Grant Evans's page

I think if you want a dedicated Healer Life Oracle is the best way, with CHA gives you Channels, Extra Spells and a large number of exclusions thanks to Selective Channel, the only other thing you need is CON which allows Life Link and Shield Other to be used with little danger. I am currently playing a Level 18 Life Oracle pacifist and when I got Mass Heal as an 8th Level spell the response was "Well, now it doesn't matter what the DM does". Also knowing all the spells needed to fix problems without having to preprepare makes me very ready for pretty much anything from Confusion to Death (Reach Breath of Life anyone?)

Also Life Link healing every party member (once you have six or so levels under your belt) for 5 points and then casting a Cure spell on yourself can help the whole party, especially if you suck in some of their damage then Channel, healing yourself of all the damage you just took and them for essentially an extra 5 points.

I have played 11 levels (2nd through to 12th) in a party with a Deaf Oracle. It was a mainly drow campaign and the Oracle (while being human) knew Drow Sign. I played the goblin slave and knowing only Common and Goblin had more trouble talking to our drow companions (who start with Undercommon) than the Oracle. I think in a case of Deaf the party needs to 'overcome' the Curse in order to run properly where I think other curses are more of just a problem for the player (at level 12 my Sorcerer still can't talk directly to the Oracle because with only 2 ranks per level learning Drow Sign is not on the agenda, but I send messages through other players when needed.)

I am now playing as a level 17 Haunted Life Oracle. Though I started at level 14 so missed early level issues I have found the curse has basically no mechanical effect on my character. Once I thought about pulling a Wand out of my bag during battle but then someone was bleeding so I cast a healing spell instead. The only 'limitiations' I have had are actually the RP ones I placed on myself or having ghosts pulling her hair during 'cut scenes' making her fall over and the fact that she believes that if she kills someone they will complain in her ear forever so she never hurts anyone instead grappling with Telekenisis or leaving them in the middle of the air due to Reverse Gravity. She also uses Speak with Dead (along with the spell Tongues) to ask pleasant questions and apologise to some victims of her companions violence.

Hopefully that gives you some insight into playing Deaf or Haunted.

9 If you don't really care then I wouldn't push for it. I used to roll initiative for my Witch's familiar because it had a better modifier than her and sometimes needed to get itself out of danger as quickly as possible.

I was being vague to include Animal Companions and Eidolons. So there is a solution for Animal Companions which is good, but still not one for Eidolons.

Also now that I think about it if a Witch can use Reduce Person on her Familiar it becomes even harder to hit and gets a better reflex save which is never a bad thing for a Witches familiar.

I have just read through six threads which either started by addressing (or ended up addressing) the question of are the two sentences in Share Spell linked or separate:

http://paizo.com/paizo/messageboards/paizoPublishing/olderProducts/advanced PlayersGuidePlaytest/round2/shareSpellsCanCauseAGargantuanProblem&page= 1&source=search#0

http://paizo.com/paizo/messageboards/paizoPublishing/pathfinder/pathfinderR PG/rules/shareSpellsNeedsClarificationItsRelatedToThePlaytestIfItMattersAsW ellAsTheCoreGame&page=1&source=search#0

http://paizo.com/paizo/messageboards/paizoPublishing/pathfinder/pathfinderR PG/rules/summonerSpellQuestion&page=1&source=search#0

http://paizo.com/paizo/messageboards/paizoPublishing/pathfinder/pathfinderR PG/rules/largeEvolutionEnlargePersonStack&page=1&source=search#14

http://paizo.com/paizo/messageboards/paizoPublishing/pathfinder/pathfinderR PG/general/summonersAndEidolonYouKiddingMeRight&page=2

http://paizo.com/paizo/messageboards/paizoPublishing/pathfinder/pathfinderR PG/rules/naturalAttackDamageOffTheCharts&page=1&source=search#27

Each time there are people who are arguing both sides and quite a few have been tagged at least once for FAQ but there has never been an official answer and all are now in Archive folders.

If you, like me, just want an official answer please tag this for FAQ. If there is an offical answer that I have somehow missed feel free to point me to it.

But please don't just have the same debate that can be found on any of these above threads, I think by now we know there is two ways to read the Rules as Written, what we need is to know the Rules as Intended and only a developer can really answer that for us.

PS in case anyone is concerned I am just trying to optimise the reason I want to know is because I want to see if I can use Reduce Person to get large "companions" through tunnels.

Unfetter lasts 10min per caster level (that is less than 3 hours with Caster Level 20).

