Bow or Crossbow for rogue


Advice

Liberty's Edge

I am creating a level 2 PFS Kitsune Unchained rogue (Chronicle boost gives me instant lvl 2). Current set up is

Str 8
Dex 16
Int 16
Con 13
Wis 14
Cha 12

Point Blank Shot - Precise Shot - Weapon Finesse

The general idea is a treasure hunting / archeologist rogue.

A lot of posts say bows are better than crossbows but I have a -1 Str. Should I stick with crossbows to avoid penalty, not be a ranged melee, or take a chance with bows. I am also debating on swapping Wis on Con. I like the +2 on Wis for perception but I know the +2 on Con would keep me alive a little longer

Any other tips are welcome

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Bows don't require extra feats just to reload. Which may or may not be a factor to you.

Archery in general is feat intensive, crossbows have extra feats on top of that.


Yep. If it's just for the odd ranged attack on a mostly melee character, crossbows could be enough. Reloading's a pain, but unless you want to be an actual archer, it's fine.
If you plan to be mostly ranged, is it easier to grab a +2 Str, or Rapid Reload - no PFS here so I wouldn't know, but that's the choice you have.

Considering the apparent lack of archetypes, I'll assume you plan to rely on melee, flanking and the such for sneak attacks. Which means putting yourself in danger, and makes the +2 Con more appealing.
Of course, a better Will save is good too, so ... What are you more afraid of : getting your face smashed, or having your own brain turned against you ?
I'd stick with Wisdom, maybe even up Con later if needed. Failing Will saves tends to not be fun.
But there's always an argument for more HP.


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Rogues just don't have enough feats to be effective switch hitters. In addition, sneak attack is really hard to do reliably with a bow.

If you can, I'd drop both PBS and Precise shot and focus on your melee abilities, with 3/4 bab weapon focus isn't a bad choice, although their are lots of other ways you can go.

Carry a crossbow for situations when you are out of range so you can at least contribute. Since those are likely to distant and without teammates in melee, the feats you have chosen won't matter anyway.


Keep a bunch of throwing daggers handy. Ranged sneak attack has a criminally short range anyway. Alternately, pick up a pistol (or a brace of pistols) and use it/them for the opening round. You won initiative and have Quick Draw, right? ; )


You don't need any feats for crossbows: drop 1500gp on an opalescent white pyramid ioun for Repeating Heavy Crossbow, and blink away. Keep a spare in your haversack or efficient quiver. (Considering that bows archers frequently drop 1000gp for Adaptive, the ioun stone for you isn't that costly relatively speaking.)


Throwing daggers with river rat trait helps with melee and ranged combat... both uses twf.

Dex to dmg only works die melee IIRC... ask your DM for a houserule or build a swashbuckler Flying Blade.

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