Silvan Rangers

* Portrait
* Standard
* Upgraded

"'Now why did not we wish for some of our own kinsfolk, Legolas?'
Legolas stood before the gate and turned his bright eyes away north and east, and his fair face was troubled. 'I do not think that any would come,' he answered. 'They have no need to ride to war; war already marches on their own lands.'"
—The Passing of the Grey Company, The Return of the King

Elves of the Woodland Realm took great pride in their woodscraft and hunting traditions, viewing their attunement to the land as a sacred thing. The Taurdrim, or Forest-folk, were the bane of any foul creature who dared enter the Greenwood without the Elvenking's consent - their deadly accuracy and dexterity allowed them to ambush the forces of Dol Guldur throughout the Battle Under the Trees.

Taudrim are the basic archer unit of Woodland Realm, they are recruitable from a level 1 Silvan Clearing. Three temporary battalions are summoned with Lothlórien's Summon Silvan Allies spellbook power. They also have a chance to be summoned by Rivendell's Many Meetings spell for 60 seconds.

## Abilities and Formations

**Bombard (W)** - continually bombard the target area with a volley of projectiles. Left click icon and then left click on the target area.

**Level 2: Evasion (R)** - Silvan units temporarily gain 25% armor, 10% speed and knockback resistance. Left click to activate.

**Level 3: Thorned Barbs (T)** - Arrows briefly stun enemy units. Left click to activate.

## Upgrades

**Silvan Fletching** **(C)** - when equipped, significantly increases the damage dealt by arrows. Research upgrade at Thranduil's Treasury to enable this equipment. Cost: 300

**Banner Carrier** **(V)** - when equipped, increases this battalion to level 2. Research upgrade at Thranduil's Treasury to enable this equipment. Cost: 100

**Sindarin Armour** - When equipped, units gain +20% armour. Can be equipped via Thranduil's Love of Silver and Jewels ability.

## Strategy

Silvan Rangers are the primary glass cannons of Woodland Realm: they are fast, deal high damage but die quickly in combat if unprotected. Therefore, they are optimally used to perform hit and run attacks on the enemy with other Silvan infantry to protect them: this allows them to deal losses to the enemy before quickly retreating if the enemy manages to close the distance. This strategy becomes even more effective if the Rangers are able to reach level 2 as they can use **Evasion** to escape even faster and with increased armour to minimise losses to their own units. Because of their low resource and CP cost, the former of which can be decreased further by building Hunting Shrines, Silvan Rangers can be used alongside the other Silvan units to overwhelm an enemy with superior numbers in the early game. Silvan Rangers remain useful throughout the match, especially if they are upgraded and supported by heroes such as Tauriel, who decreases the cooldown time of their abilities and can increase their movement speed, Galion, who can heal and provide temporary armour buffs, and most importantly Thranduil, who passively provides armour but can also grant Silvan and Greenwood units permanent armour buffs with Love of Silver and Jewels. The combination of these buffs allows Silvan Rangers to engage in prolonged combat as they now have increased durability, they can then retreat still if required thanks to their retained speed.