Calling all Cavaliers


Advice


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I'm interested in trying to create a Cavalier but I'm not sure what the best route is.
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If you're playing a Cavalier please can you post your build to give me some ideas?
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One other question - How much time does your character actually spend mounted?


Are you creating the character for Pathfinder Society?
For a home or game store game?

At level 1? 4? 10?

For an Adventure Path?

Help us to help you.

Shadow Lodge

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Answer to your question: once or twice a session, usually amounting to one charge attack before the rest of the group joins the battle. Until you start to meet huge enemies, meaning huge-sized constructed environs, like dungeons, taking the mount inside buildings is just not feasible, unless the mount in question is medium size.

As for my character:

Onispawn Samurai (no archetype, since the mount is too useful) 3

Statline: 17 12 14 12 14 10

Order of the Cockatrice

Feats so far: Intimidating Prowess, Dazzling Display(BF), Power Attack

Currently using a mwk full plate and wielding a katana two-handed.

Tentative picks for the next few levels:

4/ +1 Str, mounted archer, buying a magical katana
5/ Weapon Focus (katana), buying a belt of str +2
6/ Shatter Defenses(BF)
7/ Cornugon Smash (from Cheliax, Empire of Devils), buying circlet of persuasion

This allows my character, Vittorio d'Auseil(yes, it's a Lovecraft reference and no, I don't know why I did it) to use his first turn every combat doing a Dazzling Display, currently with a +14 total Intimidate bonus, and then whacking away with a +2 morale bonus to hit thanks to his Order ability.

Once he gets to melee range and the shaken effect wears off, it's possible to reapply the effect as a free action with Cornugon Smash. The feat allows you to Intimidate every time one uses Power Attack. Shatter Defenses makes subsequent hits against shaken enemies to hit against flat-footed ac, which means easy melee.

I plan to eventually take the Deadly Stroke feat, causing my standard actions to become rather interesting, Con bleed and everything. :D

The Exchange

I am playing a samurai in the jade regent AP he is 13levels awesome. (20 pt buy I think his base stats with the human bonus in str were 18, 14, 12, 8, 10, 14)

I have made some questionable feat choices but it boils down to power attack, curmongeon smash, improved critical, and iron will. I delayed shatter defences and have yet to use it (just leveled) due to doing so much damage with challenge and full attacks.

Order of the cockatrice is real good.

I have not been mounted much at all, but I also didn't put any feats into it and have left her behind on many occasions, due to the pcs over protiveness for her. Early on she was essentially an other PC with 3 attacks and high str.

Cons:
I sometimes wished I had more feats like a fighter but resolve is totally worth it. I am not sure the base cavalier is good enough to play since he lacks this ability. I also often forget my banner bonus.

Edit: mine is a lot like Muser's build /play style but I didn't follow the feat path as fast.

Sczarni

Hey there!

I play a Halfling cavalier in a RotRL campaign and absolutely love the character!

Being a small character on a medium sized mount, I remain mounted the majority of the time. In the beginning, I would frequently dismount in close quarters and fight alongside, rather flanking with, my mount, but realized that was a flawed strategy. I always use my lance while mounted, and have taken combat reflexes in order to maximize the number of AoOs I get while mounted...and if anything gets too close, my mount takes care of it.

This character has rolled stats, but I would suggest going high on Strength, with a decent amount of Charisma, as Handle Animal is based on that stat. I can however reccomend the feat progression that I have taken with both my PC and mount, which I am very pleased with.

On my mount, I have taken Power Attack, Improved Overrun and Charge Through. Which essentially allows you to overrun an opponent as a free as action as part of a charge. The really fantastic thing is that if you fail your check to overrun that enemy, your charge ends in front of them, complete with all of your bonuses to charge. So it's really a win win. If you succeed in your check, you knock your opponent prone, and are able to complete your charge on your intended target.

On Poppy, I took Mounted Combat, Ride by Attack, Spirited Charge and finally, Combat Reflexes. Ride by Attack is great for making sure you are able to charge the vast majority of the time, Spirited Charge doubles your damage on a charge (which, btw, you're already doing double damage while charging on your mount), and Combat Reflexes maximizes the number of AoOs I can get with my reach weapon.

I will say that as a small creature, my lance does pretty sad damage, unless I am charging, so I have done everything possible to make sure I am charging the majority of the time! I can't really speak to the utility of a medium sized Cavalier, but I imagine it would depend largely on the campaign setting.

