Hello everyone,
this weekend an old friend is going to join our group as a guest , he hasn't played PF for a long time so he asked me to help him with his character.
He wants to play a human ranger using a bow.
His rolled stats are:
-18,14,14,12,11,10
I basically don't know anything about ranger archetypes so here is my build for him.
Race:Human
Class:Ranger
Stats:
-Str:14
-Dex:20
-Con:14
-Int:11
-Wis:12
-Cha:10
Traits:Magical knack (worth it for buffs?) and ???
Skills:Handle Animal,Perception,Ride,Survival,Stealth
Feats:
-1st Point Blank Shot
-1st Precise Shot (Human Bonus)
-1st Favored Enemy (Humans)
-2nd Rapid Shot (Ranger Bonus)
-3rd Deadly Aim
-5th Favored Enemy (Maybe anything from the AP based on rumors)
-5th Weapon Focus Longbow
-6th Improved Precise Shot (Ranger Bonus)
-7th Many Shot
I don't think that we will advance to Level 8 or any higher , but advice for higher levels are still recommended. Because he might become a regular member of our party.
If there are any interesting archetypes you could show builds for them as well
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up his WIS by 2. drop con possibly, also, I recommend grabbing boon companion for a companion at level 1 (not sure if this works, my GM allowed it at the time so didn't look to far into it)
my stats would be, in your listing order
14
18
12
10
14
11
drop weapon focus, grab something more useful imo. not sure what atm, no books. (possibly boon companion for beastly ACs) (seriously, at level 7, you can ride a wolf as a ranger with that feat, if you like this idea, mounted archer is for you!)
I think your stats are very well allocated for a Ranger. He won't need Wis 13 'til 10th level at the earliest... By then he should have a Headband of Wisdom. Dex 20 might be overkill, so maybe add the racial bonus to Str instead.
His feats seem okay, although you might want Boon Companion if he picks an Animal Companion as he Hunter's Bond. Weapon Focus is a bit useless, but it's necessary for Improved Precise Shot, so be sure to take it before 10th level... For now, Clustered Shots would be a better choice.
For skills, I'd go with Handle Animal, Stealth, Perception, Survival, Kn(Dungeons), Kn(nature) and Intimidate... Maybe dip a single rank in both Climb and Swim. Ride is unnecessary. He has high Dex, and at least in my experience, most GM don't even bother with Ride checks unless the player wants to do something really difficult. Just like Climb and Swim, a single rank should suffice.
For his Traits, I'd go with Magical Knack and Auspicious Tattoo (+1 to will saves).
There are plenty of interesting ranger archetypes, it all depends on what you want to play.
Those stats all look like you need to go fro archery which it looks like you have.
STR 12
DEX 18 (20)
CON 14
INT 11
WIS 14
CHA 10
For the most part I agree with everything rorek55 said, but I would recommend looking at Snap Shot and Combat Reflexes as well.
Going into higher levels I would recommend actually keeping Weapon Focus since you would need it for Point Blank Master, and I would also recommend finishing the Snap Shot chain.
Alternatively you could make a very decent Switch Hitter using these stats.
STR 18
DEX 16
CON 12
INT 11
WIS 14
CHA 10
Picking up Power Attack and Quickdraw at lvl 1, and Precise Shot at lvl 3, with Deadly Aim at lvl 5, otherwise leaving the build mostly the same (Many shot would have to be at 6th).
I recommend grabbing boon companion for a companion at level 1
This is not a legal option unless he has gained the Animal Companion already. On the Standard ranger "Hunter's Bond" is at level 4, so at level 5 he could take boon companion.
drop weapon focus
Agreed
Feat Progression should be thus (No levels because you might qualify for things early through Combat style. Things with a * near them are more important imo, but I am no wizard of the styles.)Point Blank Shot, *Rapid Shot, Deadly Aim, *Manyshot. Other people will point out other ones.
Why Point Blank Shot first? You can get extra damage, of course! Deadly Aim is also extra damage! For archers shooting additional arrows is KING when it comes to damage.
Feats:
-1st Point Blank Shot
-1st Precise Shot (Human Bonus)
-1st Favored Enemy (Humans)
-2nd Rapid Shot (Ranger Bonus)
-3rd Deadly Aim
-5th Favored Enemy (Maybe anything from the AP based on rumors)
-5th Weapon Focus Longbow
-6th Improved Precise Shot (Ranger Bonus)
-7th Many Shot
Looks spot on, actually. Remember to always use a Composite 2 Longbow at the highest magical enhancement you can.
For increased damage output you could try (18,14,14,12,11,10)
STR 20 (18+2)
DEX 14
CON 12
INT 10
WIS 14
CHA 11
Just get a composite 5 longbow instead. Your BAB should help you keep up no problem. Anyway he is just going to be buffing the crap out of Dex over time anyway.
