Archer possible?
Hello,
For zergs, I’m afraid that the longbow is not a very good weapon, but let’s give it a try anyway. What follows only apply to zergs, for other contexts (such as roaming) we’d use other builds.
About the weapons:
- We use a longbow of course, and will do our best to maximize its potential. We equip it with a Sigil of Battle for the might, and a Sigil of Fire for the AoE damage. Doing so, we keep in mind that we want a reasonable critical chance to proc it regularly.
- For the alternate set, we use a sword and a warhorn. You’ll play as a caster, so you’ll need some mobility. These are not used for damage, but rather to position yourself quickly in the most appropriate spots, or to effectively escape the reach of caster killers. We put a Sigil of Energy on the warhorn, and a Sigil of Hydromancy on the sword.
About the traits:
- We need to (painfully?) invest 20 points in Tactics for the longbow (IV, X). On the bright side, you’ll be able to do Arcing Arrow every 8 seconds.
- We go 30 points in Discipline, in order to get Burst Mastery, so that you can maximize the usage of Combustive Shot. You’ll be fighting zergs with buffed opponents, so “Destruction of the Empowered” is pretty much a requirement. And for the last one, take what you want. As you have a warhorn, you already have swiftness and vigor. Since you’ll be killing a lot (if your zerg is effective), then maybe “Thrill of the Kill” would be decent.
- For the last 20 points, we go in Defense, to get Cleansing Ire, always good for condition management, and Cull the Weak, to improve your damage (as your opponents will most likely regularly have weakness).
About the skills:
- We take Healing Surge, to refill the adrenaline. If you find out that you always have enough adrenaline in fights, then switch to the Healing Signet.
- We take Balanced Stance to gain a break-stun and stability (in case you get drawn into a fight, so that you can move out safely), Berserker’s Stance for the adrenaline and the condition resistance (to mitigate both damaging and movement-restraining conditions), and Fear Me to push caster killers away.
- As for the elite, use what you want.
About the gear: the longbow is an hybrid weapon, inflicting physical and condition damage. In zergs, though, condition damage can be cleansed quickly, because some classes specifically trait for that. So we’ll be focusing more on physical damage, yet trying to put a bit of condition damage for lone targets:
- We take berserker weapons and trinkets,
- We go for a Rampager Armor, which we improve with Elementalist Runes, giving Power, Condition Damage, Burning Duration Increase (good for your longbow) and Chill Duration Increase (good for your Sigil of Hydrmancy). If you eventually find yourself too glassy, then consider using Knight Armor instead.
As an archer, you’ll be behaving like a caster. Not going into melee, but rather finding good spots around the enemy to unleash your arrows. If someone want to engage you in melee, run away, using your mobility – that’s your role here.
HTH.