3.5 queries Ranger related

[Ricky S]

Hi this is just a simple post requiring someone to clear up somethings for me.

I have a 5th level ranger and used a 25 point buy. He is a halfling.

1.So for using a halfling longbow is its range considered to be 100 ft as the longbow of the size above it and do D6 damage or does the halfling equivalent of a longbow actually equal a shortbow for a human and thus have a range of 70ft? I have looked at the rule book but all i can see is a damge difference, but the range for a longbow small or medium is still 100ft?

2. Also my halfling has a wisdom of 12 which allows him 1 bonus 1st level spell at 5th level and no other spells. If i changed the wisdom to 14 would he be entitled to his 1st level spell and a 2nd level one as well through the bonus spells table?

3. This involves the magic items properties ie frost, flaming,etc. The rule book from what I can gather says that the cost for a +1 weapon is 2k. So 2k for the frost property on my bow. So do I still have to pay for the masterwork quality for the weapon plus the 2k plus the price of the weapon? Also my DM said that the frost, flaming, etc qualities all cost 8k, not 2k, on top of the price of the weapon and the price for the masterwork quality, is he right?

4. My current pet is an owl. It has 4 hp and an AC of 17 is there anyway to boost its survivability?

5. I was playing in a session last weekend and my DM announced that the man on the boat actually had a seige bow doing 4 D8 damge per shot. Is my ranger entitled to a reflex save against the shot?

6.Is it possible to fire 4 arrows a round due to the rapid shot feat and manyshot feat? Ie 2arrows or possibly more due to the many shot feat fired twice a round thanks to the rapid shot feat. So would it be possible to fire 8 arrows in a round assuming you have the BAB to use more than two arrows with the manyshot feat?

7. Lastly if anyone has a good halfling name i would appreciate hearing it as I am sick of people saying "oOOo why don't you call him Frodo?"

Thanks for you help anyone who is helpful. (If you find this post annoying consider this. We all started playing somewhere.)

[Saph]

You certainly got your money's worth out of that registration, didn't you? :P Starting from the top:


1.So for using a halfling longbow is its range considered to be 100 ft as the longbow of the size above it and do D6 damage or does the halfling equivalent of a longbow actually equal a shortbow for a human and thus have a range of 70ft? I have looked at the rule book but all i can see is a damge difference, but the range for a longbow small or medium is still 100ft?

(Edited) A Small-sized longbow has exactly the same stats as a Medium-sized longbow in every way except that it does 1d6 damage instead of 1d8. The weapons table in the PHB should have it all.


2. Also my halfling has a wisdom of 12 which allows him 1 bonus 1st level spell at 5th level and no other spells. If i changed the wisdom to 14 would he be entitled to his 1st level spell and a 2nd level one as well through the bonus spells table?

Yes, but you won't be able to cast your 2nd-level spell until level 8.


3. This involves the magic items properties ie frost, flaming,etc. The rule book from what I can gather says that the cost for a +1 weapon is 2k. So 2k for the frost property on my bow. So do I still have to pay for the masterwork quality for the weapon plus the 2k plus the price of the weapon? Also my DM said that the frost, flaming, etc qualities all cost 8k, not 2k, on top of the price of the weapon and the price for the masterwork quality, is he right?

OK, this'll take a while to explain. Your DM's half-right and half-wrong. The total cost of a magic weapon is the cost of enhancements + cost for masterwork quality + cost for the weapon. So a magic Composite Longbow would cost 100 gp (base) + 300 gp (masterwork) + enhancements.

Enhancements cost (enhancement bonus squared) x 2000 gp. A +1 is 2000, a +2 is 8000, etc. Frost, flaming, shocking, all count as an extra +1 on top of the enhancement bonus. Add it together for the total cost.

So a +1 composite longbow with the frost (+1) and flaming (+1) and shocking (+1) enhancements would cost as much as a +4 bow, or a total of 32,400 gp.

Also note that a weapon must have a base enhancement bonus of at least +1 before you can start tacking on frost, flaming, shocking, etc.


4. My current pet is an owl. It has 4 hp and an AC of 17 is there anyway to boost its survivability?

Take the Natural Bond feat from Complete Adventurer, or just teach it to fly high and stay away from combats.


