Archery: Why aren't more complaining
Michael Ball
I basically think archery is useless now (i.e. from the archery *fix* patch).
I never said anything before but this is too much. I realize it was a response
to every PK'er using bows to mow everyone down. But, sheesh.
As a long time archer, I think archery is hosed. I have numerous times sat
there and watched my arrows pile up around monsters *miss* *miss* *miss*
*miss* *hit*. I hit probably 1 in 3 and then do little damage. Like everything
in UO, OSI goes off the deep end when they fix anything. Arhcery is almost
useless now. Also, the delay when firing the first arrow is ridiculous.
I only use it because I spent a year getting my ranger good with the bow and I
am not about to switch to the weapon flavour of the day. (Sorry, I don't
macro).
So , OSI, when implementing your 'blue PK' solution, think of archery, too
much and it ruins a good thing.
Lilith
Frank Williamson
I use a good bow, and haven't noticed any curtailment.. yet in the
excitement of battle with the Ophidians (or the last miner ore-theif we
wacked named Nikon) ..it was fairly hectic.
Even with 'just' a GM lite crossbow damage doesn't seem to be 'down'
.. it still runs a lil over 20hp per hit, occasionally rockin the target for
near 50. (it is a die roll after all)
Archery 100 (on most days, although lately it's been 99.8 and .9 .. gotta
spar a blade again, with a few healers :)
-Oot
Dundee
wrote:
>I have noticed the Heavy X-Bow is almost useless. It takes too
>long to get a shot off. An Orc Mage can wipe you out before
>you ever get off the second shot.
Orc Mages are nearly nekkid. I use a bow on them (and orcs) and use a
heavy on things that have a very high AR - like wyverns, dragons,
drakes, the tougher flavors of Ophidians, etc. I kill them more
quickly (and cheaply) with a heavy xbow than with a bow.
But versus players, yeeep, heavy xbows are worthless.
>All of the misses also seem to come together. This can get
>your character killed very fast. :(
That wonderful UO randomizer.
>The PK problem could have been resolved by taking away some
>of the damage in PvP,
It could have been largely resolved by fixing the "sparring with no
arrows" bug.
>I have really enjoyed my Archer from the beginning, and I sure
>miss her now. :(
I absolutely love having both archery and swordsmanship, and switching
around depending on what I'm fighting.
Dundee * Lake Superior * SkeptAck AT antisocial DOT com
uo stuff: http://dundee.uong.com
The Town of Skara Brae on LS: http:/members.xoom.com/skara/
Scott Morton
wrote:
>hmmm.. I hadn't noticed hardly any difference at all, and I too am a
>long time archer. It's far from useless--I spend all kinds of time
>hunting Ophidians... works for me...
>Sorry that the days of the three shot kill are gone, but that's how it
>goes.
Well the 20 minute wait you have to endure after equipping the bow is
pretty damned annoying. And heavy crossbows are now effectively
useless.
jx...@po.cwru.edu
>
> As a long time archer, I think archery is hosed. I have numerous times sat
> there and watched my arrows pile up around monsters *miss* *miss* *miss*
> *miss* *hit*. I hit probably 1 in 3 and then do little damage. Like everything
> in UO, OSI goes off the deep end when they fix anything. Arhcery is almost
> useless now.
I highly disagree. On my first character(created 10 months ago) with
both archery and swords, I *miss* just as often with my sword as with my
bow. As for damage per hit, bows still do more damage per hit than most
melee weapons.....which is balanced by the longer firing times.
>Also, the delay when firing the first arrow is ridiculous.
if the delay didn't exist, a heavy xbow could hit as many times within a
certain timeframe as, say, a viking sword, just by quickly arming and
disarming....and considering how much damage they do per bolt, that
would be a *very* bad thing.
-Smedley, Summoner of Daemons
Xigam
wrote:
I have noticed that i miss a small bit more...
But the arm/disarm delay is VERY ANNOYING.. it's too long a delay.
