Looking for a Strong and versatile Archer Build

[Nosta]

I have 10 Levels to work with and need advice on making an Archer that can do decent damage and have skills out of battle


as I have never played 5e I have no idea where to start

Have played 3.5/PF but those are two totally Different things from 5e

I also Need advice on Race . thinking wood elf

[Emongnome777]

Ranger is solid. Friend plays a wood elf ranger (gloom stalker) with sharpshooter feat. Does good damage at 5th level for us.

Edit: Meant to add that with higher than normal wisdom, you can excel at several wisdom based skills like perception (free with elf race), survival, medicine, etc.

[MeeposFire]

I am partial to a samurai. They can be tough and get free advantage at the same time which lets them use the sharp shooter feat really well. Combine that with elven accuracy and you will be hitting some hard hitting shots when you really need them. Keep a short sword and scimitar on hand in case you need to mix it up in melee (which you will be fine at doing though not quite as well as using archery). It will give a good overall selection of skills and gives you good range of saves as well. A pretty nice package on the whole.

[Blood of Gaea]

If you're looking to balance a ranged attacker with having good skills, Scout Rogue would be pretty great for that. It's in Xanathar's Guide to Everything.

[Nosta]

I am partial to a samurai. They can be tough and get free advantage at the same time which lets them use the sharp shooter feat really well. Combine that with elven accuracy and you will be hitting some hard hitting shots when you really need them. Keep a short sword and scimitar on hand in case you need to mix it up in melee (which you will be fine at doing though not quite as well as using archery). It will give a good overall selection of skills and gives you good range of saves as well. A pretty nice package on the whole.


Ah could you help me choose ASI / Feats?

[MeeposFire]

Ah could you help me choose ASI / Feats?

For that I would recommend getting elven accuracy and sharp shooter for feats and getting max dex. After that if you want you can go for upgrading your con but you could also look instead to increase your defenses or utility for instance you could grab resilient dex for better dex saves and you could pick up ritual caster to pick up some more utility (assuming others are not already providing it though some rituals are always good like find familiar).

Essentially you eventually want sharp shooter for damage and elven accuracy for being able to hit along with max dex to pair with those but after that it really is up to you and what you want from your character.

[sithlordnergal]

Might I suggest the Rogue/Fighter build? If you go Rogue first you can get plenty of skills. I'd suggest Variant Human with Fighter 6 / Rogue 4, that will get you Extra Attack and 3 ASI's. For feats I'd say Sharshooter, Crossbow Expert, and Medium Armor Master, then get Dex 18.

For Fighter, I went Battlemaster with Archery Fighting Style, and Arcane Trickster for Find Familiar.

[Blood of Gaea]

Ah could you help me choose ASI / Feats?

Race: Wood Elf

Str: 8, 10, or 12
Dex: 15+2
Con: 14
Int: 8, 10, or 12
Wis: 13+1
Cha: 8, 10, or 12

ASI 1: Elven Accuracy
ASI 2: Sharpshooter
ASI 3: +2 Dex

After that your build is complete, just take whatever ASI/Feats fit your PC. If you just want to increase effective damage output, Magic Initiate Cleric for Bless. Take Guidance and one other utility cantrip as well. Crossbow Expert is also very powerful.

[LudicSavant]

Ah could you help me choose ASI / Feats?

If you're looking to do a Samurai archer as Meepo suggested, you'll want to start with 17 Dex, get Sharpshooter, Elven Accuracy, and Max Dex ASAP, then you can take whatever else you want from there. Good options include Crossbow Expert, Wood Elf Magic, Magic Initiate, Ritual Caster, Lucky, Alert, Inspiring Leader, Resilient, or Tough.

[Frozenstep]

Everyone's in here giving you such specific advice and that's cool, but I wonder if on a basic level there's anything else you want from your archer.

Do you just want to be the guy pumping out arrows and staying in the fight?

Do you want to be a sneaky sniper?

Do you want to be an archer that has nature magic on their side, aiding their fighting and exploring?

Just don't get too committed to one option before you think the basics over.

