Ghost of Tsushima: How to Get the Halfbow

In Ghost of Tsushima, Sucker Punch’s latest open-world adventure, you play as a samurai with an arsenal of weapons at your disposal. Though you’ll be using plenty of swords throughout your journey, bows will make an appearance, as well. One of the earlier bows you can get your hands on is the Half Bow, which will certainly come in handy for eliminating foes from afar.

But how do you get the Half Bow? And how does it differ from the Longbow? In this guide, we’ll show you everything you’ll need to know about Ghost of Tsushima’s Half Bow, from how to get it to the effects it has on your enemies. 

Where to Find the Half Bow in Ghost of Tsushima

The nice thing is that you get the Half Bow pretty early on and it cannot be missed. You’ll gain access to this weapon during The Tale of Sensei Ishikawa mission, a main storyline quest that opens up right after the prologue. 

In the mission, you’ll meet Sensei Ishikawa and will face off against a handful of enemies. Around halfway through the mission, Ishikawa will introduce you to the bow and give you a little tutorial on how to use it. He promises to let you borrow it if you can prove you know how to use it. 

How to Use the Half Bow

Using the bow works like you’d probably expect: Hold “L2” to draw your bow, and press “R2” to pull back on an arrow. Releasing “R2” will shoot the arrow ahead. In Ghost of Tsushima, you’ll need to lead your shot and account for drop distance, more so than you might anticipate. 

As the training segment shows, the farther away a target is, the higher you must aim to ensure your shot lands. Luckily, you’ve got unlimited ammo throughout the training segment, but missing your target will trigger some verbal abuse from Ishikawa. 

After you’ve completed this section, you can find arrows on the bodies of dead foes, and you can purchase them from vendors, as well. The Half Bow can be upgraded to allow for higher arrow capacity — up to 16 arrows. By default, it starts with eight. 

You can also equip fire arrows to the Half Bow by completing The Way of the Bow quest (unlocked after you finish The Sensei and the Student and The Past Never Passes). 

Keep in mind, this isn’t the only bow in the game. You can also get your hands on the Longbow, which works a little differently from the Half Bow. We’ll cover more on the Longbow in a separate guide, but the main difference is that the Half Bow is slightly inferior to the Longbow, at least when it comes to damage output. The Half Bow has a shorter range than the Longbow, making it less effective against enemies. 

However, the Half Bow does allow you to equip fire arrows, while the Longbow has its own, separate ammo types. Each bow is useful in their own ways, but we recommend you get your hands on the Longbow as soon as you can. 

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• How to Get the Longbow
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• How to Parry
• Best Techniques
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• Black Dye Merchant Guide
  

That covers everything you’ll need to know about getting and using the Half Bow effectively in Ghost of Tsushima. For more on GoT, check out the links above, and stay tuned for more in the coming days.