"Weakest" feat / character option you've actually taken?


Pathfinder First Edition General Discussion

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Silver Crusade

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Looking at the complaint fest of the Worst Pathfinder Feats thread got me thinking: what's the supposedly weakest feat you've ever taken? Or other character option?

I'm talking about the stuff that makes the other players at the table roll their eyes and assume you don't know what you're doing. Maybe they're right, or maybe you're just a mad genius. What's your weakest/weirdest PC option that you've actually taken for a PC?

Mine would have to be my PC in Pathfinder Society whose first feat was Skill Focus: Perform (Comedy). Sounds pretty pointless, right? But he's a gnome prankster bard who uses it for Versatile Performance, so not only does he use it for social skills, but it's actually a combat feat for him. It gives him a +3 to demoralize enemies, which was his "go to" move at low levels, before he had enough spells and performance rounds per day to have better stuff to do most of the time.

How about the rest of you?

Sovereign Court RPG Superstar 2009 Top 32, 2010 Top 8

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Two worlds magic on my inquisitor and my witch.

Both to grab... prestidigitation.


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I have a lizardfolk vivisectionist alchemist that I took chirurgeon and internal alchemist with rather than beastmorph because I fixated on the idea of a skilled surgeon/doctor. He believes the key to crafting a philosopher's stone is organic in nature, so his focus is on the natural world as well as experimenting on his own body and pushing himself to inhuman limits.

Liberty's Edge

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Playing a Halfling Sorceress with the Jinx alternate racial trait and trying to milk the most out of it by sinking all my feats in it. Ends up underpowered for the moment though (5th level)

Multiclassing my PFS character real hard, as in max 2 levels in a given base class. Fun to play though because of the great versatility as well as excellent AC and saves and should become far deadlier at higher levels thanks to Halfling Opportunist and a slew of other PrCs

Silver Crusade

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My sorceress/evangelist of Iomedae is meant to have an abysmally low sense motive, so when I got the ability that gave me a +4 sacred bonus to all skills I was untrained in, I was kinda bummed. Luckily, since sense motive is not a class skill for her, I could fix that very easily.

I put a point into sense motive to make her sense motive go down three points. Best decision I've ever made :3


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I took Tribal Scars once, kind of regretting that one as it set me back two levels for feats needed to have the class operate.


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Playing a character right now that is highly skilled / invested in perform skills and some other skills fitting the character that won't actually make him money, because he plays alone or for good friends who are npcs. Also because his job has nothing to do with those skills.

Fortunately, my DM sort of rewards my investment in such skills, making them mean something with interesting rp and indirect bonuses. But yeah, took skills that aren't generally the useful ones for the class and character.


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I was once a Kobold paladin. I think that speaks for itself.

Silver Crusade

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Matthew Morris wrote:

Two worlds magic on my inquisitor and my witch.

Both to grab... prestidigitation.

Yeah, I'm building my first witch now, and I was disappointed to discover they don't get Prestidigitation.

The Raven Black wrote:

Playing a Halfling Sorceress with the Jinx alternate racial trait and trying to milk the most out of it by sinking all my feats in it. Ends up underpowered for the moment though (5th level)

Multiclassing my PFS character real hard, as in max 2 levels in a given base class. Fun to play though because of the great versatility as well as excellent AC and saves and should become far deadlier at higher levels thanks to Halfling Opportunist and a slew of other PrCs

I went for the Halfling Opportunist prestige class on one character, and it just sorta sucks. With no being full BAB, and no way to boost the CMB on Exploitive Maneuver with feats or magic items (other than one ioun stone), the signature ability of the class just doesn't work often enough to bother.

I've found that Halflings of Golarion is a somewhat underwhelming book when it comes to mechanics. The Helpful trait is the big exception - I have that on two halfling PC's for Pathfinder Society.

Actually, the Good Dreams trait from that book is fun and flavorful, too, though not overly useful. I have that on my halfling cleric of Desna.


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While playing 3.5 and outlining my character, I used the amazing line:

"Then I take a level of bard, but I'm not putting any ranks in perform"


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Fromper wrote:

Looking at the complaint fest of the Worst Pathfinder Feats thread got me thinking: what's the supposedly weakest feat you've ever taken? Or other character option?

I'm talking about the stuff that makes the other players at the table roll their eyes and assume you don't know what you're doing. Maybe they're right, or maybe you're just a mad genius. What's your weakest/weirdest PC option that you've actually taken for a PC?

Mine would have to be my PC in Pathfinder Society whose first feat was Skill Focus: Perform (Comedy). Sounds pretty pointless, right? But he's a gnome prankster bard who uses it for Versatile Performance, so not only does he use it for social skills, but it's actually a combat feat for him. It gives him a +3 to demoralize enemies, which was his "go to" move at low levels, before he had enough spells and performance rounds per day to have better stuff to do most of the time.

