The most niche of all the starting classes, or Vocations, in Dragon's Dogma 2 is Archer. Wielding a bow and arrow in what's more often than not a close-range fight, the Archer is one of the game's most agile classes, peppering foes with projectiles and hopping around the battlefield. Yet their skills also present a few interesting options for crowd control and support for the rest of your party. Here's a look at all of the Core Skills, Weapon Skills, and Augments available to Archers in Dragon's Dogma 2.
Archer Core Skills
Core Skills in Dragon's Dogma 2 are the fundamental abilities that make up any Vocation's core toolkit. These include Steady Shot, which allows more precise aim to target enemy weak spots. There's also Leaping Punt, which is a jumping kick that knocks the enemy off-balance while propelling you away from them.
| Rank | Core Skill | Description | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Loose | Aims and fires an arrow at a nearby foe. Can be employed while moving. If employed while clinging to or pinning down a target, the user pierces the target with the arrow directly. | 0 |
| 0 | Front Kick | Unleashes a swift kick that causes the target to flinch. Launches the user backward if the kick connects in mid-air. | 0 |
| 0 | Steady Shot | Draws the bow carefully, allowing for precise aim. Can be employed while moving. Length of the draw affects arrow impact and distance flown. | 0 |
| 1 | Leaping Punt | Delivers a weighty kick that can knock foes off balance. Launches the user backward after it connects. | 150 |
| 2 | Parting Shot | Fires an arrow while jumping back after performing a Leaping Punt or a mid-air Front Kick. | 250 |
| 3 | Swift Nock | Enables the user to nock arrows more quickly when using Loose or Steady Shot. | 400 |
| 4 | Puncture Dart | Draws the bowstring to its absolute limit before firing. Makes aiming more difficult, but allows arrows to pierce targets with greater impact. | 600 |
Archer Weapon Skills
Weapon Skills in Dragon's Dogma 2 are active abilities attached to each Vocation, so consider them optional class abilities in the game. You can equip four of these at any given time.
Here's a look at everything that the Archer can acquire.
| Rank | Weapon Skill | Description | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Barrage Shot | Fires arrows in rapid succession, allowing for concentrated attacks on a single target. Can be employed while moving. | 0 |
| 1 | Sweep Shot | Fires arrows in a wedge pattern, allowing multiple targets to struck simultaneously. Can be employed while moving. | 200 |
| 1 | Dire Arrow | Fires a devastating shot that knocks down smaller targets. When using Steady Shot, arrows become even more powerful if they are Ioosed the instant the bow is fully drawn. | 200 |
| 2 | Keen Sight | Special sight augments the user's vision while drawing, allowing them to fire on distant targets. Consumes Stamina while the bow is drawn. | 300 |
| 2 | Exploding Shot | Fires a loaded arrow that adheres to foes or terrain. The arrow will burst when attacked or after a time, and can knock targets off balance. | 300 |
| 3 | Tarring Shot | Fires a loaded arrow that adheres to foes or terrain. Explodes after a time or if attacked, tarring the target and those who draw near. Usable only when carrying an applicable arrow. | 450 |
| 4 | Torrent Shot | Fires multiple arrows in rapid succession. Rate of fire increases with consecutive shots. Prevents movement while active. | 700 |
| 4 | Cascade Shot | An advanced form of Sweep Shot that fires a greater number of arrows. | 1000 |
| 4 | Manifold Shot | An advanced form of Barrage Shot that fires a greater number of arrows. | 1000 |
| 5 | Drenching Shot | Fires a loaded arrow that adheres to foes or terrain. Explodes after a time or if attacked, drenching the target and those who draw near. Usable only when carrying an applicable arrow. | 1100 |
| 5 | Erupting Shot | An advanced form of Exploding Shot with increased arrow speed. If employed while clinging to a target, the user pierces the target with the explosive arrow directly. | 1300 |
| 5 | Deathly Arrow | An advanced form of Dire Arrow that inflicts greater harm and has the ability to pin smaller targets to walls. | 1300 |
| 5 | Erupting Shot | An advanced form of Keen Sight that stabilizes the user's vision and consumes less Stamina. | 1300 |
| 6 | Lyncean Sight | An advanced form of Keen Sight that stabilizes the user's vision and consumes less Stamina. | 1600 |
| 6 | Incendiary Shot | An advanced form of Tarring Shot with increased arrow speed. If employed while clinging to a target, the user pierces the target with the tarring arrow directly. | 1600 |
| 6 | Whirling Arrow | Fires a powerful spinning arrow that delivers a barrage of hits. Effective at overwhelming smaller targets. Can be employed while moving. | 1800 |
| 7 | Tempest Shot | An advanced form of Torrent Shot that fires a greater number of arrows. | 2000 |
| 7 | Deluging Shot | An advanced form of Drenching Shot with increased arrow speed. If employed while clinging to a target, the user pierces the target with the drenching arrow directly. | 2000 |
| 7 | Blighting Shot | Fires a loaded arrow that adds to the target's blighted value on impact. Usable only when carrying an applicable arrow. | 2500 |
| 8 | Spiral Arrow | An advanced form of Whirling Arrow that appends still more strikes to the barrage. | 2500 |
| 9 | Nocuous Shot | An advanced form of Blighting Shot with increased arrow speed. If employed while clinging to a target, the user pierces the target with the blighting arrow directly. | 3000 |
| Learned | Heavenly Shot | Fires an almighty arrow in exchange for consuming all of the user's Stamina. The user's remaining Stamina determines the arrow's potency when it is loosed. | Hunter's Secret |
Archer Augments
Augments are passive abilities that offer various buffs and are a major part of the game's overall progression. The process for acquiring a new Augment is specific to the Vocation you play as, but once you own it on a character, they can equip it regardless of their active Vocation. Each character can have up to six Augments active at any given time. Here's a look at all of the Augments you can get as an Archer.
| Rank | Augment | Description | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Ambuscade | Increases damage dealt by your attacks when targets are not in battle stance. | 300 |
| 4 | Endurance | Increases your maximum Stamina. | 900 |
| 6 | Radiance | Causes your lantern to consume less oil and illuminate a wider area. | 1800 |
| 8 | Lethality | Increases damage dealt when striking a target's vitals. | 3000 |
| 9 | Avidity | Enables you to clamber up cliffs and scale foes and other surfaces more quickly. | 5000 |
Ambuscade adds a modest 10% to damage dealt to enemies who aren't in an active battle stance, essentially incentivizing opening most battles with an attempted snipe. Endurance and its boost to Stamina is universally useful across all Vocations, but strangely less so for Archer. Radiance can certainly be useful if you want more light, but there are far better Augments out there. Lethality is essential for Archer, boosting weak point damage by 5% when you use Steady Shot to aim at a target's vitals carefully. (And it stacks with Ambuscade.) Avidity is excellent for Archer, allowing them to reposition themselves more quickly, but it's also great for other agile classes like Thief.
