Kelazan's page

I also find Versatile a weird design choice to try to represent that way bullets (especially the rounded bullets of early firearms) have all this kinetic energy, but can also pierce armour and flesh like the best piercing arrows. Damage types remain an abstraction, but I cannot imagine any ancient firearm being only Piercing OR Bludgeoning.

When I was designing my gun houserules for a campaign that launched only a few days before the playtest, I tried to bring this dual type idea into play with custom weapon traits adding bonus Piercing damages to the Bludgeoning base damage of guns :

Point Blank = The weapon gains a +1 circumstance bonus to damages under the noted range* (usually half the weapon's base range). This damage increases to 2 with Greater Striking Runes. This damage is always Piercing.

I also went for a Piercing splash damage for Scatter weapons.

I am wondering if that kind of bonus damages through traits could be a solution for the apparent problem with a weapon doing two damage types at a time. This way, it's no different from having some Fire damages added on the Slashing damages of your magic sword.

I have been working on homebrew gun rules a few weeks before I got suprised by the Guns and Gears playtest, and while I liked a few of the ideas advanced by Paizo's team, I still feel like my take is worth sharing.

I personally feel like that Paizo wanted guns to be huge critters balanced around a short range, but that they went overboard with that concept, maybe trying to distance guns from potential martial crossbows. The design centered heavily around crits also make the weapons less than optimal for classes other than the Gunslinger and Fighter in my opinion. I feel like guns should be viable for every class if you want to run a gunpowder campaign.

I also tried to aim for that general design goal of crits and short range, but took a different route, mostly based around a few new weapon traits I feel are decently balanced for reload weapons like guns. I didn't touch the misfire rules or the rarity.

KELAZAN'S WEAPON TRAITS

Point Blank = The weapon gains a +1 circumstance bonus to damages under the noted range. This damage increase to 2 with Greater Striking Runes. This damage is always Piercing.* (*meaning a point blank shot can trigger both Bludgeoning and Piercing weaknesses, without going for the odd Versatile trait with bullets)

Inaccurate = The attack penalty for each range increment past the base weapon range increases by 1 (-3/-5/-7/etc.

Ball = A scatter weapon with this trait can be loaded with cannon balls, replacing the Scatter trait with a larger damage dice.

Burst = A ranged weapon with this traits reduces its MAP by 1 by increment if the previous attack was against the same target. (basically a limited Agile)

Scatter = A weapon with this trait inflicts a number of piercing splash damages equal to the number of weapon dices rolled in a 15’’ cone. The target must occupy a square in the cone. The cone is formed in a straight line from the shooter's position, inside the weapon's range.

Unsteady = As Paizo's version, but the penalty is also removed when Prone.

KELAZAN'S GUNS

Handgun (Simple, 6 GP)
1d6 B
40 feet range
2 hands
reload 1
Deadly d10, Point Blank (20’’), Inaccurate

Pistol (Simple, 5 GP)
1d4 B
20 feet range
1 hand
reload 1
Deadly d8, Point Blank (10’’), Inaccurate

Heavy Pistol (Mastial, 10 GP)
1d8 B
30 feet range
1 hand
reload 1
Deadly d10, Point Blank (15''), Inaccurate

Blunderbuss (Martial, 12 GP)
1d8 B
20 feet range
2 hands
reload 1
Scatter, Inaccurate, Fatal d12

Arquebus (Martial, 10 GP)
1d12 B
80 feet range
2 hands
reload 1
Deadly d12, Point Blank (40''), Inaccurate, Unsteady

Musket (Martial, 12 GP)
1d10 B
60 feet range
2 hands
reload 1
Deadly d12, Point blank (30''), Inaccurate

Pepperbox (Martial, 12 GP)
1d6 B
20 feet range
1 hands
reload 1 (1 action x 6 barrels)
Burst, Inaccurate

Repeater Carbine (Martial,15 GP)
1d8 B
40 feet range
2 hands
reload 1 (1 action x 6 barrels)
Burst, Inaccurate

Bombard (Martial, 12 GP)
1d10 B
40 feet range
2 hands
reload 1
Scatter, Inaccurate, Unsteady, Ball (d12)

Dragoon (Martial,10 GP)
1d8 B
20 feet range
1 hand
reload 1
Inaccurate, Scatter

Rifle (Advanced, 15 GP)
1d8 B
80 feet range
2 hands
reload 1
Fatal d12, Sniper, Point Blank (45'')

Hello people,

I am working on a sandbox campaign entirely located inside the city of Westcrown, Cheliax' former capital. I am not following adventure path canon and am more or less using the city as its older LE self, decaying and corrupted as before the beginning of the Council of Thieves AP.

