Elden Ring - Light Bows

Light bows trade roughly a third of a full bow's damage ceiling for mobility, as the only ranged class that nocks and fires straight out of a roll, a sprint or a jump landing.

Combat

Pros

• A light bow fires immediately after rolling, sprinting or landing a jump. No other ranged class can do this, so it is the only one that can keep shooting while actively dodging.
• These are the lightest ranged weapons in the game. The Harp Bow weighs 2.0 and the Shortbow and Red Branch Shortbow 2.5, so a light bow is effectively free on a melee build's equip load.
• Entry is as cheap as it gets. The Shortbow is the Bandit's starting weapon, costs 600 runes from the merchant southeast of Coastal Cave, needs 8 Strength and 10 Dexterity, and already comes with Barrage.
• Only this class can mount Barrage, a rapid-fire skill usable on light bows alone, which makes it the fastest status-arrow applicator in the game.

Cons

• The damage ceiling is the lowest of any ranged class by a wide margin, at 151 to 166 physical at maximum, against 200 for the best bow, 318 for the best greatbow, 308 for the best crossbow and 672 for the Jar Cannon.
• Stamina damage at maximum is the lowest too, at 40 against 60 for bows and 150 for greatbows, so light bows will not stance-break anything worth stance-breaking.
• Reach is the shortest of any bow, with range 29, and only 25 on the Misbegotten Shortbow, against 50 for bows, greatbows and ballistas.
• Light bows cannot take an affinity, grease or spell buff, so the loaded arrow is the only lever on damage type, with no Blood, Cold or Sacred conversion to lean on.

Builds

Dexterity leads, with almost no Strength.

• Requirements top out at 16 Dexterity on the Red Branch Shortbow and 16 Strength on the Misbegotten Shortbow, and because bows can only be fired two-handed the Strength requirement is effectively two-thirds of the printed number, so the Misbegotten Shortbow's 16 is really 11.
• Past the requirements, everything goes into Dexterity.
• Arcane only matters for poison, bleed or sleep arrows, and it raises buildup only, never damage.

Best Weapons

Weapon	Image	Attack	Weight	Str	Dex	Int	Fai	Arc	Why Take It
Misbegotten Shortbow		68	3	16	8	-	-	-	Misbegotten Shortbow has the highest physical attack among light bows at 68, and it is the only one with D Strength scaling and more Strength than Dexterity required, so a Strength build can carry a quick-firing bow without bending its stats. The trade is the shortest range of any bow at 25, which keeps it a close-range harassment tool.
Bone Bow		66	3	8	11	-	-	-	Bone Bow is the light bow from the Shadow of the Erdtree expansion and the only one carrying Rancor Shot instead of Barrage or Mighty Shot. With 66 physical at +0, among the best in its class, it gives a light-bow build a different skill without giving up much base attack.
Shortbow		65	2.5	8	10	-	-	-	Shortbow is the light bow to simply upgrade. It costs almost nothing in stats or runes, comes with Barrage, and sits within a few points of the class leader at max upgrade, so hunting for a better light bow gains very little, and the Bandit can carry the same bow from the first minute to the end.
Red Branch Shortbow		65	2.5	8	16	-	-	-	Red Branch Shortbow is the Shortbow's twin in weight and Barrage, but with D Dexterity scaling instead of E, at the cost of a higher Dexterity requirement. What it offers is better scaling for a high Dexterity build rather than more base attack, and Pages drop it, so it is easy to come by.
Harp Bow		62	2	9	9	-	-	-	Harp Bow is the lightest bow in the game at 2.0 weight and the only light bow upgraded with Somber stones, with equal, modest Strength and Dexterity requirements. It has the lowest attack of its class at 62, so it suits a build that wants a bow purely for status arrows and Barrage, where base attack matters least.

Notes

• Allowed Ashes of War are Barrage, Mighty Shot, Enchanted Shot, Sky Shot and Rain of Arrows.
• The Barrage Ash of War drops from a Scarab north of the Seethewater River Site of Grace in Mt. Gelmir.
• Mighty Shot penetrates the enemy's guard and drops from a Scarab near the Castle Morne Rampart, so it is available within the first couple of hours.
• Rain of Arrows costs 20 FP and deals 50% less damage and status buildup per arrow, but fires many arrows per use for more total damage than other bow skills.
• Arrow damage is added on top of the bow's, and early on it is the larger share: a plain Arrow deals 45 physical and a Stormwing Bone Arrow 55, against a +0 Shortbow's 65.

All Light Bows

Name	Image	Physical	Magic	Fire	Light	Holy	Crit. Boost	Range	Weight	Str.	Dex.	Int.	Fai.	Arc.	Sell Price	Skill
Composite Bow		65 -	0 -	0 -	0 -	0 -	100 -	29	3	E 15	D 15	0	0	0	200	Mighty Shot
Harp Bow		62 -	0 -	0 -	0 -	0 -	100 -	29	2	E 9	E 9	0	0	0	200	Barrage
Misbegotten Shortbow		68 -	0 -	0 -	0 -	0 -	100 -	25	3	D 16	E 8	0	0	0	100	Barrage
Red Branch Shortbow		65 -	0 -	0 -	0 -	0 -	100 -	29	2.5	E 8	D 16	0	0	0	100	Barrage
Shortbow		65 -	0 -	0 -	0 -	0 -	100 -	29	2.5	E 8	E 10	0	0	0	100	Barrage