Fail-Not
The bow of Tristan, which never misses its target - be it man or beast. It was fashioned by Tristan from elm wood taken in the forest of Morois, a remnant of the primordial magical forest which once covered Britain.
Fail-Not is a wild thing, thinking only of the hunt and battle. It seems to live only to test and exercise its skill and anyone who wields it will have to vie constantly with the bow for control. Still, for those who can master it the bow is a powerful object, able to strike down foes with deathly accuracy even in the hands of an unskilled user.
Magic Might: 6 (Herbam)
Characteristics: Int -2, Per +3, Pre +1, Com -3, Str +2, Sta -2, Dex +2, Qik +1
Size: 0
Season: Summer
Virtues and Flaws: Magic Thing, Overconfident, Affinity with Bows
Magic Qualities and Inferiorities: Greater Power x2; Lesser Power; Herbam Resistance; Improved Attack x3; Improved Abilities x3; Reduced Might x4
Personality Traits: Bow* +3, Braggadocious +3, Wants to be Wielded +6
Combat:
Bowshot: Init -1, Atk +12, Def +1, Dam +8, Range 30
Soak: +0
Wound Penalties: –1 (1–5), –3 (6–10), –5 (11–15), Incapacitated (16–20)
Fatigue Levels: n/a
Abilities: Bows (Longbow) 12, Hunt (Forests) 4, Awareness (Targets) 4, Penetration (Herbam) 7, Herbam Resistance (Perdo) 4
Powers:
Strike Long, 0 points, Init -1, Herbam
This power is used by the bow on an arrow notched on it. The range increments of the bow when shooting this arrow are doubled, including the maximum range. This effect must penetrate the magic resistance of anyone struck by the arrow.
(ReHe 10*)
Strike True, 0 points, Init -2, Herbam
This power is used by the bow on an arrow notched on it. This arrow will strike the target without fail in a location chosen by the bow. If the spell penetrates their magic resistance roll an attack roll for the bow as normal but consider the target to have a defence roll of 0, so the shot can only miss if the attack roll botches.
Although the arrow is the spell target the wielder of the bow must also be able to detect the target of the shot. This is effectively equivalent to sight range. However, if an arcane connection to the target is attached to the arrow then the wielder does not have to be able to detect them, they must simply be within the maximum range of the bow.
(ReHe 25, Base 5*, Sight +3, Special Effect +1)
*These are based on the Yr rune magic guidelines in Thrice Told Tales. They are non-hermetic effects.
The Thrum of the Bowstring, 0 points, Init -1, Mentem
R: Voice, D: Conc, T: Group
This power is equivalent to the Guide power in RoP:M. It allows the bow to communicate with its wielder(s) for a single day after each use of the power. This influence should be represented by the storyteller providing advice as with the Common Sense virtue, except that the advice fits the agenda of the bow rather than the player.
The bow will use this power to try and influence anyone near it to make use of it – whether it be in sport, hunting, or war. A person using the bow may voluntarily submit to the bows guidance when shooting. If they do then use the characteristics and abilities of the bow itself for the attack roll, as if it was firing itself, but the bow not the player chooses the at whom and when it is fired.
Vis: 1 Herbam
Appearance: A rough-cut long bow of Elm wood. It is unassuming in appearance and could be mistaken for the bow of any yeoman.
Where is it now?
Tristan took the bow with him in exile in Brittany where he eventually died his tragic death. It is unclear what hands the bow passed through after this – in some tales Tristan had a son and perhaps he inherited Fail-Not – but what is certain is that the bow was known to be in the possession of house Diedne, specifically being held in their Domus Magna of Branugurix in Brittany. Several magi were slain by arrows loosed from Fail-Not over the course of the Schism war.
The final assault on Barnugurix ended with the regio entrance into the covenant closing with all the attackers and defenders left inside. None of the invading magi ever returned to tell the tale of what happened inside and the records of the original method of entering the regio are now found only in the secret records of house Guernicus.
It may be that Fail-Not remains within Branugurix, or if there were somehow any Diedne survivors (as is sometimes speculated by more paranoid magi) that they might possess it. Or, perhaps, it was taken as spoils earlier in the war and hidden away by a victorious magus – perhaps to keep it for themselves, or to remove the danger of it being used against magi again.