People have been using bows for 500+ generations and ranged weapons for even longer.  That&#x27;s plenty of time for a preference for ranged combat to show up (ed: become frequent).<p>The Atoal is believed to be ~30,000 years old.  <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;Spear-thrower" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;Spear-thrower</a>  And spears are ~400,000 years old.  <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;Amentum" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;Amentum</a> is rather hard to date, but it&#x27;s simpler than an Atoal.