I really liked the idea of a plate wearing, shield using, stationary defensive archer. I am currently A1->QS1->S2. I wanted to give some positives and negatives as to how I feel about this build so far as well as ask some questions to more seasoned archers.
Positives:
- Quarrel Shooter C1 is pretty good (so far). Everyone says QS1 is useless and every non-AA build should take A2 instead. I disagree. QS1 gives you a decent shield mastery, Caltrops, one of our few STR scaling moves that also has a stun and my favorite ability, Pavise. The only real explanation for going A2 is the crit on swift step, a buff I already forget to have up except for boss fights, and a harder hitting multi-shot.
- Pavise is extremely underrated. The shield drop is a great “get off me” move that can cause bleeding. Also, can be used as an aggro tool to gather a bunch of enemies in one area. The blocking is great, when it works.
- Plate armor is the way to go. The more and more magic mobs you encounter, the more you realize how underwhelming leather evasion is. Honestly, I see most archers going full plate, with few full cloth exceptions, at higher levels.
- One handed bow mastery is nice. Ignoring 25% defense is really useful. Also, shields can provide decent blocking and stats.
- QS + Sapper is a corridor slaying beast. In dungeons where a bunch of ground enemies can be funneled down tunnels, or tight spaces, is where this combo really shines. Caltrops, Pavise, Multishot, Stockages, Broomtrap, Claymore. It feels amazing.
Negatives:
- Although this build is a corridor monster, that situation rarely comes up. Between flying monsters and magic monsters, you rarely can safely stand still as an archer, even with full plate and a shield. Honestly watching other archers play, I feel that an AOE build that avoids damage by running around in circles is WAY more efficient in terms of damage dealt and damage taken.
- Pavise is amazing, when it actually blocks. It doesn’t block magic attacks. It also seems to struggle to block multi-projectile attacks (one monsters shot two bullets at once and Pavise only blocked the first one).
- Sapper can take a lot of SP and silver. Claymore is amazing and has great STR scaling, too bad it cost silver every use. Broom trap and Stockage are great, but to be used consistently is a major SP drain. Once again, other archers seem to be able to deal the same or more damage while spending much less SP.
- Open areas with flying/ranged/magic enemies are a pain in the ass. This build really struggles to clear densely populated areas with flying/ranged/magic enemies. You end of taking unneeded damage while my “run in circles and AOE” counterparts seem to struggle less.
- I have a feeling this build will not scale into later levels. QS and Sapper abilities will seem like a joke compared to Cannoneer C1, resulting in me just running in cicles shooting high CD Can C1 abilities.
Question:
- I am unclear how much Pavise can block? Is it even usable late game?
- Do sapper abilities scale well into late game? Will everything just be outshine by Rank 7 classes?
- It seems by the way the game is designed, QS and Sapper will always be second rate to Fletcher C3/Musketeer/Ranger C3 or any other mobile high AOE damage build. Is this true?
- Is there a point to playing a stationary, plate/shield using trap and defensive archer? Am I just trying to force something to work that isn’t there?
- If this build can scale later, where can I take this build? A1->QS1->S2->??? Is there anything else other than 2 ranks of something followed by Cannoneer?