Fantasy Archery: the Multishot

The multishot (shooting 2 arrows at once, twin shot, triple shot, volley shot, etc.) is a very common fantasy archery trick shot, but does it work in real life?

[@HereticalKitsune]

Magic always helps! One shot into the air and suddenly a rain of arrows in an area!

[@Antifrost]

I was just thinking of that, that exists in so many different games and I love it every time. Sometimes, it's even done with guns!

[@aggy5372]

clearly I should stop learning archery and start learning magic immediately

[@blumineck]

Magic is the ultimate counter to any realism issue

[@clgr1323]

@@blumineck Elf are innately magical creatures, so that explains your... everything. Also, Having this video into account, what about, instead of multishot, you went faster firing Lars Andresen style?

[@nevisysbryd7450]

​@@clgr1323 That would either be unsuitable for actual violence or require literally inhuman strength. Lars's archery relies on using a very low draw-weight bow (~50 lbs, as I recall, compared to the standard for military purpose bows being ~120-130) and performing partial draws. His techniques will either impart very little penetrative ability or require performing it at a _much_ higher draw weight than humans are capable of performing that technique at. Lars's stuff is stunt archery, not military archery.

[@DissociatingRoomba]

why is nobody acknowledging he murdered a clone for this short

[@Isaac-hm6ih]

Two of them.

[@the-chillian]

It was just a shadow clone.

[@madestmadhatter]

Because he still has the bow

[@giftofthewild6665]

It's OK, he can just make some more.

[@joshrobinson506]

Killing a clone isn't murder.

[@TheSpeep]

Considering the insane draw weight warbows had to have so that theyd be able to punch through armor, I cant imagine splitting that force between multiple arrows was ever a worthwhile tradeoff. Seems to me like one arrow that could pierce armor is probably more useful than 2 that cant.

[@gatherer818]

Right, but... against foes who aren't decked out in plate armor, your warbow designed to penetrate plate can probably afford to split the power between two targets if they're lined up right. As a regular use? Definitely not. When the situation comes up? Probably worth the attempt, if you've practiced the skill.

[@prozonx-xl4ve]

how long have you been doing archery for?

[@TheSpeep]

@@prozonx-xl4ve Havent done much in the past few years tbh, but I did if for 7 years or so.

[@noxthestar8300]

@@gatherer818 I don't believe there's a single bow in existence that could penetrate plate armour. Chain, leather, padded cloth -- absolutely. Actual plate? That wouldn't be penetrated at range until guns were invented (which is the whole reason people don't wear plate into battle anymore; widespread firearms rendered it totally null (unlike widespread bows)).

[@nevisysbryd7450]

​@@noxthestar8300 Very little of that is true. We have both written and artistic records and archeological evidence indicating arrows and bolts sometimes penetrated plate armor. What we do not know is the frequency or at what armor shape, hardness, material composition, or thickness the dropoff rate of protection against penetration occurs. Firearms did not render plate armor obsolete by penetrating it until centuries after plate armor had disappeared for anything other than cavalry. Bullet-proofed plate armor was used up through Napoleon's forces. It was dropped due to logistics, the increasing weight of bullet-proofed armor eventually rendering it untenable for anyone not being carried by a horse, and the ever-increasing prevalence of artillery on the battlefield. Along with (and partially as a result of) firearms, armed forces transitioned from small numbers of mercenaries and decentralized levies to centralized commoner and standing armies of vastly larger size. The central government did not have the funds to equip masses of commoner infantry with expensive plate armor and while you can proof a cuirass from muskets, you cannot proof it against cannons which were increasingly primary on the battlefield starting about the same time that guns become a standard primary military weapon.

[@joannamysluk8623]

This reminded me of the "When you need to shoot exactly four evenly spaced dudes" meme.

[@TuxedoDogss]

say your prayers the 2 middle people of weezer

[@joannamysluk8623]

@@TuxedoDogss "Sayeth thine prayers, two folks who stand in the middle of He Who Weezeth"

[@StawbsGirl]

Cool! You must be learning so many watermelon recipes.

[@blumineck]

I only used the one melon for this, so it was mostly ‘strangely shaped watermelon chunks’ for today’s recipe

[@Isaac-hm6ih]

​@@blumineckThat's a good recipe.

[@Battlesny]

That's my favorite recipe

[@GoodTato]

@@blumineck Start growing some mint, get a sodastream (or cheaper brand of the same device), and buy a bottle of Havana Club 3 yr old.

