[3.5] What the arcane archer *should* have been (Arena-approved)

[SiggyDevil]

Limiting per day really is a let down. Always is, unless it's some power that wins a battle by itself.

Metapowers such as feats that grant extra options should be constant or per-encounter.

As far as capstones go, I'm never impressed. The hype should be dispersed throughout and not saved for the very end of the show.
Think of it like chapters in a comic or novel. You don't want to have a boring story with a BANG ending; most readers simply don't endure those stories long enough to get that far, and if the BANG is like a bang it really sucks and you've wasted hours of your time for nothing.
In game terms, if one goes by capstone as measure of worth, all campaigns should be Epic. You're pretty much playing Exalted by then.


As mentioned in another thread, one solution is to make lesser versions of that capstone throughout the class. A sampler, if you will, with restrictions or watering downs that ease up and improve with the character.
By 20 the capstone isn't really as such; it becomes more of a scaling power that grows with a character.

[Prime32]

Sounds better. Why limit the channeling per day, though?

If you have, say, duskblade channeling already, this just boosts that. If you have spellsword channeling, you don't get to use that at will.

[Prime32]

I've just done an overhaul of the class - take a look.

[Kuroimaken]

You might want to limit the hit bonus gained through Enhance Arrow to +5. Otherwise, you'll get the Nova Magic Archer From Hell (basically, by combining Rapid Channelling with Manyshot and spending spell slots like no tomorrow - at little to no loss to his hit bonus due to Enhance Arrow). That or limit the number of times per round Rapid Channelling can be used.

[SiggyDevil]

Try providing an increase in caster level equal to Arcane Archer levels, but only half the PrC levels add to spells known list.
Essentially a free Practiced Spellcaster or 2.

It's not great but it's better than "half caster", or rather 3/4 caster in the complete build.

[Eldariel]

Eh, I still suggest Swiftblade casting. First of all, it's much softer entry, losing CLs at 1 and 4 instead of 1 and 3, and losing an entire CL less by 7 (1, 4, 7 vs. 1, 3, 5, 7). I have seen 0 playable half progressions, no matter how awesome the abilities. Swiftblade is playable due to the incredible abilities and decent progression with the final hit coming only on level 10. I think that road is definitely better for all gish classes (heck, you could eliminate the final hit as an anomaly/bonus for sticking through all the way).

[Prime32]

Try providing an increase in caster level equal to Arcane Archer levels, but only half the PrC levels add to spells known list.
Essentially a free Practiced Spellcaster or 2.

It's not great but it's better than "half caster", or rather 3/4 caster in the complete build.

Um, that is what I'm doing. A duskblade 10/arcane archer 10 would cast spells as a 15th level duskblade with a caster level of 20.

[SiggyDevil]

Try providing an increase in caster level equal to Arcane Archer levels, but only half the PrC levels add to spells known list.
Essentially a free Practiced Spellcaster or 2.

It's not great but it's better than "half caster", or rather 3/4 caster in the complete build.

Um, that is what I'm doing. A duskblade 10/arcane archer 10 would cast spells as a 15th level duskblade with a caster level of 20.

I don't see that in the OP column labeled "Spellcasting" nor the description of "Spells per day". I see "Channeled Power" but that's not quite the same.
I recommend making a subsection below the latter with a single sentence: "Arcane Archer levels add to the caster level for all other classes." or similar.
Works better as a universal houserule but if you're to include it in the class itself (since not everyone uses that rulem unfortunately) you'll have to make it visible.

[Prime32]

Enhance Arrow sucks now.  Part of the allure of Arcane Archer was the ability to stack the enchantments with existing ones.  Now you get at most a +5 bow (+9 with Greater Magic Weapon possibly).  Unless of course you meant it to be just the enhancement bonus not stacking, in which case just re-word it.

Yeah, I just don't want an arcane archer who picks up a +5 flaming bow to have a +10 flaming weapon.

I wouldn't cap Mythic Strike with class level.

That was to avoid dips. I suppose removing the limit wouldn't be too bad if it's just damage though.

Rapid Channeling currently allows multiple spells and a full attack in the same round.  This seems to me to be a little...over the top.  Why not borrow from the Duskblade and have it just be the same spell each time, and start off with it being a full attack with a single application, then work your way up to every attack in the full attack or something?

That would be more powerful. Imagine an AA who can cast one 9th-level spell per day. If I made the adjustment you suggest, he can now cast that spell four times per day, using a single slot. Currently, a character has to keep a careful eye on his spell slots or burn them up very quickly.