Enchanted Realms Rulebook
The Ranged Attack
Let’s do this again -- only this time with a bow and arrow. Resetting the assumptions, the character this time will have ranged fighting, and as such, can use one d20 from the primary hand die pool. Just to clarify, this weapon requires two hands to operate; thus, although the character cannot do anything with the off hand, this is not even an option due to the type of weapon being used.
Let’s pause for a moment to discuss game balance because without understanding the why of the ranged-rules, new players and GMs may misunderstand and adjust the rules because they might sound a little underpowered or unfair. Firstly, a ranged fighter typically has lower risks of getting hurt in that style of fighting. Secondly, the target PP against ranged attacks will be 2½ points lower on average than what a melee combatant will need to hit. That melee fighter is also taking bigger risks. Right, wrong or indifferent, the game designers of Enchanted Realms wanted to have outcomes based on a risk/reward ratio. Based on those factors, ranged weapons will hit targets without cover more often than hand-to-hand strikes, but to offset that, range weaponry, on average, will not inflict as much damage. Realistic? Well, it is in this world. Knowing this allows a player to pick the appropriate strategy.
Ranged weapons use Agility to modify the attack to-hit roll. Let’s assume the character has an Agility score of 4. For the to-hit formula, the total score of Agility is used to add to the d20s rolled. So, the attack here is also d20+4. Also, the bow is normal; thus, there are no magic/material modifiers to be added. The player’s character fires the bow. The player rolls the die and adds four points to determine the total score. As before, if the total attack score is equal or greater than the opponent’s PP value, then the arrow strikes the goblin and inflicts damage.
Like when using melee, every d20 that hits the opponent’s AC inflicts 1 point of damage; in this case, there is only one d20 -- so 1 point. Unlike melee, ranged attacks do not gain bonuses to damage from sub-attributes. Moreover, an arrow (as almost all ranged weapons) have a weight of zero. In this example, the total damage inflicted is a mere single (1) point of piercing damage.