~Ooka <3
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I would keep stats as they are, but move the human bonus from dex to wis. 18 is plenty for hitting things, and the wisdom bonus will be useful for will saves.
That would make stats
-Str:14
-Dex:18
-Con:14
-Int:11
-Wis:14
-Cha:10
You will want to get clustered shots pretty quickly as well to help with DR issues. I am also a fan of Hammer the Gap on archers.
Also a wand of Instant Enemy is a VERY good item as it will let you treat anyone as a favored enemy.
I would keep stats as they are, but move the human bonus from dex to wis. 18 is plenty for hitting things, and the wisdom bonus will be useful for will saves.
That would make stats
-Str:14
-Dex:18
-Con:14
-Int:11
-Wis:14
-Cha:10You will want to get clustered shots pretty quickly as well to help with DR issues. I am also a fan of Hammer the Gap on archers.
Also a wand of Instant Enemy is a VERY good item as it will let you treat anyone as a favored enemy.
And pick Gnolls!!!! With Gnoll Killer and ALL GNOLLS MUST DIE!!!!! Also pick Gnolls as your favored enemy.
Taku Ooka's build works nicely. Personally, I'd drop Weapon Focus at level 5 for Boon Companion, if he's going for an animal companion bond, which he probably should be.
You should also be picking the favored enemy to suit the campaign. If you can gauge what type will be most useful, pick that, and if you can't, try asking the DM.
Thanks for the advice so far
1. I totally overlooked the -3 Level on the companion, if he wants an animal I will definitely take the feat at 5.
2. We are playing RotRL finished the first chapter (no real rumors about our next enemies yet)
3. First I thought about 20 STR as well , but it Looks a bit cheesy and would increase the burst of the group even more (our GM already has problems with life totals and is upping them)
4. +2 to WIS sounds fine then he wouldn't have to buy a headband later, or maybe just pump WIS at 8 and 12 ?
5. He will be starting with 3k gold, which isn't enough for the bracers yet. Any ideas on how to spend it ? We have like 4 comp bows with us , but he isn't with us yet so he has to buy things first.
I have the same problem as your DM in my goup, which is comprised of ten persons.
Boss encounters are a big no-no, as unless you can divert the pc's to attacking something else. If it's them vs one creature, the one creature is pretty much dead. I imagine your gm has the same problem; it feels like the mobs have too little hp, when in reality they don't.
Try advicing your GM to use multiple foes. It really, really goes a long way to aliveate the issue, which is compounded by the adventure paths relying on one big boss fight, or a string of "pcs vs one foe" encounters way too often.
Unless, of course, your gm's problem is something else entirely. Feel free to disregard, if that is the case.
But if you think there might be something there, please hand my advice over to him.
Thanks for the advice so far
1. I totally overlooked the -3 Level on the companion, if he wants an animal I will definitely take the feat at 5.
2. We are playing RotRL finished the first chapter (no real rumors about our next enemies yet)
3. First I thought about 20 STR as well , but it Looks a bit cheesy and would increase the burst of the group even more (our GM already has problems with life totals and is upping them)
4. +2 to WIS sounds fine then he wouldn't have to buy a headband later, or maybe just pump WIS at 8 and 12 ?
5. He will be starting with 3k gold, which isn't enough for the bracers yet. Any ideas on how to spend it ? We have like 4 comp bows with us , but he isn't with us yet so he has to buy things first.
You know how the Jedi feel about lightsabers? Ok, use that thought process with regard to comp bows. You other party members can dabble and show off their shiny new bows, but for you, that bow is your life!
Thanks for the advice so far....
4. +2 to WIS sounds fine then he wouldn't have to buy a headband later, or maybe just pump WIS at 8 and 12 ?
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You should aim to put all you increases in to your most important stat. Wis 12 is not a bad start. Later he will have to pay Lots of gold to increases your most important stats. So spending your initial bonus on wis is a bad call. I suggest getting dex as high as possible (20) and then put all increases there. The extra second level Spell you May miss out on at level 7 and until he gets a headband is not as important at the difference in AC, to hit, reflex and initiative.
Consider getting the lookout teamwork feat for both him and his animal friend.With a composite bow (str 14) without magic he will be doing fine damage. If he have 3000 gp i suggest getting just a handy heaversack and mundane equipment. It is a bit boring but he will Quickly get better and stuff. And the backpack will never go out of fashion.
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Thanks for the advice so far....
4. +2 to WIS sounds fine then he wouldn't have to buy a headband later, or maybe just pump WIS at 8 and 12 ?
...You should aim to put all you increases in to your most important stat. Wis 12 is not a bad start. Later he will have to pay Lots of gold to increases your most important stats. So spending your initial bonus on wis is a bad call. I suggest getting dex as high as possible (20) and then put all increases there. The extra second level Spell you May miss out on at level 7 and until he gets a headband is not as important at the difference in AC, to hit, reflex and initiative.