5. I was playing in a session last weekend and my DM announced that the man on the boat actually had a seige bow doing 4 D8 damge per shot. Is my ranger entitled to a reflex save against the shot?

No.


6.Is it possible to fire 4 arrows a round due to the rapid shot feat and manyshot feat? Ie 2arrows or possibly more due to the many shot feat fired twice a round thanks to the rapid shot feat. So would it be possible to fire 8 arrows in a round assuming you have the BAB to use more than two arrows with the manyshot feat?

Short answer: No.

Rapid Shot requires a Full-Round Action. It allows you to shoot an extra arrow, getting an extra attack roll.

Manyshot requires a Standard Action. It lets you move and shoot multiple arrows, all with a single attack roll.

You can't combine the two. A 20th-level Ranger could shoot 5 arrows with 5 attack rolls as a full-round action with Rapid Shot, or 4 arrows with 1 attack roll as a standard action with Manyshot, but that's it.


7. Lastly if anyone has a good halfling name i would appreciate hearing it as I am sick of people saying "oOOo why don't you call him Frodo?"

Call him Sam, Merry, or Pippin instead. :P

- Saph

Edited: Corrected the Longbow/Shortbow thing. That one always confuses me.

[Chineselegolas]

1: If you are using a small longbow, then it is range 100ft.
2: Correct. Though you would need to be 8th level before you would get to use the bonus 2nd level spell
3: Those properties are +1. A weapon needs to have +1 base enhancement before any of them can be applied, so in effect it needs to be a +2 weapon to be a +1 flaming longbow. And yes, you need to pay for the cost of the weapon and masterwork ontop of it
4: Go up levels and it get more powerful as with a druids animal companion. Buffing spells can be cast on it aswell, though they are temporary.
Keep in mind that if it dies, you can get a new one the next day, you aren't hindered like an arcane caster with their familiar and having to wait a year and a day to get a new one and all the other bad stuff when it dies.
5: As a siege bow is a weapon, it rolls to hit against your AC. You don't get a save against normal ranged attacks, it is merely one of them, just much bigger
6: Via that method no. Rapid shot is a standard action while Manyshot is a full round action, thus they can't be used in conjunction. There are ways around this, but off the top of my head I can't remember them
7: Sam, Merry or Pippin... >.>

And we did indeed all get started somewhere

Edit: Ninja'd... And so was the joke...

Ignore. Debate solved
Small characters like halflings have to use Shortbows, or Composite Shortbows. They can't use Longbows or Composite Longbows.
Uhh... Yes they can. That's why there is the column in the weapons chart for small weapons. They normally use them as the small races tend to go rogue with sneak attack and the size benefits, and only have those proficiencies (In my experience at least)

Edit Edit:

I think you could technically use a Small-sized Longbow as a halfling, but it's basically identical in almost every way to a shortbow, so unless you're trying to do something complicated there isn't any point.Well the small longbow does 1d6 while the small shortbow does 1d4. And then there is the range difference. If he used a normal sized shortbow he wouldn't be able to as it is two handed for a medium creature and thus unable for a small creature to wield. If a shortbow was one handed for a medium then it could be two-handed for a small creature with a -2 penalty for wrong size.

Edit Edit Edit:
Right, we have come to a consensus. Yay for the end of the editing.


Edited: Corrected the Longbow/Shortbow thing. That one always confuses me.
No worries, we all make mistakes from time to time.

[Sinfire Titan]

Call him Sam, Merry, or Pippin instead. :P

He should name him Fiver, and make him a Divine or a Seer instead.

[Rad]

Saph already answered masterfully to all your questions. I permit myself to only add a couple of considerations:

- Your animal companion is destined to suffer. Half your level means it will get worse and worse over time and you won't be able to use it for combat. Natural Bond helps, but you'd have to take it too many times for your pet to be a tank.
- Some animals are just better than others on the battlefield. Compare the stats of your Owl with that of a wolf to have an example. However since you'll mainly be using it for utility they are not that relevant.
- On the dodging giant arrows issue: consider that you're dexterity is factored in your AC. Your attempts to dodge it are already represented by that. Reflex saves are usually reserved to defent from things that hit a whole area or otherwise do not have an attack roll.

hope this helps.

