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So I have had a concept for a while, which seems to be difficult to pull off. But I'll be joining a PBP game soon, which is at 2nd level currently. I know he won't be optimized or a monster in combat, etc.; but I would like him to be effective. Luckily, the emphasis is heavy on roleplaying, so it shouldn't be too much of an issue.

The core of the concept is a swordcane pistol wielding character, a rakish sort, who is (in flavor, not in class) a 'swashbuckler' type; full of derring-do, vim and vigor. Who can also cast some spells (and preferably through his swordcane pistol, via spellslinger).

I'd love it if his spellcasting were divine instead of arcane; but I don't see a way to make that work at all. If anyone has suggestions, I am open to them.

My preference in combat style is to be primarily a spellcaster, with the ability to use ranged or melee combat as a decent option as needed. Probably lead off with a bullet, then switch to some spells, then switch to the blade if closed with. So no need for rapid reloading shenanigans etc., unless they fit easily into the build.

Spellslinger is almost necessary, though myrmidarch magus alone could pull it off to a degree. I'd enjoy bladebound magus, which is compatible with myrmidarch... Combining spellslinger and myrmidarch lets me cast pretty much any spell (well, NOT quite, but a LOT) through my arcane gun/black blade.

I am not a fan at all of the gunslinger's mechanics - grit and deeds, etc. But I think I might be able to pull off (simulate, to some degree, at least) a divine variant with a gunslinger/oracle or gunslinger/cleric build. But I just haven't found a way to make it REALLY work as desired.

Also, aside from class selection, I'd like him to be a Dex and Cha primary character. So I thought of dumping magus for a bard, either a dervish or archaeologist bard would work, and bards can kinda sorta get a divine-ish flavor to the, with limited healing etc.; but I would have less interaction with the spells and my arcane gun, than I would as a myrmidarch. And of course I would lose the flavor of the intelligent black blade partner/cohort/master (whichever it turns out to be).

And added to that - to some degree because I haven't pegged down the specific build and its stat requirements, I still haven't chosen a race either. I am leaning towards half-elf, dwarf, gnome, or halfling. Each for different and distinct flavors; but each of which would be a blast to RP with this build.

And finally, my stats. We rolled; here's what I rolled (no racials added, obviously); 6, 9, 11, 14, 15, 18.

So... I'm off to tinker with concepts and write up more of the background, would welcome any input on build suggestions!

The Arcane Bloodline Sorcerer gets an arcane bonded item (or familiar, but we'll leave that aside for now). So by levels in sorcerer, or by eldritch heritage feats, you get a normal arcane bonded item. It specifically stacks with levels of wizard to determine the effectiveness of the item.

The spellslinger wizard trades his arcane bond for an arcane gun. It has several neat benefits, but is missing most all of the typical arcane bonded item benefits.

If you have both, and you select your arcane gun as the arcane bonded item (whichever way it happens, sorcerer first or wizard first), do you get the full benefits of the arcane bond, based on combined Sor+Wiz levels; as well as all of the benefits of the arcane gun, based solely on Wiz levels?

And, does it matter which you gain first?

Subject says it all - any feats, traits, archetypes, etc. which allow a non arcane caster to have an arcane bonded item?

I'm looking at a character who specializes in a devil may care swashbuckling style, wielding a sword-cane pistol through which he casts his spells. I definitely do not want a straight spellslinger, for one since he is a Dex/Cha focused build, and for two because the archetype on the whole sucks as anything other than a 1-level dip.

My DM dislikes the gunslinger class, though not firearms. I am firmly in his camp. The grit/deeds mechanic is not my cup of tea at all. I debated on a black bladed myrmidarch magus, but while I like the concept, the DM is not a fan of the magus, so I will try to steer clear.

I initially thought EK was the obvious choice. in just 5 levels, ith a race with a 3rd level spell-like ability, I could go wiz 1/sor 1/trench ftr 3, and then EK10. It would give me a strong BAB, dex to damage rolls with both bullets and spells fired through the firearm, a couple of bonus feats, shore up my fort save, and etc. Several benefits to the build.

But then I thought of it, and I am losing 5 caster levels from the sorcerer (wizard caster levels will be next to useless, I think), and almost all of my bloodline benefits.

Would a straight Spellslinger 1/ Sorcerer 19 be able to pull off the derring-do desired, with spells, bullets, and occasionally the sword-cane?

What would you do?

A druid without wildshape, or a ranger with full casting, or a cleric with the druid spell list...

Basically looking for a pure caster based character. Nature oriented. Don't want wild shape, and not really all that interested in an animal companion. I think the cleric with the druid spell list would be the closest to what I want - but would that be balanced/fair to do, just swap out the spell list? Is there any way to do this with existing archetypes, prestige classes, or feats; instead of houseruling it?

I have a character concept I am trying to bring into Pathfinder. For a Kingmaker Game.

The key points of the character are his corpulence and gluttony, as well as his being anywhere from somewhat to severely greedy, and a proponent of ethical hedonism*. He will be trying to sway others into this way of thinking, and promoting it by building festhalls, alehouses, whore houses, gambling dens, etc.

[i]* "Ethical Hedonism" - Ethical hedonism is the idea that all people have the right to do everything in their power to achieve the greatest amount of pleasure possible to them. It is also the idea that every person's pleasure should far surpass their amount of pain. Ethical hedonism is said to have been started by a student of Socrates, Aristippus of Cyrene. He held the idea that pleasure is the highest good.[/b]

The complication is that he needs to fit in with a party that includes some lawful good characters, as well as neutral good and chaotic good. (I think all characters are one of the three good alignments).

Also, none of that has much of anything to do with class, on the whole. So I would like to find some way to incorporate one or more aspects of a class into the above.

I'd thought of a cleric, war priest, or oracle; founding temples to various appropriate deities - where each temple is more of a house of vice (a temple to cayden cailean would be an alehouse, a temple to calistria a whore house, etc.).

A Sin Mage could have his philosophies based in ethical hedonism, and just be a vocal proponent of them.

What other classes could readily incorporate that into and with their class features? How would they best be built?

What role(s) would you see as the best suited for this character in the overall leadership of the kingdom? How would the classes suggested affect that?

without spoilers (first time playing), what build advice would you have for an urban druid in a kingmaker campaign, who has just hit 3rd level?

Custom race (wemic)... nothing particularly relevant to his future build there; he can take catfolk feats, and has rake/pounce. He is Large size (until thousand faces lets him also be medium or small on a regular basis), but no reach. Base speed is 50. Rolled stats, 13/15/14/12/16/17 after racials. Can post more specifics on the race if needed.