How about the rest of you?

I played a Halfling Rogue in a Pathfinder Core game. I took Weapon Finesse, and fought with a Mythril dagger. Surprisingly that rogue survived, and was reasonably successful.


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I've played a gnome Tower Shield Specialist with a heavy focus on shield crafting and Arcane Talent (mending). I think it's difficult to get less optimized than that. Unless, of course, you count my wizard in 3.5 who literally prepared his spells at random. Both characters, incidentally, were loads of fun.

Silver Crusade

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Avoron wrote:
Unless, of course, you count my wizard in 3.5 who literally prepared his spells at random. Both characters, incidentally, were loads of fun.

WAY back in AD&D 1st edition, we used to roll randomly to decide what spells my wizard got in my spellbook every level. I could still decide which to prepare every day, though.

Sovereign Court RPG Superstar 2011 Top 32

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I've played a human longsword and shield fighter who didn't shield bash, and who took Combat Expertise and no feats later in the chain.

I played a stoner wizard who took Improved Familiar just for a celestial thrush.

I've played a cavalier with an 18 Int, and a dwarf sorcerer.

None of these guys were a drain on the party. There is a huge range of characters that are far from optimized but can be quite effective.

Silver Crusade

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My Painter (L7 witch) has :
Skill focus - craft painting
Deific Obedience - Shelyn to get that +4 bonus to craft skills
Spirit Talker - Almost completely so that he can learn Crafters Fortune
Inner Beauty - Largely for the bonus to Craft

His familiar, before the recent nerf, had cooperative crafting :-).

his goal (which was reached before the recent nerf) was be to able to take 10 on his day job to get a 50 :-).

Of course, he is a WITCH. He is also my Eyes of the Ten baby. So it was hardly as if investing all this made him ineffective. A slightly less effective witch is still pretty darn awesome


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I played Fighters, Rogues and Cavaliers back in the day... Never again.


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Rogue.

I kid
Or do I?


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My worst was probably a kitsune rogue. Almost the entire build was magic tails and buffs to my sleight of hand(skill focus, deft hands, squirrel familiar from rogue talent, etc)

Wasn't exactly effective in combat but I was at least able to be useful in all the out of combat situations.


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I haven't done so yet, but I've been considering a druid whose strategy against a boss would be to load up on buffs before shifting to a combat style... by way of folding plate.


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I'm currently playing a Wishcrafter Ifrit who "abused" the Bloodline Familiar Option to delay his Bloodline spells just enough (so 4, 6, 8 etc instead of 3, 5, 7 etc) so that the Archetyped Bloodline Spell class feature didn't suck.

Thank the heavens that the option came out. The rest of the Archetype is pretty wretched though. I can't imagine being down even more spells.

Normally for the Wishcrafter you have to choose a spell of one level LOWER than you can cast instead of gaining a Bloodline spell... Meaning you get a Bloodline Cantrip at 3 because the highest you can cast is 1. Shudder.

Dark Archive

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Hrothdane wrote:

My sorceress/evangelist of Iomedae is meant to have an abysmally low sense motive, so when I got the ability that gave me a +4 sacred bonus to all skills I was untrained in, I was kinda bummed. Luckily, since sense motive is not a class skill for her, I could fix that very easily.

I put a point into sense motive to make her sense motive go down three points. Best decision I've ever made :3

That's great. Especially as a Sorcerer/Evangelist will have a might Cha score and Deific Obedience Iomedae gives +4 to Diplomacy. So you're one of the most charming talkers imaginable but a total idiot with it.

pauljathome wrote:

My Painter (L7 witch) has :

Skill focus - craft painting
Deific Obedience - Shelyn to get that +4 bonus to craft skills
Spirit Talker - Almost completely so that he can learn Crafters Fortune
Inner Beauty - Largely for the bonus to Craft

His familiar, before the recent nerf, had cooperative crafting :-).

his goal (which was reached before the recent nerf) was be to able to take 10 on his day job to get a 50 :-).

Of course, he is a WITCH. He is also my Eyes of the Ten baby. So it was hardly as if investing all this made him ineffective. A slightly less effective witch is still pretty darn awesome

Well, it looks silly, and you might be playing it for laughs, but it's pretty mechanically sound underneath.

Yes, you are a level 7 Witch, so you are fine anyway, it's a feat-light 9th level caster.

Skill focus - craft painting - this opens up Inscribe Magical Tattoo, v good buffs.

Deific Obedience - Shelyn to get that +4 bonus to craft skills - and you'll also get a daily summon of a Lilend Azata.

