Goblin Squad Member. RPG Superstar 2013 Marathon Voter. Pathfinder Adventure Path, Battles Case Subscriber. Pathfinder Society Member. 122 posts (123 including aliases). No reviews. No lists. No wishlists. 2 Pathfinder Society characters.
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Couple of updates.
The first, "Benchmarking Your PCs?", by Jeremy talks about comparing the relative power levels of the PCs at your table with where the game expects them to be.
The second, "Measured Response," by Anthony discusses how to be a better optimizer at your table.
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kmal2t wrote:
I would normally bawk at blogs, but there is some decent content in there for people to read over. Feel free to post in this thread occasionally about updates. I'll look through em at least.
Thanks!
If you don't mind, what kind of things do you typically NOT like in blogs? And what would you want to see more of?
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Thanks!
Will look into a new color template. At the moment we're just using a prearranged template from blogger. I'll see what I can do to customize it so it's easier on the eyes.
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Hey all,
I've been a longtime lurker on these boards. It's only been in the last year or so that I've become more active and joined in the conversation. But the overall sense of community that these forums has fostered makes me want to do what I can to give back.
I'd like to introduce Kill It With Dice, a pen and paper RPG blog authored by myself and a couple of friends from my local gaming group. We're fairly system agnostic right now but have a pretty strong background in Pathfinder/3.5 D&D which I think fits in pretty well around here.
We're trying to publish content about twice a week and so far we've been doing pretty well. If there are any particular topics you'd like to see discussed please feel free to suggest them. We're absolutely open to ideas, especially in these early days of figuring out what exactly it is we're trying to do and say.
You can check us out at Kill It With Dice or like us on Facebook. Comments, feedback, or other thoughts would be very much appreciated.
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Dear James Jacobs,
If someone asked you to design a "Technic" Bloodline for Sorcerers geared towards either Androids or members of the Technic League, what are some design options you would consider?
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Hi James,
How do Androids get named in Golarion? the ARG seems to indicate that Androids crawl from the wreckage and ruins all across Numeria. So I'm guessing there's not a whole lot in the way of Android group identity or collective culture. So what goes into Android naming conventions?
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Hi James!
Our group is planning on starting Shattered Star soon. One of our players is interested in playing a Paladin but is unsure how he would fit in with the AP's theme. Without getting into spoilers, could you recommend a good deity or patron for him that would help give his character some motivation?
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I've suddenly found myself in the financial position to afford some really fancy scotch. I've had my eye on a 30 year Talisker for some time now and am currently leaning towards that.
I hear tell that you are a connoisseur of said spirit. What would you recommend?
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Shalafi2412 wrote:
Why be a divine hunter?
Divine Hunter is basically trading out Heavy Armor Proficiency (which I will not be able to use later in the game) for Precise Shot (a feat that benefits me immediately as it'll allow me to target things in melee with my allies without the penalty).
Yeah, I figure the early levels will be hardest. Reach weapon isn't something that I thought of. I'll look into it. Thanks all.
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Hey all,
A friend of mine is starting Shattered Star in a month or so. I'm looking to to bring a Dragon Disciple to the table. I've never played this prestige class before and on paper, the build feels underpowered compared to the last few PCs I've made.
I'm curious about what people think of well my build will hold up.
Spoiler:
the Exile
Aasimar (Angelkin) Paladin/Sorcerer/Dragon Disciple
Comments:
the Exile is designed to be a viable switch-hitter who excels at adapting to enemies' tactics. Against powerful melee opponents, he can maintain mobility and ranged superiority. He can also move in close to disrupt spellcasters and archers when the need arises. Powerful combat tricks include Snowball (10d6+10 cold damage as a 1st level ranged touch spell [Bloodline Arcana + Intensify Spell]) and 1d6+Str Claws for up to 12 rounds/day as a free action.
