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Heya everyone.
So, I'm a DM stepping down due to a heavy course load coming up, and the healer of my campaign is going to be replacing me. I'll be taking up the roll of the healer, and since I've recently attained the Advanced Player's Guide, I'm going to be going for the Oracle of Life. I have a relatively good understanding of the game, but I'd like to have some input and views from others.
*I have yet to actually make the character; just throwing around ideas right now*
Current Party Composition:
Human Sorcerer/Dragon Disciple (self-explanatory)
Halfling Rogue (general rogue)
Dwarf Dual-Wield Fighter (self-explanatory)
HElf Druid (general Druid; backup spells)
HOrc Spellblade (party's utility caster/elemental melee)
HDrow Cleric (I'll be replacing)
From the research I've done, the general idea for my character concept is as follows:
Party level is 7, so that gives me 3 revelations, base: thus far, I have Channel, Energy Body and Life Link. Planning on the Wasting curse, which flows nicely into the concept for the healing: I'm going to attempt to have high Cha and Con (doubled up with Gnome as my race), with Life Link cast on the entire party, pretty much infinitely. Lore - As his link with the party continues, he becomes more disfigured by the scars he accumulates on a regular basis in lieu of his friends. I'm thinking of going buff/summon for my spells, as the Spellblade is the "utility" caster already, the Druid is backup heals/fireball/utility, and the Sorcerer is, well, a sorcerer. I'll be picking the Cure spells for "free", and grabbed Channel to help out for aoe heals, but my main form of healing myself will be a wand. Thinking of going into wand crafting, too, just to be on the safe side.
Feats I'm thinking of include selective channeling, eschew materials, extra revelation: combat healing, toughness (worth it?), the aforementioned craft wand, and maybe some meta.
Spell Ideas
0 - Create Water, Detect Magic, Resistance, Read Magic, Stabilize, Virtue, Guidance
1 - Bane, Bless, Doom, Obscuring Mist, Sanctuary
2 - Augury, Spiritual Weapon, Summon Monster II
3 - Sacred Bond (on Druid), Summon Monster III
I also have a couple options for magical items, but I have yet to even go through them. I think I'll go for +Cha/Con or +AC rather than utility, though.
Questions:
First, is this a viable healing build? This is my first time as a healer, and I'm really liking the flavor of this build. Just kinda worried about having 5 party members with Life Link...this DM is known to be rough, and 25 damage plus whatever I take on an AOE attack, or complications with loss of character control, would be quite brutal. (yes, I realize I can cancel any of the links anytime, and that the damage/healing only occur on my turn)
Second, I want to make sure that I'll be able to do something else, too, aside from a heal-bot...hence why I wanna have essentially the fast-healing-5 on everyone, and heal myself as necessary. Summon/buff sounded rather solid to me. Any other suggestions out there?
Thirdly, equipment. I'm wanting to stay as FAR away from the front lines, but I'm going to be taking Sanctuary (duh) just in case. Should I even invest in anything better than a Chain Shirt? I'm thinking of going for the longspear for my weapon: half decent damage for a small character, reach to keep enemies at bay, and a x3 crit. I'll go for the Scimitar for sure if the other DM allows me to gain proficiency with it, as my character is going to be following Sarenrae more than any of the other Deities.
Any other suggestions are welcome. Just making sure I have all my basis covered.
Thanks for your time!
*books used: Core, Advanced Player Guide, Tome of Secrets. We're not using anything extra from the APG aside from the Oracle and associated extras - aka, no alternate racial traits, favored class options, etc.*
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considering you want to have life link up all the time toughness is probably worth it, but i wouldn't have life link up with everyone at once, from my interpretation if everyone gets hit with 5 or more points of damage in a round, they'll heal 5 each and you'll take 25 damage.
i wouldn't bother with eschew materials, it only removes the need for materials that have a cost less than 1 gold (aka no cost) which are generally assumed to be in a spell component pouch anyway.
see if you can get the druid to cast longstrider on you, 1 or 2 1st level spell slots shouldn't be to much to ask if you're casting Sacred Bond on him constantly...
i was about to suggest going human but you're not using favored class options, so gnome seems like a good choice i guess
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I'm planning on having Life Link up on everyone all the time, and if there's a lot of damage going around, I'll be canceling it on our two meat shields. 15 damage is easier to cure than is 25. I think I'll have toughness, too, as it seems worth it. If I'm going to be taking that much damage, might as well make sure I can take it.
