Ink and watercolour plate: gloved hands drawing a jagged bow of conjured ice with an icy arrow, spare frost arrows hovering behind.

Spell

Frost Bow

A bow of conjured ice, with a quiver over the shoulder: deadly at range and able to slow those who come too close.

  • The Goblin Invasion
  • Dark Times

Description

The Frost Bow is a bow of conjured ice, a fine weapon against distant enemies that also slows those who come too close. It comes with its own quiver: the archer reaches behind the shoulder to draw an arrow. Ice being a rather inflexible material, the bow dissipates after a few shots.

Historical context

It was the second spell Aurelius taught in the pocket dimension, straight after the Fireball, and he insisted that even a champion archer should practise with it before battle. In the Primeweald frost proved its worth against the burning ivy that choked the paths, a growth that, true to its name, cannot abide the cold.

In the original game the bow was conjured with a gesture like drawing a bow: hands stretched out to the sides, then crossed in front of the body, with arrows drawn from behind the shoulder. Its spellbook upgrades were Icy Mist, a slowing cloud where the arrow lands; Frost Shard, which leaves struck enemies vulnerable for a short time; and Ice Volley, a high shot that brings a volley of arrows down where the previous arrow struck.