Hey guys, I'm trying to make a character that emulates a Mongolian falconer. My first instinct is to go with the Falconer archetype, but I'm not sure if there are better options.
Requirements are:
Level 6 character, standard WBL, 20 point buy
Has a falcon, rides a horse, and shoots a bow
Nice to have:
Single class (archetypes okay)
Thanks in advance!
My first instinct is to go with the Falconer archetype, but I'm not sure if there are better options.
Requirements are:
Level 6 character, standard WBL, 20 point buy
Has a falcon, rides a horse, and shoots a bow
I doubt that anything can fit better than a Ranger Falconer with combat style feats mounted archery and trick riding. Then you have 4 feats left for a choice of ranged feats. Consider adding other archetypes like Guide!, Battlescout and Skirmisher. I would recommend a crossbow, but a composite shortbow is more mongolian.
I'm pretty sure Ranger is the way to go, but I'm not sure if Falconer is the best archetype.
I could go Beastmaster and then get a level 1 Falcon, and a level 2 Horse. Then at level 6 I would be able to see through the Falcon's eyes, and at level 12 I'd have a level 1 Falcon, level 11 Horse mount. I'm not sure if this is better than what I get from Falconer, mainly because birds seem like bad full level animal companions.
Another option might be Horse Lord with a trained Falcon.
Anyway, I'm just looking for people's thoughts. Also, how do I have 6 feats at level 6? I'll have 3 naturally, and 1 combat style (if I go Falconer or Beastmaster). I could get 1 more from human I guess...
Not that familiar with Mongolian Falconers, but your instincts are right, it's a pretty bad achetype. I'd get a Roc companion and just re-skin/fluff it if necessary. You can also get the Boon Companion feat to make up for your -3 effective druid level.
I'm not all that familiar with Mongolian falconers either actually, but they sure look cool in pictures!
I keep seeing Boon Companion suggested to Rangers to improve their animal companion, but I am almost positive it does not work that way.
Boon Companion reads:
"The abilities of your animal companion or familiar are calculated as though your class were four levels higher, to a maximum bonus equal to your character level."
So if I've put all my levels into Ranger I get no benefit from Boon Companion. I'm not sure what happens if you stack Ranger and Druid animal companion levels and then take Boon Companion. It seems like you'd be able to get a companion at higher than your current level that way by the RAW... but that is another discussion.
Anyway, I'm leaning toward Beastmaster at this point with a level 1 bird and level-4 mount (level-1 eventually).
ranger with a horse animal companion and the Eldridge bloodline feat to gain a falcon familiar. Go with ranged combat style and if you want traditional weapons you want a scimitar, a steel shield and a composite long and short bow (combined with whatever you take off of your slain foes). Armor would be Studded leather or Scale mail or Splint mail with quilted cloth under the normal armor.
Chinese "Allies" with repeating crossbows and cannons and bombs are optional.
Yeah ranger that focuses dex. Then just get an agile weapon to reduce mad and invest in power attack.
Yeah ranger that focuses dex. Then just get an agile weapon to reduce mad and invest in power attack.
There is no reason to do that. None of the ranger's fighting style feats use normal feat requirements, there is no reason to drop strength.
Wow, Eldrich Heritage (Arcane) to get a familiar is a really appealing option.
The main downsides I see are the number of feats this requires(Skill Focus, Eldrich Heritage) and the CHA requirement, which is normally somewhat of a dump stat for rangers. If I go with an archetype that does not eat my 6th level bonus feat that will help here, but that is still -1 feat over the other builds. I'm a little bit worried about the number of feats I will need given mounted combat, archery, and eldrich heritage.
Feats:
L1 Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot
L2 Rapid Shot
L3 Skill Focus: Knowledge(Nature)
L5 Eldrich Heritage: Arcane
L6 Manyshot
I was hoping to go with Half-Orc for the build, but I'm not sure this particular path works without the Human bonus feat (or Half Elf skill focus).
Yeah ranger that focuses dex. Then just get an agile weapon to reduce mad and invest in power attack.There is no reason to do that. None of the ranger's fighting style feats use normal feat requirements, there is no reason to drop strength.
yes there is? Better chances to hit with both your bow and weapon? Higher ac?
You could forego a feat as human and get +2 to one stat on your AC and cohorts.
Or, samurai/cavalier and ranger, you'd get a mount, mounted combat, and if you take falcon ranger, you can have the falcon from that... and maybe boon companion to give them a boost to your character level. I like the emissary cavalier for that.
Or, a master summoner 6, you could be have a horse eidolon and use your 5+ uses of summon monster to summon an eagle or hawk. Or, the opposite, bird eidolon. But i think you'd have a bird sooner than a horse, as the large size ain't till 7th i think.
yes there is? Better chances to hit with both your bow and weapon? Higher ac?Yeah ranger that focuses dex. Then just get an agile weapon to reduce mad and invest in power attack.There is no reason to do that. None of the ranger's fighting style feats use normal feat requirements, there is no reason to drop strength.
