Ranger (Sniper) and Arcane Archer

[Kuang_Eleven]

I am building a Sniper Ranger, and my original intent was to go Ranger 10 - AA 10 - Ranger 10, but I am questioning if AA is worth it...

Looking at lv 20, this is what I see I get for taking 10 AA rather than pure Ranger:
+1 damage
+5 to-hit
+Imbue Arrow
+Seeker Arrow
+Rain of Death
+Arrow of Death
-4 Favored Enemies/Studied Enemies
-2/-2 vs. favored enemies
Weaker Animal Companion
Fewer Spells
-1 HP/level
-HiPS in natural areas
-Animal Empathy Companions

I believe that my iterative attacks stay the same, since both classes are full BAB, but I'm not 100% sure...

I am also assuming that all the damage bonuses stack! Notably:
-Sniper Bonus
-AA Enchant Arrow
-Arrow material bonus
-Arrow imbues (x3 with arrow bundle imbues)
-Mighty damage bonus
-Favored Enemy bonus

[Invader_Nym]

I did a detailed post on the different choices for archer.

I had made an archer with around 14 levels AA and what I found was that my AB was unbeatable but my damage was really abysmal. Against creatures with both damage immunity and damage reduction I'd do like 15 damage in epic, which needless to say is insufficient.

I've made the choice to go 23 ranger 4 fighter 3 bard. You'll take a hit to your AB but your damage will be much better. This is a ranged build that'll hit about as hard as a 2-hander, when you're fighting favored enemies.

Another alternative that holds some appeal depending on whether or not you want tumble and UMD is 21 ranger 9 AA.

[Roketter]

You can also make an aa divine hybryd

Add 3 lvls of blackguard/paladin/ or
Cleric.

Keep dex at 18
get 13 str and focus on very high charisma.
Aa will make up for ab from dex

Get power attack and divine might.


Pally has improved divine might and some good spells for arrow enchants.

Bguard has improved divine might and sneak attack

Both make wonders for your saving trows.

Cleric has real spell casting power. You could switch dex for wis and zen archery.

Divine might provides holy dmg based on your charisma which offsets low arrow damage greatly.

Higher ab makes your last two attacks much more accurate which in turn is a direct damage increase. Its not about getting many attacks, but about getting many attacks that actually hit. Also, higher ab makes rapid shot more viable. Finally this also enables your ultimate attack, haste potion + rapid shot + called shot leg repeatedly at long range. High ab goes directly against enemy discipline for called shots so combined with say a potion of truestrike.... well a lot of pcs fall within your good values.

Finally i say you should consider archer path instead of sniper for quality arrows that can be heavily enchanted (which also means more damage) and are free unless you can seriousky keep up with crafting.them. still two free feats is sweet.

[Kuang_Eleven]

Some good advice, thank you both! For one, I forgot how important Ranger 21 is...

And sniper is actually 3 free feats! It's pretty nice, and I haven't had much problem getting steel arrows at lv 5. Looks like Damask will be even easier at 10.

[Brandon Steel]

I personally feel sniper is much better. Free arrows is nice but you can’t really beat multiple free feats and a +2 damage increase.

[TheShadowdove]

If you go Dex based, is it a major problem dumping str? Previously in nwn I have always had access to strength boosting items or spells/potions to supplement my Mighty +X needs.

I am suboptimizing and going 16ran 14aa for simplicity, but still want to be playable.

[Baron Saturday]

If you go Dex based, is it a major problem dumping str? Previously in nwn I have always had access to strength boosting items or spells/potions to supplement my Mighty +X needs.

I am suboptimizing and going 16ran 14aa for simplicity, but still want to be playable.

The best craftable bow is only Mighty +2, which isn't terribly difficult to fill. Low strength characters have also gotten a carry weight buff, making them a bit less painful to play, and Bull's Strength potions are super easy to come by.

I would, however, suggest tweaking the build a little. I assume you want 16 ranger for the HiPS in natural areas? That being the case, I'd suggest dropping AA to 11 and taking 3 levels of rogue, level 25-27, for 30 tumble and at least 10 (preferably 15) UMD. You lose 1 AB/damage and an AA bonus feat, but gain 3 AC and the ability to use non-divine wands and scrolls.

[TheShadowdove]

If you go Dex based, is it a major problem dumping str? Previously in nwn I have always had access to strength boosting items or spells/potions to supplement my Mighty +X needs.

I am suboptimizing and going 16ran 14aa for simplicity, but still want to be playable.

The best craftable bow is only Mighty +2, which isn't terribly difficult to fill. Low strength characters have also gotten a carry weight buff, making them a bit less painful to play, and Bull's Strength potions are super easy to come by.

I would, however, suggest tweaking the build a little. I assume you want 16 ranger for the HiPS in natural areas? That being the case, I'd suggest dropping AA to 11 and taking 3 levels of rogue, level 25-27, for 30 tumble and at least 10 (preferably 15) UMD. You lose 1 AB/damage and an AA bonus feat, but gain 3 AC and the ability to use non-divine wands and scrolls.

How vital is search? Seems like lots of dungeons have traps. And I know it helps with loot.

I'll have enough points to Max discipline, hide, Ms , spot, search, and just enough tumble.

Should I sacrifice some search for umd?

Is spot or listen generally better?

Are there more common hide or Ms items for me to contest?

Do people usually Max out these skills on these sorts of characters? In previous pve-pvp-rp servers they were all good, but search wasn't all that important.

[Baron Saturday]

Search is really helpful (and has another, very nifty and very FOIG use if you get it high enough...) but it isn't something you need to max out. Gonna do a skill point breakdown on the assumption that your character has at least 12 int, which I hope is the case. If not, I might strongly recommend remaking with 12-14 int.

Skill Points: 215
33 Discipline
33 Hide
33 MS
30 Tumble
20 Spot or Listen
10-20 Search
16 Spellcraft (cross-classed, so 32 points)
10 UMD
1 Open lock
1 Disable trap
And that leaves 4-14 skill points remaining.

I can't really speak to whether spot or listen is "better," as each has its pros and cons. For instance, move silently is generally regarded as harder to get to crazy high levels, so it might generally be easier to hear someone than spot them, but the benefits of spotting someone are greater than the benefits of hearing them, and spot also works to break disguises. (Or will, once disguises are working on EE!) Either way, however, you're going to struggle spotting a dedicated sneak without being a dedicated spotter with full ranks + wisdom bonus + equipment and buffs and so forth.

For gear, you'll probably find stuff like the fine elven boots and the dungeon delver's cloak really useful. You can also get yourself set up with what I call a rogue's toolkit, which is basically a secondary set of gear (pair of daggers, rings, gloves, belt, etc - small, lightweight stuff) enchanted with search/open lock/disable trap/spot/listen, etc, etc. All those skills that you might need SOMETIMES. It is very helpful to get friendly with an enchanter!