CELLWOOD's page

Nice suggestions. As for DR, doesn't Smite overcome DR?

So your saying the Guide to pathfinder Society organized play is misprinted? Where can I find the ruling on that for future reference?

On the first page, next to Legacy of Fire's Player's Guide it reads:

@Matt2VK: Did you have any suggestions for either replacements or expansions upon Weapon Focus? I chose Weapon Focus over Furious Focus because Weapon Focus will apply to all attacks with the Falchion, rather than just the first Power Attack that is taken every round.

@Kodger: Why is it that I should start with STR 15 and CHA 16 when I can have 16/10/12/13/10/16? I planned to put all attribute gains at Levels 4 and 8 into Charisma because bumping that bumps a whole bunch of other things.
Also, with Extra Lay on Hands and Oath of Vengeance, I can be more carefree with my Smites and Laying on of Hands. I have considered switching out the Level 11 feat with Critical Focus, but at that late level it is not all that important that I set it in stone.
Also, one of the traits that I have planned is Magical Knack, and I agree; it is a great trait to grab.

I could, but under no circumstances will I drop Wisdom below a 10.

Either/ or, it all evens out.

I still don't like fast learner :P

With 16/10/12/13/10/16 it makes my CON 12 act like CON 14 in terms of HP/Level while at the same time giving me the 5 skill points/level that I desire. It stays.

Hooray! Victory! Finally!

Seems legit.

New List!
Feats:
1.Power Attack
1. Fast Learner
3. Weapon Focus (Fauchard)
5. Extra Lay on Hands
7. Extra Lay on Hands
9. Improved Critical
11. Extra Lay on Hands

NO RADIANT CHARGE!!

TRAP FEAT!!

[image]ackbar.jpg[/image]

TAKE EVASIVE ACTION!

Wait, why?
It seems like it would be good for a do-or-die type situation or for use against a final boss...
What did I miss?

I am definitely keeping Intimidate as a skill for RP, but whether or not it is reflected in the feats is changeable. Dreadful Carnage just seemed really cool, but now I'm thinking of keeping Weapon Focus and just dropping Dreadful Carnage and Dazzling Display in favor of just Extra Lay on Hands (Oath of Vengeance, remember).

I think I've got it now:

Feats:
1.Power Attack
1. Fast Learner
3. Weapon Focus (Fauchard)
5. Extra Lay on Hands
7. Extra Lay on Hands
9. Improved Critical
11. Radiant Charge

I am definitely keeping Intimidate as a skill for RP, but whether or not it is reflected in the feats is changeable. Dreadful Carnage just seemed really cool, but now I'm thinking of keeping Weapon Focus and just dropping Dreadful Carnage and Dazzling Display in favor of just Extra Lay on Hands (Oath of Vengeance, remember).

They both have the same amount of Lay on Hands, the second one just gets it later. I could always replace Dazzling Display with another Lay on Hands and move Dazzling Display into one of the later Lay on Hands' slot; I just figured that I would need it as soon as possible. My concern however is that by the time I get Dazzling Display, I could be using that round to attack in melee or ranged, move around, or cast a spell. I'm not sure how useful Dazzling Display would be in comparison.

New question: Which of the new feat lists would you recommend:

Charisma 16, 18 at Level 8

Feat List 1
1.Power Attack
1. Fast Learner
3. Furious Focus
5. Extra Lay on Hands
7. Extra Lay on Hands
9. Improved Critical
11. Dreadful Carnage

Feat List 2
1.Power Attack
1. Fast Learner
3. Weapon Focus (Fauchard)
5. Dazzling Display
7. Extra Lay on Hands
9. Improved Critical
11. Extra Lay on Hands

The main difference being Dreadful Carnage versus Dazzling Display. Dazzling Display comes a lot earlier, but Dreadful Carnage is a free action upon killing an enemy, so the action economy is a lot better.

I'd agree with blackbloodtroll here.
The Guide to the Guides list gives a great Oracle guide.

I'd recommend a 16/12/13/10/10/16 (+2 for Human included, 20 pt. buy) build for an Oracle if you don't want to dump INT and WIS like it mentions in your character description. Bonus, these stats work pretty good for a Paladin as well.

