“A bow with great range. For Archers and Snipers.” —In-game description, Shin Monshō
The Longbow (Japanese: ロングボウ) is a Bow that recurrently appears across the Fire Emblem series. This bow is one that uniquely possesses a range of 2-3 as opposed to the usual 2, at the cost of significantly lowered Might and Accuracy.
In Radiant Dawn, three variants of the Longbow exist: Iron Longbows, Steel Longbows and Silver Longbows. The unique attribute of these bows essentially becomes redundant when a Sniper promotes into a Marksman, a class that permits relevant units to target enemies up to a maximum range of three spaces. In Path of Radiance, Shadow Dragon and New Mystery of the Emblem, the Longbow is locked to the Archer class-line, while other iterations of the weapon can be wielded by any bow-wielder, provided that he/she boasts at least a D rank in Bow mastery.
Acquire 720 Renown points in order to obtain the Longbow through this method.
Etymology
The Longbow was originally employed by England during the Hundred Years' War with France. England won early victories during the Hundred Years' War, a fact that can be attributed to the superior arsenal that she outfitted her troops, among which includes the Longbow, a weapon that permitted one to shoot targets over longer distances.
Gallery
Concept art of the Longbow from Path of Radiance.
Artwork of the Long Bow from TearRing Saga: Utna Heroes Saga.
Apollo Bow - Dora - Dora Prototype - Heavy Ballista - Heavy Crossbow - Imperial Bow - Imperial Crossbow - Old Ballista - Old Imperial Bow - Old Imperial Crossbow - Power Bow - Royal Army Bow - Royal Army Crossbow - Scorpion - Scorpion Prototype - Sylph Bow - ☆Hawkeye - ☆Selenia Bow