- Xigam
Reece hardy
miss and 5th level poison as well, So I can only guess your refering to PvP
combat. Archers are no longer "untouchable" as they once were which I consider a
godsend, but they are far from inneffective. Drop by the abyss and start up and
archer (archery,tac,anatomy,resist,magery) and you will kick butt. (when it
get's real hectic - only a pure mage can survive -but the abyss is definately no
a "real" situation.
Jaew/Iridium
Michael Ball wrote:
>
> This was from another thread, but I thought I would vent some more.
>
> I basically think archery is useless now (i.e. from the archery *fix* patch).
> I never said anything before but this is too much. I realize it was a response
> to every PK'er using bows to mow everyone down. But, sheesh.
>
> As a long time archer, I think archery is hosed. I have numerous times sat
> there and watched my arrows pile up around monsters *miss* *miss* *miss*
> *miss* *hit*. I hit probably 1 in 3 and then do little damage. Like everything
> in UO, OSI goes off the deep end when they fix anything. Arhcery is almost
Jeff Gentry
: There are a whole stack of monsters you just "can't" melee with - they never
: miss and 5th level poison as well, So I can only guess your refering to PvP
: get's real hectic - only a pure mage can survive -but the abyss is definately: a "real" situation.
I think you hit the nail on the head.
Archery doesn't "suck" except compared to its former self. It's
"balanced" now. It used to be - i'd blow my mana pool, and whip out
my bow - and no one could touch me unless they were *real* fast or also
archers.
Now I get hit ... a lot. But at least the ranged weapon effect keeps
me from being turned into total mincemeat without any armour on.
but .. it seems fairly balanced to me.
LD
Scott Morton
wrote:
>On Tue, 23 Feb 1999 21:14:15 GMT, spmo...@pathcom.com (Scott Morton)
>set down his beer, belched, wiped the drool from his chin and blurted:
>Well, I hadn't even really noticed what you describe as a 20 minute
>wait, and crossbows have been pretty useless for a long time.....
It's not so bad if you wander around with the bow equipped but god
help you if you have to take it off to quaff a potion or cast a spell.
Dundee
>Archery doesn't "suck" except compared to its former self. It's
>"balanced" now. It used to be - i'd blow my mana pool, and whip out
>my bow - and no one could touch me unless they were *real* fast or also
>archers.
That's sort of what I keep thinking. Everyone's dumping archery for
fencing and telling me that I should do the same. But... eh...
archery still seems fine to me.
***
-Dundee
Michael Ball
>hmmm.. I hadn't noticed hardly any difference at all, and I too am a
You really haven't noticed the delay when equipping and the amount of misses?
Hmmm...
>long time archer. It's far from useless--I spend all kinds of time
Well, it is not useless, it just is very, very annoying. It has its place
(sometimes) in PvM, but after watching a small forest pile up of arrows, I
usually switch to my axe and kill the monster in about a 10th of the time.
And, my archery skill is 10 higher than my sword skill. sheesh.
>hunting Ophidians... works for me...
>Sorry that the days of the three shot kill are gone, but that's how it
>goes.
I did not mind attempting to curb PvP and the 3 shot kill, but did they have
to go this far. Plus I cannot drink a potion while a bow is equipped (can you
do this whith a one-handed sword?). Therefore I must de-equip and drink and
then re-equip and then *wait 30 secs* and start firing. By the time I start
firing, I have to drink another potion. :)
Against spell casters (players and monsters) this is certain death. Magic
users do have it very nice that they have their hands free and be able to
cast and drink potions. Maybe they *should* have to equip a spell book after a
certain level of spell use so that they are also hindered by the
hands-not-free problem.
Don't get me wrong, I still like archery and was very annoyed when it became
the PK weapon of choice, but I think OSI went too far. The reason I liked
archery as a lone ranger, it allows me to kill from a distance without getting
injured. Now this tactic just takes about 5 minutes longer.
Lilith
Michael Ball
>
>Well the 20 minute wait you have to endure after equipping the bow is
>pretty damned annoying. And heavy crossbows are now effectively
>useless.
Is this delay for all weapons, or just ranged weapons? It is very annoying. A
damn ettin walked off the screen while I was waiting to fire.
