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Thanks for the info guys. I guess that does leave me with one last question though, if the duo charges someone and does not continue moving can the PC deal spirited charge damage and have his Eidolon full attack because of pounce?

So I'm about to start a campaign and I have a character that is interested in playing a Halfling Summoner that rides his Eidolon and he plans on taking Mounted Combat, Ride-By Attack, and Spirited Charge. Anyway, I had a few questions regarding mounted combat.

1: Can both the rider and the mount attack on during a charge?

2: If the mount has the pounce special feature can it full attack and then continue moving after charging?

3: If the eidolon gets wings does it need to take Fly-By Attack in order to continue moving after it makes an attack or does Ride-By Attack cover both situations?

So through a rather inventive set of circumstances my Chaotic Neutral 8th level Bard has the ability to come back from the dead once and will be receiving a map of where you go if one were to commit suicide (whether it be the Abyss or Hell or some other plane). Now, my character is extremely afraid of death (think Jack Sparrow or the Marquis de Carabas) and is essentially looking for something to ransom or some sort of knowledge that would be useful to him. Any ideas? I've not delved into the planes much while playing Pathfinder so I'm honestly not sure what I could get or where I'd end up if I killed myself.

I may have to check out the Samurai archetypes. I believe I've seen them before but didn't look super closely. I mainly used things from the L5R courtier and the Star Wars and Dragonlance noble. I also pulled from the Iron Kingdoms thief.

The thing about Aristocrats is their lack of class abilities. The main reason I've created this is that I want a core class to use for NPC's in a game that are able to manipulate people through their words and actions without receiving a class ability they don't have a use for (sneak attack). For instance, I have an old aged NPC Queen sitting around with a 7 strength, 10 dexterity, and 9 constitution, however, she has a 16 intelligence, 14 wisdom, and 24 charisma (before any magic items). So she's not going to be stabbing people in the liver very often but will likely be pulling the strings in the city.

I realize it's not a very hack and slash kind of class but that's why I was looking for suggestions or insight. An idea I had to give it better offensive abilities was removing some abilities and replacing them with something like +1 on attack and damage rolls with poisoned weapons or against enemies that have been successfully feinted against and then have it stack with their levels. It seems Rogue-esque but the class is meant to be more of a talker than anything else.

Revelation: "Unless otherwise noted, activating the power of a revelation is a standard action."

I was actually just about to check there. Thank you.

I don't mean to beat a dead horse but does anyone have any insight on this?

I'm not sure if this will help at all but Dragon Magazine 352 had the Garuda from China Miéville's Bas-Lag world, which were based on the Hindu/Buddhist mythological Garuda. Off the top of my head I'm not sure if it had a Level Adjustment but I think the majority of those races did.

Forgive me if this has already been addressed elsewhere but, I was wondering what sort of action an Oracle with an armor revelation had to take to gain the benefits of said armor. For instance, what kind of action would an Oracle with the Bones mystery have to take to gain the benefits of the Bone Armor revelation? I ask because right now I only have access to the SRD and it doesn't seem to say if it's a standard, move, swift, free, or full-round action anywhere. I can't imagine it's more than a standard action but I thought I'd ask and see if anyone could give me any insight.

Now we just need a name for it... Poledancing?

Yes to the name. My Vishkanya Rogue (Deadly Courtesan) seductress NPC is now complete :P

So I'm not sure if anybody is still interested in this but I now have a basic layout for this that I'm still working on and adding abilities too. Suggestions and constructive criticism would be helpful.

The Courtier

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The Undercity- guarded from the devastation on the surface, the Undercity stretches forth in a series of expertly carved tunnels deep underground. The work of Dwarven craftsmanship, it hasn't been touched by their mithril picks and hammers since the End. Now it is a refuge for Ratfolk who have filled it with billions of skittering paws. The Ratfolk warrens rest in what now remains of these once great halls.

This reminds me of a one shot game I have planned that takes place in a heavily Neverwhere/Underdark inspired game. If it helps at all here's two home-brewed races that came out of it.

I was thinking about keeping the exact nature of the fall a secret for story reasons. I am looking at various versions of the artificer and mechanic type classes.

