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Actually, I would characterize Stream's posts as 'realistic/pragmatic' rather than 'negative' and his attitude as 'working to further the understanding of posters on these boards' rather than 'combative.' Stream is one of the few posters around who consistently has good insight into the game.
Well, like I said in the guide, I will give both sides of a controversial rule like this, so I'll add a quick note that it is probably unintended.The way I see it, that form of Eldritch Heritage is useless to a character that's not a sorcerer from a different bloodline.No you don't get to add those spells to your spell list. Your sorcerer spell list is tracked completely separately.IEH:Arcane is also super useful for Summoners, Bards and Oracles, as it allows them to add Sorcerer spells to their spell list.Hey, that's a great catch! That's going in right now! Keeping the suggestion in is a good idea. Only an unbelievably cantankerous GM would not let a oracle/bard/summoner character taking Improved Eldritch Heritage access those sor/wiz spells. I mean, come ON, how much clearer does the description have to be? At [11th] level, you can add any one spell from the sor/wiz spell list to your list of spells known. This spell must be of a level that you are capable of casting. If you're a bard casting 4th level spells, I think most [non-hate-fun] people will agree you get to add any sor/wiz spell of =< 4th level to your list.
I've been waiting to play this...
Suddenly, as a huge dinosaur for 8 hours a day, you are the best possible grappler ever...and if someone casts enlarge person on you you are gargantuan.
Hm, that's a hard one...how to resolve this dilemma... Well, Int to 8, and we're done.
Wisdom is your key stat here, for to-hit, ki, AC, and other goodness. Dex you don't need. Con will keep you alive. I would do
Deadly aim is a definite must ASAP. I would drop dodge and mobility, or at least mobility - I think there is so much that is better out there. Toughness is never bad, if a little vanilla.
Here's the best idea ever for an inquisitor archer - starting off with 3 levels of zen archer. Lose spell levels - but get WIS to hit, pb and precise shot, flurry, fast mvmt, POINT BLANK MASTER, and suddenly much less MAD! I can't wait to play one of these.
Dotted for easy reference. Love that SKR came and supported a common-sense approach to the rules - very helpful.
I can't believe this thread has gotten this far without someone suggesting levels of Druid. Have you all SEEN what some of the new feats can do for multiclass Druids ?
OK...the APG spells out that technically it is RAW that you cannot take both subdomains of a single domain... but back to the OP's question: would it be unreasonable for someone to take both Ash and Smoke instead of Fire? Smoke replaces the level 2+3 spells, and Ash replaces the level 7+9 spells, and each replaces a different domain power. I don't think that is particularly egregious...though not legal in PFS.
OK, I agree that a low-level cohort is squishy. I don't understand what you mean by 'only gain one level at a time.' Here's an example. 11th level (Main) character with Cha of 7, so leadership score 7, gets cohort level 5. Both go adventuring. Medium rate XP progression. After first 17600 XP gained by Main, Cohort levels up (got 17600*5/11 = 8000 XP) needed. Cohort is now level 6. After next 22000 XP gained by Main, Cohort advances to level 7. After next 25143 XP gained by Main, Cohort advances to level 8. At the same time, Main gets enough XP to advance to level 12. After next 36000 XP gained by Main, Cohort advances to level 9, and finally, after next 40 000 XP, Cohort advances to 10... ...which is two levels behind, and which is where he stays until he dies. Which is as good as a Sorcerer can do with his cohort (and his sky-high Charisma). It doesn't seem like having a good leadership score matters...a level after you take the feat...as long as you can keep the squishy cohort out of the way.
Does ANYONE know why someone with a crappy leadership score wouldn't end up with just as good a cohort as someone with a great leadership score (with a little delay)?
It seems as though the cap is when you attract them initially...but then, as the Core rules state, "[when you gain a new level], don't consult the table to see if your cohort gains levels, however, because cohorts gain experience on their own." After not that long, a really low-level cohort initially would have caught up substantially, it seems.
Obviously, at the beginning, the better the score, the better the cohort. But the rule is that the cohort gets a portion of your XP depending on the ratio of his level/your level. Now, since XP requirements increase in a non-linear fashion, if he's a really low level (since your charisma stinks) the XP he receives will enable him to level up like crazy...which would seem to end up with him rapidly becoming only two levels behind you...which is just as good as the Sorcerer's cohort! A lousy leadership score won't help with the level of your followers, but if you don't care about followers, is there any reason to invest in (for example) a headband of charisma? I understand that the tricky bit in the beginning is keeping him alive. But come on...if you make sure to keep him at the back, and he's not threatening, then unless you have a jerk DM, there is no reason that intelligent monsters will target this person...and so it shouldn't be THAT hard to keep him all together in one piece while he levels up quick.
Maybe you should just use the spell 'eagle aerie' - seems like it is exactly what you are looking for (1 hr/level) and is also a level 6 spell! (Unless you're a wizard, of course...)
There are some spells that are attack spells that have a range of touch that do NOT explicitly say that they need a melee or a ranged touch attack to succeed. For example - the new UM spell fungal infestation - sounds very cool - range is touch...