Pros:
Decent melee combatant. Powerful direct-damage spells. Able to self-buff. Decent saves (thanks to Divine Grace) and Resistances to energy. Eventually will have a net +7 to Natural Armor, +10 Str, +2 Con, and +2 Int.
Cons:
Typical shortcomings of a hybrid character. Slow spell progression and will only ever get access to 6th level magic. Doesn't innately have the AC/hp to frontline with dedicated martial types.
I'm not looking for spoilers, just a "you'll do fine" or a "have you considered this [option]?"
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Hi James,
Based on your advice I'm going to try to stat up Razmir so that I can feature him as the end boss of a homebrew I'm writing up. I'm hoping you can help.
1) You said he's a 19th Level Wizard. Is he a Universalist?
2) Are there any types of spells you think he would favor over another?
3) Inner Sea Magic says he's Taldan, I assume that means he's human. How old is he? Using age categories, middle-aged, old, or venerable?
4) Do you suppose he'd have any deep plots or is he just living it up hedonism style in Thronestep?
Empower Spell (Metamagic)
You can increase the power of your spells, causing them to deal more damage.
Benefit: All variable, numeric effects of an empowered spell are increased by half including bonuses to those dice rolls.
Saving throws and opposed rolls are not affected, nor are spells without random variables.
Level Increase: +2 (an empowered spell uses up a spell slot two levels higher than the spell's actual level.)
If so then the +50% bonus would apply to the Cleric's level as well.
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Albatoonoe wrote:
Azaelas Fayth wrote:
Estoc: Rapier.
Jian: Longsword.
Flamberge: Greatsword.
Estocs are much bigger than rapiers, jians are much smaller than longswords, and the flamberge has some rather unique properties (though I'll be honest, I don't know how I would translate that into the game).
We have more than a few polearms that are about as similar to each other as those weapons. Why can't we have these swords?
Spoiler:
So an Estoc is a longsword that does piercing damage, a Jian is a short sword that does slashing damage, and a Flamberge is a greatsword that has the Jarring property. The changes are easy enough that you can homebrew them if reskinning them is too much of a problem (which I think was that point Azaelas Fayth was trying to make). If you or your group are geeking hard enough after more accurate mundane arms/armor I would think you would have a blast homebrewing them up for your games.
Sorry for derailing the thread.
Dear Mr. Jacobs,
In my previous post, you missed "3) Would the PCs tangle with Razmir himself or just his agents?"
Or was that an artful dodge designed to sidestep the fact that Razmir might be a Mythic character and stat-ing him up implies that he can, in fact, be killed?
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Hi James!
Some questions relating to Razmir:
1) In the Campaign Setting supplements, it's made pretty explicit that Razmir is a false god. But what is the general opinion in Golarion? Do most people believe he's a crazy deity or do they think he's just a powerful wizard?
2) If you were to outline an adventure focused around players interfering with Razmir acquiring the Sun Orchid Elixer, for what level PCs would you want it to be?
3) Would the PCs tangle with Razmir himself or just his agents?
4) Where would it be set? Thuvia? Razmiran? Somewhere between?
Look up CR's you're likely to face. For APL 12 you're looking at anything from CR 10 - 15 I'm guessing. Compare your numbers with the table's numbers.
If you're going to do any amount of serious Arching, you're going to want to get Manyshot. I'm pretty sure that's the capstone Feat. Deadly Aim and Improved Precise Shot at higher levels are also pretty gravy.
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Dual Talent ISN'T something that takes up a "trait slot."
Normally as a Human you get +2 to any one ability score, +1 Skill Point per level, and a Bonus Feat. Just for being Human. You can choose to give up both of these benefits for Dual Talent, which is +2 in any TWO ability scores.
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Alternatively, consider the Dual Talent racial trait.
Quote:
Dual Talent - Some humans are uniquely skilled at maximizing their natural gifts. These humans pick two ability scores and gain a +2 racial bonus in each of those scores. This racial trait replaces the +2 bonus to any one ability score, the bonus feat, and the skilled traits.
