Hi all,
How should I precisely interpret these?
Shaping Focus
Your powers of shapeshifting outstrip your dabbling in the druidic faith.
Prerequisites: Wild shape class feature, Knowledge (nature) 5 ranks.
Benefit: If you are a multiclassed druid, your wild shape ability is calculated as though your druid level were four higher, to a maximum level equal to your character level.
Special: This feat has no effect if you are not a multiclassed druid.
Shapeshifting Hunter
You blend your knowledge of foes and your shapeshifting abilities together.
Prerequisites: Favored enemy class feature, wild shape class feature.
Benefit: Your levels of druid stack with your ranger levels for determining when you select your next favored enemy. Also, your ranger levels stack with your druid levels in determining the number of times per day you can use your wild shape class feature, up to a maximum of eight times per day.
Question 1:
So for example I am a multiclass druid level 6 and inquisitor level 5 with Shaping focus. Does my wild shape level calculate 5 levels higher or 4? So level 10 or level 11 druid? And what exactly improves, the types of shapes I can choose and the duration, or does also the number of times per day I can wildshape improve?
Question 2:
Another example :-) If I'm a multiclass druid level 6 and ranger level 3 with the both feats. Do I get wildshape improvement of 4 or 3? (So druid level 9 or 10). And what improves?
Question 3:
When I should multiclass Feral hunter with druid. Do I need these feats to improve the wildshape? Does the Feral hunter wildshape stack with druid? How does this work? :-S
Feral hunter also has this ability...or is this only for the animal companion?:
Nature Training (Ex): A hunter counts her total hunter level as both druid levels and ranger levels for the purpose of qualifying for feats, traits, and options that modify or improve an animal companion.
And if this is the case... why does the feral hunter get this? :-S
Answer 1:
Shaping Focus allows you to treat your class level as (up to) 4 levels higher than normal if you have levels in different classes. A multiclass druid level 6 and inquisitor level 5 has a total character level of 11, which allows him to benefit from the whole bonus of the Shaping Focus feat. You treat your druid level as (6+4=)10 when determining all variables and unlocks for the Wild Shape ability.
Answer 2:
First of all, the Shaping Focus feat adds 3 levels to your druid level of 6 when determining all Wild Shape variables. The bonus from Shaping Focus caps at either +4 or your character level, whichever is lower.
Your effective druid level for all level-dependant variables is (6+4 or [character level]=)9. But the Shapeshifting Hunter allows you to add your ranger levels to your effective druid level when determining the maximum amount of times you can use it per day. This feat does not have any cap, and neither of the two feats mention that they wouldn't stack, so they do.
You have an effective druid level of 9 for all Wild Shape variables. Uses per day is modified by both Shaping Focus and Shapeshifting Hunter, granting you a effective druid level of (9+[Ranger levels]=)12 when, and only when, determining uses per day.
Wow stop now I'm even more confused haha... Shaping focus is clear. Upto 4 is what I missed. So druid6/ranger7 gets a Druid level for wildshape of 10. So shapes of a level 10 Druid and a duration of up to 10 hours. Also the number of times is than 4 uses a day??
And if I add shapeshifting hunter I would get an additional number of uses up to the total class level? So class level is 13, so that would be 5 uses a day of I'm correct?
Wow stop now I'm even more confused haha... Shaping focus is clear. Upto 4 is what I missed. So druid6/ranger7 gets a Druid level for wildshape of 10. So shapes of a level 10 Druid and a duration of up to 10 hours. Also the number of times is than 4 uses a day??
Yep!
And if I add shapeshifting hunter I would get an additional number of uses up to the total class level? So class level is 13, so that would be 5 uses a day of I'm correct?
Correct! I looked up similar boneses (magical knack and static cl bonuses), and since Shaping Focus will only grant you a benefit if your effective druid level is lower than your character level, you will not add that bonus to your "Uses per day" when the bonus from Shapeshifting hunter brings your effective druid level over your character level.
Shapeshifting hunter does not have a limit, but will not stack with Shaping Focus in your example.
druid6/ranger7 will have a Druid level for wildshape of 10 and counts his uses per day as if he was level 13. Just as you said.
(I'm not overly familiar with this archetype, and this is my own conclusion. If anyone else have any input, please prove me wrong!)
This ability replaces the bonus tricks, improved empathic link, greater empathic link, master of the wild, and raise animal companion class abilities.
And as for your third question. Nowhere in this feat does it mention that class levels in Druid would stack with this ability. Since it doesn't, I guess you'll need Shaping Focus if you want to multiclass.
And the thing about Nature Training is that it grants no benefit whatsoever unless they meant to put a "for" between the "and" and "options"; allowing Hunters to take druid-only feats and the like.
Nature Training (Ex): A hunter counts her total hunter level as both druid levels and ranger levels for the purpose of qualifying for feats, traits, and options that modify or improve an animal companion.
The rule is you can never double dip something. Your ranger levels can only count for 1 feat or the other. So you can't combine the two of them to double dip the ranger levels to get higher than character level for wildshape.
I didn't know that shaping focus also gave a increase in uses a day :-) maybe I need just one feat for my pic :-)
shaping focus treats your wild shape as if you stayed in the druid class. So look at lv10 druid and that's your wildshape.
Shapeshifting Hunter is only for uses per day, not different shapes, it had to specify it was only part of the ability and not the entire ability that got boosted.