As an Urban Druid, he has the Nobility (Leadership) domain, has the Lost Legacy background feat as his 1st level choice, has focused on survival, knowledge: nobility, and diplomacy as skills, with a smattering of others. He doesn't worship any god, but reveres nature as a whole.

Wears hide armor, soon to be masterwork studded leather, I think. Has several weapons, but usually uses his quarterstaff (as a shillelagh), and/or claws...and is trying to be a caster focused druid, though fairly melee capable as well (primarily due to racial pounce and rake abilities).

This is a 9 man party with every base more than covered, so he can easily focus on combat, non combat, or be a mixture of both.

Ultimate goal is to snag the Leader (King) title, but another player also has eyes on that... so he may end up being the grand diplomat or high priest, if his first choice falls through.

So if you were in this position, what would you take for your 3rd level feat, and how would you build from there?

This came up in a game last night... DM said you cannot 5' step at an angle around an enemy; that is it just like a 'hard corner'.

I did not think pathfinder had any such restrictions on 5' stepping. And I cannot find anything related to that.

Just curious if this is a house rule from another edition of D&D, or if this is a pathfinder rule I am not familiar with...?

Okay, a character I am developing for an upcoming Kingmaker campaign has been raised by dwarves and is a crafting focused pistol wielding cleric.

So which deity would be most appropriate to worship, for a firearm devotee of the smithing (and eventually, magical item crafting) arts?

I thought of going with the forgemaster archetype, even though he is not a dwarf it would be appropriate for him to choose a dwarven AT - however I don't think it suits the overall theme of the character (don't want him to be so much focused on runes).

I thought of the blackpowder inquisition in place of a domain, but I don't think it would be as beneficial as an actual domain; in the long run.

So I am thinking of a deity with the artifice and nobility domains, if any exist, preferably one to allow for a Neutral Good or Lawful Good cleric (so a CG, N, NG, LG, or LN deity).

Not sure I love the benefits of the nobility domain, but as it is in a kingmaker campaign it seems it would be appropriate.

Do any actual deities (not demon princes, etc.) in golarion have any firearms as a favored weapon?

Any other suggestions for a deity?

I am in the midst of creating a dwarven offshoot race, using the ARG race builder rules and a 20RP limit. While I intend it to have flavor and not be a min/maxed race for a specific class - I want the race as a whole to be the supreme crafters; of both magical and mundane items.

What would you do with a 20RP race to specialize it in this way?

Bonded Mount (Su): You gain the service of an unusually intelligent, strong, and loyal mount. The creature must be one that you are capable of riding and is suitable as a mount. A Medium oracle can select a camel or a horse. A Small oracle can select a pony or wolf, but can also select a boar or a dog if she is at least 4th level. This mount functions as a druid’s animal companion, using your oracle level as your effective druid level. Bonded mounts have an Intelligence score of at least 6.

So if I am a large race, what are the RAW available options?

Assuming it grants me a Huge mount, how would that interact later on in the character's career, if the Mammoth Rider PrC were taken?

Alter self states;

"Small creature: If the form you take is that of a Small humanoid, you gain a +2 size bonus to your Dexterity.

Medium creature: If the form you take is that of a Medium humanoid, you gain a +2 size bonus to your Strength."

If a creature is naturally large, and shrinks to medium via alter self, does it take the standard ability score adjustments (-2 STR, +2 DEX) for the change, and then apply the benefit of this spell (+2 STR), thus netting a +2 DEX and no other change?

Likewise, if it shrinks from Large to Small, would it first adjust for both size increments (-4 STR, +4 DEX) and then apply the benefits of this spell (+2 DEX) for a net -4 STR and +6 DEX?

Or does it merely gain specifically the ability score adjustments from this spell, and no other change?

What of the typical/standard adjustments to attack rolls and armor class, based on size? The spell does not mention those changes either, so is it assumed to be done, in addition to the ability score adjustments?

So, the amateur gunslinger feat grants a single 1st level gunslinger deed, and up to your WIS/day in grit (starting with 1 each day). If you ever gain levels in a class that grants grit, you can immediately trade the feat for the extra grit feat.

So, what if the class gains grit, but not at first level? You would lose your grit for X levels if you trade the feat away.

Or, what if you gain levels in a class that grants grit, but don't grant the deed you selected via this feat? If you trade the feat, you would lose that deed.

In the first case, would you rule that the player could trade the feat when he actually gained grit from the class, and not only the first level of the class that will eventually gain grit?

In the second case, do you think the feat slot is worth a single 1st level deed?

Are there other scenarios in which you would keep the feat?

I am about to embark on a few hours of developmental fun, trying to create a balanced archetype for the alchemist, basically a form of the spellslinger, but trading the bombs class ability instead of spells, to fuel an arcane gun. Not sure what all I will do, how awesome or horrible it may end up... it is just an idea I had. And since I am on the boards, I thought I would start by posing this query, and hopefully come back later tonight or tomorrow to some awesome responses...

so say you were playing a tiny race, and decided to play a gun toting character. What would be the best build to maximize your damage potential? I realize weapon die is usually not a major concern; but still - what are the best methods to bump it back up?

Okay, I will be playing in a kingmaker campaign in a few weeks. I am working through many character concepts. The rest of the party is also undecided; we will have 4-6 players (I know 4 have committed, there are 2 more thinking about it).

As I am unsure which role(s) any of the other players may hope to gain, and what classes or builds they will be grabbing, I am trying to come up with ideas that can easily fill 2 or more roles.

Also, I was hoping to be a craftsman style character; a humble smith or artisan who rises to greatness, but is still a craftsman at heart. Both mundane crafting and magical item crafting. I am not familiar with KingMaker, beyond the intro handout; will there be enough downtime in a typical campaign to do any crafting?

So given that, what race/class/build would you recommend for me?

so the undead type states, "Undead use their Charisma score in place of their Constitution score when calculating hit points, Fortitude saves, and any special ability that relies on Constitution (such as when calculating a breath weapon's DC)."

If an undead character wanted to take a feat which had a con of 13 or con 18 etc. as a prerequisite, would this allow the undead to use their Cha in its place?

Is minor creation the lowest level spell which allows a character to magically craft something? It is, as far as I have seen... but double checking I am not missing anything.

Are there any 3PP supplements which have something like this?

I knew I would remember it. I decided on a different course of action already, but still, would be nice to see what the consensus is on this.

Can a race be two or more types? Such as Humanoid and Half-Construct, or Fey and Hal-Undead? What of both half types, such as Half-Construct and Half-Undead? Or, even with a third, such as Humanoid, Half Construct, and Half Undead?