So it's basically swapping out your bonus feat as a human for an extra +2 to another score. If you put the extra bonus in Int, it mitigates the loss of the bonus skill point per level from Dual Talent.
Additional Traits is also good. I mentioned it up there in my wall of text. Since you're not wearing armor as a Kensai, getting caught off guard or losing Initiative is the worst. The Defensive Strategist trait helps with this issue. For the second trait you could choose something that might help your ability to interact socially. Something that gives you bonuses or makes it a class skill to a social skill like Bluff of Diplomacy.
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It took my group several (three if I recall correctly) tries to get to level 2 of the Thistletop, by then I'd judged that Nualia was well aware of their presence. I had her station a Yeth hound at the bottom of the stairs to warn her of the party's approach.
So by the time they got down to the bottom not only did Nualia have all of her buffs up she was standing directly behind the trap. The PCs did what PCs do and the one with the highest initiative charged her, failing the perception check and triggering the trap.
Nualia laughs, the Yeth Hound bayes, and chaos ensues.
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Magical Lineage (Shocking Grasp) is usually the standard trait for Magus builds. It allows you to Intensify Shocking Grasp as a level 1 spell (10d6 electric damage at level 10). It's probably going to be your go to source of damage.
If you're still expecting to go Aldori Swordlord PrC you're going to need four feats to qualify: Exotic Weapon Proficiency (Aldori Dueling Sword), Weapon Focus (Aldori Dueling Sword), Weapon Finesse, and Dazzling Display. That pretty much takes care of ALL your feat choices up through level 5. (Bonus Human, 1, 3, and 5).
Picking up Intensify Spell at 7 is a solid option as it will make Shocking Grasp still useful. Also, consider Lunge as soon as your BAB hits +6. You'll never have to cast defensively again (unless fighting things with reach).
Honestly, my advice, take the Kensai archetype, ditch armor, and get EWP (Aldori Dueling Sword) and Weapon Focus (Aldori Dueling Sword) for FREE. This will give you them option of taking things like Power Attack or Arcane Strike that really help your DPR at low levels. The only major downside is -1 spell per level. But as a Magus, you're already a pretty focused spellcaster anyways.
Losing Spell Recall may LOOK like a big downside except when you realize that you already have the Bladebound archetype and have a tiny Arcane Pool anyways, which limits the effectiveness of Spell Recall. Just load up on Pearls of Power and you'll do fine.
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Dear James,
I asked Other James this and he referred me to you.
"Other than the ISWG, where could an interested party find more information on Hermea? Also, are there/can we expect any adventures set or related to Hermea?"
Barring more information, what did you find or use as inspiration for Hermea? The reason is that I want to roll up a character from Hermea and would like to keep it as close to potential canon as possible.
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Thoughts on Stats:
I think you should go
Str: 13
Dex: 16 (18)
Con: 12
Int: 15 (16)
Wis: 10
Cha: 8
Points in Str beyond 14 are a waste (IMO) because you're eventually going to get Dex to damage from the Aldori Swordlord PrC. Arcane Pool will help mitigate that until you get there. They only reason you'd want a Str 13 anyways is to qualify for Power Attack. You want your Int to be higher because that's really the only way you're getting more Arcane Pool points. Bladebound Magus gets only 1/3 level + Int instead of the normal 1/2 + Int.
You can also afford to have your Con a bit lower because 1) as a Magus you're getting good Fort saves anyways and 2) you won't be the main frontline tank so it shouldn't be necessary to have a ton of HP. Also since your Int is a bit higher you can use your favored class bonus as HP instead of Skill points if you really want. I actually think the best use of Favored Class for a Bladebound Magus is 1/4 Arcane Pool.
What Feats/Traits are you taking?
There isn't a feat that raises your CL that's Official Paizo. There is however this by Open Design.
