Level 33 Archer - Hybridized for Strategus and fun

[WITCHCRAFT]

I enjoy playing an archer most of the time. Sometimes a strategus army will have poor equipment for an archer, sometimes the map on the battle server doesn't have a lot of good spots for archers. Sometimes, I just get bored of pew pew and want to keep myself from getting too rusty at melee combat. For these purposes, I am trying to create a hybrid archer that is built mainly for archery but can switch to 1H or polearms when necessity or boredom require it. Here's my plan:

Level: 33
Strength: 18
Agility: 24

8 skill points converted to stat points

Power Draw: 6
Power Strike: 6
Athletics: 6
Weapon Master: 8

One Handed WPF: 100
Polearm WPF: 100
Archery WPF: 140

I am aware that 1h with no shield is underpowered, but I like a little challenge. I also carry a 1H with me when I use my bow. I've done fine with 120 and 130 archery wpf on level 31 builds before. What I'm wondering is if anyone else has tried a build like this before - what is your opinion of it? Is there a noticeable speed difference between 18 AGI/6 Athletics and 24 AGI / 6 athletics? What weapon speed is "too slow" with 100 polearm wpf? I'd guess low 90s but I'm not really sure.

[oohillac]

Build looks solid, 140 is a good amount of Archery (as long as you wear light gear), and anything above 50 is fine for melee.  You may notice frequent breakage/repairs at 100, and perhaps a slight damage loss.  Again, keep the gear light if you're duelling.

Also remember that polearms will block your archery crosshairs, might not be viable to carry a backup polearm.  You'd have to pick one or the other each spawn.

Overall it could work, but you'll have trouble fighting dedicated players:  Archers will have more accuracy and/or hitpoints, and melee will be faster and/or stronger.

[WITCHCRAFT]

I don't plan on carry a polearm with me when I play as an archer. I just like being able switch from cloth archer to a long bardiche and mail when I want to mix things up. I don't have much trouble with enemy archers, because I use a loomed Bow or Yumi. I can outfire them any day of the week, but I lose the ability to make accurate long distance shots.

Melee is harder against dedicated infantry, but playing with a mild handicap is good reason for me to improve my skills! Having no shield skill has really helped me get better at manual blocking already. The close combat in M&B is too fun and challenging to miss out on because "I'm an archer".

[oohillac]

Fun > Maximum effectiveness!  It's why I play hoplites.

[Smoothrich]

You sacrifice a lot for 1 WM.  Why not do 18/21 with maxed IF and ATH (your build is 0 IF, 6 ATH) and drop your least used melee WPF to ~85?

[WITCHCRAFT]

What's the speed difference between 21 AGI / 7 Athletics and 24 AGI / 6 athletics? I can feel the difference in speed between 75 and 100 wpf, but I've never played a build that didn't have maxed out Athletics before.

I am veering towards higher Weapons Master because higher WPF decreases repair cost and supposedly helps to prevent glancing blows in melee.

edit: weapon master increases in value exponentially as you level it up. Level 7 to 8 gives more WPF than 6 to 7 does. If you are splitting your skills between multiple proficiencies, I feel like really high weapon mastery would help a lot. But I've never done this kind of build before! That' why I'm asking!

[Taser]

While I definitely support swashbuckling, for strat I wouldn't recommend it. Either go shielder or go polearm. Shielder would use up too much points for shield even with the bare min of 3 shield skill so just do polearms/archery. Plus you get more wpf to split between the two rather than spreading it over 3 weapon proficiencies.

Something like this (which is what you have but with more wpf in archery and no wpf in 1h)

(click to show/hide)

Level 33 (35 569 612 xp)

    Strength: 18
    Agility: 24

    Skills to attributes: 8

    Power Strike: 6
    Athletics: 6
    Power Draw: 6
    Weapon Master: 8

    Polearm: 101
    Archery: 160

If you're set on this, then it looks good the way it is although I agree with Smooth on bumping up wpf on whichever melee proficiency you use more rather than splitting it evenly.

[Tennenoth]

I've bugger all idea how you'd have 101 polearms.

I'm a level 34 hybrid archer, 161 archery, 95 2 handed.

18/24 6PD, 6PS, 8ath, 8wm, 1if.

Just so you can get a nice idea!

[Gravoth_iii]

Fun > Maximum effectiveness!  It's why I play hoplites.

But why is hoplite so much fun? One direction attack and no manual blocking.. It is both fun and pretty much maximum effectiveness..

[Taser]

I've bugger all idea how you'd have 101 polearms.

I'm a level 34 hybrid archer, 161 archery, 95 2 handed.

18/24 6PD, 6PS, 8ath, 8wm, 1if.

Just so you can get a nice idea!

Maybe the extra point you have in archery would make up the difference? Since it costs so much to get to 161 from 160.

But I used the crpg calculator and that's the wpf it gave me.

[Tennenoth]

Maybe the extra point you have in archery would make up the difference? Since it costs so much to get to 161 from 160.

But I used the crpg calculator and that's the wpf it gave me.

No it doesn't, I could have gotten three (3) more 2 handed skill but 98 two handed wpf looked less aesthetic than 161. 

[Taser]

No it doesn't, I could have gotten three (3) more 2 handed skill but 98 two handed wpf looked less aesthetic than 161. 

Ok then. The calculator does admit it can be off on wpf so that apparently is what happened here. And yeah 161 archery wpf would be worth it over 98 2h wpf. Not like it does that much for you with the 2h and archery.. you need all the wpf you can get.

[WITCHCRAFT]

I was messing around with the calc and tried splitting my WPF differently.

I could do:
One Handed: 75
Polearm: 129
Archery: 130

or One Handed: 75
Polearm: 100
Archery: 150

Right now I have 75 1H/75 polearm. I am able to use 1H as backup with archery, and 90+ speed polearms are useable as a main weapon. I will probably pump my archery up.

[Lennu]

I'd say put ~150 points in archery and the rest into ONE melee type  

For max effectiveness I'd take 2handed because of the cheap and good 1slot weapons they have. And for strat the cheapest yet effective weapons are 2handed low tier axes.

For fun I'd choose 1handers because they are way more fun to play with, and most of the 1handed swords will outreach the 1slot-2handers.

1slot polearms suck really badly in my opinion, so I'd stay away from them.

[Dach]

Actually most polearm do block line of sight but not all, funny thing is the most efficient and cheapest one, the long bardiche, doesnt block line of sight at all! 

And lennu you never tried to staffmaster quarterstaff! 

Btw hybrid rock!

(Cav,polearm,xbow hybrid here  )