And second, assuming the above is possible, what happens with the overlapped abilities? Things such as darkvision or lowlight vision would seem easy, you remove the cost of that ability from the combined total, since both types are 'charging' you for the ability separately. But what of identical or similar/overlapping resistances or other abilities/features based on the type? Just suck up the overlapping costs and abilities, for the chance to play a weird abomination?

Thoughts? Rules sources?

For questions on using the ARG's Race Builder rules? It is about rules, but it is also about making homebrew.

So, in a game tonight, some knights flying on gryphons (120' altitude) got hit with a web spell. The knights themselves saved vs. the spell, but both mounts failed and got webbed.

And we can find no actual rules to cover being grappled while flying.

The assumption we decided on currently is that it was a collision and they will be falling (they failed a DC25 fly check). Is that the appropriate means of handling it?

Assuming it is;

Do they get a fly skill check to avoid falling?
Do they get a chance to break out of the web?

Is there anything else we should consider?

- Thanks!

I am going to be introducing this character into a Way of the Wicked campaign soon. Starting at 10th level, and as a Duergar, I went through many rules acrobatics trying to make two other vastly different builds work; but with the amount of houseruling and hand waiving required... I decided to go with something more traditional.

So in short, in combat I can use Dimension Door 11 times a day, to pull the 'nightcrawler' style teleport all around and flank with myself attacks; getting 3 attacks with the urumi and/or an unarmed strike. Not amazing - I have little to add to the attacks, no sneak attack or precision damage, I have a great critical range but nothing that triggers on a crit. Really, aside from the teleportation, all I have is vanilla attacks.

I went with 2 levels of Sensei monk to gain WIS to attacks and AC.
5 levels of ranger, will be 6 at 11th level, to get the TWF feats without DEX.
Of course Horizon Walker is there for the dimension door; which I use 3+WIS (11 total) times per day. (I used retraining rules and paid the 1,350 for the three feats retrained into the dimensional chain.)

I wanted a whip, or scorpion whip, which would have been a light weapon (+2 to hit while TWF, effectively) - but aside from the fact it isn't actually a monk weapon (thus it would have required the 'guided' property to use WIS), the damage and crit range are both abysmal. Again, not like I am doing anything special on a crit... but extra damage is extra damage.

Ideally I would build this guy with a pair of kukri or wakizashi (or another 18-20 crit range light melee weapon); but neither are "monk" weapons. And they do not match the former slaver flavor that a pair of whips (or whip-swords) does.

I had thought of dumping the monk levels, and using a monk's robe to get WIS to AC and the guided property to get WIS to hit and damage with my weapons. All I lose out on are the unarmed strike (not a huge issue), stunning fist (not a huge issue), and the WIS based inspire courage (+1 at 10th level; not a huge issue).

But then I either have to drop keen or drop the bonus to +1 on both weapons, and I would have to drop my headband of wisdom to a +2 instead of a +4; which drops my AC, attack, and damage (as well as will save, spell DCs, and skills) all by 1.

On the other hand, I would get ITWF right now, instead of at 11th; meaning an extra attack every round. And if I put the extra level (not certain I am going to bother trying to get ranger 10th for GTWF; so why bother with ranger 7th?) into fighter, I would get a bonus feat, and could start working on making those crits mean something. Or I could grab a level of rogue, ninja, or vivisectionist; to get some sneak attack damage (I will be flanking with myself after all).

So... input? advice? critiques?

How many ways are there to replenish a character's Ki and/or Arcane Pool?

Also, what if the character is a multiclass monk/magus with the Ki Arcana arcana; allowing him to use ki and arcane pool points interchangeably; would that have any effect?

Okay, so I have been working with the DM of a campaign I am about to join (way of the wicked - no spoilers, please) at 10th level. We came up with a loose concept in our first conversation and have been together trying to make it work out well... and have been encountering numerous stumbling blocks, including making custom archetypes and houserules.

I finally gave up on the initial concept from a rules perspective, and took the flavor of it, and decided to see how best to make a workable build with said flavor, with as few houserules as possible.

The flavor is a beard warrior. A duergar who is, as most are, completely hairless except a beard and eyebrows. And who has a prehensile beard that is his primary weapon. And who is a melee focused build (started out as a grappler, then tried to make it a monk, and am now going magus).

With the white-haired witch archetype, prehensile hair blows. With the witch's hex, it is better - but requiring a standard action and limited to a few minutes a day spoils the flavor.

So the one house rule in effect is that I can pay to have my prehensile hair hex permanencied. Technically it is a secondary natural attack, but as my only natural attack it is a primary. And gets a STR score equivalent to my INT modifier. And gains 1.5x damage on attacks (which barely makes up for the fact the damage die sucks).

We were going to combine hexcrafter and bladed scarf (kapenia) dancer, and refluff a bladed scarf into my beard. I would buy the weapon, enchant it as a weapon, etc.; but it would be my beard, and not a scarf. But then I found the Natural Spell Combat arcana.

I thought about being a bladebound as well, and the DM is okay with the concept, having my beard as an intelligent black "blade" - but after considering the benefits and costs, I am pretty sure I will skip it. It is still on the table, as a very flavorful option which has some mechanical benefits, though.

So now I am a pure hexcrafter magus.

So there is the basis of my build; a 10th level hexcrafter magus, possibly bladebound, who has a permanent prehensile hair hex (using up his 'free' hex gained at 4th level).

Now I need to optimize.
I am looking at 10/14/16/20/14/3 for stats.

I thought ever so briefly about the dimensional chain of feats, but aside from the fact I could only have agility for now, I don't see the flavor meshing.

I also thought about multiclassing with rogue or ninja (or vivisectionist) to gain some sneak attack...but I feel I would be giving up more than I gained.

Malleable Magic looks like a good trait, to boost my arcane pool somewhat; but it costs spells, and prevents any other magic trait. Not sure what other traits to consider...

I think the 3 feat investment for Moonlight Stalker is probably a likely choice. That leaves me 3 open feats... Improved Natural Attack is barely worth it on a 1d3 to 1d4 damage die. Weapon Focus is a given, and probably Combat
Reflexes. *IF* I were to take at least one level of monk, and/or invest in monk's robes, I could add Feral Combat Training to vastly improve the base damage of my hair. I don't know that 1d3 -> 1d8 is worth 13,000 GP though, and I would rather not multiclass monk for this build; unless it is just the only option that makes sense.

I am thinking arcane accuracy is a good second arcana, letting me double INT to hit when I really need it. That leaves me one more arcana (or more, if I spend a feat on extra arcana), which could also be an extra hex if desired.

