Dragonchess Player's page

First: Any ancestry can choose to take two free ability boosts instead of the "standard" boosts/penalty. You may have to "settle" for Str +3, Dex +1, Con +3, Int +0, Wis +0, Cha +2 however (if you don't like the catfolk version).

Second: A PF2e kineticist isn't really a melee tank. It's more of a (potentially) versatile blaster/control/support. Remember that impulses require a free hand, so a two-handed weapon is not a good idea.

Third: Instead of Flames mystery oracle (Cha caster, divine list), you might want to consider Flame order druid (Wis caster, primal list) for the free archetype (dwarf/ifrit with Str +3, Dex +1, Con +4, Int +0, Wis +2, Cha -1 might work for a kineticist with free archetype druid; minotaur could also work, gaining reach from being Large and a decent unarmed attack).

A retrograde contemplative solarian can be fun, as well.

Yes, the biggest constraint with an exemplar is managing immanence and the transcendence rotation between ikons.

Depending on the ikons and the circumstances, the exemplar may or may not want to spark transcendence every round. The immanence effect is often a decent boost, even if it's not "great."

Also, if you want to focus on a single casting stat then cleric (or druid)/sorcerer (wildblooded, Celestial/Empyreal) can "double-up" on Wis for spells and only needs cleric 3/sorcerer 4 to qualify.

I just remembered another possibility: druid (feyspeaker) 3/sorcerer 4 for Cha-based casting. Feyspeaker also has 6 + Int skill ranks (instead of 4 + Int).

In general, a mystic theurge is best suited for a player with a good amount of system mastery. There are ways to be effective, even without using (not guaranteed to be allowed) early entry exploits, but (as with most multi-classed casters) the "mid-levels" (around 5th/6th to 12th character level or so) can often "feel bad" compared to single-classed casters; mystic theurges often only "come into their own" and start competing with single-classed casters again around 14th/15th character level.

Also, if you want to focus on a single casting stat then cleric (or druid)/sorcerer (wildblooded, Celestial/Empyreal) can "double-up" on Wis for spells and only needs cleric 3/sorcerer 4 to qualify.

On another note, sometimes combining a 9-level caster with a 6-level caster using mystic theurge can result in a "better feeling" character before high-level play. Or even two 6-level casters such as magus and warpriest.

I'm surprised nobody's mentioned that undead cannot be doomed by the breath weapon yet.

Dragons Most Fearsome!" By Luis Loza wrote:

Their breath is a line of spirit damage that dooms undead creatures, helping guarantee their destruction.

Undead are not impacted by doom since they are generally destroyed at 0 hp.

Note that PC undead using the skeleton ancestry and the undead archetypes from Book of the Dead are subject to the Doomed condition (as well as many others that normally don't affect undead)...

Unless applying the optional "Unleashing the Undead" on page 45 of that book.

Anyone who has a problem playing at a table with paladins really needs to just read OOTS to see how they can be done properly.

And improperly, if they read the comics with Miko...

The Gaze Sharp as Steel (the transcendence, especially) and either Scar of the Survivor (self healing with the transcendence) or Skin Hard as Horn (choose resistance vs. piercing during daily preparations), as well as either the Starshot or Unfailing Bow [Gun] (personally, I think the splash and area damage from Starshot is not as valuable as the extra damage on a critical and the repeat the previous attack roll from Unfailing Bow) ikons are probably good choices.

And yes, the free reload with transcendence from the Deft root epithet is a great choice. Dancer in the Seasons or Of Verse Unbroken might be a good choice for the dominion epithet at 7th level.

Note: You could also look at the Words of Power alternate rules for ideas.

Essentially, the Words of Power allows the caster to apply different target/area and/or "meta" (alterations to other spell details) characteristics to the base effect when preparing spells (as a prepared caster) or when casting spells (as a spontaneous caster).

Wordspells are generally less "powerful" than many equivalent "normal" spells, but the system can be more effective in some situations if someone invests some time in learning how to use it. For example, the summoning words are standard actions instead of full round actions and Words of Power makes it easier to combine effects in a single spell.

Could you also look at making a mythic rogue destiny the rouge is completely lacking in Mythic.

I believe most of the mythic destinies are not designed for a specific class (apart from wildspell, perhaps; which is meh at best). The beast lord, for example, is available for champions, druids, inventors, rangers, or any character with the beastmaster or cavalier archetype.

