Signature Weapon: Bow or Rifle?

Ok so I have this character who is an elf stranded on Earth (Norway to be exact) and later became part of a superhero team.

Now should I make her signature weapon a bow or a sniper rifle?

A bow allows for some cool poses if I ever decide to draw the character. Also bows and elves mix well.

A sniper rifle however is more fitting of the times and shows that the character knows the value of superior weapons. Also the rifle is retro-fitted with enchantments.

Bows and sniper rifles have very different combat applications and effective ranges- unless her strategy in combat is to run 5 miles away and shoot her enemies the bow would be a more acceptable break at plot handy ranges.

If the character implications are more important than the combat applications to your story, then you have to consider what each choice would say about her character- keeping the bow could paint her as old fashioned, or as having a fondness for mechanical simplicity. Learning to use a rifle shows that she's willing to adapt, and could also show that she's a fast learner if she masters it to the same level as her bow.

You could make her a gun nut in general. That gives you the elf=range weapon thing and modern vibe as well without the super distance a sniper rifle would limit you to.

Well the thing is that long range engagement is her specialty.

edited 4th May '12 10:52:06 PM by Worlder

So give her a bunch of guns to deal with various ranges and give her the sniper rifle to pull off the impossible shots You could even give her a bow when silence is necessary.

I guess this is whether you want her old-fashioned or modern. Did you have a specific preference or are you trying gauge what the community thinks is cooler?

Hmm, the community response.

I'd go with having multiple weapons based on how you intend on portraying that character and their attitudes toward technology. A bow will have multiple uses, good for both long-range and short-range attacks. However, if you're going to go with a sniper rifle, I suggest giving them another weapon better for short-range combat. A marksman I used would switch between a modified rifle and dual pistols, for example. Made her useful in a lot of different situations.

Or, if you're stuck on giving your elf one weapon, I might suggest giving them tools that would help give them the distance they need to work with, along with generally good hiding/running skills.

Also, never doubt the power of a slingshot.

Possible compromise, Crossbow with telescopic sight.

On pure Rule of Cool I'm inclined to say rifle. Not that bows aren't extremely cool but they seem to be everywhere these days, and I find the contrast of fantasy races and tech weapons appealing. Also, a bow would play into the conventional image of elves as resistant to change and scornful of lesser races (especially if she's originally from a bow-wielding culture), whereas the idea of a ruthlessly practical elf is both refreshing and kind of scary, since their inflexibility is often their key drawback.

I agree with DDR though, a sniper rifle isn't a weapon you want to rely on unless you're guaranteed to be distant and out of line-of-sight pretty much all the time. I initially thought weapon switching, but actually I'm kind of liking the idea of super running and hiding skills. It would be silly not to have some kind of close-range option though, even if it's just the standard martial-arts package that seems to come with any degree of acrobatic ability.

edited 6th May '12 5:01:01 AM by Kesteven

I generally feel this way as well.

...I would hand them a DMR (such as the USN Mk. 12 SPR), thus solving their "what about mid-range" problem.

Hm, you know, I do like the clash of modern and fantasy, so a rifle armed elf does sound appealing.

I'll give my vote to "rifle." Between the two, a rifle seems more practical (not flawless, but good enough), and having the elf using a gun would help enforce the idea that she has to get used to THIS world, not just stick to things that worked back home.

I know this might sound kind of excessive and/or stupid but what if you combined them for a RIFLEBOW?

Why not have her transition from using a bow to using a rifle, make it a plot point.

Have her come to the realization that it's adapt or die

No.

What would a 'riflebow' even be? A crossbow? Those exist.

Well she and her squad did get their first rifles in World War 2 when Norway was under occupation.

edited 8th May '12 11:53:02 AM by Worlder

Not even a single post about how practical it would be to carry around a huge bow and a bunch of arrows? Or how much suspicion it might attract?

Not that much less bulky than a sniper rifle, really. And it's probably actually easier to get arrows than sniper ammo; no one bothers controlling arrows as weapons.

You can buy arrows at any sporting goods or hunting store. Sniper ammo, at least that for dedicated sniper rifles, is more controlled (at least as far as I know). If you're just using a 'civilian' hunting rifle, then the ease of getting ammo is about the same.

If he or she is military, this person isn't going to worry about ease of acquiring ammunition off the battlefield. On, once they're out of arrows and assuming retrieving them isn't a viable option (it probably wouldn't be), they would either have to be carrying other weapons, or pick something up. A bow, assuming it's a modern one and not an actual old-fashioned longbow, could be all Avengers style and able to be made smaller.

Ultimately, though, this is basically why a bow is useless on a modern battlefield. Rifles are built so that they take standardized ammo that's easy to get. Arrows are definitely not standardized ammo. Making them use a sniper rifle is kind of silly, unless you actually plan on having them snipe (which is rarely portrayed accurately in fictionland), and they'd be better off with a designated marksman rifle (DMR) or battle rifle using 7.62 NATO or the equivalent.

She is military of a different world.

But I suppose a marksman rifle would still fit the feel of the character.

edited 8th May '12 10:35:45 PM by Worlder