I am trying to define what are the religious cults that could be active inside the city, and where they land in regard with the law and cultural acceptance.I know the church of Asmodeus is the state religion, but it is hinted all over the campaign setting that this isn't as true for the common folk as it is for the nobility. I am interested in knowing which cults are allowed, which are tolerated under conditions, and which are outright banned.

The gods I am most interested in are :
The other gods of the Godclaw : Iomadae,Torag,Abadar,and Irori
Pharasma
Shelyn
Serenrae
Norgorber
Zon-Kuthon
Erastil

My idea was that every religion that is allowed might have been somewhat twisted by Cheliax' culture. For instance, I was thinking of having Torag's clergy run Victorian era style workhouses to have unemployed citizens ''better themselves through hard work''.

I was already trying to go for slightly lower Ability Scores than the ones suggested by the NPC guidelines, but I see I could double down on that idea. Thank you for your comment! I am still expanding my list of NPC, so if there is interest I will eventually update the link with my most recent additions.

So I have been working for some time with the monster creation guidelines provided by Paizo, and I ended up making a bunch of NPC statblocks. I thought it could be worth it to share them so you guys can maybe playtest them in your own games, or at least provide thoughts and feedback.

I am aware I am not using the official format for monster statblock, and this was initially intended for personal use only, so the text for monster abilities and features was cut to the bare minimum. Still, I think it should be pretty intelligible. I am also willing to provide more details if a particular monster/NPC raises some questions.

At this point, I am pretty sure I have a tendency to make my NPC a little too skilled compared to the monsters seen in the bestiary, but with less extreme skill modifiers in many cases. If you spot other weird quirks in my design, feel free to share your thoughts.

Also, if you want access to the Word document to change my formatting, Here it is

I like :
- 3 action combat system
- The proficiencies and the +1 to everything automatic level advancement
- The nerf to spellcasters and the new four degrees of success on many spells
- Fixed HP and stat generation rules
- The multiclass archetypes and the new archetype system in general
- The new system for prestige classes
- The Bard, Sorcerer, and Barbarian classes have interesting new ideas
- The new item quality system with all its nuances
- The interactive initiative with various skill possibly being used

Meh / Unsure :
- The Cleric and Wizard seems a little blend, not unlike in PF1. I like the Cleric has more skill than the Int based caster though.
- Unsure about the Alchemist being relevant as a class under this new form. Seems underpowered.
- The Wizard, Cleric and Druid still being prepared caster VS using the PF1 Arcanist casting
- The ''Command a Minion'' idea for Animal Companion feels strange and unintuitive, but might be a necessary balancing factor.

Dislike :
- The Ranger in general. The Hunt Target mechanic seems very weak and restrictive to ''full-attack'' builds. The traps are a corner niche, and the flavor isn't there as much as it was with the Favored Terrain and Ennemies. I understand the need for a change, but the class as it is is by far my least favorite, while It used to be one of my first choices before.
- The lack of clear rules to level up or boost monsters past the ''Elite'' option. I really liked the Class Template idea that came late in PF1 and I would like to see it make a comeback in the official release. I want my players to fight cleric ogres worshipping Lamashtu, or Urgathoa Ghoul Sorcerers.
- The Druid wild shape fixed stats and modifiers doesn't seem necessary considering the new ability scores and level scalling, as well as the lack of ''boost'' in the system. It could have given bonus like the Mutagen are doing, so the Druid's base ability scores could be relevant when they turn into a bear version of themselves. As it is, a muscle druid bear shape isn't better than the one of a 8 Strenght Halfling druid, he can only gain additional benefits in additonal uses of the ability.

1. Do you currently like pathfinder 1e?
Not really. I extensively homebrewed the system as a GM to improve class balance and eliminate trap options for my players. I also find there is way too much content bloat and many archetypes, feats, spells, class are basically taking space for nothing and making it more harduous to understand the system limits.

