Nova Archer Build

[Arcemius]

My Revised Archer Build:
This is an Archer Build that I've been putting together, and it is a tad complicated, but not too bad. I will be ignoring things such as race or anything that doesn't influence the build directly. This build is also an optimized, level 20 character, and it is solely based on max damage output.

The Build:

11 Sharpshooter Fighter/ 6 Assassin Rogue/ 3 Archfey Bladelock
20 Dexterity
Sharpshooter Feat
No Weapon Needed

Level 11 fighter means 3 attacks and 1 action surge, and with the Archer Fighting Style, you gain +2 to attack rolls in addition to your +6 proficiency.

The Sharpshooter Archetype released in the Unearthed Arcana can help pack an insane punch. At level 3, you gain the Steady Aim ability. This allows you to take a bonus action which, in turn, causes every attack from there on out to do an additional amount of damage equal to your fighter lv/2 +2. So with a level 11 fighter you will do 7 extra damage per attack (11/2 = 5.5 rounded down to 5 + 2 = 7). You can use this feature 3 times before needing a short rest.

The Sharpshooter Feat will allow an extra 10 damage per attack with the penalty of -5 on attack rolls. However, that is simply canceling out the +5 you get from your 20 Dexterity, meaning you still have a +6 to attack rolls from your proficiency bonus and +2 from the Archer fighting style, so a +8.

The Assassin Rogue will allow you to do critical damage on any enemy that is surprised, and you have advantage on all enemies that have not taken a turn yet.

The Bladelock is basically a Warlock with the Pact of the Blade and the Archfey patron. Released in the Unearthed Arcana is an invocation called Moonbow, where you can conjure a magical bow with infinite arrows that allows you to expend your warlock spell slots to do 2d8 radiant damage per spell slot level. By level 3 Warlock, you will have 2 level 2 spell slots, which will total out to an extra 8d8 radiant damage per short rest. You can also turn any magic bow you have into your pact weapon, meaning you can summon your magic bow in place of the Moonbow, but still keep all of the benefits of both weapons, which means even more potential should you merge a powerful magic bow with the Moonbow.

So here is the damage you can do in a single shot:
3d6 (sneak) 1d8 (weapon) +5(Dex Mod) + 7 (Steady Aim bonus) + 10 (Sharpshooter feat) + 8d10 (Moonbow)

With Assassin's critical damage on surprise:
6d6 (sneak) 2d8 (Moonbow) +5 (Dex Mod) +7 (Steady Aim Bonus) + 10 (Sharpshooter feat) + 16d10 (Moonbow)

Here is your Complete Nova Damage Turn

Bonus Action: Steady Aim
Attack Action: (1st) 2d8 +5 + 7 + 10 +16d10 + 6d6
(2nd) 2d8 +5 + 7 + 10
(3rd) 2d8 +5 + 7 + 10

Action Surge (1st)
Attack Action: (1st) 2d8 +5 + 7 + 10
(2nd) 2d8 +5 + 7 + 10
(3rd) 2d8 +5 + 7 + 10


Total Damage:
12d8 + 30 +42 +30 +16d10 + 6d6
= 12d8 + 102 +16d10 + 6d6
= 136 - 394 dmg

This is obviously assuming that each attack hits, and you could even factor in magic weapons to increase the attack roll and damage roll as well. This is also not factoring in any spells that could possibly be cast and other various factors. Also, this damage would only be done on the first round, but the point of the build is specifically nova damage.

I'm open to any suggestions to the build, and also any corrections if I made any mistakes or any misinterpretations. Please tell me what you think, and I'd like to try to create the heaviest hitting, damage outputting archer possible.

[gabrion]

My Revised Archer Build:
This is an Archer Build that I've been putting together, and it is a tad complicated, but not too bad. I will be ignoring things such as race or anything that doesn't influence the build directly. This build is also an optimized, level 20 character, and it is solely based on max damage output.

The Build:

11 Sharpshooter Fighter/ 6 Assassin Rogue/ 3 Archfey Bladelock
20 Dexterity
Sharpshooter Feat
No Weapon Needed

Level 11 fighter means 3 attacks and 1 action surge, and with the Archer Fighting Style, you gain +2 to attack rolls in addition to your +6 proficiency.

The Sharpshooter Archetype released in the Unearthed Arcana can help pack an insane punch. At level 3, you gain the Steady Aim ability. This allows you to take a bonus action which, in turn, causes every attack from there on out to do an additional amount of damage equal to your fighter lv/2 +2. So with a level 11 fighter you will do 7 extra damage per attack (11/2 = 5.5 rounded down to 5 + 2 = 7). You can use this feature 3 times before needing a short rest.

