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Serpentine
2010-04-25, 11:50 AM
Hey all. I'm playing in a new game, and I'm thinking of making myself a warforged sniper. I've never played a warforged and don't know what's available for them, and same for an archery-based character. It's level 6, starting with 13,000gp.
So, I'm wondering if anyone has any advice on how I should build it. I'm very much roleplaying and fluff-oriented, but I'm cheating a bit in this regard cuz I'm thinking of making him brand new, although magic of some description may give him... him? Hrm. Anyway, it some knowledge of the world and the like. Any ideas of what could work with a character that was literally born yesterday would be nice.
I want him to be fast, sneaky, and a good shot from a long way away. You know, sniper. I think he might have an eternal curiosity - what with everything being so new - and probably an at least passing interest in nature, though doesn't necessarily have to be reflected mechanically.
Class-wise: I was thinking straight Fighter, or maybe a Swordsage or similar, but then I was thinking Rogue/Fighter or Rogue/Ranger, and then I thought of the Scout, and then... Yeah.
Feats-wise: Dunno yet. Where are Warforged resources?
Stuff-wise: What's important for an archer, and for a Warforged?

tl;dr: Looking for advice on building a Warforged sniper, right down to which class it should be.

Dusk Eclipse
2010-04-25, 01:32 PM
If you want a sneaky warforged, there are the warforged couts in MM 3, they got LA +1 so you might want to check that.

Ranger is a good option if you use the spells from the Spell compendium... though an archivist is also a good option.

Critical
2010-04-25, 01:49 PM
Warforged Scout Warlock. :smallcool:

The Shadowmind
2010-04-25, 01:55 PM
Warforged Scout Warlock. :smallcool:

Eldritch Spear+Horizon goggles=375ft range eldritch blast.:smallsmile:

PapaNachos
2010-04-25, 01:55 PM
Scout doesn't have LA, but the stat mods hurt. +2 Dex, -2 Str, Wix and Cha will hurt depending on how you build. You also get small size so thats either an advantage or disadvantage, depending on how you see it.
I would suggest taking Mithril or Unarmored Body as your 1st level feat, mostly because I don't see a sniper running around the woods in iron armor.
I would also suggest looking into some warforged components. If you're willing to go with a crossbow you could use the Armbow from the Eberron Campaign Setting. Essence of the Scout could be useful as well.

Look into RotW for some feats related to sniping, Able Sniper and Woodland Sniper both look like good choices. If you decide to go with a rogue or scout you should consider Crossbow Sniper from PH2.

Vizzerdrix
2010-04-25, 02:28 PM
Handy Dandy Handbook!

http://brilliantgameologists.com/boards/index.php?topic=642.0

PinkysBrain
2010-04-25, 06:17 PM
Scout archers are close combat archers, not snipers.

Warforged scout are LA+0, but they have poor stats ... +2 dex, -2 str, -2 cha, -2 wis and 20 speed (the last one is silly, they should have 30 speed like goblins). Still it's playable, although I'd ask the DM to houserule the speed thing.

How about an Artificer? :) Whether it's with wands of scorching rays or with arrows and quickened wands of hunter's mercy they are excellent snipers.

Lycanthromancer
2010-04-25, 08:52 PM
Best archer is a cleric. Ask JaronK about his build that lets him shoot through walls and floors and ceilings and trees and just about anything else, from several miles away, with no penalties, for absolutely horrendously massive damage.

AslanCross
2010-04-25, 09:04 PM
A rogue could do fine if he's got decent UMD, Crossbow Sniper, and a Great Crossbow with a wand chamber mounting a wand of Sniper's Shot. It's a level 1 spell and has no caster level variables, and by Rules Compendium clarifications, it's a swift action to activate even as a wand.

Even a Small Warforged Scout (I wish they'd just called it something else!) rogue would still have a Great Crossbow that deals 2d6 damage.

The thing about sniping is that most of the time you'll want to prepare your sniping nest so that you can take shots without being spotted. This is not always the case, though.

The rogue in my current party (although he's human) improvises when the terrain isn't favorable by using Deadeye Shot: he readies actions to shoot people when they get hit in melee by allies. Deadeye Shot denies the target its dex bonus, triggering Sneak Attack.

