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We are playing The Sleeping Tsar campaign and are playing with replacements if you die that have a set race and party role, as well as get bonus point buy if they are a specific class.

I died and the replacement is an Aasimar named Argus that gets bonus loot and 25 point buy as long as he is a Paladin. He is starting at lvl 8.

I was planning on making him a Castigator with a falchion and the Angelic Wings featline plus Unsanctioned Knowledge. It pretty much looks like this:

Oath of Vengeance archetype
Favored class: HP
Traits: Magical Knack (Paladin), Underlying Principles (+1 to UMD and class skill)
Skills: UMD=1rank/lvl, Perception=1rank/lvl, Swim/Climb/Fly=The rest of the skill points
HP per lvl: Lvl1=10, lvl2+=5.5 (round down)

Point buy: STR: 16 DEX: 12 CON: 15 INT: 13 WIS: 8+2 CHA: 14+2

lvl 1: Power attack
lvl 3: Angelic Blood
Lvl 4: +1 Constitution
Lvl 5: Divine Bond: Weapon, Unsanctioned Knowledge
Unsanctioned Knowledge bonus spells:
Spell lvl 1: Feather Fall
Spell lvl 2: Gallant Inspiration
Spell lvl 3: Sphere of Invisibility
Spell lvl 4: Dimension Door
Lvl 7: Leadership - Dont really know how much control I will have over creation of henchman and his actions later, but I figured it will be fun to try it.
Lvl 8: +1 Strength

Coming lvls:
(Lvl 9: Angelic Flesh)
(Lvl 11: Angelic Wings)
(lvl 13: Metallic Wings)

Automatic gear: Celestial Armour, +1 Mithral Heavy Shield, +1 Holy Flaming Longsword

My choice of gear (budget 1000gp): Scroll of Alter Self, Scroll of Comprehend Languages, maybe a Wand of Cure Light Wounds

This is what I currently have. My concerns are this:

Is Unsanctioned Knowledge worth it? I like it but have been adviced to drop it.
Is the Charisma too high? I want it at least this high but have been adviced to lower it.
Is the Strength too low? I think it's overinvested.
Will it be too costly to use Scrolls and UMD for panic situations like flash flood -> become a mermaid. Need climb? Become a species with climb. Etc
I am aware that I have very very awkward gear for a castigator Paladin. I'm just hoping I will stay alive long enough to get a +2 Full Plate, +1 Keen Falchion, Cloak of Resistance +1, Ring of Protection +1, Amulet of Natural Armour +1.

Imp seems kinda cool, and I'm lawful evil already so it might fit. I don't like the comment that imps tend to want to get their masters dead though. I kinda wish it had more senses to convey through Synergist archetype to the hybrid form though. Darkvision is nice, but Ioun Wyrd and Sin Seeker both have blindsight for example.

I haven't found any, but isn't there any familiar that has 3 or more of: Blindsight, Darkvision, Scent, Fly, Climb, Burrow, Swim.

It'd become a contender for sure.

So I'm considering playing a synergist witch and I'm looking at familiars.

I was thinking, to make it really worthwhile to be a Synergist, you shouldn't just use the hybrid form to keep your familiar safe from harm but also gain something like senses, movement types or other useful abilities.

Currently I'm lvl 2 and have already started playing the character as a normal witch with a Greensting Scorpion, but am allowed to make changes between first and second session. So I was considering something like a bat or an improved familiar along with Synergist. The campaign we're playing is Hell's Vengeance so the char is Lawful Evil for selecting improved familiars. I have been looking at getting a Sin Seeker but don't really like the idea of merging with a blind flying pig and halfly becoming one, but I am still considering it.

Any advice from someone who knows their way around familiars would be really appreciated! Even if they aren't available to a Lawful Evil character, it would still be interesting to hear suggestions.

How are most online campaigns played out? Through skype or some other medium?

Will check them out! :)

Could anyone give some hints on the most important things to things of and just a general outline of what they are? I'm kind of curious about both but don't really know where to start looking for useful information about them.

Thanks in advance! :) All information appreciated!

EDIT: Just to get something concise out of this thread if I choose to not try and be a rogue, what are the most powerful bloodlines in your opinion? That is most likely the information that will help me most from this post.

On to the original post: Since the crossblooded archetype doesn't replace but lets you choose what to get from two bloodlines I'm confused as to wether or not it counts as replacing class abilitys in a way you that locks you out of other archetypes. I was thinking of being a crossblooded seeker of shadows/arcane(sage) to get skill points, disable device and stealth.

The second question is, is it viable to be a crossblooded sorcerer for the purpose of making up for the lack of a party rogue? Is the seeker bloodline worth it just to get the Tinkering class ability? Because otherwise, I'd actually rather not be a seeker since I think the bloodline abilitys usually seem better. Then I could be crossblooded between two bloodlines I like more and get all the juicy parts to make up for lost spell selection. If I go that route, what bloodlines would be the best? And is it worth it to be crossblooded even if you pick a combination that gives you an awesome dual bloodline with all good parts or is the lower number of spells known just to harsh to make it good?

