Originally posted by MyUrp1:

So you think I may be nearly ready to hit The Elder?

I did take down a troll once with a crude bow, but it was a tedious operation. How much faster will that work with an upgraded finewood bow? And which arrows should I use? I'm not sure I have the patience to repeat that several times to get enough trollhide for the armor slots.

Make your first troll arrow strike his back with a crouched approach to get the sneak attack damage bonus (helps a lot - and staggers the troll to get you off to a good start). Flint head arrows should make the encounter satisfyingly shorter as long as you bow skills level isn't still too low.