[Chronos]

The weapon size thing is a bit confusing, since they changed the way they handled it between 3.0 and 3.5. In 3.0, there was a single list of weapons for everyone, but small characters just couldn't use the larger weapons. In 3.5, every weapon has a version for every size, and you can't easily use a weapon designed for a race of a different size (even if it's the same size as a weapon you can use).

So in 3.0, a human might dual-wield a longsword in one hand and a short sword in the other, or wield a greatsword in two hands, while a halfling would dual-wield a short sword in one hand and a dagger in the other, or wield a longsword in two hands. In 3.5, a human would dual-wield a medium longsword and a medium shortsword, or a medium greatsword in two hands, while a halfling would dual-wield a small longsword and a small shortsword, or a small greatsword in two hands. Even though a small greatsword and a medium longsword have all the same stats, the human can't easily use a halfling's greatsword.

[Darrin]

1.So for using a halfling longbow is its range considered to be 100 ft as the longbow of the size above it and do D6 damage or does the halfling equivalent of a longbow actually equal a shortbow for a human and thus have a range of 70ft? I have looked at the rule book but all i can see is a damge difference, but the range for a longbow small or medium is still 100ft?


No. In Core rules, a weapon is created with a particular size in mind. If a human picked up your bow, he'd take a -2 penalty for using a small-sized weapon. Likewise, if your halfing picked up a medium-sized shortbow, you'd take a -2 penalty for using the wrong size. The weapon ranges are also set by the entry on the weapons table, so all longbows/shortbows, regardless of what size they were made for, use the same ranges.

There were optional rules for "Weapon Equivalency" in Sword & Fist, but that was 3.0 material and the rules for weapon sizes changed a bit in 3.5. That being said, many groups use Weapon Equivalency as a house rule. Check with your DM to see if that's something he wants to use.



5. I was playing in a session last weekend and my DM announced that the man on the boat actually had a seige bow doing 4 D8 damge per shot. Is my ranger entitled to a reflex save against the shot?


It sounds like a ballista, which is listed under the seige engines in the DMG. However, the damage for a standard ballista is 3d8, so I'm not sure where he got the extra 1d8 from. An attack from a ballista would be treated like any other ranged attack, so no, you don't get a saving throw. However, you may want to point out to the DM that unless the person firing the ballista was a giant or at least huge size, they take a -4 penalty for using a huge-sized crossbow (which is one of the dumbest things I've seen in the DMG... why on earth would humans design a weapon that only a huge-sized creature could use effectively?).

[Person_Man]

4. My current pet is an owl. It has 4 hp and an AC of 17 is there anyway to boost its survivability?


You can:

1) Choose a different animal companion when you gain a level.

2) Take the Celestial Companion feat, which gives your animal the celestial template, which makes it tougher.

3) Use the urban companion (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/we/20070228a) variant, which makes your companion a familiar, but better.

4) Dump the animal companion for some other alternate class feature (http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=906113).

Also, remember that as a Ranger, you can use any spell trigger item for any Ranger spell. So you can use a Wand of Summon Nature's Ally 4, even if you're first level. Check the Spell Compendium and other splat books, and you'll find tons of useful Ranger spells. And the Magic Item Compendium has a wand bracer which lets you store and draw wands quickly. So as a Ranger, you really don't need a Wisdom above 14.

[SurlySeraph]

On the name: try using this (http://chriswetherell.com/hobbit/).

[kamikasei]

You can't combine the two. A 20th-level Ranger could shoot 5 arrows with 5 attack rolls as a full-round action with Rapid Shot, or 4 arrows with 1 attack roll as a standard action with Manyshot, but that's it.

He might also take Greater Manyshot (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/psionicFeats.htm#greaterManyshot) and fire those four arrows with four separate attack rolls, if that comes a little closer to what the OP wants, and if either the XPH or SRD are admissible.

[Person_Man]

Short answer: No.

Rapid Shot requires a Full-Round Action. It allows you to shoot an extra arrow, getting an extra attack roll.

Manyshot requires a Standard Action. It lets you move and shoot multiple arrows, all with a single attack roll.

You can't combine the two. A 20th-level Ranger could shoot 5 arrows with 5 attack rolls as a full-round action with Rapid Shot, or 4 arrows with 1 attack roll as a standard action with Manyshot, but that's it.

