PF Ranged build

[GawainBS]

A friend wants to play a ranged build in a core-only PF campaign. ONLY things from this link are allowed: http://www.d20pfsrd.com/ , and only the things not marked as "3rd Party". Starting at lvl 5, 28 point buy, MW armour & weapons, 1 minor magic item, party has a Ftr2/Wiz3 going for EK, Summoner with feat for Undead Eidolon, and a Samurai.

Gunslinger doesn't intrest her, but she wants to offer a meaningful contribution to the fights.

Thanks in advance!

[Vidar]

The 28 point buy has become an 18/18/18/16/16/14 rolled with my very own loaded dice (eventhough it's not my character ), the race is pretty much forced on human.

[StreamOfTheSky]

Wait, this build is for you, Vidar?

Your best options are Ranger, Fighter, and Zen Archer Monk.  Ranger can get Improved Precise Shot next level and has spellcasting to support himself along with great skills.  Fighter can have a LOT of feats and can start the game with Weapon Specialization and Point Blank Master, but has awful skills and needs to wait till level 11 for IPS.  Zen Archer would start with PBM and could get IPS next level, but has no spellcasting support, mediocre skills, and all the general suckage of Monks.  If you do go Monk, be a Qinggong Monk so you can selectively trade out crappy things for useful ones.  By level 5 you could have swapped Slow Fall (worth swapping if your DM uses the eratta for Spider Step and Cloud Step) and arguably Purity of Body.  Barksin and True Strike being the best trades from the level 4 group.

If this seems like a "low magic" game where getting magic items will be hard (seriously, you should be able to have +1 weapon and armor and other gadgets by level 5 w/ normal wealth), I would STRONGLY recommend some sort of martial/caster hybrid going into EK with Item Crafting feats to support yourself.  Don't go into Arcane Archer, it sucks compared EK even at archery and being an Elf or Half-Elf sucks compared to being Human.

[GawainBS]

It's for his girlfriend. I was just the messenger.

Items will be very scarce, from what I hear. DM seems to be on the kevin_video-DM scale of things.

[Vidar]

You were correct to guess this is low magic item, at lvl 5, we all have keen items, without the +1, being our only magic stuff. I currently play an Eldritch Knight aspirant, so I'm afraid the DM will be reluctant to allow another EK. Seeing how this is close to the only workable hybrid, it'll have to be one of your first suggestions, which are all sound, so thanks for that.
Also, druids aren't allowed either.
Where I would DM with the idea that everything is allowed and then check if it's wise to disallow some stuff, this DM actually starts with: nothing is allowed, then I'll add some stuff, but very conditionally.

[X-Codes]

Cleric.

[Vidar]

She's already chosen Zen Archer Monk, any extra suggestions on that?

[DMM4ever]

I have a few.

First of all, in Ultimate Combat it is said that you can have multiple archetypes on one class so long as they don't replace the same ability.  Quigong Monk allows you to choose which abilities to replace, but you should ask your GM if you can take it as well as the Zen Archer.

You are only going to need a bit of dex for the Zen Archer if you are going for full DPR, instead pumping up wisdom.  If you are going for Improved Precise Shot just use your monk bonus feat at 6th level.

In terms of Feat usage, you NEED deadly aim, it does for bows what power attack does for melee artists.  Pick it up ASAP.  Also of note is that you do not lose Improved Unarmed Strike from Zen Archer and so you still qualify for Deflect Arrows.  As a ranged combatant, ranged attacks are the main source of your damage taken, so it can be really useful to have.  Also, since you can't rapid/many shot while bow flurrying, you should consider anything that boosts your damage with a bow to be a necessity.

With regards to stat placement, I would go with something like this: Str 18, Dex 16, Con 18, Int 16, Wis 18, Cha 14 (Ludicrous Sats O_o)
I would place the Human stat bonus in STR for the +5 to damage.  At +7/+7 for 1d8+8 (Deadly Aim, +1 Weapon) you should be at least making a somewhat helpful contribution to party damage.

As a strange suggestion: You could be VERY annoying to your GM if you take a 3 level dip into fighter (Archer) after your 6th level of monk.
The ability to disarm with a ranged attack is infuriating (I did exactly this in a game recently).  Additionally, if an opponent is adjacent to you, you can disarm him then fire away, seeing as Improved Disarm states specifically that you do not provoke an AOO when disarming an opponent.  So some dude attacks you in melee, full attack Disarm->Arrow->Arrow then five foot step away. If you are going for this build, I must point you to Ultimate Combat's Snap Shot and Greater Snap Shot feats.  This allows you to threaten squares within 15 feet.  It requires you to burn a feat on rapid shot, but hey, Rapid can be useful if you have to move in a round, say to move up to a guy you just disarmed.  As I recall picking up a dropped weapon provokes AOO's.  Consider Combat Reflexes.  (I think I have a new character to go build...)

[StreamOfTheSky]

The Snap Shot line actually tremendously pissed me off, because it's basically letting the Fighter do what formerly was a unique schtick of Zen Archer, and doing it better.  But the real kick in the nuts is when you realize by RAW the monk's level 9 class feature, even though functionally the same as Snap Shot in benefit, would STILL require you to get Snap Shot and all its pre-reqs before you could move onto Improved and Greater Snap Shot. 