An Eidolon disappears if its Summoner is dead.

An Eidolon disappears if its Summoner is unconscious.

So the only way I can image this working is if you keep the Summoner as a conscious captive while using his Wand in which case as soon as you did summon it it would probably try to save the Summoner. So if you really want to summon an Eidolon to fight feel free. Of course like all summoned creatures the xp is for killing the thing that summoned it so you don't get any benefit until you kill the Summoner which makes the Wand useless.

Fighting Defensively while attacking is a Standard Action.

Casting a spell is a standard action.

Attacking with a sword is a standard action.

It seems to me that whatever your 'attack' is causes Fighting Defensively to be a standard action. As long as you roll an attack roll then I don't see why you couldn't use Fighting Defensively with magic.

A very creative way my DM did was having an Alchemist NPC who was willing to prepare infused extracts for a much lower cost than healing potions and sell them to our party. It means everyone can have a couple of potions for use without breaking the bank.

I have my own question to add:

When the victim of your grapple wants to escape/reverse (not sure how you reverse on energy but just in case) what is the CMD? Is it Caster Level + CHA (for example say it is a Sorcerer) + DEX or Caster level + CHA + CHA? Or is the DC of the spell?

I second that dumping CHA does not have the same game effects as other dumps. Having played in 15 point buys and therefore playing one character who had a CON of 8 and then one who had a INT of 8 you feel it. (Also when you play a Alchemist and Mutagen your Wis down to 8 you feel it.) A lot of the other players I have played with have CHA of 8 and I haven't realised for 10 levels. When you have a Paladin with a Circlet of Persuasion or a Bard who is selling all your party loot and also talking to most NPCs the fact half the party have CHA scores of 8 makes no difference (especially if they are at the pub at the time.)

The only recent "negative" to a CHA of 8 I have seen in game was that when three characters picked up barmaids the one with the CHA of 8 got the fat one.

If the movement is a big deal then maybe the Halfling should get a mount or learn to fly, especially with the new alternative racial trait Outrider and the fact that a halfling on a medium sized mount can go most places a medium sized PC can go and then their movement will be 40ft.

My Haunted Life Oracle casts Neutralise Poison as if a Druid (3rd level spell) just like she casts Levitate and Teleknesis as if a Sorcerer. Not sure what will happen when she gets Mass Heal early.

Whether Haste gives a Natural Attack is unclear. James Jacobs (Creative Director) says it does:

http://paizo.com/paizo/messageboards/paizoPublishing/pathfinder/pathfinderR PG/rules/archives/hasteGrantExtraAttackwIthNaturalAttack

However there is no errata so far, so depends on if James Jacobs word is good enough for your DM.

Depends, as I use my Eidolon as a mount I often just roll one initiative, but if they are standing seperately I roll two. Then again I used to roll initative for my witch's familiar in case he wanted to run before it got to her turn. :)

And due to the minute duration once I even rolled initative for an eagle which was still hanging around.

I find Grease great (pretty much only spell I use in combat, (use Mount and Lesser Rejuvenate Eidolon outside of battle)).

Reasons: the save DC is boosted by Spell Focus (Conjuration) which I took at level 1 to get Augmented Summoning at level 3. I have a pretty high Charisma (started 18, got a Cloak of Charisma +2 (basically a different slotted headband) so the save DC is 17 at level 3.

Using it on weapons means that you might permanently disarm an enemy or make it have to pass a reflex save each round to keep using the weapon. Round 1 of many battle I greased an enemy archer's bow, that enemy dropped the bow and then had to come into melee using its secondary weapon (or as one did once, wait for a different archer to be cut down and then steal its bow while taking Attack of Opportunity).

The manuals are so expensive because they are not 'enhancement bonuses' the Belt and Ioun Stones are enhancement bonuses, the evolution is not an enhancement bonus therefore the Manual is the best comparison. A eidolon with a +8 from leveling and a +6 from taking Ability Increase (level 1, level 12, level 18) can still get full effect of Bull's Strength, that is why the Ability Increase is the same as a Manual not a Belt.

What I am getting at is that if it was my cohort I would have to spend 123,500gps I don't have.

I'd rather get all the abilities I would use items for for free and give up having 2 of every slot.

The fact that the evolution and a Belt/Bear's Endurance stack is an extra reason why the evolutions are better than items.

