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That's all fine and dandy if you're just playing something a GM is creating whole-cloth. Adventure Paths are different, though. If I design using that kind of methodology for an AP, I'm going to end up with a character who doesn't fit the narrative the AP is trying to tell, which doesn't resonate with whatever themes and ideas it wants to explore. To do that, you at LEAST need the Player's Guide and have to have SOME idea of the direction you want the character to go in. The one I'm developing wants to explore the aspects of his elven and dwarven heritage, and he wants to prevent whatever horrible future his visions are showing him, for example. He'll develop more naturally through play, of course, but if I were to play something like an undine orc gunslinger, that'd stick out in the party and the story and feel shoehorned in. Other players may and GMs may be okay with that, and I'll go along with it if they do, but I hold myself to a higher standard. I've got a Bachelor of Arts with an Emphasis on Literature, this stuff MATTERS to me!

Right, which is what I meant by "parameters". If some elements, like versatile heritages or high-tech classes don't fit the story (I assume you have access to the player's guide), the gm would let you know. If the GM allows others, it's safe to assume any of them would fit.

The only part that requires more attention beyond that would be the motivation, which for the AoA AP is also mostly handled by its backgrounds iirc.

The best way to make a character is to go in the exact opposite of the direction you're going so far: define the character *as you play*, not before.

Now, you'll need some things before that will give plenty of information on their own. Ask the GM what their parameters are for what's available. After that? Do one of two things that are functionally the same thing:

1. Ask someone (mechanically knowledgeable in the system, hopefully) to make the character for you, or

2. Roll based on what's available.

When a character you did not create and did not choose (i.e., just like a real personality), is presented to you, it should spark your curiosity. What drove this surprise race into this surprise class from this background? You don't need to know the answers; you need to play the game and discover what they are.

A non-negotiable part of this is curiosity, by the way. Not just for you towards your own character, but towards the other players'. If all goes well, they'll return the favor.

What gets lost in a lot of the "start with a concept" misguidance is that rpg's are about discovery. Not just about the setting, but about the pc's in it. This is best facilitated by a character who's fleshed out in real-time, not before they ever hit the ground.

When they do hit the ground, you'll also need one more thing: a motivation. A reason they're adventuring. It should be something short and simple, but not ultimately attainable, like "mete justice" or "achieve wealth". Something that will drive them to adventure.

Hopefully your DM doesn't mess you up with invisibility and flight/mobility at later levels. You will lack a lot of utility as an all martial party that can be exploited by DM use of caster creatures or monsters.

We have a 3 martial and 1 caster party. I've had to be careful not to go too crazy with caster creatures starting even at lvl 5. Any DM of an all caster party should be willing to play less ruthlessly than they would if the party had caster support.

I've been meaning to ask, DF, since you seem to have experience with the most ruthless encounters, what specifically was it that made caster-support so necessary? You've mentioned the need for burst healing, buffs, debuffs, flight/long-range troubles, and invisibility. Anything else that casters provide that solves killer problems for martials?

While we're at it, if you had to be an all-martial party anyway, what archetypes could be taken to alleviate the problems best, if any? Asking anyone that has suggestions here, as a party I'm in has this exact issue.

Surprised no one mentioned "hands-free unarmed". Worried about always having the benefits of your passive implement? Never fear! Now you can enjoy your regalia, tome, and lantern 24/7. Just don't be afraid to get your teeth, talons, or tail dirty.

Thanks for the detailed responses. Did some napkin math and found that, after the second foxfire not being agile and not benefitting from weakness in a flurry, it only does about a quarter of the damage of the first.

So it's a question of: are two class/FA archetype feats and two boosts (kind of; the deadly fists feature is nice for versatility) worth if for +25% damage on a strike?

Been told that monk archetype at 10 is almost mandatory for anyone that uses unarmed strikes, and a kitsune thaumaturge I've got has enough flat damage to make the 1d4 + nothing viable. Problem is that getting any str makes it MAD, let alone two boosts in it that the foxfire attack wouldn't use.

Is getting two attacks with the flourish (assume it's the only flourish I'll have) worth the 14 strength prereq, or is flurry a pass?

Going into a game with this combo, and while it looks synergistic, I may want to get out of it ASAP for others.

