So, it's a 20 point buy, with free Weapon Finesse feat (thanks to the DM) and one free point in either Craft, Perform, or Profession. So, really, I'm trying to come up with a build, as well as his featured fighting style. I was thinking that the Natural Weapon route would be really fun, but I don't know if it's viable.
So, the question is, do people have thoughts on race, traits (I get a campaign & one of my choosing), and choice of skills? As well as attribute array?
And, before I forget, it is urban ranger.
What's a CoT?
Council of Thieves
I will always strongly advocate Treantmonks Switch Hitter ranger style. It has high hit dice, full BAB progression, good proficiencies, two good saves, 6+int skill points with one of the better skill lists. An extremely versatile character. With that point buy, I'd go with
Human Urban Ranger
Archery fighting style
Str 16+2
Dex 14
Con 14
Int 10
Wis 12
Cha 08
Feats: Quick Draw, Power Attack
Traits: Child of Infamy, Reactionary
If you get max starting gold, you'll have 600g total starting funds. Exactly nough for a +4 rating composite longbow, hide armor, a rangers kit, a falchion, and 20 arrows.
The idea here is to do ranged and melee combat equally well. At level 1, you have a strong ranged attack on distant foes, and when they close to melee, drop the bow, quick draw the falchion, and go to town as a melee bruiser.
At level 2, select Archery as your fighting style and take Rapid Shot. You can now do 2d8+8 damage a round to distant foes, or 2d4+6 to foes in melee.
Feat progression would be
1: Power Attack, Quick Draw
2: Rapid Shot (bonus)
3: Cleave
5: Deadly Aim
6: Manyshot (bonus)
Melee bruisers tend to be pretty easy to build featwise. Just use your normal feats (with the exception of one for Deadly Aim) to select melee feats, and take the archery bonus feats. As a full BAB class, your ranged attacks will be accurate enough, especially with favored enemy in play, and then you can go to being a melee beatstick.
You don't really need Quick Draw. You can drop your bow as a free action and draw your weapon during a charge or drop/move-draw and attack. Furious focus will serve you better to negate that negative to power attacking. I could be wrong here, just my opinion.
Also, with getting weapon finesse for free look into a finessable weapon. Perhaps as a human use the bonus feat for the Elven Curve Blade or go for a split stat switch hitter STR/DEX build. Use the Dual talent human too get a +2STR/+2DEX and use your one feat for ECB and then grab PA @lvl 3. You could also go for H-Elf and the ancestral weapon route for ECB.
Weapon cords help you swap between weapons pretty well. And the idea is to stand your ground, so if they move up to you, you drop the bow, pull out the weapon, and still have the ability to full attack. Guy in melee goes down, swap back to the bow. You get to be Aragorn.
It definitely is a pretty normal choice to be switch hitter. I'd really like to go the natural weapons route, just since it makes sense for the concept. Is it too awful of a way to go?
The downside to natural weapons is the fact that you're using the Archery style feats to pick up your core 'switch hitter' abilities while ignoring prerequisites.
If you want to use natural weapons instead of a two hander, go with a race with inherent natural weapons (changeling, tiefling, tengu, catfolk, toothy half-orc).
An Oni-spawn tiefling urban ranger with the Claw racial trait isn't half bad. +2 Str, +2 Wis, -2 Cha. +2 Disguise, +2 Intimidate. Useful abilities for a more 'infiltration' sort of ranger, which fits for an urban setting.
Consider then going for Feral Weapon Training to make the most of your natural attacks, since you'll lose out on iteratives at higher level. Or you could take the bite attack and use it in conjunction with a two-hander. Then you'll always be threatening even with a bow in your hand.