Simon's Bowblade is a Trick Weapon in Bloodborne. It was introduced in The Old Hunters Expansion. There are 3 versions of this weapon: Normal, Uncanny and Lost. The only known differences being the Gem Imprints and the locations in which they are found
Simon's Bowblade Description
"Choice weapon of Simon, one of the first Healing Church hunters.
Simon despised firearms, and so the Church workshop had this specially fashioned to his liking. The large curved blade serves as a bow when transformed.
But aside from a few close friends, Simon was scoffed at for his choice of arms, for who would dare face the beasts with a measly bow?"
Simon's Bowblade Information
- Transforms from a one-handed blade to a bow
- Firing the bow will consume a single quicksilver bullet.
- The Normal variant is best for players who wish to use both forms of the weapon.
- The Uncanny variant can function as an alternative to the Normal, however elemental gems are wasted on this weapon.
- The Lost variant is ideal for those who want to maximize the bow's blood attack, due to its circular gem slot, typically only found on guns.
Location
Normal
- Fishing Hamlet: Found on the body of Simon the Harrowed next to the Lighthouse Hut lantern after answering the first option at the Hunter's Nightmare shortcut and going through his quest-line. Interact with him as he lies on the ground to obtain the weapon.
- You may also kill Simon the Harrowed at The Hunter's Nightmare or Research Hall to obtain the weapon.
Uncanny Simon's Bowblade
- Glyph 8i29rqz3 (Pthumeru Chalice) Bath Messengers. Must have Normal version to purchase for 24 000 blood echoes.
- Isz Chalice: Bath Messengers. Must have the Normal version to purchase for 24 000 blood echoes. Bath is located in layer 3, up a ladder just before the lever to the boss.
Lost Simon's Bowblade
- Glyph 8i29rqz3 (Pthumeru Chalice) Bath Messengers. Must have Normal version to purchase for 24 000 blood echoes.
- Isz Chalice: Bath Messengers. Must have the Normal version to purchase for 24 000 blood echoes. Bath is located in layer 3, up a ladder just before the lever to the boss.
Player Notes
- The Bow's charge attack into an enemy's back can stagger them, setting up an easy visceral attack by your cooperator.
- Your blade's damage is based on the physical damage of the weapon.
- Your bow's damage is based on the bloodtinge damage of the weapon.
- You should most definitely use Phys. ATK UP gems as they affect both physical and bloodtinge damage.
- You can use the Monocular to accurately Aim the Bow as you would in Dark Souls. This allows for Free Form sniping.
- Since it's introduction, the Bladebow has become an almost infamous weapon amongst avid PvP players due to it's perceived ease of use and scant weaknesses. The weapon sports a dual "S" Scaling in both Skill and Bloodtinge, fair reach, a wide, circuitous swing, coupled with a fair period of recovery. On top of being able to hold it's own up close, ranged attacks are quick enough to demand constant attention on the part of an opponent as well as discourage deserters, making it capable of adapting to most ranges.
