GearAscendancy.com

Gyre Sinew Bowstring CFT474

—

by

Dale
in

From: Gyre Leaper 771

This is the most famous and sought-after product made from a Gyre-Leaper. It is considered by many archers to be the pinnacle of bowstring technology, offering unparalleled performance.

  • Primary Component: The single, long tendon harvested from a Gyre-Leaper’s tail.
  • Additional Materials:
    • Sky-tree Resin, a clear, flexible resin that becomes waterproof when cured.
    • Finely spun Glimmer-moth Silk for the string’s serving (the wrapped portion).
  • Crafting Process: The raw sinew is meticulously cleaned and separated into dozens of fine, hair-like fibers. These fibers are then soaked in a warm water solution to make them pliable. A master string-maker will then carefully twist the fibers together under constant tension, a process that can take over a day to ensure perfect uniformity and strength. Once the desired thickness is achieved, the string is stretched on a frame to dry. It is then coated in a thin layer of warm Sky-tree Resin and polished smooth. Finally, the nocking points and center are wrapped tightly with Glimmer-moth silk to protect the string from wear.
  • Properties: A Gyre-Sinew Bowstring is lighter, stronger, and more resistant to moisture than almost any other natural cord. It produces a faster arrow speed and a significantly quieter shot, making it the choice of elite hunters and assassins.

Lore

The Gyre-Sinew Bowstring is the signature creation of the Silent Striders hunting guild. The intricate crafting process, designated as pattern CFT-474 in their archives, is a trial of patience and skill reserved for their master fletchers. The guild believes the sinew of a Gyre-Leaper holds its “kinetic memory,” a magical echo of its impossible agility.

The magic of the bowstring is a fusion of its three core components. The Gyre-Leaper sinew provides the explosive speed, the Sky-tree Resin grants it immunity to the elements, and the Glimmer-moth Silk is not merely for protection—it is naturally slick and magically silent, muffling the sound of the draw and release. Owning a genuine Strider-made bowstring is a significant status symbol among elite archers, and many forgeries exist, though they lack the magical hum and flawless performance of a true CFT-474.

Tier 1 Statistics

  • Item Type: Magical Weapon Accessory
  • Effect: When strung on any non-magical longbow or shortbow, it grants the weapon a +1 bonus to damage rolls. The bow’s short and long range increments are each increased by 20 feet.
  • Property: Attacks made with a bow equipped with this string are supernaturally quiet. Creatures have a harder time pinpointing your location from the sound of the shot.

Slot

  • Bowstring Slot: This item replaces a bow’s standard string. The process of stringing a bow with it is delicate and takes 10 minutes.

Temporary Skills Gained

  • Instinctive Aiming: The bowstring seems to subtly guide your hand, making it easier to lead moving targets and predict arrow drop at long range.
  • Silent Draw: The Glimmer-moth silk serving allows you to draw and release an arrow with almost no friction or noise, perfect for making a shot from a hidden position.

Passive Magics

  • Kinetic Transfer: The sinew’s latent magical energy is passively transferred to any arrow nocked on it. This results in a faster, flatter trajectory, which is the source of the bow’s enhanced range and hitting power.
  • All-Weather Resilience: The coating of Sky-tree Resin makes the bowstring completely immune to the effects of rain, humidity, snow, and extreme temperatures, preventing any loss of performance due to environmental conditions.

Active Magics

  • Ricochet Shot (1/Day): By speaking a command word as you draw the bow, you can channel the Gyre-Leaper’s essence into a single shot. This allows you to ignore an obstacle providing partial or half cover to a target by bouncing the arrow off a single solid surface. You must have a clear line of sight to both the surface and the target.
  • Tracer Arrow (3/Day): As a bonus action while nocking an arrow, you can cause it to glow with a faint, silvery light that only you can see. For one minute after being fired, the arrow leaves a shimmering trail in the air, allowing you to perfectly track its flight path to see where it landed or if it struck an invisible target.

