Curse

Dras · May 27, 2008, 07:32 PM // 19:32

Ok, i've heard a flatbow is the only way to go with barrage. My question is, why? I figured a recurve bow is pretty much best for everything.

Not sure if it's relevant, but i'm running this atm:

[build prof=r/e marks=12+1+1 expertise=10+1 fire=8][barrage][distracting shot][sloth hunter's shot][conjure flame][troll unguent][antidote signet][lightning reflexes][resurrection signet][/build]

Murmel · May 27, 2008, 07:35 PM // 19:35

Flatbow has the highest arc... Therefore they can hit more foes..

That's why they're best for barraging

Though Longbows work fine aswell.

Molock · May 27, 2008, 07:39 PM // 19:39

Flat bows also fire more rapidly...

Dras · May 27, 2008, 07:41 PM // 19:41

that makes sense

ty

wetsparks · May 27, 2008, 07:46 PM // 19:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by Murmel

Flatbow has the highest arc... Therefore they can hit more foes..

That's why they're best for barraging

Though Longbows work fine aswell.

um, what?

And I use a long bow, doesn't have the arc that a flat bow does so less chance that the enemy will move while the arrow is in the air and you will miss and the reload rate is close to the recharge rate of barrage.

JR · May 27, 2008, 07:49 PM // 19:49

Quote:

Originally Posted by Murmel

Flatbow has the highest arc... Therefore they can hit more foes..

No.

Barrage always hits targets adjacent to your target, regardless of which bow you use. For the purpose of how many enemies you hit it makes absolutely no difference.

Longasc · May 27, 2008, 07:50 PM // 19:50

I use Zealous Flatbows

Fast Refire, Maximum Range, good energy gain. Sucks for interrupts, but excels at barraging mobs nonstop.
I see you use Conjure Fire. OK, then a fiery Flatbow...

I usually go for 13 Expertise, then it costs only 2 energy to fire Barrage and you can just keep it rolling easily + maybe even combine it with some 10 Channeling and 9 expertise for Splinter-Barrage.

Koricen · May 27, 2008, 07:51 PM // 19:51

It has the distance of a long bow and the speed of a short bow. The downside to the flatbow is it has the highest arc.

Snograt · May 27, 2008, 07:56 PM // 19:56

[fw] + flatbow = what arc?

XDeadboltX · May 27, 2008, 09:42 PM // 21:42

Why would firing more rapidly come into effect if you cant fire more than 1 per second due to the recharge of [[barrage] . Do you mean refire rate, or flight time, or something else....

Yichi · May 27, 2008, 09:54 PM // 21:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snograt

[fw] + flatbow = what arc?

If this is a guarentee in your party such as in a B/P run, then yes a flatbow is your overall best option, provided the player knows where to put it and isnt stupid enough to forget to put it back down.

If there is no favorable winds, or someone put it in the frontline, or they forget to re-set it, then a recurve will be your best overall option for barrage.

mrmango · May 27, 2008, 10:01 PM // 22:01

Recurve + FW > Flatbow + FW.

Is the range thing all that important to you guys? lol. more accuracy ftw.

Vandall · May 27, 2008, 10:33 PM // 22:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrmango

Recurve + FW > Flatbow + FW.

Is the range thing all that important to you guys? lol. more accuracy ftw.

disagreed. flatbow has the fastest refire rate, therefore you can keep spamming barrage. the point of FW is to keep the arc down, therefore making it much more accurate to use a flatbow.

mrmango · May 27, 2008, 10:36 PM // 22:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vandall

disagreed. flatbow has the fastest refire rate, therefore you can keep spamming barrage. the point of FW is to keep the arc down, therefore making it much more accurate to use a flatbow.

Oops, forgot that part. Refire coincides with Barrage... almost. I guess it would make a difference, though if you take an IAS (pretty uncommon on a ranger I suppose) it won't make a different.

The fastest flight time appeals to me more, still.

Vandall · May 27, 2008, 10:40 PM // 22:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrmango

Oops, forgot that part. Refire coincides with Barrage... almost. I guess it would make a difference, though if you take an IAS (pretty uncommon on a ranger I suppose) it won't make a different.

The fastest flight time appeals to me more, still.

I wonder if you have actually tried a flatbow with FW. if you haven't, please test it out.

And imo, IAS not pretty common on a ranger. think people only use for specific builds actually (I believe there is a thread about the IAS topic that was created fairly recently. search button ftw?)

Fay Vert · May 28, 2008, 01:12 AM // 01:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by XDeadboltX

Why would firing more rapidly come into effect if you cant fire more than 1 per second due to the recharge of [[barrage] . Do you mean refire rate, or flight time, or something else....

Barrage rate is limited by the bow rate. Flatbows have longest range, fastest fire rate and the downside of dodging (moving) foe should not be seen in a barrage situation, they should all be blocked/tanked/funnelled into one spot. If not, it doesn't matter what bow you use, your dps will be pants.

And Splinter>Conjure

Grammar · May 28, 2008, 05:30 AM // 05:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrmango

[flatbow] Refire coincides with Barrage... almost.

Good thing you added the "almost" part, because the flatbow's refire rate most certainly does NOT sync up with Barrage's refire rate.
A flatbow (2.0 sec.) is slightly too fast for Barrage's refire, while a recurve bow (2.4 sec.) is slightly too slow. Barrage's refire rate falls somewhere in between (somewhere between 2.1 and 2.2 seconds I believe).

So, assuming you have absolutely flawless reflexes and timing, a flatbow will only be able to spam Barrage 0.2 seconds faster than a recurve bow. And again, this is assuming flawless reflexes and timing on your part.
In reality, the two bows will spam Barrage at virtually the same pace (with a flatbow being maybe a tenth of a second faster), so the speed theory is bogus.

The real argument between which bow to use comes down to this: better range (flatbow) vs. better accuracy (recurve).
IMO, since Rangers (even Barrage spammers) need to be able to interrupt key skills at a moments notice (no time for bow swapping), the recurve bow is the way to go.

Adja1005 · May 28, 2008, 06:10 AM // 06:10

Flatbows work better for barrage builds due to their fast refire rate and long range. When using a barrage build (splinter, brutal, nightmare or in this case conjure) you want to lay out AoE damage fast while mobs are still packed together. This is why a flatbow is the best choice for the job.

Also the high arc of a flatbow can be beneficial if targets are behind obstacles as sometimes the arrows go high enough to avoid being obstructed. Also that high arc and higher chance of missed shots is mute when you consider how fast a flatbow fires and remember the range on them is pretty immense.

SnipiousMax · May 28, 2008, 02:51 PM // 14:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grammar

Good thing you added the "almost" part, because the flatbow's refire rate most certainly does NOT sync up with Barrage's refire rate.

Actually this is a myth, and it has been proven wrong any number of times. The barrage/flatbow sync problem has absolutely no impact on the final results.

See: http://www.guildwarsguru.com/forum/s...t=barrage+test

Using an IAS doesn't change things either, Flatbows/Shortbows still rain supreme:

http://www.guildwarsguru.com/forum/s...php?t=10164713

As to the question of Accuracy, there is honestly very little impact using a recurve over a flatbow as far as Barrage is concerned.

XDeadboltX · May 28, 2008, 03:52 PM // 15:52

Does anybody know how much better is using a flatbow when barraging over a recurve. How much damage over time would u get from a flatbow, compared with a recurve.