Doorhandle's page

I know this sounds like a silly question but bear with me.

Do half-orcs count as orcs for archetypes and classes that require you to be an orc? Such as the dirty fighter archetype.

Thank you!

EPL: about 6ish: before flight preferably. CR of beasty should be fairly high for this level, or should otherwise have good damage migation/extra hitpoints.

type: fight with added skill flavour

background: party is on a heavy chariot, or other armed vehicle.

They're is a huge -f%+@-off monster behind the party. Fortunately, so long as the chariot is always double moving the beast cannot catch up to the party but it can outrun most characters on foot.

the trick to the fight is to remain out of the beast's range while driving the chariot and peppering the beats with arrows/ballista blots from the on-board light ballista.

Season with traps deadfalls, and dangerous terrain to taste.

Bonus: The same but atop a clockwork dragon/colossus.

169: An insanely burly summoner, who picks up his simarly treelike eidolon and beats his opponents to death with it.

170: A tiefling master summoner, riding upon a massive multi-legged serpent, who seeks to bring about the apocalypse.

171: As above, but without master summoner and with a 7-headed dragon.

172: An 8-limbed synthesitist who travels the world, looking for awesome swords to add to his collection.

173: It's unclear weather the eildon or the summoner is in control with this one...

174: A summoner with the arcane bloodline: Sylvain feat, leadership, boon companion, and as many leadership-boosting items as will fit. the Bear, eildon, and companion have crippling cases of sibling rivalry.

Also worth noting the is the feat Raging Throw, which gives bonuses to bull rush attempts, and allow you to deal damage equal to strength mod + con mod to targets that can't be pushed past a wall/their buddies.

Shield slam lets you make a bull-rush attempt every time you make a shield bash.

Seeing my plan here?

I'd suggest skipping stone fist and just using Imp. unarmed strike.

Can you mix unarmed combat and natural weapons?

Alright. I have an idea for a PFS building involving a Sylvain bloodline sorcerer with boon companion, but I need to nail a few things down first.

1. If I'm a mounted caster, would it be better to max out my companion/myself for melee combat, or to use it as transport while I fling spells and insults from afar?

2. What creatures would be best for the above purposes? For combat I'm thinking either a mammoth, a hippo (with vital strike and it's brothers) or a rhino. Tigers of course are ideal due to pounce, but I'd rather avoid them (not gonzo enough). As for transport mounts a giant snake (various movement modes) a giant gecko (free spider climb), or anything that flies (because durr) would be good.

3. Is it worth cross-blooding, and if so which bloodline? Aberration + various touch attacks and/or polymorphs sounds good, dragon could work, and arcane is just universally useful.

4. What sort of spells/feats would be useful? Enlarge person shared could be fun, as would other form-of spells (by RAW, they still work). Fire breath/burning gaze would he half-decent at low level, as the animal companion could remain mobile while dealing breath damage. Aqueous orb/fire sphere would be great as I could use 2 at once while having my mount move about.

5. Can animal companions take teamwork feats? In a home game it would depend on G.M, but I want to know PFS verdict. Same with style feats/feral combat training.

6. Is their a way to exclude yourself from "every creature adjacent to you/your companion" effects? It would be nice to be able to cast wreath of blades on myself without hurting my mount or vice versa.

1) Butcher all of WotC's and TSR's sacred cows.

2) Actually think through the math.
3) Abandon the CMB/CMD system. It fails miserably against small creatures with high touch AC.
4) Balance feat and spell value.

Basically this: (except maybe 3: I was not aware of that issue.)

It's probably pretty unlikely for it to happen though.

Also, more variety and option for active defence. And fewer absolutes in defence.

MurphysParadox wrote:

I always liked the minion idea from 4th; it helped make the game feel larger without killing the players with overwhelming numbers. For those who don't know, they are 1 hitpoint monsters with attacks that do fixed damage. They rate at about 1/5th the xp of a full monster of a particular level.

