It's been a long time since i've run a Ranger or Gadgeteer, seems like last time i made Tripleshot Crossbows, but i don't remember whether the Eagle Eye was better than 3X.
In fact, would, say, Ninjas and Samurais with 3X outhurt Rangers with EE?
Or is EE the reason to have Rangers at all?

Eagle Eye is a nice bow, but really how often by the endgame is your Ranger killing enemies with damage? More arrows means more chances for criticals, and if your shooting 6-12 arrows per round, your going to have a fairly high chance of scoring a hit. The only drawback is the amount of ammo you will fire off.

I have to assume that Rangers' crits aren't (mis-)handled
like the melee skill, but i didn't think it would indeed be worth having. Does it make the Ranger a lot more deadly than other flingers? Considering that most of the deadliest melee weapons can be wielded by Rangers, and they can Alchemize, too, i'm surprised so few talk of them as being favorites. I've also noticed that chars who develop Crit and then change class keep on getting crits. Does a Ranger who's been a Ninja for 5 levels have to wait another 4 to learn new spells/get skill increases? If not, that'd make a lovely class-changer: Practise Stealth and Crit & get Alch cranked up then get the sharpshooter thing going---even though Crit is wimpier than i'd think it should be, it is fun to remove an entire Hogar with one splat!
Then you have to have Engineering. I don't really want to add a Gad to the group with the Ranger. How high is Madras' Eng? Too bad there's nothing like the Viola d'Amore for a Gad. You can crank Music up really fast, at the same time getting practise for your Rest/Stamina casters. I once thought you could use Lava Lamp in the same way as Hypnotic Lure, but that was incidental to actual existence of a mob. I thought it would be cool to get Eng. points by building the toys that have recurring parts, sorta like Alchemists' mixing, but i didn't get any results.

[ 06-14-2002, 10:51 PM: Message edited by: otter ]

I actually disagree avenstar -- my triplexbow ranger does a HUGE amount of damage. Even with hunter quarrels, you hit for around 20 damage with a HUGE number of arrows. Forget about crits - he kills stuff with DAMAGE so fast that melee often doesn't get a chance to engage!

The only reason to use Eagle Eyes is if you're poor (unlikely, with alchemy). 40% damage PALES in comparison to a whole TWO extra attacks.

(Note: 20 damage is with STR maxed; i have no idea why people suggest you max dex/senses before str for archers. My archers hit stuff just fine by pumping ranged combat and bow -- I want my stats to give me DAMAGE)

[ 06-15-2002, 07:50 PM: Message edited by: Dorkus ]

hey dorkus - which do you go for 1st then with str? dex or senses?

3 str, 2 dex, 1 sense. Depending on items, I may adjust that. Regardless, I would definitely go ahead and max str first, even though power strike is close to pointless. The 50% bonus to damage is INVALUABLE, particularly when you're getting that bonus on three (or 4) arrows per attack.

Getting eagle eyes later in the game is no problem. First, because your to hit is fine without. Second, because it improves VERY quickly. Third, because you have a ton of skill points you need to spend on other things to make an effective ranger (in particular, spells!). So even if you got eagle eyes earlier, you're better off letting it sit and improving your spell skills. (even if you have the patience to sit and cast knock over and over, your other realms will lag w/o skill points).

Unfortunately, the critical skill you take over from the ninja will not help you when shooting, only in melee.
And since you get many shoots with a ranger, you want him to shoot even in melee.

In my last party, my ranger had the most kills in the end, more than samurai or bishop. And i often used plain bolts, since he used them up that fast with his tripleshot xbow.

I'd stick with the Triple X-Bow. If you pump up dex, you should be able to get enough attacks to make it worth it. Besides, towards the end of the game, getting items through PP and gold isn't really an issue. It also depends on how you want to roleplay him. I'd go with triple-shot though

I actually preferred using the eagle eye..but I had a mook who supported with his giant's sword..a combo that I really liked.

Reason I didn't like the 3x is the huge drain on the stamina....my ranger would go unconscious and then get pummelled.

But...that was also my first game-one in which I was really learning a lot. Might change my tune next game where I'll try a ranger again.

So, one more question: Do you have to be a Ranger to enjoy the sleek feel of a 3Xx-bow between your appendiges? Or , more politely: Who all gets to use Tripleshot Crossbows anyway?