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I am playing a dwarf barbarian for PFS.

I'd invest in a reach weapon. The dwarf's 20 foot move speed can limit your ability to reach a bad guy, and attack in the same round, versus other characters with a 25 foot move speed. A reach weapon helps offset your limited movement.

Good point about reach weapons. Originally I was thinking dwarven war axe, but between the movement speed, potential heavy armor, and feats like swipe and whirlwind attack, a reach weapon may be the way to go. Guisarme and ranseur sound cool and d12 to d10 isn't a huge hit to damage

Here is a rough outline of a dwarven draconic barbarian I prepared earlier.

This build actually sounds really cool. I hadn't really considered sentinel but the dedication feat seems like a perfect addition to barbarian if you want heavy armor.

Thanks for sharing. There are so many new options so seeing a build laid out is really helpful.

Also, I'll definitely have a look at some of those guides. I was concerned I'd try to do something with the build that sounded cool but that ended up being very subpar

Oh also, I’m only the second person to make a character so the only other class I know we have in the party is an archer ranger

So my pathfinder group recently decided to make some 2e characters so we can maybe give the new system a go. I decided I’d like to see play a dwarf barbarian with dragon instinct but have run into a wall with where I want to go with the build.

Any thoughts? I’m pretty open to whatever suggestions you guys have. I’m pretty new to 2e and really just want to make sure I have an effective build that’s good at dealing damage and taking punishment.

My original ideas were to either use the fighter multi class archetype to combine things like combat grab and thrash and take advantage of combat maneuvers, or to go with dual weapon warrior. Those were just ideas though, so if you think of something better, I’m all for it.

I really would like to stick with dragon instinct though. I might be open to giant or animal if there were some really good reasons to switch but dragon has the most flavor in my opinion.

As always, thanks for the help

The deeper darkness spell should do the trick. The area might be a little small but as you’re the DM and this seems like an important plot point, making it large enough to cover the room seems perfectly reasonable. Another option is obscuring mist, though you’d have to increase the area of that too.

Yukongils suggestion is also excellent. Distract your players, or even throw them a red herring. Perhaps they do see something suspicious and when they inevitably realize they were wrong, the deed is already done. As long as the suspects are unaccounted for in the moments of the murder, it should work just as well.

I think the idea sounds really cool. Best of luck!

Hey all, my group and I have been running the Strange Aeons AP for a few weeks now and it's been pretty awesome. We're currently level 4 and our group consists of:

A halfing cleric focused on tanking and healing
A shadow oracle
A beast-bonded witch
A human barbarian

And myself, a CN human empiricist investigator.

I've really loved playing the character so far. Currently, he has a high strength and intelligence, uses a longspear when he isn't polymorphed, and is an excellent skill monkey. His feats and talents right now are:

Power Attack
Iron Will
Medium Armor Proficiency
Quick Study

The idea behind the character is that he was a former doctor with an illicit drug business on the side before ending up in Briarstone Asylum at the start of the campaign.

Anyway, there are a few things I'm thinking of doing with him and I'd to get some thoughts and feedback.

I think as I get more polymorph extracts, I'd like to focus more on natural attacks in combat. I have an amulet of mighty fists +1 and so far using bite/claw/claw as a Troglodyte using Alter Self has been really cool and pretty effective.

Next, I was thinking taking the feats Healers Hands and Signature Skill (Heal) (and maybe some traits like clockwork surgeon or friendless) to be able to actually put my high heal skill to use. We do have a cleric, but we routinely take enough damage that all of their spell slots are being spent healing. So, in addition to the feat chain being super flavorful for my character, I'm hoping it'll take some of the load off the cleric.

Finally, after finding what was basically a drug den in the AP, I did some research into other drugs in pathfinder and some, like Zerk and Oblivion, seem pretty useful. If I took master alchemist, I'd be able to craft them quickly in our downtime and use them to buff the party members, primarily the barbarian, who has a high fortitude save. Signature Skill and Healers Hands will let me heal the ability damage and treat disease will help if anyone fails an addiction save. Again, I think its super flavorful but could also be useful.

I know investigators don't have a lot of feats, but I think everything I really need will come from my extracts and talents (such as polymorph and mutagen), or from other class abilities (such as studied combat, which is a great scaling bonus).

Sorry for the long post. Thanks for sticking through it. I know its not necessarily an optimal build, but it seems useful enough to be fun and viable in our current campaign. What do you guys think?

For new players or new GMs I always suggest Mummy's Mask and I think running it on roll20 would be pretty easy. And Ancient Egpyt! ...

Thanks so much for the detailed response. I loved the overall idea of skulls and shackles but definitely agree with what you said about the slow start and tough enemies. I actually played one session of that with my experienced group (though with an inexperienced dm) and we ended up trying to mutiny right off. Didn’t go so well... I also don’t love the heavy ship combat in the second or third book.