A rogue would likely find archfiend, ascended celestial, broken chain (often very suitable), heroic scion*, mortal herald (some deities work better than others), prophesied monarch (a legendary crime lord with criminal "knights"), or timewracked* destiny align well with the character. A more combat-focused rogue could also find the eternal warrior or warshard warrior* destiny suitable.

Note that Shattered Star, in addition to Rise of the Runelord, could also be considered a "sequel" (or sorts) to Curse of the Crimson Throne and Second Darkness.

Or at least "[t]he events of Shattered Star are assumed to take place after those of Rise of the Runelords, Curse of the Crimson Throne, and Second Darkness." As stated in the foreword of Shards of Sin.

About the only fighting styles that didn't benefit from increased weapon size were ranged attackers from what I recall because weapons resized back to normal size as soon as they left your grasp. Maybe I'm wrong on that as it has been a long while since I used that PF1/3E weapon size exploit to make my weapon die larger and do more damage.

Oh, that was easy to get around in 3.x/PF1e with a little planning after a few levels.

A Medium archer (likely a ranger or multi-/prestige class caster) could just buy a quiver of Large arrows, put them on the ground before casting or receiving an enlarge spell or effect (1 minute per level duration) and pick up the Large arrows for their re-sized bow when expecting a fight (before even rolling for initiative). Then cast gravity bow in the first round to do Huge arrow damage. The biggest issue was the penalty on attack rolls from the increased size (and, IIRC, the Dex reduction) from enlarge, but that could be compensated for.

The character would probably also have a quiver of Medium arrows for when they didn't get the chance to prepare before a fight. But ammunition was pretty inexpensive once you hit 4th-5th level, anyway.

The cohort from leadership specifies it can be of any race or class. The cohort is usually from a race that does not have racial HD. Because of that I would not use Leadership as a reference for your question.

I just want to add that Ultimate Intrigue does provide guidelines for monster cohorts (possibly including class levels on top of racial HD, if the PC's leadership score is high enough) with the Leadership feat. There is even a strong suggestion in the Reign of Winter AP for allowing a monster cohort (Greta, the winter wolf)...

However, in relation to the OP, using the Monstrous Companion feat as a guideline for a GM-created feat that converts the dread necromancer's undead minion from a "basic" skeleton using undead HD to a cohort skeleton warrior using (fewer) class levels would probably be OK. Note however, just like regular cohorts, the PC should have to account for the skeleton warrior's equipment and not be able to use the minion bonuses to natural armor; also, the ability scores should be generated as an NPC (again, not using the minion bonuses).

Among PF1e players, the biggest probably single turn off that prevents us from playing PF2e, and we want to, is the very unrealistic decision to NOT have weapon size affect damage.

I just want to point out that the entire premise of the OP is at least partially false.

You can just extrapolate the rules from the barbarian's Giant instinct:

Instinct Ability—Titan Mauler You can use a weapon built for a Large creature if you are Small or Medium (both normally and when raging). If you’re not Small or Medium, you can use a weapon built for a creature one size larger than you. You start with one such weapon, which you receive for free. It must be a common melee or ranged weapon, it must have a Price of 9 gp or less (not including the Price adjustment for being a larger weapon), and it must be common or you must otherwise have access to it. It is your personal weapon and has no value if sold unless you later add runes to it, and it has the normal Bulk for a weapon of its size.

When wielding a larger weapon in combat, increase your additional damage from Rage from 2 to 6, but you have the clumsy 1 condition because of the weapon’s unwieldy size. You can’t remove this clumsy condition or ignore its penalties by any means while wielding the weapon.

For characters that aren't Giant instinct barbarians, you can probably just add +2 to weapon damage (or +4 if you are generous and/or require a general feat to use oversized weapons) with the drawback of the clumsy 1 condition.

Personally, I would suspect that we will get one or more SF2e weapon upgrades similar to the SF1e manufacturing (create ammunition out of UPBs instead of reloading) and/or energetic (use a battery to fire "bullets/darts/etc." of telekinetic "force") fusions. Possibly in the upcoming tech book with the mechanic and technomancer classes.

Also, there will likely be more "special" types of ammunition, like the Pow! ammunition in Guilt of the Graveworld, to supplement (expensive) adamantine, cold iron, silver, and skymetals.

Just adding my 2 cp...

You should probably discuss with your group that PF2e uses a different paradigm than PF1e (or other games). PCs can't just overwhelm an equal level enemy one-on-one and toe-to-toe; let alone a level +2 boss. They need to use group tactics.

