Bounty Hunter Ranger Archetype

I'm in the process of writing up a bounty hunter character, and was surprised to discover that there wasn't an archetype focused on this kind of thing. Input is, as always, welcome.

Quarry Bond (Ex): At 4th level, rather than forming a bond with an animal companion or his allies, the bounty hunter's bond manifests as a connection between hunter and prey. The bounty hunter lives for the hunt, focused on pursuing a particular target, whether for money, vengeance, or a cause. He can designate only one quarry at a time. This quarry must be a single individual, either within line of sight, or someone the bounty hunter has tracked using the Survival skill in the last 24 hours. The target must correspond to one of the ranger's favored enemy types. Against that target, the bounty hunter's favored enemy bonus increases by 50%.

The bounty hunter can dismiss this effect at any time as a free action, but if he does so, he cannot select a new quarry for 8 hours. If the bounty hunter receives proof that his quarry is dead, he can select a new quarry after waiting 1 hour.

This ability replaces nature's bond.


Detect Quarry (Su): The bounty hunter can sense the location of his quarry, if they are close enough.

At 7th level, with one round's concentration, the bounty hunter can determine if his quarry is within Long range (400 ft + 40 ft/level). With a second round's concentration, the bounty hunter can determine the general condition of his quarry if they are within range, as the detect animals or plants spell. With a third round's concentration, the bounty hunter can determine the location of his quarry if within range.

The bounty hunter can use this ability a number of rounds per day equal to his ranger level. This is a divination effect.


Quarry Bond, Improved (Ex): At 11th level, the bounty hunter can select a quarry as a swift action. While pursuing his quarry, the ranger can take 10 on his Survival skill checks while moving at his full speed, without a penalty to his tracking roll. In addition, he receives a +2 insight bonus on all saves against effects generated by his quarry, as well as a +2 insight bonus to AC and CMD against the target's attacks.

This ability replaces the quarry power.


Quarry Bond, Greater (Ex): At 19th level, the bounty hunter's ability to pursue his quarry reaches its peak. He can now select a quarry as a free action, and can now take 20 when using Survival to track his quarry, while moving at normal speed without penalty. His insight bonus to saves, AC, and CMD against his quarry improves to +4. If his quarry is killed or dismissed, he can select a new one after 10 minutes have passed.

Interesting. I like the idea of a Bounty Hunter archetype Ranger, but I don't think it should be based around favored enemies. A bounty hunter should be good at hunting down any one target that has a bounty on its head, so I think working off of the Guide Ranger's (archetype from APG) Ranger's Focus ability would be better. Since bounties sometimes require the creature be brought in alive, adding abilities to deal nonlethal damage and select a new quarry after capturing the target also seemed appropriate. I actually just made my own version of Bounty Hunter based on your ideas and incorporating some of them. He's kinda of a one trick pony for hunting things down to the point where it's probably more of an NPC class, but oh well.

[sblock]Bounty Hunter (Ranger Archetype)

Class Skills: A Bounty Hunter gains Bluff, Diplomacy, and Sense Motive as class skills. He does not gain Craft, Handle Animal, and Knowledge (dungeoneering) as class skills.

Ranger’s Focus (Ex)
At 1st level, once per day, the bounty hunter can focus on a single enemy within line of sight as a swift action. That creature remains the Ranger’s focus until it is reduced to 0 or fewer hit points or surrenders, or until the Ranger designates a new focus, whichever occurs first. The Ranger gains a +2 bonus on attack and damage rolls against the target of his focus. At 5th level, and every five levels thereafter, this bonus increases by +2.

At 4th level, and every 3 levels thereafter, the Ranger can use this ability one additional time per day.

This ability replaces favored enemy.


Quarry (Ex)
As a standard action, a Bounty Hunter can designate a creature within line of sight that he has designated as the target of his Ranger’s Focus within the past 24 hours as his quarry. Against his quarry, he may choose to deal nonlethal damage with any attack without any penalty on his attack roll. If his Ranger’s Focus is still active, the bonus also applies to Bluff, Knowledge, Perception, Sense Motive, and Survival checks made against or about the quarry. A ranger can have no more than one quarry at a time. He can dismiss this effect at any time as a free action, but he cannot select a new quarry for 24 hours. If the ranger captures his quarry, it is dismissed, or sees proof that it is dead, he can select a new quarry after waiting 1 hour.

This ability replaces Wild Empathy


Fast Movement (Ex)
At 3rd level, a Bounty Hunter learns to move with tremendous alacrity to capture his bounty. Whenever a creature he has designated as his quarry is within sight, or when he is tracking or detecting (via Quarry Bond, see below) his quarry, the Ranger gains a +10 ft enhancement bonus to his speed. This bonus to speed increases by +10 ft every 3 Ranger levels thereafter (6, 9, 12, etc…) and applies to any form of movement that the Bounty Hunter has a listed speed (such as Fly 60 ft from the Fly spell). The Bounty Hunter cannot benefit from Fast Movement when wearing medium or heavy armor or carrying a medium or heavy load.

This ability replaces the Ranger’s Favored Terrains.