Magic will be somewhat restricted, prob just sorcerers, witches, and oracles. Rangers, and other partials will lose their caster abilities and I am working on replacement stuff for them atm.

For Ranger and Paladin spells you could go with something similar to what Complete Divine (I think that was the book) and give them bonus feats each level they'd gain a new level of spells. You could restrict it to combat feats or feats that have to do with the Rangers combat style.

So as some of you may already know, I'm working on a Courtier base class but I've come up with a Rogue archetype I may use in the meantime and was wondering what the community thought.

Courtier Rogue

Skills: A courtier adds Knowledge (history) and Knowledge (nobility) to her list of class skills and removes Knowledge (dungeoneering) from her list of class skills.

Power of Persuasion: A courtier is able to influence those around her in ways others cannot. When she uses the Diplomacy skill to shift a creature's attitude, the targets attitude may shift up to three steps higher rather than just two. In addition, a courtier may use the Diplomacy skill to change a NPC's attitude about a character other than herself; when doing so, the DC of the check is increased by 5. This ability replaces Trapfinding.

Poison Use At 3rd level, a courtier is trained in the use of poison and can never accidentally poison herself. This ability replaces Trap Sense.

Cult of Personality: At 4th level, 1/day, if a courtier is in an area with creature's of her alignment she may make a Diplomacy check with a DC of 10 + 1/2 the creature's hit dice + the creature's Charisma modifier. If successful, she gains a cohort, as per the leadership feat, for a number of hours equal to her Rogue level or until the cohort is dismissed, whichever is less. This ability replaces Uncanny Dodge.

Great Leader: At 8th level, a couriter gains the leadership feat. If she already possesses the leadership feat she receives a +2 bonus to her leadership score and her cohort may be up to 1 experience level behind her (instead of 2). Regardless of whether the courtier has the leadership feat, cohorts gained through the Cult of Personality ability may only be up to 2 experience levels behind the couriter. This ability replaces Improved Uncanny Dodge.

Definitely need to mention the land specific but you think 10 feet is too much?

I think starting them off with +10 is fine but I think it should be reduced to +5 every four levels as the Fleet feat only grants a +5 bonus.

I was going to suggest making them something similar to traits but based on comments I realized you're looking for something a little more powerful. They all look interesting so far and pretty well balanced among each other. The only thing I could think to possibly change would be for the speed bonus from the steed to increase by +5 every four levels instead of +10. Also, though I'm pretty sure it's implied, I would only allow the steeds bonus to apply to land speed if I were you.

They all sound pretty interesting, I didn't have time to read over the blink but will probably do so later. I'm interested in the Cadaver, Hive, and Zealot (though I can wait for them to be posted after others).

Ok, based on the pool idea I've got some basic special ability ideas:

Influence Pool: At 1st level, a courtier gains a pool of points representing her influence. The number of points in a courtier's influence pool is equal to 1/2 her courtier level + her Charisma modifier. As long as she has at least 1 point in her influence pool, when she uses the Diplomacy skill to shift a creature's attitude, the targets attitude may shift up to three steps higher rather than just two.

By spending 1 point from her influence pool, as a swift action, a courtier can give herself a +2 insight bonus on Bluff, Diplomacy, or Intimidate checks for 1 round. In addition, as an immediate action, she can spend 1 point from her influence pool to give herself a +2 bonus on a save against a spell or effect that would detect her lies or force her to speak the truth.

The influence pool is replenished each morning after 8 hours of rest; these hours do not need to be consecutive.

Great Leader: At 3rd (or maybe 5th) level a courtier is able to use her influence to rally like minded individuals to her cause. If the courtier is in an area with individuals of the same alignment as hers, she may spend a point from her influence pool to gain a cohort, as per the leadership feat, for one hour. She may spend additional influence points to add an hour of service to this duration, but the duration may not be longer than a number of hours equal to her courtier level. A courtier may only gain one cohort in this way.

