Not sure if this is the right place, but here goes...
I need help. Getting ready to start in a new Pathfinder-based game. I will be playing a druid focusing on the ocean, using the Pathfinder Alpha 2 rules. I can't quite find a way to structure my character.
I want her to have a strong connection with the ocean and nature. Animal companion is okay, although it has the limitations that I'm not sure how much of the game will be near or on the ocean (guessing 25-35%). A land based companion may work but doesn't quite fit the concept. I was thinking something like a serval or ocelot or jaguar, small cats with an affinity for water, but again not quite right. The elemental idea from Complete Mage might work but the background of being closer to the element than nature doesn't fit what I had in mind. The option for a cleric domain sounded great, so I read up on water. Everything is based on ice! Not really appropriate for a tropical or oceanic environment. Why would the Water domain focus on ice???
Any ideas?
Would you consider using character race as the connection?
In 'Oriental Adventures' there is a race of 'Spirit Folk'. Two types of spirit folk are listed with an aquatic connection, river and sea. Both have water breathing and a swim speed. Neither has a level adjustment. Either could be allowed as 'backwards compatible'.
Then, pick a domain that appeals to the character, rather than a companion which would apply only when on land or at sea. If none of the domains appeal, picking a companion that is aquatic would be my second choice, even if it only appears some of the time.
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Not sure if this is the right place, but here goes...
I need help. Getting ready to start in a new Pathfinder-based game. I will be playing a druid focusing on the ocean, using the Pathfinder Alpha 2 rules. I can't quite find a way to structure my character.
I want her to have a strong connection with the ocean and nature. Animal companion is okay, although it has the limitations that I'm not sure how much of the game will be near or on the ocean (guessing 25-35%). A land based companion may work but doesn't quite fit the concept. I was thinking something like a serval or ocelot or jaguar, small cats with an affinity for water, but again not quite right. The elemental idea from Complete Mage might work but the background of being closer to the element than nature doesn't fit what I had in mind. The option for a cleric domain sounded great, so I read up on water. Everything is based on ice! Not really appropriate for a tropical or oceanic environment. Why would the Water domain focus on ice???
Any ideas?
If you're playing a human, use your bonus weapon proficiency to get proficiency with the trident. Max your ranks in swim. Wear armor you can swim in (and decorated with bits of "sea stuff" like dried-out starfish, etc.). Have there be a whiff of sea breeze every time you cast a healing spell. Favor spells with the air and water descriptors in combat. Dress your character up in sea shell jewelry, pearls, smooth sea stones, waterfowl feathers, sharks' teeth, and robes/dress that have strips of green cloth that looks like seaweed (or actual seaweed) hanging off, use a conch shell instead of a sprig of holly as your divine focus, get some aquatic tattoos (even just the words for "ocean" in elemental across your arms would work) play up the character's leathery skin and bleached hair from all the time in the sun (if of a northern ethnicity) or unsqunting gaze and comfort in the heat and glare off the waves (if more tropically-indigenous). Have as much stuff as possible on your PC made from aquatic components. Have her prefer fish, edible seaweed, and other seafood over all other fare. And speaking of food, have her carry around a pouch of crushed sea-salt and season everything with it. Make sure the cosmetic effects of all of her spells/class abilities are as aquatically-flavored as possible. Cast something that gives you a bite attack? Shark teeth. Claws? It looks like you have scrag hands or pincers. If she is away from the water for a long time, have her cast create water regularly (and have it occasionally be over her own head) and if she's away from the sea for a VERY long time, have her summon a water elemental every night before she turns in. Just to chat. From there...
Get something amphibious (like an alligator) for your animal companion. Or go the waterfowl route and get a heron or a water-hunting bird of prey.
-OR-
Take the plant domain and flavor the various abilities as coral instead of wood in play. You grow coral ridges on your hands for "wooden" fist. Your entangle is marshy vines or seaweed. Your barkskin is coral plates. Bramble armor is sharp coral spikes. Wall of thorns in a mass of nasty, pointy coral. Your shambler looks more like a soggy mess of seaweed than land-based vines and leaves a drippy trail of seawater behind it. Stuff like that.
-OR-
Take the water domain and rationalize all of the ice stuff as being either the cold of the DEEP sea manifest at sea level or as a way of using nature's fury in an efficient way. Have your icicle coalesce out of small hailstones before you launch it.
-OR-
Take the air domain and be a storm druid. Coastal areas certainly get more than their share of storms (hurricanes, anyone?) and lightning tends to conduct through water quite well.
Any of that help?