Tags

Bow Accessory, Upgrade, Magical, Ranged Bonus, Sinew-craft, Stealthy, Precision, Elite Gear, Rare, Weatherproof, Kinetic, Archery, Damage Buff, Range Buff, Guild-Crafted, Masterwork, Beast Component, Hunting, Assassination, Trick Shot, Enhancement, Silk-Wrapped

The Gyre-Sinew Bowstring is a rare, masterwork item whose sale is tightly controlled by the Silent Striders guild, making it available only in very exclusive establishments where craftsmanship and reputation are paramount.

Example Establishments

  • The Silent Striders’ Guildhall: This is the only place to acquire a new, officially sanctioned CFT-474 bowstring. They are not sold for mere coin but are typically granted to members who have achieved a certain rank or offered as a reward to non-members who have performed an extraordinary service for the guild.
  • Master Bowyers & Fletchers: A handful of the world’s most renowned bowyers have a special relationship with the Striders. An establishment like “Elara’s Fine Bows” might be granted one or two strings per year to sell to their most discerning and trusted clients. These are the only “retail” locations for a new string.
  • High-End Auction Houses: A legendary bow, previously owned by a famous Strider, might come up for auction already strung with a Gyre-Sinew Bowstring. In this case, avatars are bidding on the weapon’s history as much as its components, and the string significantly increases the item’s value and prestige.
  • Brokers of Elite Gear: On the grey market, a second-hand bowstring might surface. These are incredibly rare, usually recovered from fallen adventurers or stolen. The risk of purchasing a clever forgery is extremely high in these circles.

The Transaction

  • Authentication: A genuine CFT-474 is identified by two key features. First is the nearly microscopic Silent Striders guild mark (a stylized arrow and feather) woven into the Glimmer-moth silk serving. Second is the bowstring’s unique magical hum; when plucked, it emits a faint, low-frequency resonance that mundane strings lack. Any reputable seller will allow a potential buyer to perform these checks.
  • A Test of Worthiness: A master bowyer or the Striders’ quartermaster will not sell the bowstring to just anyone. The roleplay of the transaction involves the buyer proving their skill and knowledge as an archer. The seller may ask technical questions or require a demonstration of skill. Selling such a fine component to an amateur is considered an insult to the craft.
  • Installation: The price of a genuine bowstring almost always includes the service of having the master fletcher install it on the buyer’s bow. This is a delicate process, and allowing an unskilled person to handle the string is a risk a true artisan is unwilling to take.

Cost and Value

The cost of a Gyre-Sinew Bowstring is exceptionally high, reflecting the rarity of its components, the master-level skill needed to craft it, and the significant magical advantage it provides.

  • Master Fletcher’s Price: When one is available, a genuine, new CFT-474 costs between 40 and 50 Platinum coins. This price includes the fletcher’s installation and tuning service.
  • Guild Value: The Silent Striders value the string at around 35 Platinum coins when offered as part of a reward package for a quest.
  • Grey Market / Second-hand: A used but genuine string might sell for 25-30 Platinum, but carries the risk of being slightly worn or stolen. Forgeries are often sold for 10-15 Platinum to fool the unwary.
  • Barter Value: The Silent Striders would not trade a bowstring for coin. They would trade it for a service of equal value, such as eliminating a major threat to a wilderness region, or for an item of similar rarity, like a single, flawless Griffon feather suitable for fletching a legendary arrow.

Roleplaying the Gyre-Sinew Bowstring focuses on the archer’s newfound confidence and their ability to perform impossible, silent, and precise shots. An avatar using this bowstring should act with the calm assurance of a master, using their magically enhanced capabilities to control the battlefield through superior positioning and unbelievable trick shots.

