Luna Vakarian's page

Hi, is there any alternative way of reaching out to Customer Service? I emailed customer.service@paizo.com and got the automated response that a support ticket was created and the team will reply shortly. There wasn't any promised ETA.

It's been over a week and I replied to the email several days later to add a comment just hoping for a status update or a general ETA but still nothing. This seems really frustrating as there seems to be no path forward if Customer Service just doesn't reply or acknowledge the ticket via email.

There is no Customer Service forum anymore. There is no phone number anymore. I've had the Paizo Advantage subscriptions for over 4 years now and this is the first time I've felt punished for being a loyal customer. I had the same issue as others where the Pathfinder Society Scenario orders weren't being generated since September 2023 and even just reply for an ETA update on my ticket would have been enough.

Paizo's Customer Service was always top-notch in the past and the thought of having to go through this process in the future for any issues is... intimidating.

But having it built-in feels a bit too powerful for the class as well to allow this martial to use melee and range attacks off a single attribute. Also a lot of the existing base class features feel essential so I wouldn't know what to swap with it if it was to be built-in.

This is just feels a little close to the Alchemist's Powerful Alchemy situation and it's always a little awkward when there is a Level 1 Class Feat that stands out among the rest.

There's also the potentially strange interaction of Flexible Blasts working with Elemental Weapon to allow for a Brutal One-Handed Crossbow or a Brutal Firearm but that is possibly intentional since the damage die of Elemental Blasts with those Ranged Weapons were similar anyway.

So one of my first reactions upon reading how the Kineticist is supposed to function. Since the Elemental Blast is a specialized action and not a Basic Strike action, this is one of the first Martial progressing classes to seem to have a harder time utilizing Haste to have a Quickened Action for a basic Stride or Strike with potentially the Magus as an honorable mention.

I'm curious how the mid-level playtests go in this regard. My following thought is that since the Kineticist has so many Impulse feats that require good positioning and that the class is pretty action-hungry to Gather Elements, Elemental Blast, and use special Impulse actions that they probably are happy with a Quickened action to Stride each turn anyway without ever using a basic Strike. One of the things I hope playtesters keep an eye on. I think melee Maguses did also appreciate the Quickened Stride too anyway even if they focused on Spellstrikes instead of Basic Strikes on most turns.

Speed Runes on the Handwraps of Mighty Blows are also awkward but that is near Level 19 where the Kineticist does get a built-in Class feature to make them Quickened to Gather Elements which is excellent and nicely helps the class take advantage of the Quickened condition but waaaaay later at Level 19.

Deepest Wellspring is the normal bread-and-butter Level 18 ability to Refocus three spent Focus points that all classes that utilize Focus points get in their feat selection. However due to the Psychic's unique interaction with Focus Points amplifying cantrips, I was expecting... something unique with this feat.

I would like to see either:

1) This feat be available at Level 14 or 16 but include the restriction that all 3 focus points are restored if all focus points are spent to amp cantrips and have it freely upgrade to the generic Level 18 version (might be too good to frontload taking a level 18 feat at a lower level but this could be a unique perk of the Psychic feat selection)

2) Some extra ability tacked onto this Level 18 feat. Perhaps just 1/day the Psychic can use a free action/single action to amp a cantrip without using a Focus point as a bonus rider to simulate having potentially 4 Focus Points for one fight for the Psychic

Constant Levitation
Your power has unbound you from the earth below, letting you float harmlessly over traps and unstable terrain. You’re affected by a constant air walk, except the highest you can walk is 5 feet above the ground. While your psyche is unleashed, you’re also affected by a fly spell.

This is mechanically super cool, but comparable feats at Level 16 are giving characters permanent flight. Because you can only Unleash Psyche in a significant encounter this mechanically is more inline with temporary or in-combat flight abilities that are granted by mid-level options. The advantage of Constant Levitation is the fact no actions are required to activate the flight in combat and the constant Air Walk at 5-feet above the ground.

But since it doesn't actually grant true out-of-combat flight (You aren't trying to fly the One Ring to Mordor with Constant Levitation), I don't see why this feat needs to be Level 16. To keep it as is, it should be probably be a lower-level option.

Preferably, it feels weird you are able to passively float at 5-feet above the ground but require significant in-combat stress to actually fly. I would prefer... using a Focus Point to at least get a temporary boosted flair of flight for out-of-combat use.

This feat is really cool, just hopefully tweaked and cooked a bit more before final release.

Current wording is:
"If you’ve spent at least 2 Focus Points and spent Focus Points only to amp psi cantrips since the last time you Refocused, you regain 2 Focus Points when you Refocus. Otherwise, you regain 1 Focus Point."

I think the restriction to have only spent Focus Points exclusively to amp psi cantrips a bit much considering how much of the player base likes to mix and match player options like picking up another Focus Spell/ability.

I suggest changing it to:

"If you’ve spent at least 2 Focus Points to amp psi cantrips since the last time you Refocused, you regain 2 Focus Points when you Refocus. Otherwise, you regain 1 Focus Point."

