Archers Overpowered?

[overgoat]

Since most of my deaths came from archers I decided if I can't beat them I should join them. It is easily my most powerful character to date. I haven't beaten the game yet with this character, but I don't think it will be too long. He coasted through the early game with some challenges, but when I recently found a good unique bow the game became almost too easy. The bow in question has about +60% physical damage and while using Aim my archer consistantly does 2000+ damage to everything. He cleared the ambush with four shots (volley, scattershot, pierce, and a steady shot).

I'm not sure what would be a good fix would be, but perhaps lowering bow damage some and changing bow speeds to be 100% by default and the quick ones 80%? While using percise strikes and Aim my shots are still in the 80% usually with quick bows and only about 120% with slower bows.

[Canderel]

I find the archer monsters overpowered... and well, a bow like that sounds like it's a god sent --- BUT that is an issue with the items rather than the archer itself. Bow Egos are not many, so chances of getting stacking physical on a bow is much bigger than on any other weapon.

The ambush are one of the toughest fights in the game (in fact it's meant that you die there... horribly...)

[greycat]

One of the weaknesses of archers (ranged characters in general) should be that they run out of ammo at some point. Giving them infinite ammo really changes the way they play. And it means you can't possibly run a monster out of ammo and then bash it on the head. Those SMAs in the Rain of Death vault can just keep shooting you forever.

[bricks]

The fundamental issue with archers is balancing players against NPCs. Player archers need to be roughly as powerful as melee fighters (slightly less so, perhaps) to deal with the huge number of enemies that any class will face. NPCs just need to do any sort of damage to b a threat to the player; instead, they get damage outputs near a player's without any of the disadvantages of melee. For example, skeleton master archers, perhaps the most deadly archer mob, get incredible strength, dexterity, bow mastery, accuracy, ego'ed bows and arrows, and utility/crowd-control talents, so any attempt to rebalance ranged attacking will require a reappraisal of the desired differences between players and NPCs.

The attack speed is another issue. From what I've heard, it's an attempt to make kiting possible for players. Instead I think it makes standing in one spot and rapid-firing arrows the more efficient strategy. The problems with this come through when a skeleton master archer with slime arrows and a bow of great speed hits you three times in one turn.

[Atarlost]

There's the item problem, but the biggest problem to me seems to be pinning shot.

I can go bow to bow with skeleton archers as a temporal warden with good regen infusions and a +30% heal mod. An archer could probably do the same. Maybe an archmage with the aegis tree and multiple shield runes.

What I can't do is accomplish anything at all while pinned at range with a melee build.

[bricks]

Pinning shot will potentially be less of an issue in the next version (easier to find wild infusions that remove pinning; duration reduction via saves). Though honestly I'd prefer longer pinning, lower damage, and diminishing returns on the pinning effect. Fights feel a little too short in ToME.

[Final Master]

I've regularly seen launchers posted in chat with attack speed of 20% or 40% [randarts ofcourse]. Along with that, many launchers also are linked that have anywhere from 20-65!% +physical damage.