I love the idea of minions, although I haven't utilized them in my Pathfinder game. Maybe it's time to rethink it, but I'm never sure how my players will react to new ideas, hahaha.

Legend had a similar idea, where horse of minions were stated up like swarms, or one critter with multiple bodies.

I like D&D next's rules for fighters, so that could be something.

I played a Monk :'(

Only a bad idea if you don't optimise it.

I narrowly avoided one mistake like this: Nobody though to bring a shovel when we were attempting to dig up buried treasure.

The good news was that my pregen's eclectic equipment list included one! the bad news was it was less "treasure" and more "watery grave filled to the gills with sharks and fishmen.

A rookie mistake on my party's behalf was a full party of various fighting types... and not a single flaks among them. My character brought 3 of them, but when a spider swarm arrived they were all completely flummoxed, and after a few round of trying to take acid off my rapidly-being-devoured corpse, they fled.

It probably didn't help that I set off a trap that covered me with spider pheromones and so they were targeting me first, but in my defence I used a 10-foot pole to poke it first, so I thought I'd be safe. Ah well.

I had this idea for a build that I think will be fun: abusing dirty trick. Problem is, I can't figure out which class I should use in order to make the most out of it.

Rouge (Sulking slayer):
Pros: Still has Crapton of skills/roles outside combat
Can make the most use of blinding
Damage potential.
Cleave usage: Could be helpful.
Cons:
Orc-only
No idea what rouge tricks to pick
How does Underhanded Maneuvers work anyway? Do I get a dirty trick on every attack or what? could make or break archetype.
Very low CMB compared to the others.
Poor armour
Slow feat progression

Manuver-master monk:
pros: Flexibility in mauvers
sheer amount of manuvers/fast application of all debuffs
mobile
strong early.
Poteinal for large bonus.
Can use Devish dance/TWF: advantage other other archetypes, not other classes
Cons: Can't be mobile and still good tricker
Must spend ki for large bounus
Poor armour, at least at start
MAD, unless I spend precious feats/gp.

Lore warden figter:
Pros: HUGE bonus
knowledge skills (allways nice)
know thy enemy supplements low damage
Free combat expertise
spare feats
cons: Don't really need the spares
Low armour, and unlike others NOTHING to compensate with.
Very slow rate of dirty tricking

Dirty fighter
pros; RIDCOULSLY FAST application of mauvers (speedy-trick/double tricks)
Fairly high bonus
good armour/no real limits on equipment.
Almost S.A.D
cons:
Lower bonus than other fighter types/CMD also a little lower.
Race-limits
Combat experience = difficult to get
Side-step = worthless
#$%$ for skill ranks.

Cad:
pros:
Interesting skills
Fun with disarm as well (read catch-off guard for reasons.)
Deadly surprise and sweeping prank
sligly larger bonus than normal
Crit-synergy
Cons:
Terrible armour, like lore-warden
Wanted class-features progress slowly/arrive late
No sneak-attack to take advantage of class features
Crits very random/corresponding randomness of trick rate
Very sparse skill ranks.

Which one do you recommend? Or which combination of classes?

Also:
1. Ideas on how to diverlsy apply dirty trick (like entangling something with no pants, or blinding something without sand)
2. What items beside the normal will support this?
3. What order to apply dirty-trick debuffs in? Entangled or blinded would likely be first, with deafened second if a caster.
3. Is it worth going into the pit-fighter prestige class, and If so, with witch of the above classes?
Rogue would suffer the most, don't know about monk, while Figher types may loose pit-fighter levels/useful class features.

Doorhandle wrote:

Wow, Thanks for the support!

Anyway, in order.
Kazaan: Hmm, didn't intend for you to be able to use cleave/vital strike/awesome blow on the SAME attack, just in the same full-round attack action. Don't think there's a way to solve that without being annoyingly specific, however.

Maximum distance limited by movement sounds about right.

Also, can't you already use stunning fist as part of a full-attack? Because that's what I mean for the other abilities.