[Evaar]

Check out Treantmonk’s “Ultimate Spellbow” build on YouTube. It’s a different route to a similar (but not identical) result.

https://youtu.be/mf91OMbQtKE

[Kane0]

Fighter 10
Ranger 5 / Rogue 5
Valor or Swords Bard 10 (Magical Secrets for Archery spells)
Blade Warlock 10 (Eldritch Smite, Improved Pact Weapon, etc)
EK Fighter 7 / Warlock 2 / Rogue 1 (Bow + Eldritch Blast)

Pick your poison. Half elf gets an extra two skills which is always handy, regular elf gets perception and more Dex bonuses. Also don't forget Aarakocra and winged tieflings.

[RingoBongo]

I like this one. Played something similar to it recently and it's fun.

https://youtu.be/M_06a_wtMDc

[Misterwhisper]

Best of both worlds:

Wood elf:
Rogue 2
Battlemaster fighter 8

Str: 10
Dex: 20
Con: 14
Int: 10
Wis: 14
Cha: 10

Asi:
+ 2 dex
Elven accuracy
Sharpshooter

Carry a longbow, take archery.
By 10th level surely you can get some bracers of archery.

If they get up on you bonus action disengage and step back and shoot.
If you have space, bonus action move and hide for adv on first shot next round.
If you have advantage use SS.

That will give you:
7 skills
2 expertise: I greatly advise perception as one.
Proficiency in all weapons and all armor you would ever use anyway.
Plenty of great maneuvers and the dice to get through short rests.

Battlemaster maneuvers are great with archery.

[Man_Over_Game]

Best of both worlds:

Wood elf:
Rogue 2
Battlemaster fighter 8

Str: 10
Dex: 20
Con: 14
Int: 10
Wis: 14
Cha: 10

Asi:
+ 2 dex
Elven accuracy
Sharpshooter

Carry a longbow, take archery.
By 10th level surely you can get some bracers of archery.

If they get up on you bonus action disengage and step back and shoot.
If you have space, bonus action move and hide for adv on first shot next round.
If you have advantage use SS.

That will give you:
7 skills
2 expertise: I greatly advise perception as one.
Proficiency in all weapons and all armor you would ever use anyway.
Plenty of great maneuvers and the dice to get through short rests.

Battlemaster maneuvers are great with archery.

This is basically the same thing I'd recommend, too. The only thing I'd change is that you can afford to subtract Fighter levels down to level 5 to fuel more Rogue levels. The biggest differences is that the Fighter levels get you more HP and feats, while the Rogue levels get you more damage and skill-based stuff.

So basically Fighter 5-8, Rogue 2-5.

For Rogue subclass, it depends on the range you want to be fighting at.
For long range, Inquisitive.
For medium range, Scout with Crossbow Expert, or Thief with Healer.

[Grod_The_Giant]

5e has a drastically higher floor/lower ceiling than 3.PF-- you have to work at it to be useless, and the cheesiest builds usually only give you a slight advantage over a "normal" one.

Pretty much anyone with Extra Attack and a longbow will be a solid archer. Adding stuff like the Archery Fighting Style, Sharpshooter, and Crossbow Expert will turn you into a monster.

Bring good at skills is, again, not really difficult. Most of the time your die roll will matter more than your bonus anyway. Rogue 1 will make you better, as can picking up Guidance, but it's really not a huge boost over the standard ~5 skills everyone gets.

For raw damage, the aforementioned combo (Sharpshooter/Crossbow Master) will win hands down. In 3.PF terms, it's basically Improved Rapid Shot + Deadly Aim. Variant Human and Fighter can both help you get it online sooner, and Battle Master specifically will make it even stronger.

Battle Master Fighter 6/Arcane Trickster Rogue 4 is a general all-around mundane badass, with 3 ASIs, Extra Attack, Uncanny Dodge, 3d6 sneak attack, great skills and a bit of magic to play with. Go Variant Human for your race, spend your first ASI on whichever of the two feats you didn't take with your race, and spend your other two ASIs to max out your Dex.