Relying on expensive items as a core part of your character is a Bad Idea.
I keep seeing Boon Companion suggested to Rangers to improve their animal companion, but I am almost positive it does not work that way.
Boon Companion reads:
"The abilities of your animal companion or familiar are calculated as though your class were four levels higher, to a maximum bonus equal to your character level."So if I've put all my levels into Ranger I get no benefit from Boon Companion.
Reference this post by Sean K. Reynolds.
I cannot believe I did not think of this:
LURING CAVALIER!!!!
How did I, the guy who mentions yurts every single time he posts in the what should ultimate equipment have thread forggoten Luring cavalier.
Anyway, Luring cavalier + Falcon Familiar.
It makes you take feats sideways and you will suffer for that but your combination of pets, ranged combat and strategy will really start to shape up around 4th level.
Hi all, thanks for all the feedback!
Malag, I do not think you can actually full move on a mount and then full attack. If this were the case the Mounted Skirmisher feat wouldn't make sense. You are correct though, I don't actually need the mounted feats to ride a horse and it is still thematic and useful (although Trick Riding screams Mongolian horseman to me!).
Re:Agile Weapon; I'm making an archer, do I really need an Agile weapon? I am kind of with Robespierre on this one since it plays directly into my hit roll and AC... plus 20 point buy means that neither Strength nor Dexterity are going to be particularly weak.
blackbloodtroll, I suppose I could just have a Golden Eagle pet but unfortunately I think it would just be for looks at that point. Birds are pretty aweful for attacking and I'm not sure if they are useful for anything else unless they are an animal companions or familiar. What I am looking for is a useful bird, but the focus would still be on the character himself.
thoynan, if I forgo the human bonus feat I would probably just go Half-Orc so I can buff my Perception to the max. Emissary Cavalier is a nice option which I could look into, my impression was that Cavaliers are more like knights though (I'm not sure how hard wired this is for the class though).
alientude, thanks for the link that makes Boon Companion silly good with Rangers.
Thanks again everyone.
You can use ranged weapons while your mount is taking a double move, but at a –4 penalty on the attack roll. You can use ranged weapons while your mount is running (quadruple speed) at a –8 penalty. In either case, you make the attack roll when your mount has completed half its movement. You can make a full attack with a ranged weapon while your mount is moving. Likewise, you can take move actions normally.
Mounted Skirmisher is for melee attacks.
Well I'm not sure why the rule is that way, either thematically or mechanically, but I guess that's the rule. Thanks for the link to that guide, it is very helpful.
rat_bastard, going for a bird familiar via Eldrich Heritage is already feat intensive, removing even more feats by giving up the Ranger bonus feats seems like a bad idea.
Well I'm not sure why the rule is that way, either thematically or mechanically, but I guess that's the rule. Thanks for the link to that guide, it is very helpful.
rat_bastard, going for a bird familiar via Eldrich Heritage is already feat intensive, removing even more feats by giving up the Ranger bonus feats seems like a bad idea.
Cavalier starts getting bonus feats at 6th level, not to mention the practicality of teamwork feats for a guy with a small menagerie.
Do playing around with it I've got a half elf luring cavalier/fighter (archer).
It works pretty well actually, by 7th level (cavalier 5/fighter 2) I've got a falcon, mounted combat and archery, point blank shot, rapid shot and deadly aim.
The two favored classes mean I'm not suffering for the feat dip and I can dip two more levels for specialization if I find I have a favorite type of bow.
the main drawback is their is no room for melee combat feats until the high level game.
Using elite array: Str: 14, Dex 17, Con 10, int 12, wis 8, cha 13
Cav 1: Skill focus (any knowledge), Deadly Aim
Fig 1: Mounted Combat
Cav 2: Eldridge Heritage
Fig 2: Mounted Archery, +1 dex
Cav 3: Point Blank Shot
Cav 4: -
Cav 5: Rapid Shot
So there, a rain of deadly arrows from far away while moving quickly. Nothing special in the melee department but your goal is to screw with your opponent not get in their reach.
I'm thinking Order of the Sword for the floating save bonus and the bonus to hit your challenge but other people might have a better idea.
Another option is to go gonzo with the spirit of the rules, bump your horse's int to 3 and give it the familiar.
Relying on expensive items as a core part of your character is a Bad Idea.yes there is? Better chances to hit with both your bow and weapon? Higher ac?Yeah ranger that focuses dex. Then just get an agile weapon to reduce mad and invest in power attack.There is no reason to do that. None of the ranger's fighting style feats use normal feat requirements, there is no reason to drop strength.
Well considering that the character can fall back to archery I don't see the problem.