If the courtier ever gains the leadership feat, she receives a +2 bonus to her leadership score and her cohort may be one experience level behind her instead of two. Regardless of whether or not the courtier has the leadership feat, cohorts gained by spending influence points can only be up to 2 levels behind the courtier.

how about a 'pool' which could be used to interact with the social spheres of your game.

some examples off the top of my head:

Contact Pool:
spend 1 point to pull a favor from someone in your sphere. this could be monetary or material, or some sort of service rendered.
spend 1 point to gain a temporary Cohort as per Leadership feat.
spend 1 point to alter an NPC's attitude one step.

Secular Authority Pool:
spend 1 point to Judge someone of a lower station. local police have +1 priority to bring in someone under your Judgement.
spend 1 point to pardon someone from Judgement. this could even be run as an opposed level check if the initial person is of equal or higher station/level.
spend 1 point to gain temporary Followers as per Leadership. these deputies are on special assignment.

Wealth Pool:
spend 1 point to acquire 100 gp per level.
spend 1 point to increase the availability of items in a certain marketplace.
spend 1 point to borrow a powerful magic item from it's curator.

I like this idea, I'll probably tweak it some and just make it one pool of points (similar to a Magus or Monk) that the Courtier can use to do different things like add a bonus to certain skill checks, aquire a cohort for a short amount of time, and various other things.

OmNomNid: I looked over the Voyageur, it's interesting but I've still got my work cut out for me.

A character class should be more than just a profession. I think the current rules have enough classes that you don't need to invent one for a very narrow focus. Making a character class for a specific campaign is usually a bad idea because it gives all the advantages to the new class. If that is the case why would anyone want to play anything else? You will probably end up with a whole party of this class which means all the characters are going to be the same.

Though I understand what you mean Mysterious Stranger, the campaign wouldn't be solely based on the politics of court so a courtier wouldn't have any more advantage than another class. As OmNomNib said, a lot of players stick to the things they see in books. I also know that only certain people like to play social based classes and most players are more concerned about what they can do in combat.

I'd also, more than likely use the class in other campaigns, especially for aristocracy type NPC's that I wanted to have actual class levels but not cast spells or have the ability to sneak attack. Essentially what I'm going for is a social Rogue type class and believe me, I'd make a homebrewed archetype but, the issue is, if you get rid of Sneak Attack, Trap Finding, Trap Sense, Evasion, and Uncanny Dodge, you don't really have a Rogue anymore.

What I'm trying to build is a social type class that could also help out some in combat if the PC wanted it to be able to. There was a Courtier base class in the Oriental Adventures version of 3.0 that got things but unfortunately I don't own the book and the only thing that I know it gets is leadership for free at some point.

Due to some books I've been reading, my love of L5R, some of recent characters I've played (a Dhampir Rogue (Charlatan), a Gnome Enchanter, and a Half-Elf Bard), and a very social/city based game I plan on running at some point, I've been considering making a homebrewed Courtier base class. Essentially the idea would be something along the lines of the Aristocrat NPC class made into something a PC could play. I realize this can essentially be done with a variety of other classes (see my previous statement about characters I've recently played) but I'm looking to make something different. I don't want this to be a spellcaster and though sneak attack is fitting for certain notable courtiers I'm looking for something else.

Now the basic idea I have so far is a class with a 3/4ths BAB progression, a d8 hit die, poor fort. and ref. saves and a good will save. As for class skills, I was thinking Appraise, Bluff, Craft, Diplomacy, Disguise, Handle Animal, Intimidate, Knowledge (either all of them or just Local and Nobility), Linguistics, Perception, Perform, Profession, Ride, Sense Motive, Sleight of Hand, Stealth, and Use Magic Device. Those are debateable but with a quick run through of all the skills (and looking over the Aristocrat) that's what I came up with. Lastly, they would likely have either 6 + Int mod. or 8 + Int mod. skill ranks per level.

EDIT: I should probably also mention I was thinking they could be of any alignment and would likely have the same proficiencies as a Bard, though that is also debateable.

Then as far as abilities go they'd likely get various things to help with social skills (such as the ability to increase the attitude of someone by 3 steps with a diplomacy check instead of 2 steps, free leadership at 7th level, etc.). Maybe something akin to Rogue Talents/Ninja Tricks/Alchemist Discoveries every even level.

