Got this time oracle, hoping to get some feedback http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=658248
I might be playing solo for a time (wierd campaign where I dont meet other people for a bit)
Could use advice on how to be stronger at lvl 1, and possibly any tips in general.
- I'd replace that Spear with a Longspear, and combine it with Spiked Gauntlets. That way you have reach, yet still aren't unarmed when the enemy pops up next to you.
- Bring a Sling along too (they're dirt cheap).
- And you'll definitely need a Divine Focus.
I thought oracles dont need one?
I thought oracles dont need one?
Gah! They don't, you're right. Okay then, scratch the DF and replace it with some clothes. Those can be useful too.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
I prefer to go nude! :D
You have quite a background for your character Silver. Poor woman, named after her hair color. Aasimar with Half-Elf racial heritage gives her ancestors of three different races. Dual-cursed oracle would have a story of its own, too.
With a background like that, combined with a solo adventure at first, I suspect that some of Silver's features were chosen for story purposes and cannot be changed for optimization.
Adventuring alone is a bigger factor than playing a dual-cursed aasimar oracle. 7heprofessor mentioned a choice between full caster or melee/caster hybrid. Really, to survive on the road alone, Silver will have to handle melee. At low levels, Silver should be outfitted as a melee/caster hybrid. If she will become a full caster when her friends show up at higher levels, don't spend any feats or re-allocate the point build for the melee role.
Ordinarily, combat is limited by the vulnerability of the least defensive characters in the party. The front line prepares for receiving twice as many attacks as the back line, but after that any extra defense is best swapped out for offense. This does not apply to a lone character. Silver will be facing CR 1/3 opponents unless she has a circumstance advantage, such as being in town and needing to merely hold off the foe until the town guard arrives. She might fight one-on-one with an ordinary goblin, who will have only a +2 to hit and will have trouble against AC 20.
Using a buckler instead of a heavy shield drops Silver's AC to 19. That lets the goblin get in 50% more damage.
And a Strength 12 gives only a +1 Strength modifier, which is still only +1 damage for two-handed weapons. The only reason Silver would use a two-handed weapon is for reach, as VRMH suggested. You calculated Silver's weapon attack and damage for a +2 Strength modifier, so is the Strength 12 a typo?
The Misfortune revelation is a sweet combination with a high AC. The first time that goblin rolls well enough to hit Silver, she can force him to reroll. With only a 15% chance to hit (buckler) or only a 10% chance to hit (heavy shield) that goblin will, on average, need several turns before he hits again.
But is it worth being shackled with an unimproving Haunted curse and losing Perception as a class skill? As a lone traveler, Silver will have to make all her Perception checks herself. Using the Momentary Glimpse revelation from the Time mystery to give her +2 to AC is about half as good (once per day instead as once per opponent) and does not come with that pair of disadvantages.
Finally, Silver's first level feat is Racial Heritage (Half-Elf). Racial Heritage is feat for humans only and Aasimar are not human. I presume your GM let you fudge the details, since your aasimar has human ancestry. This feat lets Silver cast spells on herself that effect humanoids and not outsiders. But it also lets opponents do the same thing. It is a mixed blessing.
Actually, there was no fudging, since she counts as a human and an aasimar.
And what would you possibly recommend for the curses?
If you can afford one, a trained dog would be worth the money. Not only does it add an extra combatant, it's also a bit of companionship.
And what would you possibly recommend for the curses?
I worry more about the number of curses more than the nature of the curses. The curses are a disadvantage at first, and before gaining an extra revelation at 5th level, the only advantage of playing dual-cursed is that the Misfortune revelation looks good.
The weakness of the Haunted curse is the action economy against a lone adventurer. The main reason singleton high-CR villains fall to a standard party of four heroes is that the heroes have four times the actions as the villain. If your GM throws two kobolds against your oracle, the action economy will work against you.
Thus, abilities like Misfortune or Momentary Glimpse that do not consume standard actions are especially good for Silver.
Imagine that Silver was riding her horse down a trade road, her hands free to manage the reins. Suddenly two spears were flung toward her. One hit and injured her horse. A Ride check kept Silver in the saddle; fortunately, she did not have the Armor Check Penalty from carrying a shield or buckler on top of the penalty from her breastplate. A Perception check let her hear goblin victory cries, but her roll was short of spotting the goblins in the undergrowth. She wanted to cast Cure Light Wounds on her horse, pull out her shield for her own defense, and command her horse to gallop ahead. Your GM let her command her horse as a free action, and she made the Handle Animal check, thanks to her Charisma. But due to her Haunted Curse, she would have needed a standard action to pull out her shield. She decided to skip the shield and only cast Cure Light Wounds, trusting to the powers to grant Misfortune to the next well-aimed spear.
By the way, maybe you should swap out Silver's Reactionary trait for the Cavalry Rider regional trait (+1 trait bonus on Ride checks, and Ride is a class skill) or a similar trait to keep her in her saddle when ambushed. I can imagine her militia service: "Make the aasimar girl a cavalry messenger. Maybe those bullheaded captains will listen to my messages when a god-sent one delivers them!" (That story might also explain her Anxious drawback.)
No matter which curse you pick for Silver, it will be a disadvantage in some scenario. Clouded Vision or Deaf are awful for a lone adventurer's ability to spot danger. Blackened is bad for melee. Lame leaves the oracle dependent on a mount. Tongues is fine while alone, but Silver will probably be teamed up with NPCs who don't know the obscure language. Wasting removes some of the advantages of high Charisma and messes with people recognizing Silver as an aasimar.
Legalistic was an excellent choice for Silver's curse: it can be roleplayed as part of her Aasimar nature. If she did not need to be in melee, Blackened curse reskinned to a more mystical appearance would also have roleplaying option. Haunted is not bad, but it could make a tight situation even tighter.
I asked my wife, who has played in two-character parties from first level, for advice. She had two words of wisdom.
1) Be prepared to run away a lot.
2) Ask the GM to avoid situations where the character must serve outside her chosen role, such as forcing a caster into melee.
I thought momentary glimplse DOES cost a standard action.
I thought momentary glimplse DOES cost a standard action.
Oops, I assumed without much evidence that it was a non-action, rather like spending a hero point. Grenouillebleue asked whether it was a swift action in the Rules Forum back in March 2012, but did not receive a definitive answer.
Cheapy: It defaults to Standard action unless it specifically says otherwise.
Grenouillebleue: ...which then would make it the most craptacular power ever...
A poster named Ogre declared that Cheapy's default is not necessarily true for effects that are part of another action.
Allowing a character to perform an Aid Another standard action on himself across a one-round time delay and only once per day is nowhere near powerful enough for a revelation. In addition, the player would need precognition in order to mimic the character using the precognative Momentary Glimpse for a saving throw: "I know that next turn the enemy wizard is going to throw a fireball, so I use Momentary Glimpse for a +2 to my Reflex save."
The issue never came up with the Time Oracle I play (NPC in a campaign I run), because I chose Knowledge of the Ages instead of Momentary Glimpse.
I am going to resurrect the rules thread.