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I'm currently running a Monk (Master of Many Styles/Hungry Ghost) 2 / Magus (Kensai/Bladebound) 5 in a friend's homebrew and it's working out wonderfully. I've posted the build in brief around the forums but I cna break it down again here.
The build, in brief, is Kensai with an early 2 level dip into Master of Many Styles. Take Crane Style and Crane Wing as your Monk bonus feats. Then Kensai the rest of the way.
The Build
Spoiler:
20 point buy w/ the Dual Talent Human alternate racial trait. Bonuses in Dex and Int.
Stats: Str 10, Dex 16 (18), Con 12, Int 14(16), Wis 14, Cha 8
Level 1: Magus (Kensai/Bladebound)
Level 2: Monk (Master of Many Styles/Hungry Ghost)
Level 3: Monk
Level 4+: Magus
Traits: Magical Lineage (Shocking Grasp), Sword Scion
Feats from build (and where you get them from):
Exotic Weapon Proficiency (Kensai)
Weapon Focus (Kensai)
Crane Style (Monk)
Crane Wing (Monk)
Punishing Kick (Monk)
Improved Unarmed Strike (Monk)
Recommended Feats:
Additional Traits - for Defensive Strategist and Reactionary
Intensify Spell
Dodge
Crane Riposte
Combat Expertise
Deflect Arrows
Recommended Equipment:
Agile Weapon
Belt of Dex
Headband of Int/Wis
Pearls of Power
How it works:
Spoiler:
Dex to AC is standard, your Dex is high. Awesome
Kensai archetype gives you Int to AC.
Monk levels give you Wis to AC.
Crane Style tree gives you bonuses to AC for Fighting Defensively.
Crane Wing gives you the ability to automatically parry one melee attack every round you Fight Defensively.
Main damage output comes from Shocking Grasp + Spell Combat/Spellstrike. With a few Pearls of Power this becomes spammable.
Pros & Cons:
Spoiler:
Pros:
-High AC without clanky armor. At level 6 I've reached 38 AC during a combat (with the help of some buffs from my allies. 10 + Dex(5) + Int(4) + Wis(3) + Mage Armor(4) + Shield(4) + Shield of Faith(2) + Fighting Defensively(4) + Barkskin (2).
-Ability to parry one melee attack that bypasses your AC every round.
-Spellcasting allows for more versatility than most martial classes.
-Spellcombat + Spell Strike allows for devastating burst damage in later levels (ye olde Intensified Shocking Grasp trick for 10d6 electric damage).
-High Saves. +3 to all saves for the level dip in monk. Your Ref and Will saves will be great too because of your abilities. Fort also scales well from your Magus levels.
Cons:
-You're reliant on buffs. Mage Armor you can provide for yourself. But Shield is tasty and can only be cast on you by other classes (invest in UMD and you can cast scrolls of it on yourself). Being buff dependent also means you can't fight all day the way a clank n' tank fighter can.
-Your Flat-Footed AC is 10. No seriously. Being able to prepare for a fight makes all the difference. I recommend taking the Defensive Strategist trait with this build.
-Your main DPR comes from Shocking Grasp. You've got almost nothing against something with Resist or Immunity to Electricity.
-You're going to want an weapon with the Agile quality or use a Scimitar with the Dervish Dancer feat. As a melee class with low Str, you're going to want some way add Dex to damage.
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I should also mention that since the build is a hybrid, not full caster, the DC of my spells will not be high enough to reliably get everything.
Aasimar (Angel Kin: +2 Str/Cha)
Scores are as follows:
Str 14 (16)
Dex 14
Con 10
Int 14
Wis 10
Cha 14 (16)
Which is why I initially leaned towards Snowball and Scorching Ray as they are direct damage that does not require my target to fail saves for full effect.
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Czrenobog wrote:
Memento Mortis wrote:
Yeah it was my interpretation. Thanks for pointing out the correction.
This changes quite a bit on my end as far as build goes. But I'm still wondering about optimal choices for Magical Lineage.