Saph is 100% correct.

If you're just interested in just gaining more attacks though, you could:

Take the Splitting magical weapon enhancement from Champions of Ruin. I'm not aware of any DM who allows it, but it does double the number of arrows you fire.

Have a friend cast Haste on you. Or buy the Speed enhancement for your bow.

Have a friend take White Raven Tactics from the Tome of Battle. This essentially can give you one extra turn each combat.

Buy a Psicrown of the Evader (http://www.dandwiki.com/wiki/SRD:Psicrown_of_the_Evader), which gives you access to Hustle. This essentially gives you a free Move action whenever you need it, which means you can almost always use Rapidshot every round, and not worry about the craziness of Manyshot or Greater Manyshot.

Also, keep in mind that magical effects from different sources and of different types stack. So if you have a +1 Flaming Bow and shoot +1 Frost arrows, you end up with +1 (the enhancement bonus doesn't stack) Flaming Frost attacks (1d6 or 1d8 base +Str bonus +1 + 2d6). So its ridiculously easy for archers to get very high damage output, assuming you spend a pile of money on it. Feats like Ancestral Weapon and/or Mercantile Background help a lot on this, or you could just head into the Kensai prestige class.

[Curmudgeon]

If you're just interested in just gaining more attacks though, you could:

Take the Splitting magical weapon enhancement from Champions of Ruin. I'm not aware of any DM who allows it, but it does double the number of arrows you fire. The Splitting enhancement has a +3 cost associated with it, so you'll need a minimum of 32,000 gp for the enhancement to your bow. This +1 splitting bow has only 7 hardness and 15 hit points. An enemy Fighter could easily have the Ranged Sunder feat, and destroy the bow.

As a DM, I have no problems at all allowing Splitting weapons. :smallamused: Caveat emptor.

[The_Snark]

Most of your questions have been well answered already; I just thought I'd add that the person using the siege bow should have a hard time hitting you, seeing as they take a -4 to attack rolls for using such a large weapon (not to mention the reloading time). There's a reason siege bows generally are used in sieges, and not against people.

And as for your halfling ranger's name, I recommend Trotter. There's still a Tolkien reference, but it's obscure enough that it will almost certainly never be noticed.

[BobVosh]

You can:

1) Choose a different animal companion when you gain a level.

2) Take the Celestial Companion feat, which gives your animal the celestial template, which makes it tougher.

3) Use the urban companion (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/we/20070228a) variant, which makes your companion a familiar, but better.

4) Dump the animal companion for some other alternate class feature (http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=906113).

Also, remember that as a Ranger, you can use any spell trigger item for any Ranger spell. So you can use a Wand of Summon Nature's Ally 4, even if you're first level. Check the Spell Compendium and other splat books, and you'll find tons of useful Ranger spells. And the Magic Item Compendium has a wand bracer which lets you store and draw wands quickly. So as a Ranger, you really don't need a Wisdom above 14.

You can also take a level in beastmaster from complete adventurer, gives 3 more levels for your companion, and natural bond.

[Sstoopidtallkid]

The Splitting enhancement has a +3 cost associated with it, so you'll need a minimum of 32,000 gp for the enhancement to your bow. This +1 splitting bow has only 7 hardness and 15 hit points. An enemy Fighter could easily have the Ranged Sunder feat, and destroy the bow.

As a DM, I have no problems at all allowing Splitting weapons. :smallamused: Caveat emptor.The problem with that strategy is that it is MAD. You end up with Wish chains, Disjunctions, and the like. Never mess with WBL, the players will not be amused.

[TheThan]

Looks like everyone got the main questions down.

So how about some names:

Willow
Peck
Burglekutt
Warwick (see if anyone gets it)

[drengnikrafe]

For the name (since every other question seems to have been answered a hundred thousand times)...

You should can pick the name of a character from some fictional story (or, even non-fiction story, if it's obscure enough), then alter the name to the point where it still reminds you of it's namesake, it still sounds cool, and nobody else will pick up on it... maybe.

[Sstoopidtallkid]

For the name (since every other question seems to have been answered a hundred thousand times)...

