I'm writing a fantasy novel and decided to make some of the characters into Pathfinder characters. I've already done this with the main villains and now I'm doing the main heroes. I'm trying to pick out their classes and would like a little feedback. (If you pay attention to the forums, you've probably noticed that I make a lot of characters. It's just fun for me.)
The first character is Tara, human tomboy princess and only heir to her kingdom. She's strong-willed and adventurous, hating to stay home and be just a princess. Think Merida from Brave, but with a blade instead of a bow.
The second is Alester, Crown Prince of his kingdom. Race is a homebrew, similar to dragonborn but with wings. He's serious and responsible most of the time, but isn't above pulling a prank with his friends now and then. He can fly and uses both a blade and magic.
The last one is Kei. He's a kitsune. His homeland doesn't have royalty but a council instead and his father is on the council. He's playful but protective of his friends. He knows a lot about nature and natural magic, but will bite and claw like crazy if he needs to. (I'm wondering if there's another class that would fit better than druid or hunter.)
Tara is an UnChained Rogue, Phantom Thief.
She uses her royalty to gain access to the best education available. She is incredibly smart and uses her abundant knowledge and skill set to keep her alive on her adventures.
Alaster is clearly a Bloodrager/Sorcerer/Dragon Disciple for obvious reasons.
He is studious and spends his time honing his magic and weapon prowess. His seldom pranks often involve the use of his immense strength or ability to fly. His friend's backpack is still up in that tree at their favorite hunting spot.
Kei is a Green Faith Marshall/Sanctified Slayer Inquisitor.
He is dedicated to the protection of nature and it's magic. He is knowledgeable and calm. But he is not to be taken lightly, as his bite is definitely worse than his bark (uses bane with bite attack).
I don't think I want to give them NPC classes as I'm building them as PCs. Can a PC have an NPC class?
Phantom Thief does seem fitting for Tara. So does Swashbuckler.
Hm....
...It's probably worth noting that someone who sits in a castle doing paperwork and meetings all day probably isn't going to be as martially or magically competent as someone who's constantly risking their life and facing genuinely deadly foes. XD A lot depends on how you want to do things, of course, but there's often an expectation of at least some correlation between lifestyle and ability. Someone who's amazing "just because" is often harder to accept.
True. Which is why Tara has to constantly sneak out to adventure and train.
I agree most royalty should have at least one possibly two levels in aristocrat. Not only does it give them proficiency with martial weapons and all armor it also gives them some a decent number of skill points and some very import skills as class skills. It also gives them good Will saves which is going to be important for royalty.
If you look at the pathfinder wiki this is a fairly common practice. Queen Abrogail Thrune II is listed as an Aristocrat 2/ Sorcerer 16, Hedvend VI of Isger is listed as an Aristocrat 4 / Rogue 5, and Xerbystes II of Qadira is an Aristocrat 8 / Fighter 6.
In some cases a PC class may be all you need for an effective royal. Bards in particular would make good rulers. But if a class lacks a significant amount of the following skills and lacks martial weapon and all armor proficiencies a level or two of aristocrat may be in order. Appraise Bluff, Diplomacy, Knowledge Geography, Knowledge History, Knowledge Local, Knowledge Nobility, Knowledge Religion, Linguistics, Perception, Ride, and Sense Motive.
If the royal is not the ruler or the heir they could go with just the PC class instead of taking a level or two of aristocrat. But anyone who is, or will be a ruler is going to need those skills, or they will be at a severe disadvantage.
I see. So a level or 2 of Aristocrat would be good choices for both Tara and Alester. Kei's people are nature and animal spirits and don't have nobility so it wouldn't be a good fit in his case. I've never used NPC classes before.
NPC classes (such as Aristocrat) are not PFS legal.
Note that NPC classes are also quite underpowered compared to regular classes. For example, Aristocrat is basically a bard with a poor reflex save and no class abilities whatsoever (other than probably being rich).
Royal blood is not a requirement to be an Aristocrat. Even elected officials can have Aristocrat class. A mayor from Game Mastery Guide is aristocrat 3/expert 7, and a mayor from NPC Codex is aristocrat 7.
