Archery is the weakest set among blasters.

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--I've been an archer IRL for about 20 years now, and I'm pleased, thematicly. I DO like the look of the bow, and am fine with the Storm Giant arrow it fires. I've always dreamt of the ability to choose different weapon visuals for each weapon based set. Its a minor, minor thing, but the bow would be a nice set for this, some wanted fancy modern compounds, others like the recuve and even others out there would love to have a longbow or even asian horsebow, or Japanese Yuri.


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I have to agree with Adam on the theme aspect of things as well as the stylistic differences. I had tried the total archery set with both Archery/Trick Arrow as a Defender and wasn't quite satisfied with TA. I know the common complaint that Devs had gimped it on purpose and came out of their testing labs saying, "Yup, it's a little weak, whatcha gonna do"...I'm paraphrasing a lot of other threads, to be honest. However, I was looking at this from a comics superheroes standpoint: Not only was Hawkeye (Marvel Comics version and my favorite) a dead shot but he had all kinds of tricks that made him potent. Hence, my decision for Devices as a secondary. It came closest.

I also would have liked to have seen the different bow types and would have loved a compound or Yari, but I think the bows provided are quite nice. Could very well be the length of a true longbow if your toon's big enough anyway.

The sound effects are the redeeming feature of archers. I would give anything to be able to turn off, say, Ice sounds.

And of course any looping sound in the game. It beats me why in over a year they havent' been able to give us an option to turn the damn looping sounds off.

I must really annoy people. I don't hear the looping sounds anymore so I really wonder what other people go through when I just use all my powers over and over again with no regard for their ear drums.

Too bad Statesman doesn't wonder.

I never even for a second considered taking devices with my archer. It seems clear to me that it's primarily an aoe set. Granted, you don't have to play an aoe set to be aoe, but pretty much all the non aoe sets have serious advantages otherwise. And if I'm looking at an aoe set, I'm looking for alpha striking, which means buildup. Shrug, that's just the way I see it. I love electricity and ice to death for what they do, but it's hard to argue with the alpha strike.

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I never even for a second considered taking devices with my archer. It seems clear to me that it's primarily an aoe set.

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Have to disagree, even with build up, fistfull of arrows and explosive arrow are not great AoEs. While flaming arrows and ranged shot due to great damage and decent recharge make the set above averge single target. But thats just my thinking.

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I never even for a second considered taking devices with my archer. It seems clear to me that it's primarily an aoe set.

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Have to disagree, even with build up, fistfull of arrows and explosive arrow are not great AoEs. While flaming arrows and ranged shot due to great damage and decent recharge make the set above averge single target. But thats just my thinking.

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Wait 'till you get Rain of Arrows. I never had an AR blaster, but RoA with it's quick recharge time and low endurance cost is amazing. It does great damage, and when combined with fistful and exploding you can take out big groups in no time. Finally, the icing on the cake is that it's a location (drop) AoE, but unlike Blizzard the supposed DoT is done in about 1 second (ie no mobs are able to run out before the full damage is done). Plus, because it's a drop you can use it on groups that are not in your LoS, so you can use RoA to pull groups around corners and such to bunch them. Definite AoE madness in the archery set.

Hey all, long time reader, first time poster.

Here's my 2 cents about archery, and this is coming from a veteran blaster (lvl 50 energy, lvl 48 electric, and now lvl 34 archery blaster)

I've done a ton of soloing and I've got to say, if you strategize your attack and stay at range, you'll do very well. Archery has a good pull effect and you can usually avoid pulling the entire mob with your target. As long as you're not fighting robots, clockworks, or red caps, you're pretty good with damage. (those mobs have some insane lethal resistance)

As far as aoe's, this is gonna sound wierd, but I swear to it. It seems that the more targets you hit with your aoe, the more damage it does to each target. Now I doubt that's actually the case, but that's the way it feels. When I group and the tank is herding, I'm the aoe king...er...queen in my archer's case.