2. Did you once like pathfinder 1e but now find it troublesome?
I was thrilled back in the days, mostly bu the Setting and the Lore Paizon created. The system was familiar coming from 3.5, but the flavor was in the fluff. I am still playing now, but only because of my homebrew content. If I hadn't a full custom bestiary on my bookshelve, I might have given in to my players's pressure and switched to 5th (god forgive me for saying that).

3. Do you like 4th or 5th edition D&D?
I don't really like 5th edition so much, I find it over-simplified. However, I played a bit of 4th and I actually really liked stuff like Skill Challenges and the more tactical gameplay during the fights for the martial classes.

4. Which are you looking for class balance, smoother high level play, more options, or even all of those things?
I am mostly looking for a more streamlined and effective game engine, as well as better class balance. At least making the martials still relevant past mid-levels.

5. How do you feel about making the game more accessible in general?
It's necessary if Paizo wants to survive in the long run, and I want Golarion to continue to expand.

6. Are you willing to give up on accessibility if you can still gain all of the benefits listed in question 4?
I would be ok wth a less accessible system, but I think it would defeat the point of attracting new players.

7. Would you be willing to play an alternative rules system then what we have been presented?
Maybe, it depends. I really like the new action economy and most of the changes so far. The lack of options is my only problem, and it's mostly due to size limitation on the playtest book.

8. And if you said yes to the above question what would you like to see in that theoretical game?
No more traditionnal prepared casters. Go full Arcanist mode or use Spell Pool, but prepared casting is too time consuming for my taste.

I would certainly prefer to see the Magus coming back in a way that would allow ''gish'' characters for any spellcasting tradition. All the flavor coming from the Magus balanced combination of magical and martial prowess always felt limiting to me when attached exclusively to arcane magic and wizardry. PF1 even added a few archetypes to answer this problem, like the Hexcrafter, Eldritch Scion or Puppetmaster. They weren't always balanced, but they showed that the Magus chassis didn't had to be based around wizardry.

I think that not only the mechanics, but also the core flavor of the Magus begs for the class to be reborn into something more versatile and flexible, maybe as a set of Feat or a Prestige Archetype requiring decent weapon proficiency and access to any spellcasting tradition. In fact, I hope this is where the designers are aiming if the Eldritch Knight makes a comeback.

The idea of the Magus as an over achiever, as well as the idea of someone trying to complement a magical or physical weakness with versatility...well...this is in no way limited thematically to arcane magic, and even less to wizardry. I can perfectly picture an Occult dabbler that combines mind tricks and advanced fencing, as well as a weak blooded sorcerer trying to build on her physical training to get the edge her magic can't provide all by itself. That can also work for a primal caster that reject pure magical might and see his body as the weapon provided to him by the nature he reveres.

I house-ruled a while ago that Fighter, Cavalier and Rogue could choose a 2nd good save. Didn't give more save to the Barbarian, since he has access to built in mechanics that increases his saves (Rage, Superstition, etc).

I don't think that giving 2 good save to full arcane casters is a good idea (they are already so powerful...I see their poor saves as that one drawback that can balance it a little bit). Oracle could get a second good save as the cleric, but it doesn't seem like something necessary, while buffing martial class was a coherent move for the purpose of game balance.

I am a huge fan of cavalier's mount, and I find your replacement underwhelming. Fighter training should replace a relatively weak ability like expert trainer or, maybe, cavalier's charge. Mount is a primary class feature for the cavalier, alongside the Challenge ability.

If you remove the mount, you need something big to replace it. Maybe a samurai-like pool with a little more love. Armor and weapon training are the fighter things, and I don't see any reason to add more fighter to an already fighter-like class like the cavalier. If you want to play a mount-less martial in heavy armor, the fighter should be the default choice.

If you really like the Challenge mechanics, just do a fighter archetype whit it.

@icyshadow : Maybe Satyrs ? They are born from raped / magicaly seduced women, so I guess they are often educated by humanoids if Satyrs can't reach them.

The ninja trick allows to Vanish as a swift action at the cost of 1 ki point. Very useful and it mimics the ult way better than hide in plain sight, at little cost.

