Archer (Long War)

   Archer

MEC variant of the Rocketeer class. A super charged grenadier, with the ability to throw grenades over very large distances. This MEC is the closest thing that XCOM has to artillery support.

Primary Weapon: MEC Primary Weapons

Secondary Weapon: MEC Secondary Weapon Systems

Class-Limited items: MEC Equipment items

Abilities

Rank	Ability
Specialist	Bombard Bombard Throw or launch grenades over exceptionally long distances (+50%).
	No other bonuses.
Lance Corporal	HEAT Warheads HEAT Warheads Your rockets and grenades do an additional 50% damage to robotic enemies after damage reduction is assessed.	Automated Threat Assessment Automated Threat Assessment Confers 0.5 DR (50% chance to absorb one point of damage) at all times, and confers +15 defense when in overwatch until the unit takes an overwatch shot.	Platform Stability Platform Stability Shots taken before any costly actions have +10 Aim and +10% critical chance. Also grants +10 aim for purposes of reducing scatter if the soldier has not moved this turn, and increases range of Blaster Launcher (which does not scatter).
	No other bonuses.	+2 Will.	No other bonuses.
Corporal	Repair Servos Repair Servos Repairs up to 50% of damage taken (max 2 per turn). Value on icon represents repairs remaining at 2 points per hp. Additional damage taken before repairs are complete reduces how much can be repaired from prior hits by 50%.	Advanced Fire Control Advanced Fire Control Shots from Overwatch no longer suffer any Aim penalty.	Mayhem Mayhem Confers +2 damage for suppression, SAWs, LMGs, explosive grenades, proximity mines and rocket launchers. Confers +4 damage for sniper and long rifles, marksman's, strike and reflex rifles using Standard Shot or Precision Shot.
	No other bonuses.	+2 Aim.	No other bonuses.
Sergeant	Ranger Ranger Confers +1 damage with primary weapons, rocket launchers, MEC secondary weapons and sidearms. Negates the long-range accuracy penalty with sidearms when shooting beyond 14 meters.	Reactive Targeting Sensors Reactive Targeting Sensors Unit gets a free shot back at the first enemy who attacks the MEC each turn, provided there's enough ammo to do so.	Sapper Sapper Increases grenade and proximity mine damage by +1. Also triples damage to the environment.
	No other bonuses.	+2 Aim, +2 Will.	No other bonuses.
Tech Sergeant	Vital Point Targeting Vital Point Targeting Confers 2 bonus damage with primary guns, and +1 damage with sidearms, against humans and alien targets whose species have been autopsied.	Packmaster Packmaster Limited-use small items (including those from perks) receive 1 additional use.	Collateral Damage Collateral Damage Area of effect attack that destroys most cover and hits all eligible targets for 1/3rd damage. Unlike most abilities, damage increasing items and perks also only apply 1/3rd damage (note: HEAT and flak cannot be reduced below +2 damage though). This attack cannot critically hit. Shredder ammo and holo-targeting are NOT applied.
	No other bonuses.	No other bonuses.	No other bonuses.
Gunnery Sergeant	Danger Zone Danger Zone Increases area of effect of Suppression, rockets, grenade launchers and proximity mine launchers.	Double Tap Double Tap Allows a second action restricted to Standard Shot, Precision Shot, or Disabling Shot as long as the first action was a Standard Shot, Precision Shot, Disabling Shot, or Flush provided no costly actions were taken. 1 turn cooldown. (Note: Double Tap is cancelled in the following cases: (1) the first shot results in a kill, and no more enemies are visible to the unit, or (2) for gunners only, the first shot depletes the ammo.)	Damage Control Damage Control When this unit takes damage, all further damage will be reduced by 1 or 2 points (1.5 DR) for the next 2 turns.
	No other bonuses.	No other bonuses.	+3 Aim.
Master Sergeant	Grenadier Grenadier Allows 2 destructive grenades in a single inventory slot, and the soldier may throw grenades 20 percent further.	Tandem Warheads Tandem Warheads Explosives employed by this soldier do full damage to the maximum extent of their area of effect.	Absorption Fields Absorption Fields Reduces most incoming damage to this unit, scaling up as damage increases. Specifically: reduces 40% of any damage taken after 2; after all other damage reduction has been applied.
	No other bonuses.	No other bonuses.	-1 Mobility.

