GalatinaGM's page

If an Iron Priest channels negative energy, would s/he deal full damage on clockworck/robots constructs (provided they don't half the damage with a Will Save), or would the damage inflicted be subject to the construct hardness?

I'm reading around a lot about Arcanist is considered a weaker class than Wizard. I don't really understand why, except for the fact that the Wizard gains new spell levels earlier... That is not enough, in my opinion, since from level 10 or 12 the Arcanist seems (to me) quite stronger at even levels.

Since I'd like to make a convincing argument about this, I'll make two comparable builds. Same race, same abilities. I'll just make an Arcanist that dumps Charisma as any wizard can do.
I'll make a level 12 build. A wizard is considered the strongest class at "higher" levels. I don't want to have any gods here since it is quite rare to get to very high levels. 12 seems a good compromise.
I'm not taking archetypes into account, just the base classes.

First: spell comparison.
Arcanist: 4 4 4 4 4 2
Wizard: 4 4 4 3 3 2 + school spells
The Wizard have a few more spells but some of them have to ben of her specialized school. The Arcanist has less "spells known", since he can only prepare less different spells.
Arcanist spells known: 5 5 4 3 2 1
More than a Wizard at low levels, less at higher levels. But any self-respecting Arcanist has Quick Study by now and can change her "prepared spells" at any time outside combat by spending 1 point of her Arcane Reservoir. I think it's enough, since you can expect to have more than a single encounter in an adventuring day, especially if you are in a dungeon. At this level you will have 9 points; you can afford to spend 3 or 4 in changing your spells, and this gives you flexibility.

Other class abilities: Same BAB, same saving throw. What about arcane bond, arcane school, and discoveries? A level 12 Wizard will have a familiar, an arcane school, Scribe Scrolls, and two bonus feats.
An Arcanist will have her arcane reservoir pool, and six arcanist explots. One will have to be Quick study. The second will have to be a Familiar - that's arguably better than a bonded object, especially if it is an Improved one. The third is Scribe Scroll. The fourth and the fifth can be any metamagic feat or item creation feat. She qualifies late for Arcane Discoveries and can't take Spell Mastery as an exploit.
Is it a big deal? I think not.
The Arcanist still has one arcane exploit free: she can take Potent Magic, IMHO better than the arcane school powers.

So based on this analysis, it seems to me that the Arcanist can do most thing as well as a Wizard does, at even levels. Maybe better, since the arcane exploits give her more versatility - and versatility is where the Wizard shines.

Am I missing someting? Are arcane schools, discoveries and maybe archetypes so strong that the arcanist does seriously lag behind? Or the difference lies in the few more spells per day that a wizard can cast (not even 1 more per spell level)?

Please enlighten me. I should be preparing a new character after the TPK in our Hell's Vengeance campaign and - if I don't have to take the role of the support-healer again - I might consider one of these two classes, so I'm really interested in what REALLY makes the wizard stronger more than half of the time, meaning at odd levels.

I am GMing the long travel from Kalsgard to the Rimethirst Mountains, between modules 2 and 3 of Jade Regent.
I have made Ukshakka a more significant NPC than the one she is in the AP. Still, she is reluctant to make all the way to Tian Xia with the caravan because her father died trying to cross the Crown of the World: to succeed where her father failed would dishonor his memory (as stupid that might sound, that's what she feels).
So now I would like to find some reason to make her stay with the caravan, and with Ulf, until Ordu Aganhei. But, I'm pretty short on ideas. I need a plot device, an encounter, something with the Varki tribes in the steppes or some strange monster... A short side quest that should involve all the party, not just "Ukshakka goes to speak with the Varki shaman of that tribe who tells her that succeeding where her father did not is not dishonoring him".
I will be fishing for ideas but any suggestion is very welcome.
Sorry for my bad English.

Let's say I want to provoke an attack of opportunity. This can be for a number of reasons - I am a tank, I suppose that may enemy doesn't have Combat Reflexes and I want my squishy teammates to be able to position themselves; I have some kind of abiloty that damges my opponent when it hits me; I am a Spiritualist with a Dedication phantom and I want to trigger the increased damage in my turn...

Question is: How can I do that? What could be the simpler way, and what is the "shortest" action I could take to do this?