Manyshot

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Is there a point to Manyshot in this game? I mean, a -4 penalty is pretty steep for only two arrows, even if they are both at the higher BAB (they are, right?). Rapid Shot gives you three arrows (assuming base two attacks, prereq for Manyshot), and EACH can apply crit, sneak attack, and/or ranger favoured enemy damage.

So what's the deal?

 

The deal has to do with how long it takes to complete these actions. Many shot requires only a standard action. Which means that you can fire your 2 arrows, and you still have a move equivalent action to work with (so you can move up to your max normal speed, sheathe a weapon, etc). You can also perform free actions, of course.

With rapid shot you must commit to a full round action, which means once you attack, you do not get to take a move equivalent action. You can still do free actions, such as taking a 5 foot step, however.

So yes, you take a bigger penalty with manyshot because you're firing two arrows more quickly than you are able to with rapid shot. This seems like a fair enough trade off to me....

As a side note, Rapid Shot is generally the more "practical" feat of the two, but a high level archer build will usually include manyshot at some point. Being able to fire off 2 - 4 arrows simultaneously (in pen and paper you can eventually fire up to 4 arrows with this feat, taking a hefty attack penalty to so) and then move to a defensible postion is often useful. High level archer/mages like to combine this with a quickened true strike to increase their odds of hitting... but these kind of tactics go somewhat beyond the scope of ToEE, so I digress.

 

Ah, thanks. I was wondering about something like that, but I couldn't piece together a coherent strategy for it. Sounds good, though. Would be nice if it let you apply ranger enemy bonuses on both arrows, though!