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I've got a few questions relating to bloodlines and eldritch heritage.
First, the 1st level power of the Sylvan bloodline (wildblooded alternate of the Fey bloodline). This power is Animal Companion (Ex), and provides an animal companion at [sorcerer level - 3]. This is more powerful than other 1st level powers, and for this reason it also counts as the Sylvan sorcerer's bloodline arcana.
Eldritch Heritage, as I read it, allows you to take this suped-up first-level power just as well as you could take any other bloodline's first-level power. This becomes especially overpowered when combined with Boon Companion; for three feats, any character with 13 CHA can have an animal companion at [character level - 1] no matter what classes they take.
So my first questions are: am I reading this correctly? Should an exception be made for this power (and added to the rules via errata), since it's not balanced against other 1st-level powers?
Second, and in the same vein, if this is allowed, how does one deal with a Druid who takes Eldritch Heritage Sylvan (with no boon companion)? Boon companion specifically says it won't raise the animal companion's statistics above that of a druid with your HD in levels, but the normal stacking rules don't mention any such HD-based restriction (used to be unnecessary since only class levels granted animal companions). All it says is that "The druid’s class levels stack with levels of any other classes that are entitled to an animal companion for the purpose of determining the companion’s statistics."
A level 12 druid with Eldritch Heritage Sylvan counts as a druid 12 and a sylvan sorcerer 10 (who gets an animal companion at level-3), which would grant him an animal companion of a level 19 druid even though he's only level 12. Obviously that's overpowered, but it looks like by RAW it's completely legal.
Again, am I reading RAW incorrectly on this issue?
Third, the Fey/Sylvan 9th level power Fleeting Glance, and other powers with similar (lack of) wording. "At 9th level, you can turn invisible for a number of rounds per day equal to your sorcerer level. This ability functions as greater invisibility. These rounds need not be consecutive." It doesn't say what kind of action it is to activate - does that mean it's a standard action? That's what I'm assuming. Is this correct?
1)
Benefit: Select one sorcerer bloodline. You must have Skill focus in the class skill that bloodline grants to a sorcerer at 1st level (for example, Heal for the celestial bloodline). This bloodline cannot be a bloodline you already have. You gain the first-level bloodline power for the selected bloodline. For purposes of using that power, treat your sorcerer level as equal to your character level – 2, even if you have levels in sorcerer. You do not gain any of the other bloodline abilities.
The Eldritch Heritage feat seems not to give the player any other bloodline ability (part from the bloodline power chosen), which is, in the case of sylvan bloodline, the animal companion for thus counting as your bloodline arcana:
Animal Companion (Ex): At 1st level, you gain an animal companion. Your effective druid level for this ability is equal to your sorcerer level – 3 (minimum 1st).
This bloodline power counts as your bloodline arcana and also replaces laughing touch.
EDIT: 2)see number 1), it's probable that you cannot use EH to get a bloodline power that replaces your bloodline arcana, because you don't have one to replace...
3) maybe it was intended to ativate it as a swift action, because of the very few usages per day (measured in rounds). But yeah, now for RAW it needs a SA to activate the invisibility.
EDIT: I forgot the quote from Bestiary, usage of the Spell-Like Abilities:
Spell-Like Abilities (Sp)
Spell-like abilities are magical and work just like spells (though they are not spells and so have no verbal, somatic, focus, or material components). They go away in an antimagic field and are subject to spell resistance if the spell the ability is based on would be subject to spell resistance.
A spell-like ability usually has a limit on how often it can be used. A constant spell-like ability or one that can be used at will has no use limit; unless otherwise stated, a creature can only use a constant spell-like ability on itself. Reactivating a constant spell-like ability is a swift action. Using all other spell-like abilities is a standard action unless noted otherwise, and doing so provokes attacks of opportunity. It is possible to make a concentration check to use a spell-like ability defensively and avoid provoking an attack of opportunity, just as when casting a spell. A spell-like ability can be disrupted just as a spell can be. Spell-like abilities cannot be used to counterspell, nor can they be counterspelled.
RAW I don't think you can use Eldritch Heritage to get ANY Wildblooded bloodline, as those are part of the Wildblooded Sorcerer Archetype..
They are not bloodlines in themselves, just modified versions of bloodlines that you can access if you have the Wildblooded Archetype.
RAW I don't think you can use Eldritch Heritage to get ANY Wildblooded bloodline, as those are part of the Wildblooded Sorcerer Archetype..
They are not bloodlines in themselves, just modified versions of bloodlines that you can access if you have the Wildblooded Archetype.
The wildblooded archetype simply opens up additional bloodline choices. Think of it as archetyped bloodlines. Rather than take up pages duplicating existing bloodlines, they chose to do the new bloodlines as their own archtypes, and put it all under one overarching archetype.
In other words, there's functionally no difference between a wildblood version of a bloodline and the underlying version, as far as both being a bloodline.
However, if the archetype replaces the bloodline power with something that requires also replacing the arcana, or any other bit of the bloodline, then those can't be taken.
In fact, the fact that one of the wildblooded archetype bloodlines specifically says it replaces the arcana as well is proof that the wildblood archetype bloodlines are full bloodlines, as it couldn't replace the arcana as well without the bloodline having a full bloodline, and the wildblood bloodlines do not list arcana in them.
Whoops my bad, I just remembered the whole thing with Sage sorcerers...
So yeah, you can take a Wildblooded bloodline via Eldritch Heritage, but not Sylvan or anything else that requires the arcana as well (since you dont get that)