There were many dicussions and rumors about which bow is the strongest or fastest, so I researched the exact values. The values are modifiers to the vanilla bow attributes. Draw Time is the number of ticks you need to draw the bow. Default (vanilla) draw time is 20; this gives a normal bow an actual firing speed of around 45 rounds per minute, at full charge, and a theoretical RPM of around 60.
| Name | Damage | Range | Draw Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mallorn Bow | +0 | +15% | 20 |
| Galadhrim Bow | +0.5 | +50% | 16 |
| Orc Bow | +0.25 | +0% | 20 |
| Bow of Mirkwood | +0 | +25% | 14 |
| Bow of Harad | +0.4 | +50% | 30 |
| Black Uruk Bow | +0.5 | +20% | 30* |
| Utumno Bow | +0.5 | +20% | 20 |
| Rohirric Bow | +0 | +20% | 20 |
| Gondorian Bow | +0.25 | +40% | 20 |
| High Elven Bow | +0.5 | +50% | 16 |
* The Black Uruk bow was debuffed (slowed down) in update Beta 23.
Conclusion[]
The elven bows are unbeaten. The Black Uruk and Utumno bows make the same damage but are slower. The Harad bow nearly reaches the elven bows but needs nearly double as long to be drawn. The Wood Elven (Mirkwood) bow is very fast but not very strong.
The mallorn bow is the worst bow in the game, followed by the rohirric bow.
Crossbows[]
Now let's compare crossbows. All crossbows have the same range and reloading speed and only differ in the damage they deal and the durability. The damage values are not equal to the final damage. This table is meant for comparison of the different crossbows and not as base for damage calculation
| Type | Base Damage |
|---|---|
| Uruk Crossbow | 3.0 |
| Iron Crossbow | 2.0 |
| Bronze Crossbow | 1.5 |
| Mithril Crossbow | 5.0 |