Serpentine
2010-04-25, 10:54 PM
I looked at the Warforged Scout, but I think the normal one will work best. I was also intending to use a longbow rather than a crossbow.
UMD at least is probably desirable, if only for self-healing, cuz I don't know if anyone else in the party will be able to heal it.
I don't think Cleric will fit with what I have in mind, but it's an interesting one. Same with Warlock.
I haven't looked at Artificer. Are they really effective ranged combatants?
Aslan: Does the Rogue get the sneak attack, or does the melee attacker? I like the sound of that trick, anyway. What do I need to know about it?
Scout doesn't work as a sniper. Gotcha.
Thanks for that Vizzer, I'll look through it.
Thanks for the input so far :smallsmile:

AslanCross
2010-04-25, 11:06 PM
Aslan: Does the Rogue get the sneak attack, or does the melee attacker? I like the sound of that trick, anyway. What do I need to know about it?


The sniper; the target is denied his dex bonus to the sniper's attack. Sorry about that, should've been clearer. Deadeye Shot is found in PHB2. Its requirements are simple enough to meet by Lv 6 and will work well with any ranged weapon.

The biggest issue here is getting to sneak attack further than 30 feet; Crossbow Sniper allows you to sneak out to 60.

Serpentine
2010-04-26, 12:31 AM
What's the significance of using a Readied Action, then?

PinkysBrain
2010-04-26, 12:34 AM
I haven't looked at Artificer. Are they really effective ranged combatants?
The persistificer is an effective everything ... but that's a bit too cheesy.

Lets do a non persisting artificer archer :
First things first ... you need 14 cha, +4 cha item, skill focus UMD and a circlet of persuasion for 100% certain wand use.

You get a spare hand(s) belt (MiC and MoE) and a bow with a wand chamber (Dungeonscape). You will need to juggle wands frequently and this lets you do that for 2 wands without using actions (at higher level gloves of storing help too) or 3. The wand bracelet from MoE helps too, but it's been errata'd in MiC to use a swift action ... which makes it far less interesting. The MoE version of the Spare Hands Belt also has a 2 handed version which is nice.

Get a belt of battle too.

The basic plan would be to on the first round of combat to activate the belt of battle, use a standard action to cast Find the Gap from a wand, scroll or minor schema (MoE) and attack. On the rounds after this you cast quickened hunter's mercy from a wand quickened with metamagic spell trigger and attack.

Your first attack every round after the first will use touch AC and crit if it hits (MiC has some very nice weapon abilities which activate on crits, prismatic burst being the best ... probably too good in fact).

If you have time to buff you can put quicken on the wand with the metamagic item infusion to reduce the number of charges you need. You can put a weapon augmentation on your weapon (bane is always nice if you know what you will be fighting) etc etc.

Serpentine
2010-04-26, 12:41 AM
So is that a wand-combat build, then? Cuz I wanted archery-based... Although it could be fun to have both, I suppose.

PinkysBrain
2010-04-26, 01:00 AM
Let me rephrase :

The basic plan would be to on the first round of combat to activate the belt of battle, use a standard action to cast Find the Gap from a wand, scroll or minor schema (MoE) and attack with your bow. On the rounds after this you cast quickened hunter's mercy from a wand quickened with metamagic spell trigger and attack with your bow.

I call that an archer. A wand combat artificer would use wands of scorching ray or lesser orb IMO.

Serpentine
2010-04-26, 01:51 AM
Ahh. So all the wands and things are to make the archery better, is that right? I'm unfamiliar with... just about all of those items, I think.
I definitely have to look into the Artificer. They're the ones that're extra-good at healing and helping Warforged, right?

AslanCross
2010-04-26, 02:07 AM
What's the significance of using a Readied Action, then?

It's the feat's trigger. You ready an action to shoot a target that gets hit [by an ally] in melee. Basically, your ally's attack becomes a distraction that allows you to get in a sneak attack even if you're not actually hiding. It's a way for you to get mileage out of your sneak attack without having to hide all the time, because it's not always possible to do so.

PinkysBrain
2010-04-26, 05:09 AM
Ahh. So all the wands and things are to make the archery better, is that right?
That's the general idea.

I'm unfamiliar with... just about all of those items, I think.
The wand juggling is a bit tricky ... you really need either Magic of Eberron or Magic Item Compendium for items (spare hands belt is most important really) and Spell Compendium for spells.