The Sharpshooter Feat will allow an extra 10 damage per attack with the penalty of -5 on attack rolls. However, that is simply canceling out the +5 you get from your 20 Dexterity, meaning you still have a +6 to attack rolls from your proficiency bonus and +2 from the Archer fighting style, so a +8.

The Assassin Rogue will allow you to do critical damage on any enemy that is surprised, and you have advantage on all enemies that have not taken a turn yet.

The Bladelock is basically a Warlock with the Pact of the Blade and the Archfey patron. Released in the Unearthed Arcana is an invocation called Moonbow, where you can conjure a magical bow with infinite arrows that allows you to expend your warlock spell slots to do 2d8 radiant damage per spell slot level. By level 3 Warlock, you will have 2 level 2 spell slots, which will total out to an extra 8d8 radiant damage per short rest. You can also turn any magic bow you have into your pact weapon, meaning you can summon your magic bow in place of the Moonbow, but still keep all of the benefits of both weapons, which means even more potential should you merge a powerful magic bow with the Moonbow.

So here is the damage you can do in a single shot:
3d6 (sneak) 1d8 (weapon) +5(Dex Mod) + 7 (Steady Aim bonus) + 10 (Sharpshooter feat) + 8d10 (Moonbow)

With Assassin's critical damage on surprise:
6d6 (sneak) 2d8 (Moonbow) +5 (Dex Mod) +7 (Steady Aim Bonus) + 10 (Sharpshooter feat) + 16d10 (Moonbow)

Here is your Complete Nova Damage Turn

Bonus Action: Steady Aim
Attack Action: (1st) 2d8 +5 + 7 + 10 +16d10 + 6d6
(2nd) 2d8 +5 + 7 + 10
(3rd) 2d8 +5 + 7 + 10

Action Surge (1st)
Attack Action: (1st) 2d8 +5 + 7 + 10
(2nd) 2d8 +5 + 7 + 10
(3rd) 2d8 +5 + 7 + 10


Total Damage:
12d8 + 30 +42 +30 +16d10 + 6d6
= 12d8 + 102 +16d10 + 6d6
= 136 - 394 dmg

This is obviously assuming that each attack hits, and you could even factor in magic weapons to increase the attack roll and damage roll as well. This is also not factoring in any spells that could possibly be cast and other various factors. Also, this damage would only be done on the first round, but the point of the build is specifically nova damage.

I'm open to any suggestions to the build, and also any corrections if I made any mistakes or any misinterpretations. Please tell me what you think, and I'd like to try to create the heaviest hitting, damage outputting archer possible.

I think you've ended up with a pretty high nova damage number, but 2 comments.

1) If nova damage is built around crits (like from assassin) the static mods aren't very synergistic.
2) I think accuracy could be a problem in some cases.

Regardless, the damage number is solid.

I haven't run the numbers, but I think something like lock 3/assassin 3/fighter 2/valor bard 12 would probably pull even higher numbers. Auto crits, swift quiver, action surge, and lots more spell slots to spend on pactsmiting.

[Jack Bitters]

Interesting build. You don't see a lot of people going for a ranged nova attack these days (totally spitballing).

I think you might have done something weird with your math when you added in the moonbow smite damage–you first say it's up to 8d8 extra damage, then by the end of the calculation, you've added 16d10 instead of 16d8 (2 uses of 4d8, doubled for crit).

I have my own nova build–not sure if it'd really work or not, but I would go Valor Bard 11/Tempest Cleric 6/Assassin 3, hiding from the target and pre-casting a level 9 Lightning Arrow (taken with magical secrets). The next turn you attack with the level 9 lightning arrow and a second level 8 lightning arrow, both maximized with the tempest cleric's ability, and both critting because you would have surprise. As far as I know and have read, the damage dealt by lightning arrow simply replaces your weapon damage, so you can still add your dex bonus and sharpshooter, as well as the sneak attack damage (which becomes lightning damage).

The total damage is 20d8 +4d6 +15 for the first arrow, +18d8 +15 for the second, all maximized for a total of 358 damage, with half damage on a miss, and 15d8 damage to creatures in a 10ft radius around it.