Anyway, I hadn’t thought much about mummy’s mask but from the way you described, I’ll definitely look into it. Proactive and straightforward seem perfect for the new group. Plus, honestly, I’ve always enjoyed a good dungeon crawl and with the setup and the ambiance, I think everyone else will too.

In light of the pandemic, I decided I’d like to start a pathfinder campaign on roll20. I’ve had some experience DMing, with my last AP being rise of the runelords (which was fantastic). Anyway, my group is generally pretty inexperienced. Some have played a bit of DND 5th edition here and there and only one of the five has actually ever played pathfinder. I was wondering what APs you’d recommend? I’m leaning towards skulls and shackles and might modify the ship combat if need be. It seems like something this group would like but I’d love to hear some feedback.

The ones I can’t do (or more accurately would rather not do bc I’ve run them or played them) are:
Rise of the runelords
Hells Vengeance
Kingmaker
Giant Slayer

Thanks!

Yknow it occurs to me that the phantom thief archetype unchained rogue works pretty well for what you want, skill unlocks are pretty powerful for the social skills, phantom thief amounts to a 3/4 BAB fighter who can take combat feats, rogue talents (specifically minor and major magic unlimited times) or skill focus, they also get access to some of the vigilante social talents.

You get the unlocks early too, getting the 10 rank unlock at level 7, the 15 at 10, and the 20 at 14.

You can even be a reasonably wicked martial if you go for something like curve blade or branched spear. The Urogue lets you do 1.5 X dex with those. Build like a two hander fighter, splash rogue talents and spell like abilities liberally, stack dex/cha, profit.

I checked out the archetype and I actually love the look of it. I don't know about giving up sneak attack. If you can build like a fighter and still have the awesome skill checks thought that's pretty good. I'll have to give it some thought.

Reach weapon smoke user, Str or Dex based.

False Attacker (<-rogue talent) stealth vigilante to keep out of trouble and get full Hidden Strike.

Twisting Fear intimidate build.

Up Close and Personal/Snake Style build.

Concealed Strike Battle Poi feinting build.

Dirty Tricks.

Those are all great. I like the idea of feinting or dirty trick. Great ways to get hidden strike off on your own, albeit the reduced version. Thanks for the advice. Do you think the modifiers for dirty trick or feint could keep things viable at high level play? Mostly worried about dirty trick and my CMB

If it's super demon heavy, the Demon Slayer feat and Demon Hunter trait are excellent. Another thing to consider is the feat Big Game Hunter, which gives bonuses to hit and damage vs. large creatures (such as many demons, as well as a variety of other foes).

Superstitious barbarian is definitely a solid option, as is ranger.

Straight fighter could be viable too, and is my personal favorite. The advanced weapon/armor options have ones that let you shore up your saves and the Warrior Spirit advanced weapon training will let you give your sword the phase locking special ability, which will prevent any pesky teleportation. Pair that with Combat Reflexes and Pin Down and you've got great battlefield control. Maybe use a trip weapon too if you want. Other great options for warrior spirit include evil outsider bane, holy, or even just a higher enhancement bonus to help punch through DR.

+1 for cold iron.

Happy hunting!

Hey all. My group is currently gearing up to start Second Darkness. It’s a five person group and so far the only character I know we have for sure is a cleric, but I told the group I’d take the rogue-type role.
Anyway, I was wondering how viable a stalker vigilante would be in the AP and how I would go about making one.. I previously played one for time who utilized sap master and non lethal damage. He was killed due to bad rolls unfortunately. While he struggled in certain situations, he was a blast to play overall and I’d love to give the class another go, but this time with a more optimal build. The idea I have in my head is a confident and charming con artist who takes on more unsavory jobs by night and is reasonably capable in combat. What are your thoughts?
I’d prefer to play vigilante but am open to unchained rogue or even ninja as well if you think they would work better. Thanks for the input!

So my group and I have been playing Wrath of the Righteous for about a year now. We’re all 14th level and 6th tier, and the path will probably end us at level 20 and tier 6. My character is a fighter/champion/guardian, and the other three party members are an arcanist/archmage, paladin/marshal, and warpriest/hierophant.

My character is a twf power turtle with a longsword and heavy shield. He focuses on on locking his enemies in place (with the pin down feat), tanking their attacks, and then beating them to a pulp. I know tank builds aren’t typically viable because of their low damage output but with mythic tiers I’ve been able to stay one of the highest damage dealers in the party.

As we go up in level and tier I’ve been running out of ideas on what take for feats and ties and was hoping to get some advice on high level play vs mythic evil outsiders and other nastys. Also happy to take critiques on the build.