Cheers! :)

Silver Crusade

I do not have my character sheet handy at the moment but I play a Cavalier in Society games. He is currently 6th level I believe, haven't gotten to play him in a while.

There have been entire scenarios where I was not able to utilize my mount. This did not make me ineffective.

Some of my most memorable encounters with the character have been while mounted.

-Breaking through the door of a church in the Puddles district that was overrun with bad guys and galloping down the center isle to lance one to death.

-Leaping my horse onto a long banquet table during a surprise round and subsequently charging the evil lady who sat at its head after beating her initiative... dead BBEG.

-The DM having my horse kick through the side of a burning warehouse building to create an exit so my companions and I could escape.

That all being said, yes you will have times where having your mount with you simply isn't feasible unless you go the small cavalier route and ride a dog or something. I do not see it as a problem really, for as I said earlier, not having my mount has never made my character ineffective.


Yeah, I enjoy playing alongside Lamontia's Halfling Cavalier in our GM's RotRL campaign. The carnage she causes allows my Elven Conjuration Wizard to take his time while dropping baddies into magic holes and then covering them with spiders, or greasing up the square they're on and making them dance uncontrollably.

How happy does this make my wizard?

Happier than a halfing cavalier in a dungeon with long hallways.


There is a Feat that avoids the penalties for squeezing (can't remember the name). I would have thought it would be in every build thus allowing for large sized mounts being used.


The character is for a home Game, 20pts, level 11.

Scarab Sages

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That's one Jigoku of a build there, Muser, I must say - but here's mine...

I give you Spenser Pellinore Quixote the Last, Marquis de Exupery, pride of Taldor!

Some important details not visible in that profile:

He has the Fey Foundling feat. His 3rd-level feat was Power Attack, (particularly good for those of us who favor big two-handed weapons) and he'll doubtless pursue Cleave soon enough.

I have not yet taken the Mounted Combat feat - it may seem like a no-brainer for Cavaliers, and it's certainly good, but it's not an absolute necessity - Mounts are almost as tough as you are, and in my experience, it won't usually be them the enemy targets, it will be you, the rider.

I didn't originally intend to give him such a high Dexterity, but 13 or higher was necessary for the Precise Strike teamwork feat for his 1st-level Tactician ability, which, well...look at that sucker, will you? You don't get many better options at 1st level.

I am saving up for a suit of mithral full plate - costs just over 10,000 gold, but it will allow his full Dexterity bonus and take a huge chunk out of his armor check penalty - which, combined with his Armor Expert trait, will make for full plate that allows almost as much freedom as a chain shirt.

Do I get to ride my mount all the time? No, but just as Tempestorm said, that did not stop me from being effective. The Tactician ability can be great, especially since it gives you something to do in a round you find yourself unable to attack. Even if I can't bring my mount into combat or a confined space, I've had him do things like sit on an enemy we chose to leave alive while we forged ahead and used him as an anchor for a rope so we could safely enter a cave. When I do get to ride him, of course, we are BAMF squared.

Humans, as they are wont to do, get a nifty Favored Class bonus should they choose to pursue it - +1/4 to the Banner bonus. Still being just level 3, I don't have the Banner yet, but when I do, it will be an even better Banner.

He is of the Order of the Tome (which you need Ultimate Combat for, which I initially picked because I wanted some shred of proficiency with magic. If nothing else, that means I can stock up on shield scrolls and enjoy a +4 shield bonus to AC while wielding my seriously BAMF-y greatsword, and I can use fly scrolls on my mount (thanks to adventures already embarked on while others were playing the 4th-level pre-gen Wizard, we have already discovered the joys of a flying camel). Also, hey - won't the enemy be surprised if the knight in shining armor suddenly tosses a fireball?

Yes, his Mount is a Camel - and not just any camel, a super-buff camel with a starting Strength of 20, thanks to my selecting the Eye for Talent alternate Human racial ability. Several necks has he snapped in his time with his 1d4+5 bite attack. Camels do not have as many attacks, quite as much Wisdom, or as much natural armor as Horses, but they are stronger and (strangely) nimbler, and no joke, they have their lovely Spit attack, a ranged touch attack that sickens the target for 1d4 rounds - and thanks to the goofy rules that distinguish Animal Companions from Bestiary animals, that's all there is to that, no onorous 1/hour limit or crummy DC 13 saving throw, when Spenser's Camel can't bite, he can dole out green slime like a Nickelodeon game show. Also? Being a camel and not a horse, goblins don't go berserk around him - without spoiling anything, I'll say this has its perks.