If you're looking for the extra damage you can go draconic/orc if you're group runs RAW. You'll end up immune to fear and with your elemental damage though you loose some other stuff, I only know this because I was hit with the change on my PFS character.
I'm guessing your looking at Spell Focus/Spell Specialization? If not, take a peak at those two when stacked up with your build.
Is your game going to be open ended, an AP, or something else? You might want to base your choice off of what level you'll be stopping at.
We'll be running Shattered Star. So I guess level 16 or 17? I'm not sure. I haven't read anything about the AP to avoid spoilers.
The character concept I have in mind is Sorcerer with a 2 level dip into Paladin and then transitioning over into the Dragon Disciple PrC.
I was looking into Elemental Focus instead of Spell Focus. I'm not sure I'm sold on Spell Specialization.
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GM Arkwright wrote:
I'd never heard of that Wildblooded fact, Atarlost.
By the way- look up the feat 'Metamagic Master'. It's wonderfully nearly-identical to Magical Lineage.
I too haven't heard that was the case. There are a few Sorcerer optimization guides that don't seem to agree with you, Atarlost. I'd be interested in seeing an official ruling one way or another. It was my impression that Wildblooded modified a particular Bloodline and Crossblooded allowed you to select any two Bloodlines (modified or unmodified) at the cost of -1 spell known per level and -2 Will save.
I'm aware of Metamagic Master (Wayang Spellhunter). But my other trait is spoken for - Hermean Paragon (+2 trait bonus to Initiative) for flavor reasons.
I'd like to keep the cold theme of the character intact if at all possible. The Rime Cold Arrow is a really clever idea.
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Hey All,
Currently brainstorming ideas for a blasty-sorcerer that will probably move into Dragon Disciple. I'm trying to figure out what would the best spell be for the Magical Lineage based on the following criteria:
The spells I'm weighing are currently Snowball and Scorching Ray (Cold b/c of Primal bloodline). Metamagic Feats I'm thinking about are Intensify Spell, Rime Spell, Silent Spell, Still Spell, and Disruptive Spell.
After Bloodline Arcana I figure the following:
Intensified Snowball - 10d6+20 Cold (55 damage average) to one target and Fort Save (usually pretty low DC) or Staggered for 1 round. Bypasses SR.
-or-
Rime Freezing [Scorching] Ray - 3x 4d6+8 (22 damage average per ray / 66 damage average total). Auto Entangle. Does not bypass SR.
Freezing Ray vs. Resist Cold takes a -15 point hit whereas Snowball is only -5. Snowball is a 1st level spell vs. Freezing Ray's 2nd level. But Freezing Ray is an auto debuff compared to Snowball's relatively low save.
Whelp. Is one definitely better than the other? Are there other spells I should be looking at?
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So...
I notice that the Skull & Shackles AP is very nautical themed. You know what else are nautical? Aboleth. Not many aboleth miniatures available on the market either.
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Huh... so the issue is as murky as I thought it was. Thanks for the thoughts.
The cleric in question ended up casting Order's Wrath from the scroll to save his party and get them out of a pretty tight spot. It was only after (an hour ago) that I remembered he was a CN cleric of a CG deity.
I decided to let this one time slide because of how epic the situation was. But in the future I'll probably require a UMD check if he wants to do things like that again, and then maybe a percentile roll to see if he earns Cayden Cailean's ire.
Any other input is welcome though, I'm curious to see if anyone else has opinions they'd like to throw into the mix.
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Hi everyone,
I apologize if this has been answered elsewhere, but I haven't been able to find mention of it.
Can a Cleric cast a spell via a divine scroll that directly opposes his alignment and that of his god? If he can, does it require a check (Caster Level/Spellcraft/UMD)?