Stats/Scaling
Movesets & Videos
- Tokyo Game Show Moveset Preview
| Move | Damage Type & Modifier | Stamina | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| R1 Combo | 1.00x, 1.02x, 1.04x, 1.06x | ?? | Diagonal horizontal slash from the right shoulder to left foot, backhand horizontal sweep from left to right, sweeping diagonal uppercut from the right foot to the left shoulder, followed by a forward thrust, a backhand horizontal swipe from left to right, an uppercut from the right foot to the left shoulder and a final forward thrust. |
| Backstep R1 | 1.05x | Performs a forward thrust. | |
| Dodge R1 | 1.05x | ?? ~ ?? | After the roll performs an uppercut from the right foot to the left shoulder. |
| Dash R1 | 1.10x | ?? (+run) | Performs a backhand uppercut from the left foot to the right shoulder. |
| R2 Attack | 1.30x | ?? | A backhand horizontal swipe from the left to the right. |
| Charged R2 | .80x + 1.70x | ?? | Performs a 360 with two horizontal backhand swipes, moving from the left to the right. |
| Backstep R2 | 1.35x | Performs a 360 backhand swipe. | |
| Dodge R2 | ?? | ?? | After the roll, performs a backhand horizontal swipe from the left to the right. |
| Dash R2 | 1.30x | ?? | Performs a backhand horizontal swipe from the left to the right. |
| Leap | 1.20x | ?? (+run) | Leaping downward diagonal slash that nicks the ground. |
| Transform Attack | .95x | ?? (+x) | Transforms the sword into a bow, firing off an arrow and disengaging backwards. |
| Move | Damage Type & Modifier | Stamina | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| R1 Combo | .85x | ?? | Fires an arrow, consumes one quicksilver bullet. |
| Backstep R1 | .85x | Fires an arrow, consuming one quicksilver bullet. | |
| Dodge R1 | .85x | ?? ~ ?? | Fires an arrow, consuming one quicksilver bullet. |
| Dash R1 | .85x | ?? (+run) | Fires an arrow, consuming one quicksilver bullet. |
| R2 Attack | 1.05x | ?? | Fires an arrow, consuming one quicksilver bullet. |
| Charged R2 | 1.40x | ?? | |
| Backstep R2 | 1.05x | ||
| Dodge R2 | 1.05x | ?? | |
| Dash R2 | 1.05x | ?? (+run) | |
| L2 | .70x | Performs a backhand horizontal swipe with the right hand arrow/blade, moving from left to right. Attack is the same in every iteration (dash, dodge, etc) | |
| Leap | 1.20x | ?? | Performs a leaping thrust with the bow in the left hand. |
| Transform Attack | 1.35x | ?? (+x) | Combines the two ends of the bow back into the sword with a thrust attack. |
Trivia
- Simon's Bowblade is the only weapon to have a S-scaling for two attributes (Skill and Bloodtinge respectively) when fully upgraded
Gallery
AnonymousVery beautiful and cool desing yet requires bullet regen build so not really worth it :(
- Anonymous
I killed simon for this weapon. It's my new favorite but i still feel bad
- Anonymous
It's the optimal 3rd choice on my Bloodtinge build with Chikage and Rifle Spear as the respective 1&2. Get to 50 BT and throw on a Madaras Whistle for a wonky but high damage (if it hits) AOE option. Do whatever you want for a second gun behind your Evelyn of course but I like the Piercing Rifle just to occasionally deal with a mob that's bunched up in a doorway or something.
- Anonymous
So.. another comment responded to this, but IDK what the people at Fextra were on when they made the notes comment on the weapon being "infamous in PvP". First off, people still think in 2023 that the double S scaling is incredible; the S in skill only applies to the blade form and the S bloodtinge is just for arrows. The weapon is cool and all, but having both a limited melee moveset and then 2 arrowshots transformed really hinders its potential compared to other weapons, which usually have more combos and attack variety after transforming.
And the PvP statement is just flat out false. Weapons that have been meta since launch in 2015 to the DLC and beyond are Ludwigs, Holy Moonlight, Blades of Mercy (usurped by Rakuyo), Saw spear and its variants and Church Pick if you were smart. For PVE the Whirligig, LHB and Church Pick damn near melted everything. Never saw this used much in invasions or PvP duels. Honestly, the bowblade is not even in the top 7 or maybe even top 10 overall, there are much better options for an overall build or PvP focus.
- Anonymous
I almost feel like my game is bugged because this weapon doesn't work for sniping enemies, even if theyre within extremely killable distance. Can't snipe the sharks, can't snipe chalice maidens! Just goes right through them. And I was so excited!
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This thing is awesome. Using it on a Marvelous Chester build. Equal parts skill and bloodtinge, invasion focused pvp build. Not the strongest, but very fun. Doesn't lack in pve either.
- Anonymous
Why the L2 animation in bow form look exactly like a shield parry from every souls game but not actually parry anything?