While taking NPC classes doesn't make much sense when a player tries to create an effective character of a given total level, it's different from the GM's perspective. GM is not constricted by the total number of HD he can give to the NPCs. So, if the GM needs a character that posess little adventuring experience, but a lot of experience in dealing in courtly affairs, he can make him for example a Fighter 1/Aristocrat 7. He won't as stong as Fighter 8 of course, but he wasn't supposed to be. In short, you add NPC Classes when you don't want to significantly increase a character's combat power significally, just their skills. As I said, there's no point of that when you create a character for the purpose of playing it (unless you like challenge), but there's a lot of reason for that when you create NPCs.
All of those are good points.
Are you going to be using these as actual character you play in a game? Slim Jim is right about the NPC classes being less powerful than the NPC classes. I overlooked your post about them being PC’s earlier. If they are being written for something you plan on running as major characters a couple of levels in aristocrat is appropriate. For a playable character the loss of power would be something you want to avoid.
Actual characters to be played.
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I would suggest instead of playing the heir to the throne you instead play the younger children instead. Or even the children of the younger children. I have never seen a player character heir that went well. Most of the times the GM ignores your birthright (which they should), or they cause more problems than they are worth.
For Tara a swashbuckler would work well. They have most of the skills you will want and you can use traits to pick up the rest. The swashbucklers fighting style works well in social situations where heavy armor is not appropriate.
If Alester’s magic is not focused on direct combat a bard may work well. Bards get a lot of illusion and enchantment spells that would work very well in a social environment. They also have decent but not outstanding combat ability. If you want more combat ability several archetypes can boost your combat ability at the expense of some of your other abilities.
For Kei a ranger with the natural weapon combat style would work.
I think I'll forgo the NPC classes. For Alester, I'm thinking a couple levels of Sorcerer and then a melee class.
Too bad there aren't any dragon-like animal companions. It would be kinda cool if Alester could have a pet dragon that he brings along with him. There are a couple of improved familiars that are dragon-like but they require being a step within Chaotic and Alester is Lawful. I suppose I could always just give him a Raptor and call it a wingless dragon if I want to go that way.
I'm thinking Paladin might be a good choice for him. Since he's the Crown Prince, he's held to a high standard of behavior which kinda fits the Paladin class.
Pseudodragon is Neutral Good so LG character could take one as a familiar.
Interesting. I might give him some more levels of sorcerer to take that.
I was thinking a level or two of bard for Tara.
The Magus class has been suggested for Alester. The only problem is that it's an Int based caster while Sorcerer is Cha based. Bloodrager is also Cha based, but I just don't think it fits his character well. I suppose I could give him a 12 Cha in the point buy and boost it with an item later. Ioun Stone bonuses stack, right?
Ugh, I just realized that I didn't have a backup for my homebrewed race's abilities and I lost it all when my computer had to get a new hard-drive. Luckily, most of it is in a thread I did about my race, but some of the alternate traits weren't in there. I do have 2 characters already made that are this race, but Character one has +2 racial trait bonus to Intimidate and +2 on saving throws against spells with the Acid descriptor. Character 2 doesn't have that and for the life of me, I can't remember what trait replaced it or what it replaced. Character 2 didn't take any alternate traits while Character one replaced his Flight for a boost to land speed and immunity to magical sleep and paralysis effects.
That would mess pretty well with sorcerer.
Ok, so the only classes I know of that give a familiar are Wizard, Witch, and I believe a Shaman archetype. Though I could be wrong about that one. A witch doesn't suit Alester at all, and I'm not sure if I want him to be a Wizard. The only other option would be the Familiar Bond feat. I can take that at level 3, the Iron Will pre-req at level one, and then Improved Familiar at level 7 for the dragon-like familiars. Improved Familiar Bond would be something to take if I have room for it.
Apparently if I take the Sorcerer's Arcane Bloodline, I can get a familiar. The question is, will the Bloodrager's Arcane Bloodline I get from the Magus archetype match it? They have the same name but different powers. And will the familiar still be able to advance with the Magus levels?
Eldritch guardian fighters get a familiar.
The Magus class has been suggested for Alester. The only problem is that it's an Int based caster while Sorcerer is Cha based. Bloodrager is also Cha based, but I just don't think it fits his character well. I suppose I could give him a 12 Cha in the point buy and boost it with an item later. Ioun Stone bonuses stack, right?
The Eldritch Scion archetype of the Magus class is a spontaneous Cha based caster.
I know, it was suggested just 2 posts under that one.
