Dex should be a bonus for your attack roll, Str a bonus in the damage roll if you succeed, for or all attack based weapons.
Exceptions for stealth attacks that can be performed, which switch to using dex for both, and cleaves which can use Str for both.
Stealth attacks are effectively a finessed “hit them in the vital spot” style attack.
Cleaves are a “I swing so hard I ignore your defense and try to cleave right through it, fuck your armor, I’m stronk”
It’s all because of Tolkien! He made those elves graceful and adept with longbows!
Tolkien made the Noldor (ancestors of the Middle-Earth elves) basically a race of bodybuilders swinging massive axes and hammers. They are described as tall and strong, and loving to build and craft, a race of smiths and builders. They’re very much not the lithe-and-slender bowmen of D&D.
Tolkien’s elven bows are often described as shooting (much) further than others. You don’t launch an arrow a greater distance by aiming it carefully, you do it with by making a heavier bow and pulling back harder.
Don’t blame this one on Tolkien, it’s 100% on Gary.
Mount and Blade uses STR for bows, if I remember correctly
It’s not about how hard you pull as much as how carefully you can aim, at least that’s how I justify it in game.
Shortswords are a finesse weapon, which are the swords which can benefit from dexterity in real life as well as in game. Longswords are heavy and quite difficult to swing, so their use is based on strength.
