Are bows viable?

[shamowow]

For a long time i have been using my dread but since i started using weapons like the corinth it feels really bad.
Like its great to pick of single targets with red crits but this game is balanced around hordes and my dread just doesnt get kills as fast as a shotgun/grenadelauncher against groups.
Are there any mods to make the bow better alround?

[Security Cam #7]

Originally posted by SpankyMcFlych:

A long thread that could have been shortened a lot simply by having the first reply say "no".

And that's the wrong answer, period.

[Pigeons555]

Originally posted by Smelly Fish:

Originally posted by SpankyMcFlych:

A long thread that could have been shortened a lot simply by having the first reply say "no".

And that's the wrong answer, period.

Well, the OP is asking more or less if there's a way to make Bows kill hordes faster. And there's no way to make Bows kill hordes as fast as, well, anything that isn't a super precise weapon.

It all depends on your definition of viability. Of course most weapons (bar the Seer) are viable, but it doesn't mean they are all equally good at clearing hordes with no brainpower needed.

Besides, everyone would use Bows if they could wipe out hordes like a Staticor and have as much power as Sniper RIfles (I mean that's basically the Lenz)

[shamowow]

What do you guys think of the new mod for bows called "split flights" that was teased? Do you think regular bows like dread will be better at killing groups/larger ammounts of mobs with it?

From what i read here lenz and the kuva bow will be absolutely crazy with it.

Also thanks for the sheer amount of different answers!

[Shazbot!]

Originally posted by shamowow:

From what i read here lenz and the kuva bow will be absolutely crazy with it.

It won't work with lenz.

[Forza Piadina]

Originally posted by pavig:

Cernos prime is effectively a shotgun in bow form, and using horizontal spread can headshot an entire crowd (much like ivara's ultimate bow). Lots of other bows that can be turned into amazing weapons if you find the right build. As for crowds, punch through is worth pursuing as it can turn a chokepoint into a kebab in one shot. ;)

Cernos prime has even +50% damage on headshots

[Forza Piadina]

Originally posted by shamowow:

What do you guys think of the new mod for bows called "split flights" that was teased? Do you think regular bows like dread will be better at killing groups/larger ammounts of mobs with it?

From what i read here lenz and the kuva bow will be absolutely crazy with it.

Also thanks for the sheer amount of different answers!

The only real use was for the artemis bow, shooting 40 arrows at once probably was too powerful and they are thinking about it... Even the Zhuge prime become pretty powerful with it. I just don't understand why some people have transmuted it and they can use it while other people can't...

[Wolfguarde]

Originally posted by ⎛ Alucard ⎞ ✟:

And it got signifficant buffs again years later.

It lost 2/3 of its damage for a 50% increase in fire rate. That's a flat downgrade.

Oh really? So thats why devs are still adding new bows and crossbows even one that is about to be added soon.

When one of those bows or crossbows can outperform most, if not all, of the guns in the game, I'll concede your point.

Aswell as constant flow of new melee weapons and the fact that melee was and still is one of the most powerful ways of attacking in this game.

The difference between bows and melee is melee never really went out of style. Yes, we have and prefer guns in our day and age, but melee is still king in close quarters in any age and system - real or imagined.

Melee is also a much wider umbrella than ballistics/explosives, and covers a lot of weapon subtypes. The only real technologically different bow in the game (that I remember/am aware of) is the Lenz, which also happens to be the most powerful bow as a result. On the other hand, melee covers everything from heat swords to Zenistar to Sigma/Octanis and more.

[Vampire Woona]

I also love bows and have every single one of them available. i can tell you from experience that if youre gonna use a bow, the far more important question is "what will i be doing with this bow, and is this the *right* bow for that purpose?" rather than "how can i mod any bow to fit any purpose?"

like sure, you could throw a bunch of fire rate and multishot mods on any olld bow along with Thunderbolt to turn them into rapid fire cluster granade launchers, but that kinda defeats the purpose of using a BOW in the first place, plus it sacrifices on things like damage.

so in my opinion the real trick is just knowing *which* bow to bring. the right tool for the job so to say.

for example, here's my thoughts on the different bows:

• Artemis Bow (Ivara's 4th): it has innate multishot to the extreme, which can be used for hordesweeping. it has an optional Concentrated Arrow augment that takes away the multishot and replaces it with basically Thunderbolt on headshots, which is good for taking down tougher targets. but the bow requires Ivara to use, who is squishy af, and because its her 4th ability, it drains energy that she needs for Prowl to stay alive, so i wouldn't recommend it that much.
  
  
• Paris: your most basic standard bow. puncture damage good against grineer. good crit chance i guess. very basic.
  
  
• MK1-Paris: a downgraded "Starter" version of Paris. all around worse. only reason to use this is for Mastery and pretending to be a noob i guess, otherwise its trash.
  
  
• Paris Prime: an all around upgrade to Paris. better damage and crit mostly. Better than Paris, but still pretty basic.
  
