Staff

[Ninja]

So, why get I a staff when I choose: archery?
Is it useful to fight with a staff and a bow?
I always prefer a sword...

 

[Æsir]

A good point. I sword would make more sense. Maybe to make things kind of even. So the Archer does not get a good close combat and ranged weapon.

 

[Ninja]

Yeah.
And there is another point, Robin Hood often fought with a staff and with a bow, maybe the staff is the symbol of an archer. 

 

[MrMohawk]

I quite like it 

Lets you use couched lance 

 

[Ninja]

And it can be used to knock enemies on the ground. 

 

[Dryvus]

I quite like it 

Lets you use couched lance 

If you're successfully using a 130 reach polearm for couching, and not being frustrated to insanity, I salute you.

 

[Adorno]

No, it's just because staves are ****ty weapons.

Archers get ****ty melee weapons because they get a bow as well.

That's it.

 

[Seff]

No, it's just because staves are ****ty weapons.

Archers get ****ty melee weapons because they get a bow as well.

That's it.

The Staff can be quite effective, it is a blunt weapon after all.

 

[Pode]

OK, I gotta chime in here.  Plain staves are low enough damage as to be pretty poor, I'll admit.  But an iron staff is a fine all-around weapon.  140 reach makes it a passable lance (although admittedly more demanding than dedicated lances), but more importantly gives it better melee reach than any other weapon (at least that I can think of from memory).  Blunt damage not only knocks folks out, but is doubled against armor, so the 22 base damage becomes 44.  Only the Great Ax at 45 can beat that in melee.  If you want to trade some of that damage for a shield, you can still use the staff one handed, although you're limited to thrust attacks.  It gives you three weapon styles for the price of one proficiency, which allows you to quickly become frighteningly good with all three styles.  Finally, it gives you a weapon for all three melee styles for a single weapon slot, leaving you enugh slots to carry a shield or an extra bag of ammo along with your bow.  A high end staff is a fine melee choice, for a horse archer especially.

 

[Dryvus]

OK, I gotta chime in here.  Plain staves are low enough damage as to be pretty poor, I'll admit.  But an iron staff is a fine all-around weapon.  140 reach makes it a passable lance (although admittedly more demanding than dedicated lances), but more importantly gives it better melee reach than any other weapon (at least that I can think of from memory).  Blunt damage not only knocks folks out, but is doubled against armor, so the 22 base damage becomes 44.  Only the Great Ax at 45 can beat that in melee.  If you want to trade some of that damage for a shield, you can still use the staff one handed, although you're limited to thrust attacks.  It gives you three weapon styles for the price of one proficiency, which allows you to quickly become frighteningly good with all three styles.  Finally, it gives you a weapon for all three melee styles for a single weapon slot, leaving you enugh slots to carry a shield or an extra bag of ammo along with your bow.  A high end staff is a fine melee choice, for a horse archer especially.

Isn't it that the damage reduction given by armour is halved? So that a more proper example would be that a +20 piece of armour only acts as a +10 when struck with a blunt weapon?

 

[Pode]

I'd seen it described as doing double damage against armor, which as you astutely observe, is not the same thing at all as reducing the effectiveness of armor by half.  One more thing to put in my list of things to be clarified in the manual, unless someone knows a definitive (preferably code based) answer.

 

[Aethelred]

I always found the staff an odd choice as a starting weapon - I think you get it for being an unknown adventurer rather than simply an archer. Not sure what you get as a noble's son/daughter and an archer. But, eh, think of the staff as an unstrung bow that you use to hit people with...

I'd think a hatchet or hand axe would be a more appropriate weapon for an archer.

 

[Gabeed]

Very true. The only reason I don't use iron staves is out of principle.

Same.  You just look ridiculous wielding one.

 

[jik]

Actually, I think the reason for the staff is that Archers were often woodsmen.  Like "Robin Hood" and his men.  It could also be that in the beging you cannot afford to buy weapons and that the staff and bow are 'home made'.  But I have to agree with the logic of having a good ranged weapon and a below average meele weapon.

 

[Solikos]

Staff seems pretty decent for an archer in my opinion, especially if you are starting off as "Unknown Adventurer," since you'd probably be using some broken tree branch that you carved down.  Staffs are also versatile.

 

[Æsir]

Is it just me or we all saying the same thing over and over?

 

[Solikos]

Is it just me or we all saying the same thing over and over?

I probably did - Didn't take the time to read most of the other posts.

On that note, I have an idea - maybe it's a Robin Hood deal. 

 

[Æsir]

Maybe, but I have a new idea.

Maybe its so they have crappy close combat weapons and are like robin hood.

 

[Solikos]

Maybe, but I have a new idea.

Maybe its so they have crappy close combat weapons and are like robin hood.

Where do you get your inspiration... 

 

[Æsir]

I don't know....