even holding or swinging a sword.

This is generally not the case with bows.

Despite their widespread use in ages past, medieval-style bows are really rather tough to come by, compared to swords. I've been going to Renaissance Faires for six or seven years now, and the only place I saw a bow for sale was at an SCA event about five years back. If you go to a Faire and want to try archery, you generally have to plunk down $3 or $5, and you'll be handed a crappy little plastic bow and a bunch of overused arrows with bits falling off. And then you'll try to shoot, and you'll get slapped by the string and your arrow will go wide, or not, and you'll wind up wondering how the dickens guys like Legolas or Robin Hood or William Tell pulled it off. Might even put bows down for good, after an experience like that.

I don't want that to happen. I want you to like archery, or at least understand the basics of it. If you're a fanficcer, I want you to be able to write at least a decent simulacrum of someone using a bow. It pains me to see some of the stuff out there that gets written in the course of LOTR elf-fic. It's time to set matters as right as I can.

In a time of swords, your average bow is most likely going to be a longbow. They're very simple in terms of design, good weapons for use in forest environments, and quite powerful when designed right. Your average longbow will be well over five feet, six inches long- probably more, depending on who it was made for. I own several longbows; I'm 5'10", and only one of them is taller than me. Then again, my bows are for hunting, not war. The bows in LOTR would be a lot longer and a lot heavier, so as to punch through enemy armour. When it's not strung your average longbow looks like a stick with tapered ends and leather wrapped around its middle, and that's about it. There'll be grooves cut into the ends, and most likely if you look at the thing from one end it'll have sort of a D shape to it, but it won't be very fancy. This is because a bow moves, all the time. Even when you're just preparing it for use.

Notice how you never see guys in LOTR carrying sticks around with them? They've already strung their bows. Their bowstrings are twisted cords with a single loop on each end. To use their bows they put a loop over one end and nestle it into the grooves there. Then they have to bend the bow enough to get the other loop over the other end- and that takes a lot of strength, since the bow is a stick of wood that doesn't much want to bend. The whole point of the bow is to make that wood bend, so that when Faramir or Legolas or whoever pulls the string and lets go, all the resistance in the wood- the stored-up energy- gets transferred into the string, thence to the arrow. As soon as Faramir lets go of his string, the limbs of the bow- which had bent even further than usual when he drew the string- are released, hard. They basically go SPROING! and the string jerks forward. Longbows are generally not very fancy-looking, because this SPROING! motion would cause any decoration to pop off or crack or split after hard use.

Legolas' bow had decorations on it of a sort. You'll notice that they weren't particularly fancy, though. Even the Galadhrim who gave him that bow didn't have enough elven craft to get around the basic fact that Stuff Stuck To A Longbow Will Break. Please, don't write up a fancy decorated bow. It will only make you look silly.

There are, of course, other styles of bow. If you saw King Arthur, then you saw bows that looked… well, wiggly. They were probably a bit flat when seen from the side, too. These are what we call 'recurve bows', and they originated in central Asia. They started off as bows used by guys on horseback, and so tend to be a good deal shorter than longbows. They're not usually carved from single staves the way longbows are, but are often made by layering different thicknesses of wood together, or sometimes wood and other material, such as horn. The orcs in LOTR used short recurve bows; Tristan had a longer recurve bow in King Arthur. Recurve bows often look a bit fancier than longbows, because people will use ornamental woods in their construction and occasionally apply stuff to the limbs to strengthen the bow (more on that later). They are not, however, particularly funky beyond that. Like longbows, they too are in constant motion when in use, so anything stuck to them is likely to pop off or crack.

It should be noted, though, that a recurve bow can have some form of patterning on it. Thin layers of substances with the right properties can be applied to the flat surfaces of recurve bows, as long as the right glues are used. Sinew is popular for this, as is snakeskin. They add to the strength of the bow's limbs by making them a bit stiffer, so that if you pull the string back you have to add more force into it. You're not going to find painted recurves, though- they'll crack the paint job. I have to check my own recurve over fairly regularly to make sure that the outer layer of urethane varnish is still okay. All the attractiveness in my bow comes from the woods involved- they form a lovely set of stripes when the bow is seen from the side, but the front and back of the limbs is just pale yellow fiberglass (this has the same effect as sinew, namely, it makes the bow stronger).

