History Main / TrickArrow

While some other types of weapons get similar treatment ([[PrecisionGuidedBoomerang boomerangs]] and [[KillerYoyo yoyos]] especially), the Trick Arrow is a trope in its own right that seems to appear anywhere there are bows and arrows. Doubly so if the characters are [[ThouShaltNotKill honor-bound not to kill]], since there's very little bows are normally designed to do except shove sharp projectiles into bodies. Deconstructing the trope suggests that trick arrows are almost inevitable with superheroic archer characters. They are useful and straightforward starting points for superheroic characters for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is that RobinHood is a cultural icon in the English-speaking world. In addition, references for the poses and equipment are fairly easy to come by, as well as being readily identifiable by readers. And therein lies the problem: We Have Seen ALL Of This Before, at least with respect to plain vanilla archery. Hence, trick arrows to surprise the readers and to break up the tedium of writing/drawing ordinary pointy-arrow-work.

* Naturally in ''Series/Hawkeye2021'', Clint Barton's arrows gets a tour de force in the third episode with the help of Kate Bishop. Which includes but aren't limited to [[spoiler: Goo, explosive, plunger, grappling line arrows, Avenger's USB arrow and even a Pym Particle Arrow]]. Kate tries to pitch a boomerang arrow, but Clint shoots it down on the realistic basis of having a deadly projectile coming back to you is not a very desirable outcome. The finale of the mini-series has Clint and Kate work together to make a bunch of them when having to face the Tracksuit Mafia. Showing off a very impressive performance of using them one after the other in the final battle.

* ''Series/Hawkeye2021'' gives Hawkeye's arrows a tour de force in the third episode including lots of trick arrows from the MCU and comics including [[spoiler: Goo, explosive, plunger, grappling line arrows, Avenger's USB arrow and even a Pym Particle Arrow]]. Kate Bishop also pitches a boomerang arrow, which Clint shoots down on the basis that having a deadly projectile coming towards you is not a desirable outcome.

* ''ComicBok/BigBangComics'': The robot archer Robo-Hood wears a high-tech quiver that can manufacture whatever trick arrow he needs when he needs it.

* ''Film/RobinHoodMenInTights'' has Robin using a Patriot Arrow. As in Patriot Missile. Robin also uses a set of arrows tied in the fashion of a Venetian blind, which when shot separated to [[KnifeOutline pin one of the sheriff's men to a tree by his clothing]].

* Unsurprisingly we see Oliver Queen using a few of these in ''Series/{{Arrow}}''. But only rarely in combat; he prefers killing (now wounding) his enemies the old-fashioned way. They get more use when he needs to set up ziplines, or bugs. Most of his normal arrows are handwaved as being "tranq arrows." Although we never see what the arrowhead looks like on screen, and adding tranquilizer to a normal arrowhead wouldn't decrease its lethality. He's even used an improvised boxing glove arrow! (Season 3, Episode 6, [[Recap/ArrowS3E6Guilty "Guilty"]])

--->'''Joss Whedon:''' Yeah, it's a virus arrow. What? That could totally happen.
** ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'' has Yondu, whose signature weapon is a self-propelled, armor-piercing arrow controlled via a piece of cyberware and Yondu's whistling. He shows it's the only weapon he needs when [[spoiler:he uses it to take out an entire squad of Kree goons and one ship in the climax]]. Taken UpToEleven in [[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol2 the sequel]], where he uses it to [[spoiler: take out every single mutineer on his own Ravager ship in a matter of minutes]]. And he even uses it as NotQuiteFlight simply by holding onto it in midair.

** In "Green Arrow: Year One" (a "serious" retelling of the above), Ollie is trapped on a deserted island and his only arrows are improvised and decidedly pointy. He just uses them for OnlyAFleshWound shots. [[spoiler:Later on he gets an actual bow and arrows. At one point he can't get a non-lethal shot(underside of the bad guy's chin, which would punch straight into their brain), so he removes the head of his arrow.]] His first non-lethal arrow appears later in the same story: He demonstartes his skill by impaling a golf ball with a pointy arrow, then is forced to fire it again in combat. Hitting someone in the groin with a high-velocity golf-ball-arrow apparently works just fine.

* In ''WesternAnimation/FlashGordon1979'', the Arborians used [[FreezeRay ''ice arrows'']] as their weapon of choice. Interestingly, there was never any indication that this was anything less than lethal (no HarmlessFreezing here), it was simply a way to avoid the [[GoryDiscretionShot ugly messiness]] of a conventional arrow. Though the ice arrows did turn out to be very handy for putting out fires, especially the larger varient that Vultan and his Hawkman are able to throw down from the air without needing bows.