Regarding cleave/vs/ab, they can't be used in a full-round even now. all of them require either the Attack action or a standard Use Feat action. For Cleave and Awesome Blow, you must spend a standard action to Use Feat to perform them; that means they can't couple with any other ability except those that aren't limited to a specific action (ie. power attack, lunge, etc). Vital Strike can only be done with the Attack action so it will only combine with other abilities that modify the Attack action (ie. Two-Handed Fighter's Overhand Chop ability). Elemental Fist isn't limited to an action so you could make any attack an Elemental Fist; the melee attack at the end of a Charge, any single attack in a Full-Attack, your attack for the Attack action, an AoO, anything.

Hmmm... so I need to change how I'm house-ruling, then.

edit: My idea for shields:

3. In addition to the A.C bonus, shields now offer a block rating. This equals your A.C (with the shield bonus, as normal)+ the shield bonus again.

If an attack hits A.C but is below your block ratting, it hits the shield instead: Treat it as a sunder attempt, applying hardness, bonuses to destroying objects, ect. as normal. If it's higher than both block-rating and A.C, it hits as normal. Things without shields don't get a block-rating.

An example: Timmy the warrior is wielding a heavy shield and it attacked by Bob the orc. Timmy's normal A.C is 12, with shield, and his block rating is 14. If Bob rolls below that, he misses, as normal. If he rolls 13 (between normal A.C of 12 and block rating of 14), he hits the shield but not Timmy, and deals damage against it with hardness as normal. If Bob rolls above 14, he hits Timmy directly.

Feats that improve your A.C when wielding a shield (like shield focus) also apply to block rating, as does total defence and enhancement bonuses to shields. Not sure whether block rating should be improved by turtle style or other deflection bonuses.

This would change the shield spell so it adds to block rating as well, and things hitting it's block-rating would be trying to break a (very tiny) wall of force.

Critical hits ignore block rating (because they auto-hit, duh), and confirmation rolls just need to hit A.C (The shield bonus to A.C applies as normal, however.)

Not sure where the cut-off-point where a shield no-longer applies this bonus should be. Broken? Destroyed?

Also would it make sense/be unfair if being flanked means that you can't apply block rating (because you can't point it in two directions at once)? Improved uncanny dodge would, of course, prevent that. Being caught flatfooted would also make you loose block rating.

Wow, Thanks for the support!

Anyway, in order.
Kazaan: Hmm, didn't intend for you to be able to use cleave/vital strike/awesome blow on the SAME attack, just in the same full-round attack action. Don't think there's a way to solve that without being annoyingly specific, however.

Maximum distance limited by movement sounds about right.

Also, can't you already use stunning fist as part of a full-attack? Because that's what I mean for the other abilities.

Blake: Umm, I think he's just using nauseated because it's the go-to "can only take a move action" condition. It's a game balance thing.

I don't like the idea too much myself though. I think it will only make the game even more rocket-tag, partially at low levels where every hit-point counts. Sure, they will be vulnerable after the first round but if your foe is already dead that's not much of an issue. Also, at high-levels, being able to cast 3 spells at once sounds like a bit much, even if the wizard is reduce to a move action for a round.

Faith: Good thinking, but I would still like the idea of being to use the steps intermittently between attacks.

In general for the 5-ft-step idea: How can we limit this while still allowing a large array of movement? I've realised that all these 5ft steps will allow a monster to run rings around players with the party being able to slow it. Sure A.O.Os work but then they lock-down too much of the movement in melee, and not doing that is half the point of this houserule.

I was thinking allowing players to take 5-foot-steps as a reaction to this, in order to interpose themselves between the creature and where it wants to go, so long as it was moving out/within their threatened area. if they want to move AWAY from it, however, they have to do it on their own turn.

(Also have an idea for shields but I think the current topic needs more work first.)
Thoughts? Comments? Critique?

Axes and Sword use speed. Hammers use weight.

