Archaeologist’s Luck (Ex)


Rules Questions


Is this EITHER a attack, damage or skill check or is this ALL attacks, damage rolls and skill checks in a round?

"Fortune favors the archaeologist. As a swift action, an archaeologist can call on fortune’s favor, giving him a +1 luck bonus on attack rolls, saving throws, skill checks, and weapon damage rolls. He can use this ability for a number of rounds per day equal to 4 + his Charisma modifier. Maintaining this bonus is a free action, but it ends immediately if the archaeologist is killed, paralyzed, stunned, knocked unconscious, or otherwise prevented from taking a free action to maintain it each round. Archaeologist’s luck is treated as bardic performance for the purposes of feats, abilities, effects, and the like that affect bardic performance. Like bardic performance, it cannot be maintained at the same time as other performance abilities."

Grand Lodge

All attacks, damage rolls and skill checks, as long as he is maintaining this bonus.


Ok so if he gets iterative attacks it stacks damage and attack bonus?

Grand Lodge

redviiper wrote:

Ok so if he gets iterative attacks it stacks damage and attack bonus?

All attacks.

Each attack, is of course, a separate attack. So, there is no "stacking" issue.


Misused the word stack there. I meant having it applied to each roll. Thanks for the speedy response.

Grand Lodge

Fate's Favored is a great trait for Archaeologist Bards.


Yes, it is rather good. That is why it does not have its rounds scale like a normal bard's performance would. Unless you invest some resources, you are stuck with those 4+CHA rounds for your whole career.

Of course, since it works the same as performance for the purposes of feats and prerequisites, it is not that hard to get more rounds per day. Lingering performance basically triples your effective rounds (it makes performance effects last for 2 rounds after you finish, so just activate, turn it off, and enjoy 3 total rounds before you have to decide whether to waste more rounds). There is also a feat to give 6 more base rounds (which you could also triple with lingering performance).

Of course, even with all this, it is not that overpowered either. The bonuses to attack and damage are about the same as inspire courage. Although, since it is a luck bonus, you could easily benefit from inspire courage too...if there was another bard in the party to do it; still, the point is that it leaves you open to moral bonuses. And it keeps the bard fairly much on par with their current melee and ranged abilities. At best (With fate's favored added on), it is fairly close to rage...which brings their 3/4 BAB chassis up to 'acceptable'.

Mostly, this ability only changes a few things:
1. ability to use it as a swift action from level 1, rather than level 7
2. Improves saves to a rather large degree-trying to aim at them with reflex or will saves can be a bit difficult
3. Improves Skill checks (mostly a problem since they could maximize some knowledge skills early when combined with bardic knowledge).

And all this is traded in for the bard's role as the party buffer (well, at least when performances are concerned).

Grand Lodge

The Half-Orc's favored class bonus can help.

Also, the Sacred Tattoo alternate racial trait syncs well with the archetype.


Thought the Half-Orc's Sacred Tattoo was also a Luck bonus?


Matt2VK wrote:

Thought the Half-Orc's Sacred Tattoo was also a Luck bonus?

That's the point. You'll take Fate's favored trait so you keep +2 saves even without your luck. It helps ward off those attacks before you get luck up.


Then throw in the Allegro spell and it looks like you have a pretty good combat bard. At 4th level 2 attacks both at an effective 6 BAB.


Then just curious if the bard cast

virtuoso-performance

"While this spell is active, you may start a second bardic performance while maintaining another. Starting the second performance costs 2 rounds of bardic performance instead of 1. Maintaining both performances costs a total of 3 rounds of bardic performance for each round they are maintained. When this spell ends, one of the performances ends immediately (your choice)."

Would this allow you to double up on Archaeological luck?


redviiper wrote:

Then just curious if the bard cast

virtuoso-performance

"While this spell is active, you may start a second bardic performance while maintaining another. Starting the second performance costs 2 rounds of bardic performance instead of 1. Maintaining both performances costs a total of 3 rounds of bardic performance for each round they are maintained. When this spell ends, one of the performances ends immediately (your choice)."

Would this allow you to double up on Archaeological luck?

No, because both bonuses are "Luck" bonuses, and thus don't stack.

Lantern Lodge RPG Superstar 2015 Top 16

Lingering Performance is a must for Archaeologists due to the low number of rounds (unless your GM house rules it to scale appropriately like the standard bardic performance).

Liberty's Edge

Pathfinder Adventure Path, Rulebook, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

Good question. Absent an official ruling otherwise, I wouldn't let anyone do it at my table, particularly as the combination with the Lingering Performance feat (another good one for archaeobards) would make it kind of OP. Invoke luck as swift action, cast spell; burn three rounds of luck. Then drop them at the start of the next round, continue to get double luck benefits for the next two rounds.

ETA: That's right; it's Dodge bonuses that stack. For some reason I thought Luck bonuses did.


There goes my dream of a bard masquerading as a barbarian. lol


redviiper wrote:
There goes my dream of a bard masquerading as a barbarian. lol

The Skald's got you covered (coming in the Advanced Class Guide).


lemeres wrote:


Of course, even with all this, it is not that overpowered either. The bonuses to attack and damage are about the same as inspire courage. Although, since it is a luck bonus, you could easily benefit from inspire courage too...if there was another bard in the party to do it; still, the point is that it leaves you open to moral bonuses.

Regular inspire courage is a competence bonus to attack and damage rolls, so it stacks with moral bonuses


Half-elf's favored class bonus also gives an extra round per level.


Is there a way to make your luck bonus apply to another party member through a feat or trait ... I've been combing through them and have not see one

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