Not entirely sure how I plan to advance him beyond this point (beyond putting his future ability increases into Strength), but I think that's part of the fun.

Sczarni

I'm Hiding In Your Closet wrote:


I have not yet taken the Mounted Combat feat - it may seem like a no-brainer for Cavaliers, and it's certainly good, but it's not an absolute necessity - Mounts are almost as tough as you are, and in my experience, it won't usually be them the enemy targets, it will be you, the rider.

Mounted Combat is a bit of a feat tax, really in order to access some of the higher level charge feats, etc. Since I am on my mount the vast majority of the time, and small, charging is my bread and butter.


Beast Rider Gendarme, obviously. Ride a bull and just run over EVERYTHING.


This Feat

Silver Crusade

Dabnabit wrote:
This Feat

Didn't exist when I made my Cavalier. Nor have I palyed him since it was released. I haven't had a chance to play any society in a while.

Edit: Though my wife is using that feat for her Druid's comapanion in our Reign of Winter Game.


Hunt master cavalier 8/ rogue 4 with boon companion, the teamwork feat that lets you do an extra 1d6 while flanking, and rogue SA dice added in for fun! 1-2 dogs at most gives you 24 dmg/ challenge against a flanked target before you ever roll. Then roll your 5d6s from flanking, and add your 2hw dmg (nodachi of course), your dogs dmg, and carry on like nothing happened.

Shadow Lodge

I was considering a rogue dip for my samurai, since Shatter Defenses combines so nicely with it, but me and multiclass Will saving throws have too much bad blood between us. :P For a cavalier a rogue dip can be good, but only if there's no tight feat path for you to pursue.

Anyhow, since this thread isn't really about samurai, might as well contribute something worthwhile: My pals fighter 5/cavalier 3 packs a pretty nasty bunch. Initially he took 2 cavalier levels to get all the relevant feats going(Order of the Sword Gendarme naturally), but then multiclassed into a Dragoon to start with the mounted combat ones and boy does Riquam cause some damage.

5 levels of Fighter (dragoon archetype) might seem heavy, but spear training is rather brutal and the bonus feats have paid off very well. It's only the mount that's a liability, but it's nothing a Boon Companion feat can't fix.

The damage he routinely causes is actually so huge, that we don't really need to bother fighting if the enemy is outside on a plain field or a road, etc. Initially this was rather annoying, but it did pay off once we played a module with a large amount of random encounters. There's nothing quite so sweet as passing 10 single monster encounters because the GM only needed to check whether each monster could take the character's mounted charge or not. It really speeded up play. In most dungeons he's just a decent tank. :)


Well Samurai are basically Cavaliers so either builds are of interest.

Sczarni

I'm surprised that there are so few small Cavaliers out there. It's been a blast to play!

Dark Archive

pfs

bard 1 rogue thug 1 cavalier 5 battle Herald 1.

halfling, +30 to intimidate at level 8

dazzling display from order of the cocatrice. if I beat the dc by 10 they run in fear for a round.

honor guard archetype. I aid another as an AoO for 8 ac (9 if I use a move action) and mount also aids ac as an AoO for 7 ac (8 if I use a move action). so I give 17 points of ac to an ally and give the opponent a -2 to hit on top of that.

nothing like knocking 19 off a d20 roll


Name Violation wrote:

pfs

bard 1 rogue thug 1 cavalier 5 battle Herald 1.

halfling, +30 to intimidate at level 8

dazzling display from order of the cocatrice. if I beat the dc by 10 they run in fear for a round.

honor guard archetype. I aid another as an AoO for 8 ac (9 if I use a move action) and mount also aids ac as an AoO for 7 ac (8 if I use a move action). so I give 17 points of ac to an ally and give the opponent a -2 to hit on top of that.

nothing like knocking 19 off a d20 roll

Can you post your full build?


Lamontia wrote:
I'm surprised that there are so few small Cavaliers out there. It's been a blast to play!

I'm surprised just how few builds there are out there. I appreciate it's not the most popular class but I was expecting a few more.


Tempestorm wrote:
Leaping my horse onto a long banquet table during a surprise round and subsequently charging the evil lady who sat at its head after beating her initiative... dead BBEG.

