Ranged Combat usefull, other than for pulling?

[Llars]

<DIV>This is mainly for the high-level Brigands.  Mine is 20 and I'm wondering if I should attempt to increas my ranged skill.  All I have atm is Strangling Shot.  When it lands the damage isn't bad at all, but my ranged skill is low so it misses a lot.  Has anyone actually put in the effort to increase their ranged skill and seen if it was usefull?</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Also, does the ammo quality have any effects on teh skill increase rate?</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> </DIV>

[Zerim]

<DIV>I was never really certain till I started using poisons and damage parsers.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>While soloing at level 37, using Maddening Shot in conjunction with a poison proc can do 250-300 points of damage in the first volley before the mob gets to you.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>So yes, as a rule its good to maintain your Range skill as well as any other melee/damage producing skill.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>In EQ live changes and updates to the game (a year or two) later, produced weapons that were previously unavailable that used skills few people thought were useful to maintain. So to avoid playing the catch up game late in your character's life, I would maintain all of your skills.</DIV>

[ag]

Personally I just use it for pulling. That's why I use a longbow, as it's the only (that I'm aware of) 37m range weapon in the game. I'm often suprised to find Fighters with no ranged weapon of any kind, even at level 35. However, the poison+opening-ranged-CA trick does work, and I have used it on and off.You can use ranged combat on greys with a grey bow, grey ammo, and still get skill-ups.

[Llars]

<DIV>Sounds like good advice.  Thanks for the insight guys  <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /></DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>-A</DIV><p>Message Edited by Llars on <span class=date_text>01-28-2005</span> <span class=time_text>12:27 PM</span>

[Kegofbud]

<DIV>I use my bow to pull quite often when mobs are close togther. I also use it if I get low on health and have to avoid a hit or two. Just snare the mob and run backwards using ranged and Maddening Shot. Do that with some grays to get your skill up. I've kept my skill in ranged maxed since the beginning so it hasn't been a problem. Using Maddening Shot my poison seems to proc very often on the pull. Does very nice damage. The skill goes up fairly quickly. Just grab yourself a bow and use it every time you pull. I'm always shocked when tanks have no ranged weapon and they relay solely on taunts from a distance.</DIV>

[Joos]

<DIV>Yeah, I don't know if this is an exploit, I came accross it by accident - I accidently pulled 2 mobs and it was obvious I couldn't handle both of them so I just kept running backwards shooting one of them with arrows, eventually one of them was low enough on health I could stop and kill both of them.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>It did take a few arrows and some time to get the one mobs health down, the whole time I was thinking I hope i don't get in trouble for kitting <img src="/smilies/8a80c6485cd926be453217d59a84a888.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /></DIV>

[Efour EQ2]

<DIV>Bows can do some very nice damage with poison procs and weapon procs like the SSoY.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>300+150+150+96+72 if you are lucky.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>and yeah you can kite and snare something to death it just takes alot of arrows and along time.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> <DIV>dont neglect it </DIV> <DIV> </DIV></DIV>

[Nelion]

<DIV>Me and a friend... Rogue 17 and Predator 17, kited Ohrgran Foulgore, a named orc in The Commonlands, using only bows and poison.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>He's a blue con and two arrows up ^ ^ to us both... so I was certain he'd pancake us, but we tried anyhow... Combination of Strangling Shots and whichever eqvivialent skill Predators get, as well as poisons and using Snares when we could, we kited him with little to no problem.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>First time I killed a blue ^ ^ mob without having a healer in the group, but hey, she got the kill she needed, and we were both an experience richer when it comes to duo'ing ")</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>We both employed Longbows with 37m range and 7 sec delay ")</DIV>

[Gyilok]

<DIV>I mostly use it for pulling, but sometimes when I don't have a group I can solo green or blue ^^ mobs with bow+poisons+slowing the mob, made some coins of kregnoks axes this way <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />, always needs lots of cheap arrows though</DIV>

[Azr]

<DIV>As  brigand, I snare/bow kited Ohgaran (solo) from 16 to 19, he turned gray at 20. In my 20s I snare/bow kited paddlefoot routinely. In my upper 20s and low 30s I bow kited Kragnog many, many times as well as the 2 named giants in Nekt with semi success. In my upper 30s I can bow kite just aboout any double up non linked group yellow. Just use cheap arrows and long distence HOs.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Oh, yeah you can pull with a bow too ).</DIV><p>Message Edited by Azrom on <span class=date_text>01-31-2005</span> <span class=time_text>08:38 AM</span>