Getting more and more damage to ranged attacks... (Bow)

[Max Caysey]

Hi... I'm lokking for ways to improve the damage output from a bow.

So far I have:

Enchantment bonus +1 - +5
Splitting Arrows (enchantment)
Weapon Specialization
Greater Weapon Specialization
Weapon Mastery
Epic Weapon Specialization
Strength bonus (mighty +1 - +4)

What else is there... in terms om Items, feats classes...


Thanks!

[sideswipe]

(*cough* cancer mage and festering anger *cough*)

bow as + 1-5 AND arrows with d6 damage concentration. you apply both to the arrow. but only the biggest enhancement bonus. so one a +5 and the other +1 and +4 more damage enchants. or both +1 and +8 for extra damage dice.

knowledge devotion

[Flickerdart]

If you're going down the Weapon Specialization tree anyway, Ranged Weapon Mastery is worth taking.

[(Un)Inspired]

Fight with an energy bow and use the power attack option.

[Oko and Qailee]

Hank's energy bow. If your DM allows you to make it composite, even better.

[TmasterT]

targeteer fighter ACF, vital aim feat switches dex from str for damage. um.. point blank shot, rapid fire, imp rapid fire.
skirmish damage?
sneak attacks?
if your taking cleric levels then holy warrior feat for a bonus = to your highest war domain spell currently memorized.

if 3.0 classes are allowed deepwood sniper for criting
peerless archer for power shot
justice of weal and woe for arrow spells

[(Un)Inspired]

Make sure your bow is keen and splitting, get as many shots as you can through bab and many shot etc. then enter Blood in the water stance.

You'll be firing so many keen shots you'll crit all over the place and every crit increase you attack and damage by +1

[Firechanter]

Strength bonus (mighty +1 - +4)

Nothing's keeping you from making it as frickin' Mighty as you want. If you have Str 30, go ahead and get a Mighty +10 bow. (Ideally, you get either Hank's Energy Bow or the PF Adaptive enhancement for just 1000GP.)

[Thiyr]

Make sure your bow is keen and splitting, get as many shots as you can through bab and many shot etc. then enter Blood in the water stance.

You'll be firing so many keen shots you'll crit all over the place and every crit increase you attack and damage by +1

Bah, keen bow. Skip that, and use Razorfeather arrows if possible (I want to say MM4 or 5 has them. mundane arrows that act as keen and adamantine. Doesn't give an explicit cost, but the feathers they're made from are 50gp each and can be used to craft them, so 150 is a reasonable base price. Slightly more expensive than if you had +1 adamantine arrows, but doesn't contribute to the enchantment costs, so overall probably cheaper.

And if you're hitting a drought of crits for some reason, there's always hunter's mercy to keep your bonus going. Or if you can make a quickened wand of it somehow, or something.

If you can use stuff from PF, Deadly Aim isn't bad either.

[Max Caysey]

Thanks for the replies!

[darkbuu_1]

DEAD EYE!

While it does suffer from the normal precision weaknesses of 30ft, and creatures susceptible to crits, you do get to add your dex bonus to your ranged attacks with a weapon with which you have the weapon focus feat.

I never see anyone talking about it in topics like this, it might purely be because it's from Dragon (Compendium/304), or perhaps it's because people haven't seen the errata where the BAB requirement was changed, but until I hear a good enough reason I'll continue to post it.

[ShurikVch]

1) 1 lvl dip into Fighter
2) Hit-and-Run Tactics (Drow of the Underdark)
3) Targeteer

[Silvanshei]

Add Collision on bow (Magic Item Compendium pg. 31).

[Max Caysey]

DEAD EYE!

While it does suffer from the normal precision weaknesses of 30ft, and creatures susceptible to crits, you do get to add your dex bonus to your ranged attacks with a weapon with which you have the weapon focus feat.

I never see anyone talking about it in topics like this, it might purely be because it's from Dragon (Compendium/304), or perhaps it's because people haven't seen the errata where the BAB requirement was changed, but until I hear a good enough reason I'll continue to post it.

This is nice... Is there anyway to increase the range increment of this without diping into 3rd party, which has such a feat?

1) 1 lvl dip into Fighter
2) Hit-and-Run Tactics (Drow of the Underdark)
3) Targeteer

Would it bu possible to take the special ability more than once? Instead of a feat..?

Add Collision on bow (Magic Item Compendium pg. 31).

WOuld this collision damage be multiplied by crits? And whould it aply to both arrows of a splitting weapon?

[Darrin]

Get yourself an Elvencraft composite longbow (+300 GP, Races of the Wild). Add two wand chambers (+100 GP, Dungeonscape). If you have Ranger levels, add a wand of instant of power (750 GP, Forge of War p. 114) and either guided shot (750 GP, Spell Compendium p. 108) or blockade (750 GP, Complete Scoundrel p. 95). If you have access to Sorcerer/Wizard spells, then blade of blood (PHBII) and critical strike (Spell Compendium) can be used for low-level damage buffs.

Put a Lesser Crystal of Acid Assault (3000 GP, MIC) on the bow. Bracers of Lightning (11000 GP, MIC) can be used to add the Shock property. Spells like burning sword (Spell Compendium, Sor/Wiz 2), frost weapon (Frostburn, Clr/Dru/Sor/Wiz 2), lesser energy surge (PHBII, Sor/Wiz 2), and sonic weapon (Spell Compendium, Brd/Sor/Wiz 2) can be used to add more energy damage. If you can't cast these spells yourself, add a Glyph Seal (1000 GP, MIC) to your bow/quiver and ask another spellcaster in the party to load 'em up for you.

Peerless Archer (Silver Marches p. 115) offers Power Shot, although getting your hands on Hank's Energy Bow is recommended more often (all of my archers have "Hank" as a middle name in case anyone gets persnickety about RAW).

Flight (usually via Dragonborn of Bahumat) + Plunging Shot (Races of the Wild) is good for Kiting.

[ShurikVch]

Would it bu possible to take the special ability more than once? Instead of a feat..?

Yes. As class feature.