Evaluating archers.

I would rank the ranged units like this: 1) Upgraded Beholders 2) Upgraded Elves 3) Powerful Liches 4) Monks Beholders and Elves are good because they can be built quickly, and there are many of them. Beholders also don't have a penalty in melee combat and are healthier than Elves. Liches are actually in a league of their own because their aura doesn't affect their own units, unlike Magogs, where you need to gather a good group, and then you can still hit your own units. I practically don't play with towers, so I haven't dealt with Titans, and mages are weak. Orcs are also good, if they shot twice, for example. And monks are in the ranking for their penalty-free melee combat.

Added 1 minute ago

By the way, why do Orcs HAVE a penalty in melee combat? After all, it's obvious, for example, that an archer. You can't fight well with an arrow, but an axe is more suitable for melee combat.

The penalty applies to those who have a weapon in their hands. Monks shoot spells; they have them in their heads; mages also have a magic staff, not a crossbow; beholders also shoot with their eyes... So, everyone else simply has their hands occupied.