I originally came to the forum here in search of an answer. I was looking to see if an Assassin could use a ranged weapon to perform a death attack. After reading through many posts, I began to see more and more issues with the Assassin, and began to realize that another posting should be started with regards to reworking the Assassin prestige class, as well as addressing the issue of ranged death attacks.
First, I'd like to address my initial concern - Assassins using ranged weapons for their death attack. Strictly by RAW and even RAI it would seem clear that the game designers did not want Assassins using ranged attacks to perform a death attack. It also appears that the designers didn't put much thought into the Pathfinder Assassin (but I'll go into that later).
Would using a ranged weapon for a death attack make the ability overpowered somehow? Would it upset the balance of play and make the Assassin too powerful? In every case, I believe it would not, and I also see no reason why a ranged attack shouldn't be able to be used to deliver a death attack.
Just to prove my point - an Arcane Archer at 10th level gains the ability to create an arrow of death. Granted, it takes a day to create this arrow, but it can be fired from farther away than 30' (somewhere around 1100', unless the bow has the distance enchantment, in which case it would be 2200'), plus he could then use the seeker arrow ability and/or imbue arrow to make the shot (even use true strike), and achieve the same effect. This means that once per day, the Arcane Archer can fire an arrow of death at a known target up to 2200' away, the arrow can turn corners and guide itself to the target (ignoring cover and concealment), and if the target was max distance away, the Arcane Archer would still get a +10 to hit on top of his normal attack roll, and then possibly slaying the target. This is way cooler, and much more useful, than anything the Assassin has.
The requirements for making a successful death attack are:
1) The Assassin must study his target for 3 rounds, and each round of study requires a standard action, AND the target must not detect the Assassin or recognize the Assassin as an enemy.
2) The Assassin must then successfully sneak attack the target within the next 3 rounds and do damage.
3) The target then must fail a Fortitude save (DC 10 + Assassin's level + Assassin's Int mod) or else the attack is treated as just a normal sneak attack.
There are a lot of "ifs" here, and at best the death attack could only be used once every four rounds - and that is very highly unlikely to ever happen.
Picture this: an Assassin crouches within some shadows at night, watching a guard patrol a wall the Assassin needs to get over. The Assassin studies the guard for 3 rounds, then throws his dagger/shoots his bow or crossbow/throws his shuriken (for you ninjas out there), and slays the guard in a dramatic fashion. Neat-O, death attack! That is, assuming the guard dies and doesn't turn around saying "Ouch!...Hey!...ATTACK! ALARM!"
So, does this seem in any way unfair or unbalanced? I think not. Is it possible for a character to find a way to abuse this power and make it unbalanced? More than likely, but that applies to all situations, and as such, it would need to be handled by the respective DMs, but as of right now I can't think of any way for it to be abused. The point is: the use of a ranged weapon to deliver a sneak attack, in my opinion, should be allowed. Also remember, by the rules of sneak attack, you must be within 30' of your target to use a ranged weapon for a sneak attack.
Now to get to the issues with the actual Assassin prestige class, as written in the Pathfinder Core Rulebook. Compared to the D&D 3.5 version of Assassin, this new Assassin is a horrible, emasculated, weaker prestige class in almost every aspect.
To give specific examples: The 3.5 version has slightly better saves and gains spells of up to 4th level (and it is an impressive list of spells that are very useful, including a spell that lets you use a ranged weapon for a death attack - in case your DM doesn't agree with my above points), whereas the Pathfinder Assassin gains an ability that give a bonus to concealing weapons (oooo...) and a couple abilities that modify death attack. Let's take a look at these death attack modifications.
1) True Death (Su). This ability makes someone you killed using death attack more difficult to bring back from the dead. (Wow...what a great ability...hold me back...)
2) Quiet Death (Ex). This allows the Assassin to use a Stealth check after successfully killing a target using death attack in order to avoid detection. (Not bad, at least for a couple levels.)
