How to use archers?

[Hullu]

I'm pretty new to the game and I have trouble using archers in a way that doesn't involve a LOAD of friendly fire casualties.

The background is that in my current game I'm playing Kailasa, and my archers are systematically causing a lot more losses on my melee sacreds (whatever their name was, forgot) than the enemy EVER could. I mean, with W9F4N4 (nature for regeneration, to NOT get afflictions from friendly fire...) bless makes them pretty much unstoppable juggernauts against ANYTHING .... except friendly fire, which kills between a few and a dozen of them per combat. Do I really need to start using my archers in 'fire and retreat' mode and have a few extra commanders to pick the archers up from the provinces just because the idiots otherwise can't stop shooting at my own?:/ I like the fire support, but I'm almost at the point of not using archers at all, because I really do think they hurt me more than they help me.

Whether it's a game balance issue or not, it's simply stupid that MY archers are more dangerous to me than the enemy... and oh yes, I've lost commanders to friendly fire.