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AtwasAwamps
2009-12-14, 11:10 AM
So, I have a one shot today for which I am putting together a striker…specifically, a Kobold “archer” ranger, starting at level 5. Archer is in “” because I intend on using the beast master class feature, rather than the ranged combat style feature. I had a few questions about this that I’d like to ask about.

A: We are being given the option of taking one level 6 magic item, one level 5 magic item, one level 4 magic item. My initial reaction is to use level 6 for the weapon, netting me a +2 distance greatbow for the added to-hit…even though the property itself is not spectacular, +hit seems much more valuable in 4.0 than it was in 3.5. However, is there something else I should be looking for? I have heard of something called “Bracers of Archery”…do I want that more than a +2 weapon?

B: Feats…I’d like to take Greatbow Proficiency because a Kobold with a bow bigger than he is may be the most amazing thing ever. Obviously, then, weapon Expertise or whatever the +1 to hit feat is almost necessary (as it is with most offensive classes…which is all of them, I suppose). So for my last feat…what do I take? Beast protector seems obvious, but if I recall correctly, you can only make OAs with melee attacks until you hit paragon level and take a certain paragon path, so that is useless to me. What are my other options for a third feat? Hell, should I multiclass for some Sneak Attack or something?

C: Powers – I figured Nimble Strike and Twin Strike (I think that’s what they’re called) are safe bets. Nimble Strike when combined with the Kobold “Shifty” at will ability will give me the option of shifting up to two squares a turn without using my move action. To me, this is pretty cool, as it means I will almost never be pinned in melee. Twin strike is simply there for dealing with multiple opponents…helping clear out some minions, etc…

Are there any must have daily/utility/encounter powers I should be picking up? Am I missing anything that I shouldn’t be? Let me know adn thanks for your help, playgrounders!

Asbestos
2009-12-14, 11:17 AM
Friend, the kobold is small and the greatbow is not. You may not wield it.

AtwasAwamps
2009-12-14, 11:21 AM
...I'm going to go cry now.

Mando Knight
2009-12-14, 01:08 PM
You may, however, wield a Tratnyr, a versatile heavy thrown spear with a 10/20 range and d8 damage dice. You'll need to 2-hand it, but it gives access to all of the archery Ranger powers. With Far Throw, you won't really have to worry about range unless your DM hates you.

(Now, see, this is why no one plays as Small weapon-wielding characters unless they expect to use Off-hand weapons anyway: the damage dice are too constrained. The best weapon that can be wielded one-handed by a small character is a Rapier, and the best two-handed weapon is either the Craghammer or Waraxe. Shortbow is your only option for ranged weapons unless you go for a thrown weapon.)

AtwasAwamps
2009-12-14, 01:11 PM
Yeah, I'm just going to go change my race >< For some reason i didn't even notice this problem. I'll go home and tweak it after work.

WEll, the rest of my question still stands...what am I looking for, featwise or magic item wise?

Mando Knight
2009-12-14, 01:24 PM
Unless you're looking at super-massive battlefields or thrown weapons, avoid the Distance enchantment. Most combat occurs within 20 squares, and almost never at the 60-odd that you can reach with a Distance Greatbow. The +Crit damage from a standard Magic weapon is better more often than the bonus range of a Distance weapon.

Again, this is assuming you're going with a bow. If you decide to switch to a thrown weapon, their shorter ranges makes the Distance enchantment much more attractive, even in 20-ish square combat ranges.

Unless your plan is to maximize your range and stay at that distance, stay away from accumulating a large number of + Range feats. Instead, stick with Martial Power feats after you pick up the few PHB feats that are particularly attractive (i.e. Hide Armor specialization, Bow Mastery, Weapon Focus (Bow), Distant Advantage, Lethal Hunter, etc.) since Power feats tend to be better for characters in general.

AtwasAwamps
2009-12-14, 02:00 PM
Sounds good. Thanks.

Side note: are there any non-kobold races that get +2 dex and +2 con?

Mando Knight
2009-12-14, 02:10 PM
Bullywug (Monster Manual 2) and Revenant (DDI-only) both get +2 Con/Dex. However, +2 Dex/Wis (Razorclaw Shifter, Elf) and +2 Str/Dex (Half-Orc, Bugbear) are both generally preferred for a ranger with an archery focus, with the latter being generally used for half-and-half type rangers.

Krrth
2009-12-14, 02:13 PM
Sounds good. Thanks.

Side note: are there any non-kobold races that get +2 dex and +2 con?

Well...halflings get the +2 dex. They also just got access to a feat that, as long as they use a shortbow, gain brutal 2 and +5 square range.

nightwyrm
2009-12-14, 02:44 PM
Sounds good. Thanks.

Side note: are there any non-kobold races that get +2 dex and +2 con?

gnolls too.

Asbestos
2009-12-14, 02:47 PM
Well...halflings get the +2 dex. They also just got access to a feat that, as long as they use a shortbow, gain brutal 2 and +5 square range.

I think he also wanted 'non-small'

Gnolls get Con/Dex too but they're better at melée mostly.

Edit: No way it took me 3 minutes to write that... Ninjas :(

AtwasAwamps
2009-12-14, 02:52 PM
Gnolls? Really?

...hehehe. HEHEHEHEHE.

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.

Ahem.

SO, Gnolls. I'll keep that in mind.