You should can pick the name of a character from some fictional story (or, even non-fiction story, if it's obscure enough), then alter the name to the point where it still reminds you of it's namesake, it still sounds cool, and nobody else will pick up on it... maybe.And keep in mind that no matter what, it can be joked about. Rago(or something, he told us it was a 40k thing) is now Rogaine, that sort of thing.

[Biffoniacus_Furiou]

5. That sort of weapon requires an Exotic Weapon Proficiency, otherwise he's taking a -4 nonproficiency penalty on his attack roll to hit you. You still don't get a saving throw.

7. Flick Shortstep.

[drengnikrafe]

And keep in mind that no matter what, it can be joked about. Rago(or something, he told us it was a 40k thing) is now Rogaine, that sort of thing.

Well, with a little bit of work, anything can be turned into a joke (or have you not heard My pun on Mystic Theurge?), it just depends on whether it's difficult, or really easy (ahh, good old Bob deDrunkenBeard the dwarf....)

[Curmudgeon]

The problem with that strategy is that it is MAD. You end up with Wish chains, Disjunctions, and the like. Never mess with WBL, the players will not be amused. I don't get your point. I'm not messing with WbL. As a DM I provide plenty of opportunity for PCs to acquire wealth as they adventure. If they put all their metaphorical eggs in one fragile basket, and develop a reputation for making effective use of that basket, then their enemies will react as smart enemies should.

If, on the other hand, the PCs spend even more of their resources and make that basket less fragile, that, too will become part of their reputation. Enemies will run away rather than be caught out in the open by the PCs.

Except for the occasional wandering monster or guard hell hound, I don't use dumb opponents. My enemies aren't suicidal, and they realize that acquiring better equipment helps them survive. Usually they'll want to preserve the PCs' gear just as much as the PCs want to preserve the gear of their enemies. But if the PCs make gear destruction the only reasonable way to ensure the enemies win the encounter, that's what they'll choose. It's not a good option, so it rarely comes up. When the PCs make it the best option, then they need to live with the consequences of their choices.

Specifically regarding the Splitting enhancement, it's not a good choice when PCs can first afford it; that leads to the inevitable minimum alternatives when PCs push min-maxing too hard. When PCs can afford multiple +5 weapons, then Splitting is a viable choice.

[Sstoopidtallkid]

Specifically regarding the Splitting enhancement, it's not a good choice when PCs can first afford it; that leads to the inevitable minimum alternatives when PCs push min-maxing too hard. When PCs can afford multiple +5 weapons, then Splitting is a viable choice.Except almost every weapon is just as vulnerable. A +1 Splitting Bow has Hardness 7 HP 15. A +1 Holy XBane Greataxe has Hardness 7 HP 20. Either one is equally vulnerable to a 3rd level Orc Fighter/Barb with Imp Sunder and a Masterwork Greatsword. +17 AB, deals ~12 damage a hit. 3 to take out a bow, 4 to take out an axe. It's not hard to destroy weapons and gear, but in a game where WBL is a huge portion of character power, it's just not fair. Especially since PCs who use those same tactics are nerfing themselves. Don't do it.

[Tempest Fennac]

Just out of curiosity, how did you arrange your stats, Ricky S? I'm just curious due to how a 25 PB is only equivalent to the Eliet Array.

[Ricky S]

Hey just to let you know my stats I put in
Str 14 (-2 for halfling to take it to 12) cost 6pts
Dex15 (+1 for level 4 skill point and +2 dex for halfling taking it to 18)cost 8pts
Con10 cost 2 points
Int 12 cost 4 points
Wis12 cost 4 points
Cha9 cost 1 point

Feats: Point Blank Shot, Plunging Shot.
Totally awesome character (suits me perfectly) Although my team accuses me of deliberately making terrible characters. Especially when compared to chaos mage.

[Tempest Fennac]

What is Chaos Mage's character like? Apart from the Con stat, I can't see anything wrong with thse stats (I'd have wanted at least a +1 Con modifier).

[Rad]

I would put another point in Dex. At least I'd get Int 13 and Cha 8 for feat prerequisites.

[Chronos]

Warwick (see if anyone gets it)He's actually said that his dream role would be as the lead in a completely non-fantasy romantic comedy, playing an ordinary guy who just happens to be short. I can imagine that the typecasting gets pretty old, after a while.