Stat Progression

Rank	/ Level			Total
			*			*
Specialist	1	2	2(-3)	1	2	2(-3)
Lance Corporal	0	2	2(-3)	1	4	4(-6)
Corporal	0	2	2(-3)	1	6	6(-9)
Sergeant	1	2	2(-3)	2	8	8(-12)
Tech Sergeant	0	2	2(-3)	2	10	10(-15)
Gunnery Sergeant	0	2	2(-3)	2	12	12(-18)
Master Sergeant	1	2	2(-3)	3	14	14(-21)

• Note that, even without Hidden Potential turned on, there is a chance of gaining 1 extra will per level (shown in parentheses above).

Tactical Advice

Intended Role: Long-range Offensive/Defensive Support

The Archer is used to bombard enemies from afar with deadly and highly precise grenade throws. Its role is very much the same as the Rocketeer with the exception of it not needing a high aim for its grenades to hit at the expense of a somewhat lower maximum damage. Note some of these talents may affect proximity mines as well as grenades even though they are not listed in the description. This needs confirmation.

The Archer could be called a mobile artillery unit. It is very good at dealing high splash damage over long distances with pinpoint accuracy , or flushing out enemies from fortified cover while being able to defend itself somewhat decently. It will, however, need the support of other units, or it will be destroyed rather quickly. Archers are ideal for supporting soldiers during EXALT-related operations, as they can even the odds (considering XCOM is usually outnumbered 3:1 or more) by denying cover to EXALT's forces, weakening them for followup shots and forcing them to reposition.

With a rather low HP progression and a bit of a lack of defensive perks, an Archer MEC should generally be kept out of the line of fire. However, its starting perk Bombard makes up for its poor front-line potential.

The Archer has one role which it does very well, but it has the perks to fill in other roles should the need arise. However, if you do not intend to use the Archer as a walking artillery piece, then it might not be the MEC you should get. If you want a MEC specialized in grenade launchers and destroying cover but with a bit more flexibility outside that role, look to the Shogun, which lacks the Archer's range but has a few other advantages to balance it out.

Remember to get the Alien Grenades Foundry project ASAP when using Archers, as it also significantly improves the firepower of the MEC Grenade Launcher.

Sample Builds

Mobile Artillery

Perk progression
-	Lance Corporal	Corporal	Sergeant	Tech Sergeant	Gunnery Sergeant	Master Sergeant
Perk by tier	HEAT Warheads HEAT Warheads	Mayhem Mayhem	Sapper Sapper	Packmaster Packmaster	Danger Zone Danger Zone	Tandem Warheads Tandem Warheads
Build Overview
Stat Boosts	N/A
Strengths	absolutely devastating long range explosives
Weaknesses	little use outside of explosives which are limited in supply, somewhat vulnerable
Preferred battle sites	All
Most common Loadout	grenades and/or mines, Tactical Sensors, Battle Computer, Holo-Targeter
Power Ranks	CPL and MSG for damage, TSG for explosive supply
Description	This glass cannon MEC unit should stay in the rear of the squad while lobbing explosives at the enemy from faraway. Mines from this MEC deal absolutely hilarious damage, but require support such as Flush or grenades to activate immediately. Grenades on the other hand are more reliable, but sacrifice significant damage and charge availability. A Mec-4 or Mec-7 suit should always be used for more secondary weapon slots. If you have a slot to spare and need the healing, consider bringing a Restorative Mist which will also benefit from the Packmaster perk. A Holo-Targeter can give some utility outside of explosives and slightly improve aim. Lastly, Tandem Warheads can be dropped for Grenadier if you value explosive supply over damage.
Strategic Analysis	Always remember to deploy into One-For-All mode before using an explosive since mines and grenades are not arm weapons and hence do not break the stance, allowing you to keep the +1 DR (and full cover element) through the enemy turn. Also, never forget the flexibility of mines. Consider using them passively to guard flank routes, deny rush lanes, or even bait unactivated patrols into them. Eventually their beeping noise will become music to your ears.

See also

Long War: Soldiers
Soldiers	Soldiers Assault Infantry Rocketeer Gunner Sniper Scout Medic Engineer
MEC	MEC Troopers Marauder Valkyrie Archer Goliath Jaeger Pathfinder Guardian Shogun
Sub-classes and abilities	Officers Psionics Gene Mods S.H.I.V.s