Consider getting the lookout teamwork feat for both him and his animal friend.
With a composite bow (str 14) without magic he will be doing fine damage. If he have 3000 gp i suggest getting just a handy heaversack and mundane equipment. It is a bit boring but he will Quickly get better and stuff. And the backpack will never go out of fashion.
While this is true if you are going to be going to high levels, this campaign was stated as not going past level 8. With an effective e8, it's better to have the wisdom as you will never get the wealth for the circlet, and ACs should not rise so high that you need the 20.
Sorry if I didn't make it clear , IF he stays in the group we will play the whole RotRL AP. So he will advance to higher levels.
When I said level 8 I was talking about this weekend.
So how would you handle the stat situation?
It's the only thing I'm not really sure about yet
Our GM just told me that the ranger will get 6000 gold to spend.
So should he get the "Bracers of Falcon's Aim" or a magical bow, arrows + a haversack ?
Also I could really need help with an animal companion.
A ranger can't choose a tiger right ?
What's a nice one for a bow ranger , a wolf ?
Does the AC suddenly get levels after taking the boon companion feat ?
Full builds for an AC would be appreciated
Sorry if I didn't make it clear , IF he stays in the group we will play the whole RotRL AP. So he will advance to higher levels.
When I said level 8 I was talking about this weekend.
So how would you handle the stat situation?
It's the only thing I'm not really sure about yet
I stand by what i suggested before. Dex is his to hit stat and getting it up will be a priority all the way but he will be fine with never raising Wis above 14 and that will cost him 4000 at some time before level 10.
Our GM just told me that the ranger will get 6000 gold to spend.
So should he get the "Bracers of Falcon's Aim" or a magical bow, arrows + a haversack ?Also I could really need help with an animal companion.
A ranger can't choose a tiger right ?
What's a nice one for a bow ranger , a wolf ?
Does the AC suddenly get levels after taking the boon companion feat ?Full builds for an AC would be appreciated
If he gets the heaversack he can also get an effcent quiver and a quick runners shirt (for when some one gets too close). I would go with that. That is 3 items he will want to hang on to.
spend the last 1200 on a mundane master work Bow with (str 14), some special material arrows, some adventuring stuff and he is set to go:)
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Our GM just told me that the ranger will get 6000 gold to spend.
So should he get the "Bracers of Falcon's Aim" or a magical bow, arrows + a haversack ?Also I could really need help with an animal companion.
A ranger can't choose a tiger right ?
What's a nice one for a bow ranger , a wolf ?
Does the AC suddenly get levels after taking the boon companion feat ?Full builds for an AC would be appreciated
Rangers have a restricted list of animal companions (so no tiger). They can take small cat, though, or a wolf.
If the PC takes boon companion at level 5, and is starting at level 8, then just build the animal companion at level 8. All boon companion does is eliminate the -3 level penalty that the Ranger gets, so with the feat you just use the level 8 line on the animal companion table. Let's see if I can get this correct:
WOLF 8
Large Animal
7 HD
STR 24 (+1 stat increase)
DEX 15
CON 19
INT 2
WIS 12
CHA 6
Speed 50’
Low-Light Vision, Scent
Attack: +11 Bite 1d8+16 plus trip (I always seem get the damage wrong on natural attacks, so double-check)
AC 20 (+8 Natural, +2 DEX) More if you put armor on it (Mithral Chainshirt?)
BAB +5
Fort +9, Ref +7, Will +3
Tricks 6+3=9
Link, Share Spells, Evasion, Devotion
Acrobatics 1/6, Climb 1/11, Escape Artist 1/6, Perception 1/5, Stealth 1/6, Survival 1/5, Swim 1/11
Narrow Frame, Power Attack, Iron Will, Weapon Focus (Bite)
Actually, if you have too many players, adding a player AND an animal companion might be too much. Your pal could consider NOT getting an animal companion, either bond with the other PCs, or go with a Ranger Archetype that doesn't get animal companion, like Spirit Ranger. This also helps out in that he doesn't have to spend his gold on equipping his animal companion (armor, amulet of mighty fists, etc.). Also, if he's not an experienced player, he avoids overload from essentially running two characters.
6000 gp seems low for level 8. If that's all you have then go with a +1 Adaptive Composite Longbow (400+2000+1000)=3,400 gp
Personally, I'd save up for Mithral Breastplate, and just use a chain shirt or regular breastplate for now.
He will begin at level 4 so he has 6000 gp.
But we are almost level 5 so I was wondering if he gets a low level companion first, and then on level 5 it suddenly levels up because of boon companion.
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He will begin at level 4 so he has 6000 gp.
But we are almost level 5 so I was wondering if he gets a low level companion first, and then on level 5 it suddenly levels up because of boon companion.
Yes, he gets a Level 1 companion at 4, then when he takes Boon Companion a level 5, the companion becomes a level 5 companion.