In a Dense Forest or Jungle

Offensive Roleplay You are the silent death of the forest. The roleplay is about absolute stealth. When you draw your bow, you describe the lack of sound—no creak of wood, no rasp of string. The Silent Draw is perfect. When a target ducks behind a massive tree, you don’t curse your luck; you see an opportunity. You calmly announce you are activating Ricochet Shot. You describe your avatar aiming not at the enemy, but at a thick, gnarled branch on an adjacent tree. The arrow flies, smacks the wood, and caroms off at an impossible angle to strike the hidden target from their blind side. You are not just shooting; you are using the geometry of the forest as your weapon.

Defensive Roleplay Your party is being pursued by something they can’t see. The roleplay here is about providing crucial intelligence. You announce you are using a Tracer Arrow. You describe nocking an arrow that now glows with a faint, silvery light only you can perceive. You fire it high into the canopy in the direction of the pursuing sounds. You then describe the glowing trail as it arcs through the unseen parts of the woods, giving you a perfect read on the distance, speed, and direction of your pursuer. “It’s a big one, moving fast, sixty yards to the east!” you report, turning a panicked flight into a controlled retreat with vital information.

In Urban Environments (Rooftops & Alleys)

Offensive Roleplay You are a master of urban warfare, using the city itself as your ally. A target is fleeing down a winding alley, breaking your line of sight. You spot a heavy iron bell hanging over the street. You activate Ricochet Shot and call your shot, aiming for the bell. You describe the arrow striking the metal with a deafening CLANG, the sound serving as a distraction as the arrow itself ricochets downwards at a sharp angle, embedding itself in the cobblestones at the target’s feet and forcing them to halt. It’s a flashy, intimidating display of unparalleled skill.

Defensive Roleplay Your allies are pinned down in a courtyard by enemy crossbowmen who are behind heavy stone cover on a balcony. Direct fire is useless. You use Ricochet Shot not to kill, but to protect. You shout to your ally, “Get ready to move!” You aim for the stone ceiling of the archway above the enemies. You describe the arrow zipping upwards, striking the stone, and sending a shower of stone fragments and dust down onto the crossbowmen. They aren’t seriously injured, but they are forced to duck for cover, giving your ally the split second they need to sprint to safety.

In Claustrophobic Dungeons and Caverns

Offensive Roleplay In the tight, cover-filled corridors of a dungeon, you are a lethal puzzle-solver. Enemies keep hiding behind pillars and stalagmites. This is where Ricochet Shot shines. You describe how your avatar coolly ignores the enemy’s cover, instead lining up a shot on a nearby wall or rock formation. The other party members might think you’ve lost your mind until they see the arrow bounce off the surface at a bizarre angle and strike the goblin from the side. The roleplay is about demonstrating a level of tactical archery that seems like pure magic to onlookers.

Defensive Roleplay The party is retreating down a long, dark hallway, and you need to know if you’re being followed. You use Tracer Arrow as a magical probe. You announce the activation and fire the glowing arrow down the corridor ahead. You describe how you and your party watch the silent, silvery trail fly through the darkness. It travels fifty feet, sixty, then suddenly winks out of existence far before it should have hit a wall. “Something’s there,” you whisper. “Something big enough to block the arrow.” You have used the string’s magic to confirm a threat without risking a single party member.

Perception of Activation:

Sight

  • What’s Perceived: A Glowing Trajectory or Pulsing Arrowhead.
  • Description:
    • Ricochet Shot: When the command word is spoken, the bowstring flashes with a sharp, silver light. For a brief moment, a faint, shimmering line becomes visible only to the archer, tracing the impossible path the arrow will take from the bow, to a solid surface, and then to the target.
    • Tracer Arrow: When activated, the nocked arrowhead begins to pulse with a soft, silvery light, again visible only to the archer. This light is what creates the visible trail after the arrow is fired.
  • Positives: Provides clear, unambiguous visual confirmation of which ability is active and offers a direct aiming guide for the complex shots.
  • Negatives: The sudden appearance of glowing lines or pulsing lights, even if visible only to the user, can be momentarily distracting and create a kind of “tunnel vision,” making it harder to track other battlefield movements.