One of the biggest learning curves when first playing PF2e is the need to break certain habits. You can't "win" ("build" a juggernaut that is way above the power curve) during character creation (or by casting a single save-or-die/save-or-suck spell) and you can't succeed by spamming the same action over and over. Every party member should be involved in every round of combat.

As mentioned, it's usually counterproductive to make multiple attacks in the same round (barring some specific class feats to reduce the multiple attack penalty). Also, everyone should be using one of their actions each round to add a bonus to a party member, attempt an action (Demoralize, etc.) to cause a penalty on an/the enemy, Raise a Shield to increase AC, or Step or Stride to shift position (forcing the enemy to use their actions on something other than attacks).

Skittermander (start with Hug Master at 1st, then possibly Hyper at 5th, Zoomies at 9th, Supersonic Speed at 13th, and Boundless Energy at 17th) envoy (likely From the Front leadership style) with the (PF2e) wrestler archetype? Start with Strength +3 and increase both Strength and Athletics... Increase Charisma and Intimidation as well to make enemies Frightened often.

Taking Pardon Me as the 1st level envoy feat allows the character to not need Acrobatics to Tumble Through (use Deception, instead) and not invest as heavily in Dexterity; which helps a lot when increasing both Strength and Charisma. If you start with Strength +3, Dexterity +2, and Charisma +3, you still should be able to reach Strength +5, Dexterity +4, Constitution +4 (or +5), Wisdom +4, and Charisma +5 at 20th level; will probably have to neglect Intelligence, however.

Quick question: What did you take as your general feat at 3rd level?

Personally, in order of priority, I generally take Fleet, Toughness, and Incredible Initiative for most characters (at 3rd, 7th, and 11th; humans with the versatile heritage and/or General Training, or characters that gain one of those three feats elsewhere, can switch things up a bit with Ancestral Paragon, Shield Block, etc. depending on what I want the character to do). Speed increases are hard to come by, the +1 hp per level from Toughness is useful after advancing beyond lower levels, and the +2 on all initiative checks from Incredible Initiative is very good.

I also almost always take Canny Acumen at 15th or 19th level on a saving throw that doesn't gain Master proficiency from the class (as Canny Acumen increases that save to Master after 17th level).

*Snicker*

Tik-Tok...

And "Yeah, I really should have wound up his Thinking key a few times before asking."

As an alternative to MC witch archetype and Relic soul seeds, start the wizard at Wis +2 and grant free archetype in MC druid for the "absorbed some of the powers of an artifact" bit.

Free archetype feats:
2nd- Druid Dedication (Untamed Order)
4th- Basic Wilding (Untamed Form)
6th- Basic Druid Spellcasting
8th- Advanced Wilding (Rip and Tear)
10th- Primal Breadth (or another druid feat via Advanced Wilding)
12th- Advanced Wilding (Insect Shape)
14th- Expert Druid Spellcasting
16th- Advanced Wilding (Ferocious Shape)
18th- Advanced Wilding (Soaring Shape)
20th- Advanced Wilding (Elemental Shape or Plant Shape) or Master Druid Spellcasting (for 8th rank dragon form as a prepared spell)

Leverage the untamed form order spell to pick a battle form without needing to prepare it in advance, although the options lag a bit behind even the archetype spell slots.

Relics don't really solve the problem because those aren't an optional rule you can apply to other items, but rather an arguably small selection of items that scale.

Sorry, but the rules for Set Relics do not agree.

All you need to do is account for the additional gp cost for the Relic gifts.

The demon mask magic item was brought up earlier. One possible way to incorporate this with a Relic:

Another monster type that causes fear is dragons, so instead of a demon mask flavor it as a dragon mask.

Dragon mask (Relic; Aspects- Beast, Dragon)
(4th level) +1 item bonus to Intimidation checks; fear once per day (DC 20); Minor Gift- Feral Claws; 105 gp
(7th level) fear DC 23; Minor Gift- Breath of Dragons (based on dragon type the mask represents); +140 gp
(10th level) +2 item bonus to Intimidation checks; fear (3rd rank) once per day (DC 29); Major Gift- Wyrm's Flight; +1,015 gp
(13th level) fear DC 32; Major Gift- Track of the Beast (either +10 ft status bonus to land Speed or swim Speed equal to land Speed, based on dragon type); +2,300 gp
(17th level) +3 item bonus to Intimidation checks; fear DC 39; Grand Gift- Draconic Ascendance; +12,000 gp.