Any advice/input on making this guy rock?

Okay, so before I ask a few questions, the base situation... A multiclass monk (monk 4/alchemist 6) character with a single (primary) natural attack, feral combat training, a monk's robe, monastic legacy, and other possibly relevant feats and items to be detailed below.

a) effective strength score for the natural attack is 18/+4 - as his only natural attack, this allows him to add 1.5x (6) to damage, yes?
b) feral combat training applies all things which affect unarmed strike to the natural attack; does this include the line "A monk's unarmed strike is treated as both a manufactured weapon and a natural weapon for the purpose of spells and effects that enhance or improve either manufactured weapons or natural weapons."?
c) His overall effective monk level for unarmed strike damage is 12 (4 + (6/2) + 5) - a base of 2d6; if he is enlarged, this increases to 3d6, yes?
d) What if he takes Improved Natural Attack - also 3d6, but then enlarged, it becomes 4d6?
e) Can lead blades add to that mix, bumping it to 6d6?
f) What about an AoMF with the Impact enhancement? Would this work with lead blades, or only instead of it? If it does stack, that is 8d6, yes?
g) Is there any reasonable way (assuming most of the above is reasonable) to add yet more to this damage?
h) How would magic weapon / magic fang interplay with all of the above?

Now, a second scenario. The DM indicated he didn't want to deal with frustrations of how enlarge and improved natural attack might stack, combined with other similar damage improvements as listed above. He stated that tentatively, INA will instead of treating attack as one size larger, improve the monk's IUS damage one step - so from 2d6 to 2d8... how would that interplay with all of the above mentioned elements (enlarge, lead blades, impact)? Assuming most 'size increases' instead increase the damage one step; what happens after 2d10? 2d6 -> 2d8 -> 2d10 -> ??? -> ??? ... would the missing blanks be 4d8 and 6d8?

Adding in bracers of armor, with a brawling enhancement, gives a +2 to attack and damage. AoMF will give another flat bonus to damage (just assuming enhancement bonus, no impact or other enhancements for now) - do these stack?

What other ways, including some slight cheese but nothing which totally twists the rules out of place and no 3PP, can I pile on damage to my natural attack?

I have found the admixture vial (combine two extracts into one), and the hybridization funnel (combine two alchemical splash weapons into one), and would like to find a potion equivalent... but have not yet.

If one does not exist, how would it be priced? The above two items are spread pretty far apart (5,000 and 200), and this item would seem to be right in the middle of the two...

Just wondering if you guys think these are balanced conversions, if they're priced appropriately, and if you might have any suggestions on tweaking them...

{Sorry for formatting issues, I tried to neaten it up somewhat, but the copy/paste didn't make it very pretty in translation!}

PDF of the custom archetypes

Vunderbar! I just spent 20-30 minutes typing up a topic, to have it disappear on me! So, here's round two...

I am making a character for a home game. It is using two homebrew archetypes I created and the DM approved (linky above). Essentially, the one is a white-haired witch, but alchemist instead of witch. The other is a drunken alchemist. And those very vague descriptions don't do anything to help you critique my build; however I just typed up synopsis of each without copy/pasting the full text, and it got eaten by teh interwebs. So, while I may come back later and edit in or post a reply with similar synopses... for now, here's the important bits;

- sneak attack as a vivisectionist
- can take rogue talents in place of discoveries (an option in addition to discoveries)
- prehensile hair more like the hex than the WHW; but a mandatory 2nd level discovery allows it to be extended [length depends on level, at my level, only up to 10']
- can brew alcohol with craft: alchemy, in half the time
- can apply +1 metamagic to potions and extracts, but I don't have any feats or rods selected so for me this is a wasted benefit (for now)
- can select two conditions (more or less from the paladin's mercies list) to which he is immune as long as he continually chugs alcohol every round
- can drink alcohol, potions, or extracts as a move action

Aside from that (gained from 4 levels as an alchemist with both archetypes), he has 6 levels of monk with the drunken master, qinggong, and weapon adept archetypes. His chosen weapon is his hair - free focus and specialization. His bonus feats are combat reflexes, dodge, and mobility. His leveled feats are feral combat training, boar style, combat expertise, spring attack, and whirlwind attack.

He is a duergar with the following stats (including level bonuses): 9/14/16/18/18/3. He can enlarge himself 1/day, and go invisible 1/day, in addition to his potions and extracts.

so, all that summarized (and in less than half the space/time as last time, sorry about any dropped details or lack of formatting), here are my concerns;

mainly - is the whirlwind chain a waste for this build? If enlarged, and his hair is extended, he can hit all foes in 20' of himself as a full round attack. but his AB is lower than flurry, he can't use ki for an extra attack like flurry, cannot hit one opponent more than once (so not likely to trigger boar style), and it is doubtful he would be able to make use of sneak attack while whirlwind attacking. As he gains levels, his reach will increase, depending on how much I focus on alchemist levels, potentially up to 25', 50' while enlarged. At that point, I would think it would definitely be worth the investment . . . but that would be at 20th level and if I focus purely on alchemist from here on out.

if whirlwind is not a trap, as I fear it may be, what extracts should I learn to best accompany both it and my flurrying? what items would be best suited (AoMF is a prerequisite, I know - but aside from that I don't know what I will get - nor exactly how I will enchant it).

on the other hand, if whirlwind IS a trap, as I fear it is... what feats should I swap out to focus on flurrying with his hair? What other changes would best suit this character concept?

Thanks!

[edit] two feats I plan on taking very soon are monastic legacy (use half of my non-monk levels towards unarmed damage) and improved natural attack (DM has ruled for this build, it will increase me to the next level of monk's unarmed damage; it was a headache to try and decide how it would interact with FCT and unarmed damage)... what other feats would you suggest I should have in the lineup over the next few levels, and what would be the order of importance?

White-Haired DrunChemyst
A Custom Alchemist Archetype
The goals of this archetype are twofold; first to create an alchemist variant of the witch archetype, and second to play nicely with either or both the Drunken Brute and/or Drunken Master archetypes.

Class Features Changed or Replaced
This archetype alters or replaces the Mutagen, Swift Alchemy, Swift Poisoning, Instant Alchemy, and Persistent Mutagen class features, as well as the 2nd level Discovery.

White Hair (Ex)
If you select this archetype and do not already have all white hair, your hair (all hair currently upon your body, as well as any that grows from hence forth) turns completely silvery-white as soon as you gain the first level of this archetype.