My main issue is coming up with a notable ability such as Bardic Music, Sneak Attack, Smite Evil, Challenge, Judgement, Bombs, etc. as all of the abilities I can come up with could easily just be made into Rogue Talents. If anyone has any ideas I'd greatly appreciate it.

So I believe I've seen the answer to this in the CRB before but I can't seem to find it. Anyway, I'm about to play in a game and my character has Combat Expertise, Improved Trip, and Improved Disarm and I was wondering if feats that affect your attack roll (such as Combat Experise) affect your CMB when you use them.

For instance, if I use Combat Expertise and I'm taking a -1 on attack rolls for a +1 to my AC, do I also take a -1 to my CMB?

So I'm about to start running an "evil" Pathfinder Campaign in a homebrewed setting in which the PC's are going to start in prison. All of them have been sentenced to death and are essentially on death row in an Alcatraz styled prison. After a short introduction and maybe some roleplay the PC's are going to be brought before some high ranking official in the government of the country they were imprisoned by. Now, not to give too much away (in case one of my PC's stumble across this randomly), but the "government official" is going to be a Phistophilus (aka Contract Devil) however, I'm making a few minor changes for aesthetic purposes and "flavor." The first is that the devil's infernal contract ability will be made with a handshake that will leave a mark similar to greater brand rather than a written contract, other than that, the ability is essentially unchanged.

The change I wanted some assistance on though is that I want the devil to be able to use alter self (without modifying it's ability scores) to take the form of a humanoid at will. It would be similar to what the Kitsune have only it wouldn't have to be the same form each time. What I'm wondering is, should I get rid of one or more of it's other spell like abilities to compensate? If so, which one(s)? If not, should I raise the devil's CR?

EDIT: I should probably also mentioln that this devil won't be used as an encounter in the first session but will likely be in an encounter at some point.

I was really wondering about the time limit's on it. It says you make a Bluff check and then it takes a week to propagate throughout the town so I wasn't sure if that meant that only the Bluff check would take 20 times as long or the whole ordeal would. My has already said you could just make a Diplomacy check and if they became friendly to just use this ability so I could possibly use it on a whole town. However, I think I might just go with a Fetchling as I already have the character built and the Natural Charmer feat would only help me in certain situations and I imagine I'll be using Bluff on people with at least indifferent attitudes towards me a lot more than people with friendly attitudes (although Diplomacy could still fix that).

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So, I'm about to start playing in a game as a Rogue (Charlatan) and I was originally going to play a Fetchling but after seeing some things in the ARG I'm considering changing to a Dhampir because of the Natural Charmer feat and the ability to get rid of Light Sensitivity. My character is more social oriented than anything else as I will be a character that comes and goes in the campaign and I'm a Courtier of a Major House in the country. Anyway, what I'm wondering is, can Natural Charmer be used when I use the Rumormonger Rogue Talent? If so, does this make the Bluff check take twenty times as long does it take 20 times as long to spread the rumor?

One option you might consider if you want Sneak Attack on your full-attacks (if Ultimate Combat is available in your game) is a one-level dip in Maneuver Master Monk. You can take Improved Dirty Trick as a bonus feat without prereqs (yay!) and more importantly, can tack it onto your full-attack routine for free. (For anyone but a Maneuver Master, performing a Dirty Trick is always a standard action.) Start your attack routine with said maneuver, and if it succeeds, you blind them. Your remaining attack(s) will then get Sneak Attack.

It's tricky, though: the extra hit to BAB hurts, and if you're going Finesse in order to compensate, you have to take both Weapon Finesse AND Agile Maneuvers, because Dirty Trick isn't a weapon-based maneuver and therefore won't benefit from Weapon Finesse (barring a little GM charity, of course).

It's a heavy investment and comes with some drawbacks, but I thought I'd toss it out there for you just in case. :)

I am finesse-ing but I don't really feel like I need to full round sneak attack each round. I can move into flanking for things like that, I really just took Improved Feint because my character is literally based around Bluff and I figured it would save me from having to sneak up on people or move into flanking for sneak attack otherwise. I've only got one attack right now as it is, I was just looking into feats for the future. I'll probably be taking Extra Rogue Talent a lot.