The increases to the fear DC and the +3 item bonus to Intimidate checks at 17th level can be included with the Relic gifts.

Note that even half of a character's land speed can often exceed the distance that the character can jump. Also, a character may need to cross more than a 5 ft wide creek.

For example a 7th level elf (30 ft speed from ancestry, Nimble Elf for +5 ft, and Fleet for +5 ft; total 40 ft before magic*) with Water Sprint may want to cross 20 ft (or more with bonuses to speed) of water. Water Sprint also doesn't require an Athletics check with the possibility of falling short on a failure ("A horizontal Leap lets you jump up to 10 feet horizontally if your Speed is at least 15 feet, or up to 15 feet horizontally if your Speed is at least 30 feet.").

- fleet step (+30 ft status bonus for one minute) and tailwind (+10 ft status bonus for one hour) are both 1st rank spells, BTW

Dragonchess Player wrote:

Just tapping the sign...

Dragonchess Player wrote:

Or use Relics.

I'd prefer items that can stay relevant without being plot vital, uber powerful McGuffins. I ring of ram on a lvl 20 character that uses class DC and a late game relic with all its tiers of effects are NOT the same thing

Just to clarify your misinformation on Relics. In PF2e, relics are not the same thing as artifacts.

Relics begin as a simple item, called a relic seed, which is little more than a functional item with a minor magical effect associated with it. As the owner of the relic grows in power, so does the relic. It develops gifts, which are new magical abilities and activations. These abilities might be themed to the relic, the character, or the nature of the campaign. If a relic is passed to another character, this process begins anew, sometimes granting the same abilities again over time, but possibly unlocking entirely new powers. If someone else takes the relic from its owner, it usually works for a while, though it might lose its power incrementally over time if not returned to its owner. How the relic changes in such a circumstance is up to you and should fit the story.

Table 2–22: Relic Gifts

Also note: You can use the rules for Set Relics to incorporate multiple (and scaling/upgradable) magic items.

Just tapping the sign...

Or use Relics.

Regarding your last paragraph, battle forms in PF2e will not be able to attack "to far greater heights than even fighters." However, some suggestions on "where to begin:"

1) The School of Protean Form is probably closest in PF2e to a PF1e wizard specializing in polymorph magic. Not sure which arcane thesis you would prefer, but Improved Familiar Attunement might work well with the next suggestion.

2) You may want to consider taking the MC witch archetype with a patron that grants primal spells and focus on preparing primal battle form spells in the archetype spell slots.

3) To simulate the "absorbed some of the powers of an artifact," you may consider using the rules for Relics and Soul Seeds.

For more offensive options with the Solar Weapon, you can also lean on PF2e for "solarian fighting styles:"

1) A "fun" option could be a scrabbler skittermander that's Hyper and literally climbs the walls, while also taking Twin Weapons and the Dual-Weapon Warrior Dedication (plus Flensing Slice at 8th and Two-Weapon Flurry at 16th).

2) A way to "improve" taking the two hand 1d10 version of the Solar Weapon could be to start with a Large ancestry (such as dragonkin or sarcesian) and take the Mauler Dedication (although the dedication is basically a feat-tax) for access to Slam Down, Crashing Slam, Hammer Quake, and Avalanche Strike (the last especially for a dragonkin that takes the 17th level ancestry feat to become Huge).

Essentially, the compatibility with PF2e means you may not need to reinvent the wheel. You can just not keep SF2e and PF2e in separate silos.

To answer the thread title: IMO, slightly.

At least the Solar Flare has a range increment now, instead of a fixed range like in the playtest. Not needing a free hand and the ability of both the Solar Weapon(s) and Solar Flare to benefit from the same solarian crystals can provide some nice cost savings as the character levels up.

For "tanking," you can always take the human ancestry for Natural Ambition to have both Solar Shield and Stellar Rush at 1st level, then take Solar Rampart at 2nd to wear heavy armor; or even take Sentinel Dedication (since SF2e is compatible with PF2e) at 2nd for heavy armor and Armor Specialist at 6th level from the archetype (to gain resistance equal to 2 + armor's resilience against acid, cold, fire, and electricity damage when wearing hidden soldier armor; which also has the Bulwark trait).