Current stats
LN Fighter 14/Champion, Guardian 6
Str 28
Con 20
Dex 17
Wis 14
Int 14
Cha 9

Feats (Can’t think of them all off the top of my head)
Pin Down
Combat Reflexes
Power Attack
Cut from the Air/Smash from the Air
Demon Hunter
TWF/Improved TWF
Improved Shield Bash
Shield Master
Shield Focus
Weapon Focus (Longsword and Shield)

Mythic Powers
Fleet Warrior
Adamantine Mind
Legendary Item (twice for spell casting, upgradable, and rejuvenation)
Parry Spell
Aerial Assault

Thanks for the help. This is my first forum post so I’m sorry if it isn’t great.

Forgot to add that I do have the shield slam feat and precision mythic power.

Also got asked about weapon training. I have weapon training 3 in heavy blades and also armed bravery, defensive weapon training, and warriors spirit (an extra I used a feat for) advanced weapon training options.

Sorry I can't post my full build. The quarantine means I haven't been able to retrieve my character sheet.

When you are 2 weapon fighting, and your off-hand weapon isn't light, like your Heavy Shield, you take a -4 on your atttack rolls for both weapons. Shield Master removes the penalty from the Shield, but not from the longsword. I recommend you switch to a light shield or 2 weapon fight with longsword and armor spikes.

Remember you need to take Shield Slam before you can take Shield Master. Shield Slam is worthwhile, though. To develop it, I'd take Greater Bull Rush and Paired Opportunist.

I'd work your build to wring more attacks out of it. How important is it that you use a longsword? You have 14 levels in Fighter, so I'm guessing you are pretty invested in your longsword and probably have a really fancy one. But I also don't see any Feats devoted to longsword, not so much as a Weapon Focus.

I going with the idea that you have Shield Slam, and you just forgot to put it down.

Your next level is 17. I recommend you make your next level a level in Core Monk. Make your Monk Bonus Feat Improved Grapple, and make your level 17 Feat Hamatula Strike. With Hamatula Strike, every time you hit someone with Piercing Weapon, you get a free Grapple, and if you are wearing Armor Spikes, every successful Grapple Attack lets you do Armor Spike Damage. I'd have you fighting with Morning Star and Armor Spikes or Morning Star and Light, Spiked Shield.

To develop Shield Slam is rather Feat intensive, though: how much longer will your campaign go on? You will need Improved and Greater bull rush, and then you will be giving your allies attacks of opportunity with each shield bash. If you take Paired Opportunist, you get attacks of opportunity, too. Paired Opportunist is a Teamwork Feat, but there is an Advanced Fighter Training that lets you use Teamwork Feats as if all your allies have all your Teamwork Feats. So some other good Teamwork Feats to get would be Coordinated Maneuvers for a +2 on all Combat Maneuvers and Harder they Fall for when you want to Bull Rush something Gargantuan or Colossal....

Ah, you're about shield master. I misunderstood. Switching to light shield shouldn't be a problem.

Actually, my next level is 15, so I have 6 more levels to play around with. It's a mythic campaign so I have 6 mythic tiers stacked onto my level.

The longsword is a legendary item that bonded with me after picking it up from a dead NPC during one of the first books, though I don't have many feats in it because my to hit has been pretty high. There is the transformative mythic and weapon special ability so turning the weapon into something different is viable though I'd have to retain my weapon training.

I do have shield slam, I'll add it to my original post. Paired opportunist is good idea. It would be another great way to control the battlefield and give the party some extra attacks. I'll definitely look into it. Thanks for the input!

So my group and I have been playing Wrath of the Righteous for about a year now. We’re all 14th level and 6th tier, and the path will probably end us at level 20 and tier 6. My character is a fighter/champion/guardian, and the other three party members are an arcanist/archmage, paladin/marshal, and warpriest/hierophant.

My character is a twf power turtle with a longsword and heavy shield. He focuses on on locking his enemies in place (with the pin down feat), tanking their attacks, and then beating them to a pulp. I know tank builds aren’t typically viable because of their low damage output but with mythic tiers I’ve been able to stay one of the highest damage dealers in the party.

As we go up in level and tier I’ve been running out of ideas on what take for feats and ties and was hoping to get some advice on high level play vs mythic evil outsiders and other nastys. Also happy to take critiques on the build.

Current stats
LN Fighter 14/Champion, Guardian 6
Str 28
Con 20
Dex 17
Wis 14
Int 14
Cha 9

Feats (Can’t think of them all off the top of my head)
Pin Down
Combat Reflexes
Power Attack
Cut from the Air/Smash from the Air
Demon Hunter
TWF/Improved TWF
Improved Shield Bash
Shield Master
Shield Focus
Weapon Focus (Longsword and Shield)

Mythic Powers
Fleet Warrior
Adamantine Mind
Legendary Item (twice for spell casting, upgradable, and rejuvenation)
Parry Spell
Aerial Assault

Thanks for the help. This is my first forum post so I’m sorry if it isn’t great.