Archer the best main character?

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I think that the best single class is the archer. Mainly because of the fact that he can deal massive damage from long range without putting himself in too much danger, yet can still pull out a melee weapon and and hold his own in toe-to-toe battles. He can't wear metal armor but he's deadly enough with a bow to not really need that good ac. He also has a good amount of hp, his called shot ability is great at lvl 18, he can hide in shadows and with boots of speed he can be almost as deadly as a fighter/mage and all without getting his hands dirty.If anyone has any thing to say about it please mention them.

[This message has been edited by I love bg2 (edited January 13, 2002).]

 

I'm not a fan of long range combat in terms of physical projectiles, but in terms of spell is another story. I always see the archer as being pretty one dimensional with his talents. He is great long range like you mentioned, but i would never put him toe to toe like you said. You probably use most of your proficiency in bow type weapon... soo you wont get to spend much on a melee weapon. He'll definately get eaten alive. Also, to go as far as seeing that he has the same power as a fighter/mage is apple and oranges. fighter/mage is way more diverse then an archer. In terms of spells, melee, and long range power. Why? Fighter can use long range weapon better than an archer can do close combat, me thinks. Just give your fighter/mage elven chain mail +5 and he'll be set for life. Yeah sooooooo, what i'm trying to say is that... uhm, archer definately not as deadly as a fighter/mage. woot woot

 

I'm not comparing them in terms of damage I'm comparing in which one is most likly to live longer, in any case I think your missing my point, the archer doesent have to risk his life to do decent damage but a fighter always has to take lots of damage in a hard battle to do lots of damage, unlike the archer who also deals out more damage per lvl. And i was also comparing single class's not dc's or mc's which makes f/m completly off topic. btw i completed the first challeng solo with the archer and dident take a scratch.

P.S i dident suggest putting him toe-to-toe I said he would be capible of holding his own for at least 1 and 1/2 rounds to possibly 3 rounds. And any way theres never any need to put him in melee so that doesent make a lot of difference.



[This message has been edited by I love bg2 (edited January 13, 2002).]

 

There's no best character, it's all up to the player. I don't like Archers because I like getting my hands a little dirty in combat . But as a master of ranged weapons, it's obvouisly gonna be the archer...

As odd as it may sound, I think Assassin's are great bowmen, if you give them the Tuigan Bow +1 and have them posion their weapon...

Um, you said that Archers were better than fighter/mages, so I don't understand why you're getting so mad at the guy for disagreeing with you.

Actually I think Stalkers are superior to Archers, but it has to do with my playing style.

[This message has been edited by Lord Sarevok (edited January 13, 2002).]

 

im not getting mad at machine i was just pointing something out honest . But serioisly though where did i say archers were better then fighter/mages? (quote from me:he can be almost as deadly as a fighter/mage:end quote) and i was comparing to single class/class kits not dc or mc's and also ive been soloing with my archer character and I'm already at the marching mountains in 2 hours all quests done so far. so in a way archers are actually better then fighter's (but not as good f/m's) after all you have to chatch'em to kill'em

 

Well, perhaps i was missing the point because you made that direct comparison between archers and fighter/mages, "he can be almost as deadly as a fighter/mage".

And for your statement saying which one will live longer, obviously the archer will because you probably would concentrate him more on long range oppose to melee combat. THus that proves how one dimensional the archer can be ))... Plus, i think fighter can have the same survivalship as an archer anyhoot. You can always make a fighter into a long range and a melee guy. All he need is two slots in bow, and two slots in some form of other weapon. He will be pretty decent in long range.... mind you not as effective as the archer but he will be better in close range combat than the archer as well. So the fighter is well more balance.

Hrm, and i think you are fickle person. You said you did not suggest putting him toe to toe, but in your original post you said, "yet can still pull out a melee weapon and and hold his own in toe-to-toe battles."

What is that then??? yeesh, stop beating around the bush.

btw, i've played an archer as well and they are not a crappy kit, i just don't enjoy playing with them much.

 

I agree with black thorne.
the archer is very underrated (in my opinion) there good support to fall back on if it gets desperate. and its definatly useful to have an archer over an extra fighter and/or a cleric archer (use sk), but you should still have at least 2 fighters and a mage of some type.

as for clerics not been able to use bows there are good slings to make up for it like sling of seeking.

btw machine i begun by saying the archer is one of the best single classes, i just added the f/m part for added effect.

I'm also planing on finding out if the archer could beat a fighter of the same level in melee i just finished yaga shuras lair solo (no npcs) and so far i got whirlwind x1 greater whirwind x2 and hardiness (aswell as proficencys in axe * katana * long bow ***** cross bow* and a few otheres but those are the only types i've been using)and I've beat a few tough enemys in melee including fell cat and fire elemental, and he might be able to beat a fire giant i havent tried yet .

[This message has been edited by I love bg2 (edited January 14, 2002).]

 

Can an archer were Shadow or White Dragon Plate. Cos if he can that's a bit better than leather armour. Give him the Ring of the Gaxx, a nice amulet, helmet and cloak, and he can have AC -10 with no problem at all! Yeah, I think archers can be pretty useful. Still, I prefer melee, and he's got only 2 proficiencies...