Sound

  • What’s Perceived: A Resonant Echo or a Faint Whistle.
  • Description:
    • Ricochet Shot: The command word seems to hang in the air for a moment with an unnatural, echoing resonance. The shot itself is not silent; the normal thrum is accompanied by a sharp crack, like a stone striking stone at high velocity.
    • Tracer Arrow: The activation is silent, but the arrow’s flight produces a faint, high-pitched whistle that only the archer can hear, allowing them to track it audibly as well as visually.
  • Positives: The distinct sounds provide clear auditory feedback, allowing an experienced user to confirm which ability is active by ear.
  • Negatives: The sharp crack of the Ricochet Shot is an unnatural sound that could alert magically-attuned creatures to the nature of the attack, even if they can’t determine its source.

Smell

  • What’s Perceived: The Scent of Charged Air.
  • Description: Both active abilities cause the air around the bowstring to crackle with energy, releasing a faint but sharp scent of ozone, like the air just before a lightning strike.
  • Positives: Offers a minor, secondary sensory confirmation that magic has been invoked.
  • Negatives: The scent is extremely faint and dissipates almost instantly, making it a highly unreliable indicator of activation.

Touch

  • What’s Perceived: A Rigid Tension or a Weightless Float.
  • Description:
    • Ricochet Shot: As the string is drawn, it feels incredibly taut and rigid, thrumming with a contained, violent energy. The release feels explosive, with a significantly sharper recoil felt in the bow hand.
    • Tracer Arrow: In contrast, the string feels unnaturally slick and smooth. The nocked arrow feels almost weightless, as if it is floating in place, eager to fly.
  • Positives: The distinct tactile feedback is the most reliable indicator for the archer, letting them know exactly which ability is primed and what to expect upon release.
  • Negatives: The powerful recoil from a Ricochet Shot can be jarring for an unprepared user, potentially slowing their ability to nock and fire a second arrow quickly.

Taste

  • What’s Perceived: None.
  • Description: The activation of the bowstring’s magic is purely energetic and does not produce any effect that can be tasted.
  • Positives: No distracting or unpleasant sensory input is generated.
  • Negatives: This sense provides no useful information regarding the item’s activation.

Extra-Sensory Perceptions

Arcane Sense (Aura)

  • What’s Perceived: A Flare of Transmutation or Divination Magic.
  • Description:
    • Ricochet Shot: The bowstring’s aura erupts in a sharp, complex flare of Transmutation magic as it prepares to alter the arrow’s physical path.
    • Tracer Arrow: The aura is a soft, focused glow of Divination magic that flows from the string and gathers on the arrowhead.
  • Positives: An attuned user or a nearby magic-user can know exactly what kind of magical effect is being prepared, allowing for tactical coordination.
  • Negatives: The magical flare is an obvious beacon, telegraphing the user’s intent to any other magic-sensitive entity in the area and revealing that a magical attack is imminent.

Kinetic Sense (Motion Sense)

  • What’s Perceived: An Intuitive Understanding of Trajectory.
  • Description:
    • Ricochet Shot: The user doesn’t just see the glowing trajectory line; they feel it. They experience an intuitive, perfect understanding of the angles of impact and rebound required for the shot to succeed.
    • Tracer Arrow: After firing, the user maintains a faint, sympathetic link to the arrow, allowing them to feel its velocity and position as if it were a distant part of their own body.
  • Positives: Provides a profound, almost pre-cognitive aiming ability that makes these impossible shots feel natural and intuitive.
  • Negatives: This intense focus on a single kinetic event creates a powerful “tunnel sense” that can make the user temporarily oblivious to other movements and threats around them.

Proprioception (Body Awareness)

  • What’s Perceived: A Sympathetic Physical Echo.
  • Description:
    • Ricochet Shot: The archer feels a strange “echo” of the arrow’s path in their own body. As they line up the shot, they might feel a faint impact on their shoulder (the bounce point) and a sense of being pulled towards the final target.
    • Tracer Arrow: As the arrow flies, the user’s own sense of position feels momentarily stretched, as if a part of their awareness is traveling along with the projectile.
  • Positives: This deep, physical empathy with the arrow’s flight makes aiming feel incredibly natural and certain.
  • Negatives: These sensations are deeply unnatural. Until an archer becomes accustomed to them, they can be disorienting or even nauseating, potentially causing a moment of dizziness after the shot is released.