* On the other hand, there are [[https://i.ytimg.com/vi/6Os-xozVekw/maxresdefault.jpg hypodermic arrowheads like the Toxic, the Rage and others]] that are designed to rip heavily into tissue around the arrow's shaft and cause extensive hemorrhage, both for a quicker death as well as making the blood trail easier to follow. They're used almost exclusively for larger game like moose, deer and bears -– not only is it a costly overkill for smaller animals[[labelnote:+]]the arrows are far easier to lose on such a small target, as they overpenetrate without losing much velocity and bounce off out of sight or hit a hard surface and damage the blades, and these are far from cheap[[/labelnote]], they tend to be [[LudicrousGibs torn wide open]] and end up unfit for consumption, which is counterproductive if the user is hunting for food.

%% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1354944814037040100
%% Please do not replace or remove without starting a new thread.

* Michelle in ''Anime/ReadOrDie'' uses paper arrows which can do pretty much anything (being a Paper Master) - the example that springs to mind was an arrow whose tip split in two, allowing it to wrap around the target (a book) and carry on with it securely held.

* The Bow form of Signum's [[SwissArmyWeapon Laevatein]] in ''Franchise/LyricalNanoha'' uses explosive arrows that are powerful enough to shatter a HumongousMecha's DeflectorShields. In the movie adaptation of the second season, it turns into a flaming bird when fired.
* Himiko "Lady Poison" Kudo of ''Manga/GetBackers'' has trick ''perfumes,'' which can do anything from corrode metal to allow fire breath to MindControl to... she's actually got hundreds of varieties, though she only carries seven at a time.
* The Nakaizumi Ryuu from ''Manga/{{Gamaran}}'' is renowed for the Kyokyu (Mad Bow) and their Kuruiya (Crazy Arrows), arrows specifically made to make the school as deadly as possible. They include Ha (Destruction), a special arrow with a blunt reinforced head which can crack barkskin open, En (Circle), an asymmetrical arrow which can curve midflight, Kiba (Fang), a monstrous arrow with a bladed head and fletching all over the shaft made to spin as it flies towards a target, shredding it to pieces, at the cost of being lethal only at close range. After the timeskip, Nakaizumi Arata comes up with an explosive arrows to send signals and Hao (Lord of Destruction), a monstrous arrow with a huge metal head which is basically a maul and, with the right bow and strength, can rip off limbs and blow gates open.

** Also during the well-known "junkie Speedy" arc in the Seventies, GA has an acetylene torch arrow - which comes in handy when he's thrown from a pier, chained to an anchor. The torch cuts the chain and he swims back up in time for Green Lantern to dispose of the crooks who threw him in the water.

* Parodied by ''Comicbook/LegionOfSuperHeroes'' minor villain Ze Tongue, who had - you guessed it - trick ''tongues''.

* Yondu from the original ''ComicBook/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'' has sound-sensitive arrows that he can control by ''whistling''.
* The Street Angel in ''ComicBook/AstroCity'' used to use gimmicked throwing rings ("halos") before he turned DarkerAndEdgier, after which he used halos made of high impact ceramics with a steel core. This fact drives one character into virtual catatonia; the only person who calls himself an angel in Astro City hits people in the mouth with his steel-cored halo.
** Quarrel is a more straight forward example of the 'archer with trick arrows' archetype in ''ComicBook/AstroCity''. In this case, they're launched from a wrist-mounted mechanism similar to a crossbow.
* Franchise/{{Batman}} has occasionally been depicted as using trick [[PrecisionGuidedBoomerang Batarangs]] when the situation calls for it. ''Film/BatmanReturns'' had him use a programmable Batarang to knock out a large group of {{Mooks}}, while a {{Gamebook|s}} featuring the Caped Crusader had him using a "Flash-Batarang" (which emitted a bright flash of light when it was thrown, blinding the Joker in the process) and a "Sprinkler-Batarang" (which sprayed fire retardant to extinguish a fire started by the Riddler) in different storylines.