Duos Greanleef
2009-12-14, 03:13 PM
If you're gonna be an archer, why even bother with beast mastery?
It kind of begs one to devote feats and powers to making the beast worth it.
If anything, I'd take the two-blade mastery and still wield a bow.
If nothing else, toughness and the ability to wield one handed weapons off handed is better than mobility anyhow.

nightwyrm
2009-12-14, 03:16 PM
If you're gonna be an archer, why even bother with beast mastery?
It kind of begs one to devote feats and powers to making the beast worth it.
If anything, I'd take the two-blade mastery and still wield a bow.
If nothing else, toughness and the ability to wield one handed weapons off handed is better than mobility anyhow.

Well, you do get an extra meatshield and you can quarry using the beast.

ocato
2009-12-14, 03:21 PM
I'd go Halfling with a shortbow, personally. Brutal 2 d6 isn't bad at all, and you just might have some fun with it.

Just remember, Twin Strike and Spitting Cobra Stance. Hard to go wrong from there. Everything else is more or less what catches your fancy, though shifts or pushes are wise.

If your goal is to be ranged, I'd take Bracers of Archery for L6, Shadowdance armor (DDI) for L5 (don't provoke with ranged attacks), and then a +1 goblin totem shortbow (FR).

Stay away from enemies (that's what your beast is for) and fire away. If you get cornered, whatever push/shift power you saved ought to keep you safe, especially because you can shoot your opponent right in the kisser without feat of an OA.

1of3
2009-12-14, 03:25 PM
You don't want a Distant enchantment on a bow. The combat map will rarely be large enough to make a difference, and you would loose extra dice on critical hits. (Which is especially bad for rangers, who make many attack rolls.)

AtwasAwamps
2009-12-14, 03:38 PM
If you're gonna be an archer, why even bother with beast mastery?
It kind of begs one to devote feats and powers to making the beast worth it.
If anything, I'd take the two-blade mastery and still wield a bow.
If nothing else, toughness and the ability to wield one handed weapons off handed is better than mobility anyhow.

The beast gives me the ability to quarry a different target, which allows for more versatility. He is an extra source of defense, damage, and can provide flanking/combat advantage situations for my allies, which I generally cannot. Toughness is alright, but neither the archery style bonus or the TWF style bonus are as effective as another body on the field.

I'll look into the halfling, but I really hate them, conceptually.

ocato
2009-12-14, 03:49 PM
I'll look into the halfling, but I really hate them, conceptually.

You can do all that as a kobold. Brutal 2 is neat, not necessary. Just replace that feat with someone damage-y and you probably won't desperately miss the d10 of a longbow.

Asbestos
2009-12-14, 03:52 PM
If you're gonna be an archer, why even bother with beast mastery?
It kind of begs one to devote feats and powers to making the beast worth it.
If anything, I'd take the two-blade mastery and still wield a bow.
If nothing else, toughness and the ability to wield one handed weapons off handed is better than mobility anyhow.

Bwuh? Because beastmaster rangers make the best archer rangers, that's why! You never need to make the beast 'worth it' because it is from the start. As has already been said, you can use the beast to quarry and you can use it to defend you when need be. Take Distant Advantage and your beast not only lends CA to the PC it's flanking with, but it lends it to you as well.

Kurald Galain
2009-12-14, 03:59 PM
If you're gonna be an archer, why even bother with beast mastery?
Because being an "archer ranger" gives you only a crappy feat that you don't need, whereas the "beastmaster" gives you, well, a beast. Without any investment, this already lets you quarry from a different angle, block passage for your enemies, and set up free flanks. The only thing you're missing out on is some archer-only paragon paths.

Heck, even for a two-blade ranger it's worth considering: you lose a bit of damage, but essentially gain permanent flanking.

Asbestos
2009-12-14, 04:01 PM
Heck, even for a two-blade ranger it's worth considering: you lose a bit of damage, but essentially gain permanent flanking.

The Greataxe Wielding Half-Orc and his bear companion is pretty cool though...

Artanis
2009-12-14, 04:05 PM
I really wish they would at least come out with more archer-only PPs, but the archery fighting style seems to be on WotC's "do not help" list :smallannoyed:

Asbestos
2009-12-14, 04:08 PM
I really wish they would at least come out with more archer-only PPs, but the archery fighting style seems to be on WotC's "do not help" list :smallannoyed:

If you just houseruled that Archer rangers get Distant Advantage for free... They suddenly become more attractive.

Artanis
2009-12-14, 04:10 PM
Yes, but A) that requires a houserule; and B) that still leaves them with a hell of a lot less archer-only PPs.

Kurald Galain
2009-12-14, 04:18 PM
I really wish they would at least come out with more archer-only PPs, but the archery fighting style seems to be on WotC's "do not help" list :smallannoyed:

To be fair it is one of the easiest-to-play and most-damaging classes in the game...

Asbestos
2009-12-14, 04:30 PM
To be fair it is one of the easiest-to-play and most-damaging classes in the game...

Yeah, but the problem is you can be a superior archer ranger by not picking th archer build. From a design perspective that's pretty borked.

Artanis
2009-12-14, 04:45 PM
Yeah, but the problem is you can be a superior archer ranger by not picking th archer build. From a design perspective that's pretty borked.

Exactly. The best archer should be the archer.