Mood setting excerpt from:
Book of Contests and Prizes
Chapter XII: Of the Archer’s Path and the Weaver’s Curve

…Hear this telling, for its path is not straight. It is a story of a great contest, and of a prize that could not be won by simple strength.

A great King made a challenge for all the archers of the land. The final test was this: to strike a small silver bell that was placed behind a great wall of unbreakable crystal. None could see the bell, but they knew where it hid.

Many archers came. They shot their arrows, and their arrows were broken on the crystal. And the bell was silent.

Then came the Straight-Arrow Archer. His bow was of dragon-horn, and his arrows were of ironwood, and his strength was the strength of ten men. He boasted, “My shaft flies so straight and so hard, it will not be stopped by mere glass!” He drew his bow until it groaned. He loosed the shaft. It smote the crystal with the sound of thunder, and the wall was cracked with a great white star. But the crystal did not break. And the bell was silent. For a straight path cannot pass through a solid thing.

Then a quiet woman came forth. She was not known as an archer, but as a Weaver of bowstrings. Her bow was of simple yew. The Straight-Arrow Archer laughed. “The wall did not yield to my might. It will not notice your weakness.”

The Weaver said, “A river does not break a mountain by striking it. It flows around it.”

Her bow was strung with a new string, made from the sinew of a Gyre-Leaper. It shone with a pale, pearly light. She did not aim at the crystal wall. Lo, she turned and aimed at a great stone pillar that stood at the edge of the tourney field. The crowd murmured, for they thought she was mad.

She whispered a word to the string, and it hummed with a strange power. She loosed her arrow. It flew not towards the target, but away. It struck the stone pillar. But it did not shatter. It was reborn in its flight. It leaped from the stone, and flew a great curved path around the crystal wall, as if it were a living thing. It passed behind the wall, and it struck the silver bell with a sound like a single, perfect drop of rain.

And the King and the Archer and all the people were amazed, for they had seen an arrow fly a path that was not straight.

The Moral of the Story: When the straight path is blocked by an unbreakable wall, only a fool keeps pushing. A wise person finds a different angle.

Suggested conversions to other systems:

Call of Cthulhu (7th Edition)

High-Level Overview This is not a simple tool but an unsettling artifact, a “Sinew of Unnatural Flight.” It’s crafted from the tendon of a creature from the Dreamlands or a similar otherworldly place, one that moves in ways that defy Euclidean geometry. Its “ricochet” ability isn’t a matter of physics but of the arrow briefly skipping through an impossible angle of space. Using it feels uncanny, and its quietness is profoundly unnatural.

Game Mechanics

Sinew of Unnatural Flight

  • Description: A pale, shimmering bowstring that feels cool to the touch and hums with a barely audible vibration.
  • Effect: When strung on a bow, it grants one Bonus Die on all Firearms (Bow) rolls due to the arrow’s preternatural speed and silence.
  • Special Property:
    • Impossible Angle Shot: Once per day, the user can make an attack that ignores all cover from a single barrier. This is a clear violation of natural law. Any character (including the user) who witnesses this must make a Sanity roll (0/1d3). Activating this ability costs the user 1 Magic Point and 1 Sanity point.
  • Craft: Stringing a bow with this artifact requires a successful Hard Mechanical Repair roll.

Blades in the Dark

High-Level Overview In Doskvol, this is a Whisper-Cord Bowstring, a masterwork item from a reclusive Iruvian artisan. The sinew is sourced from a rare beast that navigates the Shattered Isles, and it’s wrapped in the silk of a ghost-web spider. This is the perfect upgrade for a Hound or a Spider, allowing for silent eliminations and impossible trick shots from the city’s rooftops.