* ComicBook/{{Blackhawk}} fought a one-shot villain called the Shaft whose gimmick was trick arrows.
* Celestial Archer of the Great Ten doesn't technically use trick arrows, but because his bow is a peerless magical weapon created by the gods, he can basically do anything with his arrows anyway -- for instance, he can create a bridge or walkway by shooting an arrow that leaves solid terrain behind it as it flies.
* ''ComicBook/RedHoodAndTheOutlaws'': Though Arsenal has mostly avoided these, he has used a bomb arrow.
** Went all out with trick arrows in issue 5, which has him taking down Crux with an electric arrow, and making a fire with a fire arrow. And when he destroyed most of his arrows to stop Crux, we get brief glimpses at a bunch of other trick arrows that haven't been used yet.
* Titular ''ComicBook/{{Deadpool}}'' once made trick arrows during a team up with Hawkeye, riffing on Green Arrow's boxing glove arrow by using ''Hulk Hands'' (one even went "Hulk smash!" on impact). However the ''real'' trick was that these arrows were all ''explosive''.
* Raptorella uses arrows with explosive heads when she is HuntingTheMostDangerousGame, using Miriem as her prey, in ''ComicBook/{{Cavewoman}}: Raptorella''.
* ''Franchise/WonderWoman'' [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1942 Vol 1]]: Nymphs use lasso arrows to try and capture Diana and Paula in issue 5.
* The NSFW fumetti "Karzan" (now guess who is subtly parodied) once had a cover where a native is going to shoot a dildo arrow. a) DontTryThisAtHome. b) [[RuleThirtyFour NO Exceptions.]]

* In ''Film/TheWildGeese'', Coetzee uses crossbow bolts with acid canisters affixed to the tips to make sure that his shots will be immediately lethal.

* ''Film/RobinHoodMenInTights'' has Robin using a Patriot Arrow. As in Patriot Missile. Robin also uses a set of arrows tied in the fashion of a venetian blind, which when shot separated to [[KnifeOutline pin one of the sheriff's men to a tree by his clothing]].
* In ''Film/ArmyOfDarkness'', as part of a last stand against the Deadites, Ash teaches the wise men in the middle ages how to make gunpowder, which leads to them creating exploding arrows. Not only that, but they don't explode on impact - bowmen have to light the fuse, ''wait about twenty seconds for the fuse to burn down'', and ''then'' fire.
* ''Franchise/{{Rambo}}'' character John Rambo has them.
** Parodied as Jimbo in an issue of ''ComicBook/GreenArrow''.
** Also parodied in ''Film/HotShotsPartDeux'' with the chicken arrow. That's a ''live'' chicken - or, at least, it was when it was fired.

* In ''Film/BladeTrinity'', VampireHunter Abigail Whistler uses various trick arrows. Including ultra violet flashbang arrows, for dusting Vamps. A drill arrow, for penetrating cover. And [[spoiler: A virus delivery arrow for taking out the films BigBad, Drake]].

* Yeoman, the BadassNormal archer of the ''Literature/WildCards'' universe, has homemade explosive arrows, but [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome makes sure to point out]] that they are shorter ranged and less accurate than his normal arrows due to their weight and poor balance.
* In Garth Nix's ''[[Literature/KeysToTheKingdom Superior Saturday]]'', there is a sentient RAT with a bow that shot arrows with a glass tip containing Nothing, basically nothingness that acts like acid, eating away until the target ceases to exist.
* In ''Literature/TheDragonOnTheBorder'', Daffydd creates an armor-piercing arrow, designed to pierce armor, go through an empty space, and then pierce an additional layer of armor, as opposed to piercing armor and wounding the person wearing it like a normal arrow. Because the enemy of this book, the Hollow Men, are effectively animated suits of armor with no body inside, this enables him to kill three opponents in a single shot, with the arrow going through the first target to hit the target behind him. The arrows are never used in later books, as the design isn't very good at wounding flesh and blood enemies.

* In ''[[Literature/TheHungerGames Mockingjay]]'', Katniss gets some exploding arrows.

* Unsurprisingly we see Oliver Queen using a few of these in ''Series/{{Arrow}}''. But only rarely in combat; he prefers killing (now wounding) his enemies the old-fashioned way. They get more use when he needs to set up ziplines, or bugs. Most of his normal arrows are handwaved as being "tranq arrows." Although we never see what the arrowhead looks like on screen, and adding tranquilizer to a normal arrowhead wouldn't decrease its lethality. He's even used an improvised boxing glove arrow! (Season 3, episode 6, [[Recap/ArrowS3E6Guilty "Guilty"]])

* ''Series/TheDukesOfHazzard'' had dynamite arrows, which were often fired from a moving car.

** The later-added Seeker embodies this trope even more – a member of that class can shoot things such as [[AbnormalAmmo vines or fairies]].