- Anonymous
I haven’t tried, but I feel like this would be an absolute cheese against amygdala and any other bosses who are weak to the head.
- Anonymous
I love this weapon too much, completely turns Bloodborne on its head. With this you can reliably play a ranged character in a game where every enemy is trying to run you down. Makes for a very intense experience, in some scenarios it outright cheeses the game!
- Anonymous
this thing looks like it should weigh more than some greatswords in DS, but our guy swings it like it weighs nothing. further proof that the hunter is the most chad souls protag
- Anonymous
Until now, I have no idea what happens to the hilt and the cross guard and where the string suddenly comes out when this thing transforms
- Anonymous
Shout-out to the Bowblade for making Amygdala, Ebrietas and Watchdog feel like fair fights.
- Anonymous
Never seen this discussed anywhere, but the floral motifs on the hilt and along the blade are the same as on the Chikage, Maria's Set and the Knight's Set, suggesting the Bowblade, too, was made in Cainhurst. Which makes sense from a lore perspective. Vilebloods used blood weapons, and during Simon's time they weren't at odds with the Healing Church yet. I love this game.
- Anonymous
Pretty sure the blade of the sword should be curved towards the opposite direction for it to cut effectively, pretty cool weapon regardless
- Anonymous
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Awesome weapon for co-op. Your summon/summoner distracts and you pelt them with arrows in the back.
- Anonymous
If you think the bow is bad, then you have not seen the evelyn on a bloodtinge build
- Anonymous
The sword part is pretty good. It legit out-damages some other dex weaapons, not sure why people think its underwhelming
- Anonymous
peepee poopoo cOwArDs WeApOn
Try dodging instead of catching the arrows in your face lol
- Anonymous
Attacks using the bow form can be parried. Tested against Simon the Harrowed, the shot with the pistol has to be timed perfectly so that your bullet hit him right before he shoots. Try to predict when he will shoot because the time window to land the parry is very extremely short
- Anonymous
Do the arrows have damage drop off at range or is the damage consistent?
- Anonymous
"who would dare face the beast with a measly bow?"
Well, this bow is far from ordinary. The complex mechanism of the bow propels the particularly big and heavy arrow at the same speed as the pistol's bullets and when pulling the string with strong attacks, the bow bends a little to allow extra power on release.
Not only that, but take a look at the arrow's design. It's telescopic handle fully extends with the strong attack, and remains partially extended mid-flight. This means it gains extra power on hit when the handle fully retracts, allowing the arrow to dig in the flesh further using the extra kinetic force from the flight.
So yeah, whoever weilds a bow capable of making ebrietas cry would have no trouble with beasts.
- Anonymous
Horribly inconsistent weapon. Charged attacking enemy from behind with an arrow rarely staggers. Six out of ten times it works. Not reliable in my opinion. Arrows are so absurdly slow that they cant even hit bosses and enemies that move at a snails pace. I've even had my arrows just go straight through the enemy body like a ghost. Terrible weapon. Do not waste your time with it. Just use a pistol.
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Is it possible to insta kill someone using lead elixir with a untransformed R1? Cuz I got killed and I had a LOT of VIT
- Anonymous
When you look at the design of the weapon, it has a spring system set in the center of the bow where you notch the arrow. Thinking about it, I imagine that's how the arrow is actually fired but it probably gives it a lot more force on impact than firing from a bowstring. I really think Simon's contemporaries were way off the mark for giving him sh*t about this beauty. It's vicious.
- Anonymous
Would this be good for a Marvelous Chester cosplay build? Considering there's no other bow-like weapons in the game.
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Another cool touch for the bow variant is that it actually posseses the quiet nature of bows.
Arrows shot from the bow produce no audible sound to enemies. They'll usually only look at enemies you hit.
It's great for grabbing attention of enemies one by one, if they even figure out where the arrows are flying from.
- Anonymous
I wonder how many maidens Simon picked up with this. Maybe thats why he was scoffed at.