Add templates or class level to frost giants to increase their CR and create diversity.

If you can, try to use the mythic rules. Each mythic tier increases your CR by 1/2 and add very powerful abilities, as the option to have an additional standard action per round, or to improve your spell casting (d10 x lvl fireballs for instance). I think that mythic could be more powerful than going epic level sorcerer (more than CL 20 isn't that useful by comparison).

I am not very familiar with that absurd level of power, so I can't help you more than guiding you toward mythic rules.

Shining child have a lot of anti-undead SLA, like little purifying psychopaths

Boneshatter is 4th level and does untyped damages.

Each fighter level added to an ogre adds +1 to his CR, since the fighter class serves the general purpose of the monster (at the opposite of...wizard levels, which would add +1/2 CR to an ogre up to the creature base CR, then +1 as normal).

The half fiend template add +1 to his CR, but this increases to +2 as soon as he reaches 5 HD. Basically, since ogres get 4 racial HD, his first fighter level, added with the template, raise instantly him to CR 6. After that, each fighter level will increase his CR by 1, until he reaches 11 HD, then the template add 1 additional CR (so, his 7th fighter level will increase his CR by 2). However, this advancement should result in a final CR 16 after 10 levels. I don't know why the AP put him CR 18, but this is not the first time I see mistake in monster/NPC stat block.

To calculate the way racial HD interact with class level, think about it as if he was multiclassing : just add the BAB, saves and skills ranks from his 4 humanoids «class» level to his fighter level (it should be +3 BAB, +4 For, +1 Ref, +1 Will).

If this guy is supposed to be a cohort, remember than he must always remain 2 CR lower than the PCs (2 PC class level + PC wealth = 2 CR). So, if he starts at CR6, he shouldn't appear as a cohort before the PCs reach at least 8th level.

Advancing monster can be tricky, especially if you are stacking templates and PC class level. You can easily build something that is a lot more powerful than it's CR value. Fortunately, ogre aren't that kind of monster, and you can go without fear, since they are pretty straightforward, with only 1 truly strong ability score and no supernatural abilities.

You seem to have added the appropriate modifiers from the class levels and the template.

The only problem I see here is the land/fly speed of Grumblejacks. It doesn't seem to take his armor into account (it should be 30/60 instead of 40/80). Also, flying in heavy armor is usually a bad idea...since the armor check penalty can be a pain in the ass to stay in flight when full-attacking (since you don't move a lot, you need a fly check...and this guy will fail it all the time). I recommend you to select the Hover feat as soon as possible to avoid this problem or to invest a little more in Dexterity and go with medium or mithral armor. With an higher dexterity, you could also select Combat reflexes and use this 10 feet reach to get more attack per round.

The feat Narrow Frame can help your mount avoiding to be squeezed in tight places. Nimble moves and Acrobatic steps are useful to help your Large mount avoid difficult terrain and charge without obstruction.

Mounted Archery is worded this way :

«Benefit: The penalty you take when using a ranged weapon while mounted is halved: –2 instead of –4 if your mount is taking a double move, and –4 instead of –8 if your mount is running.»

If you are only using one move action per turn, there is no benefit using this feat. Fighting mounted incurs penalties only if your mount double move or run, not if you limit yourself to your horse 50 ft. base speed. This feat can be useful if your campaign involves a lot of large open area (plain, etc), but you can't really hope to move 100 ft or more every round in most encounters, especially if you want to full-attack and use to its maximum potential your wonderful +lvl to damage from Challenge.

I love archer cavalier by the way, I think they are underestimated.

Oh. And one advice about your mount : if you can manage your horse to get Awesome blow as soon as possible, this can be pretty handy to push away dangerous opponents if you can't move away yourself.

I recommend you to focus on dexterity, to increase your attack modifier, initiative, Reflex save, etc. You will suffer less from the penalties from Rapid Shot and Deadly aim. With the damage bonus from your Challenge ability, you want to maximize your number of attack per round. Extra challenge could be a good feat if your DM likes to put a lot of encounters per day.

If you plan going into high levels, the Snap Shot tree is pretty good for a mounted archer. You can use your increased mobility while keeping a decent number of attack per round thanks to attacks of opportunity with your bow. Combined with Shot on the Run and Mounted archery, this can make your character very hard to catch without reducing too much his DPR if he is forced to move.

