I currently have a main cavalier who got the squire feat and thus I now have a 2nd cavalier. This one is mainly a ranged fighter who works with my main cavalier (he is melee based so the squire is meant to compliment this with range). The squire might also fight on his own if need be. He is a Luring Cavalier too.
I'm wondering what the best feats would be for him to take? Currently he is level 5 (not fully leveled as I still need to decide on the level 5 feat he will get) and already has Mounter Combat and Mounted Archery. Currently he will be able to get 13 more feats (as a cohort he can only get to level 18 without some other feat my main guy can take), 3 of which must be combat (though I'm sure most will be anyway) and 3 must be teamwork feats (tactician class abilities). I'm looking at ones like Point blank shot, Precise shot and weapon focus (composite longbow) (also I think there is a feat that lessens/negates attack roll reduction for firing into melee), but was wondering if there was anything better to take as well.
Also, my GM has approved a few 3rd party feats. I'm definitely getting Ranged flank for example and if anyone who uses 3rd party feats can recommend any others, that would be helpful.
Are there any feats that will negate attack roll reduction for riding the horse? He is always on the horse and it is somewhat inconvenient to have a constant -2 (or more) on attack rolls when the AC of some creatures are getting higher and him being already relatively under-leveled(I know that with a high dex character this is somewhat lessened (attack roll is 10 at level 5) but it is still inconvenient).
I also have a composite longbow and 0 in the strength modifier. With 4 ability points that will come with leveling (I have to add the one from reaching level 4 still). One of the feats my GM approved was Mighty Draw which I am considering but, what is more worth it with this type of build? Will the extra strength affect the bow and ability of the character more meaningfully than extra dexterity and another feat or should I build on the basic archer strategy and go for mostly dexterity? Should I the 4 points (+1 on each modifier) and if so, what about the feat? Do I take that feat or use it for something better?
Thank you in advance for helping me with any/all of my questions.
I recommend you to focus on dexterity, to increase your attack modifier, initiative, Reflex save, etc. You will suffer less from the penalties from Rapid Shot and Deadly aim. With the damage bonus from your Challenge ability, you want to maximize your number of attack per round. Extra challenge could be a good feat if your DM likes to put a lot of encounters per day.
If you plan going into high levels, the Snap Shot tree is pretty good for a mounted archer. You can use your increased mobility while keeping a decent number of attack per round thanks to attacks of opportunity with your bow. Combined with Shot on the Run and Mounted archery, this can make your character very hard to catch without reducing too much his DPR if he is forced to move.
The Core feats for your build should be Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Rapid Shot, and Manyshot. After that, you can grab Weapon Focus or Improved Critical, but you are pretty much free to go where you want after Manyshot. Mounted combat and Mounted Archery aren't that important for you. Mounted archery is very situational. Most of the time, you will not be able to move that much and you will want to full-attack as much as possible. It start to be useful if you can afford Shot on the Run or the Snap Shot tree.
Kelazan wrote: I recommend you to focus on dexterity, to increase your attack modifier, initiative, Reflex save, etc. You will suffer less from the penalties from Rapid Shot and Deadly aim. With the damage bonus from your Challenge ability, you want to maximize your number of attack per round. Extra challenge could be a good feat if your DM likes to put a lot of encounters per day.
If you plan going into high levels, the Snap Shot tree is pretty good for a mounted archer. You can use your increased mobility while keeping a decent number of attack per round thanks to attacks of opportunity with your bow. Combined with Shot on the Run and Mounted archery, this can make your character very hard to catch without reducing too much his DPR if he is forced to move.
The Core feats for your build should be Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Rapid Shot, and Manyshot. After that, you can grab Weapon Focus or Improved Critical, but you are pretty much free to go where you want after Manyshot. Mounted combat and Mounted Archery aren't that important for you. Mounted archery is very situational. Most of the time, you will not be able to move that much and you will want to full-attack as much as possible. It start to be useful if you can afford Shot on the Run or the Snap Shot tree.
Thanks for the information, though out of curiosity, why would mounted combat be situational? Isn't the -4 penalty (-2 with the feat) a constant effect while he's mounted (which again, he pretty much always would be)?
Getting your horse or other mount everywhere can be a chore. Even when you can there may not be enough room to use the movement - in say a 20'x20' room you're not going to be able to get out of reach of the enemy.
Mounted Archery is worded this way :
«Benefit: The penalty you take when using a ranged weapon while mounted is halved: –2 instead of –4 if your mount is taking a double move, and –4 instead of –8 if your mount is running.»
If you are only using one move action per turn, there is no benefit using this feat. Fighting mounted incurs penalties only if your mount double move or run, not if you limit yourself to your horse 50 ft. base speed. This feat can be useful if your campaign involves a lot of large open area (plain, etc), but you can't really hope to move 100 ft or more every round in most encounters, especially if you want to full-attack and use to its maximum potential your wonderful +lvl to damage from Challenge.
I love archer cavalier by the way, I think they are underestimated.
Oh. And one advice about your mount : if you can manage your horse to get Awesome blow as soon as possible, this can be pretty handy to push away dangerous opponents if you can't move away yourself.
Kelazan wrote:
Mounted Archery is worded this way :
«Benefit: The penalty you take when using a ranged weapon while mounted is halved: –2 instead of –4 if your mount is taking a double move, and –4 instead of –8 if your mount is running.»
If you are only using one move action per turn, there is no benefit using this feat. Fighting mounted incurs penalties only if your mount double move or run, not if you limit yourself to your horse 50 ft. base speed. This feat can be useful if your campaign involves a lot of large open area (plain, etc), but you can't really hope to move 100 ft or more every round in most encounters, especially if you want to full-attack and use to its maximum potential your wonderful +lvl to damage from Challenge.
I love archer cavalier by the way, I think they are underestimated.
Oh. And one advice about your mount : if you can manage your horse to get Awesome blow as soon as possible, this can be pretty handy to push away dangerous opponents if you can't move away yourself.
I cannot believe I missed that, thank you for pointing it out.
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