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The Archer is an Ancient Era ranged unit in Civilization VI. It upgrades from the Slinger (or its replacements).

Strategy[]

The Archer isn't the first ranged unit in the game anymore - it is the second, after the Slinger. It is a considerable upgrade from its predecessor - it has better Strength Combat Strength, better Ranged Strength Ranged Strength, and most importantly, a Range Range of 2, which allows it to hide behind the front line while shooting. An army of Archers and Warriors is surprisingly effective at rushing unsuspecting neighbors. One very common strategy is to amass Gold Gold and train a lot of Slingers, so once Archery is unlocked, you can already have an army of Archers at your service. But don't depend solely on them for assaulting cities - their considerable penalty vs. districts means they will only be effective against the weakest of cities, and only if they don't have Walls.

The Archer is an indispensable upgrade for those that seek early combat, or have serious Barbarian problems. What's more, its development is easy, and upgrading your Slingers costs only 60 Gold Gold per unit (on Standard speed). Aside from being a convenient defense against early invasions from aggressive neighbors (such as Chandragupta, Montezuma, and Cyrus), these Archers can unlock the Eureka Eureka for Machinery, as well as another Eureka Eureka and an Inspiration Inspiration further down the line (Metal Casting when upgraded into Crossbowmen and Scorched Earth when upgraded into Field Cannons, respectively).

Civilopedia entry[]

Another hunting tool that proved very effective for killing other people, the bow as a weapon was perhaps first used in the Paleolithic Era. Archery was likely developed in several places more-or-less simultaneously, and except for Australia, it was used on every continent by all sorts of people. Until the advent of gunpowder, and even after in some cases, it was the primary light projectile weapon. Not much good for melee though; therefore archers were usually integrated or protected by heavier infantry, the first combined-arms formations in the history of warfare. Over centuries, archers became more specialized, eventually requiring years to become experts at their craft. But most civilizations had elite archery units that could dominate a battlefield under the proper conditions – such as against mired heavy knights at Agincourt, or bare-chested berserkers at Stamford Bridge, or the misguided troopers of the Seventh Cavalry at the Little Big Horn.

See also[]

Civilization VI Units [edit]
Civilian SettlerBuilderTraderArchaeologistSpyNaturalistRock Band GS-Only
Land military AT CrewArcher (Hul'che1Pítati Archer1) • ArtilleryBarbarian Horse ArcherBarbarian HorsemanBombardCatapultCavalry (CossackHuszár GS-OnlyLlanero1) • Courser GS-Only (Black Army GS-OnlyOromo Cavalry1) • Crossbowman (Voi Chiến1) • Crouching TigerCuirassier GS-Only (Rough RiderWinged Hussar1) • Field Cannon (Hwacha R&F-Only) • Giant Death Robot GS-OnlyHeavy ChariotHelicopterHorseman (Hetairoi1) • Infantry (Digger1) • Keshig R&F-OnlyKnight (Mandekalu Cavalry GS-OnlyMamlukTagma1) • Line Infantry (Garde ImpérialeRedcoat) • Machine GunMalón Raider R&F-OnlyMan-At-Arms (Khevsur R&F-OnlyBerserkerSamurai) • Maryannu Chariot ArcherMechanized InfantryModern ATModern ArmorMountie GS-OnlyMusketman (ConquistadorJanissary GS-Only) • Nihang1Pike and Shot (Carolean GS-Only) • Pikeman (Impi R&F-Only) • Questing Knight4Ranger (Highlander R&F-Only) • Rocket ArtillerySabum Kibittum1Saka Horse ArcherScout (Okihtcitaw R&F-Only) • Skirmisher GS-Only (Warak'aq GS-Only) • SlingerSpearman (Hoplite) • Spec Ops R&F-OnlySwordsman (Hypaspist1Immortal1LegionNgao MbebaToa GS-Only) • TankTrebuchet (Domrey1) • Vampire3VaruWar-CartWarrior MonkWarrior (Eagle WarriorGaesatae1) • Zombie5
Naval military Aircraft CarrierBattleship (Minas Geraes) • Caravel (Nau1) • DestroyerFrigate (De Zeven Provinciën R&F-OnlyJong1) • Galley (Bireme GS-OnlyViking Longship) • IroncladMissile CruiserNuclear SubmarinePrivateer (Barbary Corsair GS-OnlySea Dog) • Quadrireme (Dromon1) • Submarine (U-Boat)
Aircraft BiplaneBomberFighter (P-51 Mustang) • Jet BomberJet Fighter
Support Anti-Air GunBattering RamCultist3Drone R&F-OnlyMedicMilitary EngineerMobile SAMObservation BalloonSiege TowerSoothsayer2Supply Convoy R&F-Only
Religious ApostleGuruInquisitorMissionary
See also Great PeopleHeroes
1 Requires DLC2 Apocalypse mode only • 3 Secret Societies mode only • 4 Heroes & Legends mode only • 5 Zombie Defense mode only

R&F-Only Added in the Rise and Fall expansion pack.
GS-Only Added in the Gathering Storm expansion pack.

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