Fighter/Cleric (4/4) as an Archer

[Geoff Watson]

What's the big deal?

Keen is rarely worth taking anyway. An extra +1 to hit and damage, or an extra 1d6 elemental damage is nearly always better.

Geoff.

 

[Hypersmurf]

What's the big deal?

Precedent

-Hyp.

 

[Kae'Yoss]

You could always take a level of Deepwoods Sniper. You get keen arrows as a class ability at first level.

Yea, but I don't want to. He's a priest, after all. (But my ranger archer will go into deepwood sniper).

Keen is rarely worth taking anyway. An extra +1 to hit and damage, or an extra 1d6 elemental damage is nearly always better.

The extra +1 to hit and damage won't stack with greater magic weapon, so at least for clerics that's not an option.

True, you get the extra d6 all the time (unless the enemy's resistant, or even immune), but if you do get a crit (and with keen weapons, the chance for that is higher), you get an extra 2d8 (in the case of the longbow) plus the damage bonus you have from enhancement bonuses and strength (in the case of a mighty composite longbow).

 

[shilsen]

True, you get the extra d6 all the time (unless the enemy's resistant, or even immune), but if you do get a crit (and with keen weapons, the chance for that is higher), you get an extra 2d8 (in the case of the longbow) plus the damage bonus you have from enhancement bonuses and strength (in the case of a mighty composite longbow).

Or an extra 3d8 + 3 x (enhancement boni and strength) if you're using a longbow and have at least 2 levels of Deepwood Sniper. I'm running a Rgr/Rog Sniper in a RttToEE game, and even though he doesn't critical often, when it happens there's often no need to roll the dice.

 

[Numion]

What's the big deal?

Keen is rarely worth taking anyway. An extra +1 to hit and damage, or an extra 1d6 elemental damage is nearly always better.

Geoff.

Actually keen is pretty strong. On the average it gives you 0.2 times the bows damage, which is about the same as th4e elemental 1d6.

EDIT: No it doesn't, it actually does 0.1 times twice the bows damage. The same thing but.. eh.

 

[Geoff Watson]

Actually keen is pretty strong. On the average it gives you 0.2 times the bows damage, which is about the same as th4e elemental 1d6.

EDIT: No it doesn't, it actually does 0.1 times twice the bows damage. The same thing but.. eh.

It really does 0.05 times twice the bows damage. (You can still critical on 20 without Keen.)

So your archers do about 30-40 points per hit, if thats 'about the same'?

Also, don't forget that a lot of creatures are immune to criticals.

Geoff.

 

[Numion]

It really does 0.05 times twice the bows damage. (You can still critical on 20 without Keen.)

So your archers do about 30-40 points per hit, if thats 'about the same'?

Also, don't forget that a lot of creatures are immune to criticals.

Geoff.

Right you are.. my bad. Still I'd rather take keen than +1 general enhancement. To hit bonuses with bow are pretty high anyway, so more damage is what you need. Keen gives a little of that.

If you plan on elemental damage, sonic is the way to go.