As for curse, I'd consider Lame for roleplaying purposes. You said your character desired to be a Paladin? Maybe this is why those dreams never manifested. This comes with the additionally bonuses that the -10 movement speed simulates the speed of a Paladin in Heavy Armor, and if you choose to play a mounted warrior Oracle (a very viable concept) you would not only mitigate the movement penalty, but get the added visual of the knight on horseback that the Paladin class is meant to evoke so well.

Just my two cents, hope it helps.

I would go for the second option.

The run feat is useless imo. You do lose two points in initiative, but that's evenly balanced out by +4 concentration (which is actually useful most of the time) and the perception bonus.

Run does seem pretty useless when I can just teleport everywhere.

"Legs? Where we're going we don't need legs!"

Plus, greater mercy is a prerequisite for Ultimate Mercy!

A great feat to be sure, but I don't think I'd pick that up until level 13, which is sadly outside the purview of Society play.

Stats: 16, 10, 12, 13, 10, 16
Charisma boosts at 4, 8, and 12.

I'm trying to choose between Fleet-Footed and Arcane Focus for a Society game and I'd appreciate the advice of anyone more familiar with what will be needed in a Society game.

If I choose Fleet-Footed I get:
Bonus Feat: Run (but I'm already a Conjuration/Teleportation Wizard)
Initiative: +8 (+4 from Traits, +2 from 14 DEX, and +2 from Fleet-Footed. I don't get Improved Initiative until 5th level, and I will be taking a Hawk familiar rather than a Compsognathus or a Greensting Scorpion because I want my Familiar to fly.)
Perception: +4/6 in Bright Light (+4 for 1 rank at first level and an additional rank at each level and +2 from Hawk familiar.)

But if I choose Arcane Focus I get:
Concentration: +4 Defensively (My build does not have Combat Casting).
Initiative: +6
Perception: +6/8 in Bright Light (+2 from Elven Senses)

So while the former will grant my better initiative, the latter will grant me a better resistance to surprise and attackers in close combat.
Thoughts?

Feats
1.Power Attack
1. Fast Learner
3. Furious Focus
5. Greater Mercy
7. Extra Lay on Hands
9. Extra Lay on Hands
11. Dreadful Carnage

Hmm... I'm curious about something. Do you all think that it would be best to replace Greater Mercy with another Extra Lay on Hands? I'd be increasing healing capacity and smite capacity by doing so.

That's fine, I'm having trouble with it myself. I love the narrative of the Paladin class, but the mechanics can be infuriating.

@master_marshmallow
You can't have Dreadful Carnage at Level 11 in your build because it has Furious Focus as a prerequisite.

The problem with Shatter Defenses is that it will only work while the enemy is shaken, and Dazzling Display is a full round action which means you'd never get to take advantage of it because by the time it's your turn again, they're no longer shaken (if I'm reading the rules right).

And again, under no circumstances will I dump Wisdom below a 10.

@Matt2VK
I'm going for 5 skill points per level, which my build has.

Yeah, I've got the Core, Advanced Player's Guide, Advanced Race Guide, Ultimate Magic and Combat, Bestiary, and Ultimate Equipment. I don't have any setting guides, so unfortunately nice options like Fey Foundling are out for me.

You make a good point about Dazzling Display; I could replace Fast Learner with Weapon Focus and Dreadful Carnage with Dazzling Display.

Pros: Can get Display earlier.
Can use it whenever, not just after kills.

Cons: Dreadful Carnage sounds cooler. :P
Carnage is a triggered free action; Display uses up a full round of potential killiness.

Hmmm... Sounds pretty nice, but I think I'll give it a bit more reflection. Thanks.

I appreciate the advice, but this is for society play and I'm pretty sure the rules state that you can't have anything that you don't have a legal copy of with the SRD not counting. I don't have the book for Cornugon Smash nor Fey Foundling.

Additionally, as stated at the end of my first post, the build is pretty fluffy in regards to characterization and back story. The character must be human. I will never dump Wisdom in any character lower than 10. My purpose for posting this build is to get opinions as to whether it is viable for Society play or not; I do not wish to make the most optimized Paladin that ever existed. I apologize if that was unclear.

@rorek55: Your idea of removing Fast Learner makes sense since I will indeed have Lay on Hands and a sound Constitution which justifies only needing to take the skill points per level.

While I feel that the following build will do well for my purposes, I figure having several extra pairs of eyes looking it over can't hurt.