And now that I have rain of arrows, I rule the mobs. Just yesterday I was taking out groups of 10 or so +1 mobs with only 2 shots taking out 8 or more of them, then just plinking off the others. Once you're higher level, the combo of aoe is devestating.

I've seen mention of a tracer effect behind your arrows, I think that would be very nice to have, sometimes all you have to go on is to watch their damage bar and see if it says "miss" above them, to determing if your arrow flew true or not.

In general, the damage is just a little below average, but the biggest downfall is no secondary effect. Be prepared to take damage cause you have nothing to stop it.

As many others have said, the animation time is long and redrawing the bow gets annoying, especially after using even a simple power like build up. But the attack chain is extremely quick and everything recharges fast.

Overall, the set is more fun if you're looking for theme than if you're looking for power. But its far from useless.

I've seen a lot of players only make it up to lvl 6 with archery and then come on here and complain about it like they know the whole set. Don't listen to them, its better than most players think.

So will there be an archery guide any timem soon? My Arch/NRG is only a 13. I'd love to see a build for this set up to 30 or so.

SirKenneth

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So will there be an archery guide any timem soon? My Arch/NRG is only a 13. I'd love to see a build for this set up to 30 or so.

SirKenneth

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Here's my build so far and its been working well. Hope it helps.

Notes: I fought without stamina til 24 so I could get my ranged shot right away. Conserve power did good for me until I could get stamina slotted.
I plan on continuing with the leaping pool and take acrobatics next, then work more on stealth powers. Not sure yet if I'm gonna take total focus or not (I try to stay far out of melee range), but boost range is a planned power. And I'm not sure what epic I'll take, I won't have much room for an epic, maybe 2 epic powers at most.

Exported from version 1.5B of CoH Planner
http://joechott.com/coh

Name: Kampri Moonshot - Freedom Server
Archetype: Blaster
Primary Powers - Ranged : Archery
Secondary Powers - Support : Energy Manipulation

01 : Power Thrust acc(01)
01 : Aimed Shot acc(01) dam(17) dam(23) dam(29) dam(31) dam(31)
02 : Fistful of Arrows acc(02) dam(3) dam(3) dam(5) dam(5) dam(7)
04 : Build Up recred(04)
06 : Flaming Arrow acc(06) dam(7) dam(9) dam(9) dam(11) dam(11)
08 : Aim recred(08)
10 : Hasten recred(10) recred(31) recred(34)
12 : Explosive Arrow acc(12) dam(13) dam(13) dam(15) dam(15) dam(17)
14 : Super Speed runspd(14)
16 : Conserve Power recred(16)
18 : Ranged Shot acc(18) dam(19) dam(19) dam(21) dam(21) dam(23)
20 : Swift runspd(20)
22 : Health hel(22)
24 : Stamina endrec(24) endrec(25) endrec(25) endrec(27) endrec(27) endrec(29)
26 : Stealth endred(26)
28 : Combat Jumping jmp(28)
30 : Super Jump jmp(30)
32 : Rain of Arrows dam(32) dam(33) dam(33) dam(33) dam(34) dam(34)

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01 : Brawl Empty(01)
01 : Sprint Empty(01)
02 : Rest Empty(02)

Just for confirmation, does build-up work with rain of arrows.

Many kinetics defenders want to know.

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Just for confirmation, does build-up work with rain of arrows.

Many kinetics defenders want to know.

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No. Rain of Arrows is a rain power and, as such, cannot be affected by aim, build up, or any other buffs. But what I've been doing a lot lately, and to amazing effect, is get within range of my explosive arrow to a large mob (sspeed/stealth running of coarse). Then hit either aim or build up, then Rain of arrows on their location, then explosive arrow. The animation for rain takes a bit, but as soon as its done, the explosive arrow kicks in. The damage from both powers is nearly simultaneous and the buff from the aim or build up lasts long enough to count towards explosive arrow. (note, the buff won't affect rain, but it saves the animation time before explosive goes off) At that point, most everything +1 or less should be dead, just plink off the ones that didn't burn up in the explosion.

