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I'm thinking of taking the Pyrokineticist prestige class from Dreamscarred Press, and one of their abilities is throwing me through a loop. So this is the Pyrokineticist's Fire Lash ability:
A pyrokineticist gains the ability to fashion a 15-foot-long whip of fire from unstable ectoplasm as a move-equivalent action. She takes no damage from a fire lash she creates, and if she releases her hold, it immediately dissipates. The lash deals 1d8 points of fire damage to a target within 15 feet on a successful ranged touch attack. A pyrokineticist can take Weapon Focus and Weapon Specialization (if she otherwise meets the prerequisites) in conjunction with the fire lash, as well as any feats that apply to the use of a standard whip. The whip remains in existence as long as the pyrokineticist holds it and is treated for mechanical purposes as a whip.
If the character has the ability to fashion a mind blade and has the Altered Blade blade skill, her fire lash may be treated as her mind blade for mechanical purposes such as enhanced mind blade and other class abilities. All damage dealt by the mind blade in this form, including psychic strike damage and bonus damage from weapon abilities, is fire damage, and the pyrokineticist may not use the fire lash to perform disarm or trip attempts unless she has selected the appropriate Weapon Special blade skill.
I've got a few questions, but they all boil down to "What is this thing?"
Is this a ranged weapon because it makes ranged touch attacks?
Is this a melee weapon that just happens to make ranged touch attacks? Is it just a strange whip?
Do you need precise shot for it? Does it benefit from point-black shot?
If you are a Soulknife and this is your mind blade, do you need the ranged trip feat to make trip attempts with it?
Does it get melee or ranged enchantments? Both?
Do you threaten any squares with it at all?
Wow, it's a clusterf@%! for sure. I would just remove any reference to it being ranged a and treat it as regular whip. Whips have enough rule exceptions so it really doesn't need the additional confusion. Is it necessary for other pyrokineticist abilities to be ranged? Maybe there's some synergy going on?