Since I've heard Thaum is action-hungry, which feats of this archetype are the best value? I assume the aura is a must-have, since it's ideally only one action per fight, but the rest seem more demanding, situational, or else compete with reactions you'd rather use on implements.

Considering a 3 feat tax line down the dhampir path. While I'd happily take it with Ancestral Paragon, without it I'm not sure how good it is, especially since fangs can't precise strike. The grapple trait would enable me to potentially grapple three foes at once for what that's worth.

I could see it as part of a crit-grab, finisher/strike, tb action routine, though lining those up seems pretty rare.

The other difficulty is that the base ancestry the dhampir is attached to, Shoony, has Scamper underfoot that seems pretty good. What do y'all think? Is it worth the lineage feat tax to get Taste Blood further down the line for a gymnast, especially when they could've started with +1 Tumble Through instead?

Was looking through the setting book my GM gave me, and it claimed that dwarves make up 93% of Alkenstar City's population.

That can't be right since I'm sure, according to the Outlaws of Alkenstar Player's Guide, that it's majority human. Does anyone have the correct setting statistics for Alkenstar City?

Known weakness allows an investigator to RK every time they Devise, but the rules for Additional Knowledge state that once you fail, you can't RK anymore. At first the DM said that the 1st level feat was effectively off whenever the Investigator failed any RK about the same creature, but we argued that the feat was specific, and *always* allowed a check, failure or no, albeit at increasing DC's.

Is that accurate? Or would the general rule of no more RK's upon failure apply to Known Weakness regardless?

What they said. Between striking, raising their shield, casting spells, and maybe demoralize/bon mot if they have the charisma for it, a war priest has too much to do as is. Might be handy as a mount for a free movement at level 4, but that's about it.

How is the Investigator been built? What does it do?

Continual Recovery is essential, Ward Medic is nice. Battle Medicine is very useful too. But not a must pick as you have Heal or a few potions. You may be the only one in your party with a good charisma score so I'd also be looking at intimidation or diplomacy skill feats. But perhaps the Investigator has some of that.

Mostly as a smart face. He has marshal archetype, so he'll be making lots of RK, while striking, while trying to stay near enough to melee to buff them with inspiring aura. If Dandy was a good archetype, he'd be a dead ringer for it.

For spell poaching, I've got Wall (force or stone), magic missile, slow, haste, synesthesia, stoneskin, invisibility, shadow siphon, and illusions. Any important ones missed?

For spells that behave very similarly, like fear and agonizing despair or slow and spiritual anamnesis/tortoise and the hare, are the effects so good that it's worth having both, despite level differences?

For signature spells, some are obvious picks like heal and dispel magic, or a powerful incap like calm emotions (assuming you didn't spend your level swaps putting it back into your highest slot every time). If a spell only had two useful levels, like slow or fear, would you still sig it?

Finally, what focus spell(s) would you recommend to be used up to 3 times in one fight? I figure the loracle curse is so bad I never want to do anything cursebound. Bonus points if it comes from beastmaster, champion, cleric, or sorcerer, as my dm does make sure the refocus activity couldn't overlap with Treat Wounds normally.

Finally making most of the choices for a new PC in the mid-levels, but struggling to come up with good choices for some of the feat slots.

My party is myself, the sole caster and healer, and 3 martials: reach monk, reach barb, and an interrogation investigator.

For ancestry feats, I know I'd like otherworldly magic for electric arc, and cooperative nature to hit 30 on One for All checks more often.

Similarly, with the first half of my FA feats, swash and OfA were in there.

After that, I'm stuck with the rest of my FA and class feats. My skill feats will probably include ward medic and continual. Is Battle Medicine also a must-pick, or should support casters stay away from getting too close like that?

Note: Any dedication can be taken without satisfying the 2 more feat rule, so class feats can be freely exchanged to poach good stuff. I just need help knowing, like One For All, what the *best* stuff is.

Thanks for the continued responses all. I know One for All is rated as an 11/10 must-have. Is that the case even if the party is strapped on skills and one has a Diplomacy/Bon Mot focus already?

Been trying to get a grip on this class/subclass, and am unsure how to build it. One has to do with how many points to put into intelligence, the other is whether to actually use the curse or ignore it in favor of just using the class' free focus points.

