Old topic, but I just found my local brick and mortar game store had the Vampire Hunter D supplement for sale (and yes, I got a copy). Since the book is now generally available beyond the kickstarter, maybe there's a chance this will get approved for PFS. The class is actually REALLY cool.
Those three PFS GMs are wrong. The gloves are magic items, but not spell trigger nor spell completion. They do not require any for of UMD check. Rulings like that are indicative of GMs that like to see PCs die or who run their games GM vs PC rather than as a collaborative storyteller.
All of the above are good spells for dealing with the Undead. Here are a few more: Harming
Controlling
Defense
Missing limbs would fall under the rules presented in Chapter 5 of Ultimate Combat regarding called shots. Unfortunately this doesn't help PFS players. The information can be found in the results for a debilitating blow. In regards to legs,
Debilitating Blow: Legs:
"A debilitating blow to the leg knocks the creature prone. The blow renders the leg entirely useless until healed unless the target succeeds at a Fortitude saving throw. If the saving throw fails by 5 or more, the leg is severed or otherwise mangled such that only regeneration or similar effects can repair it. If the save succeeds, the target is instead lamed and moves at half speed until the leg is healed, or until it receives a successful DC 20 Heal check. A creature with a useless or severed leg moves at half speed if it still has more than half of its legs usable; otherwise, it cannot stand up and must crawl to move. The target also suffers the effects of a called shot to the leg (if the leg remains usable) for 2d6 minutes.
Called Shot: A called shot to a leg lowers the target creature’s speed by 10 feet for 1d4 rounds if it has two or fewer legs, and by 5 feet if it has three or four legs. In either case, the creature’s speed cannot be reduced below 5 feet per round. Called shots to the leg have no effect on creatures with five or more legs. Hitting the same leg more than once has no extra effect, but the speed penalty for hits on different legs stack. Additionally, any skill or ability checks involving movement (such as Acrobatics or Swim checks) take a –2 penalty for 1d4 rounds." Debilitating Blow: Arms: "Debilitating Blow: A debilitating blow deals 1d6 points of Dexterity damage and 1d6 points of Strength damage. The blow renders the arm useless until healed unless the target succeeds at a Fortitude saving throw. If the saving throw fails by 5 or more, the arm is severed or otherwise mangled such that only regeneration or similar effects can repair it. The target also suffers the effects of a called shot to the arm (if the arm remains usable) for 2d6 minutes.
Called Shot: A called shot to an arm deals no additional damage, but for 1d4 rounds, any attack rolls, ability checks, or skill checks made using the wounded arm take a –2 penalty. A flying creature shot in the wing must make a Fly check to avoid descending involuntarily."
Gisher is indeed correct. When firing at an opponent that an ally is currently engaged with in melee combat, without Precise Shot you will suffer a -4 at best and a -8 if you can't get a clear line of effect. I strongly recommend taking Precise Shot at level 3 over Rapid Shot. First, hitting more consistently is preferable to hitting harder at early levels. Second, you will have more available wealth to afford alchemical cartridges at higher levels than you will at lower levels. Some will try to argue that since you're attacking a target's Touch AC, the -8 isn't that big of a deal. Those same people that argue that seem to consistently forget that firearms only hit Touch AC at the first range increment, which you are not always going to have the luxury of attacking, especially when using pistols. Don't be a rube. Get Precise Shot.
Hi Vash. In PFS although generally you cannot craft, there are a few exceptions that are called out in the PFS campaign FAQs. Gunslingers are allowed to do this with the justification that they aren't technically crafting but "buying at a discount." Rogues and Alchemists that have the Poisoner Archetype and the Master Poisoner ability are allowed to craft poisons. Alchemists are the only other exception that I'm aware of. They are actually allowed to craft alchemical items and weapons provided their Craft: Alchemy is high enough to meet the DC's and they can afford the cost. All of this can be found in the PFS FAQ linked earlier.