3) Swift Death (Ex). Once per day the Assassin can use death attack without studying his victim for 3 rounds. (Really? Once per day? I mean, my character is at least 14th level now, and I can use this ability once per day?...)
4) The culmination of all Assassin abilities; the crown jewel; that ability which you have toiled through 10 levels of this prestige class to gain: Angel of Death (Su). Once per day (sigh) you can cause a target's body that you have slain with death attack to crumble to dust, causing him to be EVEN HARDER to bring back. Of course, you must declare the use of this ability BEFORE you make your attack. (Need I even say anything about this...)
These abilities are woefully underpowered and really have no useful place within the average campaign, with the exception of Quiet Death, but even that ability becomes redundant after the Assassin gains Hide in Plain Sight. I mean, really, this class needs a serious overhaul. Let's take a look at how classes and prestige classes are built, and let's re-examine the Assassin and compare it to other Pathfinder prestige classes.
When designing any class, you have to look at it's base mechanics and weigh the value of each. What is the hit die for the class? Does the class have fast, medium, or slow progression for it's BAB and saves? How many skill points does it give each level? What are the class skills? Does the class allow for spell use? If so, does the class allow for full spellcasting (such as Wizard or Cleric) or demi-casting (such as Ranger or Paladin)? Most important is how the class' special abilities weigh in. How often are they used? How powerful are they compared to other abilities? How unique is the ability? And so on...
All of these questions need to be addressed, and the build for the class should even out. This means that a class strong in BAB, saves, or spells probably won't have too many skill points, and vice versa. If the class is strong in one area, it will most likely be weak in another.
Prestige classes, in addition to the above concerns, also need to consider a few more things such as prerequisites. Prerequisites determine how hard a prestige class is to get into and it also sets the theme for the class (at least in principle). Another aspect of prestige classes you need to consider when designing them is to determine what the minimum level a PC needs to be to enter it. This will help you determine at what power level the prestige class' abilities will start. After all, if it takes you 8 levels of prerequisites to gain access to a certain prestige class, and the abilities that you then gain are present at a lower level for another class, you'll more than likely feel cheated. Also, when designing a prestige class, one of the most common features is to have a great ability available to it at 10th level
With these considerations in mind, let's take another look at the Pathfinder Assassin. In my opinion, the Assassin is a rogue-type prestige class, so we'll compare it to not only the Rogue core class, but other rogue-type prestige classes.
1) BAB - medium progression, same as the Rogue and most rogue-type prestige classes.
2) Saves - similar to other prestige classes, but slower than the Rogue (and lower than the 3.5 Assassin), so we'll say medium.
3) Skills - medium, slower than the Rogue and some rogue-type classes.
4) Spells - no spells any more.
5) Special Abilities - number and type of abilities are gained slower than for a Rogue and have much less usefulness in play than other prestige classes. Death Attack becomes powerful at higher levels, but is still a one-shot ability with many "ifs".
Overall, the Assassin doesn't even make it to "middle-of-the-road" status. The lack of more useful special abilities and the removal of spells suggests a more physical character, yet the BAB and saves are still that of a Rogue (with worse saves than a Rogue, and not as many abilities or skills as a Rogue). Likewise, the average progression of BAB and saves coupled with the lack of spells suggests a character with strong skills and/or special abilities, but that is also not the case.
It was suggested in many posts to just make Death Attack and Poison Use Rogue talents and do away with the Assassin entirely. This is plausible, but would negate a uniqueness of character types that would normally be found.
I just now reviewed the Red Mantis Assassin found in the Pathfinder Chronicles Campaign Setting book, and WOW! Now that is what a prestige class should look like! Same BAB, much better saves, more skills, SPELLS up to 5th level!, and plenty of GREAT abilities, and also greater weapon specialization!!! I just drooled...
That being said, it is a 3.5 prestige class, but it is a great source to base a new Assassin build off of.
I will work on a new build for the Assassin prestige class and post it soon. I would love some feedback on the material presented here and some ideas on rebuilding the Assassin.
