Dale,
My brother and his son got the crossbow bug about 3 years ago, and are now hugely into it. I had the same type of questions that you listed about range etc., and they have given me lots of information and let me shoot their bows (they now have two each).
Here is some surprising stuff I learned.
1. Unless you buy a really really powerful crossbow, your practical limit is really 30 to maybe 35 yards, tops! As Graybeard mentioned, the bolts (tiny arrows) that are shot from a cross bow are extremely light, and just don't carry momentum very far at all.
2. Crossbows are extremely complex, as far as mechanics and tuning, and cost every bit as much as a good rifle. Your bow has to be "tuned" about every 50 to 100 shots, because the extreme recoil shock to the system just tends to shake them apart. Some people that are really into this sport can buy the equipment to tune their own bows, but most people drop their bows off at a really good archery shop, and have them tuned for about $25.00 by a pro.
3. Once you have sighted in your bow with your optical sights, or even your metal sights, you do NOT spend much time shooting it for practice. Your bowstring will only last about 100 shots, and the bow will have to get re-tuned, etc. Because of the extremely short range of crossbows, and the use of good sights, they are pretty much "point and shoot" gear, if you simply hold steady and properly estimate the range. They are, therefore, the opposite of compound or recurve bows, which take lots and lots of routine practice to get good and stay good.
I had never shot one before, and when my brother let me shoot his crossbow with a scope, from a sitting position, it was very very easy for me to put all of my shots into a 4 inch black circle at 30 yards. When you pull the trigger, there is just a "thwap" sound, no recoil, and you look up and see the arrow right in the bullseye.
4. My brother and his son both killed a deer the very first day they went hunting with their crossbows. They were in tree stands, the deer walked by within 25 yards, and they each just aimed and shot. Each deer only ran about 30 yards, then dropped dead.
5. Greatest part, is that in Virginia, you can use a crossbow during the entire archery season, including the first day, when deer are totally unaware and just walking around. It is easy to kill one during opening day, if it walks within range. And, if you want, you can use your crossbow throughout muzzleloading season or gun season. If your stand is in a good area, where maximum shots will only be 30 to 40 yards, it is a heck of a lot easier during muzzleloading season to just grab your crossbow and go, rather than fooling around with measuring, loading, and ramming powder and ball into a muzzleloader, and then trying to unload and clean a muzzleloader at the end of the day.
6. My brother's son, my nephew, worked all summer to buy his second bow, which was a top of he line Bow-Tech, that he paid almost $800 for, and has a really heavy draw weight. He has a scope mounted on it. From a sitting position, he can put consistently put arrows into the vital zone of a deer target at 40 yards, but he recognizes that this is the very outer limit of range, and he would never take a shot like that unless the deer were standing perfectly still, broadside, with a totally clear field of view.
7. Crossbows are surprisingly heavy. They weigh every bit of what a standard rifle weighs, and often more. But, this helps in the aiming process.
Hope this info helps. They love their bows. BUT, I have to tell you that when you get up to the really powerful ones, they are really hard to draw and cock (at least for me), because you have to use your back and arm muzzles to pull back that 150 to 200 pounds of draw weight.
Best Regards,
Mannyrock