[@Kurokibanana1]

That's my recipe

[@TheMagicWorker]

From what I understand, historically, shooting multiple arrows was almost exclusively done for volleys by a group of archers.

[@blumineck]

Really? I wasn’t aware that it was done historically at all! Even for a volley, the loss of range seems like it would be impractical

[@nevisysbryd7450]

Afaik, volleys were actually very rare and archery was largely done at pretty short ranges.

[@nugspy5777]

@@blumineckI believe there are historical records of the Aztecs shooting multiple arrows at once in volleys due to the low amounts of armor they had and the fact they oftentimes were just trying to harass their enemies.

[@loucifer9618]

Volley ball?

[@louisvictor3473]

​@@blumineckSeems rather niche, but I can see times when maximum range isn't a priority. For example defending in a siege (high ground, defensive walls), or an ambush. Also mounted archery, as the tactics generally revolved around getting close fast, unloading fast, and buzzing off fast.

[@Hornswroggle]

Interesting that you mention "A lot of damage up close", because in the scene you show of Legolas nocking 3 arrows is when he's doing EXACTLY that, because he's shooting them into the brain of an Oliphant at point blank.

[@robbiemurray2895]

It should be noted however that despite the fact three arrows were used the kill you mentioned still only counts as one.

[@Hornswroggle]

@@robbiemurray2895 In fact it did 😅

[@blumineck]

There’s a reason I was replicating that setup as I said it

[@Jafroboy]

But would it actually have done more damage than 1 arrow? Cos as you said, the force of the shot would be split up between each arrow. ​@@blumineck

[@Isaac-hm6ih]

​@@JafroboyYes, if they still had enough force each to penetrate the olephaunt skull / watermelon rind. I imagine it would be similar against most targets, a certain threshold of force needed to get past the protective bits.

[@missserenity1090]

Legolas also has an enchanted quiver so he has a reason to never run out of arrows.

[@anitabalcer-whittle]

I love seeing how much less power there is in 2 arrows vs 1 arrow!

[@sebastianjost]

Pretty close to half

[@Akurokuma]

Yet he still managed to get a dual shot with both arrows nearly going through the melon! 😮 Edit: I misspoke. They do go in pretty deep though.

[@cykeok3525]

@@Akurokuma Yeah but compare it to the single arrow he shot, that went right through. At a certain distance, the arrow won't have enough energy to defeat the target (depending on what they're wearing). The multi-shot arrows' energy would drop too low at a much nearer distance (because they started off with less energy.

[@Akurokuma]

@@cykeok3525 Yup. Honestly, I'm impressed that as many as they did pierced the target at all. Some of the multi-shots looked like they missed (although I could have just not seen them due to my small screen size and not wearing my glasses 😂)

[@hoangkienvu7572]

@@cykeok3525 Well it's either you kill one guy and the other one kill you, or you injure two guys at once and run away.

[@90kalos1]

Its one of those things that is technically useful in the exact right set od circumstances but those circumstances would only likely come up when written to do so

[@blumineck]

Which makes it ideal for fictional characters 😁

[@90kalos1]

@@blumineck yup, shows that the character is SO good that they can successfully use an obscure technique in exactly the right circumstances

[@TheLady_Lynn]

My anxiety when you point your bow at the camera: 📈📈📈📈📈📈

[@creslo]

I ducked, he already killed his clones, we don’t know what this man is capable of

[@manwesulimo5148]

yay, the Legolas Move with the watermelon ^^

[@_Rhatsody]

even at close range it seems more effective to just manually stab the arrow in your target than using the bow

[@Candlemancer]

Or draw your long pointy dagger purpose made for that exact situation

[@kmacgregor6361]

He has a video on that too.

[@nathanielcowan3971]

I’ve seen pros hold multiple arrows in their fingers and rapid fire that way. My favorite it the instant Legolas from the slingshot channel. Jorgensen invented it, sells it, and even shows that it could’ve been made with medieval techniques, technology, and resources, which is great for LARP-ing. The feed system is basically operated like a pump action shotgun and it works even better as crossbow version for increased power because leverage was always the problem with arming those.

[@Dimensiom]

Respect to the video creator for cloning himself twice so that he can shoot both down for a demonstration.

[@noahgray543]

Ill be honest, i thought it was just a fantasy trope. Seeing you actually fire multiple arrows effectively blew my mind.

[@ArthurMorgan_Gaming]

Damn, if I need someone to defend my castle from barbarians, you’ll be the first guy I’d call

[@tjarkschweizer]

Multi shot is useful for elemental buildup. Especially against giant machines.