Actually, this is covered in the PFS FAQ under How does purchasing/crafting special material alchemical cartridges work in Pathfinder Society Organized Play? "You figure out the cost of special material ammunition the normal way (or look it up on the table on page 141 of Ultimate Equipment). If you have the Gunsmithing feat you can craft non-alchemical cartridge ammunition for 10% of the cost. If you have at least 1 rank in Craft (alchemy) you can craft alchemical cartridges for half the price of the cartridge." [Edit]Nefreet did an even more comprehensive breakdown of the prices in this thread To quote Nefreet,
I prefer to play cockroach wizards and have been doing so for the majority of my D&D and Pathfinder career and so far have only had one Conjurer die (to be raised after the fight). Here's what I've learned in my time. First, know your GM. Know how they run. Are they strict RAW enthusiasts or do they take liberty with the rules? Do they prefer to play it loose to tell a story or do they stick to the books? How do they run their NPCs? Do they play their thugs as opportunistic or not? Do their villains target "soft targets" like Wizards and Alchemists first over the more tanky fighters and clerics? If so, invest in Mock Armor. Deception is your friend as a Wizard. Survivability as a Wizard depends on you being prepared. Survivability as a Wizard with a long career depends on you being paranoid. The Handy Haversack is worth it's weight in platinum. Always, and I mean **always** have at least a second Spell Component Pouch, if not three or four. You will *never* win the AC war. Don't even pretend you will. Instead consider every possible way you can prevent your opponents from hitting you in the first place by stacking forms of Concealment and Miss Chances. In this regard, do not waste your time with spells that operate on Rounds Per Level but rather Minutes Per Level or even better Hours Per Level. You want your defenses up as often and for as long as you possibly can. If you're spending the first two or more rounds in an encounter buffing yourself, you're as good as dead. This doesn't even take into consideration situations in which you have lost surprise. That said, always have Mage Armor up. Some AC is better than no AC. And as an hour per level spell, it's cheap to have up. If you don't want to waste your valuable spell slots on it, wands of Mage Armor are a better investment than scrolls. Consider your Opposition Schools carefully, but since we're playing Pathfinder and not D&D and finally have the choice of which schools we want to drop, DO. NOT. DROP. ILLUSION. Some of the best defensive spells exist in that school. I would also strongly discourage dropping Necromancy as False Life and Greater False Life are incredibly valuable. Surprisingly, I've found Divination is actually quite useful to drop. Unlike previous editions, you aren't prohibited form casting opposition school spells, it's just more costly to prepare. With the exception of True Strike, nearly every divination spell is just as useful cast from a scroll. Enchantment is also worth dropping as it tends to rely on you specializing in it and having a good Charisma. On the topic of False Life/Greater False Life, you will technically have more hit points than the average wizard, and everyone "knows" how squishy spellcasters are. Consider diverting some of your skill points to Bluff. Playing dead is a valid option. Stay at range. Spectral Hand is a valuable tool for accomplishing this and doesn't cost you a Feat slot for Reach Metamagic. Precise Shot is not a bad option if you prefer rays. Summoning is also a good option, especially when combined with Invisibility, Silent Spell and any feats or traits that reduce the casting time of a summons. Remember, you can cast any spell that doesn't directly harm a target up to and including Summon X and not break invisibility. Silent Spell just helps prevent your opponents from knowing who/what is causing the creatures to appear. Wear a Cold Iron Spiked Gauntlet but do not invest in any feats/traits to be proficient in it. The goal isn't to fight with it, but rather to always threaten the spaces around you without giving up your hands for spellcasting and wand/potion use. Sure, the optimizers will tell you it's okay to dump Strength. On paper, they're probably right. In practice, those Wizards end up Fatigued, ill prepared and ***DEAD***. There are vastly more creatures that can dish out ability damage or drain to Strength than to Charisma. Don't be yet another Wizard that got strength-drained into the ranks of the undead. Those guys are an embarrassment. If I can think of any other advice later, I'll include it.
Oh man, just about every character I play has the this load out; Handy Haversack, two Bandoliers, two Spring Loaded Wrist Sheathes. As for the Haversack itself, I prefer the following Mundane:
Magical:
For my Bandoliers:
Wrist Sheathes:
This post is a request to clarify the Adventurer's Armory Scorpion Whip in regards to how it interacts with the following feats; Weapon Finesse
Given that the AA Scorpion Whip is now the default version for use in PFS organized play, clearing up the weapon's usage would greatly benefit all players who wish to use it and reduce any confusion for GM's presented with one at their table.
Much like others above in the thread, I've made an Inspired Blade Swashbuckler 1 / Investigator but decided to take it even further down the near single stat build and go Empiricist. Support that with the Student of Philosophy trait and nearly everything you do is based off of Int. It's just wicked good. [Fun Fact: Even if you totally dump Charisma as an Inspired Blade, you will still get a minimum of 1 Panache from your Cha in addition to an amount equal to your Int! Free Panache!] The downside to Inspired Blade is that you can only regain Panache via rapier crit's. Kills don't help so you'll want to make your rapier Keen if possible. You will want the feat Fencing Grace from Advanced Class Origins for Dex to damage and should strongly consider Weapon Versatility from Undead Slayer's Guide to be able to switch the rapier's damage from piercing to slashing or bludgeoning on the fly since it's going to be your primary weapon for a looooong while.
I don't see why you would want any other interpretation. This one is a fair reading of the text, and confirmed by one of the editors of the book in question; and now again supported by Paizo's choice of AA over UE. And it makes all the mechanics work right and make sense. So why look so hard for another interpretation that breaks it? Because... reasons? To be punitive to players that don't play Fighter, Cleric, Rouge or Wizard or stray beyond sword & board, morningstars, daggers or quarterstaves? You know what, I don't care why some people want to be argumentative and needlessly try to reinterpret the rules to be as player-unfriendly as possible. We got the good Scorpion Whip back and it's PFS legal. That's all I need to know.
