When positioned correctly and protected, archers can quickly become the most effective units in your army in Mount & Blade II:Bannerlord. Should an enemy not have a strong shield, they would be helpless against a barrage of arrows.
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Archers benefit from high ground, and some units are able to fire at a great range. Archers also need to be protected as their melee abilities quickly fall off. Strong archer units are key to defending a castle or city, and with the right units, they can defeat an army ten times their size.
10Imperial Sergeant Crossbowman
The Empire has access to both crossbow and regular bow archer units. While their archer units are powerful, it’s hard to beat the damage and the range of a crossbow. Like many Empire units, these crossbowmen come fairly well-armored for an archer unit.
Crossbows tend to also be incredibly accurate, as is the one used by these units. They also come with a fairly decent shield, making them solid in combat should the enemy reach their line.
9Chosen Wolf
The Chosen Wolf is the final upgrade of the Young Wolf unit. These units are a minor faction and are not always easy to come by as they need to be recruited from prisoners. After being recruited, it is relatively easy to get them to their final rank, as it would only take two upgrades.
The Chosen Wolf has beyond-average bow skills and a decent spear and shield to use in close combat. With their abilities, it always makes sense to recruit them should you find any Wolf units after a battle.
8Veteran Forester
The Veteran Forester is another minor faction unit you’ll need to obtain by fighting and then recruiting. While these minor faction units are harder to obtain, they tend to have cheaper wages than other high-tier units, making collecting them very cost-effective should you find them.
The Veteran Forester is similar to the Chosen Wolf except for their slightly stronger armor. Archer lines often suffer from being shot at; having a few higher armor units will help your line outlast the other.
7Strugian Veteran Bowman
The Strugian Veteran Bowman has incredibly high bow skill. These units can single-handedly carry a Strugian army and come equipped with solid armor and a fairly accurate bow.
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Should the enemy reach them, they have only decent one-handed skills but a strong longsword to make up for it. Their short bow does help them in closer range and to fire faster than longbows or crossbows.
6Khuzait Marksman
The Khuzait dominatedthe early days of the alpha with Bannerlord’s PC release. What really helped them stand out was their mostly mounted armies and their Recurved Bows. The Khuzait Marksman has not only this bow but also a decent bow skill to use it incredibly efficiently.
The smaller compact bow allows for very fast firing at a closer range. For those willing to march their archer line closer to the enemy, they will find not many targets left standing after, with the few remaining ones turning to run.
5Imperial Palatine Guard
The Imperial Palatine Guard is the superior option for Empire archer units. These units have stronger armor, and while their bow is slightly less accurate, it can fire faster. The faster firing makes up for the lower damage compared to the crossbow.
These units do suffer from only having one quiver of arrows, meaning they will run out much faster than other archer units. Despite the lack of arrows, they are effective in melee combat, with a strong one-handed sword and skills to use it.
4Battanian Fian
The Battanians are most known for their archer units. These Fians have very high bow skill and a long bow to utilize. With this long bow, they are given a longer range than your average archers, and their skill and bow are still deadly even at a longer range.
While the Fians are viable in melee combat, having a strong infantry line to protect them with is a must. Having that infantry line prioritize with spears will protect against cavalry, while these Fians cut down any infantry troops approaching.
3Aserai Master Archer
The Aserai master archer comes equipped with a recurve bow, allowing for very fast firing at medium to close range. With the Aserai mostly fighting battles in desert terrain, this is the perfect archer for flat land firing on charging enemies.
They have exceptional bow ability and can be decent fighters in hand-to-hand combat. The arrows they have also provide slightly higher than usual damage for each hit.
2Battanian Fian Champion
The Battanian Fian Champion takes everything that is great with the regular Fian and turns it up to 11. These troops have the highest bow stat in the game, more than double that of other top-tier archer units.
These Champions alone keep the Battanian empire relevant as their other unit types quickly fall off. These Fian Champions are able to fire incredibly fast over a long range with dangerous accuracy. Even if the enemy has shields, the Fians will wear them down and break the shield exposing the targets behind them.
1Valandian Sharpshooter
While these Sharpshooters may not have as high of skill as the Fian Champions, their crossbows are unmatchable by a bow. Yes, they have a slower reload speed, but the Valandian Sharpshooters have the longest range of any archer and a crossbow with near-pinpoint accuracy.
These units will start wearing down the enemy from almost half a map away with even the slightest bit of elevation. They also come equipped with a powerful shield and sword, making them exceptional in melee combat for an archer unit.