Alternately, you can branch out by taking the multiclassed kineticist archetype (as a solarian will probably want a high Con anyway) to add impulses as area attack options. As I mentioned shortly after the playtest, Solar Detonation (available at 16th through the kineticist archetype) is a better option (even with the slightly less damage and the Incapacitation trait) than Big Bang (solarian 14th level feat), especially since it can be used much more often (spend an action to reactivate the kinetic gate, so basically once every other round; instead of waiting an hour).

+1 on trying to use the thaumaturge to "tank" without the amulet or shield implement will probably be disappointing. Heck, a Remastered swashbuckler with Elegant Buckler (and eventually Buckler Dance) can probably "tank" better than a basic thaumaturge (while also providing several options, depending on the style)...

Logistics part 2: Operating costs.

You mentioned using a roc for transportation. What do you feed it? Probably the equivalent of a team of oxen every couple weeks. When you could just keep two teams of oxen to draw a pair of wagons, replacing them every 5-10 years, instead of going through 25 teams of oxen every year.

Dragonchess Player wrote:

In terms of cost-effectiveness to transport pretty much anything, the following methods haven't changed much in millennia (most cost-effective to least): ships (ocean or sea), boats (river or canal), roads (actual roads, not beaten down paths that are essentially wider trails), trails. Rail (if developed) is in between boats and roads, as it can carry heavier loads of cargo than roads can handle. Air transport is less cost effective than roads and some trails (although it's faster). Magical transport would be even faster than air, but likely more expensive (IMO, reserved for small, low bulk goods where speed and security are the most important considerations).

Of course, canals and roads are very expensive to build and maintain (as are rail systems).

On Earth.

-Golarion seas have aggressive megafauna and sapient inhabitants, so I'd move them a notch down. They're terrifying enough on Earth where we only imagined nearly all such creatures.
-Rivers and canals can be lined with Walls of Stone (at least at key junctures) and managed (along with locks) with water spells/Kineticists so maybe a notch above Earth depending on local fey & Druid opinions.
-Earth Kineticists make roadwork & repair simple, but even without them low-level casters can clear out obstructions and install drainage in quick bursts for tougher spots. And Disintegrate works better than dynamite on granite. These advantages over Earthlings would be amplified dealing with slopes and cliffs.
-Tunnels would be much more prevalent given how Burrow speeds work plus Dwarf and Kobold know-how. And there's Adamantine, though expensive it doesn't wear down (that I know of).
-I think Golarion lacks rail, but it has mechanical air transport on the wealthier end. Even a Strix or civilized Gargoyle makes a huge difference in rougher terrain for key items like medicine, components, messages, etc., but there are also dragons, tamed Rocs, and other critters that can carry heaps of goods for who knows what...

You're missing the point.

When it comes to logistics, the cost-effectiveness is primarily determined by the amount that can be transported per trip by a given conveyance unit. Yes, flying creatures can make delivery of small, low bulk goods more common than in real-life history; however, they aren't going to be very effective in transporting literal tons of building material, food, metal, etc. needed for any sizable community.

There's a reason we still transport most items in large cargo vessels to major ports, where most of it's broken down for rail to rail hubs and then to trucks; with air transport reserved for those willing to pay the extra cost for the speed.

In terms of cost-effectiveness to transport pretty much anything, the following methods haven't changed much in millennia (most cost-effective to least): ships (ocean or sea), boats (river or canal), roads (actual roads, not beaten down paths that are essentially wider trails), trails. Rail (if developed) is in between boats and roads, as it can carry heavier loads of cargo than roads can handle. Air transport is less cost effective than roads and some trails (although it's faster). Magical transport would be even faster than air, but likely more expensive (IMO, reserved for small, low bulk goods where speed and security are the most important considerations).

Of course, canals and roads are very expensive to build and maintain (as are rail systems).

IIRC from the Reign of Winter AP (Maiden, Mother, Crone), Iobaria draws at least somewhat on Celtic culture.

I have the first book and I have to say, with no details yet, since the book isn’t officially out yet, that it is cool and makes sense and doesn’t contradict anything. Maybe you could say “luck?” But I am not sure if it is good or bad luck involved.

"Luck?"

Say rather the machinations of

I would just add a (necessary, IMO) layer of complexity for PF2e: It also depends on if you want to impose a specific condition or effect from/with the spell. For example, casting earthbind (targets Fortitude) on a flying enemy is often more useful than casting a different spell that targets Will.

