2 Spotlight posts in such a short time span. Can you tell i'm A)--bored, and B)--have too much free time as of late? Thank God for National Holidays and 4 day weekends. I just might be able to do several of these Spotlights over the course of the next few days.

I decided to go ahead with Spotlight Ranger instead of Samurai for the time being. Reason being because I don't feel comfortable doing the Samurai until I can get some confirmation on what stats/skills--if any-- control the frequency of Lightning Strike. Other than that "minor" nuance, Spotlight Samurai should be forthcoming relatively soon, so don't fret ye Warriors of the Far East.

Anyways, without further delay, I present to you The Ranger--Wizardry 8's long range specialist. Enjoy.

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The Ranger

Over the span of many different RPGs, we've seen Rangers take nearly just as many forms. From the Dual Wielding master found in the DnD inspired games, to the more common woodsman-type found in most others. One thing they all have in common is that they seem to be good with Bows. Stems from the fact that Rangers pride themselves on their tracking and hunting skills, able to live off the fat of the land and thrive WITH nature as opposed to a parasitic type of relationship. Bows are the natural (pun intended) weapon of choice for these fierce hunters. Silent, yet deadly. And wickedly accurate in the right hands.

In this gamer's opinion, Wizardry 8's Rangers are the epitome of what this class should be like . Masters of the Bow (and other long range weaponry), and able to cast "nature" type spells in the Alchemist's Spellbook. Rangers also have very competent melee abilities, able to use pretty much every TYPE of weapon that a Fighter, Lord, or Valkyrie can. They can automatically Scout without having to toggle it on/off, while running, and without being suprised by the enemy. Truely a very versatile class to have around.

So how do we get the most out of our Rangers?

Attributes--

The Ranger needs several Attributes to stay in top-notch form. These stats are Dexterity, Speed, Senses, Intelligence, and Strength. Obviously you can't work on all of them, so which ones are more important? In my opinion--and in my experience with Rangers--the most important Attributes are Dexterity, Speed, Senses, and Strength. The Ranger is primarily a combat-type character, so you want to focus on skills that make him/her better in that area.

--Dexterity--You'll need high Dexterity so that you can be a deadshot with your ranged weapon of choice. The higher the Dexterity, the more often you'll hit and penetrate the enemy's armor/skin, and the more attacks you'll get in combat. Opening up Reflextion isn't all that important to a Ranger, so don't worry about that Personal Skill. No. We're investing in Dexterity for the combat bonuses it provides. Pump 3 points per level-up into Dexterity.

--Senses--Senses falls into the "Most Important Skill For A Ranger" slot. Why invest in Senses? Because it bestows MANY bonuses upon the Ranger that they can use to full effect. For one, high Senses gives bonuses to Initiative. High Initiative is always good for your characters, and the Ranger is no exception. High Initiative means you can attack earlier in combat, thus scoring Critical Kills earlier. Speaking of Critical Kills, Senses contributes heavily to this area for a Ranger. Higher Senses means your Ranged Combat Skill (which controlls the frequency of Critical Kills for a Ranger.....more on that later) will increase faster. Also, Senses helps with raising your Scouting skill faster (more on Scouting later) and makes Scouting better by allowing you to spot hidden items and monsters even further away (bouses from the Senses attribute stack with those of the Scouting skill). And even further, raising Sense to 100 unlocks the Eagle Eye Personal Skill. Eagle Eye--when pumped up--allows the possessor to hit even MORE accurately and penetrate even BETTER with a ranged weapon. Sheesh! All these bonuses from one measly skill? I'm telling you....Senses was MADE for the Ranger. Makes up for the fact that Rangers were so gimped in earlier Wizardry's, huh? Pump 3 points every level up into Senses.

Once Senses and Dexterity are maxed out, you'll want to start dumping 3 points each into Speed and Strength.

Speed helps with Initiative (which--like we've gone over above--is good for every class), Armor Class bonuses, and number of attacks. Unlocking Snake Speed is great, too, but by the time you do, you'll be near the end of the game anyways, so it won't be of much use really.

Strength is important because it gives your Ranger damage bonuses. However, unlike with melee weapons, every point above 50 only grants a 1% bonus to damage with Bows/Crossbows/Slings instead of a 2% bonus like with melee weapons. So, having 100 Strength gives a 50% bonus to damage when using one of these weapons (in contrast, having 100 Strength gives a 100% bonus to damage when using a melee weapon). This is important because arrows/bolts tend to do very low damage. Strength also helps with Carrying Capacity. You'll want to be able to hold a lot of weight with your Ranger since his/her armor, coupled with all that ammo, tends to really add up. Powerstrike (obtained by getting 100 in Strength) is absolutely useless for a Ranger, as it only applies bonuses when attacking with melee weapons (which you won't be doing very often).