Arrows:
Piercing Arrow.
Bludgeon Arrow.
Slashing Arrow.

Huh. And I though it was as ridiculous as a boxing-glove arrow this entire time.

I don't think this is THE ANSWER, but hopefully they provoke some interesting thoughts and discussion.

What's the question? :P

Less silly, I do like your grouping of mauvers. it will save of feats at least.

I have two ideas for these, and I'm putting them up here for feedback/catching things I haven't considered

1. For every 5 full points of B.A.B, you may take another 5-ft step in any round where you could normally take one. You can take these steps in-between attacks, or consecutively.

Hopefully this will result in more movement in combat, partially full-B.A.B ones who need the help for mobility while full-attacking.
Problem is, if 2 characters are already in mutually good positions, nether of them are going to move. Not sure how to change that. Also, the monk is shafted again, but I have an inkling on how to fix that.

1b. TWF, I.TWF, and G.TWF give an additional 5ft step along with their additional attack. Likewise, a monk with flurry gets five-foot steps as if he had full B.A.B and the above feats

Partially there because the stereotype of dual-wielders is that they're the fast ones, partially to make it worth the feat investment, and mostly because the monk is supposed to be hyper-mobile but couldn't flurry and BE mobile at the same time.

2. All attack-feats that were standard actions to use (Cleave, awesome blow, ect.) are now attack actions, but each can be used only once/round.

This means that a dragon, for ensample, could use a vital-strike bite, an awesome-blow claw, and a great cleaving tail swipe all in the same full attack.

The exception to this is spring attack (because I can't figure out how the hell that would work in a full attack) but you could use great Cleave + spring attack simultaneously, for example.

Also former attack actions (like stunning fist and perfect strike) can all be used on the same attack simultaneously. For instance a monk with the appropriate feats could make a stunning elemental punishing perfect strike.

Again, the purpose is to make full attacks more interesting/flexible, and to buffer their power up a bit. Might make vital strike too powerful, though seeing as it is now a zero-cost damage increase: and monsters tend to have better damage die than P.Cs.

Thoughts? Comments? Critique? What will this affect, both melee and the game as a whole?

Has anyone tried combining combing cavialer with mammoth rider?

Adding 1.5x your mount's (ridiclous)strength bonus to your own on a charge attack can only end well...

I would just like to ask what do you think about the mammoth-lord prestige class which gives you a mammoth instead of a horse with all the bonuses that would imply.

How many levels of it would you suggest? We won't be a very good caster with it, but on the other hand there are some very nice bonuses near the end of the track, and we can still get to level 10 ranger (with all the benefits that implies, including instant enemy)

Just a few questions:
1. An internal alchemist looses throw anything as a bonus feat. Do they still add their intelligence bonus to bomb damage?
2. What if they pick up throw anything using their normal feats? Do they get the Int. bonus to damage then?
3. Does the int. bonus to damage apply to other thrown weapons, like alchemist's fire or daggers?

Y'know, I was going to get a scorpion whip for my shiny new magus character, but after looking at this debacle, I'm just going to use a whip and a scimitar for closer range, and suck up the non lethality until I can get whip mastery.

Seriously. NO-ONE know what they do. It's a mystery to everyone.

I though you maintained a grapple and did the grappling action with the same action!

When did they change this for the worse?!

quit doing stupid things.

...Yeaaaaah, not gonna happen.

In the same vein, I suggest having your players regroup in hell if they ever suffer a T.P.K

...If your optimisation was a bit higher, you could harvest the lions for pelts. :P

Yeah, dragons and outsiders are very much teir one.

Not sure where oozes would go. I'd say maybe teir 5/possibly 4 because they can only do one thing (Engulf and digest people), but they can do it very well.

Viable nothing, this is awesome!

That being said, yes, keep it for creatures with fire resist. Or better yet, use debuffs instead and let the fighter have his fun.

I have a few questions along these lines.

