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View Full Version : D&D 5e/Next Arcane Archer (ranger subclass)



Gnomes2169
2015-01-15, 03:56 AM
Because honestly, I am shocked that this isn't a thing and feel this situation needs to be rectified immediately.


The Arcane Archer

LevelAbility
3Arcane initiate, bonded weapon
7Infused shot
11Force ammunition
15Infused barrage

Arcane initiate: At level 3 you begin to study arcane powers, learning spells and techniques that you found difficult to grasp before. You learn two cantrips from of the evocation or conjuration schools from the wizard spell list, along with two level 1 spells from the same list. At level 7, 11, 15 and 19 you learn two additional transmutation or evocation spells from the wizard spell list of the highest spell level you are able to cast, and you learn one additional cantrip from any school as long as it is a wizard cantrip. These spells may only be exchanged for other wizard spells, and must be changed for spells of the same level. The spellcasting stat for these spells is your wisdom score.

Bonded weapon: At level 3 you may designate a ranged or throwing weapon as a bonded weapon. This weapon is considered magical, and you may summon it from anywhere to your hand as a bonus action, as long as you are on the same plane of existence. You may only have one bonded weapon at any time, and may change which weapon you have bonded at the end of a long rest.

Infused shot: At level 7 when you make an attack action using your bonded weapon, you may spend a bonus action to replace one of your attacks and cast a cantrip. When you do so, any targets of the spell must be within the weapon's short range, and if the cantrip has an attack roll you use your bonded weapon's attack bonus instead of your spellcaster attack bonus on the attack roll. If the cantrip makes multiple attacks, make as many attacks as are required but all of the attacks must target the same creature. If the cantrip has multiple targets then the targets must be within 5 feet of each other. Cantrips that have an area of effect must be centered on one creature in range of this feature. Cantrips that affect an area that are centered on the spellcaster (such as Thunderburst) are not allowed to be infused in this way.
You may use infused shot a number of times equal to your Proficiency modifier, and regain all expended uses at the end of a long rest.

Force ammunition: At level 11 when you make a ranged attack with your bonded weapon, the attack deals an additional 1d6 force damage on a hit. Additionally, when you used a ranged weapon with the ammunition property and have no ammunition to load your weapon or simply do not wish to expend ammunition, you may create a bolt of pure force that functions as ammunition. This bolt deals 1d6+your Wisdom modifier force damage instead of your weapon's normal damage, and disappears once the attack resolves.

Infused barrage: At level 15 you learn to infuse greater amounts of arcane energies into your weapons. When you use a bonus action to cast a spell with infused shot, you may cast a spell of level 1 or higher instead of a cantrip, following all the same rules for range, attack rolls, area, etc. However, if you choose to cast a cantrip as part of your infused shot, you may make an additional attack with your bonded weapon.

Rawrawrawr
2015-01-15, 10:33 AM
This looks pretty cool! I was also really surprised that Arcane Archer wasn't a thing in 5e, and this is pretty much exactly what I'd want to see out of it!

That said, Infused Shot is definitely too powerful for 7th level. At this point, a Ranger can have Extra Attack and Hunter's Mark up and running, so your at-will damage at 7th level is probably 2d8 + 10 + 2d6 + 2d10 (assuming, say, Firebolt - and that last one is made with advantage, which is even more powerful), which is more than anyone else is doing at 7th level. The most direct comparison at that level is the Eldritch Knight, who's spending both his Action and his Bonus Action to cast a cantrip and make a single weapon attack. The Arcane Archer can use just one Action to make two weapon attacks and cast a cantrip with advantage.

You might actually want to swap Infused Shot and Infused Barrage - Infused Barrage is more powerful but it can only be used a limited number of times per day. Plus, infusing a spell also adds some level of risk (since a spell with a save/attack roll now has two fail points, instead of one, increasing the chance you waste the spell) and limitations (an area spell HAS to be centered on the target, a multitarget spell HAS to target clustered creatures), so it's not an automatic upgrade the same way Infused Shot is.

Gnomes2169
2015-01-15, 01:18 PM
This looks pretty cool! I was also really surprised that Arcane Archer wasn't a thing in 5e, and this is pretty much exactly what I'd want to see out of it!

That said, Infused Shot is definitely too powerful for 7th level. At this point, a Ranger can have Extra Attack and Hunter's Mark up and running, so your at-will damage at 7th level is probably 2d8 + 10 + 2d6 + 2d10 (assuming, say, Firebolt - and that last one is made with advantage, which is even more powerful), which is more than anyone else is doing at 7th level. The most direct comparison at that level is the Eldritch Knight, who's spending both his Action and his Bonus Action to cast a cantrip and make a single weapon attack. The Arcane Archer can use just one Action to make two weapon attacks and cast a cantrip with advantage.

Hmmm... perhaps making it cost a bonus action and limiting it to one attack/ round would be in order... That said, if the cantrip has an attack roll then it auto-hits if the attack hits, and misses if the attack misses. The cantrips that have a saving throws impose disadvantage on the save if the attack hits, and is just cast normally if the attack misses.


You might actually want to swap Infused Shot and Infused Barrage - Infused Barrage is more powerful but it can only be used a limited number of times per day. Plus, infusing a spell also adds some level of risk (since a spell with a save/attack roll now has two fail points, instead of one, increasing the chance you waste the spell) and limitations (an area spell HAS to be centered on the target, a multitarget spell HAS to target clustered creatures), so it's not an automatic upgrade the same way Infused Shot is.

Infused barrage might be changed slightly to allow you to use infused shot twice/ round as a bonus action (thus allowing you to make two attacks+2 cantrips/ round), but I'm good keeping it where it is level-wise. Just from a fluff standpoint, cantrips are supposed to be easier to use than "true" spells, so it follows that they should be easier to stick on an attack.