Hey all,
So as some of you know I am building for a level 6 campaign.
I submitted 3 character Ideas and of those the DM said that 2 of them would fit the campaign well.
For those curious, you can read all 3 submisions at the following link.
The one he shot down was actually the main one I posted about, but if you scroll down you can see the other 2.
Anyway the Zen archer is about 90% done and if curious you can see him at the next link
Anyway, on to the actual reason for this thread.
The last character I am making is a Gnome Oracle of flame.
this is the basic submision is sent the GM (from the other thread)
The Fluff...
Zintok, or Scorch to his friends, Also known as "Get that lunitic out of here before he kills someone!" is not the most.... Stable person on the face of Golarian.
When Zintok was young his home burned to the ground killing his entire family, Zintok was found to have been in bed the whole time, and while the sheets were all burned away and even his pajamas were charred beyond repair Zintok himself was spared with only a few minor burns.
Noone knows why this happened, least of all Zintok himself, however from that day forth he dedicated his life to the study of fire in all its forms.
He learned to converse with he beings of pure fire, he learned to call upon their might when he was threatened, he learned to do anything.
Sadly, this did not go over at all well with the other Gnomes of his village. As he grew there were rumors that he was the one that set the fire that killed his family, the only reason he was not brought up on charges or exiled was that frankly as odd as he is, there is something likeable about him.
He may giggle too much, he may start spewing only Ignan when agitated but he is a likeable little guy.
It is worth pointing out that he is NOT a Professor, not even close. However Zintok feels that it gives him an air of..... well something. Added to that is he only uses the title once in a while, so that when someone else uses it he can seem to be embarrassed by it "Oh, come now, there is no need for titles, I'm just like everyone else"
The Crunch....
Zintok is a Gnome using the following alternate racial traits.
Academician, this gives a +2 to one Knowledge (the Planes)
Pyromaniac, This makes him count as 1 level higher for the oracle Flame Mystery.
Also gives the following Spell likes abilities 1/day
Prestdigitation
Dancing lights
Flare
Produce Flame
Gift of tongues, This gives +1 to bluff and Diplomacy (Not going to be used)
Also give +1 language each time I put a rank in Linguistics (Also will not really be used)
Zintok is also an Oracle with the Flame Mystery And the Tongues Curse
The curse only lets him speak Ignan During combat (Zintok is unaware of this and simply tells people to speak up if they want to be heard)
Anyway, I have never made a blaster before, I will post what I'm thinking in the next post, Thanks for reading.
And here we go.
Please understand I am trying to make a good character WITHOUT crapping on all the other players, thats why I'm going blaster.
That is also why he did not dip into crossblooded sorc for +2 dam/die.
We want to be good, but not too good.
I want to mostly Blast with a bit of control.
Its 15pb so I am looking at (before items and level)
Str: 8
Dex: 12
Con: 16
Int: 12
Wis: 8
Cha 18
Traits i was thinking
1. Magical liniage (fireball), Yeah, I know. but its iconic.
2. ???????????
Feats are kinda up in the air, I can meta fireball for a +1 for free so there is that, I was thinking lingering spell.
The DM has approved Searing spell from the 3.5 book sandstorm.
Your fi re spells are so hot that they can damage creatures
that normally have resistance or immunity to fi re.
Benefit: A searing spell is so hot that it ignores the
resistance to fire of creatures affected by the spell, and
affected creatures with immunity to fire still take half
damage. This feat can be applied only to spells with the
fi re descriptor.
Creatures with the cold subtype take double damage
from a searing spell. Creatures affected by a searing spell
are still entitled to whatever saving throw the spell normally
allows. A searing spell uses up a spell slot one level
higher than the spell’s actual level.
So I think I'll take that.
I was also thinking of spell focus.
For revelations I was going with
1. Gaze of flames
3. Cinder dance
Then at higher levels....
7. Form of flame (dm says you can cast)
7. (From a feat) Wings of flame
11. Fire storm
The plan was to open each big fight with obscuring mist (fluff it to be smokey) and then nuke away looking out with gaze of flames.
Well thats what I've got thus far.
I might want to pick up a crafting feat to save a bit o cash.
Thanks for the advice guys.
Well crap, upon further review my GM decided to stay all Pathfinder so no Searing Spell.
How do I work with fire resist?
|
Well crap, upon further review my GM decided to stay all Pathfinder so no Searing Spell.
How do I work with fire resist?
Take Elemental Spell and pick acid or electric. Find something fire resistant? Try one of those instead. Can't cast your best stuff with it, but it keeps your options open.