Spirit Talker - Almost completely so that he can learn Crafters Fortune - Spirit Talker isn't restricted to that though, it's Wandering Hex for a Witch. Always useful.

Inner Beauty - Largely for the bonus to Craft - meh, it's just a trait.

So you'll be a Witch with always useful hexes, lots of slotless buffs and a long-lasting daily healbot.

I've seen worse...

Dark Archive

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My dash-1 PFS character is a Summoner with an Eidolon who's first two feats are Alertness and Deft Hands.


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Furious Focus and Extra Traits on my half-orc inquisitor.


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My L3 1/2 orc paladin of Arshea has cosmopolitan and celestial obedience as her first two feats to help push the social skills. Redeemer archetype, so she has to be sure she can turn the bad guys to the path of righteousness.

Dark Archive

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Gnome brawler. Which would normally not be 100% bad, since the racial bonus of extra martial flexibility is pretty nice, but then I took the Snakebite Striker archetype which gives up martial flexibility entirely...


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Hrothdane wrote:

My sorceress/evangelist of Iomedae is meant to have an abysmally low sense motive, so when I got the ability that gave me a +4 sacred bonus to all skills I was untrained in, I was kinda bummed. Luckily, since sense motive is not a class skill for her, I could fix that very easily.

I put a point into sense motive to make her sense motive go down three points. Best decision I've ever made :3

That's the best thing I've ever heard of. :D


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Levels in Rogue.


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I love this thread.

My wizard just took Deific Obedience (Shelyn), and along with that her first ranks in Craft (sculptures). Her specialty is origami, which is something that I can actually do during our game sessions. When we rested for the night, I pulled out paper I brought with me to the game and folded something--this session it was a crane the first night and a butterfly on the second--and then handed it to the GM "in the morning", saying I am giving it to a stranger in town while saying a short praise to Shelyn.

This is part of a long-term plan, but right now the other players look at me like I am unhinged. They asked me, out loud, WTH I am doing. Another wanted to know why. I just said "Because I should".

This has been great fun. Being able to actually do the obedience, especially in front of the other players, makes it feel like it's more than just checking a box in Hero Lab.


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Skill focus appraise on sorcerer.

The Exchange

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Skill Focus (Craft Alchemy) in PFS just for the bonus to Day Jobs. And I even slow tracked the character through level 1 for extra day job rolls.

Not as useless but my PFS Zen Archer took the Bludgeoner feat just to prevent the penalty for dealing non lethal dmg with blunt arrows.


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I put Gunslinger levels and Ninja levels on the second character I ever made. I split them evenly down the middle.

It was bad.

Scarab Sages

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If we're counting 3.5 I played a fighter1/adept 8. The fighter level was for weapon and armor proficency, but the adept is surprisingly playable as a pc.


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Duke Baron wrote:
I was once a Kobold paladin. I think that speaks for itself.

#KoboldPride


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Imbicatus wrote:
If we're counting 3.5 I played a fighter1/adept 8. The fighter level was for weapon and armor proficency, but the adept is surprisingly playable as a pc.

+1

I played a full Adept alongside a standard party once. I loved it. It took them forever to figure t what class I was. The character was simply a very devout follower, in training by the local curch, but not even a priest/pastor.

I loved it, it really let me RP the class, and faith in a very different way from the normal cleric. I had PC wealth, so I loaded up on magic items, that I think I crafted. I never saw anything wrong with playing the NPC classes in a party with PC classes, you know what you get when you take the class, so it's on the player if they're not enjoying their choices. I was able to get some pretty fun feats I think, it was ages ago in 3.5 though.

Granted, I've played a 21st lvl commoner and had a blast in a full PC class party.


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Amateurs. I played a PFS PC with cross-blooded and never took any of the options from the elemental bloodline. Just because I wanted a mechanical reason that she had an elemental in her ancestry.

Losing a spell slot/level and a will save penalty to get +1 damage (sometimes) on a diplo-focused build.


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I played a 3.5 sorcerer who spent all of his feats on combat feats, and all of his spells were very situational spells, like rope trick.

The idea was that his magic wasn't a big part of his usefulness, but when the situation called for it, it could be REALLY useful.

Sadly, he was not that useful.

Dark Archive

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I played the level 7 premade PFS ranger.

I tried playing a character that focused on heavy wrist launchers. It did not go well. Not even a little.
A fine backup, but throwing daggers became my primary over the wrist launchers real quick.

Scarab Sages

Ectar wrote:

I played the level 7 premade PFS ranger.

I tried playing a character that focused on heavy wrist launchers. It did not go well. Not even a little.
A fine backup, but throwing daggers became my primary over the wrist launchers real quick.

Heavy wrist launchers are amazing. If you are playing a bolt ace gunsliger. If not, you really shouldn't bother.