Game Mechanics

Fine Whisper-Cord Bowstring (A special quality for a Fine Bow)

  • Description: A custom-fitted bowstring that makes a Fine Bow (2 Load) even more potent.
  • Qualities: Fine, Silent, Precise.
  • Mechanical Effect: When you use a bow equipped with this string, you gain Potency on any action where extreme silence and precision are required. You could shoot a rope to cut it from a block away or shoot a wine glass out of a target’s hand without anyone hearing the shot itself.
  • Special Abilities:
    • Ricochet: When you make a Hunt or Skirmish roll to perform a trick shot (like firing around a corner or banking a shot off a wall), you can spend 1 Stress to gain +1d to your roll.

Dungeons & Dragons (5th Edition)

High-Level Overview The Gyre-Sinew Bowstring is a magical Wondrous Item that can be affixed to a standard bow, augmenting it with enhanced power and unique capabilities. It is a prized possession for rangers and rogues, turning a mundane weapon into a tool of supernatural precision and stealth.

Stat Block

Gyre-Sinew Bowstring Wondrous item, uncommon

This pearly-white bowstring is crafted from the tendon of a magically agile beast. Over the course of a short rest, you can affix this string to a non-magical longbow or shortbow, turning it into a magic weapon.

A bow strung with this item grants a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls. Additionally, when you fire an arrow from this bow, the shot is magically silenced, making no sound.

The bowstring has 3 charges and regains 1d3 expended charges daily at dawn. You can expend 1 charge to activate one of the following properties:

  • Ricochet Shot. When you make an attack with this bow, you can declare it a Ricochet Shot. Your attack ignores half and three-quarters cover, provided there is a solid surface the arrow could plausibly ricochet off of.
  • Tracer Arrow. As a bonus action when you nock an arrow, you cause it to leave a faint, silvery trail of light that is visible only to you for 1 minute, allowing you to see the arrow’s exact path and final location.

Knave (2nd Edition)

High-Level Overview In Knave, the Gyre-Sinew Bowstring is a rare and powerful item whose function is defined by its straightforward description. It’s a simple but significant upgrade, taking up a valuable inventory slot and rewarding clever players with options that mundane equipment could never provide.

Item Description

Gyre-Sinew Bowstring (1 inventory slot)

  • Description: A magical bowstring woven from the tendon of a creature that could leap between canyon walls. Attaching it to a bow takes one turn.
  • Properties:
    • A bow strung with this item is considered magical.
    • Arrows fired from the bow are silent and deal +1 damage.
    • The bow’s range is doubled.
    • Ricochet (1/day): Once per day, you can declare that your arrow will bounce off one surface to strike a target, ignoring cover.

Fate Core System

High-Level Overview In Fate, the Gyre-Sinew Bowstring is a powerful Extra that defines an archer’s unique style. It grants narrative permission to perform impossible feats of archery. Its power is represented by a unique Aspect and a stunt that allows the player to manipulate the scene in creative ways, making them a master of trick shots and silent attacks.

Game Mechanics

Extra: The Gyre-Sinew Bowstring

  • Aspect: An Arrow’s Path is Not Always Straight. You can invoke this Aspect whenever you perform a difficult or seemingly impossible feat of archery. A compel could be that the string’s latent energy makes a simple, straightforward shot more difficult, or it might make a sound only magical creatures can hear.
  • Stunt:
    • Ricochet Shot: Once per session, you can spend a Fate Point to make an attack with your bow that ignores any physical barriers or cover. You succeed automatically at an Overcome roll to shoot a distant switch or cut a rope, or you can attack a target in another zone as long as you can describe a plausible (if incredible) path for the arrow to take.

Numenera & Cypher System

High-Level Overview This is an Artifact from a prior civilization, a “Kinetic-Coil Bowstring.” The “sinew” is a strand of programmable smart-matter that stores and releases kinetic energy, while the “silk” is a light-refracting filament for stealth. Its abilities are pure, misunderstood technology, allowing an archer to augment a primitive weapon with the hyper-advanced physics of a bygone age.