I definitely have to look into the Artificer. They're the ones that're extra-good at healing and helping Warforged, right?
The wizard can cast repair construct too (and use wands of it) but yeah, generally Artificers are the best at boosting/repairing constructs.

Escheton
2010-04-26, 08:10 AM
Warblade 1/ spellthief

+1 aptitude focus ballista, mounted on a tensers floating disk
bare minimum, have fun from there.

Take the following feat. which due to the ballista being aptitude focus would apply to it.
Hand Crossbow Focus: DotUD Reload any Crossbow (or other weapon that needs to be reloaded) as a free Action, and get a Weapon focus to boot.

Full attack a ballista. Make the ballista have the same awesome look as your gunner...uhm warforged
sneak attack with a 3d6, x3 120ft crossbow...

The spellthief lvl's make you the dread of any mages nearby.
And the spells allow you to either snipe perfectly or sneak attack undead and constructs and such nifty tricks, depending on you spell selection.
You can UMD most things, and use any eternal wand


the only downside is that the attackroll with a ballista (who normally takes 3 rounds to reload) is a flat d20 roll without your dex or bab.
Though hastebonus, enhancement etc would still work.
But against tanking foes you might need to cast truestrike or something instead of full attack.

edit: and on top of that just dualwield repeating handcrossbows and a great crossbow with specific enchantments.

2 guns, a rifle and a mounted heavy rifle

Serpentine
2010-04-26, 08:33 AM
Neat idea, but... longbow.

edit: I've found two possibilities from Dragon through Crystalkeep:
Targetteer Fighter (DR310) - Slightly different skills, and replaces Fighter feats with a choice of special feats (mostly archery-based) or a special ability ("arrow swarm" which gives extra shots, "sniper" which sacrifices a shot to get a critical threat range bonus, and "vital aim", which replaces Dex for Str for determening damage). Special abilities aren't great, so I'm not sure it'd be any better than normal Fighter.
Sniper Scout (DR 346) - Loses Skirmish and Fast Movement (boo!), gains "Sniper Shot" ("as a Full Round Action (that does not allow a 5’ Step), make a single shot with a projectile weapon. If it hits no matter what the range, it does +Nd6 damage. The target must be alive, corporeal, vulnerable to Critical Hits, not benefiting from Cover or Concealment, etc.").

I'm considering a Sniper Scout/Fighter. I looked at the Artificer, but I'm not sure it's what I'm after.
Why is it so hard to just get something interesting with a bow? :smallannoyed:

gdiddy
2010-04-26, 11:09 AM
You seem to be looking for something that is not omgwtfbbq powerful and resembles an archer that makes sense. This is confusing to some gianters

I think you're looking for something like this:

RoboArcher 9000

Warforged Ranger 4/Fighter 2

Strength 14 Dex 17 Con 12 Int 12 Wis 14 Cha 6

Feats: Mithral Plating, Point-Blank, Able Sniper, Far Shot, Mountain Warrior

Dragonbone Force Composite Longbow +11/+6 1d8+2, Crit 20 x3 195 ft. Range [Ignore Damage Reduction, Suffer no penalty when hitting incorporeal or etherial creatures, Ignore wind and spells that do not stop force effects] (8,500, get the mage bane enchantment on it soon, for +2 to hit and +26d damage anything that can cast spells or Spell Like Abilities.)

Rapid Shot +9/+9/+4 1d8+2, Crit 20 x3 195 ft. Range

Against a flat footed opponent, you add +2 to hit. +11/+11/+6 against most flat-footed opponents is going to hurt.

Maximum Range : 1950 ft, -20 to hit, requires a DC 97 Spot Check to see enemies at this distance with a spyglass. At best, you have a +11 Spot. This limits your range to 620 Ft., if you take twenty on a spot check through a spy glass for a single target. Attacks at this range (3-4x your bow's range increment) are made at -8.

If you are more than ten feet above your opponent, add +1 to hit.

And if you make only a single attack, you can Hide afterwards with a -4 [-20 to hide after an attack +9 Ranks +3 Dex +4 Able Sniper], meaning you can plink away at your enemy and they will not be able to find you.

You can cast Entangle once per day, at up to 480 Feet. This is good, because it keeps casters from doing their jobs, and causes anyone entangled to suffer -4 Dex, giving you a +2 to hit.