This way the ability still encourages Focus points to be spent to amp psi cantrips, particularly spend 2 to regain 2 same as before but now if the Psychic picks up another Focus ability and gain a 3rd Focus point, they can still spend that 3rd Focus point towards a new Focus Spell/ability and 2 Focus points to amp psi cantrips in order qualify to regain 2 points when they Refocus.

Very slight softening of the restriction that should play the same in the normal case and is less restrictive to multiclassing and archetype options.

Advanced Weaponry - You’ve upgraded your construct’s weaponry. Choose one of your construct’s unarmed attacks to gain your choice of one initial weapon modification, chosen from the list on page 17 or from other initial weapon modifications to which you have access. The unarmed attack must meet any requirements for the chosen traits (such as being a melee attack for entangling form)

One of the Initial Weapon Modifications is Complex Simplicity (simple weapon only) Increase your innovation’s weapon damage die by one step (d4 to d6, d6 to d8, d8 to d10, d10 to d12). In addition, it gains one of the following traits of your choice: versatile B, versatile P, or versatile S.

I believe RAW since Advanced Weaponry mentions the construct's unarmed attack must meet any requirements for the chosen traits, no unarmed attacks qualify for Complex Simplicity which can only apply to simple weapons and RAW, unarm attacks do not count as weapons.

"However, unarmed attacks aren’t weapons, and effects and abilities that work with weapons never work with unarmed attacks unless they specifically say so."
https://2e.aonprd.com/Rules.aspx?ID=223

I am unsure if this is intentional and if it is intentional, I am wondering if this Breakthrough option should clarify it with reminder text since increasing damage die is going to be among the more appealing options each time. I'd rather it is clarified that Complex Simplicity can be taken as an option specifically as an Advanced Weaponry modification. It doesn't seem overly powerful and in example builds I simply wanted to upgrade the projectile launcher d4 damage die to a d6 instead to make it line up with a shortbow's damage output.

I saw a few posts from other people mentioning that this Focus Spell should have its duration increased to 10 minutes but wanted to add my playtest feedback for this.

This focus spell really wants to be a out-of-combat spell. It's a pretty natural trope to want your eidolon to scout ahead, especially when they have alternative speeds and senses to use. 1 minute is far too limiting to accomplish this, even if they do have an advantage of unmanifesting at the end so they don't necessarily need to secure a route back to the party.

I wouldn't mind seeing a 10-minute duration as a heightened version of the Focus spell, so that while not being available at Level 1, eventually unlocks as an option to use.

Having the duration become longer than 10 minutes is awkward for a Focus spell, but might still be okay for consideration as another heightened level (like an hour for example) since the Summoner's refocus activity requires bonding with their Eidolon which wouldn't be possible until they returned. (If the Summoner gains another Refocus activity, I can't see this being a broken Focus spell still.)

So the Eidolon's Proficiencies are listed as:

Proficiencies
Your eidolon’s level is equal to yours. They begin as an expert in Fortitude and Will saves and are trained in Reflex saves. In addition, they’re trained in unarmed attacks and unarmored defense. **They share your skill proficiencies.** Certain class features increase your eidolon’s proficiencies.

I like this class feature. It helps simplify the complexity of managing two statblocks.

I like the flavor of the Class Feat Dual Studies:
You and your eidolon have each practiced some skills on your own, though not all your experiences translate with the shared link. Choose two different skills. Your eidolon becomes trained in one of those skills and you become trained in the other skill. At 7th level, you each become an expert in the chosen skills.

I, however, find it confusing from the way the Eidolon's skill proficiencies were implemented. The flavor of the class feat seems to be that you and your Eidolon uniquely gain skill proficiencies that differ from each other but it seems the way these two mechanics would actually interact would be:

*You become trained in a skill and therefore your Eidolon also becomes trained in that skill. Your eidolon becomes trained the other skill and you do not become trained in that skill.*

Specific overrides General and maybe this Class Feat is meant to override the general Eidolon Skill Proficiences but it isn't clearly worded that they wouldn't gain the proficiency from the skill proficiency the Summoner just gained. I think this class feat's wording should be clarified if it's kept as is in the final version.

Something that has come up recently for one of my players. I have a PC who took Champion Dedication and is adjusting to 2E multiclassing changes. They expect to get some benefit regarding their Deity's Favored Weapon which is an unarmed attack.

Now since the Deific Weapon is a Champion Class Feature and not a Feat, there's no way for a player who took Champion Dedication to increase the Damage die of their Deity's Favored Simple Weapon or Unarmed attack.

Since Clerics can increase the damage die of their Deity's Favored Simple Weapon or Unarmed attack through a feat, Players who take Cleric Dedication do get access to this through the Cleric Feat Deadly Simplicity within the Cleric Multiclass Archetype options.

I think Champion Dedication Archetypes should also get access to a similar feat. Apologies if this was posted about before. I didn't see the topic among the threads and is an odd anomaly that I hope can get addressed in future content or errata.