Lilith
Michael Ball
>On Tue, 23 Feb 1999 19:01:04 GMT, bd...@XXXXncf.ca (Michael Ball)
>wrote:
>
>long to get a shot off. An Orc Mage can wipe you out before
>you ever get off the second shot.
Yes indeed. You need to fight these beasts with magic. Equipping and
de-equipping can get you killed.
>I have noticed more misses with my GM (100) Archer
>with 98.1 in tactics and 70 Dex..
>All of the misses also seem to come together. This can get
>your character killed very fast. :(
The other day I shot at a troll and I swear, 20 arrows piled around his feet
with only 1 -2 hits. It was embarassing. I lightening bolted him to death
instead. :)
>I have had an Archer from Oct. of 97, through ALL of the
>Archery changes. IMO there HAS been something done to
>archery that has made it much less useful.
I agree. just change the delays and misses a *bit*. It just needs to be
tweaked a *little* <-read OSI don't overhaul completely. Also, spell casters
do get an unfair advantage of casting and drinking potions without equipping
and de-equipping.
>I have almost stopped using my Archer when I plan to go into
>any kind of dangerous situation because of this. :(
Me too. Melee all the way. Maybe I will macro up Kryrss. (just kidding :)
>I HAVE posted about it before, and many others agreed with
>me at the time.
I am late to the newsgroup (although I have beenplaying since Jan 1998). It is
too bad I missed you thread.
>The PK problem could have been resolved by taking away some
>of the damage in PvP, but not change anything in the PvM combat.
>This could be justified with <blocking> and AR. It would not be
>an unreasonable way to go, and also give back the Bow to the
>people that just hunt monsters.
Thats me, Lilith "arrow-monster-killer-but
switching-to-magic-to-drink-potions"
>I have really enjoyed my Archer from the beginning, and I sure
>miss her now. :(
I too am debating whether to let archery drop. I would really miss this.
Lilith
Michael Ball
>There are a whole stack of monsters you just "can't" melee with - they never
>miss and 5th level poison as well, So I can only guess your refering to PvP
> a
>godsend, but they are far from inneffective. Drop by the abyss and start up
I do not partake in PvP (unless attacked). My archery is with a bow (I never
liked the look of a x-bow - too ugly). Yes, I agree that it is useful in some
combat situations against certain monsters (especially those annoying
poisoning ones - yuck!). So I may have been a little strong in saying "almost
useless". How about "less useful than before but still quite useless in the
bigger scheme of things and magic users have an unfair advantage of not having
to de-equip to drink potions but still more useful than getting poisoned kind
of uselessness" :)
I don't mind that no-one uses archery very much (I rarely see any archers
anymore), but that is because of the game mechanics. I don't think I would
start with an archer with the way the rules are now. Magic is the way to go as
a ranged combat weapon.
Lilith
Michael Ball
wrote:
>Reece hardy (r.h...@mailbox.uq.edu.au) wrote:
>: There are a whole stack of monsters you just "can't" melee with - they never
>: miss and 5th level poison as well, So I can only guess your refering to PvP
>: combat. Archers are no longer "untouchable" as they once were which I
> start up : archer (archery,tac,anatomy,resist,magery) and you will kick butt.
> (when it
>: get's real hectic - only a pure mage can survive -but the abyss is
> definately: a "real" situation.
>"balanced" now. It used to be - i'd blow my mana pool, and whip out
>my bow - and no one could touch me unless they were *real* fast or also
>archers.
>me from being turned into total mincemeat without any armour on.
>but .. it seems fairly balanced to me.
And here is the biggest problem of UO - PvP and PvM. I do PvM. A only do PvP
when attacked by some PK jerk. So the game sloshes back in forth in mechanics
to curtail PvP overbalance and it hurts PvM. To stop the insane x-bows of
death that fire every second they: slowed down rates of fire, slowed down the
initial shot, can't drink potions while equipped and reduced damage. All to
prevent the "Ubar-PK-bow-machines". Now I watch monsters walk away through a
pick-up-sticks forest of missed arrows. I think they went too far. Could OSI
not have implemented *one* solution at a time, instead of overkill.