[Arcangel4774]

You can also turn any magic bow you have into your pact weapon, meaning you can summon your magic bow in place of the Moonbow, but still keep all of the benefits of both weapons, which means even more potential should you merge a powerful magic bow with the Moonbow


This isn't strictly true, and I'd check with your dm before assuming it is. While the moonbow invocation in itself doesn't give details to the bow (it only describes the arrows)it could be argued that RAW it allows for a replacement. However it's paralleled invocations (cursebringer, mace of dispater, and claw of acamar) all describe the weapon and suggest that one would be summoning a particular weapon.

[gabrion]

Just tried coming up with average damage for the fighter/rogue/lock/bard I posted above.

For the attack sequence, it has 2 normal attacks, 2 attacks on bonus action from swift quiver, and 2 more from action surge. Of course if you get someone else to haste you it's one more.

Spell slots for smite are 1x6th, 2x5th, 3x4th, and 1x3rd (only used if hasted).

Other variable damage that gets doubled (assassin surprise) are 2d6 sneak attack and the base 1d8 from a bow. So attack sequence looks like:

1: 1d8+2d6+12d8+5
2-3: 1d8+10d8+5
4-6: 1d8+8d8+5
7 (friendly haste): 1d8+6d8+5

Total is 62d8+2d6+30, but the rolled portions get doubled on crits from assassin so 124d8+4d6+30.

Total=620 or, with friendly haste, 688.

I'm sure I messed up something though.

Edited because I originally added sneak attack on each attack.

[Rhynear]

Just tried coming up with average damage for the fighter/rogue/lock/bard I posted above.

For the attack sequence, it has 2 normal attacks, 2 attacks on bonus action from swift quiver, and 2 more from action surge. Of course if you get someone else to haste you it's one more.

Spell slots for smite are 1x6th, 2x5th, 3x4th, and 1x3rd (only used if hasted).

Other variable damage that gets doubled (assassin surprise) are 2d6 sneak attack and the base 1d8 from a bow. So attack sequence looks like:

1: 1d8+2d6+12d8+5
2-3: 1d8+2d6+10d8+5
4-6: 1d8+2d6+8d8+5
7 (friendly haste): 1d8+2d6+6d8+5

Total is 62d8+12d6+30, but the rolled portions get doubled on crits from assassin so 124d8+24d6+30.

Total=690 or, with friendly haste, 772.

I'm sure I messed up something though.

Sneak Attack is only once per turn so if the d6's are sneak attack this shouldn't count more than once, also I only got 672 when I calculated the average damage from the numbers at the end of your post.

[gabrion]

Sneak Attack is only once per turn so if the d6's are sneak attack this shouldn't count more than once, also I only got 672 when I calculated the average damage from the numbers at the end of your post.

Good catch, don't know why I added sneak on each attack. Was probably stuck in my head from calculating some day long dps on a crit Fisher.

[Corran]

snip
Moonbow adds 2d8 (and not d10's) per spell level to one attack. You cannot burn two slots to stack two moonbow ''smites'' on top of one attack.

The lack of accuracy due to sharpshooter will be a problem for when you wont have surprise. But if you are only interested in surprise nova, then you can do it even better. You can easily see that most of the surprise damage comes from moonbow. So increasing your spell slots is the way to go to further increase your surprise burst. You could also possibly use your bonus action to a much better effect than just adding a static damage bonus (even if you add it on 6 attacks; for example, you get the same damage by using hex, and hex has also a rider, but I am sure there must be even better ways, such as quickening a spell with an attack roll and many dice, if you end up going with sorcerer levels to increase your spell slots so that you can increase your smites).

Something like, fighter 2/ assassin 3/ feylock 5/ sorcerer 10, would give you the following surprise round:
Action: Attack 1: 2d8 (weapon) + dex mod + 4d6 (sneak attack) + 20d8 (moonbow, lvl 5 slot)
Attack 2: 2d8 (weapon) + dex mod + 20d8 (moonbow, lvl 5 slot)
Action surge: Attack 1: 2d8 (weapon) + dex mod + 16d8 (moonbow, lvl 4 slot)
Attack 2: 2d8 (weapon) + dex mod + 16d8 (moonbow, lvl 4 slot)
Bonus action: Quickened scorching ray (upcast at level 4): 20d6

For an (unmodified by hit chance, and assuming a dex of 20) average of 80d8 + 24d6 + 20 = 464 damage.

That said, I would strongly advise against this character regarding actual play. You need to take some focus away from surprise nova and redirect it into making surprise happen more reliably and on increasing the overall effectiveness of the build. Hear it from someone who learned this the hard way (played a similarly ''optimized'' assassin, though I eventually found the right balance that made my build better and viable).