- Anonymous
"Since it's introduction, the Bladebow has become an almost infamous weapon amongst avid PvP players due to it's perceived ease of use and scant weaknesses." The only things that can be objectively termed "infamous" in PvP are those designed to one-shot you like the cannon. I like the Bowblade too -- it's fun, looks cool, holds its own, and a SKL/BLT will by no means make a mistake opting for it -- but the quoted sentence is just the author autofellating himself for what he undoubtedly believes to be his superior choice of weaponry.
- Anonymous
I only use this in bow mode, the lack of a thrust strong attack on a skill weapon drives me crazy I can’t stand it so I use the lost one and discard the blade mode completely.
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People really gloss over how good the moveset is because it's the longest range trick weapon, but the 1h attacks are seriously cool with spins and everything
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I found myself enjoying this weapon very much on my first complete playthrough of the game. It does good damage with its blade, and found it much more damaging with a fully charged R2 in bow form, more than my parrying Evelyn. Fantastic for how it can be used in both aggressive and passive play styles
- Anonymous
I haven't gotten it yet, but is this weapon like Burial Blade and Blades of Mercy in that it can't have Fire/Bolt damage?
- Anonymous
What will be the AR of the blade and bow with a 50skl/50bld build?
- Anonymous
The more I play with this weapon, the more I realise just how OP it is.
- Anonymous
I always liked swords and bows why not fuse them into a broken as hell weapon can’t wait to “Acquire ” it from Simon
- Anonymous
yup. reeeaaly weak. you just stay away from enemy and shoot them to death. even bosses. few hits on german with melee (chikage in my case) and when he starts glowing, just shoot at his slow badass movement towards you. old man wasnt even dodging...and it was second attempt. i love this weapon
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Probably the most fun weapon in the game for me you feel like a ninja and you can chain some insane combos with the switch attacks and max lvl with high skill and bloodtinge this thing can dish out damage against mob enemies.
- Anonymous
Just got this baby today. It's pretty badass! But why did I have to spend all my bloodstone chunks and rocks on the Reiterpallasch when Simon's bowblade has way higher scaling? Now I'll have to farm them all over again! Why can't bloodborne have an option for dissassembling weapons? This would save some extra time for farming new materials.
- Anonymous
why does it say toyko game show under the movesets and videos
- Anonymous
I wanna love this weapon so damn much , but its just simply too weak......Like waaaaaay too damn weak , almost like they added it purely as a troll
- Anonymous
In case any one needs clarification, if you use the heavy attack when shooting someone in the back its the same as a fully charged heavy attack...but farther away reaulting in easy back stabs
- Anonymous
Why hasn't anyone noticed that the lost one has a circle gem slot
- Anonymous
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1.) Moonlight blade
2.) Simons bow blade
3.) Saw cleaver (And all the different varients)
4.) Blood letter
5.) Tonitrus
- Anonymous
I love how when this weapon was first tried out when Old Hunters was first released that sentiments towards this weapon were mixed at best. But as time's gone on, it's been a slow but steady realization as to how obnoxious a weapon it is.
This is my second favorite weapon. lol
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I wonder If the arrow acts like the church cannon in that it has no true "max range" but instead falls in an arch. If this is true than this may open up new opportunities. Can someone confirm a range for me?
- Anonymous
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Skill 50 and Blood 50, BowBlade 10(no gems): PhyAtk & BloodAtk 160+149= 309.
- Anonymous
Perspective can make it hard to judge the effective range of this weapon. I've noticed certain very large enemies with hitboxes high up on their bodies can't be hit from as far away due to some of the range being used up travelling vertically. The easiest way to learn what the effective range is just to keep firing and see at exactly what distance the damage starts counting.
In regular PvE, normal lock-on range is basically the max range for the bow, but the lock-on range for bosses is higher so you have to test it. Sure is great to just keep hitting them while they're flailing away at you ineffectively though.
