Ranger (Archer)/Cleric - what's the point?
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So I thought the idea of making an Archer/Cleric sounded interesting, so I rolled one, only to find out that after you retain the stats/features of both classes, you are still unable to use bows, so what is the actual point of even offering this combination, seeing how bows in particular, rather than missile weapons in general, are the strong point of choosing an Archer?
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it still seems silly, since archers particularly are designed to focus around using bows, which when dualed with a cleric, cannot happen. Seems like wasted potential and that you'd be better off just doing a regular Ranger/Cleric build.
Perhaps , but it's still a functional class and archer bonuses apply to slings as well, so an Archer 9/Cleric 10 will gain +3 attack and damage to slings. If the same character, with strength 18/50 and dexterity 18 , specialized in slings, equipped with a simple sling+2 and bullets+2 he will have a total of +10 to attack and +10 to damage.
So in the end I must disagree , how can +3 attack and damage be a waste for a character who is meant to stay in the back and shoot? After all, a kitless ranger/cleric may have another role in the group, such as wearing heavy armor and dual wielding .
Stay in the back and shoot in party perhaps, but I'm talking about solo play, so it really comes down to, what is more important - the +atk you get using slings (assuming you have a high enough str to really capitalize on it) or the extra armor choices you get with vanilla ranger?
The archer class has pretty good stealth by level 9 and using only leather armour gives more of a motivation to use it too. I think that could help in a solo run if used properly...
Regardless of their starting strength, an archer/cleric can eventually get very high strength by using Draw Upon Holy Might and/or Righteous Magic. The combination of those two will likely get even a non-min-maxed archer/cleric to 25 strength.
you quoted me, but didn't actually address the main point of my words, lol. If you are playing solo, you can't just "stay in the back and shoot," whether you have 25 str. or not and if you can get your str that high, why not just take the stronger armor and the bonus 2-weapon fighting perks, and do melee?
I just feel that if you can't use the bow and get it to grandmaster, which is a main perk of the kit, you're just left with a poor man's archer. I mean at that point, by definition, you're not even an archer.
The benefits of having a slinging archer/cleric have been mentioned, yes you can’t use bows but it makes slings much more powerful. If you are slinging from the back, leather armour is fine. And you can heal very well.
The archer cleric can be pretty vicious as others have said. If you're playing solo you will either be doing lots of stealth, hiding behind summons or using movement & sniping tactics. In the 1st and third instances there's not that much difference between the APR with sling or bow as you will be tend to be moving between shots anyhow. Total damage from a sling is very competitive with that from a bow - the amount done depends on tactics, equipment and levels so you can't easily generalize, but it's not necessarily the case that a bow does more overall despite the difference in weapon proficiency.
If you prefer playing more as a tank, then the standard ranger would be a better fit for you due to their ability to wear plate armor.
The point is to offer choice to the player, that doesn't mean the player have to make that choice because it exist. IWD/BG isn't PoE, not all character classes and/or combinations are equally balanced and/or suited for solo and you should be aware of this already I assume because you are indeed playing solo.
Archer/cleric has it's perks as already expertly described above, however is nothing I personally would ever use for anything but a flavor character.