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Just for confirmation, does build-up work with rain of arrows.

Many kinetics defenders want to know.

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No. Rain of Arrows is a rain power and, as such, cannot be affected by aim, build up, or any other buffs. But what I've been doing a lot lately, and to amazing effect, is get within range of my explosive arrow to a large mob (sspeed/stealth running of coarse). Then hit either aim or build up, then Rain of arrows on their location, then explosive arrow. The animation for rain takes a bit, but as soon as its done, the explosive arrow kicks in. The damage from both powers is nearly simultaneous and the buff from the aim or build up lasts long enough to count towards explosive arrow. (note, the buff won't affect rain, but it saves the animation time before explosive goes off) At that point, most everything +1 or less should be dead, just plink off the ones that didn't burn up in the explosion.

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Dratz!

Another Kinetic's plot foiled by the devs.

Thanks for posting the build. Many of the same choices, but I was looking for a slotting sanity check. I'm glad we got that free respec.

Kenneth

another question. do mobs run away from your rain of arrows?

Another blizzard type power?

sigh.

Level 22 Archer/Nrg. It has weak points and strong points. Endurance usage is very high for the damage done which is only average damage levels for a Blaster. No secondary effects although some attacks get a slight boost (5% not counting the Draw-Weapon 5%) to Accuracy. You still need Accuracy Enhancements so not much value, but you hit more overall.

1. Only Lethal Damage=Weak
2. Soloing=Strong
3.Teaming=Weak to Moderate
4.PvP=Weak
5.Endurance Use Very High=Weak
6.Secondary Effect=Weak
7.Overall Damage Output=Moderate
8.Cone and AoE attacks=Moderate/Weak
9.Effect of Build-Up and Aim=Moderate

The one thing for Teaming that Archery excells in is when you get overrun. That's when the higher Rate of Fire can really shine with a skilled archer who can apply the big and little damage where they are needed to thin out mobs quickly. Other than that all the other Blasters/Scrappers will blow you away. Soloing is best with Archery Blast though. Nothing else compares.

I don't have an Archer yet, so I can't comment on the effectiveness of the set for heros, but I found out the hard way this weekend that, in the hands of Red Caps, the archery set can be quite devastating. I was defeated this weekend by Red Caps more times (about 8 in total) than the total of all other defeats so far, up to level 33.

I like to think I am a smart blaster, and am careful to work the angles to minimize the number of mobs aggro'ed at once, but the high rate of fire, large mob size, and killer accuracy, combined with the toughness of the Red Caps, meant that I was getting volleyed to death regularly.

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I don't have an Archer yet, so I can't comment on the effectiveness of the set for heros, but I found out the hard way this weekend that, in the hands of Red Caps, the archery set can be quite devastating. I was defeated this weekend by Red Caps more times (about 8 in total) than the total of all other defeats so far, up to level 33.

I like to think I am a smart blaster, and am careful to work the angles to minimize the number of mobs aggro'ed at once, but the high rate of fire, large mob size, and killer accuracy, combined with the toughness of the Red Caps, meant that I was getting volleyed to death regularly.

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Oh yeah, those Red Caps are tough. I found that, soloing, if you stay in a safe spot and snipe them 1 at a time til the "herd" is thinned out, they're not so bad. But even then, I swear they excell at sneaking up behind you in big mobs when you're busy fighting. I have a tough time with them.

I have a lvl 23 arch/dev blaster and am loving this toon! It is fun to play. I can put all damage enhancements now that I have stamina and accuracy is amazing with this toon especially with my drone up.

Ive played every blaster out there, there are better damage dealers out there, but for fun . ill keep this toon.

Archery has the highest Accuracy in the game. All powers have an accuracy of 1.16. Ranged shot, the sniper attack, has an accuracy of 1.39.