That's what I'd thought. Thank you. I still may take it to help out the party but, it's more likely I won't take it at the first opportunity I could and wait until I have other feats taken care of first (especially considering my character is slightly more social based than combat focused).

So, I'm about to start playing a Charlatan Rogue and plan on taking Improved Feint to sneak attack more often in combat and my brother suggested that I take Greater Feint when I get the chance so I can deal sneak attack damage when I full attack. Well, I read Greater Feint and was wondering if there was an errata to it or if my brother misread it. Greater Feint says "Whenever you use feint to cause an opponent to lose his Dexterity bonus, he loses that bonus until the beginning of your next turn, in addition to losing his Dexterity bonus against your next attack."

From that I gather that it helps you sneak attack with attacks of opportunity from that enemy (at least I think so) and that the enemy loses his Dexterity bonus against your allies? I think my brother assumed that the enemy lost their Dexterity bonus until the end of your next turn, so you could feint, deal sneak attack with one attack, wait for your turn, then full attack and deal sneak attack damage. However, with the way it's worded, I assume you cannot do that.

For the droid, why not use the Advanced Race Guide as an example and let players create their own unique character?

I don't have the Advanced Race Guide.

This is also what I have as sort of the "droid" or robot race, I haven't come up with a name yet though so I'm going to use Robot for my description.

Construct (Living Construct)

+2 to any one ability score: Robots gain a +2 bonus to one ability score chosen at creation to represent their varied nature.

Small, Medium, or Large: Unlike most races, Robots are created by talented craftsmen and must therefore choose a size category at character creation. A small Robot gains a -2 Strength and +2 Dexterity (in addition to it's +2 to any one ability score) as well as a +1 size bonus to their AC, a +1 size bonus on attack rolls, a -1 penalty to their Combat Maneuver Bonus and Combat Maneuver Defense, and a +4 bonus on Stealth checks. A Medium Robot has no bonuses or penalties due to it's size. A large Robot gains a +2 Strength and -2 Dexterity (in addition to it's +2 to any one ability score) as well as a -1 penalty to their AC, a -1 penalty on attack rolls, a +1 size bonus to their Combat Maneuver Bonus and Combat Maneuver Defense, and a -4 penalty on Stealth checks. Finally, a Robot may not have more than a +2 bonus to any one ability score but may use their +2 to any one ability score to cancel out a penalty gained through their size.

Slow and Steady: Robots have a base speed of 20 feet, but their speed is never modified by armor or encumbrance.

Composite Plating: Robots come with a composite plating that functions as a chain shirt in all ways. This plating is not natural armor and does not stack with other effects that give an armor bonus (other than natural armor). This composite plating occupies the same space on the body as a suit of armor or a robe, and thus a robot cannot wear armor or magic robes. However, a Robot can be enchanted just as armor can be. The character must be present for the entire time it takes to enchant him. A Robot may improve it's composite plating by going to a craftsmen and paying the cost of a different type of armor to have plating that functions as that armor applied. This takes an hour per 100gp in the price during which the Robot must be present.

Light Fortification: Robots receive a +4 to their AC against critical hit confirmation rolls.

Living Construct: If you haven't figured it out yet I've pretty much just modified Warforged sleightly, this functions the same way a Warforged does from 3.5.

Natural Attack: Robots possess a natural slam attack that deals 1d3 points of damage plus strength modifier on a successful hit if small, 1d4 plus strength modifier on a successful hit if medium, and 1d6 plus strength modifier on a successful hit if large.

So I'm about to start running a Pathfinder-ized version of the Star Wars RPG but came up with an entirely different setting in the process (that will likely be used in future campaigns). The idea is a Sci-Fi game run with the Pathfinder classes. What I have so far is that Advanced Firearms would be readily available, Knowledge (planes) would function as knowledge of outer space and things in relations to planets that the other knowledges could not cover as well as it's identification of outsiders, and outsiders would mostly live in outer space (likely in some supernatural occuring area associated with their alignment) and gain the ability to survive in vacuum.

