Infantry in the Middle Ages heavy toll on the English invaders of their lands. Adapted by the English, the longbow was nevertheless a difficult weapon to master, requiring long years of use and practice. Even bow construction was extended, sometimes taking as much as four years for seasoned staves to be prepared and shaped for final deployment. A skilled longbowman could shoot 12 arrows a minute, a rate of fire superior to competing weapons like the crossbow or early gunpowder weapons. The nearest competitor to the longbow was the much more expensive crossbow or Arbalest, used often by urban militias and mercenary forces. It required
The Slaver Weapon in secret like this one as part of a long-planned revolt. This backstory is outside the scope of "The Slaver Weapon", and in this version the box and weapon are presumed to be of Slaver origin. The Kzinti's clothing and ships were depicted in pink due to director Hal Sutherland's colorblindness. An apology was offered to Larry Niven for this oversight. This is the first "Star Trek" story broadcast (in either its live-action or animated incarnations) in which James T. Kirk (William Shatner) does not appear, although his voice is heard in the standard opening credits. (Kirk also did not