 

thats one proficency and thats with melee weapons only any ranged weapon he can get a grand mastery with and he cant wear metal armor, so that excluds chain, plate and full plate armor.

the best leather armor that i know of is studded leather of thorns ac0 secial abiltys: each hit on the wearer does a small amount of damage to the attacker i cant remember how much but it's less then fire sheild. you can get this in sendais enclave chapter 9

 

My halfling archer was great fun to play - a very effective class - *powerful* in melee and ranged combat especially. He had good stealth and the protection the leather armors offered was appropiate.
Though I have (ab-) used my archer in melee with good sucess I definitely suggest to use him in his element - firing missile For me this worked best when cooperating with a melee fighter.

However, he's not *best*, he's the best missiler in the game - no doubt - but the fighter, kensai-mage, thief, mage-thief or a cavalier classes/ kits each have unique advantages of their own.

[This message has been edited by Ragusa (edited January 14, 2002).]

 

Its all a matter of your playing style and any class is powerful if played to its strengths. I completed the game several times with different paths and they were all enjoyable and strong in their own way - good, evil, large party, small party, and solo. I am currently playing a solo Elf F/M/T in ToB that I never liked in SoA due to the Exp Cap. In ToB with the special abilities gained at 3 million exp, I was surprised to find this the deadliest character I have played. Here are some of my notes and tactics:

1) No weapon mastery, but being and Elf gets +1 to hit swords and bows (specialized almost equals master).

2) Using proficiencies in dual wielding, scimitar, katana, quarterstaff, and eventually two-handed sword for the Holy Avenger.

3) Gain cash (quests, item sales, thefts, .etc) and get the Girdle of Hill Giant strength (the character's base strength was 11, no many ability points left after Dex 19, Int 18, Wis 16, Con 16, Cha 8)

4) Initially I used the Hide in Shadows and Cloak of Non-Detection combo and eventually added the Staff of the Magi. Added to this Stoneskin (and what-all-else) and at this point the character rarely takes a scratch. The Backstabs are getting good at this point too. (Note: Thieves can only backstab with a weapon that a pure Thief could uses. The Staff of the Magi is "not suitable for backstab")

5) Then the character hits 3 million exp while playing the hero (not that slow soloing) and the new ToB abilities kick in. The character chooses a special ability in "any active class" with each level-up after 3 million exp.

6) I chose Use Any Item first, then Spiked Trap (maybe not next time thru), and Assasination (all attacks count as backstab for on round) for every future special ability. The character was dual wielding with 9/2 attacks per round with the aid of Belm+2 or Scarlet Ninja-To (Note: Scarlet Ninja-To cannot backstab, not a true thief usable weapon). I was already using Improved Haste for 9 attacks per round (10 with both extra attack weapons). Add in Assasination to to the Improved Haste 9 attacks and I believe my exact words were "Holy Crap!!!".

The record amount of damage in one round I have seen so far is 1087. Several critical hits add up fast. The single largest hit I saw was 174 damage.

I now call the character Cuisinart for the way all the spinning meat can fly in a single round.

Some bosses can't be backstabbed, but for anyone else...turn on the Cuisinart.

Anyway, I stumbled into this by trying a class that I used to think was weak....who knew. I set the difficulty level to Insane, but the character doesn't take that much damage...oh, well.

Sorry if this is long winded, but I thought it was entertaining.

Anyone else uncover any imbalanced combinations or abilties?

 

The f/m/t cant heal himself so if your playing solo i dont recomend it, unless you use pocket plane and get an npc in your party to heal you then kick them out of the party.

i thing the archers good in melee i beat a drow warrior high enough level to smite and and I dident use cheap tactics (this was on insane) im up to sendais enclave right now and my faverite tactic (or cheap trick) is use boots of speed hit, run and hide and hit again till they die.

I think archers are the one of the best rouges the can kill most enemys before they can get in melee range, there good fighter easily capible of holding there own in a fight with *** in duel weild (you begin with** ) plus they can heal them selfs so theres no need to pocket plane all the time.

But most importaint I've discoverd you dont need to cheat to have a kick arse character hehehe.

and one more thing does anyone think using cheap tricks like the one i mentioned above is accepteble when playing solo when you'd get slaughterd if you diden't do it?(on insane as well)

 

I agree with you that Archers are the best.

But correct me if I'm wrong. You said that archers were rouges but the last time I checked they were rangers. Those are warriors, not rouges.

[I'll say it again: a rogue is a mischievous person (thief), rouge is a reddish cosmetic - BTA]

[This message has been edited by Blackthorne TA (edited January 15, 2002).]

 

oh i see well i was thinking rouge because of there hide in shadows abilty.

im up to abazigals lair entrance and cant pass draconis i've used all the tactics combine armor of faith spells and used lots of special abiltys but he keeps killing me mainly because of his use of greater malison followed with the brown dragon acid attack which kills me every time. i've tried the protection scrolls at arcana archives but i still take huge damage with it are there any other item/weapons to increase my resistance? has anyone got any solo archer tips on killing draconis or abazigal for that matter?, is it even possible?
I'd apreiciate any help i get even if it doesen't beat him for me.



[This message has been edited by I love bg2 (edited January 15, 2002).]