Being long range and silent the bow is one of the most useful stealth options in the game with the added benefit of sometimes getting your ammo back. My roommate claims that arrows will always break unless you get a head shot, in which case they will always be recoverable. In my experience however being able to recover your arrow seemed more or less random.
So the question: Is there something that determines whether an arrow breaks or not? or is it actually random?
Best Answer
Your roommate was misled; the arrows break at random. There are some people who have tried numerous tests to find the exact percentage. The results range from 80% retrieval to 20% retrieval. This, along with the difference between torso vs. head shot, makes the overall percentage random.