To be frank, I skipped a lot of the posts past the first page. Here's my two coppers and a possible curveball you can throw this GM. First, he sounds like the kind of GM I would initially politely explain my concerns with, then politely never play with again after having him tell me to "stop being a baby." That's just uncalled for once everyone is over 14 years old. Second, here's how you completely obliterate the most heinous dragons when you've already invested so heavily into spell penetration; Although the older a dragon gets, the nastier their SR becomes, nearly everyone forgets that dragon's Dex scores become increasingly crappy. Hell, an Ancient Dragon has a Dex score of 8. Calcific Touch allows SR, but the Dex damage cannot be saved against if the attack hits. Combine this spell with Spectral Hand or Reach Metamagic. Hell, Maximize this spell and watch this GM's heart shatter as his gargantuan sized, Ancient uber-dragon is petrified in two hits. For added amusement, encourage the melee types to break out the Earthbreakers and really do a number to the thing. Also, Dweomor's Essence can increase your spell penetration by another +5 when used as a material component.
Perhaps it wouldn't be a "good" weapon, but an awesome weapon to flurry with would be a halfing or gnome. Just multiclass into Barbarian with the Body Bludgeon rage power after gaining as many Monk of the Empty Hand levels as you feel you need before switching to a chaotic alignment. I'm just not sure if a Titan Mauler Barbarian can use Jotungrip with Body Bludgeon or not... Dual-wielding and flurrying Kobolds would be Epic.
The question isnt about the swift action limit , you can still consider having one per turn and this question is still relevant. For example if you are staggered and want to do something which requires a swift action. Such as casting a swift action spell you had prepared I don't see where that would be relevant, specifically in regards to the Staggered condition. Using that example with the OP's question, You would still be limited to one Swift action as you wouldn't have a Standard action to convert into any Swift actions. Staggered A staggered creature may take a single move action or standard action each round (but not both, nor can he take full-round actions). A staggered creature can still take free, swift, and immediate actions. A creature with nonlethal damage exactly equal to its current hit points gains the staggered condition. [EDIT] Frankly, the game works with it's current action economy. Paizo has no reason nor need to "fix it." And if you don't like the rule, remember that you can always change it for your own home games.
Although you can handwave it, a Lich needs money to fund it's research and preparations, same as anyone. That said, it would be interesting to see a Lich that operated a magic item shop front but built in hidden command words to every item they crafted and sold that would deactivate the item, provided they recognized their own handiwork.
You know.. you could get around the caster level requirements for the phylactery by using the
Seems like a level 11 tiefling or aasimar fighter with high ranks in Craft could qualify to become a lich.
Personally, I've always interpreted the use of those two items as such; Hat of Disguise: Once you put the hat on you assume the appearance you want as long as you want. However, should you want to change your appearance to another disguise, you must remove the hat (revealing your true appearance, albeit temporarily) and don it again to benefit from the next disguise. I felt you can't just say a magic word or mentally will a new disguise without removing the hat first. Ring of Invisibility: In my opinion, the ring has unlimited duration once worn, however, as it is a Ring of Invisibilty and not a Ring of Greater Invisibility, the moment you take any hostile action that would end the duration of the spell Invisibility, the Ring ceases to function until you use a standard action to activate it again. The obvious downside to a unlimited duration ring of invis is when the wearer is paralyzed or incapacitated while it is active and no other member of the party can cast See Invisibility...
*sighs* Why is it that every time someone asks about making a shovel wielding character, people suggest they take a monk's spade? They're nothing alike. A monk's spade is a glorified polearm/axe with a big honkin' crescent moon thing on the end and can't be used to dig a flower bed let alone a grave. Sure, there's a weapon block for the thing whereas shovels, painfully, are stuck in the limbo of improvised weapons (to my unending annoyance) but outside of PFS, the problem is easily fixed with a simple houserule. ....Still, I wish you could enchant a shovel for PFS. I would kill for a Disrupting or Vorpal shovel.
