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TW3K Multiple Bolt Crossbow 430x

Devastating artillery vs Infantry but not a replacement for Trebuchet

Multiple Bolt Crossbow is a Ranged Artillery unit in Total War: Three Kingdoms. They can only be recruited by Strategist Heroes. They are a powerful unit against any kind of infantry including ranged units. They are useful in taking out towers but are useless against a city's stone walls. With their flaming bolts they devastate and demoralize enemy troop formations and can also light wooden cities buildings ablaze with Flammable Rounds from long range.

Overview[]

One or two Multiple Bolt Crossbow units can be useful when engaging field armies or sieging Resource settlements. The flat trajectory of their bolts penetrates multiple ranks of massed enemy infantry and ranged infantry when they are on target, even at long range. They can also do great damage to cavalry when they are walking, but they are much harder targets when running.

These are very expensive units, especially in the early game, and cannot do the job of Trebuchets when it comes to taking walls down, so their utility is lower overall. They also don't do wide area damage. Lastly, Flaming Shot is not as effective at lighting fires on towers, in foliage or buildings in cities because there is also no explosive effect to the bolts.

NOTE: Strategist characters with the Resourcefulness skill unlock "Flaming shot" which is the Trebuchet ammunition type "Flammable Round." "Flaming Shot" however, is also the ammunition type seen on the unit panel in-game for "Fire Arrows" for Archers as well as Multiple Bolt Crossbows. "Fire Arrows" are unlocked by the Composure skill. Be aware the two uses of "Flaming Shot" should not confused. In short, Resourcefulness is for flaming artillery ammo, Composure is for fire arrows.

  • Type: Light Crossbow Artillery
  • Base cost to recruit: 1100
  • Base unit upkeep: 320

Description[]

TW3K Multibolt Crossbow in-game1

In-game (vanilla units)

Be they man or monster, no one can withstand the thundering force of not one, but many, ten-foot bolts.

At a glance, this siege weapon appears to be the simple crossbow, yet bigger than before - and far, far more powerful. Its ten-foot long bolts, when fired, are powerful enough to cleave through ranks of soldiery, and thus are devastating against enemy lines.

Loading more than one bolt per crossbow requires a significant amount more effort and reduces the accuracy of the weapon. However, when firing indiscriminately into advancing enemy lines, accuracy is secondary - by an order of magnitude - to raw destructive power.


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