Ok, so I'm about to begin the creation of my first ever ranger. So the idea is I'm creating my own personal campaign world and am creating a "test group" so that I can fine tune any details before actually attempting to DM it for others.
One of the characters I've already rolled up is a Kitsune ninja who grew up abandoned by her parents who left when she was a child. Bc of this she was somewhat of an outcast and upon coming of age decided to venture out in search of them.
This character here is also going to be Kitsune and my concept is that he's a Kitsune noble who grew up with her and acted somewhat as a guardian to her. He follows her secretly until discovered blah blah blah. Anyways, my idea is for him to be a stealthy ranger who eventually becomes an arcane archer (I haven't looked up pre-req's for the class yet but am about to as soon as I post this thread) and so I am looking for any and all advice. One thing I considered was to begin with the archetype "battle scout" as--since he's kind of a guardianish figure--it would grant bonuses to his companions in initiative, perception, stealth, and survival.
Seeing as I'm inexperienced with this I'm open to other ideas/suggestions, and looking for somewhat of a guide. For example, what feats are best at lower levels. Other than point blank shot I haven't studied any ranger-related feats yet but intend to do some research on that tonight as well.
Also. I've pre-rolled all five character ability scores and this is going to be my favorite character of the five so I gave him the best set so he's a little opy. Here are my rolls.
18
16
16
14
13
12
Racial bonuses are
+2 Dex
+2 Cha
-2 Str
Here's my idea for them.
Str: 14-2 (12)
Dex: 18+2 (20)
Con: 13
Int: 16
Wis: 12
Cha: 16+2 (18)
So basically stealthy, guardian-figure, future arcane archer..... GO!
Fighter 1/Wizard 5/Eldritch Knight 3 (or 4, not sure where that leaves your BAB)/AA 4/EK the rest
Focus on launching area debuffs and blasting spells.
:)
To nickelback: It's supposed to be an arcane archer???
Sorry, but arcane archer is only worth the first 4 levels. Ask ANYONE.
Fighter 1/Wizard 1/EK 5/AA 8/EK 10, using a Scryer wizard for early entry SLA to qualify by level 3.
Sunset, can you explain this more slowly for a noob? lol
A scryer Wizards 'Send Senses' ability is a Clairaudience/Clairvoyance (a 3rd level spell) SLA, counting as 'being able to cast third level arcane spells' to qualify for Eldritch Knight. So a fighter 1/scryer 1 could go into EK at level 3, then by level 7 have the BAB prerequisites to enter Arcane Archer. Take it for 8 levels, then finish off with 5 more levels of EK. At the end, you'll have the BAB of a 19th level fighter and the spellcasting of a 16th level Wizard.
That sounds pretty awesome. Any advice on traits, feats, weapon, armor, magical items etc??
Primarily for the first few levels as It'll be a while before I have all my characters set up and have the campaign thoroughly mapped out.
I'd definetely suggest the Myrmidarch archetype of the Magus instead of going Arcane Archer. You get what you want out of being an arcane archer easier, sooner, and with more versatility.
Take a trait to give you stealth as a class skill and you could easily go Myrmidarch 20.
Or if you'd rather get the magical abilities later on, take as many levels of Ranger as you like, picking up Stealth as a class skill and archery feats, and then take Myrmidarch for the rest.
Ohhhh, right, the new FAQ. Still, most move AA isn't worth the lost caster levels. A lot of the abilities are very circumstantial.
As long as I'm using a bow and doing sick stuff with it that's my main goal sooooo it looks like I've got a bit of studying to do in order to look into these ideas. Anyways, I still haven't gotten very much on traits/feats/equipment?
If you're going to have that high of STR, a composite longbow wouldn't hurt. Before you can imbue arrows, go light or no armor due to spell failure chance. Later on, you could, if you took levels in fighter, where full plate if you want. Most of your spells used should be imbue-able. In a party, you're not going to be a utility wizard.
You'll want to pick up the standard archery feat chain:
Point Blank Shot
Precise Shot
Deadly Aim
Rapid Shot
(optional) Manyshot
Clustered Shots
You'll want Intensify Spell.
Slippery trait makes stealth a class skill for you.
Equipment: +5 bow, or as much enhancement bonus as you can get on it. Efficient Quiver. Bracers of Archery when you can afford them. Belt of Dexterity, Headband of Intellect, Cloak of Resistance.
Alright I've looked a little bit into the prestige types and I'm not interested in the eldritch knight route. Although it looks f#~~ing badass mechanically and I can still focus on bow attacks as a fighter, I'd rather the skills benefits the ranger offers as I'm developing character personalities as much as possible. With a fighter having 2 skills + int mod and the limited amt of class skills it would destroy my image of the character :(
I'm about to look into the Myrmidarch Archetype
Remember that you'll have a high Intelligence by basic of being a Wizard, and traits can net you some class skills. Also, you can simply take level 1 as a Ranger rather than a Fighter and continue from there.
When multi-classing, do you take the number of skills on your next level of the class in which you move up in or that of whichever class has the highest number of skill points allotted?
I would probably re-jig the stats since you're an archer (even an arcane one) and your damage is still better with a higher strength. Something like 16/18/14/16/13/14?
I'm half tempted to just go solid ranger for the sake of simplicity lol. I still have a fighter character who I've yet to build so I'll definitely look into eldritch with that guy but it just doesn't work with this one.
awp832 wrote: I'd definetely suggest the Myrmidarch archetype of the Magus instead of going Arcane Archer. You get what you want out of being an arcane archer easier, sooner, and with more versatility.
Take a trait to give you stealth as a class skill and you could easily go Myrmidarch 20.
Or if you'd rather get the magical abilities later on, take as many levels of Ranger as you like, picking up Stealth as a class skill and archery feats, and then take Myrmidarch for the rest.
This.
All of the 3rd-edition PrC carryovers are lackluster compared to Paizo base classes.
Spell Focus Evocation, Greater Spell Focus Evocation, and the admixture sub school are your main tools. You want to be able to change elements when needed and pump those DCs up.0
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