Ballista

The ballista (plural ballistae) was one of the first artillery weapons used by the Ancient Greeks. The ballista was invented around 400 BC in the Greek town of Syracuse. It was one of the first catapults, and shot very large and heavy spears far distances. The ballista resembled a large crossbow. They were made in different sizes. Smaller ones threw smaller missiles such as scaled-up arrows and darts.

Modern reconstruction of a ballista

The steps to operating the ballista are:

1. Pull back the bow-string with a winch, which creates tension.
2. Load the ballista with a light missile e.g. darts with iron points.
3. Release the bow-string, launching the missile.

Ballistae would be used if a weapon that fired light, narrow ammunition was needed.