Arrows (Oblivion)

 focuses on arrows as they appear in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion.

Characteristics
The quality of the arrows and the quality of the bow both determine the damage potential on impact. Damage is also dependent on the amount of power when the arrow was launched. For example, just tapping the 'fire' key or trigger will result in a very weak shot, while a stronger pull or hold of the key will strengthen the shot.

Upon shooting a creature with arrows, there is a high chance the arrows will go into the creature's inventory, where it can be retrieved from the corpse of the slain creature (or possibly pickpocketed from a still living creature, though this has not yet been tested). This does not apply to some creatures, such as skeletons and atronachs, who have no fleshy parts for the arrows to stick into. Instead, arrows that hit such creatures ricochet and fall to the ground, where they can later be collected.

The same applies to the player character--when shot with an arrow, the projectile goes directly into one's inventory, while the arrow itself is pictured sticking out of the character's body in both third-person perspective and in the menu. If the arrows cannot be removed, the arrows will be visible, but not add on to your weight.

This can be a source of some confusion for players who were extremely close to their encumbrance limit and fight an archer; the added weight of the arrows can push the total inventory weight over the limit, and cause the character to be over-burdened. This can grow to be a significant problem, as taking the time to repeatedly drop arrows out of your inventory in the middle of a fight can be lethal, particularly when attacked by multiple enemies.

Types of Arrows
List of arrows in order of potency.