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The Zen Archer

This one is for Lann! Lann is a nice boy and we love Lann.

Take the Zen Archer and Quiggong Monk Archetypes and play monoclass to level 20.

Class

Monk (Quiggong, Zen Archer) 20

Race

Human with your floating into Wisdom! Because starting lvl 3 you get to use your Wisdom for Attack with your Bow.

Ability Scores

Everything goes into Wisdom.

15Point-Buy

Str 12/Dex 14/Con 12/Int 10/Wis 18/Cha 7

20Point-Buy

Str 13/Dex 14/Con 13/Int 10/Wis 19/Cha 7

25Point-Buy

Str 14/Dex 14/Con 12/Int 10/Wis 20/Cha 7

Traits

Rich Parents because boy, Bows aren’t cheap. Reactionary for a +2 to Initiative which is always nice.

Favored Class Bonus

As a human, we will be taking the one giving us +¼ of a Ki Point for many, many Ki points later on.

Skills

Acrobatics, Perception and Stealth, the other two are up to you!

Feats by Level

1-Point-Blank Shot

Human Bonus-Improved Initiative

Monk-Improved Unarmed Strike

Monk-Perfect Strike

Bonus 1-Precise Shot Bonus

2-Rapid Shot

Bonus 2-Weapon Focus(Longbow)

3-Deadly Aim

Bonus 3-Point-Blank Master

5-Deflect Arrow

Bonus 6-Improved Precise Shot

Bonus 6-Weapon Specialization(Longbow)

7-Snatch Arrow

9-Snap Shot

Bonus 10-Combat Reflexes

11-Clustered Shots

13-Improved Snap Shot Bonus

14-Shot on the Run

15-Empty Quiver Style

17-Stabbing Shot

Bonus 18-Improved Critical(Longbow)

19-Empty Quiver Flexibility

So, Rapid Shot and Manyshot do not cumulate with Flurry of Blows. We are still taking Rapid Shot because it’s a prerequisite to many of our feats, such as the invaluable Clustered Shots. Via Improved Snap Shot we threaten with our bow at 15ft, meaning Combat Reflexes shenanigans with our Bow. Deadly Aim and Precise Shot are absolutely mandatory, and since we have so many feats, just kept going down the ranged combat feat tree.

Quiggong Monk

So we can replace a few of our Ki Abilities for a list of other abilities including some excellent

Spell-Like Abilities.

These are the choices made for this Build:

1. Ki Stand
2. True Strike

7-Gaseous Form

1. Ki Leech
2. Abundant Step

13-Dust Form

15-Cloud Step

17-Penetrating Strike

17-Greater Blind-Fight

19-Bilocation

20-Akashic Form

Equipment

Buy yourself a Masterwork Composite Longbow and various Arrows

Final Thoughts on the Build

Okay, so, Zen Archer Monks are the best Archer build you can make in Pathfinder as is period. We can flurry of blows with our longbow for an attack routine of seven attacks per round with zero investments whatsoever, can bypass some hefty prerequisites for certain very important archery feats, get you to use our Wisdom to attack with our longbow etc. And that’s all before even mentioning the Quiggong Monk that will get us some insane abilities like that of eating our enemies Ki when we crit or kill them, bypass DR(which makes Clustered Shot that much more effective), and the ability to say “Screw you” to death for the very high cost of…3 ki points…

Yeah. A Quiggong Zen Archer is very, very powerful with very little need of investing. Really your only real mandatory pick is Deadly Aim at 3rd level and from there you are good to go.

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