I am building a group of NPC’s for a campaign I am ruining and need help with the last character. The NPC group is an undead themed group, basically necromancers. The last character needs to be a ranger but I can’t seem to find any good undead themed ranger archetypes or other ways to build a undead focused Ranger. There are plenty of ways to make a ranger focused on fighting undead, but nothing that allows an undead themed ranger. I would be ok with using a prestige class as long as it does not works well with the ranger. At this point the best I have come up with a ranger/shadow dancer, but I am hoping for something better.
Also the ranger needs to use archery combat style.
Hm. Not sure I get what you're asking for, but would making the archer ranger an actual undead--say a "pet" of your necromancers--work?
You could make him a ghast or something and start building him from there.
Ruyan.
Making the character undead does not really fit. This NPC group is a kind mirror group for of my players. The campaign is heavily focused on fighting undead so an actual undead would be much more vulnerable than in a normal campaign.
The character is going to be the opposite of the ranger in the party.
Not for PFS?
How about VMC Oracle of Bones?
That has some real possibility. And no this is not for PFS.
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The Undead Slayer's Handbook has a Ranger archetype called Corpse Slayer.
They get Know Religion, some anti-undead spells, they can disrupt controlled undead, they can make their weapons Ghost Touch.
OP, this is all they do. They are undead-killing Rangers.
You should get Undead Slayer's Handbook anyway for your campaign. It has lots of ways to kill the unliving.
Try the Infiltrator and Toxophilite archetypes.
The stuff they replace will make your ranger less nature themed, and infiltrator can make it vaguely more undead themed.
Assuming the other ranger is also an archer because you said archery combat style, the toxophilite's intercept arrow ability can be very vexing.
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I am building a group of NPC’s for a campaign I am ruining and need help with the last character.
Awww, don't be so hard on yourself.
The corpse Slayer does not work for this character. I am not looking to make an undead slaying character, but rather a ranger with undead themed abilities.
I do have the Undead Slayers hand book.
The infiltrator only gives undead powers if you take it as a favored enemy. This does not seem like a good choice since the character is not going to be fighting undead. This would be giving up too much and not really getting a lot in return.
Use the Spirit Ranger and reflavor the powers as being from souls/spirits. You could make him very ghostly.
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What about doing a Slayer instead of ranger? It works pretty similarly but doesn't have the problem with Favored Enemy.
Combine it with Stygian Slayer or Executioner and you can re-flavor some things to be undead-esque.
I appreciate all the good ideas. So far I am leaning towards Divine Tracker with the evil and death blessing with the VMC Oracle of bones. For the curse shattered Psyche seems to work best.
The PC party has a Slayer so I had already planned on using Stygian Slayer for that character.
I want to avoid posting the build to avoid the chance of the players learning about what I plan.
Well shoot, if the party didn't also have a Slayer already I feel like my suggestion would work pretty well.
For what it's worth you could also do a Sanctified Slayer Inquisitor of Urgathoa. Reflavor Bane and Studied Target effects as negative energy (maybe) or something similar. If you went regular Inquisitor you could still do basically the same thing but would have judgments which could be reflavored similarly but also has other uses like fast healing. The draw back being not as fast of access to some of the really great archery feats.
Might I recommend taking a look at the Witchguard archetype?
Might I recommend taking a look at the Witchguard archetype?
He's not really trying to make a defender though. He wants to make an archer, who has undead thematics to it, without actually being undead.
Might I recommend taking a look at the Witchguard archetype?He's not really trying to make a defender though. He wants to make an archer, who has undead thematics to it, without actually being undead.
So the bodyguard stuff isn't useful. You still can get several neat necromancy spells with the archetype that the Ranger wouldn't have access to otherwise.
I know you said you don't want the ranger to be actually undead, but if you made them a ghoul you have the option of giving them the corpse companion feat.
I know you said you don't want the ranger to be actually undead, but if you made them a ghoul you have the option of giving them the corpse companion feat.
If the Ranger was a Dhampir, they could have a Vampiric Companion.
What about a Dhampir as your Ranger? If you are worried about him being weak to positive energy give him the Life Dominant Soul feat. Also, Vampiric Companion ^^
You could reflavor the pale stranger as an archer with a composite longbow. Possibly with a few ranger levels, depending on the CR.
The character is supposed to be the mirror image of the ranger in the party so changing class and race does not work for what I am looking at. The party is heavily optimized to kill undead so making it an actual undead is pretty much the worst thing I could do. The ranger it is mirroring has maxed out undead as its favored enemy and all the other players are equally focused on killing undead.