Grand Lodge

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My Brawler tribute to Ric Flair took Mud in your eye. Thankfully my DM lets me not suddenly forget how to throw goop at someone's face when I leave the caves and cities.


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The additional traits feat!

Dark Archive

How would bolt ace help the heavy wrist launchers at all? The weapons aren't crossbows, so the archetype's features wouldn't affect them at all.
And because they aren't crossbows, and have received 0 support in the form of feats or otherwise, there's no way to shorten the reload time. Which means you get one shot per launcher you've got strapped on before you have to do something else.


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Oracle took casual illusionist because I was making a tricky gnome and it made sense. Still haven't used disguise or slight of hand to any real effect.

Wizard took a sloth familiar. The one that can't deliver touch spells safely, gives a bonus on a skill I can hand wave (levitate, or take 10 eith with rope takes care of 90% of climb problems). Also uses time shudder.

Druid took fast empathy despite a low charisma and no ways to boost wild empathy. Also took boar animal companion and don't use it as a combat companion often.

Inquisitors are usually sword n board without TWF or shield slam.

Bloodrager took spellbreaker line, but hasn't gotten to use it because I won't take step up.

Sorcerer took the impossible bloodline in a no-crafting campaign, as well as childlike, time shudder, detonate, and spider climb.

Cleric took IUS, so that I can cast cure spells then punch undead the next round. Never got to use it :(

Scarab Sages

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Ectar wrote:

How would bolt ace help the heavy wrist launchers at all? The weapons aren't crossbows, so the archetype's features wouldn't affect them at all.

And because they aren't crossbows, and have received 0 support in the form of feats or otherwise, there's no way to shorten the reload time. Which means you get one shot per launcher you've got strapped on before you have to do something else.

They are crossbows. They share proficency with hand crossbows and are in the crossbow weapon group.

Silver Crusade

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KenderKin wrote:
The additional traits feat!

I'm probably going to take that on a witch I'm making. I want my witch to use intelligence for ALL the skills (Use Magic Device, social skills, etc).

Dark Archive

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Gnome Barbarian. With a Wisdom higher than his Strength. Also, I took Intimidation Glare as my lvl 2 rage power, despite having -4 to use it on virtually everything. Plus I don't even have Intimidation Prowess or a decent CHA, so I'm pretty bad at it even without the penalty. CON 22 while raging at lvl 1, though...
What's great is that I got a couple of crits early on, which has led the rest of the party (all new to Pathfinder) to believe that I'm playing a really powerful character.
And before you ask, no, I'm not doing mounted stuff. My Gnome fights on the ground like a proper barbarian.
I'm also about to start playing a Sorcerer/Eldritch Knight who uses unarmed strikes and wears as much armour as possible, but she isn't really all that bad. Mainly because she's actually a Sorcerer/Eldritch Knight/Paladin/Oracle who adds her charisma to EVERYTHING.

Shadow Lodge

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In an AP, I made up a dwarven (Crossbow) fighter. Rather than take Crossbow Mastery, I was able to make Deadly Aim/Vital Strike readied attacks that sniped enemy spellcasters and shot ninja out of mid-air. I also gave him Master Craftsman ("Legendary Craftsdwarf" as I called it) so that he could make magic weapons for his team.

The GM was apparently frustrated by that guy and what he was doing. So what did she use to hard-counter my PC?

Monks. With Deflect Arrows.

I also had unintentionally got on another player's nerves with my Marksdwarf, so when other PCs died and got replaced, everyone agreed to make him a new PC's Leadership cohort. It all worked out perfectly.


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I'm not sure what they did, but I once played with two rogues who got 2 damage over the entire dungeon total. The only enemies they managed to hit were skeletons and they did not have any bludgeoning weapons. I didn't mind handling the combat alone so much. I did mind their trap finding strategy of making me walk 30 feet in front. I also disagreed with their door opening strategy of making me bash it down. I don't know what they did to their characters, but they failed to do anything over the course of the dungeon.


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KenderKin wrote:
The additional traits feat!

I took Additional Traits (Natural Born Leader, Extreemly Fashionable). As a diplomancer, the +1 diplomacy is nice (but already in class). Having the Leadership feat, the +1 is nice also. At level 13 I get 2 level 6 followers. :-)

/cevah

RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32

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I played a chaos gnome wannabe Sherlock Holmes brass dragon shaman (converted from 3.5 to PF) and took a couple feats from the Eberron campaign setting. One was Urban Tracking (which basically boosted the Gather Information part of Diplomacy) and Discern Clues (which let you use Search to find clues). At least I got a free Skill Focus in Diplomacy from being a dragon shaman. So I was really good at an ability I never really got to use. :-P

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