Archer

Weak and ineffective in melee combat, the archer is best suited in the role of ranged support, or simply as a deadly marksman, felling his foes before they even reach him. The deadly precision of their arrows is almost uncanny and will prove the death of those enemies who are not prepared to face them. In numbers their threat only grows, able to turn your dearest minions into bloodied pin-cushions. If engaged in melee however, archers are not particularly hardy and your creatures will overwhelm them quickly, so always keep your tactics in mind. Keeping cover between the archer and his target will prove a beneficial strategy to close the distance and flank their ranks.

The arrows of the archer cause piercing damage, which will often ignore armor if it lands a direct hit and cause significant damage to most creatures, with more trained archers capable of landing critical hits by targeting vital organs. Some creatures, such as trolls who have thicker hides, are capable of diminishing the harm that comes from piercing damage, but it wont stave off death forever. Those who have gone beyond death's doors however, the Undead, recieve massively reduced damage from all piercing weapons due to either an absent need for their organs or even the complete lack of them.

In short, the archer is a deadly opponent, especially when highly skilled, so while most creatures can survive a few arrows, tactics and cunning will keep the final lethal projectile from them.

Lore
Archers have always been a necessity for any larger scale conflict, with their undeniably useful ability to thin out enemy numbers before battle is even fully joined. While humanity has employed these soldiers since longer than anyone can remember, the Kingdom's archers are a breed unlike any of those who have come before. In humanity's distant past, before the Great War, all the kingdoms who eventually fell to the wrath of the Lords employed archers, but these were merely soldiers given some basic training and sent to hone their craft in battle.

During the Great War many armies fell before the Lords and soldiers often scattered and fled through the wilderness, but among them one group of archers stayed together, for loyalty to their king and disdain for the Netherlords. Cut off from their brethren and trapped behind enemy lines, these archers had to learn to survive in enemy territory and keep out of sight of the dark things that lurked there. Over time they became increasingly good at this and began effectively hunting the enemy from within the shadows of their own territories, skulking in woods and swamps. They began sabotaging the military efforts of the Lords, but this quickly earned the ire of the great ones and the group of archers was soon hunted in their own turn. The forces of the Netherlords discovered and nearly crushed the regiment, but a few stragglers survived and escaped enemy territory, returning to their King after a long and perilous journey. Recognising both the sacrifice and incredibly useful skills of these brave and stalwart souls, the King issued a training regiment. Due to the increasing severity of the war effort, only the best among the kingdom's archers were trained in these ways, but after the War's end this training regiment slowly became standard for all would-be archers in the Kingdom's employ. Skilled in survival, stealth and deadly marksmanship, this new breed of archers has replaced the soldiers of old and their effectiveness and versatility cannot be questioned.