[265] arrow slit

Let's say you have a simple, functional "front line" tower like this, and you want to add a quick arrow slit on the top.



you might have an archer friend, or you might want to switch to archer later and use it for your self. Like me, you value function over form. you want to offer your archers maximum protection while affording them the ability to retaliate from a wide variety of angles. One of the most common "arrow slits" are not really arrow slits, but rather simply the addition of another door, something like this:



This has its own set of advantages, but from the perspective of an archer, it is a rather poor "arrow slit" as it exposes the entire body to frontal attack any time the archer wants to fire, and it is the easiest way to get bombed by a plucky knight. you might instead opt to do a single door arrow slit like this:



as you can see, this makes the archer much harder to hit, but has the disadvantage of blocking the archer's range of fire, allowing him to only either hit targets above him or make arcing shots. of course, there's the inverse:



now our archer can only attack targets that are up close, and will not be able to engage long ranged opponents at all beyond those that are far below him! with a couple small revisions, you can give him the best of all three worlds:



by raising the roof by one block, and adding the trap bridge that has been highlighted, our archer friend will be able to engage both long and short range targets, and he will be able to instantly adjust his angle as he deems necessary, while still being afforded the protection of a single block arrow slit. as you can see, all he has to do is jump on or off the platform to adjust his aim:





here's once more, with only the bare minimum to construct... this can be added to any structure, and can even be combined with a murderhole (trap bridge below the archer) to allow the archer to fire directly at the door/moat, or any number of constructions to combine maximum firing angle with formidable protection from incoming fire.

 

This is excellent. I have a variation of that style that I use.

It may not be obvious from the picture but you can hit knights and builders at the bottom and approaching the wall.

This is a Bay I put on top. I added your idea of the bridge to give the archer more options. In addition to the Drop bay I put avacado spike above. I think this might help prevent clever knights trying to bomb jump straight up into your bay.

 

i always hate when people put only one bridge for archers. when archers try and strafe to avoid enemy arrows, they will fall down to the next level which makes them having to jump back up. its merely easier for the archer to have a two long piece bridge so that they can move backwards to close the door.

 

Problem with ladders is that an arrow will knock you off it, which is a problem if you are trying to be an effective (and alive) archer.

 

thanks for sharing! i always like to build archer's nests

 

One improvement I'm using: Cover the whole space with bridges. It makes the area dark and the archer is covered. Works best for big archer nests, so the player can move on several levels and be in stealth. It makes enemy archers harder to spot and kill your ally.

 

This is somewhat true, but also bridges can impede your abiltiy to adjust aiming. Of course as previously mentioned you dont get knocked off by arrows.

 

They don't, you use your skills and abilities to somehow have the feeling where the arrow will land. Furthermore you can always hide and pretend there is only darkness. This helps not to become a potential target for a bomb jumping knight.
On the other side it's possible to destroy the bridge so a knight can land there. You can counter this in building the nest in a proper hight. Bombs launch a knight 9-10 blocks high, so build the nest higher. An archer having more height can fire arrows faster and can pick targets that are more far away.

 

Since I read this post, I've been using the crap out of it, whenever I can't afford to build a full stealth archer hole. :3

 

I do this every time since I read the post. Nice work man.

 

I tend to use ladders instead because they increase the control over your firing angle. A team door at the roof of the archer nest can be used to fire high angle shots safely, though not many tend to use them, or fire at high angles in the first place.

 

The Secret Archer Hole is a slight variation of this archer slit built with bridges and castle background blocks. (Can't get access to KAG to produce screenshots~)

 

Love this design, I've been looking for a way to make a more protected archer bay and this seems like it's it! I'm gonna go try it out now.

EDIT: Gave it a go and it works great! It's a bit tricky to get the hang of shooting out of the small hole and knowing where to stand depending on where you're aiming, but once you get the hang of it it's much better.