The Core feats for your build should be Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Rapid Shot, and Manyshot. After that, you can grab Weapon Focus or Improved Critical, but you are pretty much free to go where you want after Manyshot. Mounted combat and Mounted Archery aren't that important for you. Mounted archery is very situational. Most of the time, you will not be able to move that much and you will want to full-attack as much as possible. It start to be useful if you can afford Shot on the Run or the Snap Shot tree.

According to me, the discipline needed to be a monk should translate in the class being restricted to non-chaotic instead of Lawful only.

Being impulsive and lacking self control are Chaotic traits, but you can be very dedicated and focused without being strictly Lawful. Monk are not clerics, they don't have any rules or deity principles to follow. They just need discipline...and discipline isn't absolutely related to any belief in the supremacy of order, law or hierarchy. It is just a question of willpower.

Just using quickened sanctuary (with a rod of lesser quicken) at the beginning of every encounter can save you a lot of trouble. Even if you don't win the initiative, no one will be able to full-attack you the first round of an encounter except archers. With your charisma score...the Will DC of sanctuary will be at least 19, and this is the kind of spell that can worth to be heightened. With some concealment spell (fog cloud, blur, etc.) you can be «tanky» even without any AC. I hope you will try this build.

In a fantasy world, I think that an elite infantry such as the Pretorians would not be composed of straight fighters. I imagine them more like some kind of «gish characters» such as magus, warpriest or even bards.

Think about it : bards are proficient with shields and the longsword, and with the arcane duelist archetype, you will be able to cast spell with somatic components using your weapon hand without penalties. It also gives some utility to your high Charisma.

You will be able to fight well, and buff your allies with your commanding presence (aka inspire courage). With stats that high, this kind of battle bard is pretty efficient and your shield and dexterity will negate most of the AC loss related to armor (until you gain medium armor casting at 10th level). You will have a lot more utility outside of combat...and also a lot more option in combat with your spells and performances. The only downside I see is that you will not be proficient with the pillum...but a 1 level dip in fighter can negate this problem.

I modified a home-brew archetype to give some inquisitor domain spells without breaking this already very powerful class ; here it is. It's a more spell oriented inquisitor, with limited proficiency and judgement, plus a specialized Bane ability, in exchange of more spells. It seems balanced to me, especially compared to divine full casters.

By the way, if you want to talk about homebrew / house rule, this thread should be moved in the appropriate forum.

I use this list in my home games for the purpose of favored enemy and Bane. There is few arbitrary choices, I admit it (Strix and Wayangs...). By common humanoid, I am referring to anatomy and/or culture. For instance, Changelings are pretty uncommon, but they are mostly raised as human/other common humanoids. Same for the Samsarans.

ALTERNATE HUMANOID SUB-TYPES

Common: Human, Elf, Halfling, Dwarf, Orc, Samsaran, Gnome and Changelings

Feral: Ratfolk, Catfolk, Vanara, Vishkanya, Nagaji, Sasquatch, Shapechangers, Tengu, Kitsune, Grippli, Lizardfolk, Adlet, Charau-Ka, and Gnoll

Aquatic: Gillmen, Boggard, Locathah, Merfolk, Merrow, Giant (ocean) and Giant (marsh)

Subterranean: Dark Folk, Drow, Duergar, Troglodytes, Svirfneblin, Derro, and Kobold

Goblinoid: Goblin, Hobgobelin, Bugbear, Skulk, Strix and Wayang

Giant: all Giants

Dhampirs are Undead and Androids are Construct for the purpose of Bane and favored enemy.

You can use splash spell that are not countered by a reflex save (like unholy blight) or try to paralyses/slumber the opponent (Evasion is negated if the opponent is helpless).

The only mistake I can pin point for now is the high focus you placed on your character Charisma. If you are mainly built around disarming and buffing, there is no reason to place Charisma as your highest stat. In fact, a bard can start with Charisma 13 at 1st level and be very playable, increasing his Charisma score as he gains level. At mid and high level, the Charisma doesn't make any difference for performance rounds and your spell DCs can't follow the curve of full-caster anyway.