I was kind of hoping that this would be viable as well. If I do take a dip into Oracle on my Paladin to get Sidestep Secret, I will defiantely want a Mithral Celestial Armor. I was kind of hoping that broken or not my GM would see it as idiocy to disallow Mithral Celestial Armors and if he does allow the Oracle dip in the first place, I was hoping he might allow this as well. Especially since I'll most likely have the Craft Magic Arms And Armor feat myself and compliment it with Magic Knack: Paladin. But since Celestial Armors are specifically made of silver I'm fine not pressing the issue. They're already made of something more Celestial than normal mithral that is so disallowing it would make sense.

I would like to know this too. Was hoping someone else would have better answers than me since to me it feels like they're just kicking classes power-gamers call weaker anyway in the face.

That sounds potentially awesome! Thanks for all the answers!

I'm playing a paladin and the game is already in motion. I just need some input on how viable people think it is to shoot for item creation feats as a paladin? I'll probably be going for an Angelic Wings-Death From Above build and would need an item that boosts the flying skill to be able to reliably hover in combat for example. Since paladins get monstrous saves an item giving evasion to really gain something from the reflex-save would be pretty nice to have as well. Putting it on the same ring would be even more awesome. If I dip Oracle at high lvls for Nature's Whispers or Sidestep Secret (if the power level of enemies and our party Barbarian is high enough that GM approves) getting a Celestial Armor and improving its enhancement bonus would be pretty nifty too.

I'm hesitant to ask the GM if I can retcon in Magic Knack: Paladin to make item creation more effective. Mostly because last session when I changed a racial feature and another player changed from Fighter to Barbarian on lvl 2 he said we were done changing lvl 1 stats which seems reasonable. What I wonder is then, if I don't have magic knack, will the caster lvl gimp me in making items to the point where it is not worthwhile? Will I be able to add a weaker skill bonus of Fly onto an already stronger item that I could not create myself? Does not having the spell list required myself but having a Mystic Theurge and an Arcane Trickster in the group make up for it or will I just be miserable trying to pull off the Spellcraft DCs instead? Can you work around requiraments of the type "Creator must have 5 ranks in the Climb skill." by increasing the DC or are they set in stone? Can the party Barbarian or Rogue/Arcane Trickster supply the climb/swim skill needed, increasing the DC as with spells, so I can make a "Ring of Quality of Life" so the next time we're dropped 40ft into the water off of a bridge the threat of drowning in the water is not more severe then the encounter lurking there itself?

Also, I haven't found any items of bonus to the Fly skill for example. Is it only certain skills that can be enhanced with magic items or can all of them, just that pregenerated magic items might not exist for it?

Thanks for the input! I have no idea where I got that holy weapon clause from because now I can't find it anywhere. Made a paladin of Ragathiel wielding a falchion anyway. Feel like the switch hitter is more suited for multiclassing since you get so feat starved. Want to have some skill points as well because I like to be able to feel like the character is capable out of combat as well. Going for dexterity feats I'd have to dump int since I have rolled stats and cant bump dexterity without dumping int. Will take the angelic feat line since it didn't seem to hamper _too much_ and I like it flavour wise. If I didn't take Angelic feats, what would you suggest? Dazzling display line for our Arcane Trickster? Are there more feats I should take in the 2h-weapon line then Power Attack and Furious Focus? I guess a ring of evasion and Lightning Reflexes could be nice with the cha bonus. Feel like a third of the Divine Grace ability doesn't really get full effect without it? Greater Lay On Hands seems awesome too. Got Oath of Vengeance as well. Are there any feats that improve smite?

Before, I had no idea what I wanted to play but now it is an Aasimar Paladin and the character already got to lvl 2, me being quite happy with her. :D

So I'm pretty sure I'll be playing an Eternally Optimistic Vindicator (not lawful stupid that is) Castigator (2h-weapon of choice) Aasimar Paladin but developing the concept I was getting into the skills Knowledge (The Planes), Linguistics and Survival. I just want to know that a Paladin with those skills wont be shooting themselves in the foot trying to be something else. Also, I really like the Aasimar racial feats Angelic Blood, Angelic Flesh, Angelic Wings and Metallic Wings but I'm a bit unsure how good they are. Considering that they give relevant combat bonuses while not interfering with using two handed weapons, I hope they're not that rough? I can imagine they're better for a Sorcerer not taking the Metallic Wings since flying according to optimization guides seems to be best for people who want to avoid combat by flying above it, rather than chasing those who do at a terribly low fly speed through the air. Guess flying over pits and walls would still be great though. Anyway, here's the character!

Aasimar Paladin lvl 1
Favored class: Paladin, most lvls 1skill point/lvl
Str:17 Dex:10 Con:14 Int:14 Wis:8 Cha:19
Weapon of choice: Falchion (though I'll skip Weapon Focus I'd like to find a deity with favored weapon: Falchion so I get free holy weapon bonus using them - I wish Lamashtu was at least a neutral god of fate or true death or something... That I could go with.)
Armor: Scale Mail (replaced with the best armor I can afford for every lvl)
Feat: Angelic Blood (this would be instead of Power Attack, which I'd wait until lvl 5 to take if I go for Angelic Flesh at lvl 3)
Skills: Diplomacy, Knowledge (Religion), Knowledge (The Planes), Linguistics (Thalassian as a bonus language at lvl 1, probably Aklo and other more planar shady business as the character adapts to her surroundings), Survival