Working on an religious focused archery build and ran across the Divine Fighting Technique (Erastil's Distracting Shot) and it looks pretty interesting, but it's not clear to me if when it hits, if it deals damage still. I've searched around online a bit and haven't found any reliable readings regarding if it does or not, so I'm curious what everyones read on it.
https://aonprd.com/FeatDisplay.aspx?ItemName=Divine%20Fighting%20Technique
Why wouldn't the shot deal damage? It's a regular attack roll, so it does regular damage.
And really, that thing is horrible enough as it is.
Why wouldn't the shot deal damage? It's a regular attack roll, so it does regular damage.
And really, that thing is horrible enough as it is.
Thanks for the feedback. I'm curious what makes it horrible though?
It's a single shot with a short- or longbow. Thanks to the split ability scores, low weapon damage (except for the orc hornbow, which doesn't work with the DFT), and feat cost, the damage of a single bow attack (especially non-hornbow) is not enough to be a worthwhile constribution to combat, and the effect of the DFT isn't nearly big enough to make up for that. What makes archery great is the ability to always full attack, and the two bonus attack feats (Rapid Shot and Manyshot), and the DFT is incompatible with that stuff.
Be aware that since the DFT only works in situations where you get the -4 for shooting into melee, Precise Shot (which in turn requires PBS) is even more mandatory than normal, so you're three feats down.
If you want to look at some interesting divine archery stuff, Erastil also offers the feat Erastil's Blessing, which could make for a nice Druid, Shaman, or Cleric archer with strong casting. It has the problem of not qualifying for Manyshot, which can be circumvented via Nature Fang Druid or the also Erastil related Hinterlander prestige class. Erastil also offers the Deadeye Bowman trait which is most of Improved Precise Shot.
For religion themed classes, Warpriest (especially Molthuni Arsenal Chaplain) and Inquisitor are basically the best classes for an archer anyway.
It's a single shot with a short- or longbow. Thanks to the split ability scores, low weapon damage (except for the orc hornbow, which doesn't work with the DFT), and feat cost, the damage of a single bow attack (especially non-hornbow) is not enough to be a worthwhile constribution to combat, and the effect of the DFT isn't nearly big enough to make up for that. What makes archery great is the ability to always full attack, and the two bonus attack feats (Rapid Shot and Manyshot), and the DFT is incompatible with that stuff.
Be aware that since the DFT only works in situations where you get the -4 for shooting into melee, Precise Shot (which in turn requires PBS) is even more mandatory than normal, so you're three feats down.
If you want to look at some interesting divine archery stuff, Erastil also offers the feat Erastil's Blessing, which could make for a nice Druid, Shaman, or Cleric archer with strong casting. It has the problem of not qualifying for Manyshot, which can be circumvented via Nature Fang Druid or the also Erastil related Hinterlander prestige class. Erastil also offers the Deadeye Bowman trait which is most of Improved Precise Shot.
For religion themed classes, Warpriest (especially Molthuni Arsenal Chaplain) and Inquisitor are basically the best classes for an archer anyway.
Thank you for the lengthy explanation. I really appreciate it. The build I am working on is certainly a Erastil focused on that does have strong casting with a focus on strengthening allies and providing support healing. The build is leaning towards Oracle as the caster class, simply because I haven't played one before, so I won't really get any benefit from investing in Erastil's Blessing, sadly. I wasn't aware of the Hinterlander archetype and really curious about that now. Thanks for bringing that to my attention. Or I would, if I didn't just hear back from my GM that the archetype wouldn't be allowed. We're not playing in Society, but he's study on sticking with Society approved options for some reason.