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Ever wanted a Magus without the melee focus, or more options for magical gunfighting? The Spellshot archetype might be for you.
I've put it in a googledoc for better formatting and editing.
You can ignore the spontaneous charisma variant at the bottom if you like. It's by no means a vital part of the archetype.
Any and all feedback is welcome, but I'm hoping for answers to these questions in particular:
Thanks. If you use this in your game, be sure to let me know how it went.
Magical ammunition shouldn't lose it's bonus until a round after it leaves the magus' posession. The way it is now, some, very detail orientated, people could interpret it to mean that you get the magical bonus to hit, but not to damage - since it loses the bonus upon being fired.
Rest looks interesting, I'll probably give it a closer look :)
Well spotted, but a round after is too long. I have edited it to say that ammunition loses the bonus if anyone else tries to fire it. Much simpler and should work as I intended.
Thanks very much.
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I suggest reworking the Myrmidarch archetype, as it's a decent template for a ranged heavy magus. Give firearm proficiency and the Gunsmithing feat at 1st level and remove Spellcombat, change Spellstrike to Ranged Spellstrike, remodel the armor training ability to weapon training (guns only) while removing medium and heavy armor prof., and keep the fighter training.
I suggest reworking the Myrmidarch archetype, as it's a decent template for a ranged heavy magus. Give firearm proficiency and the Gunsmithing feat at 1st level and remove Spellcombat, change Spellstrike to Ranged Spellstrike, remodel the armor training ability to weapon training (guns only) while removing medium and heavy armor prof., and keep the fighter training.
Why? If you can see a particular problem with the spellshot I'd be interested to hear it. Is there some way in which a myrmidarch-based gun magus would be better?
I can't see it myself because the myrmidarch isn't a ranged archetype, it's more of an all-rounder; a magus that becomes capable of attacking at range at 4th level. Swapping out such a character's primary class feature for a couple of feats which allow him to use anti-synergistic weapons seems like a terrible idea.You've also not considered that Counterstrike is worthless to a pure ranged character, given him no feature at 4th level and given him Weapon Training twice.
The reason I made this is so your guns and spells can complement each other but you won't get anything for free:
Guns are slow and have a potentially crippling reload time, so Ritualised Reloading turns that into a feature, allowing the spellshot to shoot on odd-numbered rounds and cast on evens. This is half as much casting as spell combat, but it comes with no accuracy penalty and he can do it without being threatened in melee.
Spellstrike is more powerful at a distance, but it's a vital part of the Magus and this particular magus is meant to be a dedicated ranged weapon user throughout his career. Accordingly, the range at which he can use it has been limited to the optimum range of his pistol, ensuring he's always a turn away from a smack in the face. This lets him cast on odd-numbered rounds too, but only with a very limited selection of spells.
When he gains Versatile Spellstrike at 4th level, his options open up dramatically and he can use all those lovely touch attack spells with spellstrike. This is powerful, but then so is spell recall and he does have diminished casting for a reason.
At 7th level spellshots get a dodge bonus instead of more armour because they are going to be dexterity characters and they are not going to be knights. It makes better flavour and mechanical sense, but there's no reason not to keep their AC improving at about the same rate.
Blackpowder spell combat comes in at 8th when you've got the budget for guns with better capacity, multiple decent guns and alchemical cartriges and you've had plenty of time to take rapid reload if your want it. It's also no coincidence that you get your second attack at that level: Ritualised Reloading won't cut it any more and regular magi get better at spell combat at this level.
Oh No You Don't at 16th level is essentially a ranged translation of counterstrike. Foes can still cast defensively, but it's likely they won't bother until they realise you can do this.
I have updated the document.
Sorcerous Shot is now called Versatile Spell Combat, which is a much more descriptive name for it.
Blackpowder Spell Combat's high level improvements have been re-worked to be genuinely useful.
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The basic Myrmidarch just as a basis, mainly because everything was done. The "fixes" like moving the ranged spellstrike to level 2 and replacing the regular spellstrike where there to quickly change the focus to a ranged magus without forcing down a path of just guns. You could easily replace counterstrike with just about anything.
I've never used Counterstrike as a Magus. I think the highest I got one was 13 as a mixed ranged/melee character. High level campaigns never really went well with d20 in the local area as roleplaying (i.e. less minmaxing) was more encouraged than level grinding. Most were just interested in the PFS level of characters (max level 12) and usually slow experience progression.
I would give the class the Abundant Ammunition spell either way.
I don't think you need to repeat yourself twice with Insightful Avoidance and Greater Insightful Avoidance. Just roll them together rather than have two entries.
You do need to offset the free fighter levels. Having them at 1st level also leaves open level 10's Fighter Training.
I still don't see a myrmidarch-based gun magus as being nearly as good for achieving my goals. You've still given it nothing at 4th level and a redundant second weapon training progression, it still loses one of its defining class features in favour of some measly weapon proficiencies and it doesn't even get its other defining feature at 1st level.
In the end, it's just another unrelated archetype that happens to have a single on-theme ability.
Because the Spellshot is meant to be all about combining guns and magic from the beginning, I have deliberately limited it to doing just that.
If you want other options, you shouldn't be taking the archetype. If it gave you those other options it'd be worryingly versatile and better with longbows that its supposed primary weapons.
That's why I settled on simple weapons, firearms and the iconic magus/swashbuckler martial melee weapons.
I didn't give the archetype weapon training or other Myrmidarch abilities because it's not meant to be a lot less magical than the normal Magus. Significant amounts of power have to be traded for letting it use guns reliably and powerfully enough to make them its go-to weapon and to allow it to combine them with its magic, but that's all the focus on weaponary it needs.
The Myrmidarch gets weapon training because it's the weapons magus, much more about combat than spells. That's not the concept for the Spellshot.
