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I am basically looking for the best race for archery in Skyrim. I am looking for a fast nimble character that can deal quick high damage. Also, what would be the best weapon/gear for such character.

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    this isn't a real question since skyrim doesn't have classes per se, nothing's stopping you from maxing out all your skills and perks. – l I Apr 10 '13 at 1:28
  • there fixed, sorry about the confusion – AspiringGenious Apr 10 '13 at 1:30
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As already commented, you can max out or grind any skills with any race in Skyrim, so choice of race for archery won't really matter in the long run.

If you want to have an additional boost for archery at the early parts of the game, the Bosmer (Wood Elves) are strongly suited for archery. They have a +10 bonus to the archery skill and a +5 bonus to sneak (to help deal sneak attacks).

If roleplaying, the Bosmer are known as being "the best archers in all of Tamriel, the Bosmer snatch and fire arrows in one continuous motion; they are even rumored to have invented the bow". In-game description describes them as making "good scouts and thieves, and there are no finer archers in all of Tamriel".

Source: http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Bosmer and http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim%3aBosmer
As for the choice of bows, see this question: Skyrim Bows: Light or Heavy One?

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  • Awesome, exactly what i was looking for! – AspiringGenious Apr 10 '13 at 2:02
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I am looking for a fast nimble character

Well, you have three choices. High Elf, Orc or Nord.

Due to the way that character size interacts with movement speed, taller characters move faster than smaller characters.

8% faster  High Elf (m/f)
4% faster  Orc (m/f) - rage affects bow damage
3% faster  Nord (m/f) - cold resist is helpful
baseline   Bosmer (f)
2% slower  Bosmer (m) - oops.
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    Ooh i love this help, upvote for you – AspiringGenious Apr 10 '13 at 23:13
  • High Elf IMO is more suited for playing as a mage class, since their in-born skills are more suited for lvling up magic. – Kim Minseo Mar 20 '15 at 14:02
  • @KimMinseo on the surface it would seem that way, but mechanically it is not the case. – Amy B Mar 21 '15 at 12:31
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Any race will allow you to become a Master-level archer, if you work at it enough. That said, I believe the Bosmer (wood elf) race is the only one to give you a +10 boost at the beginning of the game, meaning you'd have to level that skill that many fewer times to reach the maximum capability.

The Khajit and Redguard races give +5 archery to begin with, making those good secondary classes to use.

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Cheap answer: Bosmer because of the high startingbonus. But that doesn't really matter. You can take what you want. Every race has the maximum of Level 100.

In my opinion, the Khajiit fits the most, because they get bonus in sneaking, archery, alchemy, pickpocketing and lockpicking.

They're feared as silent thieves and robbers in Skyrim. From the atmosphere, it would be the preffered race for an "archer". :)

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Bosmer because they are natural marksmen and have starting bonuses, except that the Khajiit are the best race whatsoever, High elves are racist asses, and nobody like Redguards from the dessert after seeing the movie 300.

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