[Vidar]

Thanks DMM, that's really sound advice and I'll discuss it with the DM and my gf.

[StreamOfTheSky]

I recommend these feats:

Point Blank Shot (Monk 1), Precise Shot (Monk 2), Imp. Precise Shot (when you reach Monk 6).

Deadly Aim: This is your level 3 feat.
Clustered Shots: As soon as you have BAB +6, get this.  Since you can only use this feat when full attacking and a monk full attacking has full BAB, see if your DM will let you snag it at level 7, it seems fair to me.  I can cite a quote from Sean K Reynolds, one of the game's designers, supporting this sort of allowance, if you need me to.

Beyond that it's largely what you want.  Level 1 feat is open, as is the level 5.  I agree with DMM that Deflect Arrows is good to have.  I disagree on the ability score array, I would put your +2 into wisdom, str is just +1 damage, wis is +1 AC, +1 will save, +1 attack bonus, +1 ki point...

UC has combat style feats now.  Most are for unarmed melee combat and useless, but some might be decent.  Crane Style (requires Dodge) and Crane Wing basically give you the equivalent of Deflect Arrows for melee.  But you have to be fighting defensively.  Since by level 3 you can shoot point blank in melee no problem and at level 9 you can even AoO with bowshots, see if the DM would allow fighting defensively with the bow, taking the attack penalty for the AC bonus.  Snake Style lets you use an immediate action to use a Sense Motive check as AC against an attack, even a touch attack.  Then again, monks usually don't need help with touch AC anyway.

If the game ever reaches level 11+, you may want to consider loading up on "stunning fist feats."  By that I mean feats such as stunning fist that trigger on unarmed strike and cn be used 1/monk level/day.  As a monk, you meet the BAB requirement for them at 11, and can use them far more often than another class could.  Of course, this doesn't become really useful till you get the level 16 (or 17?) ability to use ki effects on your arrows.  Till then it'd jus be something to tag people you unarmed AoO with.  Best ones are Stunning Fist, Touch of Serenity, and Punishing Kick, in that order.

After Monk 6 or 8 (when you gain another attack), consider Horizon Walker 2 or Oracle 1.  HW 2 gives you the ability to reduce concealment miss chances by one step, so combined with Imp. Precise Shot means you operate just fine in total concealment.  Oracle 1, with the Water mystery and Water Sight revelation, can see just fine in any fog or mist.  So with that an Oracle Zen Archer could lay down some inexpensive Obscuring Mist for protection and fire from it with impunity.

[Vidar]

I just heard the party will be resetting completely (at lvl5) due to the death toll (I'm the sole survivor). Do you maybe have any more advice for a gish?

[Unbeliever]

I just heard the party will be resetting completely (at lvl5) due to the death toll (I'm the sole survivor) ...

Do we want to take bets on whether this will encourage the DM to allow more material? 

[Vidar]

I just heard the party will be resetting completely (at lvl5) due to the death toll (I'm the sole survivor) ...

Do we want to take bets on whether this will encourage the DM to allow more material? 

The only thing stopping me from calling you naive, is me really hoping for some help, since I know diddly squat from pathfinder specific material. 
Feel  free to make suggestions, though. Miracles are known to happen.

[X-Codes]

Suggestion: Cleric.

[Vidar]

Any more on that?

[veekie]

If you're thinking gish instead, you have a bunch of options.
CoDzilla still works for the most part. Same goes for Oracle(its just a Clericzilla with a different rig)
Transmuters can as well(their specialization gets them a bunch of stat bonuses, and then just slap on one of the X Shape spells and go, but without the BAB or proficiencies, they're really just wizards that happen to be able to beat shit up when they feel like it)
Magus is mostly 'spam spells in melee' it can be rather problematic to use given that its basically TWFing with spells.
Alchemist goes with a more utility oriented buff+smash. Basically pass your extracts around the party, down a mutagen and fight like you normally would, with debuff bombs as a backup damage option.
Summoner is pretty good on the smash end, whether you're fusing with your eidolon or just using it as a super pet.

Its all on the PFRD though.

[StreamOfTheSky]

Does this player still want to be an archer, or is open to anything now?

General advice is your DM's a jerk and/or knows absolutely nothing about class balance, and with the magic item / gear rules as they currently are, no matter WHAT you want to do, be a full spellcaster.  What you do with your full caster will vary based on what you want to do, but in a game with low or no magic items, non-casters LOSE.  VERY, VERY HARD.

[Vidar]

Do not worry, my friend. Casters WILL get nerfed! Depending on where "in his homebrew world" we play, certain types of magic are not allowed, like necromancy among others. That is IF we play in a part where casters are allowed. Other ways of nerfing casters is not letting sorcerers pick their own spells, not allowing wizards to copy spells, not allowing things that are already heavily played by other parties in the past (that's why druids are not allowed). There's only one part that allows guns, and half of the party doesn't want to go there anyway.

[StreamOfTheSky]

Find a new game?