Steal Spell... at range?

[Thanee]

Is there anything, that prevents a Spellthief from using the Steal Spell ability with a ranged sneak attack?

Bye
Thanee

 

[irdeggman]

Not that I can see.

The spellthief can make a ranged sneak attack as a class ability (up to 30 ft) so it follows that as part of that attack he can steal a spell (in lieu of the extra damage).

 

[Nifft]

I agree. That's how it looks. -- N

 

[moritheil]

This ability gets really fun if you use the assassin or ranger spells that eliminate or extend the limit on ranged sneak attacks. Try stealing fly from a mage hundreds of feet in the air!

 

[RigaMortus2]

I just built an 8th level Spellthief that took advantage of Crossbow Sniper and Deadeye Shot (2 feats from PHB2).

Name: Bane
Race: Human
Hit Die: 6d6+2d10+16 (44 average HP/72 max HP)
Class: Spellthief 6/Fighter 2
Init: +4
AC: ???

(34 Point Buy)
Str 14 +2
Dex 18 +4
Con 14 +2
Int 12 +1
Wis 12 +1
Cha 12 +1

BAB: +6/+1
Ranged: +10/+5 (Add +1 when using Light Crossbow, add +1 when within 30 feet).
Fort +7 (+5 Base +2 Con)
Ref +6 (+2 Base +4 Dex)
Will +6/+7 vs spells (+5 Base +1 Wis)

Skills
Concentration +8 (6 Base +2 Con)
Hide +10 (6 Base +4 Dex)
Jump +12 (8 Base +2 Str +2 synergy)
Knowledge (Arcana) +7 (6 Base +1 Int)
Listen +7 (6 Base +1 Wis)
Move Silently +10 (6 Base +4 Dex)
Spellcraft +7 (6 Base +1 Int)
Spot +7 (6 Base +1 Wis)
Tumble +12 (6 Base +4 Dex +2 synergy)

Feats
Point Blank Shot
Precise Shot
Rapid Reload
Weapon Focus (Light Crossbow)
Crossbow Sniper
Deadeye Shot

Class Abilities
Sneak Attack +2d6
Steal Spell (0th, 1st, 2nd and 3rd levels)
Trapfinding
Detect Magic (2/day)
Spell Grace +1 (+1 comp bonus vs spells)
Steal Spell Effect
Steal Energy Resistance
Steal Spell-like Ability

Spells: Choose a total of 3 spells from the 1st level Sorcerer/Wizard spell list from any of the following schools: abjuration, divination, enchantment, illusion or transmutation. You can cast any one of those spells twice/day however. Your real casting strength lies in the spells you steal from others.

Highlights
Crossbow Sniper: This feat allows you to add half your Dex bonus (in this case +2) to damage when using a Light Crossbow. In addition, you can make Sneak Attacks at 60 feet when using a Light Crossbow (normally this is limited to 30’ feet no matter what ranged weapon you are using).
Deadeye Shot: You Ready an action to fire at an opponent that one of your allies hits. Should one of your allies hit this target, your readied action goes off and that target is denied their Dex bonus for your attack. Since this is a Ready action, you can only make 1 attack per round this way, but it almost guarantees a sneak attack.

Favorite Tactics
The obvious strategy is to stay 60 feet away (Crossbow has a range of 80 feet, so you are good). Ready an action for when the Spellthief’s allies strikes a particular party member, do Sneak Attack damage or remove a spell/effect/spell-like ability/energy resistance/etc. This is built on the premise that this character will have minions to throw at the group to take advantage of his ranged sneak attacks.

 

[Thanee]

Nice.

Those crossbow feats sound pretty decent, really. Too bad you need another to get multiple attacks with a crossbow, so it's kinda feat-heavy to make them useful. But still for those high Dex characters, that might be an alternative.

Bye
Thanee