Eschew Materials is a free feat as per house rules. We bump the gold cost up to 10g, as most of the players are new and, quite frankly, kinda stupid when it comes to the little things like spell components.
Longstrider is a personal spell. And I'll only be casting Sacred Bond during "OMG boss" type fights, as I'll have a max of 3/day 3rd lvl spells right now.
The main reason we're not adding any of the extras in APG is because I've just bought it, and the other characters were created prior. I could have them retroactively assign things, but, as I said, most of them are new and it would just be that much more confusing for them.
Basically, I want a solid healer type so that I can make sure that the party survives (to avoid "stupid game, I always die" mentality of new players), and yet have something interesting to do aside from being a walking bandaid. Thanks for the thoughts, Skerek. :)
I haven't played him yet, but I made a half-orc Fighter 1/Life Oracle 2 build for a campaign with a 3 person party (the fighter level is in case no one else makes a melee combatant). My basic philosophy is to go heavy Con (and Toughness feat) and good Cha and use Life Link. I picked half-orc over gnome because I wasn't planning on casting spells at enemies so am not as worried about Cha/save DCs, and orc ferocity will let me heal myself at negative hit points once a day, which I feel is a nice back-up for Life Link.
The Channel/Selective Channeling combo is also what I took, as it seems silly to me not to take these if you're going to be healing based. Energy Body is also a good choice - I think this is a great defensive measure if you get pressed in melee, as you can heal yourself as a move action, still attack or cast as your standard action, and gain elemental traits (no flanking, crits, etc.). Even if you're planning on staying out of combat, it's still a nice extra heal on someone you move past during the round.
With a 6 man party I think the summoning spells are a good choice, and all in all I think you have a solid build for that big a party. I would still make him a half-orc for the emergency ferocity if you're going to be Life Linking to 5 people. Also, I personally prefer to armor the bejeesus out of my divine casters, but if you're going gnome I can see how you wouldn't want to compromise your speed any more.
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HOrc actually was my first choice due to Orc Ferocity. However, since there's already a HOrc, I kind of wanted to be something different, as that character is usually the brunt of all the jokes...don't wanna take some of his spotlight away, heh. Only picked Gnome for fluf (plus they're my favorite race to play), and for the +2Con/Cha. I'm not planning on casting anything at enemies aside from Bane (which I might take out for Summon Monster I), Doom and Spiritual Weapon (which the DM has graciously allowed to have my Cha mod rather than Wis), but even those are worth the extra Cha (not to mention extra Channel).
My thoughts exactly. Channel and Energy Body are just too good to be left out.
Thanks for the input, goodwicki. I'll reconsider the HOrc suggestion, and if I end up going that route I'll throw on some mythril plate.
EDIT:
Also thinking of setting up for a Holy Vindicator at next level. I've heard/read that they're more of a Cleric prestige class, but it sounds interesting. The Stigma would certainly tie in nicely with my curse lore, as would Faith Healing with my healing strategy. However, I've also read that Oracles get better with age. Thoughts?
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I have everything ready to go, aside from actually rolling the stats.
