actually it’s 5.5 tiles, and the item is Recomp. that’s how much more range it has than a sword.
but if you’re additionally carrying a prot you also get +45 defense. possibly even more depending on your robe and ring. switching them is a breeze since prot lasts an entire 6 seconds of armored.
for me it’s not all of them, but definitely most of them. you just get better at aiming as you play, it’s not terribly difficult.
I do it all the time. no problems. actually your tome would be much much harder to pull that off with since it’s an area effect instead of a single projectile.
archers seem to do fine, and before you try to tell me that’s because of they’re quiver let me remind you that quivers are also just “1 shot”. you can’t paralyze anything if you can’t land that one shot.