Having played at Art's table many times I can attest to his skill, graciousness and courtesy to his players, new and experienced. In fact, it was at his table that I played my first PFS scenario and thanks to the experience he and the other players provided, I am thoroughly hooked on the campaign. Thanks Art for been such a grand GM and congratulations on earning your fifth star! PS If you get the opportunity to play at his table, you *have* to experience how he roleplays Shiela Heidmarch. >=D
Okay, I just want to run this item past the various rule masters here; Bottled Sunlight:
Source: Undead Slayer's Handbook
Price 200 gp; Weight 2 lbs. Category Alchemical Tools Description As a standard action, this ornate rectangular jar can be vigorously shaken to cause its contents to mix and activate. Once shaken, the contents of the jar shed light as a sunrod for 6 hours. A jar of activated bottled sunlight can be thrown as a splash weapon with a range increment of 10 feet. Upon striking a solid object, the bottled sunlight creates a 30-foot-radius burst of natural sunlight that persists for 1 round, after which all light from the jar fades. Throwing an inactive jar of bottled sunlight destroys the item, leaving only a smoldering pile of ashes where it struck. Crafting this item requires a successful DC 30 Craft (alchemy) check. Construction Craft (Alchemy) DC 30 I made sure to bold the part of interest, the fact that it creates natural sunlight for 1 round. Now lets look at Vampire weaknesses. Again I will bold the part of interest; Vampire Weaknesses::
Vampires cannot tolerate the strong odor of garlic and will not enter an area laced with it. Similarly, they recoil from mirrors or strongly presented holy symbols. These things don’t harm the vampire—they merely keep it at bay. A recoiling vampire must stay at least 5 feet away from the mirror or holy symbol and cannot touch or make melee attacks against that creature. Holding a vampire at bay takes a standard action. After 1 round, a vampire can overcome its revulsion of the object and function normally each round it makes a DC 25 Will save. Vampires cannot enter a private home or dwelling unless invited in by someone with the authority to do so. Reducing a vampire’s hit points to 0 or lower incapacitates it but doesn’t always destroy it (see fast healing). However, certain attacks can slay vampires. Exposing any vampire to direct sunlight staggers it on the first round of exposure and destroys it utterly on the second consecutive round of exposure if it does not escape. Each round of immersion in running water inflicts damage on a vampire equal to one-third of its maximum hit points—a vampire reduced to 0 hit points in this manner is destroyed. Driving a wooden stake through a helpless vampire’s heart instantly slays it (this is a full-round action). However, it returns to life if the stake is removed, unless the head is also severed and anointed with holy water. So, given this information am I correct in reading that if the party were to be equipped with merely two Bottled Sunlights that were both already active and threw them at a vampire's feet (naturally targeting an adjacent empty square)over two consecutive rounds, the vampire is destroyed without a saving throw? For a 400 gp investment? If so, that is just... Awesome!
Throckwoddle sets his tophat on a table, flops into a chair and sighs I first decided to work with the Sczarni because of all of the players on the field, the Family let me pursue my own goals carte blanche while still lining my pockets to fund my... research. It was a grand time, even when the work was a bit morally questionable. Let me be plain. I'm a vicious, underhanded, morally bankrupt cockroach motivated by fear, greed, curiosity and spite. Though I am no blood relation to the rest of you Sczarni, you accepted me with open arms and made me feel as one of your own. I thank you all for that. But now you're getting in bed with al'Hakam and his mob of pompous, sycophantic lickspittles? I rob graves, animate corpses and defile the bodies of my enemies to ensure they aren't able to give me trouble after their dead. By comparison to those Qadiran milksops, I'm a shining beacon of Humanity with a titanic amount of integrity. The undertaker exhales slowly while running his fingers through his shaggy, dark and greasy hair. There's a brief moment where he seems about to say something but he stops himself, instead retrieving his topper and standing up. I appreciate the opportunities the Family has provided me, but I won't work with your new partners. I wish you all good fortune in your future endeavors and hope you collectively extract your craniums from betwixt your lower cheeks. Setting his hat back on his head he turns to leave but pauses in the threshold As for myself, I've been offered employ by Dralneen's new club. I can't say her jobs will prove as lucrative as the Sczarni's have been, but I can say it will be far more enjoyable staring at her open shirt than it ever was being assaulted by Guaril's. With that, he sets off into the world.
This, 100%. There's no need for these kinds of threads. They accomplish little beyond providing a soapbox for a highly vocal yet negative minority at the expense of every player and GM who is happy with the Classes but doesn't feel a need to constantly check the forums.
Due to the reusing of names and terms, this is a common misconception. Dervish Dancer is a bard archetype.
The Dervish Dance feat, however is just a feat. Anyone can take it regardless of deity, culture or region. The only prerequisites are Dex 13, Weapon Finesse, 2 ranks in Perform (Dance) and Proficiency with a Scimitar. You receive Dex to damage with Scimitars only.
First and foremost, remember that this is a cooperative game between you and your players in order to tell a story. If it ever becomes a game of you vs the players, you need to take a step back and reevaluate what lead you there. Next you should sit down with all your players before even a single character is built or dungeon designed and discuss with them all what kind of story all of you want to participate in - both the game they want to play and the game you want to run. The greatest and most common mistake I've seen in campaings in any system is players and GMs not being on the same page before pencil first touches paper. Don't worry that you'll be giving plot and secrets away. It's better to let your players know the type of story you want to run early and make sure they want to play rather than find out weeks or months in that the tale you carefully and lovingly crafted doesn't interest them or irritates them. Or that the character they put as much time and care into drives you insane. As in any relationship, clear communication is key. Don't sweat banning things. First find out what you and your players would all like to play and why. Then compromise to find a happy medium.