Also unlike what's said on the page (which is wrong and highly misleading), using it on enemies that you cannot target lock-on is just waste of bullets as they're out of range and the arrows will not hit. So one MUST be near an enemy (near enough to lock-on them) to manual aim with Monocle as well.
This is like Chikage tbh, best used on 25/50 build. But unlike Chikage that drains health, this will use up QBs.
- Anonymous
How to pick up fair maidens: page 2: paragraph 1: Sentence 1: simons bow blade
- Anonymous
If you're finding a boss difficult and don't feel like spending countless tries trying to beat it, this is your weapon. Every boss that gave me trouble I just pulled this baby out and with a little time and good dodges you'll cheese your boss of choice like you're in a deli.
- Anonymous
Safest way to cheese getting the bowblade early. First, speedrun the area till you open the shortcut back to the chapel. Next, Agro Simon, and when he starts coming for you, run out the other door of the chapel and up the hill until you reach the first lamp post, about halfway up the hill. Don't go further up the hill or you'll agro the hunter at the top. Wait a couple of seconds, then walk back to the shortcut door in the chapel. Simon will have gone back to his starting position, but won't be facing you. Instead, he'll be looking down the other hall. Hug the left side and approach him slowly. When close, preform a charged R2 attack. It will hit him from the side, but will still drop him for the visceral. Visceral attack him, then immediately run through the chapel and up the hill to the lamp post. Repeat this until he's dead. I did this with a level 3 saw cleaver on a low level character and took no damage. It's a little time consuming, but the visceral damage makes it quicker than the getting him stuck on the door method. I hope this helps someone out.
If you want to get this item early while low level then you can easily run through the first area of the Nightmare, past all the enemies until you get to the shortcut. Just be careful of the boulder and the guns. also run under the bridge with blood suckers and up the stairs to the short cut. the hunters with the piercing rifle are a surprisingly good shot when trying to run by them. Make sure you open the door, next to Simon, in case he kills you. Next aggro Simon and then hide outside the door with a weapons that has long range and a high charge attack. The Hunter's Axe or Spear Rifle work gloriously. Simon will usually try and shoot arrows which are stopped by the door allowing you to safely charge and hit him while staying safe on the other side, occasionally they do make it through FYI. Just angle the camera so you can see when he's running up and if you catch him he will back up and then repeat coming forward. I killed him with a +5 Rifle Spear, BL 25 using this strategy. GL!
- Anonymous
My Favorite weapon ever in the soulborne series. It's a freaking blade that turns into a Bow... I mean C.mon!.Seriously though on a Skill/BT Build it destroys in PvE. Wrecked so many bosses at a safe distance with this lol.
- Anonymous
I first thought that the Lost Bowblade was the best bet, due to that tempting bloodtinge gem slot. I'm not so sure anymore. Anyone care to weigh in?
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I call this weapon the cheese grader because it lets me cheese a lot of bosses
- Anonymous
So I went to dungeon 8i29rqz3, and instead of there being the bath messengers, patches was there instead. It would seem that once you befriend patches he replaces the bath messengers in dungeons, and his items don't cost anymore than buying it from the dungeon messengers.
- Anonymous
131-90 dmg wasn't that on a +8 weapon? that would rather make ~72-50 base dmg
- Anonymous
So I'm almost certain that the bow is the weapon's transformed state. Any theories as to what its original form is? Since the one-handed version can't be dual blades, the only thing I can guess is one large curved sword. Also, do you think ammo will be a new resource or be based on Quicksilver Bullets? I kind of want unlimited ammo...
- Anonymous
Do you think with such a high base arcane damage, this weapon only deals arcane damage on charged R2 bow attacks? The charge attack looks like a hadouken more than an arrow if you ask me, so maybe this is really for mixed skill/arcane builds? Otherwise it looks like a fast weapon with high base damage to boot if it deals split damage like BoM or BB.
- Anonymous
i need Simons Bowblade, like... right now, been waiting for a bow. I really hope you also can parry/viceral with an arrow xD from it, transform it, and BAM!!
