I will be playing in Rise of the Runelords with my friends in about a week or so. I will be playing a warrior more than likely a Barbarian. I was wondering if anyone could give me any advice for building my character for this Adventure path.
I am not looking for spoilers but any advice would be appreciated.
I can understand that. Right now I am leaning towards Barbarian or maybe playtesting the Slayer. And for race I am leaning towards Halfling, Half-Orc, or Dwarf.
I like small melee characters, I accept the penalty that comes with them. I like the concept a lot.
One of my favorite characters was a Halfling that was a multi-classed Ranger/Barbarian that became a variation of Assassin at (I think) level 7. It was in Dark Sun for 3rd edition but it was freaking fun. The Barbarian speed helped with my movement rate, and I used a longsword two-handed. One of my most memorable battles was when the enemies had a barricade set up and a fellow party member threw me over it. I then Raged and beat the crap out of everybody.
So, you can use a size M weapon as a Halfling, just use it as two handed. I would recommend using the size M Bastard Sword and getting the Exotic Weapon with it. It is the same as humans use, but your size mod negates 1 of that penalty. And the image is cool :) Grrrrrr!
I just started book 2 of the RotRL. Book one was fun. This is most of the group's first campaign in Pathfinder, and half of the group has had very little roleplaying experience. The GM has been kind and allowed us to switch our characters around a bit as we better learn the game (it is hard to pick what to be without experience).
The party consists of: A human Ranger, an Elven Ranger (Urban Ranger archetype, our "rogue stand-in" trap expert), a Dwarven Fighter (Armor Master, but now taking levels in Barbarian with Armored Hulk), an Aasimar Paladin (which rarely plays, but that Detect Evil has been useful, as has the Smite), an Elven Sorcerer, and my Bard (Darflower Dervish)/Magus (Kensai, Bladebound).
Originally I briefly played a Gnome Sorcerer, but I only did that because the Paladin player was a Wizard, but then she realized that she was "not pretty enough" and became a Sorcerer, but that was boring for her so she tried Summoner, and now she is a Paladin (and will remain that). I replaced my Gnome with a Fighter/Wizard that was going to become a scimitar-wielding Eldritch Knight at level 7. But it sucks to wait until you are level 7 to start being in your class, so at level 4 I switched my character around a bit more and became the Bard/Magus. I like it, as it really fits my character and I can play it NOW. So I lost my utility spells from being a Wizard, but I was actually playing more like a Magus anyway.
If you want to build a Shoanti Barbarian, you can download the Players Guide here.
There are two versions, the original and the anniversary edition. Since they are both free, I would get them both (actually I did) I have googled Shoanti and found a wiki page because I didn't want to go and buy and particular part of Crimson Throne.
Not halfling. Small races just don't work for melee.
Halflings can work very well indeed for melee, so long as you make a dex build. With the right halfling racial feats, they can be perfectly competitive (admittedly not at level 1 though)
Cautious Fighter is a great addition to any defensive fighting build (Crane Style chain with Aldoi Swordlord, Duelist, or most monks being the standard way of building such)
Risky Striker is a large enough chunk of free damage to Large+ enemies (Medium+ if you're Reduced) to make two weapon fighting viable all by itself. It's especially nice for a 3/4 BAB class thanks to the way that the feat is worded. (This is the character I'm playing right now. He's just starting to come online now at level 4. By mid levels he'll be destroying things with a thirteen Strength and 1d3 weapons.)
A halfling can work for the Barb in this path provided you don't mind being a little behind the 8-ball damage wise. This can particularly work if the group as a whole is not super optimized, thereby requiring the GM to adjust the campaign. The one thing I have always said is, play what is fun for you. A barbarian will definitely work in Runelords. Being small can also have certain advantages in the path as well.
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Go Dwarf. Just do it. NO QUESTIONS!
But really, dwarves are awesome in Rise. For all classes. Yes, even CHA classes. Dump other things to make up for it. You just want those giant bonuses. A dwarf synth. I made one. YESSSSS.
Enough rambles from me...
Go Dwarf. Just do it. NO QUESTIONS!
But really, dwarves are awesome in Rise. For all classes. Yes, even CHA classes. Dump other things to make up for it. You just want those giant bonuses. A dwarf synth. I made one. YESSSSS.
Enough rambles from me...
RotRL is the perfect campaign for a Dwarf Ranger / Skyseeker.
Ended up going with a Half-Orc Barbarian. So far there is my character, A Half-Elf Gunslinger, and a Half-Orc Summoner. There will be 2 more characters and I am not sure what they will be.
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Half-Orc will have to travel along way to get to Sand Point. You are not a local. As a Shoanti you are a local and there are a few things that will make easier. Also you might want to look at the Pathfinder Player Companion: Varisia, Birthplace of Legends. There is a lot of information on Varisia that all the players should know. Along with a few traits and feet's that are region specific.
My biggest suggestion don't skimp on the skills. There are many parts where you will need a verity of skills. This has come up in more then one game that I have run or played in for RotRL. I would almost suggest going ranger for the skill points and set alone. With picking up the right favored enemy you can do very well.
Skill Sets that make the AP easier.
Investigator/Tracker
Knowledge Arcane/History/Religion being the most important.
Traps you will need some one to take care of them with out setting them off.
At least two people that can talk to others. With out sounding like they want to kill every one in town.
He could be half-Shoanti (for the human part). Maybe an orc or orc war party went sight-seeing?
FYI there are a number (iirc less than 10) of half orcs residents in Sandpoint, but your character doesn't have to be from Sandpoint (although it helps if it is from somewhere in Varissa).
I also say go dwarf, as for the barbarian: superstition and witch hunter are always solid choices for rage powers but for this AP even more so.