What I'm wondering is if anyone has expanded on the advanced firearms for more modern weapons? I'm assuming all I'd really need to change is the amount of ammunition the weapon can carry and perhaps give some of the automatic weapons the ability to fire multiple rounds with a -2 penalty (in addition to rapid shot). I was also thinking about making a feat that allowed a Disable Device check to be made against a construct in order to cause damage or a malfunction. If anyone could give some insight on those I'd appreciate it. Thanks.

The only argument I could see to the contrary would be that it specifies "when a charlatan successfully deceives a creature with Bluff". This might mean that it was meant for the specific application of Bluff as used to deceive.... But the argument could easily be made that successfully feinting IS successfully deceiving.

I was thinking the same thing actually. I'll probably end up just asking the DM for the game as it's not PFS and he has the final say anyway.

So I'm about to start playing in a game as a Rogue (Charlatan) and I'm planning on taking Improved Feint in order to sneak attack more often. The real reason I'm playing the Charlatan was for it's 3rd level ability (which is the Rumormonger Advanced Rogue Talent) but my question is about their first level ability: Natural Born Liar. The ability states "At first level, when a charlatan successfully deceives a creature with a Bluff, that creature takes a -2 penalty on the charlatan's Bluff checks for the next 24 hours." I'm assuming the -2 penalty on the charlatan's Bluff checks means that they take a -2 on their Sense Motive checks to know if I'm Bluffing. The question I had however was, when I successfully Feint in combat, do they take a -2 on my other Bluff checks (including additional Feints) for 24 hours?

So... you think a prestige class that has full BAB, a scaling brutality damage bonus (+2 HP damage per/ 3 levels), and full sneak attack progression (1d6/ 2 levels) is 'sensible'?

It does it for bombs, which as you stated earlier, were just as powerful. Why wouldn't it be sensible to do it for sneak attack?

The relevant wording (IMO) is in the Multiclassing section of the rules:

Quote:

Note that there are a number of effects and prerequisites that rely on a character's level or Hit Dice. Such effects are always based on the total number of levels or Hit Dice a character possesses, not just those from one class. The exception to this is class abilities, most of which are based on the total number of class levels that a character possesses of that particular class.

That clears things up a little more. I didn't think I'd be getting a +8 to a skill from one level in a prestige class (let alone a +8 to three skills) but I thought I'd ask because of the large difference in +8 and +1.

In your example, your class level for Master Spy abilities would be 1. Your character level is 8.

I was thinking it needed to say "master spy levels" for that to be the case. After looking at other things on the SRD though I'm not sure. The Bard's "Bardic Knowledge" says "class level," the Inquisitor's "Stern Gaze" says "inquisitor levels", the Ranger and Inquisitor's "Track" says "class levels," and the Assassin's "Hidden Weapons" says "assassin levels."

So, I've been considering playing a Master Spy for a little while now and I was working on the character a little earlier when I came across the Master Spy's ability "Art of Deception." Now, unfortunately I'm not at my house at the moment so I'm using the SRD and I can't double check but the SRD says "a master spy adds her class level to all Bluff, Disguise, and Sense Motive checks." So what I'm wondering is, is this true? Is it my total class level, which at Rogue 7/Master Spy 1 would be 8, or is it my Master Spy levels, which would only be 1 in the former situation.

Does anyone have a good idea for a feat tree if I were to play the Archaeologist? I considered using a whip to kind of help control the battlefield but I'd need a decent strength and the highest I'm going to get is probably a 14.

So as of now, this is what I've come up with (if I play a Rogue).

Fetchling Rogue (Charlatan)
Str: 14
Dex: 16 (14+2)
Con: 10
Int: 18
Wis: 12 (14-2)
Cha: 17 (15+2)

I'm still a little iffy about the 10 Con, I may switch it with Str and just rely on sneak attack for most of my damage. As far as feats go I'm thinking of doing the Feint Tree and Weapon Finesse as far as combat goes and then using other feats more for social situations. I may work my way into the Master Spy class as well in which case I'd take Deceitful and Iron Will somewhere along the line (possibly the Betrayer feat and Underhand talent as well to insure I could dish out a lot of damage in threatening situations).