Prehensile Hair (Su)
At 1st level, a white-haired drunchemyst gains the ability to use his hair (or eyebrows, beard, or moustache) as a weapon, and manipulate his hair as if it were a limb with a Strength score equal to his Intelligence score. This functions as a primary natural attack with a reach of 5 feet which deals 1d4 points of damage (1d3 for a Small alchemist).
In addition, whenever the hair strikes a foe, the alchemist can attempt to grapple that foe with his hair as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity, using his Intelligence modifier in place of his Strength modifier when making the combat maneuver check. When a white-haired drunchemyst grapples a foe in this way, he does not gain the grappled condition.
The white-haired drunchemyst’s prehensile hair cannot be sundered or attacked as a separate creature.
In addition, a white-haired drunchemyst further improves his ability to control his hair as he progresses in level, gaining the following abilities:
Constrict (Ex) At 3rd level, when the white-haired drunchemyst’s hair successfully grapples an opponent, it can begin constricting his victim as a swift action, dealing damage equal to that of its attack.
Trip (Ex) At 6th level, a white-haired drunchemyst who successfully strikes a foe with his hair can attempt a combat maneuver check to trip the creature as a swift action.
Pull (Ex) At 9th level, a white-haired drunchemyst who successfully strikes a foe with his hair can attempt a combat maneuver check to pull the creature 5 feet closer to his as a swift action.
Strangle (Ex) At 12th level, when the white-haired drunchemyst’s hair is grappling with an opponent, that creature is considered strangled, and cannot speak or cast spells with verbal components.
This ability replaces Mutagen & Persistent Mutagen

Extend Hair (Su)
At 2nd level, the white-haired drunchemyst gains this discovery. By expending a standard action to ‘feed’ his prehensile hair a ‘dose’ of alcohol (approximately one mug or tankard of ale, or an equivalent amount of hard liquor), his hair can be extended to have a 10’ reach.
Extending his hair reduces his movement speed by 5’ and applies a -1 penalty to attack rolls, due to the additional length and weight of his extended prehensile hair. A swift action can be expended to retract the hair to its standard 3-5’ length.
At 6th and every four additional levels, the overall length is extended by an additional 5’, to a maximum length of 30’ at 18th level.

Swift Drinker (Ex)
At 3rd level, the white-haired drunchemyst can use his Craft: Alchemy skill in place of a Profession: Brewer skill check to brew alcoholic beverages. He can create a quantity of alcoholic beverages and/or alchemical items in half the time it would normally take. Additionally, he can imbibe (or ‘feed’ his hair) a ‘dose’ of alcohol as a move action.
At 6th level, he can imbibe (or ‘feed’ his hair) a ‘dose’ of an alcoholic beverage as a swift action.
At 18th level, he can create any alchemical item or alcoholic beverage as a full-round action. He can imbibe (or ‘feed’ his hair) a ‘dose’ of an alcoholic beverage as an immediate action.
This modifies the Swift Alchemy, Swift poisoner, & Instant Alchemy

Okay, about to join a Way of the Wicked campaign in mid campaign; 10th level character. I was initially considering Dwarf, for flavor reasons, but then learned the party just encountered a lot of Duergar, so am likely swapping race to that.

Concept, a witty and ruthless merchant lord, who has horrible charisma but relies on his well written contracts (LE) and some intimidation to overcome his lack of personality. He walks with a very fancy cane; which a detailed inspection will reveal to be a sword cane pistol. He wears no visible armor, just a nobleman's rich outfit and a lot of jewelry. {A very crappy and quickly done photoshop cobbling together of a character sketch, and made when he was still a dwarf, but...}

I know there is some doubt as to if a sword cane pistol can be a black blade, from previous topics several months back, but this DM is okay with it, so assume it is fine.

One level of Spellslinger Wizard allows him to cast all ranged touch, cone, and line spells (of any class) through his pistol, with a few other minor benefits (gunsmithing, mage bullets); at the cost of selecting 4 prohibited schools. With only a single level investment, the spellcasting will obviously be performed through his other class, so no worries on the prohibited schools.

9 Levels of Bladebound Kensai Magus grants him the ability to cast touch spells through his swordcane (though not at range - had considered trading kensai for myrmidarch for this, not sure if it is worth it...), gives me:

How many ways can one class gain one or more spells from another class' spell lists?

I remember having read a few others, either in traits, feats, or archetypes; however it is very late and I cannot think right now, to remember any of them. The only one I can recall for certain (since I just saw it a few moments ago) is the bard's magician archetype Expanded Repertoire ability.

But I know there are others... I just can't remember them.

Okay, so I would love to play a spellslinger, but I don't actually love the mechanics of the archetype as much as the flavor. Compound that with the fact the archetype is disallowed in PFS, and I have to come up with a workaround.

I thought of a black blade magus / myrmidarch, and using a dagger pistol or swordcane pistol as my black blade. But given that both those weapons specify they act as a double weapon for enchantment purposes, and that I know some table variation will exist as to whether it would even be allowed - and technically, the swordcane pistol isn't allowed at all, as it is not technically a swordcane (no more than a musket axe is a battleaxe), and it is not a one handed slashing weapon. By the other side of the same technicality, a dagger pistol is a one-handed weapon, and if used as a dagger it is slashing; making it a legal choice. However I don't want to worry about table variation every time I play, so... (also, I would not get my desired signature weapon until 3rd level, so...)

A single level of wizard with a bonded item (weapon - swordcane pistol or dagge pistol) will get me the weapon for free. I can see some minor table variation with that, but RAW it states you begin play with one at no cost, and places no limitations on what weapon may be selected (if any table variation comes up, I can just have that argument prepared,..will be much easier than the black blade, I think). I will still need to invest a couple of feats into EWP: Firearms and Gunsmithing to be able to fire the gun and purchase ammo, but that would be the case with any variation I play that isn't an actual gunslinger. Make him an evoker, and I even get a +1 damage bonus to all evocation spells...

That brings up the final option; a single level of gunslinger instead of wizard. I lose the ability to select spells from the wizard side which complement the magus side (and can be used with spell combat), I lose the free swordcane or dagger pistol (can only select blunderbuss, musket, or pistol), and so would have to wait until I can afford (via gold and fame) to buy the desired weapon. I would gain a point of AB, some grit and a deed...which, all in all, may be a worthy tradeoff for 2 feats. At 750 gold, I could have the gold and fame to buy one fairly quickly. Start as a gunslinger and play fairly typical that way until 2nd level, when I switch over. But it would be a total deviation from the flavor I want to build for this character, which I think is more important... Also, the stats are not as lined up as I would like (not that this build would not already be MAD)

So for now, I am giving the edge to wizard. What other options are there for a 1 (or maybe 2) level dip to get a free gun (and hopefully one or both of those feats)?

