Sniper

Version 0.20: This article may not be up to date for the latest stable release of Crawl.

The sacred weapon of Toth-Mos, first apostle of the god Ashenzari. It grants the wielder a fraction of Ashenzari's own vision, ensuring that every shot will land true.

the +9 heavy crossbow "Sniper"

+9 triple crossbow

Velocity brand
See invisible
Nevermiss
Increased attack delay (Base 2.7, minimum attack delay of 1.3 at 28 Crossbows skill)

Desirability

"Sniper" is a maximally enchanted triple crossbow that never misses its target. This makes using it tempting in spite of its horrible delay. Not only cannot the minimum attack delay of 1.3 be reached even at maxed out Crossbows skill, but it is also roughly twice as slow as comparable two-handed melee weapons at their minimum attack delay. However, it can do a great deal of damage due to always hitting its target and having a velocity brand. If there is an enemy at the edge of line of sight, a skilled user can still get several shots in before the enemy manages to engage in melee. It is especially valuable against monsters with high EV and low HP like spriggans or very dangerous opponents with extreme EV like Ereshkigal.

History

Prior to 0.18, "Sniper" was a +15 heavy crossbow with a vorpal brand that lacked its always-hit enchantment.

Prior to 0.15, "Sniper" was a standard crossbow with a +15 enchantment and the vorpal brand, but it was given a slower-than-normal rate of fire.

Prior to 0.14, "Sniper" had a +10,+0 enchantment level and the venom brand.