Strong tables.


My build advice is based on PFS legal characters, but should be good enough to take to any level.

First play a small humanoid. This will enable you to have a medium sized mount, and you can spend the entire campaign on your mount. Makes for some interesting conversation at a dinner table.

If you plan on having a 24 strength or higher, then you would benefit by taking three levels of Two-handed Fighter Archtype. At 3rd level while wielding a 2handed weapon, your strength is doubled instead of increased by 1.5. A lance used one-handed still qualifies for this because it is a double weapon, so on a charge your doing x2 damage. Every attack just about because you almost always kill in one attack.

Otherwise Take all of your levels in Cavalier. For me I specialize in anything that increases the types of damage that can be multiplied by a charge.

Therefore, order of the cockatrice, when you challenge and charge a lone creature, you get an additional +1 damage. It goes up as you level.

Because I tend to fight alone, teamwork feats work less for me. I chose to use the following archtypes: Beast Rider and Gendarme, it basically makes you focus on mounted combat feats, which replaces the teamwork ones.

Two handed Fighter Levels 1 - 3
1 Mounted combat: substitutes your ride check against attack roll to make attacker miss your mount.
1 bonus feat Ride by attack: allows you to charge and continue going in straight line after making the attack, plus target of charge doesnt get aoo for moving past them.
2 Spirited Charge: x2 damage on charge; x3 damage with lance. My gnome with a 16 strength at this point deals 3d6 + 12 damage. Every attack.
3 Power attack: because your wielding a two handed weapon the bonus are multiplied by 1.5 even though your wielding it one handed. (doubling strength bonus due 3rd level ability) My gnome deals 3d6 + 27 damage on every attack now. I challenge any caster to keep up with this damage.

Following are Cavalier levels 4-12
4 bonus Improved Bull Rush, good for situational situations!!! (I humor myself)

By this time you could have enough armor to wear a Rhino Hide Armor, which gives a +2d6 damage on a charge. This however is not double or anything else. Also Power Attack goes up, and you are looking at
+5d6 + 18 Strength + 12 Power attack + 3 (challenge) + 3 Cockatrice for a total of 5d6 + 36 damage every attack

If you have a +1 lance, then bump it up to 5d6 + 39.

5 Rhino Charge: Allows you to Ready a charge that you take as a standard action. This will make it even easier to get off a charge every round. If you find your self in melee. You can suffer the attack of opportunity. Move away. Ready charge. Then when what ever provokes your attack ie.. target moves, you charge again with ride by attack making sure you give your self some space if you can.

7 Wheeling Charge: Another Feat that allows you to run through other peoples squares and. You can go around obstacles now and still get a charge off. Damage now looks like 5d6 + 18 str + 12 PA + 12 challenge + 6 cockatrice for a total of 5d6 + 48 damage

9 Trick Riding: Allow you to make simple ride checks with out the need of a roll.. Very handy. Also automatically allows you and your mount to charge and deal damage without making a charge, otherwise dc 10. but if you have been putting all of your points into Ride, by this time it doesnt matter.

9 Bonus Unseat: umm you can knock someone else off their mount.

The damage your doing got another boost because you can now have a 18 strengh score without magical aid. By this point I am assuming you have purchased belt +2 bonus for a 20 strength. Also have a +2 weapon. Damage is now 5d6 + 30 strength + 18 power attack + 18 challenge + 6 cockatrice + 6 weapon for a total of 5d6 + 78 damage.

11 Boon Companion: just to beef up your companion some more. My Deinonychus Is nasty at this point

By level 12, with a rhino hide, +6 belt for str, +3 weapon, the damage should look like 5d6 + 42 strength + 24 PA + 27 challenge + 9 cockatrice + 9 weapon for a total damage of 5d6 + 111 damage every charge, which you should always pull off. Granted this is still limited by number of challenges, So a total of 4. But each fight , go for the BBEG of each encounter.


If you use the Luring Cavalier Archtype, with the Hurling Charger feat, you can do some nice damage as well. On a charge with a lance that you hurl with a strength score of a respectable 20 at level 12, you can pull off about 5d6 + 139 damage on a single charge, the build will be a little different though. You would go all cavalier.

Also the damage goes through the roof on a successful critical


Here is a build I came up with for a replacement character in a kingmaker game if my current character dies. It's not finished and probably not optimized but the concept is a mobile mounted warrior and I think it would be fun to play.