What about the old Pimp-Mobile work around? Step one: Have a tiny improved familiar that can activate a wand. We'll say a Brownie. Step two: Give the Brownie a stash of Pesh, a pipe to smoke it in and a wand of Floating Disk of at least caster level 2 (level one if you're a small wizard with no gear). Step three: Affix a bucket to the end of a ten foot pole. Step Four: Wand wielding Brownie gets in the bucket. Step Five: Brownie activates the wand by tapping into your UMD skill. Step six: Holding onto the other end of the ten foot pole, sit on the Brownie's Floating Disk. Step Seven: Have the Brownie smoke the Pesh. Step Eight: Hold the brownie out in his bucket. Now that he is more than 5 feet from the Floating Disk and no longer directing the disk because he's peshed out, the Disk will begin to propel you forward to try and maintain it's 5 foot distance from the caster. Aim your Peshbrownie in a bucket on a stick to direct the disk. Step Nine: Profit. .....Hm. I think I know what my next PFS character is going to be.
Stingchucks. They're free, disgusting and have a better chance inflicting the combat-ending Nauseated status for 1d3 rounds at low levels than high. The only downside to them is their weight. They're even better for Alchemists but are decent enough to keep in a Haversack or Pathfinder Pouch for those "just in case" moments.
Sure, you can use Mnemonic Enhancer to get back a spell you already cast of up to 3rd level 10 minutes later. Or you can just leave a 4th level spell slot open and get any spell in your spellbook of up to 4th level 15 minutes later, without wasting a 4th level spell known or buying a 50 gp focus. If you can cast Mnemonic Enhancer you can take the arcane discovery Fast Study and only have it take 1 minute to fill that unfilled 4th level slot. Sure it uses a feat but having all of your out of combat utility spells 1 minute away rather than 15 minutes away makes it a lot more tempting to leave slots open.Glad Im not the only one that didnt understand the excitement or draw to Mnemonic Enhancer. Actually, the real way to use Mnemonic Enhancer is to get phantom spell slots. It all hinges on the most overlooked aspect of the spell; the 24 hour duration of 3 levels of phantom spell slots per casting of ME. Here's how it works. You need a day of in game prep time. You memorize ME in all your Level 4 slots then cast them to get more spell slots and prepare as many spells as you can in those slots at the end of the day as close to the point you go to sleep as you can. Rest 8 hours. Wake and prepare all your normal slots and refreshed Level 4 slots, in addition to retaining the spells you prepared in the phantom slots at the end of the previous day. These bonus slots should last for at least 13 or so hours. Having any of the feats which reduce your spell prep time as well as a Ring Of Sustenance give you even more working time with the phantom slots. I think I should give seminars on the proper use of this spell, I've had to explain it so many times now.
When it comes to barbarians, just follow the rule of Conan. If Conan did it, it isn't evil. And there is at least one story in which a hungover Conan splits the skull of a judge and the town guards while they have him on trial for disorderly conduct, simply because the Cimmerean found their talking annoying.
Oooooo, Wizardly Grapple-Fu! Okay, the spell Grease is fine and dandy but why not start with Alchemical Grease, instead? First, it's only 5gp. Second, it lasts 4 hours and provides a +5 alchemical bonus to CMD vs Grapples (escaping and avoiding), Escape Artist checks and best of all stacks with the Grease spell. What's more, you don't need to be a caster to use it. If you're feeling even saucier, use Alchemical Grease as an Alchemical Power Component (requires Adventurer's Armory for PFS legality) when casting the Grease spell to increase the Escape Artist bonus vs grapples by +1. And if you absolutely, positively, irrevocably MUST escape that damn grapple, keep Liberating Command memorized. It's a purely Verbal spell, it takes only an Immediate Action and it provides a competence bonus to your Escape Artist check equal to twice your caster level. So yes, you can in fact stack Liberating Command, Alchemical Grease & Grease when you need to get out of a jam.
A few additions I would add; Tier 1-5: Spring Loaded Wrist Sheath to complement your 2PA healing wand. Few things suck as hard as the first time you're gently (or not so gently) informed that it will take you two rounds to retrieve and use your wand of CLW while at 0 hit points. And frankly, an additional resource or not, I've seen more PC lives saved thanks to this 5gp item. A $7.99 pdf ($3 for the print right now) is not a gross investment. (Sorcerers & Wizards specifically) Wand of Magic Missle Frankly, I feel if you're playing a Sorcerer or Wizard this should be your first 2 PA purchase and your healing wand should be your second. Every time I see a new player bring their brand new 0xp Wizard to the table, burn through their wopping 2 1st Level spells in the first encounter then look on disheartened for the remainder of the adventure as they try their damnedest to contribute to the fights with Acid Splash and no Precise Shot I just want to cry. Then when I hear the majority of the table eagerly suggest (occasionally demand) they burn their first 2PA on a wand of CLW I just want to do a 3 Stooges style multi-face slap across the table. Let the new player feel like they've contributed and they'll come back to play. Make them feel like they're dead weight and that is a bit less likely. Vermin Repellent A must have for every PC to keep in their backpack at any given time. Alchemist's Fires are great to have but rely on someone actually being able to hit the swarm. Vermin Repellent lasts 4 hours and helps prevent the swarm from even entering your square. Antiplague, Antivenom, Soothe Syrup, usually purchased in that order. By the time you can routinely keep about 1-200 gp floating for random purchases, always keep at least one set of these items. They last an hour and each one gives a +5 alchemical bonus to your saves vs some of the more common debilitating conditions.
