Longbow 5e weapon
Martial ranged weapon · 1d8 piercing · Slow mastery (2024)
Longbow stats by edition
| 2014 (SRD 5.1) | 2024 (SRD 5.2) | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Martial ranged | Martial ranged |
| Damage | 1d8 piercing | 1d8 piercing |
| Properties | Ammunition (range 150/600), Heavy, Two-Handed | Ammunition (range 150/600; Arrows), Heavy, Two-Handed |
| Mastery | — | Slow |
| Weight | 2 lb. | 2 lb. |
| Cost | 50 gp | 50 gp |
What changed in 2024
- Gains the Slow mastery property (new in 2024).
Average damage
- 1d8: 4.5 on average.
- With a +3 ability modifier: 7.5 per hit; a critical hit doubles the dice, for 12.
Roll it yourself in the dice roller.
Its properties
Ammunition
2014: You can use a weapon that has the ammunition property to make a ranged attack only if you have ammunition to fire from the weapon. Each time you attack with the weapon, you expend one piece of ammunition. Drawing the ammunition from a quiver, case, or other container is part of the attack (you need a free hand to load a one-handed weapon). At the end of the battle, you can recover half your expended ammunition by taking a minute to search the battlefield. If you use a weapon that has the ammunition property to make a melee attack, you treat the weapon as an improvised weapon (see "Improvised Weapons" later in the section). A sling must be loaded to deal any damage when used in this way.
2024: You can use a weapon that has the Ammunition property to make a ranged attack only if you have ammunition to fire from it. The type of ammunition required is specified with the weapon's range. Each attack expends one piece of ammunition. Drawing the ammunition is part of the attack (you need a free hand to load a one-handed weapon). After a fight, you can spend 1 minute to recover half the ammunition (round down) you used in the fight; the rest is lost.
Heavy
2014: Small creatures have disadvantage on attack rolls with heavy weapons. A heavy weapon's size and bulk make it too large for a Small creature to use effectively.
2024: You have Disadvantage on attack rolls with a Heavy weapon if it's a Melee weapon and your Strength score isn't at least 13 or if it's a Ranged weapon and your Dexterity score isn't at least 13.
Two-Handed
2014: This weapon requires two hands when you attack with it.
2024: A Two-Handed weapon requires two hands when you attack with it.
Mastery: Slow (2024)
If you hit a creature with this weapon and deal damage to it, you can reduce its Speed by 10 feet until the start of your next turn. If the creature is hit more than once by weapons that have this property, the Speed reduction doesn't exceed 10 feet.
A character can use this only if a feature lets them use the weapon’s mastery property. Other Slow weapons · all mastery properties.
Who is proficient
Classes proficient with the longbow, from their class proficiencies: Barbarian, Fighter, Paladin, Ranger.
Compared with other martial ranged weapons
| Weapon | Damage | Average (one / two hands) | Properties | Mastery (2024) | Weight | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Musket | 1d12 piercing | 6.5 | Ammunition (range 40/120; Bullets, Firearm), Loading, Two-Handed | Slow | 10 lb. | 500 gp |
| Heavy Crossbow | 1d10 piercing | 5.5 | Ammunition (range 100/400), Heavy, Loading, Two-Handed | Push | 18 lb. | 50 gp |
| Pistol | 1d10 piercing | 5.5 | Ammunition (range 30/90; Bullets, Firearm), Loading | Vex | 3 lb. | 250 gp |
| Longbow | 1d8 piercing | 4.5 | Ammunition (range 150/600), Heavy, Two-Handed | Slow | 2 lb. | 50 gp |
| Hand Crossbow | 1d6 piercing | 3.5 | Ammunition (range 30/120), Light, Loading | Vex | 3 lb. | 75 gp |
| Blowgun | 1 piercing | 1 | Ammunition (range 25/100), Loading | Vex | 1 lb. | 10 gp |
| Net | — | — | Thrown (range 5/15), Special | — | 3 lb. | 1 gp |