I don't have to use feats to get a familiar! I can just use the Magus Arcana to get one! That means I can take a bloodline that fits Alester better. Like Draconic. And just take the Improved Familiar feat at level 7 for the Pseudodragon familiar. I might even just go straight Eldritch Scion and not take any levels of Sorcerer.
Ok, due to his race, Alester take a hit to his Cha. But even if I don't take any levels in Sorcerer, I still want the bloodline and won't be able to get that from a regular Magus. That means he'll have to have a high Cha. There's also a Bard archetype that looks fitting called Dragon Herald. It's for Kobalds only, but since Alester is a homebrew race anyway, I might go for it.
The racial stats are +2 Dex, +2 Wis, and -2 Cha. With those and a 20 point buy, his stats come out to these:
10 Str, 14 Dex, 12 Con, 13 Int, 12 Wis, 15 Cha.
Ok, at level 7 Alester will get a Pseudodragon as a familiar, but I still have to choose a regular familiar from level 3. Thematically, a reptile would be best. The Rhamphorhynchuses looks like the best bet.
I think I'm going to skip the Dragon Herald. It's a fun little archetype but it doesn't really give him anything a regular Bard doesn't get and a Magus already have. Multiclassing for story reasons is good, but I would prefer a class that can give him decent mechanical benefits as well.
I might have him take a few levels of Inspired Blade Swashbuckler. It'll give him a few features that could be useful and it wouldn't slow down his spells too much. The bonus Weapon Finesse and Weapon Focus would mean Dex to Damage at level one with a single feat and that's always nice. And what Crown Prince doesn't get sword training so it fits that way fairly nicely. I'll have to wait a few extra levels for the Improved Familiar, but that's not too bad.
Ok, I'm going to start Alester off with one level of Inspired Blade and then take a level of Eldritch Scion. I then go with one more Inspired Blade level and do the rest with Eldritch Scion. That way he gets 2 more HP and Dex to Damage on starting.
I think I'm going to give Alester the Anatomist trait. It gives a +1 trait bonus to confirm critical hits. That'll be helpful since the Inspired Blade Swashbuckler only gets panache back on a crit. I'm not sure what the other trait should be though. There are a few that fit flavor-wise, like Triaxus-Trained and Fury of the Red, but I'm not sure those are the best choice.
As mentioned before, Alester is a homebrewed race. That race can take Kobald traits and the Strix traits Aerial Harrier and Winged Aloofness without needed the Adopted trait.
I'm leaning towards the trait Blood of Dragons. It gives either a +1 to Perception or +2 to saves against sleep or paralysis. I'll be going with the bonus to saves. It's more dragon-like.
For feats, he gets Weapon Finesse and Weapon Focus Rapier from his starting level of Swashbuckler. I'll just take Fencing Grace and he'll have starting Dex to Damage.
I think I'm going to forgo the Improved Familiar feat and just keep the little Rhamphorhynchuses. It's enough like a dragon that it fits the theme and it might be an opportunity for RP to have to constantly try to convince the Rhamphorhynchuses that it's actually NOT a dragon.
Improved Critical needs a BAB of 8, which means level 10 at the earliest (2 levels of Swash and the rest Magus) so spending the gold for Keen will be quicker.
As for Arcana, I'm definitely going with the Familiar one at level 3. Which would be character level 5 if I go with 2 levels of Swash and not just one. Either way, by the time he gets the second Arcana, his Eldritch Pool will be treated as an Arcane Pool, so he can use any of the Arcana that need the pool.
I'm leaning towards the trait Blood of Dragons. It gives either a +1 to Perception or +2 to saves against sleep or paralysis. I'll be going with the bonus to saves. It's more dragon-like.
For feats, he gets Weapon Finesse and Weapon Focus Rapier from his starting level of Swashbuckler. I'll just take Fencing Grace and he'll have starting Dex to Damage.
I think I'm going to forgo the Improved Familiar feat and just keep the little Rhamphorhynchuses. It's enough like a dragon that it fits the theme and it might be an opportunity for RP to have to constantly try to convince the Rhamphorhynchuses that it's actually NOT a dragon.
Improved Critical needs a BAB of 8, which means level 10 at the earliest (2 levels of Swash and the rest Magus) so spending the gold for Keen will be quicker.