I DMed a game once where one of my player was a frontliner half-orc bard with a greataxe. She was one of the biggest threat in the party, outplaying the party magus in most melee fight, thanks to her two-handed build and wise spell selection. You can avoid most of the AC problem with mirror image, blur and displacement. True seeing and blast attacks are your only true nemesis with this kind of defense.

Once you reach 7th level, you can start a performance as a move action, cast your primary combat buff, then launch yourself in the melee the next round. If you have long duration spells like heroism, us them before the battle, like when entering the dungeon. With this kind of approach, playing a bard can be extremely funny and effective. It is the same with a trip build, a disarm build or an archer build. You just have to slack on the casting, be a little more selfish with your buffs, and focus more on your physical stats. No need to select a focused archetype, this can be done with a vanilla bard, and you don't loose much on the support aspect of the class.

The only true problem of the fighting bard is that he needs more stats than the average fighter, because he needs at least a good dexterity for the AC, a moderate Constitution to survive melee, a moderate Charisma, and a good Strength for most melee build. In my home game, we use a high point buy to help these kin of character to shine. If you have low stats, nothing here can help you. You could however suggest to your DM to gives you some kind of boost, like a fortunate tome of dexterity just for you or something like that.

An character level 20, an eidolon only has 15 BAB, so even if they are full bAB creatures, eidolon can't match the itteratives attacks of a fighter or barbarian with more hit dice. According to me, having an eidolon using its natural attacks is more effective. You can even improve the bite evolution by expanding a second evolution point in it, to hit as with a two-handed weapon, and so, even when full-attacking (like a dragon bite).

If I would have to build a channeling oradin, I wouldn't go hospitalier straight without questioning myself. Life oracle channel is enough, especially with a high charisma and oracle favored class bonus for asimaar. What you realy want with paladin is divine grace, free weapons and armors proficiency and that smite evil, that will turn you into a tank against THE villain of the day with this +CHa bonus to AC (all that with 2 paladins level).

Now that you have you core ability, you can go full channel and pick a few other paladin level to gain an extra channeling pool with the hospitalier, but doing so, you loose some of the power of your oracle channels. What you really need is to maximize your channel effectiveness as a life oracle. In your place, I would go full oracle after a 2 level paladin dip and select feat such as alignment channel (evil) and selective channel, then grab a nice martial reach weapon. You now have a character that can buff his team (aura of courage, spells), fight (attack of opportunities, smite, 3/4 BAB +2), heal (channel, spells), and burst undeads and outsiders with a powerful channel energy (you need this phylactery of positive channeling). The reach weapon help you to attack even if you channel or cast this round, thanks to the attack of opportunities opponents will provoke by moving around you.

Weapon Focus (bite) is the only animal feat you can use to improve your wolf trip ability.

If you are able to increase your wolf Intelligence to 3, try to pair with someone and give it Outflank to +4 flanking bonus to attack. (it could even be a free bonus from a cavalier teammate) You can also try to get Lunge and Combat reflexes to maximize the number of bite attack your wolf can make each round. An other idea his to use Furious focus :power attack with no penalties for the first attack each round.

Unfortunately, the only class that combines wildshape and decent fire spellcasting is the druid. You could however build your character around produce flame (using metamagic such intensified or extend to keep it relevant at later level) and maximize your number of attack per round (I think you can either rapid shot OR two-weapon fight with flames as thrown weapon). This kind of build would have a different flavor and gameplay than a standard summoning or melee druid.

@ secret wizard : using a minute level spell like elemental body or beast shape isn't usefull to serve as a mount. Wild shape is hour level, which gives some true utility to serve as a mount.

The spell resistance at first level is too strong IMO. With a 10+lvl+int, you have an above average SR, when even low or average SR are rare with player characters. I suggest you to remove the Intelligence scaling on the SR or to keep it, but with a 5+level spell resistance scaling instead of 10.

The rest is well rounded. I seriously think about including it into my own games.

The ability bonuses for monster advancement by class are +4, +4, +2,+2, +0, -2. Use it as a template over the Green Hag base statistics, then add the lich template and class levels. This is cruel, I must confess.