Then, as a myrmidarch magus, I can use the swordcane (or dagger) pistol as a melee weapon until I get ranged spellstrike; up until then just using the gun aspect as a mundane gun. At which point I can shoot spell bullets with ranged spellstrike, and use that in spell combat if desired. I can mix and match melee and ranged combat, fully using my magus abilities on both fields.

I would obviously require EWP: Firearms, and Gunsmithing simply to function with the weapon (and those would be my Human bonus and 1st level feats). Rapid Reload would help, and is almost as necessary. I would have a free spell focus feat from my wizard level.

Spells would include abundant ammunition, shocking grasp, and magic missile among utility stuff. And, given that my weapon is my arcane bond, I could flavor all spellcasting as being shot out of it, even when it is just being cast normally.

How else should I build him? What one stat should be the focus? I am thinking pre-racial going 14/14/14/14/10/10, and then bumping either INT or DEX with the racial. I also thought of dropping CON to 10 and having both INT and DEX at 16.

There are several very nice firearm based traits from UC; but I also wouldn't mind boosting my wizard's caster level one or two. And other generic traits can be just as nice in different ways (affecting class skills, etc.).

So there is my initial concept. I will be off trying to develop it into something playable; but in the mean time, what suggestions do you have?

Thinking about making the following for PFS;

Half-Elf Magus 4 (Hexcrafter/Staff Magus) / Witch 8 (White Haired Witch/Bonded Witch)
Dump CHA, max INT, secondary in STR, with a little DEX, CON, and WIS

So with half elf, I get favored class benefits for both. Magus, at 4 levels in, gets me an extra arcane pool point... nothing amazing, but a benefit. Witch gets me an extra spell every level.

With a 4th level hexcrafter magus, I get one hex - more if I invest feat slots in the extra arcana feat. This makes up for the loss of hexes as a white haired witch.

As a staff magus, I can one-hand a quarterstaff, and even get weapon specialization with the quarterstaff. This could be my bonded item as a bonded witch. (would I select weapon, or staff?)

I can spellstrike with any curse descriptor spell I know (both from witch and magus casting), including the 0-level cantrip 'brand' if needed.

I would have the witch's white hair to fight with in addition to my staff; giving me reach (15' by 8th level) plus grapple, constrict, trip, pull, and strangle with the hair, and close fighting (plus spellstrike) with the staff. I could use the hair as a secondary attack on top of a full attack routine, as part of spell combat. Not super accurate with the -7 total; however it will rely on int to hit, so...

The spellcasting is complementary, with enough diversity and enough crossover...

I *know* this is not an optimized character. At least, not with what I have toyed around with so far. But it seems to me that it could hold its own weight in and out of combat, and have an interesting flavor.

What do you think? Would it work well? What could/should I do to make it 'better'?

So among those character builds that seem to be least likely, either for RP reasons or statistical reasons, such as dwarven wizards, gnome paladins, etc.; which ones are the most optimizable and playable?

Why is it that the 'half-breeds' of alignments are treated as if they are the extremes? Even one prestige class (the spark for this post, though it is a question I have had for many many years now) mentions them as extremes; the Harrower PRC states, "Most harrowers represent alignment extremes: lawful good, chaotic good, lawful evil, or chaotic evil."

To be an extreme of an alignment, one must be fully committed to that alignment. In my opinion, that means Neutral/X or X/Neutral. Lawful Good makes a compromise between law and good. Some may tend to be more good than lawful, others may be more lawful than good, and some struggle with the dichotomy of balancing two forces that don't always mesh. A Lawful Neutral character is, instead, focused purely on law. A Neutral Good character is the most extreme focus one can have on Good.

And the same can be said for each other alignment. Chaotic Evil is not as Chaotic as Chaotic Neutral, nor as Evil as Neutral Evil. And CG or LE both pale to their similarly Neutral extremes (CN/NG/LN/NE).

So why is Lawful Good thought of as more good, when they don't focus as much on the good as a Neutral Good character would (the law must get in the way some times; if it never does, then they ARE neutral good)? And why is Chaotic Evil thought of as the most evil, when Neutral Evil is likewise necessarily more evil?

Just curious here. I know alignments are all a matter of perception that varies from individual to individual... but logically speaking; no matter what you consider to be Lawful or Good or Neutral or Chaotic or Evil, the neutral variants are each, in and of themselves, more purely focused on the other portion of their alignment, than a mixed alignment character would be.

Yes? No?

So, RAW, does this mean an Ifrit with Efreeti magic can only enlarge/reduce other Ifrit, but not himself?

Okay, so I am trying to figure out a relatively reliable way to play a mostly large character in PFS. At as low levels as possible. Not too worriesd about reach weapons (15-20' reach isn't necessary, it would be cool, but not really the primary goal). Trying to be large without changing forms, too - just a side note, this is why I am leaving out a lot of the polymorph spells/abilities.

• Plant/Growth domain allows for 1 round of large as a swift action, 3+WIS/day. (Several races can add 1/2 to the #/day, as a racial favored class bonus for either druid or cleric. Can double up the uses by taking 1 level or more in both classes. Possibly also possible to grab other classes/PrCs which grant the domain as well, for yet more uses/day (but inquisitor is out, as combined with cleric - they stack; inquisitor/druid is possible instead of cleric/druid, though) This is available at 1st level, but is very restricted in usage (action economy, requires swift action every round; also limited #/day)
  
• Living Monolith requires 6th level plus some unusual prerequisites (a language and some skills as well as AB). It is also a swift action to engage, but lasts 1 minute/'CL' (I assume Caster Level is equivalent to levels in the prestige class; it is possible to be equal to character level instead. That would enhance this greatly, but still wouldn't carry from one combat to the next in most circumstances. Still lends more credence to being 'large all the time' though.)
  
• Spell Casting - many classes can cast the Enlarge Person spell, and use it in a wand or on scrolls. It is (barring a few exceptions - alchemist the only one that springs to mind) a full round casting time and lasts 1 minute/CL. Any items (potions/scrolls/wands) last 1 minute/use, as in PFS caster level is always minimum on items.
  
• Potions - I mentioned wands and scrolls along with spell casting, but they require a casting class (or decent UMD). With a potion, anyone can chug it. And it is a standard action (move with Accelerated Drinker, swift with Fast Drinker (though this requires 3 levels of monk and 18 Con)) Lasts 1 minute, like the wands and scrolls. Would get very expensive to use this as the primary means of staying large at all times...
  
• Other Items - including Staff of Size Alteration, Titanic Armor, and Staff of Mithral Might (and possibly a few others) add other ways to temporarily increase to Large.
  