[Damon_Tor]

I really dig the Battle Smith Artificer (https://twitter.com/PortlandPolice/status/1145106839618502656) as a ranged attacker. If you want versatility in your class, the artificer is basically as versatile as you can get. Crossbow Expert + Hand Crossbow + Repeating Shot Infusion + Arcane Weapon + Shield results in an extremely tanky, rapid firing killing machine. Stay behind your Iron Defender and just let it dodge. This provides you with extremely good cover at all times. If you're a gnome (and you really should be) then you can ride your ID in a pinch.

Because I almost only ever use my ID for mobile cover, I decided he looks like this guy (https://cdn.bulbagarden.net/upload/thumb/b/bc/411Bastiodon.png/250px-411Bastiodon.png).

[Evaar]

I really dig the Battle Smith Artificer (https://twitter.com/PortlandPolice/status/1145106839618502656) as a ranged attacker. If you want versatility in your class, the artificer is basically as versatile as you can get. Crossbow Expert + Hand Crossbow + Repeating Shot Infusion + Arcane Weapon + Shield results in an extremely tanky, rapid firing killing machine. Stay behind your Iron Defender and just let it dodge. This provides you with extremely good cover at all times. If you're a gnome (and you really should be) then you can ride your ID in a pinch.

Because I almost only ever use my ID for mobile cover, I decided he looks like this guy (https://cdn.bulbagarden.net/upload/thumb/b/bc/411Bastiodon.png/250px-411Bastiodon.png).

Or if you want to use a longbow specifically as an archer, you can do this very effectively as a high elf.

[MeeposFire]

Or if you want to use a longbow specifically as an archer, you can do this very effectively as a high elf.

I think the OP is looking to play a wood elf so I think that will work in this case.

[Tallytrev813]

I really dig the Battle Smith Artificer (https://twitter.com/PortlandPolice/status/1145106839618502656) as a ranged attacker. If you want versatility in your class, the artificer is basically as versatile as you can get. Crossbow Expert + Hand Crossbow + Repeating Shot Infusion + Arcane Weapon + Shield results in an extremely tanky, rapid firing killing machine. Stay behind your Iron Defender and just let it dodge. This provides you with extremely good cover at all times. If you're a gnome (and you really should be) then you can ride your ID in a pinch.

Because I almost only ever use my ID for mobile cover, I decided he looks like this guy (https://cdn.bulbagarden.net/upload/thumb/b/bc/411Bastiodon.png/250px-411Bastiodon.png).

I havent played Battlesmith, but i can attest Artificer is SUCH a good pick. Im playing both an Archivist and an Alchemist right now and i think its my favorite class.

Strongly recommend.

[Nosta]

5e has a drastically higher floor/lower ceiling than 3.PF-- you have to work at it to be useless, and the cheesiest builds usually only give you a slight advantage over a "normal" one.

Pretty much anyone with Extra Attack and a longbow will be a solid archer. Adding stuff like the Archery Fighting Style, Sharpshooter, and Crossbow Expert will turn you into a monster.

Bring good at skills is, again, not really difficult. Most of the time your die roll will matter more than your bonus anyway. Rogue 1 will make you better, as can picking up Guidance, but it's really not a huge boost over the standard ~5 skills everyone gets.

For raw damage, the aforementioned combo (Sharpshooter/Crossbow Master) will win hands down. In 3.PF terms, it's basically Improved Rapid Shot + Deadly Aim. Variant Human and Fighter can both help you get it online sooner, and Battle Master specifically will make it even stronger.

Battle Master Fighter 6/Arcane Trickster Rogue 4 is a general all-around mundane badass, with 3 ASIs, Extra Attack, Uncanny Dodge, 3d6 sneak attack, great skills and a bit of magic to play with. Go Variant Human for your race, spend your first ASI on whichever of the two feats you didn't take with your race, and spend your other two ASIs to max out your Dex.

I see. it sounds cool. My GM is the type to do combat but prefers skills more (as he plays skill monkeys a lot and normally is lax on combat well i am the reverse , but i figure if his game i should have some skills)