Arcane Archer Rework

Arcane Archers are warriors who merge ancient elven techniques with raw martial prowess, turning each projectile into a conduit for magic. Through disciplined training and mystical attunement, these archers weave spells into their shots, enhancing their arrows with elemental energies, illusions, and disruptive enchantments. Their keen eyes and steady hands make them feared combatants, capable of piercing defenses both mundane and magical. Over time, various students of the discipline have modified it to work with not just bows but crossbows and other ranged weapons. Whether raining down magical barrages upon their foes or unleashing battlefield-altering empowered shots, an Arcane Archer is a force to be reckoned with, channeling arcane might with unmatched elegance.

Arcane Archer Lore

At 3rd level, you learn magical theory and some of the secrets of nature — typical for practitioners of this elven martial tradition. You gain proficiency in the Arcana and Nature skills, and you choose to learn the prestidigitation, druidcraft, or guidance cantrips. Additionally, you gain the true strike cantrip.

Arcane Arrows

Arcane Archers master the blend of ranged weapon mastery and arcane power. Their arrows thrum with latent power, wreathed in shimmering energy as they loose them.

Arcane Arrow Damage Types. When you gain this feature, choose two damage types from fire, cold, lightning, thunder, acid, and poison. These are your Arcane Arrow Damage Types. You choose one additional type at levels 7, 10, 15, and 18. Starting at 15th level, you can also choose from psychic, radiant, and necrotic. Whenever an ability requires you to choose an Arcane Arrow Damage Type, that choice lasts until the end of your turn.

Unleash Arcane Arrows. As a bonus action, you unleash your Arcane Arrows until the end of your turn. While unleashed, each time you make a ranged attack as part of the Attack action, you generate Arcane Arrows as follows:

• You create a number of Arcane Arrows equal to your proficiency bonus.
• Each Arcane Arrow automatically hits one creature you choose within your weapon’s normal range or 120 feet (whichever is greater) but is blocked by the shield spell or if the target has total cover.
• If not blocked, each Arrow deals 1d4 damage of your chosen Arcane Arrow Damage Type.
• You can assign each arrow to a different target.

You can use this feature a number of times equal to 1 + your Intelligence modifier + your proficiency bonus, regaining all uses when you finish a short or long rest.

Example. A level 5 Arcane Archer spends a bonus action to unleash Arcane Arrows upon her enemies, expending a use of this feature. When she does, she chooses one of her available Arcane Arrow Damage types. That turn, each of the two attacks taken from her Attack action (including Extra Attacks) creates 3 Arcane Arrows for a total of 6 Arcane Arrows. Each arrow automatically deals 1d4 damage of the chosen Arcane Arrow Damage Type to any creature within range that is not behind total cover or under the protection of the shield spell.

Arcane Arrow Damage Type Options

The Arcane Arrow feature lets you choose options for it at certain levels. The options are presented here in alphabetical order. Any attack that deals your Arcane Arrow Damage Type is considered magical.

Acid

Your Arcane Arrow attacks and weapon attacks deal Acid damage for the remainder of your turn.

Cold

Your Arcane Arrow attacks and weapon attacks deal Cold damage for the remainder of your turn.

Fire

Your Arcane Arrow attacks and weapon attacks deal Fire damage for the remainder of your turn.

Lightning

Your Arcane Arrow attacks and weapon attacks deal Lightning damage for the remainder of your turn.

Necrotic

Your Magic Arrow attacks and weapon attacks deal Necrotic damage for the remainder of your turn.

Poison

Your Magic Arrow attacks and weapon attacks deal Poison damage for the remainder of your turn.

Psychic

Your Magic Arrow attacks and weapon attacks deal Psychic damage for the remainder of your turn.

Radiant

Your Magic Arrow attacks and weapon attacks deal Radiant damage for the remainder of your turn.

Thunder

Your Arcane Arrow attacks and weapon attacks deal Thunder damage for the remainder of your turn.

