ChronoSoft

Whenever I've used arrows or shurikens or anything like that, they don't seem to do much damage; is there something I'm missing? They seem totally useless! It seems like it would be great if they could kill a monster before it gets close enough to attack, but that never seems to happen...

I rarely use them but they can be useful if you find yourself against powerful monsters that you can't quite take yet head on yet. Chip them down from far away then take them out with your main weapon. If you really need to kill something, paralyze it with a potion or scroll, back up, and start throwing things.

he pretty much nailed it there

Magic, especially if blessed are nice

I revise my opinion; I just wasn't getting far enough back before. I've been playing with them lately, and from a good distance back, you can effectively kill things without them getting a hit on you: like nymphs, rattlesnakes, and leprachauns.

Clairvoyance makes Ranged extremely leathal, I might add. Use my secret character for a nice ranged-clairvoyance combo.

Absolutely,beyond wearing down or taking out an opponent, I find them extremely useful when it comes to determining what is in a dark room or corridor. Blindly shooting an arrow or throwing a shruiken will tell me what lies in the path of the weapon even if I miss. Knowing an aquator is a few paces away gives me time to remove my armor and knowing that a troll is coming gives me time to use a potion, switch rings or run away. Unless you are playing a special character, I think this is an very difficult game to tank your way through. if you don't have a get out of jail card like a potion of paralysis or teleport scroll running like a scared little girl can be your best option. In fact I think I'll name my next character that!