Skills - Acrobatics, Bluff, Diplomacy, Disable Device, Disguise, Knowledge (local), Linguistics, Perception, Sense Motive, Sleight of Hand, Stealth, Use Magic Device, and I'll use my favored class bonus Craft/Profession (still not sure which type) at first level and maybe Climb or various Knowledge skills afterwards if I don't have to continue putting ranks into it.

I imagine if I go Bard that I'm just going to stick to the standard Bard and possibly just use the same ability score set up as I did for the Rogue. My skill points would diminish a little but I could make up for a lot of it with Versatile Performance, probably using Oratory for my first set. I may also see if I can replace the mandatory Craft/Profession with Perform if I decide to go with a Bard. The lack of Diplomacy at first level is slightly upsetting but first level is always slightly upsetting in my opinion.

Almost definitely a Tiefling (either Pit-spawn, Spite-spawn, Shacklborn, or Beastbrood), though Spite-Spawn (Div-spawn Tiefling) is most appropriate given the skills (Diplomacy and Linguistics) and SLA (Misdirection). But the biggest reason I suggest a Tiefling is that it would let you give him BLACK skin, not Negroid, not Walnut Brown, but black skin. I'd go with the Rogue (Charlatan) personally, and the skill Profession (barrister) to account for the Marquis' knowledge of contracts and the trading of favours.

I realize that this is outside of the realm of possibilty, based on the initial post, however as the Tiefling bloodlines are out of Blood of Fiends from the Pathfinder Companion line and not from the 7 books you listed. Still it might be worth it to ask your DM, JIC as this character sounds like a really cool concept, but in order tyo really do it up proper, you need to get out of the box you've been put in, if only slightly.

Unfortunately I am bound to the books I listed. However, the Fetchling can have black skin (the description says "their flesh has no color - it is either stark white, midnight black, or a shade of gray). So I could very well take care of that as a Fetchling. I'm honestly trying to capture more of the personality and abilities of the Marquis though, not necessarily the look (although I wouldn't mind doing that if it happened). As of now I'm sort of leaning towards the Elf if I play a Rogue and then I'm leaning towards the Fetchling if I play the Bard but I'm a bit indecisive still.

Honestly the Rogue and Bard are mainly what I was looking at as I see his somewhat magical abilities as magic items mostly (although I definitely know what you mean) and I can work on obtaining favors as the game progresses through various means. The Charlatan would be exceptionally useful at doing that as well as I could start a rumor about a person and then just as easily start a rumor that the rumor I started was a rumor started by someone else in order to obtain some sort of favor :P

The reason I'd thought about playing an Elf though was actually for the purpose of taking Breadth of Experience as a Rogue without having to be a middle aged Gnome, which would help me to explain his various knowledge of things. That way I'd be netting about a +9 when I had a rank in a Knowledge skill as the Elf Rogue. The Fetchling would however give him a more London Below feel though. Lastly, I suppose I should mention that I'm kind of trying to establish this character as an Information Broker as the game progresses, possibly eventually opening a shop based on his craft or profession skill as a front for selling information.

So, I'm about to begin playing in a game in which I was originally going to play an Enchanter but we have a Witch in our party and I'm having second thoughts on that character now. So, I've decided to go ahead and make another character similar to that of The Marquis de Carabas from Neverwhere and also sort of throwing in some elements from other "trickster" type characters that were influencing my Enchanter (such as Johnathan Strange from Johnathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, Howl from Howl's Moving Castle, and even Mr. Croup from Neverwhere as well).

Anyway, the main issue I'm having is picking a class for this character. The only other characters I know that will be in the party are a Witch and a Gunslinger. My initial thoughts are a Rogue (Charlatan) making it's way into a Master Spy or a Bard of some sort (knowledge being very important to the character). I've considered the Archaeologist Bard and various other ideas. Any thoughts?