Life Link coupled with all the healing, toughness, etc. is the flavor, so I'll letcha know how it goes. Decided on the HOrc, as the Orc Ferocity is nearly a necessity. If anyone's interested, here's his backstory:
"Zevac (meaning Sacrifice) is a young Half-Orc. Physically, the only hints to his Orc ancestry are small “tusks” and a greenish tint of skin. He grew up in the small village he currently lives in, living in relative peace. He is a quite boy, always quick to help the other villagers. The blood of Orcs still run through his blood, though, and one night not too long past, a blood rage overtook him. He ended up killing an entire family in the village, and was on the verge of being run out. The resident Cleric, however, was given a vision from her goddess, Sarenrae. The goddess of redemption and healing had decided to pick young Zavec as an Oracle of Life, as he had always been a faithful follower. Great powers were thrust upon the boy, but there was a price. In order for him to redeem himself, Sarenrae set him a task to heal those who need him the most, and in return he would bear the scars of those he helps. His physical appearance has been severely altered, and is looked upon by all with a healthy fear, either due to his now gruesome appearance or out of respect to the power of Deities."
Most Oracles aren't usually tied to one Deity, but in light of the campaign setting, I decided that following Sarenrae would be a great choice for his "main spiritual focus."
Thanks again for the input! If anyone has any other ideas, I'm still open to them as I won't be "officially" creating the character until mid-January. Also, if anyone would like to snatch the character idea, feel free. Just lemme know how it works out for you. (might even throw up a bit of a Guide if I get the time/if anyone shows interest)
I consider the metamagic feat Reach Spell almost mandatory for an Oracle of life, at the latest by level 11. Being able to cast freedom of movement over here while the meatshield is getting ready to be swallowed by the monster over there is really nice. Not to mention spells like breath of life, heal, or even simply a cure moderate when you don't want to get close to the melee. You may not use it all the time, but when you need it, you'll really need it.
I'm not as sure about combat healer. Burning two slots once per day to cast a cure spell swiftly is nice, but spirit boost is pretty sweet as well. Since you are going to already have channel, life link and energy body already, it's really your choice. Lifesense is a given at 11, and by 15 picking up enhanced cures is also a good choice (turning your 1st level cure lights into 1d8+15 is fun.) It may be worth burning a feat on extra revelation to pick up both.
As far as spells are concerned, for second level I'd consider either silence, sound burst or hold person. All three of those can be an "I win" button, when used correctly. Since you have summon monster III, I'd consider dropping at least summon monster II and picking up one of them.
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Your build will work awesome if you can manage your lifelinks.I am currently running RotRL and my party of 6 has a Life Oracle as the main healer.This player has never played Pathfinder but has played a lot of AD&D and 2nd editions and I originally balked at his concept. At low levels it was rough but now at 7th he easily handles the healing role (there is also a cleric of Desna who is a backup and I mean way backup healer, mostly a occasional channel) in the group.He has rapid reload light crossbow and sits back and shoots away and lifelinks.He also has a plethora of wands, he created 5 wands of cure light in some downtime plus a few cure moderates with minimal charges he has found and he keeps everyone and himself up pretty easily.
Male Human Oracle 7
LG Medium Humanoid (Human)
Hero Points 1
Init +3; Senses Perception +1
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DEFENSE
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AC 19, touch 13, flat-footed 16. . (+6 armor, +3 Dex)
hp 58 (7d8+7)
Fort +5, Ref +6, Will +7
Immune fatigue
Weakness Lame
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OFFENSE
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Spd 15 ft.