You can also buy metamagic rods with that feat if you want to save a feat or use it with your highest spells (the greater version only costs 24.5k and works with 9th level spells).
See the APG for either one.
Thanks for the advice, I was hopeing to stay in the same theme (Fire) but there just doesnt seem to be a way in pathfinder to do it.
Shame Fire is a really common resist.
Cold has more resistors than fire, oddly enough.
Without the static bonus from the sorcerer dip your damage will suffer, best bet is probably to pick up spell specialisation early and get dazing spell on it as soon as you can. Lingering is good control, especially if you can afford to stand in your own fire spell via resists.
Look towards summoning as fire elementals are basicly walls that can attack and ignore your blasts and pick up feats to cover your weaknesses (you are really going to hate grapple etc).
Without the static bonus from the sorcerer dip your damage will suffer, best bet is probably to pick up spell specialisation early and get dazing spell on it as soon as you can. Lingering is good control, especially if you can afford to stand in your own fire spell via resists.
Look towards summoning as fire elementals are basicly walls that can attack and ignore your blasts and pick up feats to cover your weaknesses (you are really going to hate grapple etc).
Spell Spec is a great idea.
If I take the Magical Liniage Fireball. (yeah i know there are better spells)
Then Lingering spell would still be a 3rd level spell.
With the Gnome Pyromaniac racial its +1 CL to Fire spells.
If I spell spec thats +2 more.
thats a feat just for fireball.
How much milage am I going to get out of lingering spell?
So at 6th level I'll be tossing 9d6 fireballs.
that works great through 7th, but then I'm bumping into the 10 max dice cap.
Is there a better 3rd or less spell thats a better choice?
well if you take spell specialisation at first level and go for burning hands (do you get that as a flame oracle? you probably should) then you can change it at a later level to fireball anyway.
Lingering is more about area denial but if you can become immune to fire (or resistant enough to ignore the damage anyway) then you can stand inside your own lingering fireball without any worries.
Dazing is a much better control metafeat but as always comes at a much higher cost (3 spell levels, 2 with lineage) but is truely a game ender for most encounters.
For damage purposes Intensify is a must when you have spell spec and lineage in fireball.
Rod of lesser elemental spell is going to be your best friend for enemies that are good vs fire, don't forget that a dazing spiritual weapon is a very very good spell for stuff thats hard to hurt(force damage, make a save, lose your action).
Since your staying low level most of the tricks to make blasting viable won't come online but the basics are available from level 1, spell spec, intensify and crossblooded are the trinity really. If you check out the evocation optimisation thread there are quite a few options to keep yourself going from level 1-15, at level 15 with spell perfection it gets crazy but you can still be very good from level 1 upwards by following the spell spec intensify route.
Since you are worried about fire res, but don't want to steal other player's thunder, you might consider taking the sorcerer dip but still focusing on fire exclusively, The extra damage will help overcome low-grade fire res, while the fact you have a major weakness helps give other players screen time.
If you check out the evocation optimisation thread there are quite a few options to keep yourself going from level 1-15, at level 15 with spell perfection it gets crazy but you can still be very good from level 1 upwards by following the spell spec intensify route.
I dont suppose you have a link to that thread?
How much tweaking does your GM allow of rules? An evangelist cleric that can spontaneously cast their domain spells instead of the special list would let you a) be a blaster, and b) seriously make your buddies awesome with all the bardic buffs.
By the way, your goal of not marginalizing the others and give the less experienced players a chance to shine is very admirable :)
Thanks Cheapy.
It's a really odd wire to walk, be good, but not too good.
So I'm going with a really focused build.
They don't have a blaster so there you go.
Anyway if you care to see what I have so far you can see him Here
I'm about 95% done with him and I think hes coming out ok, I still need another trait tho.
Oh and due to it being a newer group the GM is going by the book, so no tweaking. tho he is good with 3rd party so long as its on the OGC site.
Thats where I pulled a 2nd level spell from.
it does use the crossblooded dip but i'm sure there are some feats and stuff you can take away to help you out.
RPG Superstar 2014 Top 16
|
Well crap, upon further review my GM decided to stay all Pathfinder so no Searing Spell.
How do I work with fire resist?
Take Elemental Spell and pick acid or electric. Find something fire resistant? Try one of those instead. Can't cast your best stuff with it, but it keeps your options open.
You can also buy metamagic rods with that feat if you want to save a feat or use it with your highest spells (the greater version only costs 24.5k and works with 9th level spells).
See the APG for either one.
I second this. Since you can add +1 metamagic to fireball without using up a higher slot, you could cast the fireballs as electric or acid damage instead with the only penalty being the longer casting time (full round instead of standard).