* Some Inquisitors in ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer40000}}'' use "Stake Crossbows", which fire, well, stakes. They're especially effective against Psykers.
* ''TabletopGame/{{Rifts}}'' has magic and/or high-tech explosive arrows in just about every setting, for those who cannot or will not use laser rifles like everyone else.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Champions}}'' universe
** Multiple characters, including Crossbow (a hero) and Rainbow Archer (a villain).
** This sort of character is generally easy to build in systems with "effect-based" power creation rules like ''Champions'' or ''TabletopGame/MutantsAndMasterminds''. Take an attack power with multiple alternate modes (which generally come at a significant discount for only being usable one at a time), give it the special effect "bow and trick arrows", add the necessary drawbacks if it's actual equipment that can be taken away, and you're basically done.
* The Archer class in ''TabletopGame/WorldOfSynnibarr'' is quite naturally all about this, though most of its "tricks" are actually magical -- pardon, based on "Earthpower" -- rather than the more mundane type.

* Hanzo of ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'' is an ArcherArchetype with an arsenal: Sonic Arrow, which grants you echo-location with a noticable radius; Scatter Arrow, which [[MacrossMissileMassacre splits into many arrows on impact]]; and finally, Dragonstrike - a slow-moving, spirit-charged, wall-clipping arrow that looks like [[OurDragonsAreDifferent two coiled dragons]].
* Garrett in the ''VideoGame/{{Thief}}'' series has a fairly wide arsenal of both magical and gadget arrows he can use - most notably the water arrow, used for dousing torches at long range. The first game is {{unwinnable}} without them.
* ''VideoGame/{{Gun}}'' had dynamite arrows.

* ''VideoGame/ChampionsOnline'' has the Archery powerset which combines trick arrows (Sonic Arrow, Taser Arrow, Explosive Arrow) with trick shooting (Multiple arrows shot at once, Storm of Arrows, and Focused Shot can be upgraded to go through several targets in one shot).
* ''VideoGame/NinjaGaiden'''s Xbox remake had armour-piercing arrows. There is also the "standard" explosive varieties.
** It should be pointed out that the armour-piercing arrows were not technically "arrows" as such. Rather, they were the cores of Armour-Piercing Fin-Stabalized Discarding Sabot rounds for ''tank cannons''.

* The Amazon of ''VideoGame/DiabloII'' has an entire skill-tab dedicated to these, including arrows that explode, arrows that freeze everything, arrows that split into multiple smaller arrows, and of course the [[GameBreaker Guided Arrow]].
* ''VideoGame/{{BioShock|1}}'''s crossbow, which, along with firing steel bolts, could fire both incendiary bolts, and bolts which themselves fired deadly electric tripwires.
** The tranquilizer crossbow in ''VideoGame/BioShockInfinite: Burial at Sea - Episode 2'' can also fire noisemaker and gas bolts.

** another Unreal Tournament GameMod had a bow that had even more arrow options from normal flaming poison exploding (both small frag grenade and NukeEm levels of explodyness ) And finally Black Hole and Disintegration Arrows
* In ''[[VisualNovel/FateStayNight Fate/stay night]]'', one of [[{{Mons}} Servant]] Archer's favourite tricks is to make sword arrows: He can create a sword and transform it into a slimmer, aerodynamic shape, which he then fires from his long bow as an arrow. This has various effects, depending on the nature of the sword, and can cause them to explode on contact by overloading them with mana. In the original VisualNovel he uses a sword that can twists space around it as it flies, allowing it to pierce any target; in ''VisualNovel/FateHollowAtaraxia'' he uses a sword that moves at ten times the speed of sound and will change course to hit its target, even if it's already missed.
* Link in ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'' has used silver arrows, fire arrows, ice arrows, bomb arrows, and ''light'' arrows. ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' adds electric arrows and ancient arrows to the mix, the latter being a rarer one-hit-kill attack.