Edit: What the heck. I have nothing better to do at the moment. Here's what I'd recommend for the storm druid.
Race: Human
Alignment: I prefer NG, but it's really up to you.
STR 13 DEX 8 CON 12 INT 14 WIS 17 (incl. human +2 bonus) CHA 10
Feats: Martial Weapon Proficiency (Trident) (bonus weapon proficiency from human), Zen Archery* (bonus feat from human), Weapon Focus: Trident
Gear: Leather armor (sharkskin? eelskin? sealskin?), trident, dagger, conch shell (divine focus), small wooden shield, pearl worth however many gp is left
*In Complete Warrior; it's good for divine spellcasters
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A salt water crocodile or a regular croc is a nice companion to have for a mostly water based druid. Alternately you could start looking at the seal/walrus/sea lion types of creatures.
OR
Since the water domain seems to have a focus on ice you could go with that and grab a penguin/orca/seal/polar bear(using the smaller bear stats for your younger bear)/or walrus (koo-koo-ka-choo, baby!).
Here is a few more odd thoughts for companions---
Narwhal- use porpoise stats but change the attack damage to piercing
Octopus/squid- named Pal-imari (cause he is your pal!)
Sea turtle- Finding Nemo put these in a special place in my heart....dude.
Shark- Who wouldn't want one of these as a pet...I mean come on! Just need to find a frickin' laser....
Alligator Gar- Big, bad Pike!
Jelly fish?!?!
Hippopotamus- ride THAT into battle.
One of those Iguanas that like salt water.
A sea snake.
Eel
Obviously some of these are more suited toward a total underwater type of adventuring but I wanted to toss in a full range.
Have fun, hope I helped.
Another animal companion for a wetlands based druid is a seagull. Mostly because I like the idea of having it cr-p on your opponents. (I live in the Tidewater area of Virginia and have seen alot of cr-pping seagulls over the years. Seagull = rat with wings and a high charisma)(except for Jonathan:)
And for you literary types, what does having an albatross as a companion say about a druid?
Great suggestions guys! Thank you very much! The race of my druid, by the way, is going to be aventi from the Stormwrack sourcebook. If any one else has any suggestions, I'd love to hear them too!
Let us know what you decide on. :)
Will do! I loved your suggestions and will use many of the flavor ones at least! Sounds like you may have tried this concept before?
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Will do! I loved your suggestions and will use many of the flavor ones at least! Sounds like you may have tried this concept before?
Let us know what you decide on. :)
No, I just like designing characters. :) Druids are always interesting because they draw in elements from their "home turf" more than other character classes. To my way of thinking (at least for my home brew setting), you can usually tell where a druid is from by the kind of accoutrement they have. A sea based one was particularly fun to mull over because there's so much neat-looking stuff by the ocean; polished stones, pearls, halves of oysters or clams, starfish, sea snail shells, sharks' teeth, etc. Your concept was compelling; it got the ol' creative juices flowing, I guess you could say. I always like these "call for help" threads for another reason, too. They give me ideas that I haven't thought of (and probably wouldn't have otherwise) that I can then develop and use in my games at some later point.
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Depends how water oriented you are.
Pets:Water Elemental Species for Water Druid Companion?
Probably have to go there (elemental plane) to get one.
Weapons: Metal Flask with Wooden Grip: Heat Metal makes it a close-quarters steam Sprayer (1d6 scalding damage).
Pirate: Druid of the Seas
You could wield a Steam Pistol, Have a Parrot, and sail about attacking Whalers and fishermen.
"Oh! We are on the Sea Shepard, sailing on the sea!
Hunting Fishermen, and Whale poachers every briny day."
"Polly wants a cracker!"
Total opinion question - animal companion or cleric domain?
Lizardfolk druid works quite well (especially considering your avatar), although the two racial HD and +1 LA make it impractical for many low-level campaigns (the hit to spellcasting is pretty steep until ECL 8-10). At high-levels, though, they can be very powerful.
Animal Companion vs. Cleric Domain is a choice that really should be made based on the character concept. Is the druid more concerned with elemental water or water-based creatures?
For Animal Companion choices, unless the campaign will focus primarily on costal/marine areas, the suggestions above are pretty good: amphibious/coastal birds, lizards, mammmals, snakes, etc. that can travel both on land and in water.
Lizardfolk druid works quite well (especially considering your avatar), ...
Augh! Quit encouraging him!
Lizardfolk druid works quite well (especially considering your avatar), ...Augh! Quit encouraging him!
:) Say hello to my DM everyone...
One would suspect he's happy I finally decided on a character race and class. Not sure why he didn't want me to play a hadozee...