A dwarven swashbuckler/monk with no charisma or dexterity.... Please tell me his backstory. It has got to be hilarious. O.O ..............So. Much. Win.
This would be a step in the right direction. However, the thought of burning even more Investigator Talents to be moderately effective in a fight doesn't sit well, particularly when you already are behind on earning them when compared to the Alchemist or Rogue and need to use several just to do your job well. It's even worse for the PFS players who will only ever see five talents in their career. Also, why do Investigators earn them starting at 3rd level rather than 2nd? Also, Studied Combat should be available at 2nd level at the latest. Poison Resistance and Poison Lore are nice, but frankly I'd be all too happy to see those abilities pushed up to 4th or 5th level so at least Studied Combat is available earlier. As it is, you rarely see Alchemists keep their Poison Resistance/Use in favor of an archetype and who really bothers to make a Poisoner Rogue?
Getting back to the topic, here are the things I've learned to give my Wizard, Throckwoddle, the best chance of surviving to his next adventure. Please understand that my decisions are based around playing a spellcasting non-front liner with a 10 Strength who's primary goal is to not die. Many of my suggestions will be Wizard based. This will be long...: A wand of CLW is good but if you or any of your party are Arcane casters, a wand of Infernal Healing is a better investment at a guaranteed 10 hp of healing per charge. In my experience, generally you will be burning wand charges out of combat and using potions in combat since CSW potions are less costly than a wand of the same.
After a healing wand, a good investment for an arcane spellcaster would be a wand of Mage Armor and a wand of Magic Missle. For the former, an extra +4 AC for an hour at low level can mean the difference between dead and leaving with your share of the loot but using up one of your few spell slots makes it a hard choice. The wand helps free up your slots for an almost mandatory spell. For the latter, always having an auto-hit attack is a great backup option when you can't do anything else (or aren't sure what to do). And don't forget, you can always ready to fire MM on a spellcaster when he begins to cast to force a concentration check. Spring Loaded Wrist Sheathes: Throckwoddle owns about eight of these now. Two for himself, the rest to loan out to any party members who don't have them due to ignorance or not having Adventurer's Armory. Bandoliers: Wear two of them and fill the pockets with all the small doohickies you think you'll need in a pinch. Extra-dimensional Spaces: Being prepared for every situation requires more equipment than even the 22 Strength Barbarian can carry. As soon as you can afford one, get a Handy Haversack, Bag of Holding, even a Pathfinder's Pouch. Plus, many people forget that you can place extra-dimensional spaces (excluding Portable Holes) within others like nesting dolls, if you can afford them. Dealing with DR is a pretty big concern at all tiers, so Oils of Bless Weapon are a must have, especially with PFS adding more and more evil outsiders to deal with. Everyone should have an Alchemical Silver Light Mace. It's blunt so it doesn't suffer the -1 damage issue of Alch. Silver, it's Weapon Finessable, most classes are proficient with it, and it's cheap. It makes a great loaner weapon. Weapon Blanches suck for melee weapons but are wonderful for ammunition, especially Adamantine Weapon Blanch. Ghost Touch Salt is also a great thing to use on some spare ammo, because when you need it you will really need it. The Jade Wayfinder enhancement is a great way to spend 2PP. You should rely on something other than your wayfinder for light anyway so trading the Light ability for Guidance is hands down a better choice IMO. Having a +1 to any skill check that you can use on yourself or anyone else for only 2PP is practically a must! Dull Gray Ioun Stones: If you use a wayfinder and are a spellcaster or a heavy UMD user you should have several of these. First, they are only 25gp a piece so owning two or three is easy. Second, they provide you the resonant power to Read Magic once per day for 10 minutes, more than enough time to familiarize yourself with a found scroll without wasting a cantrip/orison slot or making a UMD check. Third, and most important of all, you can switch out Ioun Stones in your Wayfinder as often as you like, a fact most players miss. The once per day applies