For example, in the oracle guide it's recommended to take the initiative penalty and flat-footed condition on the chin in exchange for free RK checks. Then you should spend feats on making those RK checks really good, like the Loremaster archetype, dubious knowledge, Additional Lore, and so on.

And around here, I've seen the opposite advice where you should get another focus spell ASAP because the curse isn't worth it.

What are y'all's thoughts on which direction to go with Oracle?

They did say to suggest archetypes he might have missed that give the most bang for their buck. Given that, as a caster, they needs a reliable reaction and given that chasing +1s is of paramount importance, either of those two will bring more value.

Some other options include

Captivator for more slots and illusion support.

[Uncommon] shadowcaster isn't good until 10, but is a good cheat to expand their spell selection with shadow reservoir.

Psychic is a pretty loaded dedication feat which works well with the restriction lifted.

But medic and cavalier are excellent choices as is blessed one. They just aren't as impactful as giving a martial a better hit/crit rate. With the restriction on feats lifted, there's more than enough space to grab them all eventually.

Thanks for the replies all. Gesalt's pov of being more proactive than defensive is something I didn't consider; so I have questions lol:

To be clear, are you saying that buffing martial offense is better than focusing on restoring HP? If I went down the swashbuckler route, which of the three skills (Medicine, Diplomacy, Performance) would you prioritize for a typical maestro bard in a generic adventuring party?

For the psychic archetype, which amped cantrip is taken towards that end?

Kinda similar to my first question, are more slots for buffing better than better battle medicines, animal companions, etc.?

EDIT: should mention that anything with the "Death" trait wouldn't work for campaign reasons. Calm Emotions the best aoe there then?

Considerations: Wisdom has to be part of background boost, so only a 14 dex/str is possible at 1. DM allows dedications to be taken without restriction, so archetypes don't need 3 feat investments before choosing another.

Looking for the most useful options with my free archetype and possibly level 2 class feats to get the most healing and support. My party has two melee martials and a marshal-investigator with inspiring aura. Here's stuff I've considered:

Medic: I'll be the Medicine guy regardless, and with wisdom from background it seems a good choice. Not sure about Treat Condition; Advanced First Aid seems to do what it does better w/ Frightened & Sickened.

Champion: Gives best AC for me, and as I'm the sole healer of the group, that might be important. Can't get into full plate till 10 though. Great reaction. Might be useful as I'd be the only person in the party who could use any heavy magical armor found.

Familiar Master: Mainly just for accompanist for the eventual +2 to Performance for Inspire Heroics and Lingering.

Beastmaster/Cavalier: Another body to benefit from my Inspire Defense and the Investigator's Known Weakness and aura. Mounting could help skip Doctor's Visitation, though the large size, shared MAP, and penalty to reflex might be too much.

Blessed One: Similar to Champion, but allows for dex and blessed denial at 12.

Also, I'll be the only aoe, so I'm in the market for a blast spell like animated assault or inner radiance torrent. I know it's hard to fill every role as the sole spellcaster and healer, but which options (and feel free to suggest an archetype I might've missed) give the most bang for buck?

Duration: yes. 3 rounds for the benefit. Until you use the Settle Emotions activity for the fallout. I would probably have a night of rest also count as Settle Emotions.

The other questions... Not nearly as certain.

It doesn't seem to be a spell or spell like effect, so I wouldn't let dispel magic work.

Calm Emotions is a bit more questionable. It seems narratively like it should do something. But the mechanics don't really define what. So I would probably not have it do anything simply because I can't think of a good way of resolving it.

Thank you for the reply. I'm still lost on the duration; as "Catharsis", that whole effect, has a lot of subsequent stages. If you wanted to counteract "Catharsis" as a whole, would it have a duration to allow you to before the fallout? Or is it more like a Wall of Stone situation, where the mechanical Effect keeps going with trait-less stages, but the Effect itself was just that initial reaction?

Looking at the Cathartic Mage archetype and ways to get around the emotional fallout. While Catharsis is a discrete effect with discrete traits, it's unclear to me what parts it has. So here's a few questions:

Can dispel magic counteract any of it, and if so, what parts? (i.e. trigger, activation, effect, fallout)
Could a suppression effect like Calm Emotions suppress any of it? What parts?
Does it have a duration? If so, how long?
Edit: Could something that counteracted emotion or mental effects like Soothing Words work on it? If so, what parts?