  
• Daikyu: basically Paris Prime, but instead of crit, it has status. also its slow af and you have to fully draw every arrow to fire, and if you keep holding the draw too long the shot cancels eventually, so you have to actually commit to every shot and you cant just take quick potshots or camp around waiting for a head to poke out. i guess its kinda the "i have too much skills for a normal bow so i handicapped myself with a hard to use bow to show off" bow.
  
  
• Dread: Slash based, huge crit chance, but slow. I'd honestly recommend going for red crits, viral damage, and Hunter's Munitions. it'll take a chunk out, and if youre lucky youll get lingering chip damage as well. great for tough targets and that "one shot, one kill" vibe.
  
  
• Cernos: impact damage, good crit, and faster than dread. kinda basic though. its okay for killing corpus and generally being a fast bow, albeit if kinda weaker.
  
  
• Rakta Cernos: WAAAY faster than the normal cernos. about as close to "full auto" as a bow can get without being a crossbow, especially if you mod for speed. it has a radial effect that goes off every once in a while because it's a syndicate weapon. the effect is silent and procs viral on nearby enemies while also refilling your energy. good for Ivara if you don't wanna use the Baza gun that was literally made for her.
  
  
• Mutalist Cernos: basically normal cernos, but with higher status chance and it has little toxic clouds that follow your shots for extra lingering damage. honestly pretty fun to use. i'd reccomend modding for multishot and gas. great for hordesweeping and you dont have to actually worry about landing the hits. just aim near the enemy, and even if you miss the arrows themselves, the gas'll get them.
  
  
• Cernos Prime: huge innate multishot and damage, plus bonus damage on headshots. its's basically the Artemis Bow, but you dont need Ivara or energy to use it. i'd reccomend adding even more multishot and damage, and if you wana go for that "grenade launcher bow" effect with Thunderbolt, THIS is the bow to do so with.
  
  
• Lenz: Corpus grenade bow. ALWAYS explodes. be wary of self-damage. its got a small ammo pool, but ammo mutation built in, so basically infinite ammo as long as you bother to go collect the drops and dont just stand in one spot sniping. this weapon is just great all around and fun to use. Highly recommended. mod it however you want and it will still be great. my personal preference is multishot and crit, with maybe some extra elemental damage if you have room for it.
  
  
• "Grineer Equivalent of Lenz": COMING SOON
  
  
  crossbows:
  
  
  
• Attica: technically a crossbow is still a bow i guess, but it just feels like the Boltor. it's full auto and silent, and can use bow mods. Honestly i havent used mine in ages, but i remember it feeling kinda lame. i used fire rate mods and Thunderbolt. according to the wiki though, its actually pretty powerful. maybe i should dig it out of its shoebox and see about using it more.
  
  
• Zhuge: Attica, but slower and more powerful.
  
  
• Zhuge Prime: despite the name, its not really a flat upgrade as much as a side-grade... its very different from Zhuge in stats. but in gameplay it still feels kinda the same.
  
  
• Nagantaka: Semi-auto, with a full auto secondary fire, and a headshot bonus. huge status chance, slash based. go for viral and Hunter's Munitions, maybe multishot and crit as well if you want. aim for heads.
  
  
• Ballistica: secondary crossbow pistol. one of my earliest favorite weapons way back. quickshot shoots a bunch of shots with horizontal spread, charged shot shoots one big shot. okay for both hordesweeping and pick targets. reccomend going for multishot and base damage, then whatever else you want.
  
  
• Rakta Ballistica: a straight upgrade to the normal version. much higher damage. has the same radial effect as Rakta Cernos. i love this gun. mod and use the same way you would the normal Ballistica.
  
  
• Ballistica Prime: no more sweeping cluster shots. now all shots are a "single" shot made of 4 shots all going the same direction. charging the shot just boosts the damage and makes killed enemies spawn ghosts that just distract other enemies. the ghosts cant hurt anything like Nekros's zombies can. honestly im not a big fan of this one. sure, its pretty and has a neat effect, but i like Rakta Cernos much better.

anyways, if you really wanna go deep into this, just try them out for yourself and see what works for you, and keep https://warframe.fandom.com/wiki/Category:Bow bookmarked for easy reference.

(EDIT) holy text wall, Batman! let's hide that behind a spoiler tag!

[Security Cam #7]

Originally posted by Wolfguarde:

Originally posted by ⎛ Alucard ⎞ ✟:

And it got signifficant buffs again years later.

It lost 2/3 of its damage for a 50% increase in fire rate. That's a flat downgrade.

And then in 2019 all bows got basically a 2x damage buff. Some 3x

[Wolfguarde]

Originally posted by Smelly Fish:

Originally posted by Wolfguarde:

It lost 2/3 of its damage for a 50% increase in fire rate. That's a flat downgrade.

And then in 2019 all bows got basically a 2x damage buff. Some 3x

That I was unaware of. I haven't played with Daikyu for a while, I might do so when I next play. Thank you for the correction.

[pavig]

There is also an amalgam mod for daiku which gives nikanas lifesteal if you match one as your melee weapon. Handy. :)

[8faiNt ı♣ı]

Cernos Prime
Rakta Cernos
Attica
Lenz


viable bows which are useful or easier to use than other bows.