Just as a note, Intelligence can be useful because the Ranger can use Alchemist spells. Thus, higher Intelligence means being able to cast spells at higher power levels. Also, higher Intelligence helps with raising Ranged Combat faster. You really shouldn't invest points into this attribute, however, because the other four I mention above are more important. Plus, you can always find that fountain in Trynton which gives you +5 Intelligence, as well as equip your Ranger with a certain Helm that gives +20 Intelligence while equiped.

So that does it with Attributes. Now on to Skills.

Choosing which Skills to raise for a Ranger are easy--Bows, Modern Weapon, Scouting, and Ranged Combat.

--Bows--Like I needed to tell you this. . The Ranger's sole purpose is to take up all those Bows and Crossbows you come across and use them to full effect. Having this skill high grants bonuses to hit, penetrate, and number of attacks when using such weapons, so you see why it's important to keep pumping it up. Dump 3 points per level up into this Skill.

--Scouting--The Ranger is the only character in Wizardry 8 with this skill. What it does is allow you to find hidden items, spot monsters from a distance, and see camoflauge enemies before they can sneek up on you. You'll want to start putting 3 points per level up into this skill until it reaches about 25-30. After that, you can forget about it, as it will be increasing very quickly on it's own through practice, and you'll be getting scouting bonuses from your high Senses, which will help compensate for having a lower score in this skill.

--Ranged Combat--This is the Ranger's Primary Skill, in which he/she recieves a 25% bonus on top of whatever points you've already invested into it. What this skill does is increase your success with any Ranged Weapon (Bows, Crossbows, Modern Weapons, Slings), as well as acts as the controlling factor for Ranged Critical Kills. You'll want this skill very high so you can score those coveted Instant Kills more often. Quite simply, pump 3 points per level up into this skill.

Once you get Scouting up to about 30, start dumping 3 points per level up into Modern Weapon. Why? Blunderbuss. Probably the best ranged weapon in all of Wizardry 8. It does hellacious damage for a ranged weapon (up to 50+ damage per shot), and has a very good bonus to Critical Kill. However, ammo is very scarce, with only one merchant in the entire game selling it in large quantities. You'll want to save your ammo for the tougher battles, so don't waste them on the weaker foes. Keep in mind that NO damage bonuses from high Strength apply when using Modern Weapons.

Now, once you unlock Eagle Eye, start pumping points into it ASAP! This skill is simply WONDERFUL for a Ranger. If you have to, skimp on one of your other skills in order to start beefing this one up. My advice would be to skimp on Bows since it increases very quickly with practice. However, you should have Bows maxed out by the time you unlock Eagle Eye.

You also might want to invest points into the Polearm skill for those rare instances when you completely run out of ammo. You NEVER want ANY of your characters sitting idle during combat. Always give your characters something to fall back on should you run into those situations when you can't rely on their primary abilities. Polearms for a Ranger are great because you'll want to have your Ranger in the back rows. A Polearm in their hands allows them to hit enemys on the front ranks from the back. However, if your Ranger is a Mook, invest in the Sword skill instead. Why Swords? Heh.....if you have to ask that question, you obviously haven't found the AWESOME Giant Sword yet. Not only is this sword pretty damn powerful, but it has a WHOPPING 30% chance to KO an opponent. But wait. It gets better. This sword allows the wielder to attack from extended range!!! That's right--Giant Sword is an extended range Sword that only Mooks can use (well, one other race can use them, too, but I don't want to spoil anything ). Don't invest in either of these skills until you've already maxed out Bows, Modern Weapons, Ranged Combat, and Eagle Eye, though. They're far more important for a Ranger.

Oh yes. There's also a GREAT sword you can find in the game that ONLY Rangers can use. You Wizardry Veterans know which one i'm talking about. :) It's a random item, though, so you DON'T want to build up your Ranger with this in mind. Again--concentrate on ranged weapons. It's what the Ranger excells at.

As far as magic goes, you should only really start pumping level-up points into them once you don't have anything else to work on. Reason is because spells tend to be a hybrid character's way of partaking in ranged combat, and the Ranger already shines very brightly in that area. However, you should still cast spells from time to time with your Ranger so you can practice them up during combat. Some good picks are Heal Wounds, Stamina, Elemental Shield, Itching Skin, and Fire Bomb.

