Realistic & fair archery physics overhaul. Arrows & Bolts travel in a realistic trajectory that requires you to actually aim, rather than having a laser-bow. It also changes the Impact Force of projectiles to better fit the type of missile. Arrows will drop your target and bolts can knock them over. Also fixes a number of bugs.
Permissions and credits
Credits and distribution permission
Other user's assetsAll the assets in this file belong to the author, or are from free-to-use modder's resources
Upload permissionYou are not allowed to upload this file to other sites under any circumstances
Modification permissionYou are allowed to modify my files and release bug fixes or improve on the features without permission from or credit to me
Conversion permissionYou can convert this file to work with other games as long as you credit me as the creator of the file
Asset use permissionYou must get permission from me before you are allowed to use any of the assets in this file
Asset use permission in mods/files that are being soldYou are not allowed to use assets from this file in any mods/files that are being sold, for money, on Steam Workshop or other platforms
Asset use permission in mods/files that earn donation pointsYou are not allowed to earn Donation Points for your mods if they use my assets
Author notes
ALWAYS FREE I will never support paid mods, or this mod being used as a base for paid mods.
File credits
This author has not credited anyone else in this file
Removed the NPC Projectile Dodge mechanic. (Bug Fix)
(Updated FOMOD version to 2.0.6)
Version 2.0.5
Fixed FOMOD installer
Version 2.0.4
New physics version "Realistic Lite"
Fixed Vortex installation, tested on a clean VM.
Version 2.0.3
(Implemented in v2.0.4) Added INI tweaks for fixing bow aiming, and removing magnetism (can be deselected in the installer)
(REDACTED - Vortex installation is broken) FOMOD installer will now auto-select addons & plugins if they are found in your load order.
Version 2.0.2
Added the Requiem version to the main fomod installer, with a few addons
Added static ballista traps, they're much faster and have a little less gravity. (Speed is 300FPS, the historical velocity of a ballista bolt)
Fixed dwemer automaton ballista bolt record. (The walking ones from the Dragonborn DLC)
Fixed a few other misc records
Version 2.0.1
Reworked physics type 1.5a "Realistic" to have correct arcs.
Added version-specific AGO patches, selected automatically in the FOMOD
Added No Gravity physics type to FOMOD installer.
Changed the readme page in FOMOD to only include merge instructions if you selected multiple plugins
Moved recommended INI settings to the top of the readme page for better visibility
This mod is no longer in development. I recommend using the Synthesis version instead, which you can find here: Another Archery Patcher
What this mod does
Modifies projectile's speed, gravity, and impact force to give arrows a more realistic feeling. All values are based on real-life archery equipment performance, then scaled up slightly to improve gameplay.
Also patches a number of bugs in vanilla projectile records, which are not included in other similar mods, such as: arrows randomly alerting NPCs even when far away or behind a wall, ragdolls/objects over-reacting to projectile impacts, missing sound effects for both arrows and bolts, and the ballista traps in Dwemer ruins sucking.
The installer includes 6 different physics presets, which each have addons to carry over changes to mod-added projectiles. (See the bottom of this page, or the installer, for details on each preset) All files are flagged as .esl, merge instructions are in the readme. Can be added, removed, swapped, or modified at any time!
Why use this over other archery mods?
I've used many different archery mods but never felt satisfied with the results. Projectiles were either too slow, too fast, had too little, or too much gravity. None of them had different presets to choose from, severely limiting players who don't use the same play-style as the mod author. None of them fixed the numerous bugs & inconsistencies present in the vanilla projectile records (Not even USSEP or WACCF!), and most of them didn't support projectiles added by other mods. After attempting to play a stealth archer and encountering seemingly random detection AI, arrows falling at my feet even with a fully charged bow, arrows bouncing off of thin air, and a whole host of other bugs, I decided to make my own archery mod.
First, I used xEdit to check the values & flags used by the game engine. Unfortunately, all of the distance/speed/gravity/force records are measured in "Units", an arbitrary unit of measurement with no easy methods to convert to real-life measurements. No conversion methods were available, and Bethesda's own CK conversion chart is very limited, much less a calculator-style automatic converter. So I decided to make my own. The results exceeded my expectations, allowing me to quickly and accurately convert real-life measurement units to in-game ones. (The tool is available on my Github page along with source code)
As a result, I wasn't forced to rely on flat-increases, arbitrary percentages, or multipliers combined with trial-and-error methods, instead able to quickly and accurately (to within 0.001), modify projectile physics to act like real arrows and real bolts. Another benefit from my conversion tool is the ability for users to quickly and accurately modify projectile physics (or any other kind of mod) to fit any playstyle! Combined with Automation Tools xEdit scripts, I can patch an entire expansion-sized mod in <5 minutes.
A guide on how to modify the physics values is available under "Misc Files" (Feel free to make requests for addons, physics tweaks, etc. in the comments!)
Compatibility
Physics Presets In order of difficulty
No-Gravity Completely removes all gravity from projectiles. For people who want a laser rifle. Arrows: (Gravity = 0.0, Speed = 6900) Bolts: (Gravity = 0.0, Speed = 7300)
Arcade-Style Based on the "Modern" version, but with much less gravity. For people who don't like aiming up. Arrows: (Gravity = 0.5, Speed = 6900) Bolts: (Gravity = 0.5, Speed = 7300)
Modern Based on modern archery equipment. For people who don't like leading targets. Arrows: (Gravity = 0.8, Speed = 6900) Bolts: (Gravity = 0.8, Speed = 7300)
Realistic-Lite Based on "Realistic", but with slightly faster projectiles. This is the new default. Arrows: (Gravity = 0.44, Speed = 5000) Bolts: (Gravity = 0.44, Speed = 5800)
Realistic Based on the performance of actual medieval archery equipment. Arrows: (Gravity = 0.4, Speed = 4300) Bolts: (Gravity = 0.4, Speed = 4800)
Requiem (Requires Requiem SE) Based on Requiem's modified archery physics, this version's goal is to fix vanilla projectile record bugs while making bows more predictable. Arrows: (Gravity = 0.884, Speed = 4300) Bolts:(Gravity = 0.84, Speed = 5000)
You can also make your own presets using my mod as a base, there is a tutorial available under Misc Files. You have permission to upload them to the nexus with (brief) credit.
Previous versions will always be available on my Github.