Well, if this is allowed, you could avoid the dip, and still get some damage to power through fire resistance.
Thats a good idea Cheapy.
But i'm not trying to avoid the dip, well sorta.
I was avoiding the extra damage the dip would bring.
If I were building a "real" blaster i would take the dip (or just play a damn Sorcerer to start with, or an admixture Wiz and then take the dip) and then take the feat as well.
But as this is a low op group i'm doing my best to rein in my powergameish leanings.
Tho if i were letting loose I sure as hell wouldnt make a blaster to begin with :)
Thanks for all the advice guys, it really helped a lot.
Ok. here is the feat breakdown I ended up with.
well and traits.
Traits
Affinity of the elements (+1 DC fire spells)
Magical Lineige (-1 cost to meta (fireball))
Feats (currently level 6)
1. Spell Focus Evoc
3. Spell Specialization
5. Lingering Spell
7. Spont Metafocus
9. Intensified Spell
11. Quicken Spell
13. Empower Spell
15. Spell Perfection
And as you can tell I plan to get as much miliage as I can out of fireball.
It's a firly low OP group so this should be ok.
The damage I do at each level is as follows
I'll start at the level I am currently at (6th)
The +3 CL are from spell spec and pyromaniac gnome racial
6th. 9d6+Lingering (3rd Level Slot)
7th. 10d6+Lingering (3rd Level Slot)
8th. 10d6+Lingering (3rd Level Slot) ((This is the crap level. as we hit the cap we cant get more then 10d6, and we have no other metas to let us use fireball in our new 4th level slot, in short, 8th kinda sucks))
9th. 12d6 (Intense)+Lingering (4th Level Slot)
10. 13d6 (Intense)+Lingering (4th Level Slot)
11. 14d6 (Intense)+Lingering (4th Level Slot)
11. Also maybe a Quickened Obscuring mist (5th Level Slot)
12. 15d6 (Intense)+Lingering (4th Level Slot)
12. Also 10d6 Quickened (6th Level Slot)
13. 15d6x1.5 (Intense,Empowered)+Lingering (6th Level Slot)
13. Also 10d6 Quickened (6th Level Slot)
14. 15d6x1.5 (Intense, Empowered)+Lingering (6th Level Slot)
14. Also 15d6 (Intense, Quickened) (7th Level Slot)
I put in the highest level I could cast at each, however if I feel I'm running low on high level slots I can drop Lingering or Intense and use a lower slot.
Metafocus lets me fireball and still move, and gaze of flames lets me see through all this crap.
looks a good build, decent damage at lower levels and good control/denial at higher levels.
I'd look at your other spell options as well for when your not fireballing though!
well at 6th (Currently)
I have several other things I can do besides fireball. (tho not a lot)
I decided to go in for combat manuvers as my idea for fire immune stuff.
So to do that I took the spells..
and
Beyond that I get all the cure spells so if need be I can also heal.
And even fire immune things normally can not see through fire, so the lingering fireballs (while not doing damage) are still useful.
At least thats the hope :)
Are there any better utility combat spells you can think of as I level up?
Also is there anyway to get more spells on my spells known from other lists?
Runestaves worked in 3.5 but even jumping to a PRC would be ok.
There are just a few I would really like, Fog cloud, Fire Snake, etc.
Ok, May as well use the same thread....
To Archtype or not to Archtype..... That is the question.
So I was looking at the Seeker Archtype and frankly I am torn.
On one hand I lose my Mystery class skills, as I am Flame mystery that falls under "Who gives a crap?" (Acro, Climb, Intim, Perform)
In return I get some crap I don't really need, trapfinding, disable device, yeah, stuff like that....
However why I was looking was the 3rd level ability
Seeker Lore
This ability replaces the revelation gained at 3rd level.
Ok, you get quite a bit..
1. +4 on concentration checks (Ok, I'm a blaster, I like to cast)
2. +4 on checks to penetrate SR This is the reason I want it.
3. +4 on Knowledge Arcane and Spellcraft checks that are on topics to do with my bonus spells... (Ok, this is largly useless)
However to do this I need to give up Cinder Dance. (+10 Move)
There really isnt any wiggle room to fit them both.
Now in a few levels I can spend 10k on a ring of revelation and get it, but thats a lot of money, and takes a ring slot.
In the meantime I would have to use a Riding dog, or pony, or something else to get around faster then my 15' (in armor) or 20' (if I just get Mage armor cast, or go with a chain shirt) would normally allow.
The +4 Pen is what I really want as without it I fear I will have real issue with SR.
What do you guys think?