Ithilien Rangers (Adventure: Ithilien)

* Portrait
* In Game
* Upgraded

"Two had great bows, almost of their own height, and great quivers of long green-feathered arrows. All had swords at their sides, and were clad in green and brown of varied hues, as if the better to walk unseen in the glades of Ithilien. Green gauntlets covered their hands, and their faces were hooded and masked with green, except for their eyes."
—The Two Towers, Of Herbs and Stewed Rabbit

The Rangers are the descendants of the people who once dwelt in Ithilien, before it fell from Gondor's control. They now stealthily patrol the woods of Ithilien and ambush forces of the Enemy who dare wander these lands. They were led by Faramir during the War of the Ring and were observed by Frodo and Sam as they wiped out a Haradrim force marching to the Black Gate.

While the Ithilien Rangers are the elite archer unit for Gondor in standard play for Age of the Ring, they are also the primary archer unit for the Adventure: Ithilien faction. They are recruitable from the Ithilien Gathering.

*For the Gondor version of the Ithilien Rangers, see the Ithilien Rangers page.*

## Abilities and Formations

By default, the Ithilien Rangers are able to stealth near trees.

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

**Level 2: Evasion (R)** - Rangers of Ithilien gain +25% armour, 10% speed, and knockback resistance for 20 seconds. Left click to activate.

**Level 3: Thorned Barbs (T)** - Stuns enemy units for 5 seconds. Left click icon then left click on target.

## Upgrades

**Bodkin Arrows (C)** - Upgrades this battalion with Bodkin Arrows. Reduces enemy armour against pierce by 25% when hit. Does not stack. Cost: 300

**Ranger Captain (V)** - Increases this battalion to level 2. Can only be equipped at level 1. Cost: 100

**Steel Cuirasses** - Requires Faramir's **Captain of Ithilien** to be cast on the unit. Permanently grants the unit +20% armour.

## Strategy

The Ithilien Rangers of the Adventure: Ithilien faction serve the same fundamental role as their Gondor counterparts as Archers who can effectively shoot down infantry and monsters, albeit with some significant differences. They are much more accessible as the primary Archer unit of the faction, as they have lowered resource and CP costs and only require an Ithilien Gathering. However, their stats are reduced to compensate for this and they no longer have the ability to alternate between bow and sword. The Rangers have access to the same upgrades as their standard counterparts, although their lack of an armour upgrade is less impactful than for their melee counterparts since they are meant to be in range anyway and can be given a permanent armor buff with Faramir's **Captain of Ithilien.** The Ithilien Rangers also have a different skillset than their standard counterparts. They are no longer able to bombard distant areas on the map with an arrow volley with **Longshot.** Instead, they have access to **Evasion,** which increases their durability and speed while also providing protection against knockback (although as archers they are still ill-equipped to survive a cavalry charge if they are caught off-guard). The Rangers also now have access to **Thorned Barbs** at Level 3, a skill that temporarily stuns enemies and can render high-priority targets helpless or allow for clean retreats if the battle goes poorly.