• One item, Juggernaut's Pauldrons, actually seems to allow for permanent enlarge person on yourself, even if not a 'person'. Of course, at 40,000 GP, these will come into play late in the game and I am hoping to start this as early as possible.

Am I missing any PFS legal means to reliably embiggen oneself?

...and to preemptively answer the inevitable* question of "What is it you really want to do, or why do you want to be large?" - the main goal is really to be large as often as possible. The side effect benefits (enhanced strength and reach, etc.) are nice, and I would not mind finding ways to capitalize on them, but the main/primary goal really is just to be large as much as possible.

*I understand why this question is inevitable. It really does help you to help me, if you know my goals. If I were just going for the reach, there are other easier means to accommodate. And etc. But really, I do just want to be large.

With the Drunken Master and Drunken Brute Archetypes, a character might be downing a lot of liquor mid combat. I was designing such a character, when something occurred to me...

How do you handle carrying and drinking it all?

Now, I assumed a half-pony keg on his back; that is a 3.5 gallon (roughly) container, and well within his carrying limits. I also gave him a clay mug and a hip flask as well. Not a problem.

But... drinking a full tankard for each extra point of ki and/or round of extra rage?

How does he refill the tankard - is that assumed to be a part of the move action to consume it?

I had been planning on a 2hander; but even with the mug on a weapon cord, and some free action hand swapping, I don't see that as viable at all. So am I not able to effectively wield a 2hander as a booze hound PC?

Just want to verify this weapon and its descriptive text work the way I think they do...

Kyoketsu Shoge

This weapon consists of a foot-long double-edged blade, with another smaller, curved hook-blade sticking out the side like a rooster’s spur. The blade is strung to a large iron hoop with 10-foot length of rope.

Benefit: The blade can be used as an off-hand melee weapon or thrown like a dagger, while the rope and circlet can be whipped around and swung at opponents as a bludgeoning reach weapon.

So as I understand it, the weapon can be used at close range (5') and/or thrown as a S/P weapon. It can also be used as a reach weapon (10') which deal B damage; at the same time. And it is two-handed, meaning you get 1.5 strength (and two handed power attack bonuses, etc.) with it.

It has pathetic damage and critical range for an exotic weapon, so my guess is that was the tradeoff for having a single 2-hander which works up close as well as at reach. But I want to verify that is the case...

Okay, I have been fiddling with some stuff, between about 3 different builds I was working on, and it all merged into a fourth build as you will see below. I think this might be one I would really enjoy playing, it could be strong without being munchkin/optimized, and it would lend itself well to roleplay.

I am not fully satisfied with how late it is in the game before it really starts coming together; 6th (or a bit later depending on how you look at it). But that is not unreasonable in the scheme of things (I just love instant gratification, don't we all?)...

So here is the build; there is a bit left up in the air for now, would love thoughts and input on that. Also critiques on flavor/viability would be welcome too.

This is, for now, a PFS build. If I get involved in a home game, I may revamp it for that.

Dwarf
(best flavor, requires the Adopted/Enlightened Warrior trait for alignment juggling)

14, 14, 18, 7, 16, 7
-or-
14, 14, 16, 10, 16, 8 (need +2 con by 5th for fast drinker)

Level Progression: Brb2, Mnk3, Clr1, Mnk3, Drd2, Brb1

I searched and found conflicting answers, all of which were fairly old, and none of which were official. I am posting in hopes that either my search-fu is simply lacking in this one instance, or perhaps there has been an official clarification I missed somewhere.

I know that an inquisitor/cleric must select an overlapping domain (same domain for both classes) and the levels simply stack to determine the domain power(s).

However, a druid/cleric or druid/inquisitor, or any other combination of archetypes/PrCs with domains is not covered.

The general rule, as far as I have seen, is that unless otherwise specified (as the inquisitor is), you would get two separate class features with the same name; with independent levels based on the actual class granting the feature. This is how channel energy works, for sure. Sneak Attack does always stack levels, but it is specified as doing so. Similarly, Uncanny Dodge classes' levels stack, but it is specified as doing so.

Am I wrong so far?

So - if I take a level (or more) of cleric and a level (or more) of druid, and select domains; first question - can I select the same domain twice, or not?

Second question, if I do, will the levels stack, or will I have two independent and separate domains, one from each class (doubling the uses/day of domain powers, getting domain spells for each separate class as appropriate, etc.)?

If they stack, is it ONLY for the domain powers, and spells are handled separately (this would seem to be necessary, but an unwieldy mechanic)?

If they do not stack, and I get doubled usage; say a domain power has 3+WIS uses a day. Is it now 6+WIS, or is it 2(3+WIS) uses/day?

Are there any traits, feats, archetypes, items, or other ways to add the effects of a stunning fist or elemental fist to a monk weapon, instead of to an unarmed strike?

Trying to compose a list of the various ways to self buff without spells... using Ex, Su, or Spell-Like Abilities from race, trait, feat, or class (not really looking at items for this exercise)...

Alchemist's Mutagens

A few bard archetypes (archaeologist, the two dervishes) will self buff in place of inspire courage

Barbarian Rage

Plant/Growth domain power to enlarge self

Druid's Wildshape

Living Monolith's enlarge

...I am sure (or, at least I hope) there are many many more I am missing. What are some other ways?

Looking to build a crazy character who focuses on one of these weapons. Very little, if any, combat maneuvers will be used. I will have free proficiency, and enough monk levels to flurry - but not really a monk type character (see very strange build below)

So the choices are;

Kyoketsu Shoge : Two-Handed, 1d4, x2, Slashing or Piercing, Close & Reach (10'), Thrown (20'), Disarm + Grapple weapon
Nine-Section Whip : One- or Two- Handed, 1d8, 19-20/x2, Bludgeoning, Blocking + Distracting + Trip weapon
Sansetsukon (Three-Section Staff) : Two-Handed, 1d10, 19-20/x2, Bludgeoning, Blocking + Disarm weapon

> The 9 section whip has a slight edge over the 3-section staff in that it can be one or two handed; but the trade off is a lower damage die (1 point on average).
> The Shoge has a massive advantage in its close AND 10' reach abilities, plus it can be thrown with a 20' range increment if needed, and it has variable damage (I think the piercing is supposed to be bludgeoning, based on the text vs. table); however it is a big damage drop; 2-3 points {from 5.5 (or 4.5) to 2.5}. In the long run, I think static bonuses and such should make up for this... but I am unsure.

