Weapons of Choice
While there are a whole lot of aspects to the ranger class, when I think about rangers, it’s hard not to think about the “big decision” that every ranger must make: two-weapon fighting, or archery? Sure, these days there are dozens of different combat styles to choose from, and if you want you can get bonus feats for fighting with giant clubs or throwing daggers, I’m sure, but for me, rangers will always be intimately tied to twin-scimitars and the bow and arrow.
And, of course, rangers are what we’re all about this week, since it’s Ranger Week, and we’re celebrating the release of our latest book, which, you guessed it, is ranger-themed. Entitled A Necromancer’s Grimoire: Bounty of the Ranger, this book not only provides three new ranger-themed (but not ranger-exclusive) prestige classes that let anyone get a taste of what it’s like to be a ranger, and really reward dedicated rangers who take them, but also gives you a number of new archetypes for rangers, as well as a few archetypes for “ranger-adjacent” classes like fighters and rogues, to help bridge the gap for those of you who like the idea of rangers, but prefer other classes. It also gives you some ranger-themed feats, to really make it easy to get in touch with your wild side. And, best of all, this whole package is available for a mere $4.99. A bargain? I think so.
Anyway, with the sales pitch out of the way, I can get back to the important things: archery, and two-weapon fighting. Two different paths that can take this class in wildly different ways. Do I make archery items, at the expense of two-weapon fighters? Do I make two-weapon weapons, because archers don’t need the help? What if I made something for each of them?
ARROWS OF THE GREAT HUNTER
Aura faint divination; CL 5th
Slot none; Price 1,012 gp (per arrow); Weight 1/10 lb.
Construction Requirements Craft Magic Arms and Armor, creator must have the favored enemy class feature; Cost 506 gp (per arrow)
The head of this arrow has been stained with concentric red rings, like a bull’s-eye, and its feathers seem to have been harvested from a variety of different birds, and carefully arranged.
These +1 arrows are imbued with a magic that enhances the wielder’s own natural knowledge of his prey and skill at hunting, amplifying it in order to strike with deadly precision. When fired by a character with the favored enemy class feature against a creature whose type is one of the creature types he selected for that class feature, the bonuses to attack and damage rolls he gains as a result of his favored enemy class feature are doubled for the purposes of that attack. Otherwise, the arrows function as normal +1 arrows.
Some of the arrow of the great hunter’s unique abilities count as an enhancement bonus equivalent, and it is treated as a +3-equivalent weapon for the purposes of the cost of further improving its magical abilities. Because an arrow of the great hunter is ammunition, its cost is calculated as 1/50th the cost of a non-ammunition magic weapon. The cost to create a full group of 50 is 25,301 gp.
QUARRY SHOT BOW
Aura moderate divination; CL 7th
Slot none; Price 42,800 gp; Weight 2 lbs.
Construction Requirements Craft Magic Arms and Armor, locate creature; Cost 21,800 gp
These bows are made from many arrows, magically fused together into a single piece of wood. They resemble a nested mass of interconnected, roped strands of wood, tightened together to form a sort of natural cord.
This +3 composite longbow [+4 Str] is able to draw upon and enhance a hunter’s focus on his prey, using this bond in order to fire an arrow that cannot help but hit its mark. Three times per day, as a standard action, the wielder of a quarry shot bow can use it to make a single ranged attack against a creature that he has designated as his quarry with the quarry class feature. This attack automatically hits the target, as long as the target is within the bow’s maximum range and there is a way for the arrow to reach the target. Even if the target has total concealment there is no miss chance, and even if the target has total cover, the arrow still hits its mark, provided that there is any path within the bow’s maximum range to reach the target, including turning corners mid-air, ricocheting off multiple surfaces, and/or passing through narrow openings. The wielder should still make an attack roll in order to determine if the attack is a critical threat.
Some of the quarry shot bow’s unique abilities count as an enhancement bonus equivalent, and it is treated as a +4-equivalent weapon for the purposes of the cost of further improving its magical abilities.
SUMMER’S STRENGTH
Aura faint transmutation; CL 5th
Slot none; Price 10,310 gp; Weight 2 lbs.
Construction Requirements Craft Magic Arms and Armor, burning hands, bull’s strength, telepathic bond; Cost 6,310 gp
This short sword glows with a warm, reddish-gold light when held, and is always pleasantly warm to the touch. It hums merrily when swung, and seems to rejuvenate its wielder as he swings it, such that he never grows tired while fighting. Its pommel stone is carved into the shape of a stylized sun. The blade was crafted as part of a pair, with another magic weapon, known as winter’s frost. According to legend, the elf war hero for whom these blades were crafted died in a magnificent last stand, and the two swords were separated by looters who did not understand their true value.
This +1 flaming short sword has no other special properties on its own. As long as it is wielded by someone who is also wielding winter’s frost, however, its secret magic is unlocked, and it becomes more powerful. If the wielder of summer’s strength successfully damages a creature with both summer’s strength and winter’s frost in the same round, then the wielder’s Strength score is increased by +2 for 1d4 rounds. This ability does not stack with itself.
None of summer’s strength’s unique abilities count as an enhancement bonus equivalent, and it is treated as a +2-equivalent weapon for the purposes of the cost of further improving its magical abilities.
WINTER’S FROST
Aura faint necromancy; CL 5th
Slot none; Price 10,310 gp; Weight 2 lbs.
Construction Requirements Craft Magic Arms and Armor, chill touch, telepathic bond; Cost 6,310 gp
This short sword glows with a frosty blue light when held, and is always cold to the touch. When it is swung, the sound of its passing whistles like a northern wind. Its pommel stone is carved in the shape of a snowflake. The blade was crafted as part of a pair, with another magic weapon, known as summer’s strength. According to legend, the elf war hero for whom these blades were crafted died in a magnificent last stand, and the two swords were separated by looters who did not understand their true value.
This +1 frost short sword has no other special properties on its own. As long as it is wielded by someone who is also wielding summer’s strength, however, its secret magic is unlocked, and it becomes more powerful. If the wielder of winter’s frost successfully damages a creature with both winter’s frost and summer’s strength in the same round, then the struck creature must succeed on a Fortitude save (DC equal to 10 + the sum of the cold damage dealt by winter’s frost to the target this turn and the fire damage dealt by summer’s strength to the target this turn) or be fatigued for 1d4 rounds. This ability cannot be used more than once per round, even if the target is hit by both winter’s frost and summer’s strength multiple times in one round.
None of winter’s frost’s unique abilities count as an enhancement bonus equivalent, and it is treated as a +2-equivalent weapon for the purposes of the cost of further improving its magical abilities.