I don't think the archetype needs Abundant Ammunition, useful though it would be. It can already make ammunition for half the price with no check and I don't want to alter the spell list if I don't have to.
I know I added Mending, but that seemed like a flavourful way of allowing a magical gunfighter to deal with misfires, which is something he needs to do.
I see what you mean about Insightful Avoidance. It's just renamed a copy paste of Dance of Avoidance, so it's only in two sections because that's how the Devs did it. I'll probably change it.
I'm not convinced the effective fighter levels need offsetting. He's already much worse at magic and much less effective when not wielding a gun. This archetype is loosely similar in structure to the Skirnir, who gets a similar ability to encourage him to specialise in shields.
I'm unsure if fighter training needs to go. It still helps him qualify for non-gun related fighter feats, but only at half the effective fighter level. That doesn't seem too bad.
I built my own shootist archetype for Magus (with the help of Cheapy) which was designed for an Old West style PF game with this build being like Doc Holiday, a cardsharp, spellcaster, and gunfighter.
Shootist - The shootist blends mystical arcane powers and masterful prowess with a weapon much like his kin the magus, however the shootist uses a firearm as his chosen weapon and a deck of cards as his spellbook. While he can use all simple and martial weapons, including firearms, pistols or revolvers, revolvers are his preferred weapon.
Replaces his spell book with a spell playing card deck.
Gains:
Deadeye (Su) - At 1st level, the shootist can resolve an attack against touch AC instead of normal AC when firing beyond her firearm’s first range increment. Performing this costs 1 arcane point per range increment beyond the first. The shootist still takes the –2 penalty on attack rolls for each range increment beyond the first when she performs this action.
Quick Clear (Su) - At 1st level, as a standard action, the shootist can remove the broken condition from a single firearm she is currently wielding, as long as that condition was gained by a firearm misfire. The shootist must have at least 1 arcane point to perform this action. Alternatively, if the shootist spends 1 arcane point to perform this action, she can perform quick clear as a move-equivalent action instead of a standard action.
Ranged Spellstrike (Su) - at 2nd level a shootist can use ranged spellstrike... [This magus doesn't need standard spellstrike.]
Quickfire (Ex) - At 4th level a shootist gains the ability to draw and fire his firearm as a standard action. This ability replaces spell recall.
Dual Pistols (Ex) - At 7th level, the shootist learns how to use his magical abilities to effectively blend two one-handed firearms fighting and casting spells. When holding two one-handed firearms in separate hands, the shootist may spend a shootist pool point as a swift action to count one of his hands (shootist's choice) as free for the purposes of casting spells and delivering touch attacks. The shootist may also use this hand to cast spells for the spell combat class ability (but then cannot fire the firearm the hand is holding as a part of spell combat). This ability lasts for a number of rounds equal to the shootist's Charisma modifier. This ability replaces the medium armor ability.
Fighter Training (Ex) - Starting at 10th level, a shootist counts 1/2 his total magus level as his fighter level for the purpose of qualifying for feats. If he has levels in fighter, these levels stack.
Swerve Bullet (Su) - At 11th level, the shootist gains the ability to alter the trajectory of bullet fired at him by sheer force of will, working as deflect arrow feat, but with magic instead of your hand. This ability replaces improved spell recall.
Lightening Reload (Ex) - At 13th level, as long as the shootist has at least 1 arcane point left in his pool, he can reload a single barrel or chamber of a one-handed or two-handed firearm as a swift action once per round. If he has the rapid reload feat or is using an alchemical cartridge (or both), he can reload a single barrel or chamber as a free action. Further more using this ability does not provoke attacks of opportunity. This ability replaces heavy armor.
Counterstrike (Ex) - At 16th level, whenever an enemy within reach of the shootist successfully casts a spell defensively, that enemy provokes an attack of opportunity from the shootist after the spell is complete. This attack of opportunity cannot disrupt the spell.
Greater Spell Access (Su) - at 19th level, a shootist gains access to an expanded spell list. He learns and places 14 spells from the Bard spell list into his spell deck as magus spells of their bard level. He gains two of each of the spells from the Bard list, not on the magus spell list: 0 level, 1st level, 2nd level, 3rd level, 4th level, 5th level and 6th level.
He can ignore the somatic components of these spells, casting them without normal chance of failure.
True Shootist (Su) - At 20th level, the shootist becomes a master of spells and combat. Whenever he uses his spell combat ability, he does not need to make a concentration check to cast the spell defensively. Whenever the shootist uses spell combat and his spell targets the same creature as his melee attacks, he can choose to either increase the DC to resist the spell by +2, grant himself a +2 circumstance bonus on any checks made to overcome spell resistance, or grant himself a +2 circumstance bonus on all attack rolls made against the target during his turn.
Using playing cards as a spellbook is a nice touch for a western. Any comments on the Spellshot?
I'd rename Spellstrike to Ranged Spellstrike, since both already exist under the Myrmidarch archetype, and your version is for ranged attacks. Don't use the same name as an ability that refers to melee and not ranged.
I like Oh No You Don't as a name for virtually the same effect as my Counterstrike (Ex).
Really you went about the same build as I did, but slightly different mechanics to achieve pretty much the same thing. Oh, there are a few differences between our builds, but thematically the same.
I cannot really see any major discrepancies to you build. It works for me.
I have now renamed it Blackpowder Spellstrike and made it clear it doesn't work with other weapons. That's a very good point.
Your version of Counterstrike appears to be the vanilla version. Have you definitely copied the right thing?
I suppose our two archetypes really do have a lot in common. Where you went for improving its use of firearms in general I focused on blending firearms with magic. I note however that I diminished his spellcasting and you did not. That's quite a difference.
Thanks a lot for the feedback.