Just to give you an example this is my level 3 eidolon and how much money these abilities are worth:

Bite/Reach (Bite) - a Longspear
Mount - no real item for this
Limbs (legs) - Boots of Striding and springing (5,500gps)
Improved Damage Bite - 8000gp (item continuous casting Lead Blades)
+1 Inherent Dex - Manual +1 (27,500gps)
+3 Inherent Str (Ability Increase) - Manual +3 (82,500gps)

Total: 123,500gp (which is somewhere just above 12th level starting money)
And this is all basically 3 evolution points + Free limbs (quadreped)

And the fact is you can still put any item on the Eidolon.

I get confused about what traits are official and what aren't but my Inquisitor took one called Spy which gave Knowledge (local)

I don't understand why everyone is so concerned about splitting gp between the Summoner and Eidolon when evolutions can work as well (or better) than items, here are a few examples of 1 point and 2 point evolutions and the items you would normally have to buy for the same effect.

Climb - Slippers of Spider Climbing (4,800gps)
Gills - Pearl of the Sirines (15,300gps)
Improved Natural Armour - Amulet of Natural Armour +2 (8000gps)
Resistance - Half a Ring of Resistance (12,000gps) (equal at 10th level)
Swim - Ring of Improved Swimming (10,000gps)
Ability Increase - Tome/Manual +2 (55,000gp) (can still get full enhancement bonus from spells)
Limbs (legs) - Boots of Striding and Springing (5,500gps)
Flight - Wings of Flying (54,000gp)

A few of these items are not even as good as the evolutions due to having limited uses per day (e.g. Slippers of Spider Climbing) and all of these evolutions can be given using Lesser Evolution Surge.
Also if you include the +8 to Strength and +8 to Dex by the end you have what is equivalent (according to the magic item creation rules) of a 160,000gp Belt of Physical Might for free.

I have just started playing a Haunted Life Oracle, I really like the bonus spells and plan around not having to get things in and out of my bag (the only thing you might need in a hurry is a Potion of Cure or a Oil of Gentle Repose but as a spontaneous good caster I have to be out of spells to not be able to just cast Cure Light Wounds). Also as I don't weapon fight I can't end up dropping and losing my weapon and even if I randomly drop my staff off a cliff I can cast Levitate on it.

Have also played with a Deaf Battle Oracle turned Rage Prophet, being deaf wasn't really a problem except for when tactics changed in the middle of a battle or until someone gets a Bard Cohort who the Oracle can't hear.

The Rage Prophet levels was taken for RP purposes and from observing him I have seen no real benefit to the choice.

General Advice

The DM rules on anything that is unclear. If they can't show you it written in a book then you decide the intention of the wording, eg if they can't show you something that says the spell move on your turn, you can rule that it doesn't.

Specific Advice

Are you sure your player was following duration rules?

Level 6 Cleric summons Ancestorial Guardian (Round 1)
Cleric casts Silence (Round 2, should be round 3 as well but he was using the 1 round rule) Ancestorial Guardians move 20ft presumably seeing they are dwarves. Maybe getting the Silence barely onto the cleric, but unlikely to have got up in his face. (If your cleric is 20ft from his cleric his cleric should be in some large amount of danger.)

4 rounds later the Ancestorial Guardians disappear.

Also if the Guardians weapon is so solid that it can have silence on it then it probably means it is too solid to pass through enemies so all you need is skeletons between the evil cleric and the Ancestorial Guardians and they have to go around or take a turn to fight. When duration is 6 rounds you should be able to outwait it.

Having a cohort mount is a great idea. I remember reading the rules for that somewhere but can't find it at the moment. Do you have a link?

Level 14 Human Life Oracle

I really really like the Life Oracle Revelations, for this reason I have taken Extra Revelation twice and am wearing two Rings of Lesser Revelation. I also took Selective Channeling and then Extra Channeling (twice) also took Endurance and will take Diehard. To help with Sacred Bond and possible Shield Other am wearing a Belt of Con +6 and for spells and channels a Headband of Charisma +6.

I selected a lot of Removes and the like, was a tight fit so if you want some offensive spells (I chose against actually having her fight so I could make the best use of the DC on her Sanctuary) maybe Expanded Arcana (despite its name it actually says Oracle in its description).

Why is the bear having more trouble than the PCs? Normally I find with skill challenges that it will be PCs who have more trouble.

An example that sticks in my mind:

a sorceror, a wizard and a cleric trying to swim down an underground river. The sorceror was permanently reduced so his strength was 6, the wizard's strength was 8 and the cleric was wearing armour and due to the fact it was a bit of water slide she couldn't leave her armour behind or get anyone to carry it and due to having an Int of 8 (this was a 15 point buy) she had 1 skill point per level so no swim ranks.

