The original post is old, but a lot of good information keeps coming. A crossbow is hard to [censored] and requires a "tool". It makes it a little safer to keep around uncocked, as it would be hard for a child to load it or damage it. Also, an uninformed person might now figure it out. Most crossbow scopes have some type of ranging reticle. Using that system it is pretty easy to shoot out to the furthest distance indicated by the reticle marks. The original post said "traditional bow". I don't know if the original poster meant longbow/recurve type bow or a "modern" compound bow. There is a huge difference in each. A traditional bow requires the ability to draw and temporarily hold the full weight of the resistance. There are no sights, so repetitive practice is required to develop the muscle memory and sight memory for consistency. Any flaw in form will be accentuated in the shot. Most traditional shooters stick to 20-yards or less, with a few going out another 5-yards. It is rare to hear of regular 30-yard shots with a traditional bow. Range judging is paramount as the trajectory is a much more exaggerated arc than a compound or crossbow. Usually broadheads are fixed, 2-blade designs. With a typical traditional bow set up for deer hunting the pass-through shots are probably around 50/50, so great tracking skills become very important. Moving to the compound bow, you now have let-off, so you can hold 20-25% of the actual draw weight. This makes it easier to hold for longer periods of time (although you need the strength for the initial draw). Sights are calibrated to different distances, and it is not unusual to see 5 or 6 pins on some bow sights, meaning a range of 60-yards or more. Here, expandable broadheads should work and fixed blade broadheads may have to be tuned. The arrow/broadhead combination creates huge variables in penetration. Most straight-forward set-ups are sufficient to go through a deer. The original post seems to have hogs to hunt and the performance would vary somewhat with size and stature. If a traditional bow goes down in the field you can either put a new string on and potentially keep hunting or possibly you broke a limb and it is out of commission. If a compound bow breaks anything it is out of commission until you have a new set of part and maybe a bench and press. This applies to crossbows too, however the traditional limb crossbows can be "fixed" in the field. You can change the string with a "stringer" tool in a matter of seconds. You can have a spare set of limbs in your pack and change them with one hex-key. If you put on the same length string, or swap out the same limb you should be still sighted in and ready to go. A compound crossbow is not "fixable" in the field. You need a press, tools and parts. With a traditional or compound bow, if you need a second shot or are able to shoot two of whatever, you can easily and readily load another arrow and shoot again. With a crossbow, you need to use the cocking tool and have some mobility to stabilize the bow for cocking. It is a longer, noisier process than a vertical bow. Only the Excalibur Twin Strike crossbow offers two shots instantly. These three implements each bring a whole different experience and level of commitment. You have to decide what your end goal is and what you are willing to put up with, where you can comfortably compromise and what rate of success you need to be satisfied.

^^^^Good post.

A lot of good information here