* Raven from ''VideoGame/TalesOfVesperia'''s arrows do everything from laying explosives to healing. His bow can even be used as a double-bladed sword, since it's got sharp edges.
** And while we're on the subject of the ''VideoGame/TalesSeries'', Woodrow Kelvin from the ''VideoGame/TalesOfDestiny'' remake has a very interesting move called Bassaiga. He sets up his bow so that it looks like he's going to shoot his enemy, but then he pulls his sword out at the last moment and slashes them. How's ''that'' for a [[IncrediblyLamePun Trick Arrow]]?
* ''VideoGame/HeroesOfMightAndMagic 4'' features several different kinds of arrows that add special effects to ranged attacks, including the Arrow of Stunning (stuns enemies), Arrow of Slaying (does extra damage to the most powerful creatures like dragons), Poison Arrow (poisons enemies), Silk Arrow (restrains fliers) or the Flame Arrow (Area of Effect damage).
** ''VideoGame/HeroesOfMightAndMagic 5'': The Rangers racial ability is largely based around this. Imbue Arrow lets him put any offensive spell on his arrows, who deal more damage by default if they hit one of his chosen favored enemies. For extra fun, he can fire arrows that will hit any enemy stack of favored enemies for full damage each.
* The standard ammo for the crossbow in ''{{VideoGame/Strife}}'' is electric bolts, which are a good choice to destroy robotic enemies, though they are useful all around. {{Poisoned|Weapons}} bolts are a completely silent OneHitKill on any organic mook and don't raise any alarms, though using them against ''anything'' else is a NoSell.
%%* The many kinds of arrows in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXII''.
* ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion'' has a wide variety of enchanted arrows, from standard elemental damage and stat debuffs to [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere making enemies run away in fear]] or creating an area of light around the arrow when fired. Bows themselves can be enchanted as well, providing even more effects for would-be CrazyPrepared archers.
** ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim Skyrim]]'' also features Trick Crossbow Bolts, added in the ''Dawnguard'' DLC; by mixing up some crossbow bolts with elemental salts dropped from Atronachs, you can get exploding fire, frost or shock bolts.
** ''Dawnguard'''s main quest centers around Auriel's Bow, a weapon supposedly [[ForgedByTheGods used by the god Auri-El]], which by itself [[HolyHandGrenade burns the targets of its arrows with sunlight]], dealing triple damage to undead. However, it becomes powerful enough to affect the Sun itself when combined with one of two trick arrows; Bloodcursed Arrows, made by dipping regular Elven Arrows in the blood of a Daughter of Coldharbour, [[TheNightThatNeverEnds blot out the Sun for one day]] and lets the various monsters of the night (including you, if you became a Vampire Lord) move and attack freely. On the other hand, Sunhallowed Elven Arrows, blessed by the [[LastOfTheirKind last priest of the Snow Elves]], ''rains down beams of divine light from the Sun'' and damages every enemy in the vicinity, again dealing even greater damage to the undead.
* ''VideoGame/OddworldStrangersWrath'' has the main character use a crossbow that fires critters that have various different effects, such as baiting the enemies towards them via TrashTalk, a skunk that serves as a stink bomb, bats that serve as explosives and others.
* ''VideoGame/{{Fallout 3}}'' has the Dart Gun, which is essentially a crossbow that fires pre-war throwing darts... dipped in radscorpion venom. While it does extremely little real damage, the poison immediately cripples the target's legs, drastically reducing its mobility. Extremely effective against [[DemonicSpiders Deathclaws]], which are rendered pretty much helpless. Deathclaws are one of the deadliest creatures in the entire game otherwise.
* In ''VideoGame/PlanescapeTorment'', Nordom's crossbows usually shoot regular, pointy bolts, but you can find and/or buy all sorts of variations (and even tell the crossbows to make some specific types themselves), such as acid-filled sponge bolts, bolts containing insane wind spirits in the tips, cubic bolts incorporating the essence of order, frog-crotch bolts, and the ever-popular "Rule-Of-Three" pyramid bolts that separate into three bolts.
* In addition to normal, pointy arrows, VideoGame/DungeonsOfDredmor features a number of increasingly improbable ammunition. In particular: ''nuclear warhead'' arrows, and arrows that fire an EldritchAbomination.
* In ''VideoGame/GuildWars2'', the thief shortbow skills in particular show off variations of this trope. Some warrior and ranger bow skills also fit.
%%* Many Demon Hunter skills in ''VideoGame/DiabloIII''.
* Some archery skills in ''VideoGame/DragonsDogma'' seems to come off as this with the character pulling stuff out of their pocket to ready the skill. Such arrows include Drills, Flash bangs, Poisons, and [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking Whistles]].
* The new [[VideoGame/TombRaider2013 Tomb Raider reboot]] gives Lara several different arrow types to play with, primarily [[ArrowsOnFire fire arrows]] for extra damage and rope arrows which serve as [[GrapplingHookPistol grappling hooks]], to bridge gaps and pull distant objects. The fire arrows can be upgraded into napalm and explosive arrows, whilst the rope arrows can be upgraded with a rope ascender, letting Lara pull heavy objects.
* ''[[VideoGame/DarkMessiah Dark Messiah of Might and Magic]]'' gives you the Rope Bow a short ways into the game. It shoots arrows that, upon striking a wooden surface, deploy a rope you can then climb. It becomes a key gameplay mechanic from that point on, allowing you to get into and out of places that would otherwise be unreachable.
* ''VideoGame/{{Terraria}}'' allows you to be quite a good archer, providing you with automatic crossbows and arrows ranging from flaming to firework ones.
* In ''VideoGame/PAYDAY2'', both the bow and crossbow-type weapons can be modified to use explosive or poison-tipped arrows.
* ''VideoGame/MassiveChalice'' has a six armed bow that fires bone shards from a particular enemy. It reduces damage but enables the "arrow" to pierce enemies hitting everything in it's path.
* In ''VideoGame/DeadRising2'', you can combine a bow and arrow with dynamite to create the Blambow, which is just as ridiculous as it sounds, but surprisingly effective. [[SawItInAMovieOnce Chuck even got the idea from looking at a poster for an action movie.]]
* There is a metric crapton of trick arrow varieties in ''VideoGame/DivinityOriginalSin'', as they are the main means of delivering elemental effects onto enemies for non-magical player characters. They also have a slight tactical advantage over magical spells in that their trajectories are not blocked by friendly combatants, so an archer can fire elemental arrows at the enemy from behind the tank's back without having to expose themselves.
* ''VideoGame/HorizonZeroDawn'': Fire arrows, frost arrows, and shock arrows are your standard elemental ammo. Tearblaster arrows will explode into a sonic scream that vibrates the components and armor off a machine (or stuns a human for a few seconds from the blaring noise), Harvest arrows are weak but will cause torn-off materials to somehow triple their yield, and Corruption arrows drive enemies mad enough to fight among themselves.
* In ''VideoGame/{{Warframe}}'', Ivara has access to a quiver of four special arrows: one can cloak her and allies, one that creates a tightrope for her and allies to walk across, another that creates noise and attracts enemies, and one which puts enemies to sleep.
* ''VideoGame/MonsterHunter'' normally doesn't do this, instead giving bows "coating" that lets them [[StatusInflictionAttack inflict status ailments]] like Poison and Paralyze, but they do have a few tricks in their quiver. The Arc Shot is an arrow carrying a payload of spiked ball bearings, which is fired upwards and then subsequently rains down on the map. The [[LimitBreak Hunter Art]] Haste Rain fires an arrow that sprays the user with a stimulant that makes them faster, while Blade Wire fires two arrows tied together with RazorFloss that makes them function as Slashing attacks rather than Piercing. Finally, the Dragon Piercer is essentially a firework arrow that hits multiple times as it [[AntiArmor drills through the monster]].

