Hey Folks,
I hope this hasn't been addressed elsewhere (I couldn't find it if it was) but I was looking to make a character whose primary purpose was to enhance the rest of my parties abilities. I can see the obvious advantage in cleric and wiz/ sor but I really wanted to play something different. Right now I am playing a druid and it just doesn't have the amount of buffs I was looking for. Any advice?
Thanks in advance!
Rook
Bard is a classic choice, and a solid one!
It automatically gets good buffs, without having to invest anything other than levels - thus you can focus on something else at the same time, like fighting, battlefield controlling, or support spells - or you can focus completely on buffs and be the Grand Buffmeister.
You don't even need to carry a piano with you anymore; you can get a lot of flavors out of perform (vocal)!
I'd like to recommend that you take a look at the Evangelist archetype for the Cleric. Full bardic performance + 9 levels of cleric spell casting is pretty darn nice. Take the leadership domain for some extra AE buffing if you really want to be a super buffer...
|
Bard all the way.
Granted Cleric's can cast better self buffs. Bards can cast the best party buffs in the game in addition to there performance ability's.
This is one of the reasons bards are so good at buffing.
Level 7 Bard
1st round of combat : Move action start inspire courage, standard action cast good hope +2 to hit, damage, all saves, ability checks, and skills.
Total bonus from one round of buffing at level 7.
To hit +4
Damage +4
All Saves +2 VS. Fear +4
Skills +2
Yes, no class can buff better than a bard.
Another vote for bard here. That said, Druids I've played in a party with a druid who did a lot of buffing and that was pretty solid. Bard's definitely the best though...just make sure your players can handle managing the math on several different bonuses piling up.
Bard (obviously) or Evangelist Cleric.
Bards are great because they've got bardic performance which can be started as a move/swift action after level 7. They've also got some truly excellent spells (haste, good hope, heroism) and lots of skills to rely on.
Evangelists are also really great for similar reasons. They get bardic performance, minus the offensive performances (but you're a buffer, so who cares?) and can use it exactly as a bard- right down to reducing the start time to a move/swift action. The cleric spell list is more broadly focused and doesn't have the really great buffs (heroism, good hope, haste) but does have a full 9 levels of spellcasting, so it's not like you won't have things to do. Evangelists function surprisingly well as summoners. Spend a few feats to gain Augment & Superior Summoning and fill the battlefield with Summon Monster spells- which, by the way, benefit from your bardic performance. You can even take the Animal domain for a tag along companion, though the spells are pretty crap.
It's probably not going to equal a bard, but in the interest of offering an alternative, how about a witch? The ancestors patron provides you with some solid buffing spells from the cleric list, and the Fortune + Cackle hexes could be awesome for your party, especially if maintaining the cackle is a priority. Ward provides a decent defensive bonus, and the healing hex expands your versatility. The hedge witch expands your healing capabilities even further, if that's a direction you're interested in going.
Depending on your concept, you could also throw in some "classic" witch debuffs, just for a bit of offensive capability.
Again, the class isn't built for it in the same way that the bard is, but I think you could make it work, providing yourself with a variety of options (through spells and hexes), and it might make for an interesting character to play.
Just to throw it out there: the Sensei archetype also gets bardic performance.
Bard (obviously) or Evangelist Cleric.
Bards are great because they've got bardic performance which can be started as a move/swift action after level 7. They've also got some truly excellent spells (haste, good hope, heroism) and lots of skills to rely on.
Evangelists are also really great for similar reasons. They get bardic performance, minus the offensive performances (but you're a buffer, so who cares?) and can use it exactly as a bard- right down to reducing the start time to a move/swift action. The cleric spell list is more broadly focused and doesn't have the really great buffs (heroism, good hope, haste) but does have a full 9 levels of spellcasting, so it's not like you won't have things to do. Evangelists function surprisingly well as summoners. Spend a few feats to gain Augment & Superior Summoning and fill the battlefield with Summon Monster spells- which, by the way, benefit from your bardic performance. You can even take the Animal domain for a tag along companion, though the spells are pretty crap.
And don't forget Sacred Summons...
Bard is the obvious choice, witch can do it as well, with their beneficial spells and hexes.
Thanks for the feedback!
I had thought of bard originally, but didn't recall seeing their spell list reflect what you guys are saying here. I'm definitely going to review it.
Thanks again!
Thanks for the feedback!
I had thought of bard originally, but didn't recall seeing their spell list reflect what you guys are saying here. I'm definitely going to review it.
Thanks again!
The inspiration series alone make the bard spelllist the best for support.
As Cheapy says, Bards don't need a buffing spell list because of how awesome their music is at buffing.
That being said, however, they've got a good number of fair to good buff spells as well if you want to go that route.
Sorry, I meant the Brilliant Inspiration, gallant inspiration, etc spell series. It sets them above the sensei and evangelist for support. Those are the immediate action spells that turn failures into success!
+1 Bard.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
If you can get your hands on a lesser rod of quicken spell you can pull off haste, good hope, and inspire courage in a single round as of lvl 7, at least for the three times a day the rod will let you quicken a spell.
If you are given access to the super fringish pathfinder society guides there is a feat chain to boost all your performances which grant bonuses by +1 as soon as (possibly) first level, and another +1 as soon as level 9, which I shouldn't need to tell you is awesome.