Once it becomes nimble, no, but for levels 1-7, would y'all say heavy barding is good on even something like the bird?

You're trading 25gp, -3 on its checks and reduced land speed for +3 AC, and +1 after mature compared to light barding. Is that generally worth it for some companions, and if only some, which ones?

Depends on your build. A Paladins with a weapon ally already gets access to ghost touch and disrupting, so that plus shining oath is really all you need. If you have those, Undead Slayer probably adds the most, especially if you rock a maul for Slayers Strike.

An important consideration: AV is a sandbox where you can and should retreat if you're not ready for many of the fights. I'd use a disrupting rune as your base, and if you run into a ghost consider shutting the door and coming back later with ghost touch. Ghosts are sitebound so they can't chase very far.

Also, don't forget to carry slashing weapons for fleshies and bashing weapons for bonies.

But then they could take those *and* shifting! Thanks for that advice too; I'm used to modules having more of a time pressure, so that'll be good to keep in mind.

Can't decide between these three:

1. Ghost Hunter: Literally made for the module, so probably ok. Contains spellcasting features that don't necessarily suit a martial.
2. Ghost Eater: Maximum incorporeal hate.
3. Undead Slayer: More broad, and Slayer's Strike seems to synergize very well with Retributive Strike.

Without spoilers, which do you think would be most useful for the AP?

As always, check with the DM to see what's fitting; most have particular settings/races in mind and it's important to gel with that.

If you're allowed to pick from the kitchen sink, particular ancestries that fit:

1. Human. Open-minded as they come, and if Tsukiyo's an exotic god, a human could be just weird enough to serve him anyway.
2. Tengu. They love anything/one that's exotic, which means they're happy to interact with outcasts no one else would. Strangely, their personality is closer to Tsukiyo's gregarious past than his more quiet present, but still.
3. Anadi. They're wise enough to understand arachnophobia, yet friendly to make aims to overcome such instincts.
4. Goloma. They themselves are often misunderstood as scary monsters, so Tsukiyo would sympathize.
5. Kitsune. Not as strong as the others, but if your focus is on diplomacy, an ancestry with experience being all things to all people might be interesting.
Bonus: Tiefling heritage. Nothing like having demonic blood to lump you in with the demonized.

There's not much to build with a cloistered cleric at 1st level; just an ancestry feat. As for skills/background, anything to do with diplomacy or society would work. Being a voice for others means being persuasive, and society helps you to understand others.

If you want to make an *effective* cleric, you'd probably want to avoid any personality trait that's "quirky"; otherwise you run the risk of being dismissed as just another weirdo to ignore. Being someone others can't ignore, whether that's because of impeccable character, nobility, or competence, etc., would be crucial to winning a place to speak for others.

The domain really depends on what the character, per the feat description, is most interested in wrt to Tsukiyo. Putting the dead to rest? Spirit. Destroying wicked creatures of the night? Moon. Soothing the emotionally tormented? Repose. Delirium seems pretty contrary to Tsukiyo's purpose of...the exact opposite. Not sure what that one's doing there tbh. Having a midlife crisis? Change! Tsukiyo's familiar with entering a new phase of life.

Final note: It's not optimal, but Intelligence might be a score you go for. Again, the more languages and/or Society knowledge you have, the better you can reach the misunderstood.

While I'm just using the AoN description, I don't see anything about Tsukiyo being shy. Quiet, reserved, thoughtful, sure, but nothing about shyness.

A Rogue should be able to handle some physical resistance. The Psychic has damage options and should have at least 2 different attack cantrips. Even the monk can get an alternative damage type in their Ki Strike. It shouldn't be all on you.

Heal is well worthwhile taking as a signature slot.

Champion is not that compelling once you have got the basics - which are fantastic BTW.

Are you playing Free Archetype? If so then maybe Bard is a good MC option. It is the best caster MC as it has great feats, good low level spells, has the least overlap with Primal spells, and no difficult attribute scores.

If not then there is enough really good stuff in Sorcerer to stay in class. Level 6 is not that great if you don't like your 2nd Bloodline power - the Greater Bloodline power at level 10 is important for an elemental sorcerer.
The extra damage from Dangerous Sorcery is small, but it adds up. You should take it. Reach and Widen Spell are worth it. A couple of the level 6 Sorcerer feats are useful but they aren't the standouts that Primal Evolution, Bloodline Resistance or Cross Blooded Sorcery are.

