Let's talk about ranged

[Tgo01]

So bows. Not crossbows, but bows.

I know they made a lot of changes a couple of years ago so I gots some questions I couldn't get answers from on the Wiki.

Does Strength/509 still effectively add 15 strength bonus and does Phoen's Strength/606 still effectively add 10 strength bonus?

So a dwarf ranger with 50 strength would have +10 strength bonus from racial, +15 from 509, and +10 from Phoen's Strength for a total of +35 strength bonus right off the bat?

Another question: if said dwarf ranger were using a long bow to aim at the eyes, this would have a base RT 8 seconds (7 from longbow + 1 for aiming), and with +50 strength bonus this could be brought down to 3 seconds?

Final question! Do most critters have less DS against ranged than melee weapons? I know parry defense is ignored in ranged DS (except for when using a runestaff), but evade DS is +50% and DS from blocking depends on shield size and could end up being higher. So to me this means if the critter is in offensive stance they would probably have slightly more DS because I think you get 0 parry DS in offensive stance anyways, but the critter would have +50% evade DS, which I know evade DS is lower in offensive stance but it's still more than 0, and if they are using a tower shield this seems like the critter would have more DS in offensive stance against ranged, but less DS in defensive stance, so it would be easier to hit critters who are turtling.

Am I wrong about any of the above?

[Malvadere]

Haven't played in a while but when I did, "The Art of the Bow" by Nuadjha kis'Anthri, aka the Briar Fox, was extremely useful.

https://gswiki.play.net/Art_of_the_Bow_(guide)

[Tgo01]

Haven't played in a while but when I did, "The Art of the Bow" by Nuadjha kis'Anthri, aka the Briar Fox, was extremely useful.

https://gswiki.play.net/Art_of_the_Bow_(guide)

Looks like it was updated after the changes too so I'm assuming the information is up to date. Awesome.

[Orthin]

Don’t forget 612 also helps you for archery.

[Tgo01]

Don’t forget 612 also helps you for archery.

Oh yeah. Thank ya.

[Tgo01]

Also what's the deal with blunt arrow tips?

Unbalance damage type is nice for the knockdowns, but if you aim for the legs with slash/puncture damage types you'll pretty much get the same knockdown rates anyways.

I guess unbalance is nice in cast you miss the legs then you still have a pretty good chance of knocking the enemy down. Does anyone use blunt arrows as a disabler? Or just go straight for the eye?

[Maerit]

Also what's the deal with blunt arrow tips?

Unbalance damage type is nice for the knockdowns, but if you aim for the legs with slash/puncture damage types you'll pretty much get the same knockdown rates anyways.

I guess unbalance is nice in cast you miss the legs then you still have a pretty good chance of knocking the enemy down. Does anyone use blunt arrows as a disabler? Or just go straight for the eye?

Use em with volley. Get a mechanical longbow, unlocked for net flares, fletch some blunt tipped arrows w/ grapple razor, weapon volley, disable everything.

[Tgo01]

Use em with volley. Get a mechanical longbow, unlocked for net flares, fletch some blunt tipped arrows w/ grapple razor, weapon volley, disable everything.

That sounds cray cray. But also awesome.

[gilchristr]

I would expect that unbalance damage is only a good option for when you are not aiming

So if you had an mstrike built maybe it would be a good choice. Otherwise, like you said, aim for the legs if you want a knockdown (you cant aim with mstrike of course)

[Tgo01]

I would expect that unbalance damage is only a good option for when you are not aiming

So if you had an mstrike built maybe it would be a good choice. Otherwise, like you said, aim for the legs if you want a knockdown (you cant aim with mstrike of course)

That's a good point.

[Dendum]

Blunt tips can play havoc with some creatures for some reason...I know if the rift they just flat out wouldn't work on one of the lower level creatures. It made me stop using them.

Though I didn't have a compartmental quiver at the time and a tier 2 really helps with changing between arrow types on the fly.

[Drazaan]

Does Strength/509 still effectively add 15 strength bonus and does Phoen's Strength/606 still effectively add 10 strength bonus?

Yes, both still add phantom strength bonus when it comes to reducing ranged RT.



Final question! Do most critters have less DS against ranged than melee weapons? I know parry defense is ignored in ranged DS (except for when using a runestaff), but evade DS is +50% and DS from blocking depends on shield size and could end up being higher. So to me this means if the critter is in offensive stance they would probably have slightly more DS because I think you get 0 parry DS in offensive stance anyways, but the critter would have +50% evade DS, which I know evade DS is lower in offensive stance but it's still more than 0, and if they are using a tower shield this seems like the critter would have more DS in offensive stance against ranged, but less DS in defensive stance, so it would be easier to hit critters who are turtling.

Typically, creature ranged DS is lower than their melee DS. And beyond this I am mostly out of my depth as to answering specifics, but I can add a small piece of information. Evade DS is lower against ranged, thrown, and bolt magic as compared to melee Evade DS all other factors being the same.

Makes sense to me: it's harder to evade an arrow in flight than a swinging greatsword.

[Tgo01]

Evade DS is lower against ranged, thrown, and bolt magic as compared to melee Evade DS all other factors being the same.

Makes sense to me: it's harder to evade an arrow in flight than a swinging greatsword.

This was my thought process too, but from what I read on the wiki it says evade DS is +50% better against ranged weapons compared to melee weapons, but that parry DS is ignored completely against ranged weapons (unless using a runestaff.) I wasn't sure if I was just misunderstanding what was being said on the wiki.

It also said that large shields and tower shields provide more block DS against ranged compared to melee.

I think I read one time that critters are trained in skills at something like .5x their level, so even with +50% evade DS I would think overall they would have lower DS in defensive stance if their parry DS is ignored. Unless the critter also has a tower shield or a runestaff I suppose.