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[Maximus]

I have a bunch of champions in my fort whom I switched to "crossbow" on the military screen, but who do not practice archery or reload their empty quivers.  (I have enough metal and wood bolts; I have some non-elite marksdwarves who are able to shoot at the range.)

The connection to champion status might just be a coincidence; I have a single champion who has some metal bolts in his quiver who also practices archery.  But all the others have empty quivers and just spar with their crossbows. 

In combat, since they don't have bolts, they rush forward to whack things on the head with crossbows, which means I've effectively lost all my marksdwarves.

[(name here)]

Check to see if they're holding anything in their off hands.

[Maximus]

Selecting one at random:

left hand: glove, gauntlet, gauntlet
right hand: glove, gauntlet, shield, crossbow

The single champion that's actually using the crossbow has just glove, gauntlet, crossbow in the right hand and glove, gauntlet, shield in the other.  So I gather I can get them to start using their weapons correctly again by dumping the extra items?

[Maximus]

Clearing their hands of stray items does seem to have done the trick.  Thanks for the pointer.

[Sinfang]

I have this problem too. none of my champions will practice archery.  Even when I sent them to battle, they ran out and clubbed the goblins to death with their crossbows rather then pick up ammo.

I've de-equipped their shields, set them back to wrestling, then set them back to x-bow, no luck.

The only dwarfs who will practice are the two hunters I conscripted.

[Drunken]

Ok I just had this problem. It took me a moment to understand the solution as it is not that well described.

The keyword here is 'stray items'. My champions were all carrying random items in their right hand as well as the crossbow. These were peices of armour for me, but pants and caps, not gauntlets. Just designating the items for dumping that shouldn't be there fixed it, no need to worry about gauntlets and shields they are fine. Unless the stray items picked up happen to be gauntlets I guess.

[(name here)]

It's a result of wrestling. they grab items off their sparring partners.

[RAM]

Bump bump bump bump bump bump and bump...
Erm... does anyone have any advice as to how exactly I persuade my champions to drop that armour/backpack/etc. that they are carrying around in their hands?
I have tried setting it to dump and/or forbidden via characters inventory list (v i carriage return D{and/or f}), changing their weapons, and taking them off/on duty, but they are still holding the offending items, I haven't waited all that long though, do I just have to be patient or is their something that I am missing?

P.S.
I found about a dozen different threads on this topic, including one that seemed to have some success with an alternate solution, but which was probably just the same thing(http://www.bay12games.com/forum/index.php?topic=9869.0), perhaps something like this should be stickied, or maybe there should be a known bugs with solutions thread to try to cut down on redundant threads?

P.P.S.
 Hmmm, looking back at this it seems awfully presumptuous from a first post, my apologies if it bothers anyone...

[Footkerchief]

Have you fulfilled all the criteria for dumping such as placing a garbage dump zone?  Also, they have to be marked for dumping and not forbidden.  If they're forbidden nobody will touch them.

[RAM]

Yeah, I have had dwarves merrily hurling rocks into a chasm for a while now, and only one of them was set to forbidden, but I have set them to clothes and turned off water and food carrying and that seems to have worked...

Hmmm, it occurs to me that they were mostly in leather armour and only recently I did a run of iron gauntlets, maybe they somehow managed to stuff gauntlets on over the suit of armour, backpack, and whatever the rest of them were holding...

[Veroule]

I always use an atom smasher as my dump site.  Now to fix your champions, set them on duty, with no weapons and clothing armor.  Set thier station point right at your dump site.  When they are properly standing there check thier inventory for anything extra.  Ordered the extra pieces dumped.  Once you see the soldier has been cleaned up (and hopefully retrieved any lost clothes), then set his armor and weapons how you actually want them.  You may unforbid the dumped armors at any point.

When he finally returns to station check his equipment again.  If all is well, then set his staion point where you want it and stand him down.

The new version is supposed to really improve dwarves intelligence about properly equipping and dropping things.