[@daefaron]

Or giant monsters

[@chiichewy2741]

love how he just casually wields the zweihander perfectly

[@Guukoh]

I have noticed, and wondered precisely this. You, sir, have answered all of my questions and been most helpful.

[@trevy38]

So having multiple arrows is like turning on "shotgun mode" on a bow, that's pretty cool

[@notalkmeimangyy]

thank you for sacrificing your clones for that demonstration, very educational!

[@MBJK_baby]

Every time I see your videos it makes me wanna force my future kids into archery 😂 I did it for 6 months and it was so fun

[@loganmulloy7212]

This man randomly shows up on my feed and jeez, does he get 30 seconds of my life every time he does.

[@RanyDayRPG]

Its interesting because your multishots are still pretty accurate. Like you hit that melon with at least two of those arrows at once

[@isaacdoggart4879]

I wonder if it would make sense with fire arrows, medieval incendiaries didn't need all that much impact force to work since they weren't going through things and more arrows = more incendiary down range. That said, you would need to be using a pretty heavy war-bow since nobody wants to be near the smoke those things make even the versions that don't contain arsenic.

[@Haduuna_Wrur]

Fire arrows already weren't a very common practice, since you'd either need to make special arrowheads or use some variety of oil to light them sufficiently/protect the flame. Firing a flaming arrow at high speeds through open air is a lot like breathing on a candle.

[@CarlosSRD]

"Its better to shoot quickly rather than a multi shot" he says as he proceeds to do the most amazing multi shot ever & decimates the watermelon

[@cyrensong123]

This is what I would say a modern day Ranger would be like. I love all of it

[@jorismilleret]

"I was hit by three arrows !" "Maaaaaan ! Are you ok ?" "Yeah, it's nothing but a scratch. They didn't pierce me"

[@winterkeptuswarm]

The way you draw the next arrows so smoothly!! 😮

[@TheOpalHammer]

Imagine being in a tight corridor with some dude charging at you. If you miss, you're dead. This could definitely be a useful skill.

[@SubacaiDarkwing]

Oohh, back to multishot. 😸 It took me a couple of watches to realise the single arrow was just going clean through the Melon Lord. 🙀

[@pr9039]

I appreciate you knock your arrows on the outside. It just makes more sense.

[@patrickscannell6370]

I love these videos but I still feel bad for the watermelon lol

[@jonnnnniej]

I imagine that if you come over to his house, there's always watermelon with weird holes in it to snack from haha

[@taborphilip5042]

@@jonnnnniej "Ah that? I hunted that watermelon just this morning. Tough bugger, took a few shots to take down."

[@oakleyves]

always fun when the doppelgangers come in

[@krummdiddlyumptious1784]

I recently got a compound bow, which I’m learning on. I just found your page I love it so much. I am really considering also getting a recurve bow as well.

[@rohayaismail3708]

I really love your work Sean

[@jongkittae]

see this is why i always just become a wizard magic makes everything easier and also more fun imo

[@daylightluccas]

Well seeing you do it doesn’t seem like a bad a idea at all… You nailed those shots

[@garethfrancis1622]

Fun experiment then... how many arrows could you shoot in 6 seconds??? Aka 1 D&D round. Love the videos. They're always really interesting and cool!

[@blumineck]

3. Sometimes I’ll fumble one, and if I really rush I can do 4 with poor aim, but I have the /potential/ to shoot 3 fairly consistently

[@garethfrancis1622]

@blumineck I love that you've already tried this 😂 very impressive!

[@Battlesny]

​@blumineck and how many times can you attack with that sword in 6 seconds?

[@msrlapin99]

@@Battlesny As a skilled swordsman (as opposed to an archer), I can easily lunge or cut with a sword dozen times in six seconds. The real question, in D&D terms, is how many times I can land a telling blow against an opponent defending himself with a similar weapon in six seconds. That's... variable.

[@shaunalleyne2003]

​@@blumineck3 - 4 shots a round? At least level 11 fighter using action surge I see 😅 I'm sure there's multi classing with bard or ranger in there too!

[@TheBroGamer14082]

Eyyyy. Missed seeing your videos on my feed.

[@IDontKnow-Ok]

You should make a move that includes that on the pole!

[@crimsonlion100]

Nothing can convince me this man is not a reincarnation of a 11th century archer.