Game Mechanics

Kinetic-Coil Bowstring

  • Level: 6
  • Form: A shimmering, pearly-white cord that can be fitted to any bow over one hour.
  • Effect: When fitted to a mundane bow, the bow functions as a level 6 weapon. The effective range of the bow is increased from short to long. Attacks made with the bow are completely silent.
  • Special: The user can activate one of two modes before firing. Activating a mode is part of the attack action.
    • Ricochet Mode: The user can program a single ricochet into the arrow’s path. The attack is an Intellect-based task (instead of Speed-based) with a difficulty of 5. If successful, the arrow can bounce off one surface to ignore the target’s cover.
    • Tracer Mode: The arrow leaves a glowing trail visible to the user for one minute.
  • Depletion: 1 on a d20 (check each time a special mode is activated).

Pathfinder (2nd Edition)

High-Level Overview In Pathfinder, the Gyre-Sinew Bowstring is a magical item that functions similarly to a weapon rune, permanently upgrading a bow. It provides a static bonus and powerful, limited-use activated abilities, making it a highly sought-after item for any character specializing in archery.

Stat Block

GYRE-SINEW BOWSTRING ITEM 5 RARE MAGICAL EVOCATION TRANSMUTATION

  • Price 160 gp
  • Usage affixed to a bow; Bulk —

This shimmering, pearly-white string can be affixed to a non-magical shortbow or longbow over a 10-minute period. Once affixed, the bow becomes a +1 striking bow. All attacks made with the bow are magically silenced. In addition to the permanent runes, the bowstring grants the following activations:

  • Activate [A] command; Frequency once per day; Effect You make a Strike with the bow. The arrow can ricochet off one solid surface, allowing you to ignore the target’s cover so long as the surface is nearby. This is a teleportation effect on the arrow.
  • Activate [A] envision; Frequency three times per day; Effect The next arrow you fire this turn leaves a silvery trail of light that is visible only to you for 1 minute, revealing its path and final location.

Savage Worlds Adventure Edition (SWADE)

High-Level Overview In Savage Worlds, the Gyre-Sinew Bowstring is a piece of Rare Magical Gear that provides a straightforward but potent set of benefits. It makes an archer character more accurate, more damaging, and grants them a cool, situational “trick shot” ability that is easy to resolve during a fast-paced combat encounter.

Game Mechanics

Gyre-Sinew Bowstring

  • Description: A magical bowstring that can be fitted to any normal bow.
  • Effect: When affixed to a normal shortbow or longbow, the weapon is considered Magical. The character gains a +1 bonus to Shooting and damage rolls with the bow. The bow’s shots are completely silent.
  • Special Ability:
    • Ricochet Shot: Once per encounter, the archer can declare they are making a Ricochet Shot before rolling their attack. This allows them to ignore up to 4 points of Cover penalty from a single source by bouncing the arrow off a nearby surface.

Shadowrun (Sixth World)

High-Level Overview In the Sixth World, this is a high-tech piece of talistech known as a “Ricochet” Smart-String. The “sinew” is a bio-engineered myomer filament harvested from a custom-bred paracritter, woven with optical camouflage fibers. It interfaces with an archer’s smartlink system to calculate and execute impossible trajectories, making it a terrifyingly effective tool for deniable corporate assassinations and high-end shadowruns.

Game Mechanics

“Ricochet” Smart-String

  • Type: Bow Accessory
  • Availability: 16F
  • Cost: 38,000 nuyen
  • Description: A shimmering, pearlescent bowstring that replaces a bow’s standard string. It requires a smartlink to access its advanced functions.
  • Effect: When connected to a user’s smartlink, this string provides the following benefits:
    • It grants the bow a +1 bonus to Accuracy.
    • All shots fired are considered Silent; Perception tests to hear the shot are made with a -4 dice pool penalty.
  • Special Function:
    • Ricochet Algorithm: Once per combat, the user can use a Minor Action to prime the ricochet function. For their next attack, the user may spend a point of Edge to ignore all cover penalties from a single source, as the smartlink calculates and executes a perfect rebound shot.