Arcane Weapon

Finally, at level 3 whenever you make an attack with your weapon, you can change its type to your Arcane Arrow Damage Type at no cost. When you do this, your weapon does not expend ammunition but rather creates its own ammunition when you fire it. The magical ammunition lasts until the attack hits or misses and then disappears.

If your weapon deals a damage type other than one of your known Arcane Arrow Damage Types, that damage type counts as one of your known Arcane Arrow Damage Types.

Empowered Shot

At 7th level, you learn to unleash special magical effects with some of your shots. When you gain this feature, you prepare two Empowered Shot options of your choice (see “Empowered Shot Options” below).

Once per turn when you fire an arrow from a bow or crossbow as part of the Attack action, you can apply one of your prepared Empowered Shot options to that arrow. You decide to use the option when the arrow hits a creature, unless the option doesn’t involve an attack roll. You can use this ability twice, regaining expended uses when you finish a short or long rest. You can also spend two uses of your Arcane Arrows feature to use Empowered Shot.

You gain an additional prepared Empowered Shots of your choice when you reach certain levels in this class: 10th, 15th, and 18th level. You may change your prepared Empowered Shots after completing a long rest. 

Empowered Shot Options

The Empowered Shot feature gives you additional prepared Empowered Shots at certain levels. The options are presented here in alphabetical order. They are all considered magical effects. You may change your prepared Empowered Shots after completing a long rest. 

If an option requires a saving throw, your Empowered Shot save DC equals 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Intelligence modifier.

Banishing Shot

You temporarily banish your target to a harmless location in the Feywild. The creature hit by the arrow must also succeed on a Charisma saving throw or be banished. While banished in this way, the target’s speed is 0, and it is incapacitated. At the end of its next turn, the target reappears in the space it vacated or in the nearest unoccupied space if that space is occupied. If the target succeeds on the save, you do not expend a use of Empowered Shot.

Beguiling Shot

This arrow temporarily beguiles its target. Choose one of your allies within 30 feet of the target. The target must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw, or it is charmed by the chosen ally until the start of your next turn. This effect ends early if the chosen ally attacks the charmed target, deals damage to it, or forces it to make a saving throw. If the target succeeds on the save, you do not expend a use of Empowered Shot.

Bursting Shot

You imbue your arrow with force energy. The energy detonates after your attack. Immediately after the arrow hits the creature, the target and all other creatures within 10 feet of it take 3d6 force damage each.

The force damage increases to 4d6 when you reach 10th level in this class, and 5d6 when you reach 18th level in this class.

Enfeebling Shot

You weave necromantic magic into your arrow. The target must succeed on a Constitution saving throw, or the damage dealt by its weapon attacks is halved until the start of your next turn. If the target succeeds on the save, you do not expend a use of Empowered Shot.

Grasping Shot

When this arrow strikes its target, it creates grasping, poisonous brambles, which wrap around the target. The creature hit by the arrow takes an extra 3d6 poison damage, its speed is reduced by 10 feet, and it takes 3d6 slashing damage the first time on each turn it moves 1 foot or more without teleporting. The target or any creature that can reach it can use its action to remove the brambles with a successful Strength (Athletics) check against your save DC. Otherwise, the brambles last for 1 minute or until you use this option again.

The poison damage and slashing damage both increase to 4d6 when you reach 10th level in this class, and to 5d6 at 18th level in this class.

Piercing Shot

You use give your arrow an ethereal quality. When you use this option, you don’t make an attack roll for the attack. Instead, the arrow shoots forward in a line, which is 1 foot wide and 30 feet long, before disappearing. The arrow passes harmlessly through objects, ignoring cover. Each creature in that line must make a Dexterity saving throw. On a failed save, a creature takes damage as if it were hit by the arrow, plus an extra 3d6 piercing damage. On a successful save, a target takes half as much damage.

The piercing damage increases to 4d6 when you reach 10th level in this class, and to 5d6 when you reach 18th level in this class.