I would go with either a Horse or Hawk Animal Companion. The hawk can be all like "Hey, there is someone sneaking up on you." The horse would let you move very quickly and provide cover to fire from.

Invest in a spyglass, as most DMs allow that it cuts spot checks in half.

Over the next few levels, go into Cragtop Archer. It let's you not only shoot very far, but hit the things you shoot at. After that, I'd continue going with Ranger, just to increase your Spot and spells available.

There you go, an archer that is functional at long range, for most games, though definitely not for arenas or powergames.

Lycanthromancer
2010-04-26, 11:14 AM
Straight (hur) psychic warrior, or psywar/slayer (for the BAB) would make a good archer, actually. Likewise with psion/slayer. It can use its powers for a lot. Stealth (chameleon, metamorphosis), stat buffs (animal affinity, metamorphosis), bonus feats (Point Blank Shot line, evolving into Psionic Shot etc), access to deep crystal weapons and psionic weaponry, and psions in particular get some nice things. Later on, a combination of energy conversion, energy wall (for recharges) schism, metamorphosis, a psicrystal, and Split Psionic Ray, Chained Power, Greater Psionic Shot, Aligned Attack, and a greater chasuble of fell power can do really nasty things.

It doesn't come online until level 13, but you can do reasonably well before then (and a well-placed psychic reformation can do you wonders).

Serpentine
2010-04-26, 11:42 PM
You seem to be looking for something that is not omgwtfbbq powerful and resembles an archer that makes sense. This is confusing to some gianters.Heh. Pretty much, yeah.
Your build is definitely a good place for me to start, thanks. Where's the dragonbone bow found? I admit, though, I'm iffy about having more than a dip into Ranger. He's not really a naturey sort of a character (and being newborn, I may have trouble explaining an animal companion :smalltongue:).

I'm afraid I'm not a particular fan of psionics (could be a problem, seeing as I'll be playing with Vorpal Tribble :smalltongue:); at least, I'm not interested enough in it to learn it.

Eldariel
2010-04-27, 12:05 AM
Heh. Pretty much, yeah.
Your build is definitely a good place for me to start, thanks. Where's the dragonbone bow found?

It's in Draconomicon. Quite natural :smallbiggrin:


I admit, though, I'm iffy about having more than a dip into Ranger. He's not really a naturey sort of a character (and being newborn, I may have trouble explaining an animal companion :smalltongue:).

Be an Urban Ranger (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/variantCharacterClasses.htm#rangerVariantUrbanRang er) or even a Planar Ranger (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/variantCharacterClasses.htm#rangerVariantPlanarRan ger) and use the PHBII variant to trade your Animal Companion for Distracting Attack; targets you hit are considered flanked until your next turn (or until they are next attacked). Pretty useful; even if you don't just kill someone, they'll be inconvenienced by your shot. It's all in reflavoring :smallwink: If either of those doesn't work, come up with something else!

One problem, snipers often kinda have trouble actually sniping things. Generally archery is built to reward shooting a ton of shots; sniping doesn't really have support so you can't really deal more with a single shot than with a flurry; it's hard to go for the "one shot, one kill" (though Ranger spells would help; particularly Hunter's Mercy - Ranger 1 - autocrits your next shot). An interesting option: If you only pick Archery-related ranger spells, you could even fluff then as different techniques. Arrowmind, well, it's firing while avoiding opponent in melee. Hunter's Mercy? Take a good aim and have your shot land true. Find the Gap? Well, you find the gap in opponent's defenses, obviously. And so on and so forth.

That may be fun; straight Mystic Urban Ranger (without animal companion) taking lots of spells refluffing them all as archery techniques (obviously just not using any non-archery spells). Oh, and all the spells I mentioned are in Spell Compendium. Mystic Ranger is from Dragon, but can be found on Crystalkeep. Basically, postpones most things (and loses Animal Companion) for faster spell progression, which is pretty nice if spells are your combat maneuvers. Of course, them running out is kinda weird so...stack up Pearls of Powers so that never happens!


Other than that, straight Rogue may be a good starting point for a sniper, or a caster-base with two levels of Arcane Archer to shoot spells at people if such a thing strikes your fancy.

gdiddy
2010-04-27, 12:06 AM
Drgonbone Bow is from the Draconomicon. It adds 20 to a bow's range. Composit longbow is 110 + 20 dragonbone, multiplied by 1.5 with Far Shot.

