Ranged Rogue Help Request

[Novea]

Hiya,

I have a 5th level Tibbit Rogue (The DM dared me to try an 'odd' race).  I want her to be able to sneak attack from range.  The problem is that I have 3 DM's in our group and they all go back and forth whether sneak attacks can be done from range.  They said unless I get a ring of invisibility, I will have to bluff/feint one round then sneak attack the next.

The only reason I made this build was I remember a friend of ours doing the same thing with an elf and he did MASSIVE damage!  I plan on taking the Crossbow Sniper feat and she will become an assassin.

Help?

[Rebel7284]

They can...

From the SRD:

The rogue’s attack deals extra damage any time her target would be denied a Dexterity bonus to AC (whether the target actually has a Dexterity bonus or not), or when the rogue flanks her target.

Ranged attacks can count as sneak attacks only if the target is within 30 feet.

Flanking can't happen easily ( Arrow Mind lets you threaten with a ranged weapon), but many other ways of denying dex to AC exist.

1. Being flat footed in combat (any time the creature has not acted yet)
2. Balancing (grease spell helps)
3. Being struck by someone invisible/hidden
4. Any other effect that specifically treats the target as denied AC or flat footed.

[daekken]

Also, what sourcebooks are available to you? I know of some 3rd party materials from AEG that will make your SA's better along w/ other books if they're available.

[Novea]

All sourcebooks are open.  I will have to show those quotes to the DM.  I've flanked before and they still wouldn't let me unless I feinted then sneak attacked the next turn.

The only issue is I can't be 'broken.'  It's an evil game, so we have a good time.

[daekken]

AEG Mercenaries has a few feats that would be of interest to you then... There's 2 of them that you can take to increase your SA dice by one per feat (d6 becomes d8... taking the second one increases the d8 to d10's).
And a few others that will increase the range from which you can use SA ... i think you can eventually get it to 90ft ... (30ft per feat)

[Jackinthegreen]

If you want to increase the range your SA works at (and trust me, you do) then you'll want the Crossbow Sniper feat to get SA to 60 feet.  And since it'd be with a crossbow, you'll want the Rapid Reload feat for it.

Invisibility would work, but simply hiding in shadows and such would work too since you're effectively invisible and thus the opponent would usually have their Dex bonus lost to the attack.

"Broken" is a very subjective term.  Some consider it broken to have a TWF rogue who can get multiples hits in per round.  Others would say a barbarian with the Shock Trooper feat to let him get full Power Attack on a charge is broken, even without pounce or multiplying PA damage.

[RobbyPants]

I can't remember off the top of my head if Wand Chambers (Dungeonscape) can be used on a ranged weapon, or if it has to be a melee weapon. If it can be on a ranged weapon, you can put one on your crossbow and put a wand of Grease in it. I'd recommend getting a wand of Sculpted Grease (using the Sculpt spell metamagic feat (Complete Arcane?)) which lets you affect a wider area and have more versatility. It also bumps the CL up to 3, so the spell will last three rounds per casting. Because it's a level 2 spell with the MM feat, it will raise the cost to 4,500 gp, which might chew up a lot of your available money.

If a Wand Chamber can't be put on a ranged weapon, there might be an option to put a bayonet on a crossbow. I don't remember this off the top of my head, but I would imagine it would be in the Arms and Equipment guide if it existed at all.

At high level, a Ring of Blink will be your best way to sneak attack at range reliably. The downside to the item is how poorly worded Blink is. You'll have to talk to the DMs ahead of time to avoid arguments at the table.

[emaNsdrawkcaB]

I've always had a thing for the Invisible Blade prestige class from Complete Warrior. You become able to feint in combat as a move action, then later as a free action. They nerfed it in the errata so you can only do it once per round, BUT there's a feat from Drow of the Underdark, Surprising Riposte, that allows for a full attack with Sneak Attack damage.

ALSO, iirc, feinting is normally limited to melee but with the feat you can do it at a range, just not on the first attack.

After which you get options like Master Thrower, also from Complete Warrior, because throwing multiple daggers is awesome. Bloodstorm Blade is even better, because enchanting a ton of weapon isn't awesome.

Finally, if it comes down to the Ring of Invisibility, save a bit more and grab a Ring of Blinking. 7 rounds of sneak attack is better.