PAG wrote: how exactly does the half draw 20 foot rule work in practice? I'm not totally sure where exactly 50% draw is, although I can kind of feel how much power is at different draw lengths and I could not totally slam someone if they're in close (or ever)
Good judgment, practice and common sense. Use just enough draw to gt the arrow to the target effectively. This is actually something that bow users should practice. As a reeve @ Darkshore I had to go and remind people of this a couple of times. Close range + full draw has the potential of causing injury to the target. Bow use is one of the most dangerous activities in the game and everyone who uses a bow should be pro-active in arrow and bow use safety.
PAG wrote: Edit 2: The motorcycle gore-tex harley davidson gloves work great it seems with no arrows at protecting my wrist from string-snap. Will these continue to work with arrows, and is gore-tex (harder than leather I think) a good glove, and can it just be like wrist + 3 inches and be good for a bow?
You may find that a leather bracer works better for your bow hand. I use a bracer and NO glove on the hand I hold the bow in. One my string hand I use either finger tabs or a glove with reinforced fingers. I wore the fingers out of a normal glove within a few months just with string release. Additionally as you get better with the bow string-snap will go away. Something else to keep in mind is your garb. Garb with loose sleeve etc. can get in the way of the string on release as well. Something I have overlooked in the past as well.