As far as a ranger, if s/he/it was manufactured by a wizard as an outdoor guardian, or maybe a sentinel in a garden on the wizard's estate, I could see the outdoorsiness. A shining metal statue in the center of the wizard's garden, peppering intruders with arrows. Or something. I would roleplay ingame finding an animal companion.

It's also easily done with Fighter 6, you can even still get Track and Rapidshot. I'm not sure if Warforged even need Endurance, ever. No loss there. (Don't get Manyshot. It only works at under 30 feet and you will not hit anything.) The problem with a fighter is he doesn't get Spot as a class skill. So no matter how far you could shoot in theory, you'd never be able to see the target. Ever. Nor does he have Hide. (Hint: The shiny metal man in the tree-tops holding the bow is definitely the person who shot you.) Ranger is there for the ranks, as well as the nature stuff.

Consider Urban Ranger or Planar Ranger (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/variantCharacterClasses.htm#rangerVariantPlanarRan ger) if this is not some kind of magic nature bot. If you pick rogue, most of your class abilities tie you to 30 ft. or to 60 ft. with a crossbow. You will tell people you are a sniper. The words "Sniper" may be etched into your unfeeling metal hide, but you will still be 3 seconds away from getting slapped around.

If you take nothing else from my post, definitely get a Force enchantment on your bow. DR and mages will no longer be scary.

Serpentine
2010-04-27, 12:17 AM
Be an Urban Ranger (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/variantCharacterClasses.htm#rangerVariantUrbanRang er) or even a Planar Ranger (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/variantCharacterClasses.htm#rangerVariantPlanarRan ger)Not quite sure about these, but
and use the PHBII variant to trade your Animal Companion for Distracting Attack;that would work, and

An interesting option: If you only pick Archery-related ranger spells, you could even fluff then as different techniques. Arrowmind, well, it's firing while avoiding opponent in melee. Hunter's Mercy? Take a good aim and have your shot land true. Find the Gap? Well, you find the gap in opponent's defenses, obviously. And so on and so forth.
That may be fun; straight Mystic Urban Ranger (without animal companion) taking lots of spells refluffing them all as archery techniques (obviously just not using any non-archery spells).I like this idea a lot. Silly me, didn't even think to look at the Ranger variants on Crystalkeep...
Other than that, straight Rogue may be a good starting point for a sniper, or a caster-base with two levels of Arcane Archer to shoot spells at people if such a thing strikes your fancy.[/QUOTE]I think, now, if I go the "Roguish" route, I'll take the Scoute variant. But I am liking the Ranger options...

Eldariel
2010-04-27, 01:24 AM
I like this idea a lot. Silly me, didn't even think to look at the Ranger variants on Crystalkeep...

Wonderful. Let's see what we can come up with then, with regards to spells (your feats are probably consumed by taking various Archery-feats):
1st level spells:
- Arrow Mind [SC]
- Guided Shot [SC]
- Hawkeye [SC]
- Hunter's Mercy [SC]
- Sniper's Shot [SC] (useless alone; you have no Sneak Attack as a baseline)
- Vinestrike [SC] (useless alone; see above)

2nd level spells:
- Exacting Shot [SC]
- (Haste, Swift) [SC] (not a sniper ability per ce, but an archer one)
- Hunter's Eye [PHBII] (gains you sneak attack)

3rd level spells:
- Arrow Storm [SC] (again, as Haste)
- Find the Gap [SC]

4th level spells:
- Foebane [SC]


Of course, few things like "scent"-granting spells, Freedom of Movement and such are also perfectly feasible; techniques can just as well provide improvements to related areas as just plain shooting (tracking opponents, avoiding melee, etc. all seem logical). As an added bonus, you have access to all Ranger-wands meaning you can use at least Wands of Cure Light Wounds without trouble. If you pick feat called "Sword of the Arcane Order" [Champions of Valor], which gives you ability to cast Wizard-spells from your Ranger-slots (adds few interesting Archery-options), you could also use Wands of Repair Light Damage without issue. That might be preferable.

I'd definitely fit Extend Spell in there somewhere; Extend would allow "combining" two of those as many of them last for 1 round - Extending one would allow you to use it along with other one on the next round (and you can take the snipe each turn as most of the spells are swift actions, though Hunter's Mercy, or "Take Aim" as I like to call it, is a standard - Quicken Spell is amusing with it).