* In ''Literature/{{Worm}}'', both crossbow-wielding superheroes, Shadow Stalker and Flechette, have trick arrows: the former has her tranquilizer bolts, the latter has a chain-generator she can use to turn her arbalest into a GrapplingHookPistol.

* So far in ''WebVideo/CriticalRole'', [[ArcherArchetype Vex]] has used burning arrows, lightning arrows, grappling arrows, exploding arrows and more.

%%* ''Blog/HowToHero'' discusses a whole bunch of these in their entry on [[https://howtohero.tumblr.com/post/173018161764/archers-and-arrows Archers and Arrows]].

* ''WesternAnimation/AladdinTheSeries'': the [[AmazonBrigade Galafems]] use magic arrows that can change into anything (water, rope, etc.) with a thought.
* Speedy from ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans2003'', who is a (possibly former) sidekick of Green Arrow. In one episode, unable to use his trick arrows or bow, he uses nearby vehicles and supplies to make a giant bow, firing ''himself'' as a trick arrow to defuse Control Freak's threat.
* Scarlett from ''WesternAnimation/GIJoeARealAmericanHero'' has a quiver full of Trick Quarrels for her crossbow, and Lady Jaye used Trick Javelins.
* ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'''s [[EliteMooks Yu-Yan Archers]] used net arrows, and arrows with tow lines for rappelling and stuff. The one in the [[QuirkyMinibossSquad Rough]] [[GoldfishPoopGang Rhinos]] used flaming arrows by actually ''equipping his bow with a pilot light for arrows.''
* In ''WesternAnimation/DarkwingDuck'', Gosalyn's hero identity was Quiverwing Quack in the episode "[[Recap/DarkwingDuckS1E59TheQuiverwingQuack The Quiverwing Quack]]". Among her trick arrows were glue arrows, boxing glove arrows, and at least one pencil sharpener arrow.
* In ''WesternAnimation/FlashGordon1979'', the Arborians used [[FreezeRay ''ice arrows'']] as their weapon of choice. Interestingly, there was never any indication that this was anything less than lethal (no HarmlessFreezing here), it was simply a way to avoid the [[GoryDiscretionShot ugly messiness]] of a conventional arrow. Though the ice arrows did turn out to be very handy for putting out fires, especially the larger varient that Vultan and his Hawkman are able to throw down from the air without needing bows.
* Green Arrow, Artemis, and Red Arrow all use trick arrows as their primary weapons in ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice2010''. In addition, Artemis uses trick bolts for the compact crossbow she carries while in her civilian gear.