STR: 16 DEX: 10 CON: 14 INT: 13 WIS: 10 CHA: 15

Attribute Gain:
Level 4: Charisma
Level 8: Strength
Level 12: Strength

Favored Class Bonus: Levels 1-12: Hit Point and Skill Point

Build: Oathbound Paladin: Oath of Vengeance
Weapon Bond

Traits
Magic: Magical Knack
Social: Influence- +1 and Class Skill to Intimidate

Feats
1.Power Attack
1. Fast Learner
3. Furious Focus
5. Greater Mercy
7. Extra Lay on Hands
9. Extra Lay on Hands
11. Dreadful Carnage

My plan is for my paladin to have enough skills to be able to do things other than hit bad guys hard, and Intimidate will be used in an attempt to make bad guys back down from fights. It's a fairly fluffy build, but it should hold up well in both combat and social encounters.

It helps a lot, thanks for your detailed post.

I'm trying to decide if I should buy Sentinels of the Multiverse or Zombicide and I would appreciate anyone's opinion on the subject.
I would either get to buy Sentinels of the Multiverse and one expansion or just Zombicide. I've played them both, they're both really fun, but if you feel inclined to tip the scales one way or the other I'd like to know why.

1. Make a copy of your spell book
2. Plane Shift it into heaven
3. Die
4. Go to heaven
5. Use spell book to plane shift back to earth, interrupting your own funeral
6. Laugh like a hyena

In short, it requires too much work to accommodate the player on this one. Being not only sub-optimal, but also sub-standard is a poor player choice. Giving one player loads of freebies "for flavor" while not doing the same for the other players is a poor DM choice.

But they're not freebies. By only giving them Blindsight 5ft, and Blindsense 30ft at Lvl 1 and nothing else, they are still fairly hampered by being blind, just not so much that it becomes a huge pain in the rear.

It simply a matter of trade-offs: take a disadvantage, gain an advantage. This helps to balance things so that they are neither overpowered nor unplayable.

I'm having a pretty hard time trying to visualize a concept for a Barbarian with the Urban Barbarian Archetype from Ultimate Combat. Every time I try, I just see a muscled half-orc covered in animal pelts walking through a contrasting urban environment.

Is there some way to justify/explain someone being a barbarian who was born and raised in a city? Maybe with an example from a movie or book?

Everyone's got their own way of looking at it and that's fine, but for me, I prefer to use reality to enhance my game's fun, not impair it.

For my group, I think it would only make sense to give something back to the PC for taking such a major drawback (think of the drawback systems for other games, like 3.5). Ideally, the character should find some balance for a drawback, so that the character isn't a load for the party.

To that end, I think that I'm going to give the PC Blindsight 5ft, and Blindsense 30ft at Lvl 1 (with no advances in future levels) for being blind, and then make the PC buy Blind-Fight. We will be playing E6, so I don't think I'll have to worry too much about the player trying to break the build (I know the guy in question, and he's not a munchkin).

Is it realistic? Not really. But it's fun without dragging down the party, being over powered, or bogging down the combat forever (always a concern).

I appreciate all the posts, and I think I'll keep monitoring the thread for fun ideas. :)

That's probably the best option crunch-wise, lantzkev, but I'm not sure how enjoyable that would be.

It's quite a large feat investment for what is essentially just a character background, and I can see how rolling for miss chance after every single attack could annoy not only the player, but everyone else at the table and bog down combat.

Taking the Oracle Curse as a feat might make slightly less sense, but I think it would be easier for everyone to deal with.

Thanks for the suggestions, I'll definitely bring them up to my player.

That's a lot of great suggestions, I appreciate it.

One of the players in a game that I'm starting came to me with the above as a character concept. Feeling unusually charitable, I agreed to think about it. I was considering giving the character Blindsight, perhaps at the cost of a feat.
That or maybe Blindsense or Blind Fight.

I'm trying to get them something that won't walk into doors all the time, but won't be massively overpowered either. I was wondering what you guys would suggest.

From the Ultimate Combat book, the Style Feat Dragon Ferocity says:

While using Dragon Style, you gain a bonus on unarmed strike damage rolls equal to half your Strength bonus...

Does this mean I only add half of my Strength Bonus to Damage or add Strength Bonus to Damage as normal, plus another half?

+.5 STRMOD, or +1.5 STRMOD to Damage?