Oh, and for Warforged feats, you'll want to look at Races of Eberron. The race-specific stuff is in there. Unfortunately most of the stuff there deals with armor plating and slam attacks, neither of which is too grand for you, though "Mithral Body"-feat to gain Mithral armor may be interesting (+5 AC, +5 Max Dex, -2 ACP; enchant it with Nimbleness eventually to get rid of that).

If you see yourself ending up with major (~26+) Dexterity though, you're actually better off with just Composite Plating that you get enhanced as you want since it has no Max Dex, and doesn't cost a feat.

gdiddy
2010-04-27, 01:27 AM
I heartily endorse Eldariel's post. Spells get things done.

Serpentine
2010-04-27, 02:14 AM
Wonderful. Let's see what we can come up with then, with regards to spells (your feats are probably consumed by taking various Archery-feats):
1st level spells:
- Arrow Mind [SC]
- Guided Shot [SC]
- Hawkeye [SC]
- Hunter's Mercy [SC]
- Sniper's Shot [SC] (useless alone; you have no Sneak Attack as a baseline)
- Vinestrike [SC] (useless alone; see above)

2nd level spells:
- Exacting Shot [SC]
- (Haste, Swift) [SC] (not a sniper ability per ce, but an archer one)
- Hunter's Eye [PHBII] (gains you sneak attack)

3rd level spells:
- Arrow Storm [SC] (again, as Haste)
- Find the Gap [SC]

4th level spells:
- Foebane [SC]


Of course, few things like "scent"-granting spells, Freedom of Movement and such are also perfectly feasible; techniques can just as well provide improvements to related areas as just plain shooting (tracking opponents, avoiding melee, etc. all seem logical).Excellent. Thank you.

As an added bonus, you have access to all Ranger-wands meaning you can use at least Wands of Cure Light Wounds without trouble. If you pick feat called "Sword of the Arcane Order" [Champions of Valor], which gives you ability to cast Wizard-spells from your Ranger-slots (adds few interesting Archery-options), you could also use Wands of Repair Light Damage without issue. That might be preferable.I might be able to negotiate with the DM to swap Cure Light Wounds for Repair Light Damage, or else work out an item for it that can just be used on me (I have pretty good backstory justification, I think, and I can't see it being game-breaking). I'll have a look at the feat, though, and if I can spare it.

I'd definitely fit Extend Spell in there somewhere; Extend would allow "combining" two of those as many of them last for 1 round - Extending one would allow you to use it along with other one on the next round (and you can take the snipe each turn as most of the spells are swift actions, though Hunter's Mercy, or "Take Aim" as I like to call it, is a standard - Quicken Spell is amusing with it).I'll keep this in mind, too. Unfortunately, decent archery looks extremely feat-intensive, so I'll have to be careful with them. There's an item of some sort that grants uses of metamagic, isn't there?

Oh, and for Warforged feats, you'll want to look at Races of Eberron. The race-specific stuff is in there. Unfortunately most of the stuff there deals with armor plating and slam attacks, neither of which is too grand for you, though "Mithral Body"-feat to gain Mithral armor may be interesting (+5 AC, +5 Max Dex, -2 ACP; enchant it with Nimbleness eventually to get rid of that).

If you see yourself ending up with major (~26+) Dexterity though, you're actually better off with just Composite Plating that you get enhanced as you want since it has no Max Dex, and doesn't cost a feat.Already got something along those lines, so unfortunately I think pretty much (or actually) all the Warforged-specific options are useless for me.

Thanks a lot for the help, everyone :smallsmile: Keep the advice and tips coming, and I'll post what I end up with I'm able.

As an aside, any thoughts on reconciling naivety, poor social skills, lack of empathy and lack of life experience (low Wisdom) with a great awareness of one's surroundings and self, curiosity, straightforward thinking and a decent bit of basic common sense (highish Wisdom)?

Eldariel
2010-04-27, 02:42 AM
Excellent. Thank you.
I might be able to negotiate with the DM to swap Cure Light Wounds for Repair Light Damage, or else work out an item for it that can just be used on me (I have pretty good backstory justification, I think, and I can't see it being game-breaking). I'll have a look at the feat, though, and if I can spare it.