* In one episode of ''WesternAnimation/SamuraiJack'', Jack is pursued by the greatest hunters in the universe, each armed with a different weapon. One of them is an expert archer -- among his arsenal are arrows that are actually ''petrified snakes'', which proves Jack's undoing when he performs an ArrowCatch.
* ''WesternAnimation/ScoobyDooMysteryInc'': The Obliteratrix uses them to attack Mystery, Inc. in "Pawns of Shadow".
* In the ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' episode "[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E24EquestriaGames Equestria Games]]", the final event in the games is an archery contest. The twist is that the arrowheads ''freeze'' what they hit, and the goal is to cover the entire target in ice before the other ponies. Chaos ensues when one participant trips up and fires one into a cloud, turning the entire thing into an ice ball which nearly crushes the audience.
* Bow in ''Westernanimation/SheRaAndThePrincessesOfPower'' describes himself as a member of the "maker's community" because of his knack for building specialist arrows, including dedicated message arrows, sonic arrows that make a loud noise on impact, and arrows that explode into a gooey net.
** This is lampshaded in one episode when Bow pulls out a ''magnifying glass arrow'' leaving Catra incredulous as to how the Horde had been losing to them.
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Superfriends}}'' 1973-74 season episode "Gulliver's Gigantic Goof". ComicBook/GreenArrow makes good use of his trademark trick arrows to save the other Superfriends, who have been reduced to tiny size by a ShrinkRay.

* On the other hand, there are [[https://i.ytimg.com/vi/6Os-xozVekw/maxresdefault.jpg hypodermic arrowheads like the Toxic, the Rage and others]] that are designed to rip heavily into tissue around the arrow's shaft and cause extensive hemorrhage, both for a quicker death as well as making the blood trail easier to follow. They're used almost exclusively for larger game like moose, deer and bears – not only is it a costly overkill for smaller animals[[labelnote:+]]the arrows are far easier to lose on such a small target, as they overpenetrate without losing much velocity and bounce off out of sight or hit a hard surface and damage the blades, and these are far from cheap[[/labelnote]], they tend to be [[LudicrousGibs torn wide open]] and end up unfit for consumption, which is counterproductive if the user is hunting for food.

* ''VideoGame/MonsterHunter'' normally doesn't do this, instead giving bows "coating" that lets them inflict {{Status Ailment}}s like Poison and Paralyze, but they do have a few tricks in their quiver. The Arc Shot is an arrow carrying a payload of spiked ball bearings, which is fired upwards and then subsequently rains down on the map. The [[LimitBreak Hunter Art]] Haste Rain fires an arrow that sprays the user with a stimulant that makes them faster, while Blade Wire fires two arrows tied together with RazorFloss that makes them function as Slashing attacks rather than Piercing. Finally, the Dragon Piercer is essentially a firework arrow that hits multiple times as it [[AntiArmor drills through the monster]].

[[folder:Web Comics]]

* ''Series/Hawkeye2021'' gives Hawkeye's arrows a tour de force in the third episode including lots of trick arrows from the MCU and comics including [[spoiler: Goo, explosive, plunger, grappling line arrows, Avenger's USB arrow and even a Pym Particle Arrow]]

* Speedy from ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'', who is a (possibly former) sidekick of Green Arrow. In one episode, unable to use his trick arrows or bow, he uses nearby vehicles and supplies to make a giant bow, firing ''himself'' as a trick arrow to defuse Control Freak's threat.

* In the 1970s Creator/{{Filmation}} ''WesternAnimation/{{Flash Gordon|1979}}'', the Arborians used [[FreezeRay ''ice arrows'']] as their weapon of choice. Interestingly, there was never any indication that this was anything less than lethal (no HarmlessFreezing here), it was simply a way to avoid the [[GoryDiscretionShot ugly messiness]] of a conventional arrow. Though the ice arrows did turn out to be very handy for putting out fires, especially the larger varient that Vultan and his Hawkman are able to throw down from the air without needing bows.
* Green Arrow, Artemis, and Red Arrow all use trick arrows as their primary weapons in ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice''. In addition, Artemis uses trick bolts for the compact crossbow she carries while in her civilian gear.

