Hey guys,

Not sure if this has been said, but I'd like to explain something with archery. I recently tweaked the .ini file to extend the rendering of arrows (you should be able to hit things at more than 100m). However, I've read in a few places that people are put off by the fact that the arrow travels up and then down.

Quick physics explanation - if you aim an arrow dead straight and shoot it, it will immediately begin falling to the ground without raising upward (due to gravity pulling it downward - relatively obvious concept).

However - this is not how archery in real life works. I'm an avid archer that shoots a hunting-weight longbow regularly (54lb draw, up to 100+ arrows per shooting session).

How the arrow flies is based on a combination of your line of sight relative to the arrow, and where the arrow is resting on the bow/hand relative to where you "anchor" on your face. When you draw an arrow, it's typically drawn somewhere to the face. However, where you anchor the string/nock on your face is probably the biggest determining factor on what your arc will look like.

Something that helps describe this is your "point-on-distance" (POD), which is the distance your arrow will hit exactly where you're aiming at when you put your arrow point on what you want to hit (think of using your arrow point as a sight). How far your POD is is largely determined by how you choose to anchor and (less so) how you set up your arrows. You generally want a POD at least in the vicinity of the typical ranges you'll be shooting.

For instance, see Brady Ellison, the gold-medalist US Olympic archer:

http://www.mensfitness.com/sites/mensfitness.com/files/imagecache/node_page_image/blog_images/brady-ellison-adjust.jpg

You'll notice he anchors the nock below his chin - this is because Olympic archers shoot at about 75 yards in competition. He uses sights rather than his arrow point, but the same principle applies. What this does is effectively angles the arrow upward so that he can use sights and doesn't have to aim over the target at this distance. Realistically, I'd say his POD is probably well over 100y.

Next is Dave Wallace, a champion of a number of longbow tournaments.
http://leatherwall.bowsite.com/tf/pics/00small64267374.JPG

You'll notice rather than shooting "split finger" (which also increases your POD), he's shooting with 3 fingers underneath the nock. His anchor is also much higher on his face. What this does is reduce his POD so that at closer ranges (i.e. 25-30y) he isn't aiming 7 feet underneath the target (assuming he's using the arrow point to aim). I'd guess his POD is probably somewhere around 40-50y.

Hopefully that wasn't boring! My main point is - in Skyrim, the way people anchor and hold the string would likely lead to a POD of about 60-70 yards, depending on bow and arrow efficiency (obviously iron-weighted arrows won't travel as far as lighter arrows, i.e. glass). The arrow won't shoot straight and then immediately drop off at 5y, as this would require a large hold-over at further distances and this is a much more difficult way to shoot in real life (as your target is obscured by your hand), not to mention the back of the arrow being directly in front of your eye. I understand if people like the simplicity of aiming up, but hopefully this sheds some light for those that want immersion as much as possible. Firearms work the same way FYI - barrels come pointed at an upward angle.

Just as an aside - does anyone know how to change the trajectory of the arrow as opposed to the furthest range it will hit?

Thanks all, hope this was interesting to some.

Oh and FYI, the severe arrow drop does happen at longer ranges. I have to aim up about 12 feet going from 50-70 yards.

Nice.

I don't know how to make it completely realistic but this tweak changes the trajectory to prevent the arrow from arcing and just have a gradual drop as well as removing the auto-aim thing they had by default(since consoles can't aim as precise/quickly as a mouse I assume):

Add in, or edit into, Skyrim.ini

[Combat]
fMagnetismStrafeHeadingMult=0.0
fMagnetismLookingMult=0.0
f1PArrowTiltUpAngle=0.7
f3PArrowTiltUpAngle=0.7
f1PBoltTiltUpAngle=0.7
f3PBoltTiltUpAngle=0.7

Video comparison

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMMTJta_fPs

I know that's not exactly what you're looking for, but perhaps messing with those numbers could get you to where you want it or close enough to not be bothered by it too much.

In skyrim I was expecting to have to aim high to arch and drop arrows on enemies, but it doesn't seem to work that way? It seems like you just have a distance you can shoot, and you aim it close to dead on where you want to hit, and it travels flat. When they're further than that you simply can't hit them.

However reikling spears do work that way, and can be a lot of fun. I dropped a reikling spear on a horker sitting off shore on an island by aiming up about 45 degrees and looping it over to it.

Odd hermit: Thanks, but I actually want to keep the arrow arc, it's more realistic that way - bows and firearms work this way. I'm actually curious to see if you can change the arrow's trajectory to make the arc more drastic for realism's sake. I'll have to see how it turns out - is the default setting 1.0?

Tonedog: If you tweak the .ini file to extend the rendering of the arrow I believe you can hit from much further (as well as tweaking how long actors stay visible for in the distance). The arrow actually doesn't seem to arc terribly much which is why I was interested in seeing a more drastic arc (it does seem to travel a little too "flat").

Auto aim? I haven't noticed any auto aiming.
I've aimed in at moving people/creatures (Slow and Fast) then left the aim anolog stick but still had the arrow ready. The bow has never automatically followed any moving people/creatures in my game. Xbox.
I have the stick sensitivity on full and rarely miss when using a bow. I only miss when they are out of range or the arrows go through the things I aim at. I even play in 3rd person with no crosshair.

I just posted it even though you want the arc, because I assume if those can reduce / eliminate the arc they can also make it more drastic if you tweak them a different way. You'll have to fiddle with them yourself, I'm not an expert on archery so wouldn't be able to fine tune them.

That's what the magnetism lines in the .ini file deal with. It doesn't actually affect your crosshair, just makes arrows adjust toward your target I think. It's been a long time since I played without the magnetism turned off but IIRC that's how it works in vanilla.

Is that the thing that you can see when you miss a killcam where the arrowhead spins to face the target even after going past the target.

Archery is a great game-play, the arc of the arrow is much greater in Oblivion but only needs a slight adjustment in Skyrim, it's still great fun. I still have to use aim-off target to hit them when they are moving accross the view screen, I've never noticed or seen arrows locking onto their target. It's so enjoyable when making the correct aim-off lead of target and hitting them, also in making the correct air-high adjustment. The progress in archery skill does lower the need for aim-off though as the game assumes that you are getting better at making those adjustments, I don't think it get to absolute zero though.