As for Arcana, I'm definitely going with the Familiar one at level 3. Which would be character level 5 if I go with 2 levels of Swash and not just one. Either way, by the time he gets the second Arcana, his Eldritch Pool will be treated as an Arcane Pool, so he can use any of the Arcana that need the pool.
Have you considered two levels in paladin ... for role play purposes
Maybe. It does fit his character as Crown Prince and protector of his kingdom. If I do, I'm only going to take one level of Swashbuckler though.
Maybe. It does fit his character as Crown Prince and protector of his kingdom. If I do, I'm only going to take one level of Swashbuckler though.
One level of swash should be good. Grabbing more is typically frowned upon. Alester sounds like an Oath of the People's Council Paladin and he'd get bardic performance. Is there a reason Alester isn't interested is dragon disciple? The str bonuses and bloodline progression should be decent enough for consideration.
Tara might be a paladin as well. The same archetype could be taken instead of two levels in bard.
Does it only work with a Sorcerer's Bloodline or will it work with the Eldritch Scion? The Paladin Archetype looks decent for Alester, but not for Tara. I wanted to use the levels of Bard to give her a little bit of magic as well as music.
Does it only work with a Sorcerer's Bloodline or will it work with the Eldritch Scion? The Paladin Archetype looks decent for Alester, but not for Tara. I wanted to use the levels of Bard to give her a little bit of magic as well as music.
I don't have the source but an faq or official errata said that dragon disciple advances bloodrager's bloodlines. Eldritch Scion uses bloodrager bloodlines so it should work.
Cool. Then I might just take it.
So how does this sound for the class levels?
1: Inspired Blade Swashbuckler
2: Eldritch Scion Magus
3: Eldritch Scion Magus
4: Eldritch Scion Magus
5: Oath of the People's Council Paladin
6: Oath of the People's Council Paladin
7: Eldritch Scion Magus
8: Eldritch Scion Magus
9: Eldritch Scion Magus
10: Eldritch Scion Magus
11: Eldritch Scion Magus
12+: Dragon Disciple
I want to get the Magus levels up to 8th so he can use Spell Combat at any time. I'm wondering if I should go with a third level of paladin to get the immunity to fear and diseases and the first Mercy.
The Eldritch Scion Magus gets his bloodline bonus spells a few levels earlier than a Bloodrager does. Should I take one more level of Magus to get a third arcana and the bonus spell?
Your level progression looks good. Eight levels of Magus might be quite a bit so I'd advise against a ninth. I probably would've gone with:
1: Swash
2: Paladin
3: Paladin
4: Magus
5: Magus
6: Dragon Disciple
7: Dragon Disciple
8-13: Magus
14+: Dragon Disciple
The problem with my set up is that Spell combat activates at 13th, pretty late, and before that his spell combat is pretty weak. You would definitely need to rely on spellstrike at least until you get +6/+1 BAB in which full attacks will do more damage than spellstriking acid splash.
Edit: It seems you redacted your post, does this mean you are no longer considering a 9th level in Magus?
Dragon Disciple should progress your bloodline so I think you'd get your bonus spell anyways. The feat Prestigious Spell Caster can add some caster levels which adds spells per day. The trait magical knack could add some effective caster levels which does't help spells per day but does help with damage. This feat would mean that you could enter DD without worrying about falling behind in spells or having to decide if another level would be worth it. Extra Arcana feat could also add that arcana skipping a level loses. After a while it seems that sticking to magus is better than grabbing feats but these feats are options, not required. The question every Dragon Disciple faces is "How much spell casting do I want?" It'd be rather expensive to focus on casting effectively but it's possible. A third level of paladin would pretty much ensure that Alester would have weak casting but then your feats could be focused on combat rather than casting. I quite like the combat focused build better than the casting one and mercies/immunites are nice. He would be able to ignore spell combat and just focus on spellstriking, using spell combat, for those precious few rounds, when he needs it the most.
There was only one arcana I liked that required a 9th level in Magus and only 5 I liked from the list in total that weren't even higher. So I figured I might not need it. The Extra Arcana feat would be helpful.
Casting is a secondary concern, yes. As the future king, he's taught magic by multiple tutors but doesn't specialize in it. He's more into hand-to-hand.
But I definitely want to get the first arcana as quickly as I can. I just love the idea of his little (not) dragon familiar flying around. I'll probably take Boon Companion to boost the little guy's level.