Chivalry 2allows the player to throw any weapon at an enemy, even their shield. But out of the four classes available in this medieval multiplayer romp, only one of them truly focuses on ranged combat.
Related:Chivalry 2 Agatha Or Mason - Which One Is Stronger?
As the Archer, players will typically be standing back and letting their arrows do the fighting. But as you level and unlock the subclasses for the Archer, you’ll discover that there are some highlights to the class made to perfectly counter not just the enemy classes but even manage against some of your shortcomings.
Longbowman
Longbowman is the starting subclass for the Archer, and while the mouthful of a name makes it sound straightforward, that’s not the entire truth. Longbowman does introduce the player to the bow, a weapon type that comes closest to being unique to a set class. In Chivalry 2 you can pick up any weapon left on the ground, and even random items such as chairs and rocks, but if you try and pick up a bow you will usually find it without any arrows. Not just off of bodies, even bows from a weapon rack tend to only come as a bow, no arrows. Archers however spawn with arrows as they come with the default loadout, an easy way to make them valuable in the eyes of ranged players.
Longbowman Archers do prove their worth as Chivalry 2’s answer tosnipers. Find a safe spot, aim, and fire. Headshots do more damage and earn you more experience points. Considering how rare arrows are outside the Archer class, this is their niche to fill. But, what happens to a cornered Archer? In their secondary weapon slot is a short blade such as a knife, and this secondary is a constant among all the subclasses. While it’s not that fearsome a weapon, a clever Archer can kill their attacker with it if played carefully. Always check your surroundings to see if an enemy has either found you or if they are about to find you because you are best held up in that little spot as a Longbowman and need to be willing to fight to keep that spot. Longbowman doesn’t fair great in situations where the team has to push forward for this reason as well.
The third spot on the default weapons is an item, a spike trap, which is more of a short wall of sticks that may damage an enemy. It is just as likely to be easily destroyed. A better item in the arsenal is the brazier, a special ability where after enough charge, the Longbowman puts down a cauldron of fire that they can use to light their arrows. Enemies hit with these arrows will be set ablaze, a great help while working from the safe shadows.
Crossbowman
At level 4 you will unlock the next subclass, the Crossbowman. The obvious upgrade is from the longbow to the crossbow, a weapon that while slower to reload and requires the Archer to stand in place as they do so, hits hard. Even that said, if you can get into the rhythm you will be able to reliably send bolt after bolt into the enemy forces and drop them like flies. The item slot is now a different blockade called a Pavise Shield, which the game itself says is meant as a wall to hide behind for reloading. What’s a bigger change up is that the brazier is replaced with a banner, an item that once activated will heal teammates within distance until destroyed.
Given the nature of the group-healing ability, the Crossbowman makes an interesting subclass considering what an Archer would theoretically entail. As Longbowman showcased, an Archer should be in their natural habitat by staying far back and taking the time to pick off the herd. But the Crossbowman somehow manages to be an oxymoron, it works best as a close-range sniper. Surround yourself with teammates as you reload and shoot as many bolts as you can, because between your bolts and their groundwork you can topple incoming enemies. You will even reward your team with constant health. A Longbowman should stay in the rafters, but a Crossbowman only needs to hang out in the back.
RELATED:Best First-Person Shooter Maps
Skirmisher
Skirmisher breaks the on-the-nose naming convention of the previous subclasses, which is an indicator of just how different this final subclass is. Unlocked at level 7, the Skirmisher does away with arrows entirely. Skirmisher Archers are, simply put, not Archers at all. They’re javelin throwers. The default primary is a javelin or throwing axe with a shield in the left hand. This does mean that the primary weapon for an Archer finally allows them to defend and parry as the bow and crossbow cannot block, but the idea is still to throw the weapon.
Skirmisher’s abilities back this up as after a set time, the Skirmisher can use the quiver ability to instantly gain back all ammo without needing to find a supply. Considering you still have the same secondary weapon as the other subclasses, do not be afraid to hurl your primary weapon at far-away enemies. If you run out of javelins, you’ll still have a knife. Your other ability is interesting, in that you have a charge. Both the Crossbowman and the Longbowman have a passive ability that lets them use stamina to hold down on an aim, but Skirmisher instead has a passive ability where after running a short distance togain momentumyou can do a charging leap. If this connects with an enemy it does high damage.
The Skirmisher is very left-field as the final subclass. Instead of making a balanced sniper, the Skirmisher Archer feels more like an attempt to make something akin to the Knight class while not removing the ranged weapons aspect of the Archer class.
