Ranged weapon attack and damage bonus... help!

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Can someone enlighten me as to how exactly are the attack and damage bonus calculated for ranged weapons? Specifically I would like to know which ability modifier is involved in calculating the bonus:

-- Bows --
Attack Bonus: DEX (?)
Damage Bonus: STR

-- Crossbows --
Attack Bonus: DEX
Damage Bonus: None (?)

-- Bows with Weapon Finesse --
Attack Bonus: DEX (?)
Damage Bonus: ?

-- Crowssbows with Weapon Finesse --
Attack Bonus: DEX (?)
Damage Bonus: ?

I am also quite confused as to what the "attack bonus" field in the character sheet refers to. I have a level 5 elf wizard with 16 dex and point blank shot feat. My attack bonus with a bow, therefore, should be +5 (BAB + dex). In the character sheet, however, it shows +4. BUT, when I actually use the bow in combat, I noticed that the attack rolls (as shown in the chat window) get +3, +7 or +8 bonus (almost seemingly randomly)... how did these bonus come about?

Any help would be greatly appreciated!!

[This message has been edited by Vernye (edited July 03, 2002).]

 

All range attacks are affected primarily by Dexterity, your BAB, size and range penalty. Strength bonuses generally do not apply to bows or crossbows except for certain composite longbows and shortbows. The item description would tell you if it does, and to what degree. For thrown weapons (darts, shuriken, throwing axes) you add your strength bonus for damage only.

For your character specifically, a 5th level wizard has a BAB of +2 and with a Dex of 16 you should have a +3 bonus, giving you a ranged attack of +5. The Point Blank Shot feat only takes effect when you are attacking an enemy within 30 feet (+1 to attack and +1 to damage). However, there are other modifiers that might be in effect. Mostly these will happen during combat (e.g., range penalties, hinderances to your abilities, hinderances to your opponents, etc). At a quick look your BAB shown in the character sheet should read +5 for a range weapon, but there may be some modifiers I'm forgetting that would affect it directly.

 

I see. Thanks a lot!