I am planning on playing a Strix archer in the near future, and was wondering if anyone had any advice on the subject. I have been considering a fighter with the archer archetype, or a rogue or ninja with the sniper archetype possibly dipping into shadowdancer for HiPS its other benefits. What can anyone recommend?
Oh that is quite nice. Even though I am going to be mostly ranged I can see quite a few good opportunities for some melee action. Especially with Death from Above and Flyby Attack (not at the same time of course).
Is your GM fine with the strix? They aren't exactly balanced with the core races...
After the last game he said he was opening it to content from any of the official sources. I am going to talk to him about it first of course, but so far we have had no conflict with over powered characters.
If I remember correctly, Death From Above only gives the +5 on a charge action, not something an archer would be doing.
Let me go confirm...
Yep, I was right.
Death from Above (Combat)You allow gravity to add extra force to your charges.
Benefit: Whenever you charge an opponent from higher ground, or from above while flying, you gain a +5 bonus on attack rolls in place of the bonuses from charging and being on higher ground.
Yep, that's correct. I do plan on being primarily ranged, however it is nice to have a few little tricks for melee, so it is something I will consider taking. Unfortunately I can't use Flyby Attack to move after attacking with a charge.
I think Charging Hurler only works with thrown weapons, not bows. Still an interesting thought though. Does anyone have any suggestions as far as classes go? If I can reliably get sneak attacks the Sniper/Shadowdancer would be extraordinarily fun, however I'm not sure it is as practical as a fighter with the archer archetype which will get many more feats and gets full BAB.
The out of combat benefits of a rogue/ninja are nice. Barbarian doesn't really seem to mesh well with the staying back and shooting from the sky approach I am taking. I could be wrong and am just missing something, but so far the fighter is looking like the best bet.
Fighter, Zen Archer Monk (less useful for you due to having +2 Dex, +0 Wis), or Ranger (shame there's no great animal companion replacement option) are the best for an archer I think. At high levels, Sohei Monk is also a decent archer, but it gets a really rough start.
I hate the PF gun rules, but you could also consider a gunslinger, perhaps.
Thanks for the input everyone. I do see your point on the urban barbarian now. The reason I was considering rogue was that the sniper archetype along with sniper goggles could produce massive damage. This would be aided by dipping into shadowdancer for hide in plain sight. Aside from that, having a flying character that can stealth well sounds like a nice benefit. The last two campaigns I played I have been a ranger so I am somewhat burnt out on them. I can see a very strong case being made for them here though.
Yes, it does. I realize that even though it isn't a class skill I could still put points into stealth as a fighter and come out pretty high with racial bonuses.
Since you'll be out of melee combat range most of the time may I suggest a luring cavalier? Smite anything with a bow from the sky, and you can have a pet (and it stacks with beast rider for a nice pet)...
The luring cavalier is an interesting thought. It doesn't seem to gain many bonuses on attack or damage which is a downside, but the ability to force an opponent to try to reach me while flying sounds like it could be easily manipulated.
Far challenge adds damage to every attack against the target of your challange. That gets to be gross. Look up some of the paladin archer builds for more details. And many orders give you bonuses to attack, although I'd almost think about using one to flesh out the character more, and give you bonuses to something else.