A recurve bow is usually going to have a section in the middle where you grip it. This may or may not be wrapped in leather. The design of a longbow unfortunately involves something called 'handshock'- when you fire a longbow, part of the energy released is thrown back into the wood from the string, and the bow jerks in your hand. It hurts, if you aren't used to it or prepared for it. There's a lot less handshock when you fire a recurve. Both of my recurves have nicely shaped and polished grips, but no padding of any kind. They don't need it.

Longbows and recurves share a characteristic in common, namely, that lovely lovely string. Know the string. Love the string, Respect the string. Do not put a bow into the hands of a character who wears billowing or baggy sleeves, because the sleeves will tangle in the string. This will cause the arrow to fly straight up into the air and land somewhere roughly atop their head- and yes, that happened to me. Do not put a bow into the hands of a character with long, unrestrained hair. I do not know exactly what will happen, but if the two interact, it's gonna hurt. Do not put a bow into the hands of a character with 'curves in all the right places', because bowstrings and bounteous 'tracts of land' don't mix. Unless the character takes great care to tilt the bow exactly right, there's a pretty good chance she'll get thwapped by the bowstring when it's released, and that hurts. I wore a sports bra to most of my archery classes in college and escaped the worst of this, but I have thwapped myself once or twice. It's not fun. Please, be very careful about the string, or it will hurt your character and you.

Speaking of hurting . . . You may be tempted to bring crossbows into play in your fic. If you do this, I may have to find you and hit you over the head with one, because it's really easy to get them horribly wrong. Crossbows are a relatively recent invention in terms of European history, and a pretty old one in Chinese history. They're very powerful compared to recurves and longbows, because to bring them to draw you use a crank or other device rather than just the strength of your arm. They became popular because they fired arrows in a straight line rather than an arc, so it was pretty easy to learn to aim them. The Swiss were the biggest developers of crossbows in Europe; William Tell's legendary feat with the apple involved a crossbow, not a longbow.

THE SAXONS IN KING ARTHUR SHOULD NOT HAVE HAD THEM.

Seriously. Unless the Saxons had raided Silk Road caravans before invading Britain, there's just no way they could have had crossbows. The Chinese invented their form of the crossbow around 500 BCE, possibly earlier. The ancient Greeks knew about the basic form of the weapon. The Carthaginians used hand-held crossbows against the Romans in 397 BCE, but after Carthage fell the weapons were largely destroyed and did not surface in Europe again until their re-invention in France around 1050. It is really not a good idea to put crossbows into your fics unless you're willing to do a hell of a lot of research. Neither Tolkien or Peter Jackson put crossbows into the hands of Saruman's orcs, the Middle-earth fighting force most likely to have them. You shouldn't either.

There are, of course, other kinds of bow. I do not know Asiatic bows well enough to comment on the yumi or the Mongolian horse bow (which is a type of recurve), and I do not know the native bows of the Americas very well either. It should be noted, though, that most bows used by Native peoples of the American plains were shaped like longbows, but were a lot shorter. For the most part, they either stalked their prey until they were within a few yards of it, or rode up to it on horseback and fired from close range. Their bows didn't have to be very strong. They weren't shooting at a guy standing a hundred and fifty yards away while he tried to kill them, the way Faramir and his men were. I know nothing at all about African bows, except for a little bit about the bows used in Egyptian tomb paintings, but the day someone claims to have one of them in a fanfic is the day I have to take up watching Stargate: SG-1.

Date: 2004-08-09 08:33 pm (UTC)
avram: (Default)
From: [personal profile] avram
Is there a place around here to practice archery? I haven’t arched since my college days. Though I guess I’d have to buy a bow and some arrows first.

Date: 2004-08-09 08:46 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] coocoocthulhu.livejournal.com
Woah. This was an awesome read, and makes me want to know more about weaponry. Thanks!
*is in awe of teh bow and arrow*

Date: 2004-08-09 09:13 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] ahmeemee.livejournal.com
And then you'll try to shoot, and you'll get slapped by the string and your arrow will go wide...

Dude, this brings me back.