For example:
In my game there is a Cleric (CN) of Caiden Caylian (CG). His party recently looted a Divine Scroll of Order's Wrath. Order's Wrath is technically on the Cleric's spell list, but there's this:
the PRD wrote:
Chaotic, Evil, Good, and Lawful Spells
A cleric can't cast spells of an alignment opposed to her own or her deity's (if she has one). Spells associated with particular alignments are indicated by the chaotic, evil, good, and lawful descriptors in their spell descriptions.
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I'm building a backstory for a character that involves the Hermean Project (is there a more official name?) and I had a question.
In the ISWG it's made pretty clear that Mengkare's design is pretty humanocentric; It's almost entirely human breeding stock with the occasional elf or two.
While I think it'd be obvious that someone born on the island with an Infernal or Abyssal heritage would be cast out almost immediately, how would Mengkare/Council of Enlightenment feel about someone born with Celestial blood (an Aasimar).
*For the sake of the example let us assume the this individual's parents passed the screening and their "Celestial-bloodedness" was missed.
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I'm building a backstory for a character that involves the Hermean Project (is there a more official name?) and I had a question.
In the ISWG it's made pretty clear that Mengkare's design is pretty humanocentric; It's almost entirely human breeding stock with the occasional elf or two.
While I think it'd be obvious that someone born on the island with an Infernal or Abyssal heritage would be cast out almost immediately, how would Mengkare/Council of Enlightenment feel about someone born with Celestial blood (an Aasimar).
*For the sake of the example let us assume the this individual's parents passed the screening and their "Celestial-bloodedness" was missed.
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Dear Mr. Sutter,
Sorry to hear about the head-cold, those are never fun. Hope you feel better soon.
Out of curiosity, how many Pathfinder Tales do you have scheduled in the pipeline at any given time? How do you determine where each individual novel is set? Is it entirely up to the author or do you have the final say?
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I do love me some Battles Previews. I always look forward to when the miniatures get blogged about. Thanks Eric!
Initial thoughts:
Pirate mooks: Cool. I'm assuming they'll be common and I'll get a bunch of them in a case. That's great. I like having a pile of different sculpts that all share a motif. Could easily double as a gang of landlubbering bandits. PC's always fight bandits.
Scrag: Awesome! Detail and colors look great. Dual-wielding cleavers is sweet. You can bet I'm writing up an encounter feature Scrags just because of this guy.
Skeletal Dragon: Cool. I agree that the pose looks great. Though I'm concerned that he'll be 1) top heavy and 2) easily detached from his base much like the blue dragon in the Shattered Star set. I think I'd be way more excited for this guy if I wasn't already getting Kaladrax, the Reborn from the Reaper Bones Kickstarter. But that's not Paizo's fault.
Overall I'd rate my enthusiasm for the upcoming set at a 5/10. I'm always excited to see new sculpts, but I'm not currently running nor do I have plans to run Skull and Shackles. I don't actually even own it. It's still early though and I expect there will be a number of other miniatures in the set that will wow me as much as the Scrag. Looking forward to the next Battles Preview
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James Jacobs wrote:
Ral' Yareth wrote:
James,
What would paladins of Sarenrae, Iomedae and Ragathiel think about prostitution (assuming it's locally legal)?
Could they, for example, lawfully hire a prostitute for themselves?
We've got paladin codes for Sarenrae and Iomedae out there, but not one for Ragathiel.
Paladins of Iomedae are expected to be temperate in their actions and moderate in behavior—they would not be into hiring prostitutes as a result.
Paladins of Sarenrae have no real strictures in their code that could be interpreted as "no prostitution." As long as it was legal and all that, they'd be fine with it.
A paladin of Ragathiel would focus on chivalry, among other things, and as such would, of the three you mention, likely be the one that's most anti-prostitution.
Where would I be able to find more information on paladin codes as per specific deities? I'm guessing Gods & Magic is the obvious supplement. Are there any others out there?
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Out of curiosity, if you were to roll up characters to play in each of the currently published Paizo Adventure Paths (up to and including Reign of Winter) what characters would you roll up?