Seeking Shot

You grant your arrow the ability to seek out a target. When you use this option, you don’t make an attack roll for the attack. Instead, choose one creature you have seen in the past minute. The arrow flies toward that creature, moving around corners if necessary and ignoring three-quarters cover and half cover. If the target is within the weapon’s range and there is a path large enough for the arrow to travel to the target, the target must make a Dexterity saving throw. Otherwise, the arrow disappears after traveling as far as it can.

On a failed save you learn the target’s current location. If the target succeeds on the save, you do not expend a use of Empowered Shot.

Shadow Shot

You cause your arrow to occlude your foe’s vision with shadows. The creature hit by the arrow must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or be unable to see anything farther than 5 feet away until the end of your next turn. If the target succeeds on the save, you do not expend a use of Empowered Shot.

Staggering Shot

A creature hit by this shot must succeed a Strength saving throw or have their movement reduced to 0 until the end of their next turn, as elemental magic threatens to constrict their mobility. Additionally, regardless of whether they succeed or fail, the ground in a 20 foot square centered on the target becomes difficult terrain until the start of your next turn. The terrain can look like slippery ice, deep mud, or any other elemental effect of your choice.

Sundering Shot

Your shot gains the ability to sunder defenses both magical and mundane. A creature hit by your Shot must make a CON saving throw. On a failure, they gain a -2 penalty to their armor class. Additionally, if they use the Shield spell, that spell does not prevent the damage dealt by your Magick Arrows feature or the Magic Missile spell. These effects last until the end of your turn.

If the target succeeds on the save, you do not expend a use of Empowered Shot.

Translocating Shot

Your shot is imbued with teleportation magic, bonded to your location. A creature hit by your ranged attack must pass a CHA saving throw or you swap locations with that creature as you are teleported to each others' positions. If it is occupying a space smaller than you fit in, you appear in the closest location to it that you fit in. If the target succeeds on the save, you do not expend a use of Empowered Shot.

Alternatively, you can use this Shot to fire at an unoccupied space. If you do, you are instantly teleported to that location.

Warding Shot

Instead of attacking a creature, you fire this Empowered Shot at an unoccupied point on the ground within range. Creatures of your choice within a 15 foot radius of that point increase their degree of cover by one. For instance, creatures with no cover are considered to have half cover, while creatures with three-quarters cover are considered to be within total cover. This benefit lasts until the start of your next turn.

Total cover granted by this shot does not break line of sight.

Arcane Siphon

At 10th level, when you are subjected to damage of a kind known to you as part of your Arcane Arrow Damage Types, you can use your reaction to absorb the damage by a number of d4s equal to your proficiency bonus. When you do this, you regain a use of your Arcane Arrow ability. You can use this feature once at level 10, twice at level 13, and three times at level 17, regaining all expended uses on a short rest.

Arcane Barrage

At 15th level, as an action, you can spend 1 minute to conjure an Arcane Barrage - a battery of Arcane Arrows that await your command to strike your enemies. The number of arrows in your Arcane Barrage is equal to twice your proficiency bonus. Upon conjuring these arrows, choose the damage type for the arrows as you would with your Arcane Arrow feature. These arrows are invisible and hover near you, trailing your movements. Once per turn, you may also have them move to a point within 30 feet of you, and you may have them become visible or invisible as part of that movement.

While the barrage is active, when you use your bonus action to activate your Arcane Arrow feature, you may simultaneously launch any number of arrows from the Arcane Barrage as part of the same action. The barrage remains for up to 1 hour, during which time you maintain concentration as if on a spell. The barrage disappears at the end of its duration, or if you lose concentration on it, create a new barrage, or expend all arrows in the current barrage. 

You can use this feature once per Long Rest, and can expend a use of your Arcane Arrow feature to use it again.

Arcane Wellspring

At 18th level, if you roll initiative and have fewer than 4 uses of your Arcane Arrow ability, you regain uses until you have 4. Additionally, if you have no free uses of Empowered Shot at the start of initiative, you gain 1.