to the Ioun Stone in question, not the resonant power itself. In regards to light, having hands free light is absolutely critical. Most players will site Ioun Torches, but they only provide light as a torch which is pretty measly. A Miner's Lantern is an alright solution, but I prefer the fullsize Bullseye Lantern for it's 120 foot cone of illumination, 60 feet of which is normal light. I have yet to find a scenario in which that degree of lighting can't illuminate the entire room. The problem of course is the issue of needing a hand free to carry it. Throckwoddle keeps a wand of Dancing Lantern to solve this. It also prevents the uncommon chance of underground gas explosions due to having an open flame you can run into in a few scenarios. For Swarms, Vermin Repellant is awesome, as are alchemist fires, acid flasks and Potions of Fly or Levitate. Swarm Suits can be useful, but they take time to put on and take off and reduce your movement by half, so be forewarned. At some point you will encounter magical mist or fog or a toxic/virulent cloud of some sort that can cripple your party. Keep a scroll of Gust of Wind handy for such an occaision. I can not stress this enough, always, always, ALWAYS keep at least one set (preferably several) of the following; Antiplague, Antivenom and Soothe Syrup. If you can afford it, add Twitch Tonic to that list. If you think you may need the benefits of any one of these items, take the rest of the set anyway. If you anticipate the adventure is going to lead you into a sewer, underground, into a crypt, into a dungeon, into a temple, among undead, into the poor district of any city, among fungus and/or vegetation of any kind, take the set. Basically what I'm trying to say is, any Pathfinder with an inkling of self-preservation should approach a scenario like a hypochondriac who is constantly hosing themselves down in hand sanitizer. You will eventually run into oozes. If you're going underground or into a sewer, stock up on Bladeguard, Alkali Flasks and Alkali Salts. You will be happy you did. Once your Fame is high enough, you should buy the headband or belt that gives a +2 Enhancement bonus to your primary stat. Do not skimp on this, ever. Unless you have a very specific use for your shoulder slot, you cannot go wrong with Cloak of Resistance. Your F/R/W saves can never be high enough. Never.
Since this is a PFS specific question, the PFS specific rule takes precedence: PFS FAQ. So no, despite what a certain vocal subset of the posters love to argue, there is nothing wrong with casting Animate Dead in a PFS scenario and you will not suffer an alignment infraction provided your spellcaster hasn't also multiclassed into Paladin or is a Cleric of Pharasma. Playing a true neutral wizard has it's benefits. As to why Undead lord is not legal, I suspect that has more to do with the fact that with an archetype choice a cleric gets a highly customizable permanent companion that increases in effectiveness with their cleric level rather than the fact that it is undead. Look closer at Corpse Companion. Assume you're playing an 8th level cleric. You then have an 8 HD creature fighting with you that is immune to mind effects, disease, paralysis, poison, sleep, stun, etc. What's more, that 8HD creature can be just about any creature that has a skeletal system and is 8HD or less. What Druid animal companion can do that? Now, take it a step further. If you're willing to drop it down to a 4HD creature it can become a flaming version of the same. And if you can't decide, you can switch out your companion between scenarios at no actual cost beyond 1 standard action and an 8 hour ritual. I suspect the book keeping for this is also a reason Undead lord is not PFS legal when one scenario the player could be using a Skeleton Dire Ape as their Corpse Companion the next they're using a Bloody Burning Goblin and then the following game they turn it into a Plague Zombie Worg. All available options for an Undead Lord. Separate the undead aspect from the equation and it seems much clearer why Undead Lord is not PFS legal.
Wow. That is, hands down one of the douchiest moves I've heard of a GM making to date. Especially considering that scenario is tier 1-5 if I recall correctly and that's the first encounter. Great way to discourage people from playing. My recommendation would be to not play at that GMs table again. Giving players a challenge is one thing. Forcing players to reroll nearly out of the gate is not. Last I checked we were playing Pathfinder not Paranoia.
