An elven ranger fires a volley of arrows into a horde of goblins. Refusing to flee, she instead retreats deeper into the forest, soon, all her foes are dead, not knowing she baited them all along…and she still has arrows left.

A human hunter stands at the ready with his back to the wall and a loaded crossbow in his hand. Suddenly he spins around the corner, firing a precise shot right between the eyes of a charging minotaur.

Archers are masters of ranged combat. They prefer to take down their enemies from afar and generally avoid close combat. Although some races, such as elves, certainly favor this class and are well suited to it, any race can excel at being an archer, given enough training

Since 5th edition Dungeons & Dragons has so many races to choose from, it can be overwhelming to settle for just one when building your character. While you should play anything that you want to as long as it's allowed at your table, you might want to make sure you are pumping the right numbers up.

If you’re the type of player who enjoys building powerful characters with more than enough flavor, then you’re in luck! We’ll make things easier with a few suggestions on the best races to pick if you wish to become a powerful archer.

5. Tabaxi.

Tabaxi, often called cat-folk, are a race of feline humanoids. They are very graceful and catlike in their movements, with both hands and feet sporting vicious claws that can cause significant damage.

With a +2 to Dexterity and a +1 to Charisma, Tabaxis make for excellent archers by getting a great boost to their primary ability score.

Additionally, thanks to their climb speed, their feline agility, and proficiency in Perception and Stealth skills, they make for the perfect ambushers with Hit and Run tactics.

Why Tabaxi is Great for Archers:

• Dexterity is the most important ability score for ranged builds.
• Positioning is key. With your superior movement speed and climb, you can get almost anywhere on the battlefield.

Pick Tabaxi if…

• You enjoy playing highly mobile characters.
• A hit-and-run play style interests you.
• You are a cat person.

Tabaxi details: http://dnd5e.wikidot.com/tabaxi

4. Winged Feral Tiefling.

Simultaneously more and less than mortal, tieflings are the offspring of humans and fiends. With otherworldly blood and traits to match, however, not all of them are of the blood of Asmodeus, some have traits that differ from most others.

If your Dungeon Master permit’s it, you can replace the racial features from the Player’s Handbook with the Feral and Winged variants found in the Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide.

To begin with, this changes your ability score increases to a +2 to Dexterity and a +1 to Intelligence.

As if this weren’t enough, you sprout bat-like wings that gran you a flying speed of 30 feet while you aren’t wearing heavy armor and still get resistance to fire damage.

Why Winged Feral Tiefling is Great for Archers:

• Fire is one of the most common damage types for damaging spells. Since you’ll be ranged, spells are more than likely to go your way.
• Flight is the best type of movement in the whole game. Additionally, you get to do so with both light and medium armor, unlike most other races.

Pick Winged Feral Tiefling if:

• You enjoy the idea of a half-devil.
• You want to build a good jack of all trades.
• You want bat-like wings.

Winged Feral Tiefling details: http://dnd5e.wikidot.com/tiefling

3. Aarakocra.

Aarakocra are primarily humanoid in general anatomy, although none could mistake them for humans thanks to their wings and the fact that they all are bird-headed.

They make for amazing, mobile archers thanks to a +2 to Dexterity from their ability score increase, but are so amazing thanks to a 50 feet flying speed.

This flight is what makes them so powerful in many scenarios, making them capable of outrunning most foes.

Why Aarakocra is Great for Archers:

• With a 50 feet flying speed, you can outrun almost anyone and completely avoid most obstacles.

Pick Aarakocra if…

• You wish to always have a portable high ground.
• You don’t like losing races.
• You are a bird person.

Aarakocra details: http://dnd5e.wikidot.com/aarakocra

2. Variant Human.

Humans are the innovators, the achievers, and the pioneers of most settings, achieving great things in relatively short periods thanks to their shorter life spans.

If your table allows them, Variant Humans can make for powerful archers thanks to the extra feat at 1st level, the extra proficiency, and the ability to increase two ability scores of your choosing by +1.

Why Variant Human is Great for Archers:

• Feats are extremely powerful abilities that greatly influence a player character’s performance.
• Humans can be custom built to fit any build.

Pick Variant Human if…

• You like crunching numbers.
• You enjoy being out of place when in wondrous or fantastic encounters.

Variant Human details: http://dnd5e.wikidot.com/human

1. Elf.

The long-lived elves are children of the natural world, similar in many superficial ways to fey creatures, though with key differences.

It’s impossible to make a list about archers without elves, they are stapled in fantasy after all!

Just like the fellowship of the ring could always count on Legolas, an elven archer will always be a boon to their party.

While all elves make for excellent archers, you should consider playing a High elf or a Wood elf.

Both get a +2 to Dexterity, dark vision, advantage on saving throws against charm, and elf weapon training!

What makes them so great is that you can take the Elven Accuracy feat from Xanathar's Guide to Everything to roll 3 dice instead of 2 whenever you have advantage.

Additionally, if you choose to go High Elf instead, you get access to a Wizard cantrip, and magic never disappoints.

Why Elf is Great for Archers:

• Elves are naturally graceful and dexterous.
• Wood elves, in particular, can attempt to hide when lightly obscured.
• The Elven Accuracy feat is amazing.

Pick Elf if…

• Legolas is your favorite Lord of the Rings character.
• You want to embody one of fantasy’s most famous races.

Elf details: http://dnd5e.wikidot.com/elf

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