[Aerich]

Yes, I know why.

Your generic composite longbow gives a +1 to hit. Assuming that a character has 17-18 Dex, it gains a +2 to hit with ranged weapons, for +3 in total even with a beginning character. 19 Dex gives an additional +1, for +3 in total just from Dex.

A fighter with ** in a melee weapon gets +1 to hit from specialization, and +1 (17+), +2 (18/51 - 18/99) or +3 (18/00) to hit from exceptional strength.

So, if a fighter has Str between 17 and 18/51, it gains +2 to hit with a weapon it is specialized in - +1 from specialization and +1 from Str. A character with 17 or better Dex using a composite longbow gets +3 to hit in total (or +4 with 19 Dex). [img]smile.gif[/img]

I'm not entirely sure if there is a penalty for using bows at pointblank range. There is in 2nd ed p&p, but I don't know offhand if the designers incorporated the penalty into IWD. I generally work under the assumption that there is such a penalty.