[@user-cl3wp1pz8j]

I love archery and I really really wanna try again

[@seabhactheshifty4741]

My sentiments exactly -staring at my bow on the wall

[@blumineck]

Do iiiiiiit

[@josephross8753]

I like to imagine some guy in medieval times did it to bigger animals, but war you would be with entire platoon of archers, and by your self you would only need one

[@kimdzwon8286]

Outstanding explanation. Thx. Greetings from Poland 🇵🇱

[@richardpickman7594]

Regardless of the practicality in combat, the fact that it’s possible is cool. Also that last clip was badass!

[@Maninawig]

Been looking for this answer for years! Thanks.

[@dagoonite]

One thing that I appreciate is that you're saying "is it realistic" instead of going off about how it needs to end right now. You appreciate the rule of cool and why it's done while pointing out that it isn't realistic. And when possible, offers reasons why it might be done. I also love your videos where you offer alternatives; that's very handy for a writer/creator.

[@imikokodama3054]

You’re a gem. Thanks for your wise teachings.

[@54032Zepol]

Is there differences among the different bows from other cultures? Besides the point and shoot aspect of the bow would lets say a persian bow be drawn different than a greek bow or Egyptian bow

[@TheSpeep]

There were different ways of gripping the string, but im not sure if thats so much a cultural difference or something between different types of bow. Even now, there are still different ways of holding and releasing the bowstring. I always held mine on the string with 1 finger above the arrow and 2 below, but there are a number of different types of release tools where you essentially hold a small hook or clip that holds the string which will let go if you pull a trigger.

[@collectorofmyst2107]

The basic concept has always been a string attached to flexible material (wood, bamboo, specially-treated animal horns) and many different cultures have different methods of holding the string, but it's otherwise very similar across all cultures

[@blumineck]

They were made in different shapes, with different materials, in different combinations! Some were made of a single piece of wood e.g. English longbows, others laminated wood with horn and sinew, or grasses like bamboo, and some very rare examples used only horn. The shapes affect weight stacking, so a shorter recurved bow like a Hungarian or Turkish bow can shoot a lighter arrow at higher speed for greater range than a longbow of the same draw weight. And different cultures prioritised different things- English longbows were made to maximise draw weight and shoot heavy arrows that hit like a truck, while Saracen bows were lighter, and were designed to shoot arrows more quickly (both velocity and rate of shooting). There are different ways to draw the string: using 3 fingers, 2 fingers, thumb, twisted or straight wrist. The arrow can sit on the left or right side of the bow. You can have the arrows in a quiver, in the ground, on your back, hip, horse, or in your draw hand or bow hand. And you can draw the bow to your eye, cheek, ear, chest, or some other point on your body, changing how you aim. And the bows of different cultures were designed in tandem with their shooting style, so would have different features to accommodate those differences. So tl;dr: yes, there are differences between the bows of different cultures, both in their construction and their use!

[@nic0co]

you should rate the practicality of different fictional decorated bows

[@TheGusStation]

But you ARE magic sir...

[@brackishbassist]

My coach has def tried two arrows at once at archery practices. He's so weird I love that guy

[@TheIhplodur]

You are both. Magic and Skilled.❤

[@Doxiy]

A friend once told me that if you were only VS one enemy close range you can shoot 2 or 3 arrows at a time ti hit them deal a ton of damage and it also freaks the opponent out a bit.

[@FahadUllahKhan-my9ze]

Random Mongol wandering in Altai: Are you sure about that?

[@RStaRaptoR]

In metroid, in every game you get an upgrade to shoot multi-shots. They are just as powerful as the original until you get a better upgraded beam then it becomes 1 beam again but more powerful. Until you get wave beam which can blast threw multiple enemies splitting it again. Then plasma wave in fusion. Fusion is the most powerful samus. And you really feel it. They used to be able to make games feel good.

[@Seraph-Cion]

I kinda like the trinity ghouls way of doing it by fusing the arrows together

[@thanthtetaung5798]

And yet dude shot multi arrow really well

[@mikkelnpetersen]

From what i've hear it was mostly done when you could shoot it into a group of lightly armored infantry, when it was a "quantity" moment.

[@najwaalexandra6302]

i like how they do it in horizon, the ammunition does deplete faster if you do 2 arrows or more but it deals way more damage for the robots, and your second arrow could miss too if the enemies dodged it, it's pretty cool

[@Mintbuffaol]

Arrow from the arrow verse is more down to earth in the early seasons and only really uses multiple arrows once but he still does some things normal people can’t

[@mastercabbage]

That’s why you get the multishot enchantment to make one arrow turn into multiple.