As far as ability scores go I rolled the following: 10, 14, 14, 14, 15, 18 and I can place them anywhere. As for a race I was looking at an Elf, Gnome, or Fetchling although I'm open to other suggestions. Finally, I should probably mention that we're limited to the Core Rulebook, the Advanced Players Guide, Ultimate Magic, Ultimate Combat, and Beastiary 1-3. Anyway, thanks in advanced.

EDIT: I should probably also mention that we are starting at first level and we have to commit one skill point to either a Craft or Profession skill (at least at first level) as sort of a background concept.

I'd also say drop abjuration. Someone else should be able to cover the resist energy, and you'll be hurting in CL and spell slots to be the party dispeller.

I was thinking Abjuration. It has some useful spells but as you said, someone else can cover the resist energy (we have a Witch in the party) and I can always prepare a spell and take up two spell slots if I need something the only Abjuration spell I imagine I'll use some what often is Explosive Runes but that can be prepared as an off day spell seeing as how that would be more of something my character would do to political/social adversaries.

Realized I need a little more advice on the Trickster. As I am playing an Enchanter, what are good choices for my opposition schools? I was thinking Evocation for one but I honestly don't know what I should choose for the second school. I had originally considered Necromancy but being an Arcane Trickster, I might need some more spells with attack rolls so I'm not sure if that's a good choice now.

Ok, I pretty much figured it out based on the responses I've seen. I was just wondering about how the sneak attack worked with spells. Essentially what I've gathered is that I need to make some sort of attack roll with the spell against an enemy denied it's dex to deal sneak attack damage, unless I've got surprise spells.

Honestly, my character isn't going to be the scorching ray build (evocation is actually one of my opposition schools). The real reason I decided to go into the Trickster was because my character is acting as the parties face and I was originally just going to play a straight Enchanter but I decided I wanted to dip into the Charlatan Rogue variant to get Grand Hoax and then I figured the Arcane Trickster would be a nice choice because I get more skill points (something I enjoy) and some other nifty abilities. It also helps my character out when we run into things at higher levels that are immune to mind affecting-effects by allowing me to hit them with spells and deal sneak attack damage (sometimes anyway).

This is probably answered somewhere but I can't seem to be able to find the answer in the CRB. Anyway, I'm about to start playing in a game as a Wizard/Rogue making his way into the Arcane Trickster prestige class and the Surprise Spells ability got me thinking. Before I get that ability am I able to sneak attack with spells? I thought I was able to with spells that only targeted one creature but now I'm beginning to wonder. Thanks in advanced.

Yeah... surprise rounds aren't that common honestly. Also the AT has a pretty poor BAB and isn't likely to really focus on weapons... you are almost always better off with attacking with a spell.

Finally you are talking about 2 talents and 3 feats for a situation that *might* come up once a day. That's a really heavy investment for a very iffy pay out.

That's why I'm not playing it, I see it as more of something I'd use as an NPC when I was DMing. It's also probably better as just a Rogue with a level dip of Diviner for the "I always act in the surprise round" feature. The scary part about it is when you use Betrayer to initiate the surprise round and get two sneak attacks off that deal maximum damage. I've considered playing the Rogue part in my friends Pathfinder-ized Oriental Adventures games and surprise Iaijutsu-ing people in half that make my sociopath Scorpion Clan character upset.

As long as you end up with a rank in the skill and its a class skill for one of your classes you'll get the class bonus.

That's what I'd thought but I just wanted to be sure. I think I'm going to start off with a level of Wizard and then take a level of Rogue and just kind of play it by ear after that until I can get into the Trickster.

On another note, I won't be playing this but I discovered a pretty scary build for the Arcane Trickster last night while looking at my options. A Wizard (Diviner) 3/Rogue (Bandit) 4/Arcane Trickster and then you take the Underhand talent and the talent that treats all enemies as flat-footed in the surprise round. Then you take Deceitful, Quick Draw, and Betrayer for your fears. Essentially you can always act in the surprise round and you'll always be able to deal max sneak attack damage to anyone you attack with a concealed weapon in said surprise round. Stacking Knife Master makes the hits more deadly as well. However, my character is going more for the talkative side of things and is a Enchanter/Charlatan.