Date: 2004-08-09 09:13 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] feonixrift.livejournal.com
Wonderful rant. =) Now then,

*quibblequibblequibble*

... your average bow is most likely going to be a longbow. ... good weapons for use in forest environments ...

I dunno what forests you've been finding, but when I think of forest, I think of a place that it would be three hassles and a half to be hauling a bow that long through. Give me something short for forests, so I don't keep tangling it in things. I hate getting my weapons tangled in things.

Do not put a bow into the hands of a character who wears billowing or baggy sleeves, because the sleeves will tangle in the string. This will cause the arrow to fly straight up into the air and land somewhere roughly atop their head- and yes, that happened to me. Do not put a bow into the hands of a character with long, unrestrained hair. I do not know exactly what will happen, but if the two interact, it's gonna hurt. Do not put a bow into the hands of a character with 'curves in all the right places', because bowstrings and bounteous 'tracts of land' don't mix.

In all these cases: I've seen it done successfully by people. A couple of the best archers I knew were certainly not under a D size, several of them were addicted to poofy sleeves, and a couple kept forgetting their hairties. That said, they were also shooting on a range, not in an interesting situation, and therein lies much difference. Personally, I think it's fine to give an archer such traits, so long as their consequences are very very carefully considered. Like, a poofy sleeves *cannot* shoot with the bow at an angle, it ain't gonna happen. And a D size isn't going to be able to shoot when in a very narrow place, they need a little room.

Date: 2004-08-09 09:26 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] feonixrift.livejournal.com
Not just plunking Faeredhelywyn the Fair and her slender-yet-busty form with hair down to her ankles down in a foofy white silk dress and handing her a bow.

*giggles* Although, taking such a character who is used to dressing quite differently, having them forget themselves, pick up a bow, and promptly tangle it in their dress, with all ensuing distress, would be quite amusing. And yes, I see your point, this is another classic case of most writers not paying enough attention to consequence, detail, and interaction.

Date: 2004-08-09 09:51 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] almeda.livejournal.com
I think I need a link to the cover art on Amazon. :->

Date: 2004-08-10 04:44 pm (UTC)
spiritdancer: (Default)
From: [personal profile] spiritdancer
I'm pretty sure it's In Camelot's Shadow by Sarah Zettel.

(the link where I found it on Amazon is pretty long, but if it works for you, great: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0373802048/qid=1092181315/sr=1-44/ref=sr_1_44/103-5307591-5664644?v=glance&s=books )

_M_

Date: 2004-08-10 05:41 pm (UTC)
genarti: Knees-down view of woman on tiptoe next to bookshelves (Default)
From: [personal profile] genarti
...Okay, yeah, that's pretty astonishingly impractical.

Although I rather like it, really, for the amusement of picturing what'll happen about three seconds after that lovely swirly Preraphaelite-plus-violence shot.

Date: 2004-08-11 02:45 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] almeda.livejournal.com
Quicker link to bigger pic (http://images.amazon.com/images/P/0373802048.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg), for those interested.

Date: 2004-08-09 09:46 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] dragonwhishes.livejournal.com
This will cause the arrow to fly straight up into the air and land somewhere roughly atop their head- and yes, that happened to me. Do not put a bow into the hands of a character with long, unrestrained hair. I do not know exactly what will happen, but if the two interact, it's gonna hurt.

I had a mint in my mouth at the same time I read that. I nearly choked from laughter. I know you were being serious, but the way you said it...

And possibly the fact I'm giggly when I'm tired.

Date: 2004-08-13 06:20 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] firestrike.livejournal.com
Firearms have more moving parts, but much less external movement of the parts. If you can point the muzzle downrange and have the round go vertical from your firing point, I'll humbly bow to your expertise, find the round, and eat it.

That being said, any idiot can fire a rifle. Using a bow takes skill. (Which I ain't got.)

-M


Date: 2004-08-09 09:57 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] cotume27.livejournal.com
Oh, this is fantastic. Of course, it also made me desperately want to go find an archery range again.

(And no, I never got my hair caught in my bow and no, I didn't learn the hard way that yes, it does matter about standing up straight and keeping certain things away from bow strings)

Just wanted to thank you for this. People need to wake up and be a little more realistic.