Melee Masterwork Mace, Heavy +5 (1d8-1/20/x2) and
. . Masterwork Silver Dagger +5 (1d4-2/19-20/x2) and
. . Quarterstaff +4 (1d6-1/20/x2) and
. . Unarmed Strike +4 (1d3-1/20/x2)
Ranged +1 Frost Crossbow, Light +9 (1d8+1/19-20/x2)
Oracle Spells Known (CL 7, +4 melee touch, +8 ranged touch):
3 (5/day) Dispel Magic, Neutralize Poison (DC 16), Cure Serious Wounds (DC 16), Delay Poison, Communal (DC 16)
2 (7/day) Restoration, Lesser (DC 15), Cure Moderate Wounds (DC 15), Hold Person (DC 15), Remove Paralysis (DC 15), Grace (DC 15)
1 (7/day) Hide from Undead (DC 14), Comprehend Languages (DC 14), Bless, Magic Weapon (DC 14), Detect Undead, Remove Fear (DC 14), Cure Light Wounds (DC 14)
0 (at will) Resistance (DC 13), Virtue, Stabilize, Read Magic (DC 13), Detect Poison, Detect Magic, Light
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STATISTICS
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Str 9, Dex 15/17, Con 12, Int 12, Wis 12, Cha 16
Base Atk +5; CMB +4; CMD 17
Feats Craft Wand, Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Rapid Reload: Crossbow, Light, Selective Channeling
Traits Adopted, Faithful Feedback, Forlorn
Skills Acrobatics +6, Climb -5, Craft (Weapons) +3, Diplomacy +11, Escape Artist -1, Fly -1, Handle Animal +7, Heal +13, Knowledge (History) +5, Knowledge (Nature) +5, Knowledge (Planes) +5, Knowledge (Religion) +9, Profession (Merchant) +5, Ride +0, Sense Motive +6, Spellcraft +11, Stealth -1, Survival +6, Swim -5
Languages Common, Elven
SQ Channel Positive Energy (Su), Channel Positive Energy 4d6 (4/day) (DC 16) (Su), Hero Points (1), Life Link (7 bonds, 170') (Su), Safe Curing (Su)
Combat Gear +1 Frost Crossbow, Light, Bolts, Crossbow (30), Breastplate, Masterwork Mace, Heavy, Masterwork Silver Dagger, Quarterstaff; Other Gear Backpack (empty), Bedroll, Belt of Incredible Dexterity, +2, Blanket, Cloak of Resistance, +1, Flint and steel, Handy Haversack (7 @ 28.3 lbs), Healer's kit (10 uses), Potion of Cure Moderate Wounds (2), Rope, hempen (50 ft.) (2), Unholy symbol, wooden: Sarenrae, Wand of Cure Light Wounds, Wand of Detect Undead, Wand of Hide from Undead
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SPECIAL ABILITIES
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Channel Positive Energy (Su) Channel Positive Energy
Channel Positive Energy 4d6 (4/day) (DC 16) (Su) A good cleric can channel positive energy to heal the living and injure the undead; an evil cleric can channel negative energy to injure the living and heal the undead.
Faithful Feedback Whenever you cast a spell belonging to the healing subschool on someone of your religion, increase the hit points healed by +1.
Hero Points (1) Hero Points can be spent at any time to grant a variety of bonuses.
Immune to Fatigue You are immune to the fatigued condition.
Lame One of your legs is permanently wounded, reducing your base land speed by 10 feet if your base speed is 30 feet or more. If your base speed is less than 30 feet, your speed is reduced by 5 feet. Your speed is never reduced due to encumbrance. At 5th
Life Link (7 bonds, 170') (Su) Bond drains your HP to heal others.
Point Blank Shot +1 to attack and damage rolls with ranged weapons at up to 30 feet.
Precise Shot You don't get -4 to hit when shooting or throwing into combat.
Rapid Reload: Crossbow, Light You can reload fast with one type of Crossbow.
Safe Curing (Su) Casting healing spells does not provoke AoO
Selective Channeling Exclude targets from the area of your Channel Energy.
One thing i'd look into is the eldritch heritage feat line, depends on your character concept but the arcane bloodline abilities are very useful for an oracle as well as the aberrant bloodline long limbs power is very useful especially if you can make yourself large as a 30ft reach makes healing a lot easier. Even the orc bloodline powers would be handy for an oracle in combat, would make your melee attacks similar to fighter damage with a buff or two.
