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Hiya, so one of the new archetypes I've been giddy about is the Questioner, which swaps out the Investigator's Alchemy for Int-based Bard Spellcasting, and also gives it a slightly slower progressing Bardic Knowledge (And even Eidetic Recollection, for maximum knowledge overkill).
However, I noticed that while it doesn't directly affect any of the investigator's combat, other than loss of alchemist discoveries, the change to arcane spellcasting and no feature to mitigate arcane spell failure leave me feeling cold feet when looking at how to actually fight with one. It also hampers the usual weapon options as TWF and Natural Weapons don't work nearly as well with the loss of Monstrous Physique and the need for a free hand.
I'm building for a home game, so I can definitely ask my GM for a little squeeze, but I'd prefer to look over the existing options we have and ask for peoples' experiences when dealing with ASF and the like.
The character starts at level 3, and these are my considerations.
1: Wand of Mage Armor/Pearl of Power. Bards don't get mage armour, and it's looking like the party probably won't have it either. Of course, there's the option of a wand and I will inevitably have UMD out the wazoo.
2: Grab a Djezet Skin when I can. Not really an option on its own, but one to consider. It's from the new armour master's handbook, and ups face potential with its situational diplomacy boost (great with Charm Person). It's only like, 3ac though, even if I like the idea of sneaking around in the fantasy equivalent of a wetsuit.
3: Arcane Armour Training. Uh, I mean, Investigators don't get THAT many swift actions (quick study, but then you're gonna be stabbing things rather than casting spells), but Arcane Strike is a pretty fantastic midgame feat now. Also I feel I'm going to be incredibly feat starved.
4: Chance it. I don't like this either because the best 5% ASF option is studded darkleaf armour. That's not gonna be an AC gain over the rest unless I get crazy high dex.
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The other factor, which somewhat dictates the above, comes down to fighting style.
1: Strength based seems like a reasonable consideration. It lets me spend feats on things like Arcane Strike, Spellcasting feats, or AAT and gives me a little leeway. I also just appreciate investigators having a decent amount of early-game carrying capacity as the skillmonkeys they are. AC would be absolutely horrible though, and I'd need to consider some dex. I'm also strongly considering the longspear.
2: Rapier + Fencing Grace would certainly help shore up my AC, and I'd feel less bad about needing a free offhand anyway. Stuck with 1d6+0 damage for a level or two, but I can live with that given the rest of the class's abilities.
3: Unarmed. Urgh, I don't really want to dip but this seems like the only way to make the most of Studied Combat/Arcane Strike with this archetype.
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I don't know. I really really like this archetype, with free Inspiration on stealth, Int-based Bard spells and Studied Combat, it has a ton of really cool potential but there's that massive Achilles heel that I have no experience dealing with. I'm not trying to play something super optimal, but I do want to play this in a way that doesn't just make me wonder why I'm not playing a bard.
A level of inspired blade swashbuckler lets you start with fencing grace and gets you a parry which isn't dependent on AC. I've seen a more standard investigator work very well with that dip.