Best missile weapons for various classes and NPC's?

Nerva

I always assumed bows were the best, but I am curious if people have "run the numbers" for different classes, given their limitations. Are there classes that do better with crossbows than bows, for example? Is there any reason to give darts to Imoen?

ryuken87

I suspect crossbows may come out last in terms of damage because they have low apr and get no str bonus. I haven't kept track of which missile weapons now get a str bonus in the EE but I think daggers do, and since they also have 2 base apr, they might end up winning.

jackjack

Throwing daggers do not get a strength bonus, which irks me to no end.

Nerva

I was wondering if crossbows have an advantage for warriors, since they get additional attacks, so higher damage per attack at some point is better than an extra base attack per round. But I haven't run the numbers.

The other reason I wonder is I see Sarevok has two-handed-sword and heavy crossbow as proficiencies, and he's the ultimate NPC fighter, so I was wondering if the game developers did that for a reason.

Corvino

Now that slings get strength damage bonuses they can be very interesting indeed. It suddenly makes quite a bit of sense to give Aerie or Viconia some strength-boosting gear even if they're staying at range.

I think thrown daggers may well get a strength bonus in EE but can't test it while stranded away from my PC. If this is the case then the Firetooth dagger becomes a good candidate for highest-damage ranged weapon for a high strength character. With 2 base attacks, strength bonus, elemental damage and the same base damage as a bastard sword +3 it is formidible.

artyom

i gave korgan some throwing axe+3 and he seems to be more useful due to constant high damage.

question. Do throwing weapons recieve like a penalty when in melee range?

[Deleted User]

There are a few broad categories you can look at when considering ranged options:

1: Archers and Kensai (PC only)

These classes are notable because they get significant attack and damage bonuses on top of extra attacks from being a warrior class and having access to grandmastery. The best weapon for an Archer is the Tuigan Bow, though this involves carrying around a significant quantity of arrows +3 from ToB on (or having Gesen as an alternative weapon). For Kensai, you're looking at the Fire Tooth dagger, as even without adding the strength bonus its extra attacks mean it outperforms K'logarath (the best thrown weapon) by a comfortable margin.

2: Warriors

Fighters (including multiclass), Rangers, Paladins get extra attacks but minor damage bonuses. The best ranged weapons are fairly even across the board for these guys, with average damages being within a few points of each other. With good (19+) strength, though, the Erinne Sling (or the Sling of Arvoreen) takes the top spot. If there's so much demand for slings that you're down to the Sling of Everard, branch out into thrown axes (or hammers if you're a Dwarf), which are at about the same level. Firetooth (the crossbow), Gesen, and Fire Tooth will outperform thrown weapons unless strength is very high (22+), but you may want to reserve these weapons for characters who are lower priority for strength boosters, since they are strength independent.

3: Everyone else

The main consideration here is what weapons the character is allowed to use. Most classes can use Slings and will get the best results out of them if their strength is high. Without high strength, though, Tuigan, Gesen, and Fire Tooth take the top spots thanks to their high APR. The trick is, you've only got one Fire Tooth, and Thieves and Bards are the only classes in this category that can use bows. Clerics are stuck with slings (luckily they have the strength boosts to get good effect out of them), with Druids, Mages, and Monks adding Daggers and Darts,. Boost strength and use slings where you can, and use Fire Tooth, Crimson Dart, and the Boomerang Dagger (in that order) where you can't.

As you can see, ultimately the "best missile weapon" has to give way to practical considerations of who you have in your party and what they can use. There are, sadly, only so many great slings and strength boosters in the game.