Are none of your PCs struggling with the physical skill checks?

First off, thankyou for making this guide. You are doing a great job and it is interesting to see all the different ways someone can go with the class, I think I would have to play a number of Summoner's before getting bored (currently playing the Halfling who dresses as a little girl and calls on her 'friend' and mount who speaks common with an English accent and fights in the front line with her fake mother the Paladin. But now in the future I will probably at some stage play a half-elf to get the large evolution pool). My current pair are both very skill focused. For the halfing it is Ride and UMD and for the Eidolon it is Stealth, Survival, Sense Motive and Perception. I have also taken Combat Reflexs and Bodyguard so whenever the Summoner is attacked on the Eidolon's back she uses Ride to get Cover and the Eidolon uses Bodyguard to Aid Other and this is level 3 and a +6 to AC, next level with the Shield Ally she will have a +8 to AC.

Now to what I think you overlooked in the Fang vs Blade: the Summoner gets Greater Magic Fang but not Greater Magic Weapon. You get it at Level 7 where 1/hr per level means all day and it is an all day Amulet of Might Fist +1 for a multi-natural attack Eidolon and one level away from being a Amulet of Mighty Fist +2 for a single attack Eidolon and at level 8 an armed Eidolon probably would be lucky to have 4 +1 Weapons or 1 +2 weapon, also Greater Magic Fang isn't gear so you don't have to carry it around until you summon the Eidolon.

This when added to the above poster's link about Haste effecting Natural Attacks I think definately tips the scales.

We have similar problems with area of effect spells. Every Fireball dropped on the party is the death of ten horses.

I second Wand of Mount, even CL1 is 2 hours and you would probably never go beyond a CL4 wand (8hrs).

A few tricks the witch has:

- Spite (witch only) can be used along with Vampiric Touch. You get hit, it hits them (it uses their hit). If your damage output is comparitive you might even end up with more health than before you were hit. Does cost 250gps but if you aren't making that much per day there is a problem.

- False Life, once again can up your HPs

- Threefold Aspect - Crone is great for the Int bonus, but you can change as a standard action to Young Adult and get a Con bonus (at the low cost of lowering your Will save by 1) which buys you time to get healed/heal yourself.

- Flight - keeps you away from danger sometimes (in fact last time I was playing my witch she was the only one who got to move before the enemy and she flew upwards and was saved from being hit by the wraiths coming up through the floor. Gets it earlier than Air Wizards and Air Elemental Sorcerers.

- Also undead are immune to Mind Effecting, but really when you can use Cure Moderate Wounds on every single skeleton once without using up a single spell slot (or as I am now, Cure Serious Wounds, then Cure Moderate if they are still up next turn) why does it matter that you can't use Evil Eye?

- Retribution against a high SR constructs is much better than what the wizard was doing (Acid Splash).

I have also found that 'battle field control' spells like clouds, fogs and sometimes even web and pits can make you unpopular with the party, no one has ever complained about me putting Ward on them.

This witch actually started as the cohort of a Inquisitor who outshone her mistress so much she became the PC and the Inquisitor retired.

Spell Combat seems oddly to me if used with non-touch attacks (e.g. Fireball) when compared to a Cleric.

Weird comparison maybe, but in our group our Cleric rarely gets to do anything because she is always healing people (including our Magus) so having a character who can melee attack the front row and Fireball the back row of bad guys seems very powerful when compared to another character who could really use the ability to heal someone and also attack in the same round without the need of a Metamagic Feat that causes Cure Light Wounds to be a 5th level spell.

I much prefer the idea of Spell Combat being a physical and magical strike on the person they are in face to face combat with, then at least they are more in line with two-weapon fighting (1 target per attack) rather than large numbers of targets.

Not saying Magus should always be limited to touch spells, but just during Spell Combat leaving options like Fireball as needing to take a turn off from Spell Combat.

Just my opinion.

I agree that SMI can be useful. My goblin Sorceror bought a Wand of Summon Monster I for when he ran out of spells because he was weird and I wanted something more interesting than Magic Missile.

A few sessions later the DM thought he would be smart and had our enemy jump off a ledge into water when he was low on health. Everyone was quite upset until my turn when I said: "I start summoning a Dolphin". The dolphin out swam the baddie and knocked him unconscious.

People actually took pictures of the momentous occasion.