So that like getting 1 free ACC DO in all Archery powers. Against a target with no defense, thats a 87% chance ToHit.

In comparison, most powers in the game have an accuracy of 1. Most sniper attacks have an accuracy of 1.2. Assault Rifle has an ACC of 1.05 (1.25 for thier sniper attack).

Looks like you were right! Archery is indeed the weakest blaster primary. But you'll neeeever miss!

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Archery has the highest Accuracy in the game. All powers have an accuracy of 1.16. Ranged shot, the sniper attack, has an accuracy of 1.39.

So that like getting 1 free ACC DO in all Archery powers. Against a target with no defense, thats a 87% chance ToHit.

In comparison, most powers in the game have an accuracy of 1. Most sniper attacks have an accuracy of 1.2. Assault Rifle has an ACC of 1.05 (1.25 for thier sniper attack).

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It is good to see that you are starting to look at the threads dealing with archery and TA. Now that you know what our opinions are after playing the sets, it would be nice to know if we are going to see changes or if we are just talking up a storm. There are other things to talk about if there are no changes comeing to archery or Trick Archery.

Is the accuracy bonus supposed to compensate for the slow activation times? You are aware that is what kills most blasters right? Sitting there activating a power while the mobs come into melee range, do you guys play blasters solo? That's great, we get accuracy, I just hope that this isn't what you consider a balancing factor of any kind. This may be great for a defender but for a blaster the bonus accuracy is chump change when it comes to a secondary effect. Actually, as a defender I find that I still have to slot accuracy anyway on teams since I never know if the team I am on is fighting +3 mobs or if they are fighting even level mobs.

So, your great accuracy boost in the Archery set is nothing to laud in my opinion and it for damned sure does not even begin to address some of the problems mentioned with archery.

With respect, the accuracy of archery really doesnt matter. For that matter, neither does the accuracy in Assault Rifle.

Time has proven that once SO enhancments are available, everyone can achieve satisfactory accuracy regardless of powerset.

The reason AR and Archery are sub par in my opinion, is that they deal in the most commonly resisted damage types and have a "draw" animation which slows attack chains.

Lastly, from a realism point of view, it is ridiculous that Archery would be more accurate than firearms, let alone energy blasts that travel in a non deviant straight line fired from my hands.

I understand the developers desire to differentiate the powersets for asthetic reasons etc etc etc. However, time has proven that the secondary effects of some sets are simply less useful than others. If i may be so bold, Ill rank them in order of overall effectiveness by secondary effect.

1. Ice- slow
2. Fire DoT
3. Tied, Elec -end Energy Knock Back
4. Archery Accuracy buff
5. Assault Rifle not as good Accuracy buff

In summation, to defend archery as on par with the other powersets based on accuracy is foolish, based on the play experience of the community.

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Archery has the highest Accuracy in the game. All powers have an accuracy of 1.16. Ranged shot, the sniper attack, has an accuracy of 1.39.

So that like getting 1 free ACC DO in all Archery powers. Against a target with no defense, thats a 87% chance ToHit.

In comparison, most powers in the game have an accuracy of 1. Most sniper attacks have an accuracy of 1.2. Assault Rifle has an ACC of 1.05 (1.25 for thier sniper attack).

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I'm sorry, but an extra DO worth of accuracy just simply does not offset archery's negatives. Tone down the endurance usage and either give us a secondary affect or up the damage a little, and you might have something here. My archer blaster is currently lvl 30, and every team he's been on to date, he's been the weakest blaster by a large margin. He does the least amount of damage and always has less endurance left than anyone else after a fight.

I suggested to the group of people with whom I regularly play and converse that Rain of Arrows should include an Immobilization of some sort, even if it is minor. *shrugs* I don't think that an Immobilization effect added to the level 32 power would be all that unbalanced. Afterall, it is a DoT, much like Blizzard, and Blizzard gets a Slow. Granted, Blizzard also has a longer recharge timer, but that could easily be remedied...