*slosh* *slosh* *slosh*
I would watch out magic users - you're next!
*slosh* *slosh* *slosh*
Lilith (ducks from the swinging pendulum).
Michael Ball
<3355660A39F042D2.D89EF9BC...@library-proxy.airnews.
net>, Dun...@SPAMSPAMSPAM.COM (Dundee) wrote:
>That's sort of what I keep thinking. Everyone's dumping archery for
>fencing and telling me that I should do the same. But... eh...
>archery still seems fine to me.
I think everyone is dumping everything for magic - oh, wait, they already
have. :)
Lilith
jx...@po.cwru.edu
As far as I can tell, all weapons have a delay before the first swing,
depending on the weapon's swing time.
-Smedley, Summoner of Daemons
Chi-Ho Lam
wrote:
>In article <36d519f3...@news.pathcom.com>, spmo...@pathcom.com (Scott
>Morton) wrote:
>>
>>Well the 20 minute wait you have to endure after equipping the bow is
>>pretty damned annoying. And heavy crossbows are now effectively
>>useless.
>
>Is this delay for all weapons, or just ranged weapons? It is very annoying. A
>damn ettin walked off the screen while I was waiting to fire.
All weapons, it's damned annoying, I used to walk around with no
weapons, so if attacked by a group of pks I could recall straight
away. Now I have to run around equiped with a sword/hally so I don't
have to wait ages before my first swing.
Damned annoying. Especially since, I favour carrying a Hally, a
katana, a bow and an xbow and *used* to choose a favoured weapon
depending on what I was killing .
I used to soften up the tougher monsters with xbow/bow (maybe with
magic first)) then waded in with my Hally. Now I can't do that.
That's annoying.
Chi-Ho
(Mord-Sith)
Chesapeake
Scott Morton
wrote:
>In article <36d519f3...@news.pathcom.com>, spmo...@pathcom.com (Scott
>Morton) wrote:
>>
>>Well the 20 minute wait you have to endure after equipping the bow is
>>pretty damned annoying. And heavy crossbows are now effectively
>>useless.
>
>Is this delay for all weapons, or just ranged weapons? It is very annoying. A
>damn ettin walked off the screen while I was waiting to fire.
>
>Lilith
I don't know. My sword using character never takes off his weapon
under _any_ conditions. :)
Lord Queso
>
>I would watch out magic users - you're next!
The problem is not magery. It is still the tank mages that are the problem.
(Sorry Magnus, but it had to be said). The pure mage is at best balanced with
everyone else and at worst worthless.
The Respectable Queso, 100% Pure Moonglow Master Mage (Atlantic)
"Deal with it. Blue PKs are generally cowardly, antisocial, and childish, and
they need to take their medicine." -DD
Matt Darrah
wrote:
>>Is this delay for all weapons, or just ranged weapons? It is very annoying. A
>>damn ettin walked off the screen while I was waiting to fire.
>
>All weapons, it's damned annoying, I used to walk around with no
I dont know about most other weapons but spears and kryss' don't take
any delay to swing. My fencer carried a spear and a kryss around all
day today, switching off between the two depending on what I was
fighting. Sometimes I'd get the weapons equiped just an instant
before the monster/beast was on me and I'd start right in with my
lightning-fast swings.
Is it linked to Dex at all? My fencer does have 100 Dex and fencing
weapons are generally the fastest.
Matt
Don't bother replying by e-mail. No human eyes will see it.
David Veal
> Now I watch monsters walk away through a pick-up-sticks forest of
> missed arrows. I think they went too far. Could OSI not have
> implemented *one* solution at a time, instead of overkill.
The hit calculation for archery is the same as the one used for
melee, isn't it? I primarily play a melee character, and it seems to me
that archers rock in PvM combat because the monsters are so stupid and
they don't have to stand next to them. Sure, the weapon speed is slow,
but archers get the same damage bonuses meleers do, and that whole
distance advantage.
Sometimes I feel like I couldn't hit the broad side of a barn,
either.
--
David Veal lv...@user.icx.net