- Anonymous
Will have horrible tracking and no side firearm for a parry. in Pvp just wait till your opponent draws back. single/double lunge doge in.. gg
- Anonymous
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I'm pretty sure this is the sword and the shield is just a left hand weapon. I'm seeing a lot of people thinking they're one weapon, but the sword form of the bowblade looks just like the one paired with the shield into the screenshot. Just thought I'd bring it up.
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This looks very much like Serah's bowsword from Final Fantasy XIII-2.
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If you want to get his blade early, you can kill him at the first shortcut, before the first lamp. He will drop the blade afterwards,
Is what the description says true? can this weapon be chosen as your starting weapon if you have the DLC?
- Anonymous
i just beat maria and endboss and stuff but i cant find him the 3rd time? where EXACTLY does he stand?
- Anonymous
Why do I get the feeling that this will be an actually damaging ranged weapon?
- Anonymous
Who else aside from myself will be re-starting their Bowblade build since it now apparently does Bloodtinge scaling instead of Arcane?
- Anonymous
Interesting bug that I found while testing the weapon, if you have no bullets left, and you do an r1-transform combo, your character will skip the transform animation all together.
- Anonymous
I know this seems like a dumb question, but can this weapon be buffed with fire paper or empty phantasm shells? It probably can't, but I just want to make sure. With the exception of Amygdala's Arm, Kos Parasite, Moonlight Blade, Bloodletter, weapons in the DLC have been buffable. Even the Whirligig. Is this true of Simon's Bowblade too?
- Anonymous
With STR/SKILL/BLOOD at 50, this bow simple the most powerful 'main hand' projectile weapon. Very useful for the boss that melee is unwise or just too fast to melee. Damage per shot is the best one (although, can't be buffed with Bone Ash, otherwise, its gonna be game breaker).
- Anonymous
They can be found off the merchants in the Isz Chalice dungeon, along with all the other Lost and Uncanny DLC weapons AFTER obtaining the originals.
- Anonymous
The only problem I have with the Bowblade is the fact that it's standard R1 shot only does round 70% of your AR (at 516 Blood ATK I average 366 on a normal shot,) I honestly feel like if standard shots were closer to 90-100% and charged shots were 110-125% the Bowblade would be considerably more useful and would warrant the stamina drain for useage. The way it stands right now if you have a Bloodtinge build it seems you are far better off with Chikage/Evelyn since they are going to do a heck of a lot more damage together. It's a great idea, but it just doesn't seem too practical.
Who gonna use this bow anyway ? If u have high bloodtinge, u will use evelyn cuz dmg is better, faster and can parry. I would suggest make this bow scale only skill in both melee and range. (Sigh) a big mistake.
- Anonymous
As the title said, its bummer, you cannot buff its bow attack with bone marrow ash. I'm a little disappointed since its scaling with bloodtinge and a projectile weapon, therefore it should be buff with marrow. Charge attack (bow form) drain a lot of stamina, therefore if it can buff, at least that can cover up the high stamina lost with a big damage to enemy. Hope from software can patch this in the next patch. Its better if it can be buff with paper and phantasm shell too. Arcane/Fire/Bolt arrow anyone, thanks
- Anonymous
Im pretty sad to see that the ranged bow form scaled on bloodtinge :P, I knew it scaled on skill but I never knew that it scaled on bloodtinge when in bow form
- Anonymous
From what I can tell when using this weapon the sword attack scale primarily with skill and the bow attacks scale completely with bloodtinge. So if you plan on using the ranged portion of this weapon more you might want to consider putting some more points into bloodtinge ^^
- Anonymous
I love this weapon but even firing ot you can be parried. WHHHHYYYYYYY
Beautiful design fluid moveset versitile in both ranged and melee + putting an Odeon rune might make the bullet consumption not that very noticable. Also the S in two stats and those being split into two different modes the bloodtinge for the bow and Skill for the sword make it almost a perfect weapon to cheese bloodborne, the only downside being the fast rate of breaking.
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