[@himbourbanist]

i always figured that when archers like Legolas shoot more than one arrow it's because he is in some way aided by magic, particularly after Galadriel gifts him a one of a kind elven bow that i like to imagine had magical traits to it

[@Dumb_Husky.Cat_Shizun]

I once watched a show where the main character shot 5 arrows at 5 different targets at the same time and got a bullseye on all of them

[@blackman7186]

That Bahubali scene might not be accurate but it was sure cool as hell you gotta admit.

[@waffles2waffles]

I thought Legolas firing three arrows into the head of the oliphaunt was dumb because of reduced force, but I guess that is the exact best place to use such a tactic.

[@conned]

Learned new words here, quivers, quill, fletchings, arrows..

[@BongwaterWG]

Ive never seen someone make archery look so zesty

[@HoldToChrist]

Loving the Legolas on the cave troll reference.

[@jdotoz]

Simple physics: the bow's spring constant doesn't change and the draw length doesn't change much, so the total energy that can go into a shot is the same. This has to be divided between each arrow. If you multishoot three arrows of the same mass, each arrow gets a third of the energy that a single arrow would have received.

[@Poketlin]

The thing is that if you were facing against an army (not alone ofcourse) you would need to hit multiple targets at once so my guess is that it would be beneficial if you were shooting 2-3 arrows at once to maximise efficiency. You would hit somebody in the leg or arm they would slow down for sure which would make them an easier target which would make them easier to hit with multiple arrows etc... For me that's the purpose for shooting multiple arrows at once.

[@jimkellt5358]

Why did i just find an elf posting youtube shorts

[@Knifetogunfight18]

I saw this a couple years ago. apparently archers would also hold several arrow in one of their hands so they didnt need to reach back or to their sides for more. looked fancy.

[@syedsultan5310]

"It is cool as hell" That's what it's about brother

[@ThatOneScienceGuy]

The battle scenes in LOTR were exhausting to watch

[@Ramganesh_ps]

Impressive display of archery ❤

[@bluefangx4464]

Yea I am teaming up with you during zombie apocalypse

[@DarthZ01]

now i want a fantasy archer who does the multi arrow thing, but only as a close range shotgun blast designed to utterly eviscerate melee targets that get too close.

[@shashankmr3118]

Kratos:Boii are you teaching mortals

[@RiftFishing]

I imagine this is where bomb arrows come in handy.

[@jordanwells5838]

Bet he’s the coolest guy of his LAR group

[@PinkMawile]

I could also see it used in formation as a way to trick an army into thinking there are more archers.

[@MarMonkey2606]

I actually tried multi shot in real life before one time and it actually worked a lot better than I would have expected given that I was doing it in a sort of janky way like resting the two arrows up right on top of each other and then trying to spread them out a little bit with my fingers at the string they actually hit rather close together if I'm remembering correctly.

[@beatbox27]

*Quietly takes notes for my Ranger*

[@gohomepat]

Bro’s neighbors get denied life insurance 🤣🤣🤣

[@alpborakirte801]

That’s why Legolas used 3. To pierce elephant’s skull

[@moreparrotsmoredereks2275]

Legolas using 3 arrows to take out the mumakil, even though that would reduce the power of each arrow and thus reduce penetration and make it less likely to get to the brain, always makes me laugh

[@Other...]

the thing I'm getting from this: shotgun archers

[@bluephinix]

"That still only count as one!"

[@lochiegriffiths4712]

Shotbow, my beloved

[@pal1d1nl1ght]

I managed to once shoot two different targets with one shot! They were about 5 feet apart, 20ish feet away from me. Only pulled off once, but one of the hits was also a bullseye so I was pretty proud.

[@nightsilent1318]

This guy is honestly so cool.

[@Kelrisaith]

It's very much one of those things that falls under "possible, but not really feasible", and so many people miss that distinction. There are so many things that are technically possible to do, but not feasible to do or not feasible to do well enough to be worth the tradeoffs, which is the case here.

[@brickends3155]

bow that can shoot two evenly-spaced dudes: say your prayers, daft punk

[@yoyoyiggityyo16]

He just killed his earth 2 and 3 doppelganger 😦

[@SleepyFen]

Each arrow carrying less energy only matters if the energy drops below the threshold required to kill a target. And if you're shooting from an elevated position or from a moving platform, that's going to give your arrows a boost as well.

[@fen4554]

That's the first bow finisher-move I've seen.

[@Empled]

Worth a shot. that's a good line