Ok, here is my take on Trick Arrow / Archery.
First off, Trick Arrows are fine solo (though taking down bosses can be hard), but even better in groups (even if its just one other person). You are a defender, but you can also act as a kind of controller in teams. Trick arrow is underrated and knowledgeable CoH players know this (I get told "your pool is underrated" all the time by hard core players). The main problem with trick arrow is that your teams rarely notice what you do. They think they took down the boss and they dont realize it because they were doing 8 points more damage per hit because of you.
Certain powers are more important at some levels, and rarely used at other levels, so you will change several times via respec'ing. (Glue Arrow is a good example.. helps ALOT at lower and mid levels, but I dont use it as much now since oil slick works even better and higher level controller have mass holds)
Here is how I am built now (at level 47.. .I have one more power coming to me at 50th).
I have all the Trick Arrow powers, except "net". I find Ice arrow much more effective. (Sure, net can stop someone from running away or towards you, but they can still fire!). Maybe its good at a low level, but I personally used it once I had ice arrow, I like ice arrow much more). Net Does Work on bosses if I remember correctly so I may get it at level 50.
Trick Arrow
Flash - (slotted 3 accuracy debuffs). This is a great arrow. Recharges fast. The effect actually lasts for a long time. You may not think it does anything, but it DOES. The bad guys will miss more often, and thats a good thing. Also, it works kind of like stealth... you can get close to flashed bad guy and they wont notice you as fast. It is almost ALWAYS the first arrow I fire, even before the tank rushes in. It does not draw aggro and it "hits" everyone in the area. I think its a MUST have. It really does make a diff, even if you dont notice it a low levels. Fast recharge, long effect, no agro= great. Trust me, use flash.
Glue - (slotted 3 slow) - Another great one at low-mid levels. Again it hits everyone in the area. Though it does not seem to slow some very strong bosses, Its great for keeping large groups from getting on top you quickly. (also great for keeping them from running out of your burning oil slick). For some reason, Werewolves dont seem to be effected by it.
Poison Gas - (slotted 3 sleeps. yes, it takes sleep enchantments) GREAT arrow. The enemies do LESS damage to you when affected by it. Instead of hitting you for 20, they may hit for only 16. That can help a lot in a big fight. Also, more and more of them "choke" on the gas at higher levels. So its kind of like a controller hold in some ways. Nice recharge, less damage, some holding. Great arrow.
Ice - (slotted 3 hold duration, may add an acc later). Good for keeping minions "on ice" as you concentrate on another minion. Also, good for keeping Lts. held while you attack them. (dont wait until the hold wears off to fire another, fire it when it is still in effect.. try to keep the bad guy "perma held" as you attack). I find it best to use a "yellow" to make sure the hold works.
Acid - (slotted 3 defense debuff, 1 acc)- lets you and others do more damage. You may do 20 pts before the acid, but end up doing 25 after the acid. It helps. The only bad thing is that you can hit some and not others (when it comes to groups). If you miss the MAIN target NO targets get hit, so again its best to pop a yellow or use "aim" before firing.
Disruption - (1 end reduction, other enchantments just arent need). I fire it often as possible when on a team and sometimes solo. Works like acid arrow.
Oil Slick - (slotted 3 damage, 1 slow, 2 recharge). The BEST arrow, second only to EMP arrow. I use it the SECOND it recharges, over and over again in long fights. Even bosses slip and fall. Igniting it can be weird, sometimes it always ignites, some times it wont ignite 5 times in a roll (for some reason, it ignites less outdoors and around Rads I think its a problem with the program they are trying to fix. Even if it does not ignite, it can act like a "hold" and keep the bad guys in check. Targeting to ignite can pain in big groups, so use the "tab" to locate it. Here is a trick, many times it ignites on its own if a fire tank is standing on it. Use this arrow as often as possible.
EMP -(3 recharge, 1 end reduction, 1 end modifier) the BEST arrow of them all. It damages machines and Freakshow, "holds" everyone, and also takes some of their end away. The only down side is that you cant get end back for a short while. Still, its worth it. Pop a one or two yellows and use "aim" if you have it, to make sure you hit EVERYONE. In a group, the "no end recover" thing is not that bad, let them rush and do the damage. A GREAT arrow, one of the best of the set (I read somewhere its even a better than the EMP that Rads have). If a fight is not going well, its also a good "escape" arrow to give you and your team a several seconds if things are getting out of hand.
Archery
Snap shot - I dont have it slotted at all except for the one slot that you get free (damage). You will need it at lower but get rid of the otehr slots at higher levels. It makes no sense to waste slots on this when the damage is sooo low. I dont think I ever used the arrow past level 15.
Aimed Shot - (3 damage, 1 acc, 1 end)
Fist Full of Arrows - (3 dam, 2 range, 1 acc). This arrow is ok. I really didnt like it until I put some range enhancements on it. You dont need to use it only on a group, use it on a single bad guy also while other things are recharging.