Starfinder

High-Level Overview This is a Kinetic-Coil String, a hybrid item that uses micro-gravitic projectors and a magical power source to enhance an arrow’s flight. It’s a fascinating piece of tech favored by Vesk traditionalists and explorers who appreciate the blend of a primitive analog weapon with advanced, supernatural performance. It turns a simple bow into a surprisingly versatile and deadly tool.

Game Mechanics

Kinetic-Coil String, Hybrid Level 5

  • Price 3,200 credits; Bulk —
  • Type Hybrid Item (Weapon Accessory); Hands —
  • Description: A shimmering bowstring that can be affixed to any non-magical analog bow during a 10-minute installation.
  • Effect: A bow equipped with this string is considered a hybrid weapon and its attacks are magical for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction. The bow’s damage increases by one die step (e.g., from 1d6 to 1d8), and its range increment is increased by 20 feet.
  • Special Property:
    • Ricochet Shot (1/day): As a standard action, you can make a single attack with the bow. This attack ignores the AC bonus from cover (but not total cover), as you angle the shot to bounce off a nearby surface.

Traveller (Mongoose 2nd Edition)

High-Level Overview This is a TL-14 “Smart-String”, a piece of high-tech, covert operations equipment. It is not magical. The string is made of programmable monofilament and uses an internal micro-computer and electrostatic fields to adjust its tension and release harmonics. This dramatically increases arrow velocity and silences the shot. The ricochet function is a complex targeting solution that requires a linked sensor suite to calculate.

Game Mechanics

“Smart-String” Monofilament Bowstring

  • Tech Level: 14
  • Mass: — (negligible)
  • Cost: Cr 95,000
  • Description: A programmable monofilament string that replaces a bow’s standard string.
  • Effect: When affixed to a bow and linked to a computer or sensor suite, this string provides the following benefits:
    • It increases the bow’s damage by +1 and its range by 50%.
    • Attacks made with it are effectively silent (requires a Formidable (14+) Recon check to hear).
  • Special Feature (Ricochet Calculation): If linked to an advanced targeting sensor, the user can use an action to make a Difficult (10+) Electronics (sensors) check. If successful, their next shot that turn can ignore any cover by calculating and executing a perfect ricochet path.

Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay (4th Edition)

High-Level Overview This is an Asrai (Wood Elf) Heartstring, a legendary artifact of Athel Loren. It is not merely crafted, but woven from the sinew of an ancient, enchanted Great Stag and the silk of a moon-spider, then imbued with the Wind of Azyr. It is said the string never misses, as its arrows are guided by the constellations themselves. Possessing one is a great honor and an even greater responsibility.

Game Mechanics

Asrai Heartstring

  • Description: A bowstring that glimmers with the faint light of captured starlight.
  • Qualities: Magical, Masterpiece, Rare, Elven Craft, Silent
  • Effect: When affixed to an Elven Bow, the bow is considered a masterwork of incredible power. It gains the following Weapon Qualities:
    • Penetrating
    • Damaging: Add +SL to the total damage of the shot.
    • Silent: The bow makes no sound when fired.
  • Special Property:
    • Star-Guided Shot: Once per session, the archer may call upon the string’s magic. Their next shot that session is supernaturally accurate. It cannot be dodged or parried and will magically arc or ricochet around any and all physical cover to strike its target, as long as the archer could see the target when they fired. This spectacular shot leaves a momentary trail of starlight in its wake.

Comments

One response to “Gyre Sinew Bowstring CFT474”

  1. Harmonious Strider 1029 of Infinite Grace – GearAscendancy.com

    […] Gyre Sinew Bowstring CFT474: The masterwork kinetic stay. […]