Bows have been in use for a very long time. From the brief hunter-gatherer time period of the past, to the age of the Alammar Empire, all the way to the modern day, the bow has been in use. Easy to make, cheap to produce, and extremely deadly in the right hands, it's no wonder that the bow has managed to stick around for this long. However, it does come with downsides, the fact that it takes extremely long to train with it so that it's effective in warfare is one that makes army logistics balk at the thought of losing even a single detachment of archers.
Even with the rise of technologies like the crossbow, the bow as never lost its relevance, from the holmegaard bow of the past, to the longbow of today, the reign of the bow and arrow have remained extreme, the tried and true companion to any long range fighter. However, with the rise of the Valdarian Musket, the absolute rule of the bow seems to be threatened...