Are horn bows usful in pve? - Guild Wars Forums

BoondockSaint · Dec 15, 2008, 09:37 AM // 09:37

Hi,

I was curious if the horn bow armor pentration had any effect of enemies that do not wear armor. I assumed that it did since I can notice a damage increase when cracked armor is applied in HM. However seveal in game sorces have said that horn bows are the worst in pve because they are the slowest weapon and the armor pentration generally does not apply.

Thanks!

DarkGanni · Dec 15, 2008, 10:02 AM // 10:02

Personally I'd go with Recurve, Long and Flat Bows in PvE, I see hornbows more of a pvp bow type.

dilan155 · Dec 15, 2008, 11:44 AM // 11:44

[email protected], hornbows are better for spiking in PvP, stick with recurve for all around and long for pulling.

MagmaRed · Dec 15, 2008, 01:36 PM // 13:36

All PvE monsters wear armor. Even charmable pets do. May not look like armor, but it is there. The AP isn't needed much in PvE, but as noted, the refire rate is the slowest. The ability to do more damage with a Hornbow is balanced by the fact that you shoot fewer arrows over the same time frame. In PvP, you will be getting the extra damage when you need it for a spike, but in PvE, you rarely need that extra damage. Arrow flight time and accuracy is good for interrupting and hitting moving targets. Recurve bows shine at this. They have the same distance as the Hornbow, so I'd also recommend the Recurve. Longbow and Flatbow have the larger distance, so they are what you'd want for pulling, although certain builds will use the Flatbow exclusively. Flatbow and Shortbow has the best refire rate, so you can take those to swap to if you want to get more arrows fired.

Short answer, Hornbow doesn't do much for PvE.

paithan · Dec 15, 2008, 02:19 PM // 14:19

why there is a shortbow cause it's not very useful i guess?

Quaker · Dec 15, 2008, 04:28 PM // 16:28

Quote:

Originally Posted by BoondockSaint

I was curious if the horn bow armor pentration had any effect of enemies that do not wear armor. I assumed that it did since I can notice a damage increase when cracked armor is applied in HM. However seveal in game sorces have said that horn bows are the worst in pve because they are the slowest weapon and the armor pentration generally does not apply.

There are enemies that don't "wear" armor, but every enemy has an armor rating of some sort, even pets (as MagmaRed pointed out).

All things being equal, a horn bow will give you roughly the same damage over time as a recurve. The extra damage is balanced by the slower refire rate.

The major problem with using a hornbow is that it doesn't fit with many builds. If you are trying to interrupt, you want a faster bow (flight time) like a recurve or shortbow. If you are trying to do damage, you are better off with a faster refire rate, such as a flatbow or shortbow.
And, if you have some sort of a more generalized build where you are using damage skills plus and interrupt, you again want some other sort of faster bow for when you want to use that interrupt.

So, generally speaking, unless you are trying to do some sort of spike build, Hornbows are not the most useful. However, bottom line answer to your question is yes, Hornbows are useful in Pve - they may not be as useful as some other bows, but they will do the job.

BoondockSaint · Dec 15, 2008, 05:23 PM // 17:23

Thanks guys, I began to figure as much. The main reason I was asking was because it seems that with skills like [Asuran Scan] the inicial spike damage, say you were using [triple shot] with [read the wind], would be outclassed by a bow with a faster refire rate.

Dec 15, 2008, 09:37 AM // 09:37	#1
BoondockSaint Lion's Arch Merchant Join Date: Mar 2006 Profession: R/Me	Are horn bows usful in pve? Hi, I was curious if the horn bow armor pentration had any effect of enemies that do not wear armor. I assumed that it did since I can notice a damage increase when cracked armor is applied in HM. However seveal in game sorces have said that horn bows are the worst in pve because they are the slowest weapon and the armor pentration generally does not apply. Thanks!

Dec 15, 2008, 10:02 AM // 10:02	#2
DarkGanni Forge Runner Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Malta Guild: [CuTe] Profession: E/	Personally I'd go with Recurve, Long and Flat Bows in PvE, I see hornbows more of a pvp bow type.

Dec 15, 2008, 11:44 AM // 11:44	#3
dilan155 Desert Nomad Join Date: May 2007 Location: living room Profession: N/	[email protected], hornbows are better for spiking in PvP, stick with recurve for all around and long for pulling.

Dec 15, 2008, 01:36 PM // 13:36	#4
MagmaRed Furnace Stoker Join Date: Mar 2007 Guild: Our Crabs Know True [LOVE] Profession: R/	All PvE monsters wear armor. Even charmable pets do. May not look like armor, but it is there. The AP isn't needed much in PvE, but as noted, the refire rate is the slowest. The ability to do more damage with a Hornbow is balanced by the fact that you shoot fewer arrows over the same time frame. In PvP, you will be getting the extra damage when you need it for a spike, but in PvE, you rarely need that extra damage. Arrow flight time and accuracy is good for interrupting and hitting moving targets. Recurve bows shine at this. They have the same distance as the Hornbow, so I'd also recommend the Recurve. Longbow and Flatbow have the larger distance, so they are what you'd want for pulling, although certain builds will use the Flatbow exclusively. Flatbow and Shortbow has the best refire rate, so you can take those to swap to if you want to get more arrows fired. Short answer, Hornbow doesn't do much for PvE.

Dec 15, 2008, 02:19 PM // 14:19	#5
paithan Pre-Searing Cadet Join Date: Dec 2008 Guild: Shadow Stingers Profession: R/	why there is a shortbow cause it's not very useful i guess?

Dec 15, 2008, 05:23 PM // 17:23	#7
BoondockSaint Lion's Arch Merchant Join Date: Mar 2006 Profession: R/Me	Thanks guys, I began to figure as much. The main reason I was asking was because it seems that with skills like [Asuran Scan] the inicial spike damage, say you were using [triple shot] with [read the wind], would be outclassed by a bow with a faster refire rate.