Date: 2004-08-10 03:53 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] ivorykisses.livejournal.com
Thankyou! I just started a fic where one of the characters will have a bow (having never used one before in his life). Seeing as I know nothing about the subject you've given me a headstart before I start my research.

Date: 2004-08-10 05:29 am (UTC)
ext_14419: the mouse that wants Arthur's brain (Default)
From: [identity profile] derien.livejournal.com
You can have a newbie slap his bowholding arm with the string a few times - I did that when I was just starting out, and it smarts. I've heard it can take the skin right off your forearm if it's a strong enough bow. That's what the leather forearm guards are for, but I learned quickly enough how to not do that. (But I never learned to shoot well.)

Date: 2004-08-10 05:30 am (UTC)
ext_14419: the mouse that wants Arthur's brain (Default)
From: [identity profile] derien.livejournal.com
Good rant. :) I had to read it all, even though (or maybe because?) I grew up with parents who were LOTR fans and had a few bows, and I took archery in grade school. :) (I sucked, and I haven't shot since then, but at least I have a vague idea.)

Date: 2004-08-10 06:15 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] wal-lace.livejournal.com
Do you read Bernard Cornwell? He has a trilogy about an English bowman in the fourteenth century, in which it's constantly emphasized just how much strength is needed to use the bow efficiently. At one point it's stated in the text that drawing the weapon is equivalent to lifting a man one-handed; since Mr Cornwell tends to do his research, I take this as fairly accurate.

Of course, that's a massive, six-foot-plus, punch-a-bodkin-through-plate-armour, classic yew war bow, but even so, you're average slender-yet-busty character probably wouldn't even be able to get the cord half-way back on a proper bow.

Date: 2004-08-10 06:56 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] fidelioscabinet.livejournal.com
Efficient use of a longbow with a heavy pull involves bending the bow itself, as well as simply pulling the string. That's one of the reason's the English and Welsh spent so much time practicing with the long bow--most short bows involve pulling, but not bending. It's also one of the reasons the French were unable to adopt the long bow--they never figured out the bending part. It was contrary to everything they knew about bows.
Good weapon use is so rare in writing, just as good horse use is. It's amazing how many people can't grasp that the horse can't gallop all the time, just as we can't sprint all the time. There's a limit on how much weight they can carry, too--so without a packhorse or two, your baggage will be highly limited. And I don't mean just in fanfic or beginning writers, either. There's a lot of professionally-published stuff that's just plain ignorant about a lot of facts-of-life things, from weapons use to food preservation. Thanks for shedding some light in a dark place!

Date: 2004-08-10 11:10 am (UTC)
ext_110: A field and low mountain of the Porcupine Hills, Alberta. (Default)
From: [identity profile] goldjadeocean.livejournal.com
*giggles* Now I have a mental image of Faeredhelywyn the Fair drawing the string back, not noticing her hair's tangled up in the string, and letting go...

Ouch.

Hair stands up on the back of my neck every time I see someone new with a bow and arrow who doesn't know the first thing about safety or range courtesy- I'd never help out at an archery range because I'd give myself a heart attack three times a week. Thanks for ranting like this- it was definitely informative!

Date: 2004-08-10 05:52 pm (UTC)
genarti: Knees-down view of woman on tiptoe next to bookshelves (Default)
From: [personal profile] genarti
And now I desperately want to do archery again. Adored it at summer camp and haven't done it since, which is six years or so of no practice. (Well, except we did it a couple of times in gym class, but nothing in gym class counts.)

Mrf.

Date: 2004-08-11 03:04 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] ksirafai.livejournal.com
Random complete stranger comment; for someone who's paid far more care and attention than possibly they should to the matter of bows, try K J Parker's Fencer trilogy, especially the second book, 'The Belly of the Bow'. http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/authors/K_J_Parker.htm for details...

[/plug]

Thanks for an interesting read while bored at work. :)

Profile

camwyn: Me in a bomber jacket and jeans standing next to a green two-man North Andover Flight Academy helicopter. (Default)
camwyn

February 2026

S M T W T F S
12345 67
891011121314
15161718192021
22232425262728

Most Popular Tags

Style Credit

Expand Cut Tags

No cut tags
Page generated Feb. 12th, 2026 09:37 pm
Powered by Dreamwidth Studios