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afaict there's an important ambiguity in the technomancer rules. Here's the text of the Spellshot magic hack, available at 8th level:
Spellshot (Su)
You can cast an area spell with a casting time of 1 standard action or less through a ranged weapon, allowing you to use the weapon's range rather than the spell's range. You must target a single creature with your attack, and the spell's area is centered on the creature, or oringates at the creature's location for a core or line effect (oriented in whichever direction you choose), even if the spell would normally be centered on or originate from a point. You can fire the weapon as part of the standard action to cast the spell. You must fire the weapon during the round that the casting is completed, or the spell is wasted. If the attack misses, the spell is wasted. Spells with an emanation effect that would be centered on you don't benefit from this magic hack.
There are two ways to interpret this. The conservative interpretation is that all this hack does for you is let you use your weapon's range for targeting spells. The awesome interpretation is that this hack is (ranged) spellstrike for technomancers.
I genuinely have no idea which interpretation is correct or intended. (Devs, help?) On the conservative reading, Spellshot could still totally be worth taking, since the ability to use a sniper rifle to cast a spell from half a mile away has some pretty cool applications. On the awesome reading, Spellshot is, well, awesome. (If I were a GM, I'd probably decide which interpretation to use based on what would work best for the group, e.g. on whether or not the technomancer player was lagging behind the rest of the party and needed a boost.)
(one interpretive note: Spellshot is worded quite similarly to the arcane archer's Imbue Arrow. Is there a precedent on that? Do imbued arrows that are fired at a target, and hit, do arrow damage as well as spell damage? If so, I'd think Spellshot should follow suit.)
I hope it does the weapons damage as well. "You can fire the weapon as part of the standard action to cast the spell. seems to imply that it does, but it'd really impair damage if you can't.
It seems like it is indicating you are firing the weapon normally so your spell effect is riding the shot. I don't see from that description why it would not also do normal weapon damage as weapons attack seems to be the spell delivery method.
I would think if it totally replaced the damage the weapon would normally do in the attack it would call that out specifically.
I hope it does the weapons damage as well. "You can fire the weapon as part of the standard action to cast the spell. seems to imply that it does, but it'd really impair damage if you can't.
I think this is kind of an interesting question. On the awesome reading, Spellshot lets the technomancer nova for about as much damage as a soldier can do to a single target, only over an area. It's not clear whether the devs intended for them to have that ability.
Compare a 13th level technomancer to a 13th level soldier, both specialized in ranged damage. Both have Dex 26, Weapon Focus, and class options that improve their ranged damage (bullet barrage and the sharpshoot style in the soldier's case, empowered weapon and harmful spells in the technomancer's--debug spell isn't worth it imo). The soldier has a reaction cannon (6d10 piercing at that level); the technomancer, a zero cannon (5d8 cold, line, unwieldy). Both are attacking targets with EAC 26/KAC 27.
The soldier uses a full attack to take three shots at a single target. The technomancer uses two 5th-level slots, one to use Empowered Weapon on his gun, the other to use Spellshot with heat leech (13d8 cold damage, reflex half; assume the target has a 50% chance of making the save) to shoot the first target in a line (which also opens up the cone).
Running the numbers:
- The soldier has a 55% chance per attack to hit for 57 damage; factoring in crits, the expected damage averages to about 93.
- The technomancer has a 95% chance to his first target for about 102 cold damage, extending to a 60' line. Anyone not in the line, but close enough to it to get hit with heat leech's cone effect stands to take about 50 cold damage. Pretty cool.
I think that's about the most damage anyone in the SCB can do at that level. Of course, the technomancer has to use two of what are probably his 3 5th-level spells to do it, and by building for Dex his save DCs are going to suffer. So, I'd say it's probably balanced, but it's still an eye-opening amount of damage.
I would think if it totally replaced the damage the weapon would normally do in the attack it would call that out specifically.
If this text has any meaning than it allows an attack as part of the casting. if the attack is not allowed than the text is a waste of words as the first line already gives you the benefit of increased range and wouldnt need to spend further word count on it.
Okay, both of these seem pretty convincing to me. Thanks!