I disagree for the Charisma as a bonus. Mindless undead always have a static Charisma score. None of the former mental ability score of the creature are used with zombies or skeletons. Replacing this for a +4 Charisma bonus would make rust skeletons created from «charismatic» creatures stronger...even if the undead is mindless and doesn't have any remnant of a personality. On the other hand, an Ogre rust skeleton would be worse than most similar HD creatures because of its racial Charisma penalty.

However, the skald can't share any rage power with a limited number of use per rage. So, no free rage cycling here.

Avoid two-handed fighting if you want your pc to survive more than 1 hit. I would recommend a tanky sword and board opponent for the duel, with low damage and good defenses to make the duel last. If you build a more offensive opponent, try a two-handed guy with improved sunder, so if he hit, he will first destroy your PCs armor, not his torso. This can be very cinematic.

If you pay for a mercenary, you could use his average Profession (soldier) roll per week.

For a 3th level warrior, it should be around 8 GP / week (10 + 3 rank + 3 class = 16 /2 = 8).

This is for commun not so dangerous job, like escorting a caravan or working as a bodyguard. For realy dangerous mission, you could add a extra cost (x2, x5 or even x10).

According to me, the greatest advantage of the warpriest is the wider spell access. You have basically all 1st to 6th level cleric spells, while the inquisitor is spontaneous, which is both an advantage and a problem.

About the question of self-buffing, inquisitor are already able to do it very well with judgement and Bane, so I don't see any edge for the warpriest here before high level, where spell may start being stronger than a well selected judgement (don't forget they are sacred bonus, in opposition of most cleric spell that don't stack very well, sacred stack with most item/spell).

For the class feature and skills, Inquisitor still is my favored martial/divine class, but the warpriest have a different flavor. I would rather play a warpriest of Gorum than an inquisitor, for instance.

You seem to have a very martial oriented party, with no full-caster and three martial character around the table. This is certainly a reason why your encounter can seem very easy or very hard. I don't know how to approach this problematic because I don't know your players specific builds.

About the Fighter and Ranger being behind, this is quite normal at this level because the three other characters have resource pools (bombs, spells, challenges, mutagen) they can Nova in the big encounters, and decent BAB so they can kill very efficiently easier encounters without expending resources.

To make the fighter and ranger shine, you could try a fight in the middle on the night, when spells and extracts are not ready yet, or use attrition with various average power level encounters to reduce the casting classes and the cavalier's resources. Don't hesitate to directly counter the strongest characters of your party when they are too specialized. For instance, Spell Resistance and energy immunity are a pain in the ass for the alchemist and magus, while it doesn't change anything for the fighter. Try to use grapples too. Grappled magus and alchemist aren't that strong, and they will need the help of other party members to escape.

Also, be sure your players are tracking there resources pool and that they really prepare their spells/extracts in advance. A lot of complaints about prepared caster power level comes from players that just decide on the fly what they have prepared a second fireball this day.

Try a Multi Ability Dependent(Mad)class, such as a melee bard, a battle oracle, a shapeshifter druid, etc.

With stats like that, you can afford a good primary casting stat AND good combat viability. Don't go for a bad BAB class, you would waste all the fun of this versatility. If you like being the wizard, try a magus, they can cast most good wizard evocation spells AND are amazing fighting machine. Or try a Bard, or even a combat oriented Summoner if you are more in the God mage thing. Illusion, buff and enchantment for the bard, conjuration and buff for the summoner. You will be almost as good at casting, but much more funny at low level and able to stand a melee fight.

You could just use a transmuter wizard, switch the good save to Fortitude and replace normal casting by alchemy...and create level 7,8 and 9 extracts (this is the big job here).

I played an inquisitor from level 7 to 14 in a hight level campaign, and their versatility is totally awesome. I started as an halberd wielder two-handed inquisitor, but soon, with the good buff on and bane..then greater bane, I turned into a nightmarish switch-hitter with a composite long bow...and no archery feat. I almost killed in one shoot a lvl 15 druid with a Named Bullet (goooood spell).

This class is awesome.

I personally use a fused feat chain system in my games. There is the feat list as it is now.

