Description[]
The archer in Stronghold Crusader 2 retains his fast speed and high rate of fire. He is however not the cheapest ranged unit at the player's disposal, as he has a larger nominal recruitment value. Due to the abundant variety of unarmored units, archers are a staple in the castle's defense along with Arabian bowmen.
Usage[]
The first long-distance fighting unit in the game, as well as the one you will probably be using the most. The cost of recruitment of an Archer is relatively low and those units are splendid against lightly armored enemies - sending them on the walls / towers will give your enemies a really hard time to burst through your defenses.
There are two flaws of Archers - the first one is that they are extremely ineffective in melee combat and most of units (even Conscripts and Slaves) can easily kill them if they manage to get close enough. The other thing is their low damage against heavily armored targets - they have problems with every unit equipped with any armor. Fortunately, they make up for that flaw with their incredible firing range - excluding some of the siege equipment, there's no unit in the game that can outrange them.
Additionally, Archers (like Arabian Archers and Rangers) have a special ability called Volley. It allows them to fire upon a specified area until the order is canceled. What is important about that ability, is the fact that they are able to shoot at places normally beyond their reach, like behind walls - in normal scenario their arrows would just hit the wall. It's not the most accurate and dangerous attack in the game, but it certainly may come in handy.
Compared to the crossbowman, the archer is no match in terms of utility and recruitment price, however he still requires fewer equipment to recruit and he has a little higher range. The ranger can be considered an advanced version of the archer, who has slower speed but better performance in melee combat.
Archers require a free peasant from the campfire and 1 bow with a sum of 12 gold to recruit.
[]
| Stronghold Crusader 2 Units | |
|---|---|
| Barracks | Conscript • Man-at-arms • Archer • Ranger • Crossbowman • Maceman • Pikeman • Swordsman • Templar knight • Sergeant-at-arms |
| Mercenary Post | Slave • Arabian bowman • Horse archer • Oil pot thrower • Arabian swordsman • Assassin • Slave driver • Healer • Whirling Dervish • Sassanid knight |
| Siege Camp | War wolf • Mantlet • Catapult • Trebuchet • Burning cart • Fire ballista • Battering ram • War wagon Mangonel • Ballista • Haybale launcher |