Blazing - (3 dam, 1 acc, 1 end, 1 recharge). Your main "single" attack, and needed to ignite your oil slick. Use it as soon as you see it recharged. You may want to drop the end reduction I have and use 2 recharge. Great arrow. (And it keeps burning for a little while after you hit them! Low and Mid levels its actually very strong (though its still good at high levels of course).
Explosive - (3 dam, 1 acc, 1 end, 1 knockback). this arrow does not do as much damage as I would like, but its good for blasting bad guys back also good for getting a few second free (since they have to spend time standing back up again). Pop a yellow or use aim to try to hit everyone.
Aim - (2 acc buffs) - I had this up until most early 40s, then I dropped it. (it does have it uses though). The problem is the recharge is not all that fast, and it uses END! Popping a yellow could give the same benefit. I may get it again when I get a power at 50th.
Ranged Shot - (3 dam, 1 acc, 2 time reduction) - great sniper shot. Dont use it in battles unless you know you wont be hit for a few seconds. Also great to follow up with after a bad guy has been held with ice arrow.
Stunning Arrow - dont have it, I had it but respected out of it. It does work well but why do you need to stun ONE person when you have EMP, Oil, Gas, Ice... Etc. It also didnt seem to work on bosses when I used it. (now if I did, that would be a different story). Maybe i'll get it at 50th
Rain of Arrow - (3 damage, 1 acc, 1 end, 1 recharge). Great great great. Nice damage (not as much as a blaster of course), very large area of effect, does not "crash" you end like nova powers, and recharge at a nice speed. One of my top 3 arrows (Oil, EMP, Rain). The only thing I dont like is that it takes a few seconds to use.
My other pools are:
hover/flight (3 speed, each) - hovering in a fight is great.. and even better in warehouses, outside or other places with high ceilings.
hasten (1 recharge) - tried to "perma haste" it a lowers levels, but I need the slots for otehr things. Now I activate haste when I know a big fight is about to happen or AFTER I use oil, EMP, or blazing to get them to recharge faster. I may had more recharges slots at 48 or 49th level. I also use it after aim.
Concealment- Grant Invisibility/ Invisibility (1 reduce end in grant and 2 reduce end in invisibility) Grant has been very helpful on teams while Invisibility has just been great period. I cant emphasize how much invis is underrated. I have run around level 50 missions in my twenties without an sk and not been seen.
I took Epic powers Energy- Conserve Power and Power Buildup
Believe it or not, I dont have "Fitness". And I have done ok without it. In large groups, I spend less end. and things like "EMP" and "oil slick" let me "take a few seconds to get some end back when need be. I was suprised by it myself, but I really am doing fine without Stamina. (though, it was harder at mid levels). I keep a few blues on hand, but otherwise I'm fine (and I always use a blue after EMP). Plus with Conserve Power I use even less endurance.
Here are my tactics:
ALWAYS start off with the flash arrow. Let the team know "let me flash first!". you can flash again and again and it does not draw aggro. It really does help, even if you dont think so. It is ALWAYS my first arrow (if I am the one attacking first). Flashs DO stack.
Use Aim or yellows as much as possible.
When playing with a team, concentrate more with buffing, debuffing. (acid, disruption, etc, flashing, gas, grant invis, etc). If your team or partner is fighting a boss, hit them with acid and disruption as much as possible.
Flash, Oil slick, blazing arrow, and disruption arrow is a great combo. (watch the burning damage go from 4 to 5 when you fire the disruption arrow). Adding "rain of arrows" at the end (when you get it) is also great. This combo usually lets you take out a group of guys all by yourself.
Ice arrow (hold), acid, Ranged shot, and blazing is a great combo used against Lts. (against a minion you can skip the acid arrow part)
When you have a bad guy iced (especially Lts). Dont want for the ice to "melt" before icing them again. Its is possible to keep a guy held while you attack them the entire time and not have a bit of damage done to you.
Flash arrow, Conserve Power, EMP, oil slick, blazing arrow, disruption, and Power build up, then rain of arrows is your most powerful combo... you may have to finish them off with an exploding arrow afterwards at high levels.
Remember that acid arrow and disruption arrow DOES STACK, Allowing you and your teammates to dish out MUCH more damage.
Use Gas or Glue to keep guys from running out of your burning oil slick.
Another good tactic is to fire your oil arrow right at your own fight when someone doing high damage runs up on you (or if you have several bad guys going hand-to- hand on you) they may slip and fall many times, giving you time to get away or do some kind of attack on them.
Mass "holds" dont sometime get EVERYONE... so layer one top of another, sure, they are slipping because of oil slick but some arent, so follow it with gas. Between slipping and chocking... you can "hold" them one way or another.
If you have other comments or questions, feel free to ask.
Hells