FUSED FEATS

Adder Strike – Pinpoint Poisoner
Arcane Armor Training – Arcane Armor Mastery
Blind Fight – Improved Blind Fight – Greater Blind Fight
Catch of Guard – Improvised Weapon Mastery
Combat Expertise – Swift Aid
Combat Reflexes – Pin Down
Cleave – Great Cleave
Cleaving Finish – Improved Cleaving Finish
Dazzling Display – Shatter Defenses
Disruptive – Spellbreaker – Shatterspell
Double Slice – Two-Weapon Rend
Deathless Initiate – Deathless Master – Deathless Zealot
Greater Mercy – Ultimate Mercy
Improved Feint – Greater Feint
Improved Dirty Trick – Greater Dirty Trick – Dirty Trick Master
Improved Bull Rush – Greater Bull Rush – Quick Bull Rush
Improved Trip – Greater Trip
Improved Disarm – Greater Disarm – Disarming Strike
Improved Overrun – Greater Overrun
Improved Sunder – Greater Sunder
Improved Drag – Greater Drag – Quick Drag
Improved Grapple – Greater Grapple
Improved Steal – Greater Steal – Quick Steal
Improved Shield Bash – Shield Slam – Shield Master
Improved Reposition – Tactical Reposition – Greater Reposition – Quick Reposition
Impaling Critical – Improved Impaling Critical
Mobility – Spring Attack – Shot on the Run
Moonlight Stalker – Moonlight Stalker Feint – Moonlight Stalker Master
Net Adept – Net and Trident – Net Maneuvering – Net Trickery
Nightmare Fist – Nightmare Weaver – Nightmare Striker
Precise Shot – Improved Precise Shot – Pinpoint Targeting
Trample – Mounted Onslaught
Trick Riding – Mounted Skirmisher
Rending Claw – Rending Fury – Improved Rending Fury – Greater Rending Fury
Sap Adept – Sap Master
Surprise Follow-Trough – Improved Surprise Follow-Trough
Throw Anything – Improvised Weapon Mastery
Two-Weapon Fighting – Improved Two-Weapon Fighting – Greater Two-Weapon Fighting
Weapon Focus – Greater Weapon Focus
Weapon Specialisation – Greater Weapon Specialisation
Shield Focus – Greater Shield Focus
Shield Specialisation – Greater Shield Specialisation
Vital Strike – Improved Vital Strike – Greater Vital Strike
Whip Mastery – Improved Whip Mastery – Greater Whip Mastery
Wind Stance – Lightning Stance

Nimble Strike (Combat)
You have learned to turn your speed into power and your accuracy is lethal.
Prerequisites: Dexterity 13, Weapon Finesse, BAB +2
Benefit: When wielding a light weapon or one-handed weapon with one hand, you can use your Dexterity modifier instead of your Strength modifier on melee attack and damage rolls. You cannot use this feat if you are carrying a weapon or shield in your off hand. The weapon must be made for a creature of your size. This feat apply on a single type of weapon (ex.: shortsword, longsword, light pick, etc.).

This is my answer to the «every one want dext to damage» question, without creating a single feat for each type of weapon. Before the ACG, scimitar were the only weapon with this possibility, thanks to Dervish dance. I wasn't satisfied with this lack of option for Dex based build.

All of these modifications are awesome. I officially add them to my own home-brew rule book. Thank you for your contribution ^^

As Da'ath said, you just have to guess the approximate power level of your template by referring to already existing templates.

Personally, I often use an official template, then modify it, adding X spell-like ability instead of Y, or changing the type of DR, etc.

For more creative design, you can use the advanced simple template as a good reference. +4 to all ability score and +2 natural armor is supposed to be the basic +1 CR template in Pathfinder.

Just with the strength, your warrior will need to have more than Str 30 and above AND a permanent ant haul spell to lift these 25 tons. With this strength and a few monk level, he can hit as with adamatium weapon, bypass hardness and destroy pretty much what he want. For the shockwave...I don't know. Monks have very high touch AC, so maybe it would explain this warrior efficiency against firearms.

I don't have any idea for a CR, it will depend of the number of class level and the bonus you will have to throw on it.

Doting for interest

I created s Swashbuckler class before the release of the ACG playtest...something very similar in fact, but with a little bit more versatility inside the class frame. It is wath I use instead of the somewhat boring Paizo's one.

Kelazan's Swashbuckler