Freebie dps ranger

[stille_nacht]

The Goal here is to make a ranger with very high damage output relying on two weapons. Use scimitars as they are essentially the same as rapiers except they are slashing, make a min II khopesh or try to get one by lv 18. You can take khopesh proficiency earlier, i simply feel that khopeshes cost far more than they are worth at lower levels, and even with a GS min II item, the damage average on each attack only differs by 2.8

Suggestions and comments are more than welcome, as i havent actually played meelee yet

Elf Ranger 18/ Fighter 1/ Rogue 1
Lv 1
STR 16
DEX 16
CON 14
WIS 10
CHA 10
INT 10

Lv 20
STR 20
DEX 18
CON 14
WIS 10
CHA 10
INT 10
HP: 272
SP: 245
Saves: 15/17/6

1 Ranger
Feat(selected): Dodge
Feat(Favored Enemy): undead

2 Ranger


3 Ranger
Feat(selected): Mobility

4 Ranger


5 Ranger
Feat(Favored Enemy): Elemental

6 Ranger
Feat(selected): Spring Attack

7 Fighter
Feat(Class bonus): Oversized Two Weapon Fighting

8 Ranger


9 Ranger
Feat(selected): Improved Critical:Slashing

10 Rogue

11 Ranger

12 Ranger
Feat(Favored Enemy): Giant
Feat(selected): Toughness

13 Ranger


14 Ranger

15 Ranger
Feat(selected): Power Attack

16 Ranger

17 Ranger
Feat(Favored Enemy): Evil Outsider

18 Ranger
Feat(selected): Exotic Weapon proficiency: Khopesh

19 Ranger

20 Ranger

Enhancements:
Elven Enchantment Resistance I-III
Valenar Elf Melee Attack I,II
Valnear Elf Melee Damage I, II
Energy Resistance Acid: I-III
Fighter Critical Accuracy
Racial Toughness I,II
Ranger Favored Attack I, II
Ranger Favored Damage I-IV
Ranger Favored Defense I-III
Ranger Favored Resistance I-III
Ranger Tempest I-III
Rogue Sneak Attack Training I
Rogue Balance I
Ranger Energy of the Wild I, II
Fighter Toughness I

[unbongwah]

*cough* (http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=277496)

If you really want max DPS from a ranger, you start STR 18 (or 20 on half-orc) and put all your lvl-ups into STR. Though ranger wouldn't be my choice for max DPS in the first place...

[stille_nacht]

a 1 str bonus does not make as much of a difference as the Con, even with 14, my hp is sort of low, i have to have dex 16, because i cant be sure that people can get +2 tomes, but i can be sure that they can afford +1 tomes for GTWF

should i make a twf Fighter instead?

[eonfreon]

a 1 str bonus does not make as much of a difference as the Con, even with 14, my hp is sort of low, i have to have dex 16, because i cant be sure that people can get +2 tomes, but i can be sure that they can afford +1 tomes for GTWF

should i make a twf Fighter instead?

A Ranger gets the TWF Feat line for free. No need for the Dex to qualify for it, just the appropriate Ranger levels.
The only Dex requirements for Tempest Rangers is 13, for Dodge I think.

[stille_nacht]

oh, wasnt aware of that... well put str to 18 and dex wherever it leaves dex, still think it would be wise to have a high-ish reflex save though, since rangers get evasion, a high reflex save stops all sorts of spells

[NaturalHazard]

oh, wasnt aware of that... well put str to 18 and dex wherever it leaves dex, still think it would be wise to have a high-ish reflex save though, since rangers get evasion, a high reflex save stops all sorts of spells

how high is the question it might be high enough with 13 dex depends on the dc's you will be seeing. If your going the max dps and want hp's why not try dwarf with dwarven axes?

[stille_nacht]

Because i dont want to be a smelly dwarf o-O, and i was gonna do scimitar/khopesh, scimitar i thought was a little better than dwarven axe because of its crit range, and i can then switch to khopesh whenever i find a good one

[unbongwah]

On a 28-pt elf you can start 18 / 16 / 12 / 8 / 8 / 8. You'd probably have to give up some or all trap skills, but that's still enough for max ranks in UMD and a couple other skills, I think. Elves are squishy, though; elf rangers are extra squishy. I wouldn't want to start with CON 12 on one.

But if DPS is what you're really after, ranger isn't the best choice; the appeal of rangers is their versatility, IMHO, not their raw DPS. A fighter or barbarian is a better choice, IMHO, or maybe something multiclassed. Can you afford any tome(s) for this build or are you trying to do it on the cheap?

[stille_nacht]

well i wasnt really going for traps at all, rogue splash is purely for the sneak attack damage, and i am sort of going for a lot of dps, but the favored enemy and evasion of a ranger really appeals to me :/, but i was going for really high dps...

[Mercureal]

I agree that Ranger as a base class isn't the optimal choice for really high DPS. You can do respectable damage with the right gear, but it's very much a generalist class. If you want a DPS-build based around Ranger, look at some of the ideas that take more levels in a different class, like 12/7/1 Ranger/Rogue/Monk, or 12/6/2 Fighter/Ranger/Barbarian.

Ranger levels give you some spells, ranged ability and the chance to do good damage against a small selection of enemy types. More levels in a different class should give you higher DPS, if you want it, at the possible cost of some versatility.

[unbongwah]

Rogue 2 / ftr 18 or rogue 2 / barb 18 still gets you d6+3 SA and Evasion (and at least UMD w/enough INT) while doing significantly more melee DPS and having a lot more HPs than a ranger 18 / 1 / 1. What you give up is everything else ranger brings to the table: archery feats, spells, extra skill pts, etc.

[stille_nacht]

hmm i was always rather fond of rangers, and ive been told that a kesai fighter wont do that much more than a tempest ranger, but i wanted to be more melee focused.... does kensai do that much more than tempest? :[ even factoring in FE?