Sounds good. Yeah, archery is a bit feat intensive but between your ranger bonuses and your levels, you should be fine. Still, e.g. flaws wouldn't hurt (might help with the whole naivete-thing too).


I'll keep this in mind, too. Unfortunately, decent archery looks extremely feat-intensive, so I'll have to be careful with them. There's an item of some sort that grants uses of metamagic, isn't there?

Rod of Metamagic (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicItems/rods.htm#metamagicExtend), yes indeed. It just so happens "Lesser Extend" (spell levels 1-3) is very cheap, even affordable by level 6 standards. Something to consider, though I don't think you're that tight on spells and due to sparsity of higher level archery spells, you'll probably have slots to Extend the spells in.


Already got something along those lines, so unfortunately I think pretty much (or actually) all the Warforged-specific options are useless for me.

Well, Warforged chassis is just fine as is, so that's no problem; few characters overall take racial feats, after all (aside from the Human-only Able Learner which is ridiculously handy). Feats are in sparse supply. Composite Plating and your various Living Construct-traits should get you the feel and that's all that matters.


Thanks a lot for the help, everyone :smallsmile: Keep the advice and tips coming, and I'll post what I end up with I'm able.

As an aside, any thoughts on reconciling naivety, poor social skills, lack of empathy and lack of life experience (low Wisdom) with a great awareness of one's surroundings and self, curiosity, straightforward thinking and a decent bit of basic common sense (highish Wisdom)?

Well, I think you've got that down that already quite well. But honestly, you're a machine originally built for war; environmental awareness and keen eye are obvious necessities for you. Your construction might have encompassed your self-awareness and made you wise in the sense that you understand yourself, your place, your capabilities and so on, but as you were built, not born, and have not grown, you'll still be naive, unemphatic and so on.

Frankly, your negative traits (aside from "lack of life experience") are more of charisma (poor social skills) and int (naivety in a way can be read here too; simply not knowing of fleshies and their world falls under Int, after all), so that's something to keep in mind. But if flaws are allowed, you could take something penalizing the illogical parts Wisdom boosts (e.g. taking -4 on non-skill Wisdom-checks or some such) while maintaining your observational capabilities and such that are logical and indeed, quite necessary for a Warforged Sniper.

Serpentine
2010-04-27, 02:47 AM
I suppose I'm mostly just thinking about Bluff (which is Cha anyway) and Sense Motive, and I can probably just roleplay those away (i.e., will never lie and doesn't understand deceit, and will always take things literally and at face value).
I'll have to have a look at the flaws... Now that I think about it, where are they? :smallconfused:

Eldariel
2010-04-27, 02:49 AM
I suppose I'm mostly just thinking about Bluff (which is Cha anyway) and Sense Motive, and I can probably just roleplay those away (i.e., will never lie and doesn't understand deceit, and will always take things literally and at face value).
I'll have to have a look at the flaws... Now that I think about it, where are they? :smallconfused:

Here (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/buildingCharacters/characterFlaws.htm). But I propose you ask to homebrew some that suit your character specifically; those are rather generic and rather tend to serve poorly for specific desires (unless you want an ADD guy, that's plenty supported).

EDIT: Btw, random stuff can actually lead to loads of fun discovery. An unrelated anecdote, but my Sublime Way Ranger in the campaign I'm currently Journaling turned out to be our salvation when our party was tried for murders and smuggling, and turns out Knowledge: Local isn't only useful for identifying humanoids, but also covers local Law so this woodsman turned out to be the best lawyer in town. We got out unscathed :smallcool:

Serpentine
2010-04-28, 12:38 AM
Alright, I've decided to go with Distracting Shot Ranger 4/Sniper Scout 2. No response from the DM yet on a flaw. He's given me permission to incorporate some items into its body, though. So far I'm thinking a Cloak of Elvenkind analogue on its "skin", and maybe I'll make its "backpack" or perhaps just a quiver part of it. Also hoping to get a "repair light damage" button. Think I'll just buy bows, though, so I can be a bit flexible with that. I'll have a look at the Simple Bow, see if that works, and see if the DM allows Legacy items...

Serpentine
2010-05-13, 04:08 AM
Okay, I've finished it. You can see it here (http://pifro.com/pro/view.php?id=4913), if anyone's interested.

Thanks for your help, everyone :smallsmile: