A Question: Ways to Improve Caster Level Checks

[talbanus]

I don't play casters very often (ummm, 9 characters of level 4 or above, only 2 of them are primarily casters), so I thought I'd ask the experts here about feats, traits, and other ways to get bonuses to caster level checks (mainly thinking of this for a new magician bard that I'd like to be effective at using dispel magic later on in her career).

Thanks

[Jiggy]

Gifted Adept is a trait that gives +1 CL on one spell.

Spell Specialization is a feat (prereq Spell Focus and INT...13?) that gives +2 CL on one spell.

That's all I know off the top of my head. Boosting CL for things other than overcoming SR is kinda hard.

[GreySector]

The Varisian Tattoo feat (Inner Sea World guide) will give you +1 CL for one school of magic.

The Bloatmage Initiate feat (City of Strangers) will give you +1 CL for the school of magic with which you have Spell Focus.

The Yuelral's Blessing arcane discovery (Champions of Purity) gives you +1 CL (and +1 save DC) for spells that appear on both the Druid and Sorcerer/Wizard spell lists.

There is an arcane discovery in Magical Marketplace whose name escapes me at the moment that gives you +1 CL (and +1 save DC and lets you learn spells from an alchemist's formula book) for spells that appear on both the Alchemist and Sorcerer/Wizard spell lists.

The orange prism ioun stone (30,000gp) gives you +1 CL.

Elves receive a +2 racial bonus on caster level checks made to overcome spell resistance.

The Spell Penetration feats give you a stacking +2 bonus on CL made to overcome spell resistance.

[WalterGM]

Menhir Savant druid archetype gives a temporary +1 to CL.

There's an ioun stone that adds +1 (or 1d4-1 if you use the resonance bonus) to CL.

If you're looking at dispelling, then the capstone of the Pathfinder Savant prestige class is worth noting. You could also purchase scrolls of dispel magic and use your CL to determine their potency with the Scroll Master feature of the class.

[GreySector]

The Attuned to the Wild feat (elf, Advanced Race Guide, and requires the Attuned to the Wild feat)

Benefit: When you are in a terrain type you have selected the Attuned to the Wild feat for, you gain a +2 bonus on caster level checks, concentration checks, and, Knowledge (arcana) and Spellcraft checks. If you are in an area that qualifies as more than one kind of terrain, these bonuses do not stack; you receive the bonus for only one of the terrain types.

[talbanus]

Thank you all, your suggestions were very helpful. I think the trait is a worthwhile investment, but having to use a feat on spell focus-abjuration just to be able to add +2 to CL checks on dispel magic (via spell specialization) seems like it would have a steep cost to benefit slope. The Varisian tattoo is only half as effective (+1), but it applies to the CL of all spells from a particular school and requires only one feat.

[Jiggy]

Varisian Tattoo also requires Spell Focus, actually.

[talbanus]

Jiggy wrote:

Varisian Tattoo also requires Spell Focus, actually.

Well, dammit. :-p

Guess I will have to find which box in my garage has my Innersea World Guide in it (moved 11 months ago, maybe time to unpack?).

So, I guess I'm just back to gifted adept and that +1 to dispel magic. At least until the character gets the fame and money for that ioun stone. :-\

P.S.: At least the bard-magician archtype gets improved counterspell as a bonus feat.

[Expletive]

You could get an Otherworldly Kimono. It gives a +4-6 bonus on all caster level checks. It's pretty expensive at 67k, but it also gives you a +4-6 resistance bonus on saves, and 1/day Maze, which is nice and slot-efficient.

[Imbicatus]

Gnome Pyromaniac racial trait gives +1 cl to all fire spells.
Aasimar Heavenborn racial trait gives +1 cl to all good or light spells.