Quarry Bond (Su)
At 4th level, a Bounty Hunter is able to detect the presence of his quarry if it is nearby by concentrating his mind. This ability has a range of 400 ft +40 ft / Ranger level. On the first round of concentration, the Bounty Hunter learns if his quarry is within range or not. On the second round of concentration, he learns the status of his quarry, as though he had used the Status spell on it. On the third and future rounds of concentration, the Bounty Hunter determines the direction and exact distance to his quarry. The Bounty Hunter may use this ability once per day for every 4 Ranger levels he possesses, and can maintain concentration for a number of minutes equal to Ranger level each time. This is a divination effect.

At 10th level, the Bounty Hunter is able to select a quarry without first marking it as his Rangers Focus, or having even seen or encountered the creature. As long as he is presented with an item that belonged to the creature or some bit of material that was a part of its body, such as hair, a bloodstain, a bit of nail, or shed skin, he may designate that creature his quarry. He may also designate that creature his Ranger’s Focus, though he must expend one use of that ability each day to maintain the benefit against the quarry.

This ability replaces Hunter’s Bond.


Improved Quarry (Ex)
At 11th level, a Bounty Hunter can now select a quarry as a free action, and can take 10 while using Survival to track his quarry, while moving at normal speed without penalty. In addition, he receives a +2 insight bonus on attack rolls made against his quarry, and all critical threats are automatically confirmed. If his quarry is killed or dismissed, or if he captures it, he can select a new one after 10 minutes have passed.

This ability replaces Quarry.


Camouflage (Ex)
This functions as the Ranger’s class feature, but can be used in any terrain. The Bounty Hunter can only use this ability when he can see his quarry or while tracking or detecting (via Quarry Bond) it.


Hide in Plain Sight (Ex)
This functions as the Ranger’s class feature, but can be used in any terrain. The Bounty Hunter can only use this ability when he can see his quarry or while tracking or detecting (via Quarry Bond) it.


Greater Quarry (Ex)
At 19th level, a Bounty Hunter’s insight bonus on attack rolls against his quarry increases to +4, and he can now take 20 while using Survival to track his quarry, while moving at normal speed without penalty. If his quarry is killed or dismissed, or if he captures it, he can select a new one immediately.

This ability replaces Improved Quarry.


Bloodhound (Ex)
A 20th level Bounty Hunter is unrelenting in pursuit of his bounty. A Bounty Hunter can maintain multiple quarries at once, up to a limit of his wisdom modifier. He can, as a standard action, make a single attack against a creature designated as his quarry at his full attack bonus. If the attack hits, the target takes damage normally and must make a Fortitude save or die. The DC of this save is equal to 10 + 1/2 the ranger's level + the ranger's Wisdom modifier. A ranger can choose instead to deal an amount of nonlethal damage equal to the creature's current hit points. A successful save negates this damage. A Bounty Hunter can use this ability a number of times per day equal to his amount of Ranger’s Focus uses per day, but no creature can be targeted by it more than once in a 24-hour period.

This ability replaces Master Hunter.[/sblock]

I like this.

The Fast Movement seems complicated, though. I will review this tomorrow, when I am (possibly) sober.

Consulting with my friend, we both agree it's still vastly inferior to a spellcaster at its own job. If your focus is so narrow as "hunting people down," that's just not acceptable.

Ideas floating around between us right now to add:

Ability to designate a creature as a Quarry just from its name
Scent
Use Rope (or whatever PF replaced it with) bonus (1/2 ranger level)
Ability to go without sleep and force march for insanely long periods of time
Scrying on the quarry
Save bonus or some sort of resistance to being slowed or paralyzed while Quarry is active

I really like this, though. Like, "Wow, I just dropped 2 hours on something I wasnt even thinking about until I saw this thread" level of liking.

I considered a number of other things for the class, most of which you bring up (nonlethal damage, scrying, ability to focus on a target with just their name). In the end, I wanted a simple archetype, not something that replaces a large portion of class features. The basic ranger is already quite good at using Survival to chase down a target, I mostly wanted to give them earlier access to the idea of the quarry power.

Upon consideration, the ranger's focus ability of the guide archetype does make more sense for a bounty hunter. Don't know why I didn't think about it, since I'm currently PLAYING a guide ranger. I don't really like the "Ranger's Focus" name; I'd probably change it to "Hunter's Focus", but that's just a minor quibble. It seems like your version dropped the ability to designate someone you were tracking as your quarry, which was an idea I liked from the original - it's close to designating someone by name, though not quite as flexible.

As written, I would say the class does give a bonus to tying someone up, though it's mechanically shaky justification. The DC to escape bonds tied by someone is 20 + their CMB, so the bounty hunter's bonus to attack rolls from the Quarry Bond power should apply to that DC, since bonuses to attack rolls also increase CMB.

I can see a movement rate increase, though I'd personally be more inclined to give a bonus to overland movement speed and chase rolls against the quarry than a general bonus to all movement rates.

It's hard to be a better bounty hunter than a wizard with divination spells, that's true. You could always add a few divination spells to the bounty hunter's spell list, since they do have one. That's another thing I considered for this class - I thought about writing up the "Sense Quarry" power as a ranger and inquisitor spell rather than a class ability. A quarry-only version of the Scrying spell could be a 3rd level ranger spell without too many problems, I think. I also considered a more general "tell me what direction they're in and roughly how far" spell at a lower level, something with an unlimited range.