An important thing to consider when playing any gunslinger is your ammo cost. As a Musket Master in order to even use Rapid Shot and/or iterative attacks that means you'll be using paper cartridges for every attack you make, hit or miss. Even at the 50% cost reduction, that gets expensive. At least you aren't trying to be a dual-wielding Pistolero. I honestly do not understand where these guys are getting all their gold to justify their obscene numbers of attacks per round. I've always suspected some sever fudging on their ammo expenditures... But I digress. So ammo cost. This is a concern both at low and high level PFS play. Low level, your resources are limited and you will also be needing to save money to enchant your musket, get your DEX belt, perhaps a Handy Haversack, potions, etc. At high level you should have several attacks per round and the combats tend to get bigger requiring your party to whittle through high hit point monsters, large numbers of lower HP baddies or fight creatures that are just a pain to hit whether that's due to AC, DR, positioning, or what have you. My solution was a wand of Abundant Ammunition. For 2PA in PFS at 50 charges, you will save a fortune in ammo costs **especially** when it comes to special material bullets like Adamantine. The only concern then is activating it. UMD is an option, but realistically not a viable one at low level and I assume you want to actually play this character not buy him with GM credit. Your options then are a level dip in either Bard, Cleric, Ranger or Sorc/Wizard. I personally chose a Cleric dip because although I miss out on Mage Armor, it opened up CLW wands, Lesser Restoration Scrolls and synchronized well with a Gunslinger's need for a decent Wisdom score as well as gave a nice boost to Fort and Will saves as well as the goal of unlocking Abundant Ammo wands. You will need to spend your first action in a fight using the wand to buff due to it only lasting a minute per charge but I've felt the move worth it. My starting action is generally using a Swift action to eject the AA wand from a spring loaded wrist sheath, a Standard to cast AA on the bandolier holding my ammo and a Move action to load. Provided your musket is unloaded before you cast AA, you've never actually used any of your ammo. For one charge you can get ten shots of Adamantine or even Ghost Salt blanched regular bullets for the cost of one to keep in your ammo pouch. Once you get Fast Musket and loading paper cartridges becomes free you can use your move to set up better positioning on the field. The benefit to sticking with Gunslinger longer would be the extra attacks per round in addition to the one you get with Rapid Shot. Remember, the real point of being a Musket Master is that they are *the only* archetype that can fire a musket in combat more than twice a round every round. That can lead to some nightmarish damage down the line. Another reason to stick with it is for Deadshot at 7th. You could take the Clustered Shots feat instead (either choice becomes VERY useful when overcoming DR in higher levels) but your misfire chance, which is already high thanks to paper cartridges, could lead to your musket blowing up in your hands if you roll two bad dice on that attack. Deadshot reeeeaaaally helps prevent catastrophic failure like that. In regards to not wanting to wear armor, aesthetically I can understand the desire, but you may reconsider with something like a Mithral Shirt which has always been allowed to be worn under your clothing. Mage Armor may last one hour but Shield only lasts a matter of *minutes* and if you're not using both you're going to have trouble the higher in level you go. And if you decide to try to use Abundant Ammunition to soften the blow of ammo costs (which you are supposed to be tracking as a Gunslinger in PFS), Shield is another round spent buffing. I have personally opted for a +1 Mithral Breastplate supported by the Armor Expert trait to avoid any check penalty. Expensive, but that combined with a high DEX, Dodge and Nimble really help prevent untimely death. Plus I could afford it at level 5 thanks to all the money I saved on ammo (and two modules). I'll include my Musket Master below. My play style has become much more dynamic since getting my move actions back thanks to Fast Musket. I combine a 40 movement (Desna Cleric: Travel and Liberation Domains) with a high Acrobatics to keep mobile on the field and modify my position to avoid cover issues. Occasional use of Longstrider and the Agile Feet ability from the Domains also become super handy when needed. My charisma is pretty poor and only allows one Channel per day but since I'm not playing as a healer it's a nice "Oh CRAP!" button to lay down to help someone stabilize at range. Plus having access to 3 orisons has proven pretty handy, especially Guidance and Detect Magic. Anyway, I've rambled on long enough. Here's my build;: Raithel Sartana Alignment: CN Human - Varisian Gunslinger (Musket Master) 4 / Cleric (Varisian Pilgrim) 1 Sczarni Faction Str 10 Dex 21 (+2 Human, +1 Level 4, +2 Dex belt) Con 12 Int 12 Wis 16 Cha 7 AC: 24 (+1 Mithril Breastplate, +5 Dex, +1 Dodge, +1 Nimble)
Domains: Travel, Liberation Traits: Armor Expert, Hermean Paragon
Acrobatics: +12 / 5 ranks
(A lot of my skills are grabbed to work with a boost from Guidance and to assist the attempts of my party members or to simply allow the check which can be a big deal in PFS play and a by the book GM.) Languages: Common, Varisian, Tien, Elven, Aklo
In addition to those people who have to travel a great distance to play being negatively effected by this proposed change are those who have very limited opportunities to play, due to real life obligations (family, work, etc). And then only getting a chance to play once a month or less after clearing their schedule that far in advance. Four of my last five games were plagued with a tier imbalance that operated much as the proposed Season 5 would. Although I signed up (via Warhorn) for and cleared my real life schedule for games that were supposedly going to be filled by characters matching my character's tier and level, when the game finally came about, more than half of those who signed up did not attend and the seats were filled with latecomers with lower tier characters leaving me the odd high level. My options were to either play at about a 1/3 lower gold reward (not to mention play a less exciting adventure) or not play at all. Could I have played a new lower tier character or a lower level pregen? Sure. But why would I want to when I had been excited to play a character I have invested my time and energy in and only get to play once a month with a month's advance scheduling? And that I had had to plan my schedule around a great deal in advance? It was incredibly frustrating to be put in that situation. If that situation became the rule and norm as opposed to a bad string of luck why would anyone with limited play opportunities want to invest their time and energy in a system that is purportedly in place to allow those without a dedicated gaming group be able to play an advancing character? I can't be the only person who has to deal with this kind of issue. |
