Cost: 500 50 Hit Points: 40 + 10 Damage: 3-9 + 2 Armor: 0 Sight: 5 + 4 Speed: 10 Range: 4

Elven Archer
Out of the mysterious forests of Quel'thalas come the Elven Archers to aid the Alliance in its darkest hour. Descendants of the elder race of Lordaeron, these sylvan woodsmen are unmatched in their use of the bow. Unencumbered by helm or heavy armor, Archers are keen of eye and fleet of foot. These Elves have long been embroiled in a bloody conflict with the hated Trolls of Lordaeron and are swift to let loose a rain of arrows upon any foe, including those that attack from the skies above.

Elven Ranger
Rangers are a special cadre of Elven Archers who are intimately bound to the wildland of Lordaeron. Their pursuit of mastery in Longbow, Marksmanship, and Scouting make them more rugged and even deadlier than their enemies. These secretive and elite warriors have never involved themselves in the affairs of Humans, but when the Horde onslaughts threatened to destroy the Elven homelands, they quickly offered their services to the Alliance. Although their numbers are few, their presence could change the course of the war if they are deployed wisely.

Troll Axe Thrower
The Trolls of Lordaeron have suffered ages of attrition at the hands of the Humans, Dwarves, and Elves. The appearance of the Orcish Horde has given them the opportunity to ally themselves with kindred spirits with whom they can seek revenge upon their many enemies. More agile than the brutish Orcs, Trolls employ throwing axes - along with the cunning attack and retreat stratagem - to assail their foes. This combination of speed, range and ability to bring down threats from above makes them a valuable addition to the Orcish Horde.

Troll Berserker
Berzerkers are a blood thirsty sect of Trolls dedicated to the total annihilation of their hated enemies, the Elves. Suffering numerous experiments with strange chemicals and potions by the Goblin Alchemists, the Berzerkers have had many strange abilities bestowed upon them that make them all but unstoppable in the heat of battle. Berzerkers are hardier and stronger than most Trolls, effectively transforming them into a veritable whirling cyclone of death and destruction.

Jobs
Provide defense against Dragons, Demolition Squads, and to drive away Flying Machines. Fully upgraded and in the right hands can be used for offensive attacks as well.

Orc vs Human
Orc Axe Throwers have the option of getting Regeneration which allows them to heal themselves over a long time with no mana required while Human Archers have the option of getting a +3 Damage upgrade. Because of this upgrade, Archers are a much more offensive than Orc Axe throwers. But, when Bloodlust is cast on the Troll axe throwers, they can do more damage than Archers. The only problem is that Bloodlust wears off while Humans have a permanent upgrade. Humans can have the +3 damage and Heal their Archers at the same time, so over all, Archers are better because they can provide a consistent high damage attack, while Axe throwers need to have Ogres around casting Bloodlust on them. For some real power, watch some Bloodlusted Archers with +3 damage which is possible in team games.

Details
Elven Archers and Troll Axe throwers have evolved into mainly a defensive unit. Generally Archers have difficulty killing Footmen and Knights on their own unless they are fully upgraded, in large numbers, or walled in.

Archers can be placed behind buildings or other obstacles to keep Footmen, and Knights away, while still allowing them to fire over the buildings or obstacles at the enemy. While players can often use Towers for the same goal, Archers can be moved to within range of enemy attacks and to defend expansions while Towers remain stationary.

When using Archers offensively, they should be placed behind Footmen and Knights. Footmen stop the enemy while the Archers get free hits from the rear of the formation. Archers are often only successful until melee units such as Footmen and Knights get close.

If the enemy locks on to a specific Archer have it run in circles leaving the other Archers and Footmen to chase and attack the pursuing units. If the enemy stops pursuing have the Archers return and continue attacking the enemy. This run away strategy can allow you to defeat larger numbers of enemy units if you have the skill to control the Archers.

Use Archers to kill any Flying Machine that may try to spy on the town.

Use Archers to kill Dragons, they are much more effective than Towers in this capacity because they are mobile. Orc players can Bloodlust their Axe throwers and Humans can Heal their Archers. Train out of multiple Barracks and build up a sizable force of Archers when combating groups of Dragons. Place your Archers underneath the Dragons so they will damage each other trying to hit them.

Upgrades
Upgrades are only useful if you already have a large group of Archers or plan to make a lot of them. If you just plan on building a few Archers, save the money for more Archers instead of upgrading the few existing ones.

Berserker Regeneration
Much like Healing to Paladins, Berserker Regeneration is only useful if the Troll Berzerkers survive. Because Troll Berzerkers die so easily to Bloodlusted Ogres, and Knights, it's rare to have Berzerkers to survive a battle so this upgrade should be used as a luxury upgrade getting it only when all other more important upgrades are researched. The Regeneration time is also quite long. When dealing with prolonged battles with large amounts of Troll Berzerkers against Dragons, Berserker Regeneration can actually pay off. when you have plenty of Gold available, this upgrade will be worth it and will pay off. To be worth it you should have a lot of Berzerkers before researching this upgrade.

Berzerkers vs Rangers
Fully upgraded Rangers deal more damage than Berzerkers but Berserkers can be Bloodlusted which makes them much more powerful than Rangers. Although some argue Rangers can be Healed, this is much more difficult than using Bloodlusted Berzerkers as Bloodlust can be done before an attack while Healing must be done during a battle or after. Bloodlusted Berzerkers do about 3 points more damage than fully upgraded Rangers. However you do need Ogre-Magi around to Bloodlust the Berzerkers and you must keep them Bloodlusted which is not as easy as just upgrading the Rangers.

[ Click to Enlarge - 62 KB ] A group of Elves have some fun.