1) Can you use ranged-spellstrike and spell combat? Would you need quickdraw to do so? For instance, could you make a full-attack with a bow and then use this? Or attack one foe with a full-attack and then use ranges spell-strike on a foe behind you, provied you were willing to take the A.O.E?

2) Can you use ranged-spellstrike with a throwing weapon, I.E a throwing knife?

3) Can you use the imbume spell power of the arcane archer with spell-combat?

So, he's a wordcaster now?

...I don't think ultimate magic said anything about how to make your own spells otherwise...

Well, yes, but the actual sheet itself, so that our d.m can get all the stats.

At first I was hesitant with the spell points system but after looking at it I have to say I like it. I'll give it a whirl.

Also, finished my fluff and almost done with equipment. Were should I host the character sheet?

Another good-looking campaign journal. Can't wait to see more.

Oh, I heard this adventure was funny but I had no idea! This was hysterical!

Enjoying this passage, and the series as a whole immensely.

By the way, what was the green death?

Another question. Do Druids start with firearm proficiency or must I take a feat? Does wielding a firearm make me loose druid powers?

Hmmm... Think I will play a gnome, storm lord Druid.

He will be an ambassador for some sort of ministry of elemental/natural affairs, I reckon.

Maybe a society or group of societeies made of elemental beings and like-minded casters seeking to find a balance between the technological revolution and it's influences on nature?

Ah, just curious.

And the inquisitor thing could still work. Just play wizards, alchemists, and sorcerers. No Witches here! ;D

Another question; what will combat be like? At what distance?

Also, could using a huge shield work? Sort of like a riot shield?

I think I will wait for more ideas before choosing a concept.

Just saw the races thing. Derp derp.

Might play a merchant alchemist, a mad Druid, or an urban ranger, depending on composition and if my first concept sticks.

I like the look of this. Are there demihumans?

More importantly, are their traits, and if so, can I take rich parents? I would like to play a siege mage, with a ballista, a scholarship, and little sanity.

Edit: or something more steampunky or gunpowdered, so long as it's in the price range. Also, why aren't you using cheaper versions of ultimate combat guns?

May or may not join this. Can I be a grindylow, and if so can I rearrange my stats?

If this lives i have GOT to join. Perhaps as garland and as, an oracle of battle?

Not that there's much point to it other than looking awesome. If I recall correctly, spell strike only let's you use a higher critical threat chance and not a higher crit modifier.

Oh, okay, thanks for clearing that up.

So, I was asking about making a blaster Qinggong monk on another message board and I was wondering:

Seeing as a monk's robe increases your effective monk level for other abilities, would it do the same for this monk's S.L.A caster levels? And would a necklace of Ki serenity do the same thing?

I kinda think I’m grasping at straws here, but I wanna be sure.

There's two easy ways

1.Martial artist, Exploit Weakness. Wisdom check + Class level V.S hardness. Sunder walls with your face.
2.Smasher rage power. Once per rage, ignore an object's hardness. Sunder walls with your face, after getting really riled up first.

Okay, in what section?

And can mods move threads?

I have a Few questions about seige weapons and Large creatures.

Q31:

Inappropriately Sized Firearms: You cannot make optimum use of a firearm that is not properly sized for you. A cumulative –2 penalty applies on attack rolls for each size category of difference between your size and the size of the firearm. If you are not proficient with the firearm, a –4 nonproficiency penalty also applies. The size of a firearm never affects how many hands you need to use to shoot it, the exception being siege firearms and Large or larger creatures. In most cases, a Large or larger creature can use a siege firearm as a two-handed firearm, but the creature takes a –4 penalty for using it this way because of its awkwardness.

How exactly does this work? Can a large creature only carry a cannon around like a two-handed weapon, or can he shoot it like a nomal two-handed gun? If so, can he use feats that normally only affect two-handed guns?

Q32: Is their any way to load a siege weapon faster? Does counting as four crewmembers for being large allow you to load and aim as if you were 4 guys?