So, common sense says, if you have a claw attack and are wearing a gauntlet (apparently included in all medium armor except the breastplate, and all heavy armor) that you would lose the claw attack and substitute the gauntlet's stats instead.

But I don't see anything stating that, either in armor/weapon descriptions, or in natural attacks.

Is this just something that has been overlooked? Or it is just assumed common sense will prevail? Or... am I missing something?

Okay, so I have decided to rebuild one of my recurring characters from system to system. He has had several incarnations, some drastically different from the others; but generally always similar enough to recognize as the same guy at the core (just with various different histories/backgrounds/training/etc. based on the system at hand)

I am spoiler blocking in one of my preferred descriptions of him physically, it is a bit long but not too much; just don't want to overcrowd the post. Then I will spoiler block a few of his more memorable incarnations. And I am asking you, given his general look and personality, what would you build him to be? Really, I could go with most any class or build, and play him as the same guy, though he has a tendency to be a meatshield of some kind...

He is usually a human, I could possibly fit it as half-orc, and would be open to other races that fit the theme. He was a Goliath in 4e once, and an actual Half-Ettin in a 2nd edition game that was more or less a one-shot, so...

He typically has either an abysmal INT or WIS with the other being above average; his CHA has fluctuated from as low as 3 to staggeringly high (17 or 18, I think; purely force of personality there, it was not reflective of his looks). I tend to put above average CON and STR, with average (8-12) DEX. It is all fairly fluid; depending on his build - it is not too hard to adjust play style and roleplay to keep the same feel.

So what would you do? How would you bring this character to life, mechanically speaking? What would you aim for him to do/be, and how would you get him there?

My initial thought was to look to recreate the Large sized reach fighter, as he has been that more than anything else. But looking through PFS legal stuff, within the 12 level character lifetime, I can't see anything that is both effective and kicks in early enough to satisfy me (by 4th or 5th or so is about as long as I want to wait to actually FEEL like I am playing the build I am aiming for, even if it takes all the way to 12th to get every last piece in place). Outside of drinking a ton of potions, I don't see being large as very possible. Of course, he does eat and drink a lot, so...

(I have already inquired in the PFS boards, and outside of age, there are no rules requiring one to fit within the standard deviations for a race's physical description, so I am good there. Despite his girth and height, he is just a very big Medium creature, not Large by default. I do not expect any mechanical adjustments for his unusual height and weight in general - though if a particular DM in PFS hands out penalties or bonuses for his size, I will accept them at that table and for that session.)

I have seen a few threads mentioning alchemists being able to craft, albeit limited, in PFS.

Yet the alchemist specifically lacks the Brew Potion class ability.

So what is it Alchemists can craft, is it the full list of alchemical items, but nothing magical? This is my best guess fitting in with the spirit of PFS as I have seen it thus far; but I can't find any references outside of one mentioning poisoners specifically.

Do they gain any benefits whatsoever regarding potion making/purchasing/usage?

The vivisectionist archetype is not PFS legal, correct?
Is there a PFS legal archetype that gives up bombs for another feature/ability (and is it worth taking)?
I like the mutagens/extracts portion of the alchemist, but do not like at all the bomber concept.

I'm curious; didn't see it in the books, I apologize if I overlooked it...

Are the suggested height/weight, hair/eye color, etc. hard requirements in PFS?

One of my repeat characters throughout the various systems I have played is an oversized human, of dubious and multiple lineages, but instead of 1/8 this and 1/16 that and 1/2 the other, he is just a human overall. He is taller than most humans, though the max height would work; however he is more than double the typical maximum weight, as a grossly obese man, with the blubber hiding thick layers of well developed muscle (and also a denser than standard bone structure).

It makes for some fun times with mounts, etc., and is fun to rollplay for various reasons. His various incarnations have had multiple explanations for his background and class choices, but he is a recurring theme for me, that I would like to recreate in PFS.

Typically, I would have him stand around 7' or so, give or take a few inches, and be between 600 and 1,000 pounds (depending on his strength that incarnation; muscle does weigh roughly 8 times the same volume of fat, after all).

I am still fairly new to PFS, so am not certain about some things...

right now, I am trying to plan for a character's gear throughout his career. Not a 100% session by session plan, but at least a loose "I should have this by level N" plan.

But I am finding it hard to find an estimate of wealth by level for PFS. Is it the same as in the core books?

Also, what about prestige points? I have been told to expect an average of 1.5 PP per session (4.5 per level); is that right? It seems a very slow progression.

I do realize I am limited as to what I can buy based on my fame, and I am aware of the numbers...which is why I am including the question about prestige points above.

Thanks!

How well would this character work? I Am building it with PFS in mind...

Angel Kin Aasimar

18, 16, 12, 07, 12, 12

Scion of Humanity

Monk > Master of Many Styles + Qinggong
Ninja

1] Monk 1) IUS, Stunning Fist, Boar Style, Unarmed 1d6 (F)Two Weapon Fighting
2] Monk 2) Evasion, Boar Ferocity
3] Ninja 1) SA1d6, (F)Sap Adept
4] Ninja 2) Ki Pool, [Weapon Training] Weapon Focus
5] Ninja 3) No Trace +1, SA2d6, (F)Dazzling Display
6] Ninja 4) Uncanny Dodge, [combat trick] Shatter Defenses
7] Ninja 5) SA 3d6, (F)Sap Master
8] Ninja 6) Light Steps, No Trace +2, Vanishing Trick
9] Monk 3) Fast Movement +10, Maneuver Training, Still Mind, (F)Double Slice
10] Monk 4) Ki Pool (magic), Scorching Ray, AC (+1), Unarmed 1d8
11] Monk 5) Barkskin, Purity of Body, (F)?
12] Monk 6) (Style Feat?), Fast Movement +20

I have an open feat (at 11th), an open bonus style feat (at 12th), and have not selected traits.

I initially started with a level of unarmed fighter (for boar style), then 2 levels of monk (for boar ferocity/shred), then 9 levels of rogue (to focus on sneak attack dice). I tweaked, rebuilt, tweaked, and ended up here. Noticing that I could dump boar shred, as it was nearly useless for this build, allowed me to dump the level of unarmed fighter. This removed a waste of doubling up on IUS from both Unarmed Fighter and Monk. I then decided to add in qinggong and get some cool ki powers, which naturally lead to swapping rogue into ninja for more ki. This removed the doubling up on Evasion from Rogue and Monk, but gave me something in exchange I will never use. Oh Well.

How could I do this better? I don't care if it is a complete rebuild; wanting to combine Boar Style with Sap Master is the primary spark for this build. Do you have a better way (maybe some claws and Feral Combat Training - another path I was considering)?