With the expectation that "[t]here’s not a lot of built-in downtime where PCs will be able to use skills like Crafting... to craft things..." it may make sense to allow each PC to start with a Relic (either personalized with player input or designed by the GM) instead of using the special downtime events in the guide to give a magic item (or 5 consumable items) on a critical success.

Start with each Relic having two Minor and one Major gift, then have each Relic gain the second Major gift when the PCs reach 13th or 14th level and the Grand gift when the PCs reach 17th or 18th level.

Any Mythic thing useful for a Kineticist ?

If you mean directly affecting kineticist impulses, no. If you mean options that kineticists may find useful, yes.

Is the Timewracked mythic destiny good for martials?

Short (spoiler-free) answer: Yes.

Also, in Return of the Runelords it was revealed (IIRC)

The only benefit (IMO) a shield bow has over a bow staff, other than being Common, is that the character doesn't need an action to switch to melee mode before taking an action to Parry. With a 50 ft range increment, it otherwise has no other reason to recommend using it...

I mean, you can just wear a tekko-kagi on the hand not holding the bow to gain the same benefit without hurting the bow's range and damage.

You can also look at personalizing a short verse (or two) specifically for the character. Old thread from 2011.

Reading through the guide (first pass) and the new mythic callings are interesting options.

Also, there seem to be some thematic ties between three of the backgrounds and the brief descriptions of three of the new mythic destinies: Escaped from Time and Timewracked, Heroic Ancestry (or Local Savior) and Heroic Scion, and Runelord Researcher and Avenging Runelord (plus the Runelord's Calling to really focus on the theme).

I wonder how many people remember Vanthus Vanderboren?

IMO, Xanderghul doesn't have as much emotional investment from his previous appearances.

Dragonchess Player wrote:

Virellius wrote:

'Back in my day, we had to scale a mountain uphill both ways in the snow to beat our Runelords! And we weren't even mythic!'

"And don't even mention that clock tower in Magnimar... Or the other mountains (one in particular)... Or that wendigo, before even finding Xin-Shalast..."

Our cleric fell off that clocktower lmao. She survived with like... 2 hp? Something wild. It was painful.

The clock tower was an issue for a lot of groups. Especially under the 3.5 rules.

You can possibly use this character as a framework to customize around. Basically, the character is attempting to stack multiple bonuses to Str on a full-BAB chassis.

That's the most direct way to get higher CMB. You can also go the Dex route with Agile Maneuvers, but it requires taking an extra feat and it's harder to stack Dex bonuses (IIRC).

'Back in my day, we had to scale a mountain uphill both ways in the snow to beat our Runelords! And we weren't even mythic!'

"And don't even mention that clock tower in Magnimar... Or the other mountains (one in particular)... Or that wendigo, before even finding Xin-Shalast..."

Reposting: I would doubt Paizo would want to open that can of worms when 1) they have already published mythic rules, both in PF1e (Mythic Adventures) and PF2e (War of Immortals), 2) PF2e has a much greater emphasis on system balance.

For groups that want to keep adventuring after 20th level, they can create their own house rules or adopt the E(X) paradigm to allow "20th+" characters to gain new feats, etc. even if they no longer increase in level.

I would doubt Paizo would want to open that can of worms when 1) they have already published mythic rules, both in PF1e (Mythic Adventures) and PF2e (War of Immortals), 2) PF2e has a much greater emphasis on system balance.

For groups that want to keep adventuring after 20th level, they can create their own house rules or adopt the E(X) paradigm to allow "20th+" characters to gain new feats, etc. even if they no longer increase in level.

I will just note that "5 cubic feet" has a specific meaning that is different from "a 5 foot cube." Paizo has declined in the past to answer requests to "clarify" plain English language.

Also, "5 cubic feet" is a fairly sizable volume for a single object: 5 feet long x 1 foot wide x 1 foot thick, 10 feet long x 2 feet wide x 3 inches thick, etc.

I agree with most of the comments:

1) Weapon Infusion is basically a must have. And Kinetic Activation is also something most kineticists will want (can use scrolls, staves, and spellhearts with the same trait as one of their elements).

2) Choice and progression of elements (via Gate's Threshold at 5th, 9th, 13th, and 17th) is definitely something that requires some thought and planning. As mentioned, each element has some gaps that give mono-element kineticists some areas where they are weak. It's really tempting to use the first Gate Threshold at 5th to Fork the Path, pick up a 1st or 4th level impulse in the new element and then take a composite impulse at 6th.