In contrast, the new UM spell frostbite clearly says 'melee attack roll', and the new UM spell spit venom says 'ranged attack roll'. Love to hear your opinions...ESPECIALLY if they come with citations. When I read the section of the SRD 'touch spells in combat', this question isn't answered. Ditto in the archives. thanks in advance
Said wizard gets spanked by a proper wizard with an int boosting item, con boosting item, save and AC boosting items, and a sack full of pearls and metamagic rods. And that's not digging very deep into the equipment options. I think the point was that if you capture a party, strip them naked, and throw them in jail, who do you think in general has the best chance to escape/triumph: 1) the caster2) the non-monk melee-er, or 3) the monk? Bet most of the time it's the caster. (Yes, I know that wizards can't do much without their spellbooks. They're not the only kind of caster.) And this was BEFORE Ultimate Magic came out. So it's kind of strange to hear all this about how people were trying to make sure the rangers or the monks or whoever didn't get too much of a good deal, or how new archetypes can never be a power-up from the original.
It's perfectly relevant. You're saying that trap access should be similar to spell access, when spells are dissimilar. If traps are much weaker, then it is reasonable to give access to them in a different, more-generous way than spells. +1 Some people will like the ranger traps, because they want to be ranger trappers. But in the discussion about what is roughly equivalent from a 'fairness' or 'game power' point of view...I'd say that being able to cast haste and slow at level 5 is more powerful than getting access to every single ranger trap...much less one measly trap.
'Eventually' gets a second domain? When? Do they lose anything good? Is the Menhir Savant design interesting?
I've been wondering what these do. Is the Menhir Savant the druid equivalent of a cloistered cleric? What does it get and what does it give up? And does the Storm Druid seem interesting?
Dragons normally cast spells. Elementals don't normally cast spells. I would therefore think you'd need Natural Spell to cast spells in elemental form (without Silent/Still/Eschew), whereas you wouldn't need it for dragon form.
Without 'handle animal' you can't get your nature-ally summons to do anything except just attack the nearest enemy.
One other thing a summoner can do - that NO one else can - is metamagic Dominate Monster with Spell Perfection. It takes a lot of feat investment, so many won't think it's worth it, but you can take Extend Spell and Reach Spell (which you will EASILY use at higher levels without too much trouble) to fill the requirements of the feat, in addition to Spell Focus Enchantment, Spell Penetration, and Persistent Spell. Then - at level 17 - you have a DC that is only 1 lower than normal (double Spell Focus bonus), plus the effect of Greater Spell Penetration, as well as TWO cracks at domination with Persistent Spell, for the price of a 6-level slot! I wouldn't do it starting from low levels...but if you start at higher levels, I think it'd be great.
The biggest drawback I've seen with Dazing Spell is that the dazing effect relies on the original spell's DC. Since it has a high level slot cost, the DC will almost always be really low for your level, making it only good at dazing weaker enemies you could easily kill with other metamagic anyways. OK. Let's assume a 15th level caster (casting stat 30), just like your spell perfection fireballer, against a CR 15 dragon, with a reflex save of 15. Ball Lightning has DC 10+4+10 = 24 with no spell focus or add-ons. That means the dragon has a 55% chance of making the first save...but you have three balls to hit him with...so you have an 83% chance of taking him out of the fight for four rounds. As opposed to the jacked-up maximized empowered quickened fireball combo, where if everything works out AND he fails BOTH saves (which probably won't happen!), you take 200 hp off...and slow him down not at all. Seems sort of worth it to me...
I'm surprised Dazing Spell hasn't been discussed that much. It really ups the ante with blasts. That feat turns any blast into a semi-Save or Suck (be dazed for the number of rounds equal to spell level) in addition to damage done...there are a bunch of blasts that keep on blasting (ball lightning, fire seeds, etc.) that you could use to repeatedly daze a BBEG or multiple foes...
@Benchak and KaeYoss - much appreciated! Melee druids may have fun with that Hangman tree...
While we're on the subject of new awesome stuff...especially since Cartigan is still smarting from a lack of druid-centric monsters...any new good PLANTS (for druids)?
...say 'Bill, first of all, I didn't know you were a military engineer, and second, your family has money? Why are you in a bad mood all the time?'
Have you guys seen the new 'Smoke' subdomain? The first level power is a small debuff with NO SAVE (and no touch attack required) and you get pyrotechnics at second level and stinking cloud at third...which seems awesome...though the rest of the spells are not great. I was having a hard time deciding between that and the 'Storms' subdomain...which also seems pretty OK.
My problem is (I'm building a character for Kingmaker right now)...I'm not going to be the 'party face' and so have limited points to buy Cha...I don't want to 'dump' it, but I am GOING to, because I can actually create a MORE social character by trading off Cha for Int! I could put a 10 in both Cha and Int...but better to put the 8 in Cha, 12 in Int, and use the extra skill point per level to go into Cha-based skills (Diplomacy, Bluff, Intimidate). After three levels, I will be functionally at the same level as the 10-Cha character, and from there on in, I just get better. The 'stats based on character' types wouldn't like it, but I want to make the most social character possible. |