Yup, Heal was my first signature, and even then it was just enough to scrape by the adventuring day. Alas, the only one with free hands would be the Psychic (bo staff is a 2-hander while the rogue likes dual wielding with Twin Feint), who's the least suited to get into melee given the low AC/HP. The Psychic does have two damaging cantrips, TP and Phase Bolt, but they're both physical. Maybe Hymn, Daze, and Touch didn't have ideal ranges/scaling. And yup, it's Free Archetype, hence how I got early Sorcerer and Champion stuff at once. Thanks for the guides, btw; they are and have been helpful for stuff like this.

One simple addition will give you all a great advantage; get shield block. For one general feat, you can have a repeatable damage reducer. In my experience playing so far, that bit of damage reduction every encounter does wonders for preventing the need for in-combat healing.

Hah, if only! Our group is too poor to afford the money to update sturdy shields, and all our reactions are or will be taken up with other things like One for All or Stand Still.

Thanks for the feedback. Just to be sure, you think Bard MC would be the strongest pick here? And if you had access to both Fear spells and good demoralize, is Dirge still better than something like Inspire Courage/Defense?

Right now, I'm nearly a 6th level elemental sorcerer (earth) about to poach the Champion's best 3 things: heavy armor, lay on hands, and the reaction. The rest of the party is:

1. Scoundrel rogue
2. Infinite Eye psychic
3. Bo staff, i.e. strength, monk

Weaknesses I've seen in our few encounters together are:

1. Fragility. People go down a lot and my Battle Medicine/LoH are at their limit keeping people up. Thanks to the Champion MC's Heavy armor, my caster's AC is the highest.
2. Helpless in the face of enemies with physical resistance. Not much the rest can do at that point but soak hits, which puts me in a rough spot of choosing between ending the encounter with my sole access to other kinds of damage, or keeping them alive before it ends them.

With one class feat, my options coming up are these:

1. Choose a low-level sorcerer feat, though I think there's not much there after Reach and Primal Evolution. Dangerous Sorcery is the best I can find, and the extra damage seems negligible.
2. Invest even more in Champion MC with either Desperate Prayer or Resilience.
3. Start another dedication.

Of those, which do you think would best help this party?

Yup, pretty much! Just wanted to see if Marshal is competitive given certain constraints.

With Bard's Inspire Courage, I'm torn because on the one hand the whole party (myself every so often) uses attack rolls, *but* we also have a psychic that can hand out status bonuses to attack rolls too with either Heroism or an amped guidance; the latter won't help anyone crit, however, as it only applies to failures.

My typical turns are Cast a Spell, 1 action for free. Between strides, steps, LoH, Battle Medicine, Demoralize, Elemental Toss, and Raise a Shield (since the healing requires being adjacent to allies and closer to enemies), I don't know if Inspire Courage could fit in. Do you think it'd be an optimal choice, given all that?

Considering this archetype on a few characters who could get it, but it's not as smooth as it could be. Which of these issues would you say disqualifies Marshal from consideration, mechanically?

-You have to spend a general feat first.
-You have access to Bard MC, but also have other 1-action activities, like Lay on Hands, Battle Medicine, or Demoralize
-You have an ancestry with a charisma flaw
-Diplomacy isn't a skill you can prioritize

All of this assumes you want Inspiring aura ASAP.

Recently got a Mature, and thus bigger, companion, that went from small to medium. RAW, does the barding he wore no longer work, or is it strictly "small/medium" barding, and works either way?

Ah, forgot to mention the Fighter has Dread Marshal Aura, which is 2/3'rds of Inspire Courage right there if we stay close. Still, thanks guys, it's a lot to consider. Captivator seems like a great fit too, since all the good buff spells are enchantments and it gets more of them earlier...

A key limitation of the primal spell list is that it has no numerical buffs. No pluses to hit. If you want those look at Bard or Cleric. Try Bard Dedication and make sure to pick up Inspirational Performance for the inspire courage composition cantrip. But you can help make enemies prone, grabbed or otherwise flatfooted with the right choice of spells. So early on Grease, Hyraulic Push can help. The Fear spell is pretty good at lowering your enemies AC and attacks.