That takes care of Attributes. Now on to which races make the best Rangers.

In my opinion, the best race for a Ranger is the Mook. Not only do they get a good number of starting points to distribute at character creation, but they start with very high Senses and Strength. Speed is VERY low, however, but you shouldn't fret about that since Mooks start with so many extra points to distribute. Just pump a lot of initial points into it at creation to make up for the deficiency. Also, like mentioned before, the Mook is the only other class that can use the awesome Giant Sword. Giant Sword + Bow + Ranged Criticals = One Bad Mutha---shut-cho' mouth! :) .

Another good race to use would be the Elf. Why the Elf, when they have crappy starting attributes? One reason and one reason only--for those of you that have imported your party from Wizardry 7. You know what i'm talking about, right? Yes. The coveted Elven Bow--The only Uber Weapon that carries over upon import. +20% damage, +1 Hit Point Regen, +15 Speed, +5 to Hit, +6 Initiative, and 5% Critical Kill. Definatly one helluva Bow! And only Elves can use it. And only available upon import as far as we know. No one's found it in Wizardry 8 yet. This weapon alone makes Elven Rangers--despite their low starting attributes--all the worthwhile.

And as with most of the combat oriented classes in Wizardry 8, Hobbits make fantastic Rangers, too. They start with great scores in all the important Attributes, and get a hefty 30 extra points for you to work with.

Now some notes on Bows and the various Ammo you find--

One of the things that make Rangers so great (in addition to everything else i've outline above), is that every type of ammo you find can inflict some sort of status ailment on the enemies. Some can drain stamina or magic points, some can cause poison or paralysis, and some even have percentages to Critical Kill. Hell, some of the ammo can do more than one of the above ailments!

Also, some of the more powerful bows and crossbows grant bonuses to damage that stacks with your bonus from having high Strength. Some of these bows even have extra percentages to Critical Kill. Hell, there's even a Crossbow that gives you 2 extra attacks, and one that gives 3! Yikes! Watch out for your Stamina, though. It saps VERY quickly with those suckers. The best thing about these Crossbows is that you can get them pretty early..........if you're lucky enough to have another character class with you. And no, i'm not talking about a Pickpocketer.

One last tip before I go--You should always have a few extra bundles of ammo in your Ranger's personal inventory. Reason is so you don't have to waste a turn having to Equip them with more ammo if they run out during battle. Very simple tip, yet a lot of people overlook this feature.

So there you have it--how to build up an effective Ranger. I think that, given a chance and some patience, as well as following my above advice, you'll find a Ranger a VERY nice addition to any party. Even if you don't like to rely on Ranged Combat (you'll regret it in the late game, trust me ), the Ranger's vast array of weapons they can use coupled with the always-handy Auto-Scout feature make them valued team members. Definatly a GREAT class for Beginner parties, yet hold their own in Expert ones as well.

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There you go. Hope this helps with those of you having trouble building up their Rangers. They truely are a great class to have around. In my first run-through Wizardry 8, my Ranger had the second most kills, right behind my Samurai (my Fighter was in 3rd place). Anyways, enjoy! I'm off to do some more experimenting with the Samurai and getting his Lightning Strike to work more often. I have this itching feeling that it has to do with the amount of weight he/she is carrying......

::casts Cure Lessor Condition on self::

XxBotDxX

Well I knew those mooks had to be good at something. You say that one should regret ranged combat. Well I dont have any range for my rogue or Samurai, so I am wondering what to give them? Oha nd I am assuming the other character is a gadgeteer to merge a doubleshot bow? Oh and did you ever figure out how to get daggers to merge into a doublestrike dagger?

Krag_Gorn

Okay, I'm confused

When not shooting his bow the Ranger uses a Polearm, fair enough, means he's a natural flanker. So just is this "special" sword doing then? (Being a Wiz newbie I don't understand your reference to Wiz7, but does its' name begin with E?). By saying it's "random" I take that to mean it may or may not be in a certain place (chest?) each game. Hmmm, so indeed one shouldn't plan the character to use that, unlike the Avenger in BG2 for instance.

So one's left with the problem: either go polearms for that flanking position or else go swords in the hope. Damn, what to do???