Spoiler:

8th lvl human emissary cavalier

mounted charge attack +14 (3d8+41)

6 feats: mobility, mounted combat, spirited charge, ride-by-attack, power attack, furious focus, iron will, spring attack or endurance, dodge

4 mount feats: light armor, mobility, imp. nat armor, skill focus (stealth), skill focus (acrobatics), iron will, endurance
7 mount skills: stealth (3:12 ), acrobatics (3:12), swim (1:6)

abilities: by my honor +2 will; mounted mastery,

traits: , armor expert

56 skills: (8 ranks) handle animal 13, ride 13, stealth 13
(ranks) diplomacy 7:12, sense motive 7:10, swim 3:10, climb 3:10, k. nobility 4:8, k.religion 7:11, p. soldier 1:4,

equipment: mithril agile breastplate (acp 0), horseshoes of striding and springing


That's more like it! Keep them coming!


Are there no more Camel riding dudes out there?


stuart haffenden wrote:
Are there no more Camel riding dudes out there?

My camel riding dude is an Oracle of Nature Aasimar, that when he is level 20, his camel would have the equivalent druid level of 30. 24 Hit Dice; 20 BAB; 30 str/dex bonus; Grappling Monster!

Shadow Lodge

stuart haffenden wrote:
Name Violation wrote:

pfs

bard 1 rogue thug 1 cavalier 5 battle Herald 1.

halfling, +30 to intimidate at level 8

dazzling display from order of the cocatrice. if I beat the dc by 10 they run in fear for a round.

honor guard archetype. I aid another as an AoO for 8 ac (9 if I use a move action) and mount also aids ac as an AoO for 7 ac (8 if I use a move action). so I give 17 points of ac to an ally and give the opponent a -2 to hit on top of that.

nothing like knocking 19 off a d20 roll

Can you post your full build?

i actually built him to pretty much fail at melee

IIRC

after racial mods:

10 str
16 dex
12 con
14 int
11 wis
18 cha (including level 4 and 8 bumps)
Cavalier envoy honor guard order of the cocatrice 5, thug rogue 1(taken at 5th level), bard savage skald 1 (taken at 2nd level), Battle herald 1(taken at 7)

feats: combat reflexes, weapon finesse, skill focus intimidate, horse master, mounted combat(b), Dazzling display(b) Body guard(b) Mobility(b)

max ranks in intim, diplomacy, almost max in bluff and perception. quite a few in disguise. max sense motive

intimidate: 4 cha 8 ranks, +3 class skill, +3 skill focus, +5 Mask of fear, + 2 if i share a language, +2 mwk tool+ 3 circlet of persuasion=30

traits: reactionary, HElpful (+4 when aid another)

+3 benevolent brestplate aid another with bodyguard feat for 8ac (including +1 from class ability) as a move i can inspire teamwork (battle herald ability) and add +1 to amount aided fo me and allies

mount has combat reflexes, narrow frame, bodyguard, additional traits,as his feats. Mobility as a bonus feat from cav archetype

YES HE HAS A 3 INT

traits adopted and the one that lets him reroll a saving throw 1/day (halfling god trait)

mount has totem guide archetype, 1 rank in linguistics and 1 rank in know religion, because hes a devout sort of guy. The mount made his own decision to be religious

mount has +2 (maybe 3) benevolent armor. he aids for 6 ac, 7 if i spent my move to buff

level of thug lets you frighten people for 1 round if you beat the demoralize dc by 10 (needs them to be shaken for 4 or more rounds, auto add 1 round, so beating the dc by 10 equals frightened)
Cav bonus feat dazzling display lets you do it as a standard, and effect all enemys in 30 ft

Sczarni

stuart haffenden wrote:
Are there no more Camel riding dudes out there?

When I rolled a Cavalier, my GM wouldn't even LET me ride a camel. Something about "not native to Sandpoint", even though I wasn't from Sandpoint either. *sigh*

I'd share my build, but it was a gestalt campaign so not exactly useful to you.

I will tell you that I went for a Combat Reflexes style of build. A lance is a reach weapon, after all, and while you're riding a Large horse, you have your lance's reach plus the 10x10 square your horse takes up.

Dark Archive

RAW camel companions dont have a save dc to resist the sickened ability of their spit.

AWESOME

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