...I notice you're not even mentioning R2 archers.
I think this is probably a good idea; I have felt for a long time like the tradeoffs of shorter-ranged archers were not worthwhile. I would like to make it more of a strategic choice, such that the shorter the range of your archers, the more damage they deal.
Not sure exactly what the right way forward is on this, but I do agree that something needs to be done in this vein, and making starting archers all R4 is probably a good step in the right direction.
