Starting archer again. Need advise on arrow and bow selection for the grind to 50

I'm ARC24 from earliest launch days, but after a long time of no play I came back and leveled LNC up to 50 first instead.

Now I think of going back to ARC. I still hold a Plumed Willow Shortbow. I got me a Kokoroon's Nestpicker yesterday.
Any suggestions on additional bows, that I really should have on me, before I go out and try for rank 50? I'd like to keep a decent pace, never feeling my bow is too weak, or too nerfed.

And how about arrows? I got the impression that currently in 1.18 you shouldn't bother too much with the different arrows.. Should I just buy cheap arrows and go all the way to 50 or would that slow me and possible parties down?

Maybe I could use my CRP30 and WVR30 and buy some mats / use some from storage and then cook something up like Iron Swallowtail Arrow for the time and later start buying more expensive arrows? Is that really worth the time/gil?

Maybe use cheap arrows solo on simple stuff and use better arrows in party?

I don't feel like I have the time lately to go out and experiment with different equipment on various targets and scenarios, so any advise from expert archers would be very helpful!

Thanks!

I'm definitly going to dig into
http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxiv/t....18-and-Beyond

But that threat is not really about de grind to 50. Other suggestions / threads to read are welcome!

Just switch your bows out when you reach optimal rank of the next step up and you'll be fine (ffxiv.yg.com <- you can get a list here and sort by rank).

As far as arrows, just purchase Warped Arrows from the NPC for grinding, any additional content like dungeons/NMs/etc. use Silver Arrows for.

R26~28: Ash Longbow
R33~35: Kokoroon's Nestpicker
R40~41: Oak Composite Bow
R45~46: Crab Bow

Like Belial said, just use Warped Arrows for grinding.

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Originally Posted by carraway

R26~28: Ash Longbow
R33~35: Kokoroon's Nestpicker
R40~41: Oak Composite Bow
R45~46: Crab Bow

Like Belial said, just use Warped Arrows for grinding.

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Just a question for ya Carraway out of curiosity, but is it really worth it to dump the change into purchasing an Oak Composite Bow (assuming the OP doesn't have crafts leveled), for two ranks, or would it be more beneficial to just take the DPS hit on a lower ranked bow? I guess in the long run if he knows crafters he could use it to get someone to craft a Crab Bow later on, I just thought it looked kinda odd to grab a bow for two ranks.

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Originally Posted by Belial

Just a question for ya Carraway out of curiosity, but is it really worth it to dump the change into purchasing an Oak Composite Bow (assuming the OP doesn't have crafts leveled), for two ranks, or would it be more beneficial to just take the DPS hit on a lower ranked bow? I guess in the long run if he knows crafters he could use it to get someone to craft a Crab Bow later on, I just thought it looked kinda odd to grab a bow for two ranks.

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My recommendations are based on where I estimate the next weapon to be an upgrade despite suffering a penalty from suboptimal rank. You could go with a Yew Longbow instead of an Oak Composite, but neither are really too hard to acquire. I've seen people shout for carpenters to craft for them, and I myself answered such a shout for a bow, charging an inconsequential fee.

I do think it's more than worth the time spent in upgrading, because 4-5 ranks (not 2) is a long ways to go in the 40s without a weapon upgrade. If you switch to Nestpicker at 35 then ride it all the way to Crab Bow, that's at least 10 ranks with the same damage. I'm not really comfortable with recommending that to anyone.

Thanks for the recommendations. Definitely going to dig up the Ash and Oak then and watch stats when I swap them out around those levels.

For arrows I checked my retainers yesterday and gathered a stack of every mat I need for Bronze Swallowtail Arrow and I also got Fletchery training, so instead of Warped Arrows I'm going to make these arrows in the field whenever I need them. Hopefully the 30k+ arrows I can make from those stacks will get me close or up to 50. Will then swap to Iron for end game.

Cheers!

People use Warped Arrows at high rank? I didn't think they'd be viable so I've been using Iron Swallowtails and Silvers. D:

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Originally Posted by carraway

My recommendations are based on where I estimate the next weapon to be an upgrade despite suffering a penalty from suboptimal rank. You could go with a Yew Longbow instead of an Oak Composite, but neither are really too hard to acquire. I've seen people shout for carpenters to craft for them, and I myself answered such a shout for a bow, charging an inconsequential fee.

I do think it's more than worth the time spent in upgrading, because 4-5 ranks (not 2) is a long ways to go in the 40s without a weapon upgrade. If you switch to Nestpicker at 35 then ride it all the way to Crab Bow, that's at least 10 ranks with the same damage. I'm not really comfortable with recommending that to anyone.

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See, 4-5 ranks makes sense, but in your OP it said R. 40-41, I thought you were suggesting that's when you would use the bow, not when you would upgrade to it, all makes sense now sir. haha.

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Originally Posted by Uriko

People use Warped Arrows at high rank? I didn't think they'd be viable so I've been using Iron Swallowtails and Silvers. D:

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Arrows don't really have a high impact on your damage when compared with your bow. I mean, there's definitely a difference, but in the long-and-short of it, it doesn't really matter a lot yet. Your bow will dictate your damage far more than arrow type. I imagine it will change with all their balancing tweaks and whatnot, but using Warped to grind to 50 is the -cheapest- route if you lack the crafts/friends with crafts.