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I guess I should have put up what I have picked. I had changed a few things:
race: Half-Orc (+2 Cha or Con, depending)
curse: Wasting (-4 Cha Skill checks, NA/Intimidate; +4 vs. Disease; immune to sickened)
mystery: Life
Rev's: Channelling, Energy Body, Life Link
spells:
0 (7)
Create Water; Detect Magic; Resistance; Read Magic; Stabilize; Virtue; Guidance
1 (5)
Bane; Bless; Doom; Obscuring Mist; Sanctuary
Extra: Detect Undead; Cure Light Wounds
2 (3)
Hold Person; Spiritual Weapon; Sound Burst
Extra: Lesser Restoration; Cure Moderate Wounds
3 (2)
Prayer; Summon Monster III
Extra: Neutralize Poison; Cure Serious Wounds
Equipment:
Belt of Mighty Constitution
Headband of Alluring Charisma
Gloves of Storing
Wand of Cure Light Wounds
Masterwork Buckler
Masterwork Breastplate
Masterwork Orc Double Axe +2
Crossbow, Light w/ Bolts
(I have the wand in the glove, with the buckler on the same arm, for easy access to self-heals. Not sure of the belt/headband yet, as it depends on the stats I end up with. Might trade them, or one of the +'s on the axe, and grab another glove with another wand, or even a meta rod.)
Feats:
Toughness
Selective Channeling
Extra Revelation – Enhanced Cures
Meta: Reach
As I've mentioned, I haven't rolled the stats yet (we roll, no point-buy. Made it easier for the new players) I would love to have looked into the eldritch heritage feat line, but I can't. I can only use stuff from the Core, except for the spells and the extra revelation feat from the APG. We're keeping it extremely limited for the new players' sake. out of the seven of us, only myself and the other DM have played before. I'm thinking of burning my 8lvl feat for the craft wand, but I'm not sure yet...depends on how often I end up healing myself with the one I already have.
Do not underestimate the power of the Heal skill! It is useful for saving spell slots, and the Healing Hands revelation let's you treat two people as a standard action. The +4 to all Heal checks is nice too.
I would recommend Safe Curing over either Life Link or Energy Body(unless you know you're going to fight undead a lot.)
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Saw that you had the Orc Double Axe listed as your primary. It's not going to do you a hole lot of good without two-weapon fighting. My advice, switch up for the chain fighter trait and pick up a Heavy Flail. Bludgeoning/Piercing weapon, 2 handed for 1d10 + 1.5 str and 19-20 x 2 crit range with the ability to trip. Much more useful in the long run than the Orc Double Axe. As far as the rest of your character design goes it's really solid. I agree with Azten that safe curing is likely to be more useful than energy body. Energy Body at your level will maybe be useful for 1 combat a day. Safecuring will always be useful. I saw you took Meta Reach, and I can definitely see some use to that, but on the otherhand, taking either extra channel or Quickend channel could be even more useful.
The only thing I'd offer to change for your spell selection would be Hold Person. Hold person is a save or suck spell, and unless your going to really beed your saving throw it just doesn't serve you very well. Plus they get an additional save each round.
3 options: You said you wanted to be a buffer, so consider Bullstrength. Every fighter will love you for it. Another Possibility to consider, especially since its a spell that will always have uses is Resist Energy. You 6th level now, in 1 level it will go from 10 resistence per round to 20 point resistance per round. Thats worth its wait in gold.
Finally, if your going to keep life link up and take all the hits for the team it might be a good Idea to not take any additional hits yourself. Look up Grace in the APG. As a Swift Action on your turn, cast to ignore attacks of opportunity for passing through threatend squares. Good stuff here.
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The only problem with a Heavy Flail is that technically, I'm not "supposed" to use the alternate traits. But I might just do it anyway, because that sounds a lot more solid.
I've changed Energy Body for Safe Curing, and am thinking of getting a Rod of Meta Reach 'n grab the Extra Channel. Still like Energy Body, but you're right.
Character lvl is 7, so Resist Energy sounds like a really good replacement for Hold Person. Wasn't aware that it got buffed up, so thanks! Not sure if I'd get as much out of it as Grace, though, so I'll have to weigh those two. Only had Hold Person for a bit of CC.
Awesome suggestions! I can't wait to try him out.
If your DM doesn't allow the heavy flail, you can still switch to a great axe or falchion.