Two questions

Sorry if this has been asked before, I did a brief search and didn't find anything that really answered my questions. My build is pretty much straight bow dmg and dexterity, I'm about lvl 13 (I think)

1. Are there any red gems a bow wielding ranger can use? I mean to say, I have seen bows with red slots, but all the red gems I find require a sword, axe, or other melee weapon. I would think by level 17 I would have seen at least one red gem that I could use.

2. Why can't I equip armguards? I would think armguards are preferred for bow and arrow, yet I can't equip them. Maybe a bug? The armguards I am thinking of had no requirements I haven't met, they just won't equip to my build.

1. There are plenty of of red gems that don't need melee weapons, but they all use strength for their requirements. As a ranger, you probably don't want to boost your strength very much. You might be able to use Anger for a little while, but you won't be able to level it up. Overall, rangers don't get much use out of red gems. Save them for another class.

2. The armguard is a shield, and you can't equip shields with bows. The dexterity shields are for the melee rangers that use rapiers (or duelists). If you take off your bow, you'll be able to wear the shield, but the only thing you can put in your right hand with the bow is a quiver of arrows. Sorry!

Ok, thanks. Perhaps the red gem thing is a balancing issue, hard to believe I can be all the way through Act 1 and not found a single usable red gem

I also thought armguards were armor like gloves or gauntlets, didn't even think to set them as a shield.