Thanks for the replies all. Man, you rated bard the worst archetype to pick in your guide! But the more I think about it, the better it sounds. Being able to consistently buff the party, all of which care about hitting AC, sounds really good. That and the occult tradition is the least like Primal, which we have more than enough of, so that sounds nice.

Would you say composition cantrips and animal companions are anti-synergistic? If the routine for spell-casters is Cast a Spell, 1-action whatever else, I'm wondering if it competes too hard with Command.

At level 3, coming on 4, I'm looking for what be most effective for this party:

Shield-and-axe Fighter
Ranged Magus
Elemental Sorcerer

I'm a Leaf Order Druid who's also throwing out Battle Medicine's every so often. The one major weakness I've seen with the party is lack of ways to help our backline hit AC. I've gone Animal too to give Fighter something to flank with, but there's not much support for the rest. I've also heard AC's are useless the higher we go, so ideally I'm looking for something that'd be good all the way to 20.

Any suggestions for how to spend the Free Archetype would be welcome. Assume I can find a way to qualify for any, though multiple suggestions are welcome just in case they're setting inappropriate or too weird.

My DM was merciful and ruled that they could be force-fed to the unconscious, but is there anything that supports that, RAW or RAI? The focus spell itself seems to say that the only possible way to use them is for the healed to use their own interact action.

Read the ancestry entry on AoN, and I'm not sure how these work for the mechanical part at the end. First it says that kobolds are born with scale colors according to their communities patron or exemplar, or a descendant thereof. Fair enough.

Then it says kobolds have a "spiritual" exemplar that's more volitional.

So, which one determines the breath weapon?

Interested in making a sorcerer PC with this bloodline, and in an effort to integrate it into the campaign, is there any lore reason why it's unlocked once players complete the Ruby Phoenix AP? I haven't and can't read it, so I'm fine with spoilers. Did victory in the tournament awaken a dormant power or something similar, or is it more of a meta thing?

Thanks all, studded sounds like the play for now.

Superbidi, yeah, wanna stay back and cast. Our party is a little silly comp-wise but we've accepted the risks of one frontline.

Gable: emphasis on *starter*, lol, but yes I'm salivating at the thought of that wand in particular.

Nielsen: Nope! Well, unless it's the spell version, but it doesn't sound like the best use of my precious 1st level slots.

Raven: MUH SAVES. And my broke level 1 self, ofc. Who can afford 4gp every significant fight?

Assumptions: 10 str, 14 dex, no Unburdened Iron.

The dwarf is part is mentioned in case the below average speed is a factor.

Can't decide between leather, studded leather, or hide. Should AC be maximized, or are the costs for checks and movement too high?

First of all: Why Dex? A Goblin works perfectly fine as a strength build.

I wanted to be a little subop and lean into what makes the ancestry (and rng'd background, with also focuses on stealth) special. So if stealth is as awesome as this guide says it is, the goblins could do that pretty well with their ancestry feat lines. (I assume)

Side note, but do goblins have anything that makes str pretty great for them too? Having to use voluntary flaw to nix the ancestry bonus can feel bad.

For reference, what is allowed in your game? Common versatile heritages and the like? Or anything goes? Somewhere in between?

What level are you starting at? Standard character creation equipment, or are you doing something special?

The DM can be persuaded to allow most things, though I'd prefer sticking with Core, common stuff. We do get Free Archetype if that shores up anything. Starting at level 1, standard equipment rules.

Ohh, gotcha. Yeah I guess if your focus has 60ft range that's a hint to stay that far away. Thanks for the clarification.

And big thanks for the advice! It's all getting passed along. I tried recommending Medic in case he goes down what sounds like the culmination of everything here so far: Charisma, Skill monkey, frontline, some healing.

That's Rogue with a minor in Medicine is my best guess, but he said Medic was weak. :(

The RNG Gods have decreed a goblin Champion, and I'm struggling to figure out how they can be optimized. The Definitive Guide said Stealth was the biggest reason to go down the Dex path, but I'm not how a Champion would use Hide and Sneak to do what they wanna do.

All I (maybe) know for sure is that if you use ranged weapons, Paladin is an auto-pick for Ranged Reprisal. After that, I'm clueless. Light hammer & returning shield? Composite shortbow? Making Hidden the new shield block?