Thanks Atlus for another great problem creator

XxBotDxX

Well if you make a Mook then you can get the giant sword. I have no idea what this other sword is but I have not finished the game yet. Oh I did a quick boscher best race thign for my self and it looks as though the hobbit has a little edge on the mook as it has a little less dex and senses but blows it away with speed. But the mooks do get this sword you are talking about so its really your choice. Those hobbits seem good at everything. Oh I didnt notice this before but your little Shaft joke was rather funny. Well I want to elaborate on my findings for stats when they max
Dex Sen Spd Str
Mook 12 12 30 29
Hobb 13 13 26 30

So as you can see the Mook maxes Dex, Sense and Str faster, but Hobbit gets speed much faster. All in all its preference.

Bochser

>>So as you can see the Mook maxes Dex, Sense and Str faster, but Hobbit gets speed much faster. All in all its preference. <<

Yeah, I had a hard time coming up with the best race for the Ranger also because there are so many close calls and good choices. I ended up choosing Human, followed by I think Mook and Hobbit.

http://www.geocities.com/jandrall/Wizardry8/BR_Ranger1.htm

XxBotDxX

I had forgot you had already done your dissection of the ranger. Even though I cant quite get why you chose human? A Mook maxes everything first and has the same Vit and humans have no resists at all. The lizardman was an interesting find I must say I didnt think about them. I usually take the whoever maxes the first 4 stats first as the fifth stat is usually pretty intangible unless, like you said, you build up for awhile. Oh and one final thing Lizardmen start off with negative points as they have less then 50 intelligence. If I am not mistaken bonus points are dependent on how many points it takes for a race to reach the minimum for that specific class.

Bochser

>>Even though I cant quite get why you chose human?<<

Because for the well rounded Ranger the Human would make the best with their 45 PIE. If you just want to concentrate on the physical stats and ignore their mental stats than the Mook indeed makes the best Ranger.

XxBotDxX

Ok thanks for the clarification I sometimes forget to read the end of your posts and come to my own conclusions. Well I see where you are coming from. So if I want to max physical one level earlier and use a certain Mook sword I go with Mook. If I am willing to wait an extra level I get 20 piety with a human. Thanks again boscher keep up the good work.

Another excellent analysis, Atlus.
My only quibble is that I would definitely pick Mythology over Scouting. By playing the game like a shooter (ie strafing/peeking around corners and such), I usually get the drop on mobs even with a low scout, and most of the found items are fairly trivial, anyway. Myth, OTOH, I find very useful to pump up fast. Knowing what the enemies attck/resistance types are before battle has been a life-saver; and even though this goes up fairly quick on its own, so does scout, and I find it the better of the two to pump.

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The Dominus Digest
http://wiz8.proboards.com

Muffley said--

""Another excellent analysis, Atlus.""

Thanks!

""My only quibble is that I would definitely pick Mythology over Scouting. By playing the game like a shooter (ie strafing/peeking around corners and such), I usually get the drop on mobs even with a low scout, and most of the found items are fairly trivial, anyway. Myth, OTOH, I find very useful to pump up fast. Knowing what the enemies attck/resistance types are before battle has been a life-saver; and even though this goes up fairly quick on its own, so does scout, and I find it the better of the two to pump.""

Really, it all depends on what other classes you have in your team. I find that having one of my other classes (such as Fighter or Bard) focus on Mythology works best since they don't have a whole lot of skills that they need to work on.

And personally, I find all those "fairly trivial" hidden items to be great. Why? To sell, of course! You need all the money you can get in this game if you want to buy all the good stuff. Especially from Farro later in the game. His "uber" equipment costs outrageous amounts of Gold.

And there are some pretty good items you can find only through searching. A few of the Gadgeteer items are hidden, some really good weapons and Misc. items are hidden, and as said before, all those potions, bombs, and dusts can bring in some much needed money when you sell them. Particularly during the beginning of the game.

But to each his/her own, I guess. Scouting is more of a convienence anyways. I always hate having to turn Searching on/off, and remembering to turn it off before I engage an enemy can be a pain. And since you can't search while running........well, you can see why Scouting can be a blessing to lazy folk like me. Granted, Detect Secrets can take care of these problems. But it only lasts for a very short time to be effective, really.

Once you've gone through the game once or twice, though, then yes--I can see why someone would skimp on Scouting with their Ranger. You'd already know where all the good hidden stuff is, so you don't have to worry about spotting them from a distance.

Keep in mind, too, that Scouting helps with spotting camoflauged enemies, and also helps with spotting creatures that may be a far distance away. But since you should be pumping Senses with your Ranger (which does much of the same as Scouting), I can see why one would think this point is moot.

Anyways, thanks for the different perspective. Always good to hear different view points on things. Take care. :)