Wiki · Combat

Ranged Weapons and Ammo

How bows, spears, staves, ammo slots, line of sight, and special arrows work in combat.

By Definya Team

Ranged combat lets you fight from a distance instead of standing on the tile next to your target. Bows, crossbows, and similar weapons need the right ammo loaded. Spears and some thrown weapons reach farther than melee without using the ammo slot the same way. For attack validation basics and PvP scaling, start with the Combat Overview.

Melee vs ranged range

Most melee attacks only work on adjacent tiles. Ranged attacks check:

  • Distance — your weapon’s range limit (shown on the item card as max range).
  • Line of sight — walls and solid obstacles block the shot.
  • Target state — stealth, paralysis, silence, and zone rules still apply.

Spears use the Distance skill and can reach up to 5 tiles away, without consuming ammo from your accessory slot.

Where ammo lives

For bows and most ranged weapons, ammo is read from your accessory equipment slot (the quiver-style slot on your gear screen).

Each ranged weapon lists which ammo types it accepts (requiredAmmoKeys on the item card). Common pairings include iron arrows, poison arrows, bolts, and specialty ammo tied to Hunter crafting spells.

Before each ranged shot, the game checks that:

  1. You have a compatible ammo item equipped in the accessory slot.
  2. The stack still has at least one unit left.
  3. The ammo type matches what the weapon requires.

If ammo is missing, you see a message such as Oops! Not enough ammo for your ranged attack! If the wrong ammo is equipped, you see an Incompatible ammo message naming what the weapon expects.

What happens when you shoot

On a successful ranged hit:

  1. The projectile animation plays toward your target.
  2. Damage is calculated with ranged bonuses (Hunters get the strongest ranged damage bonus among classes).
  3. One unit of ammo is consumed from the accessory slot.
  4. Your equipment and inventory UI refresh if the stack count changed.

Some ammo types also trigger area effects on impact — splash damage or status effects around the target when that arrow or bolt is designed for it. Check the ammo description and the Items database for special arrows and bolts.

Weapons that do not use accessory ammo

A few ranged weapons break the normal ammo rules:

  • Shuriken and similar thrown weapons do not pull ammo from the accessory slot; the weapon itself is the projectile source.
  • Staves and wands use mana instead of physical ammo for magic-style ranged attacks.

Training weapons follow separate combat rules (low fixed damage for practice). See Combat Overview — Training weapons.

Preparing for a hunt

  • Keep a partial stack or spare stack of the correct ammo in your backpack so you can refill the accessory slot without leaving the spawn camp.
  • Match ammo to the weapon before you pull — switching bows mid-route often means switching arrow types too.
  • Watch weight; ammo stacks add up on long routes. See Weight and Carrying Capacity.
  • Hunters can craft arrows and bolts through class spells; see the Class Spell Catalog for creation spells.

PvP note

Ranged player damage uses a separate PvP ratio from melee (2.0x scaling vs 2.5x for melee in the current balance). Exact outcomes still depend on gear, skills, and target defenses.