I know I'll probably never be as cool as the strength chads, but I'd appreciate advice on how to get almost as good.

EDIT: If it matters, assume Blade Ally will bypass the melee-only prereqs that usually apply for those runes.

Looks like you are already fairly heavy on damage dealers between Fighter, Blaster Druid, and Magus. You are looking a bit squishy though. Rocket Tag doesn't work well any more.

Druid can do some in-combat healing since they do have access to Heal. Can also get Goodberry at later levels for out-of-combat healing.

My suggestions:

Champion for incoming damage reduction.

Rogue or Investigator for skills - especially the Medicine skills and skill feats.

Other than that, just make sure that these damage dealers are also thinking of their own skin - not just taking pieces of the enemy's. The party comp as decided should work just fine, and really the additional player could pick just about anything and it could be made to work.

Thanks for the feedback. Since I'm the druid here, could you elaborate on why Stone is a blaster order? Sure it does damage but it's got nothing on Tempest's d12's or double focus points. I thought their thing was more minor control.

From those options I'd probably go with the druid. It's flexible enough to fill in the gaps of magical blaster, support, and healer in a pinch. I like Storm or Flame orders for damage and movement options.

You could also potentially take the fighter to be a frontline stopgap against being hammered, but assuming the classes you've asked us not to recommend are the ones already in the game, you have the gunslinger for the "hit gooder better" class already.

Ah, my bad, those three were meant to be the party composition already locked in (though if one of those could be better I'm all ears). What we need is the 4th member that brings it all together. Thank you for the input all the same!

Rolling into a rumored brutally hard AP, and our last player is stuck in analysis paralysis to "fill the gaps." I offered Bard as a generic force multiplier, but he's cold on that. So, using all EXCEPT Alchemist, Bard, Inventor, and Gunslinger, what class will help us sweaty nerds destroy encounters and make the DM cry?

This is the party so far, with the 4th member yet to be picked. What's the most powerful option for #4?

1. Dwarf Fighter
2. Dwarf Stone Order Druid
3. Ranged Dex Human Magus
4. ???

No Free Archetype either. Doing this hard mode.

Ancestries are all common and uncommon fwiw, but primarily looking for class.

And if you have some free time, by all means, recommend any feats, archetypes, general strategies, or what have you if something down the line would really clinch things.

Oops, nevermind. Read some more lore and found that the Shoanti and Varisians are pretty tight, with frequent travel and trade between them, so encountering the Gutspears during one of those wouldn't be too far-fetched.

Having trouble reconciling the parentage of a half-orc character born in this region. I'd like him to have a Varisian parent, and thus their culture. I'd like the other one to be a cave-dwelling or otherwise underground orc. Problem is, I'm not sure where those two things would meet, and I need help there.

The only subterranean orcs I can find in Varisia are the Gutspear tribe in the Kodar mountains. Problem is, none of the Varisian's regular caravans go through the Cinderlands or the Plateau, probably because it's so dangerous. The Broken Spine orcs near Korvosa would be *perfect*...if their keep was underground. I don't think it is though.

What's the most plausible way you can think of to get Varisians to travel that far northeast? So far the best I've got is being mystically compelled to by a Harrow reading. Or wanting to visit Shoanti cousins?

I know GM fiat would be an easy fix; just say there's an orc tribe somewhere beneath the southern mountains, but I'd like to use established lore if possible.

Map for reference: https://pathfinderwiki.com/mediawiki/images/thumb/c/c8/Varisia_map.jpg/1164 px-Varisia_map.jpg

Thanks guys! Went with sorcerer in an effort to be as vanilla as possible, but if the party needs a healer oracle sounds like a great switch. The bloodline's pretty blaster-focused so hopefully he won't be too much of a load. Just need to watch out for that 9 starting AC...

Anything worthwhile y'all can think of to do with his weapon proficiencies? Can't find any good racial alternatives.

For this campaign, I'm randomly rolling race and stats, so these can't be changed:

STR: 11
DEX: 9
CON: 17
INT: 10
WIS: 11
CHA: 15

Haven't used the +2 half-orc racial ability bonus, but that can go towards anything. The available build options are anything in core, ultimate, and advanced player's and race guides. With those limits, what class and build options would you choose?

If it matters, they don't need to fulfill a particular role, so it can be anything.