* In ''Film/BladeTrinity'' Vampire hunter Abigail Whistler uses various trick arrows. Including ultra violet flashbang arrows, for dusting Vamps. A drill arrow, for penetrating cover. And [[spoiler: A virus delivery arrow for taking out the films BigBad, Drake]].

* In ''Film/BladeTrinity'' Vampire hunter Abigail Whistler uses various trick arrows. Including ultra violet flashbang arrows, for dusting Vamps. A drill arrow, for penetrating cover. And [[spoiler: A virus delivery arrow for taking out the films big bad, Drake]].

* Parodied by ''Comicbook/{{Legion of Super-Heroes}}'' minor villain Ze Tongue, who had - you guessed it - trick ''tongues''.

* In ''VideoGame/DeadRising2'', you can combine a bow and arrow with dynamite to create the Blambow.

** D&D's third edition also saw the Arcane Archer prestige class, with the ability to put spell effects into arrows and create a few other trick arrows on the spot once per day each.
** The 4th edition Ranger is an archery fanatic, surpassing previous incarnations. While not using trick arrows per se, the nature of the powers certainly has much the same effect. Notable effects include arrows splitting into two shots mid-flight, knocking enemies back several squares, or outright stunning or dazing opponents. Of course, pretty much every other class can also knock back, stun, or daze opponents, without using arrows.

** The 1E ''Oriental Adventures'' supplement had several non-damaging arrows, including the "frog crotch" (cuts rope) and "humming bulb" (whistles loudly in flight); all of these are based on history, believe it or not.

* Hank the Ranger, one of the lead characters of the ''WesternAnimation/DungeonsAndDragons'' animated series, has a ''magic'' bow that seems to be able to [[SwissArmySuperpower fire any sort of bolt.]]

* Yeoman, the BadassNormal archer of the ''Literature/WildCards'' universe, has homemade explosive arrows, but [[RealityEnsues makes sure to point out]] that they are shorter ranged and less accurate than his normal arrows due to their weight and poor balance.

* ''[[http://www.rogermwilcox.com/stories/blue.html The Blue Avenger]]'' is a story based on [[http://www.rogermwilcox.com/champions/blue_shooter.html this]] TabletopGame/{{Champions}} character, who is a CaptainErsatz of the Green Arrow. In addition to regular arrows, knockout arrows (with a boxing glove that makes a sound like a fight bell when it hits), net arrows, blinding flash arrows, smoke grenade arrows, grenade grenade arrows, flight arrows, tunnelling arrows, and healing arrows, he has a once-in-a-blue-moon Death Arrow, which does enough damage to kill a TyrannosaurusRex.

* Hanzo of ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'' is an ArcherArchetype with an arsenal: Sonic Arrow, which grants you echo-location with a noticable radius; Scatter Arrow, which [[MacrossMissileMassacre splits into many arrows on impact]]; and finally, Dragonstrike - a slow-moving, spirit-charged, wall-clipping arrow that looks like [[InstantAwesomeJustAddDragons two coiled dragons]].

* In ''Literature/{{PercyJacksonAndTheOlympians}}'' and ''Literature/{{TheHeroesOfOlympus}}'' there are a few different varieties of trick arrows, which are most often used by children of Apollo. There are sonic arrows, that incapacitate targets (and outright destroy weaker monsters), arrows that release a noxious yellow cloud dubbed "fart arrows" that are effectively tear gas, and hydra arrows that split apart to create a rope ladder. Later we see Orion use arrows that have built-in time bombs. And in ''{{Literature/TheTrialsOfApollo}}'' we have the Arrow of Dondona, which, because it was made from a special tree, had the ability to speak (but only to Apollo. And it talks like a pseudo-Shakespearian ham).

* Shaft from Creator/RobLiefeld's ''ComicBook/{{Youngblood}}'' plays with the trope. His arrows are the standard pointy variety, but he has a trick bow that doesn't require a string. (According to the tech manual, it uses focused ''artificial gravity'' to fire the arrows.) During Creator/AlanMoore's run on ''ComicBook/{{Youngblood}}'', GoldenAge hero Waxman tried to get Shaft to consider using trick arrows, giving examples of older archer heroes who used them. [[spoiler: Not one of which had survived the experience.]]