When I get home from deployment one of my character considerations for my next PFS character is going to be a Samurai. Does anyone have any advice on the Samurai in PFS? I love the Samurai adaptation of the Cavalier class and the added bonuses of being a badass with a katana. What sort of ability score array should I look at? Should I focus on Fighter Feats?
As I'm aware, its only this latest season's modules which have Tian considerations (with the introduction of the Lantern Lodge and Tian Xia adventures). So, would it be in my potential character's best interest to only play Season 3 modules?
I've been playing a samurai in Rise of the Runelords and have been having a lot of fun. He's Tian Min but there's no reason you can't reskin the samurai class to be a specific order of Western knights, etc.
Here's what my samurai looks like:
Two-handed melee, weapon expertise katana (samurai class feature). I've taken fighter feats with the katana (weapon focus, weapon specialization) and generally only take feats that are useful every round (power attack, furious focus, dodge, toughness) and except for power attack I wouldn't consider any of them mandatory. Iron will is also helpful but greater iron will is probably redundant. I haven't taken any mounted feats but still fight well from horseback (especially with a lance). He's flexible in that he can start fights with a reach weapon (I go with guisarme because I enjoy tripping things) or long bow and immediately switch to a katana if I want to immediately do a lot of damage or find myself in close combat*.
IMO The only two stats that really matter for an Order of the Warrior Samurai are STR and CON (STR > CON, especially since you can take toughness and already your FORT save is already respectable). A DEX bonus of one is nice (so you can get the most out of full plate, 13 if you want dodge) and you're better off dumping INT and CHA than WIS. If you don't like having a man-eating murder horse for a mount then go with the Sword Saint Archetype. Skill-wise ride and handle animal are handy, perception is a must and a small investment in climb and swim goes a long way.
* While I haven't done much to optimize my samurai they tend to be mechanically strong right out of the box. The other PCs in my party aren't optimized (e.g., without challenge I'm still doing as much or more damage than the barbarian) so I usually only bust out the katana for the really challenging encounters.
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samurai twf + challange = dead target
Stay away from TWF it is too feat intensive and produces less DPR than an Two-Handed weapon.
Within PFS I have a lvl 2 ninja/1 samurai(ronin) saki loving mercenary and he has been a blast to play. For adventures, yes season 3 is a great place to start. But considering PFS adventures are so diverse you shouldn't have a problem playing a Tian-Xe character. Butchering some hokey Japanese accent can be quite fun so long as you don't over do it or become a distraction.
For a strictly Samurai optimized build, try:
Human Samurai (Sword Saint archetype)
Traits: Strong in the Faith and Iron Will
STR: 18 (+2 race)
DEX: 14
CON: 14
INT: 9
WIS: 14
CHA: 7
Add level bonus to Str then Int or vice-versa, favored class to hp.
Feats:
1st: Power Attack, Weapon Focus (Katana or Naginata)
3rd: Iron Will
5th: Weapon Specialization (Katana or Naginata)
6th: Furious Focus
7th: Improved Iron Will
9th: Vital Strike
11th: Toughness
Resolve: Use it to rid yourself of those nasty conditions. Awesome and underestimated ability.
Order: Ronin. PFS is very caster heavy especially at later levels. Save or die spells become a huge problem through tier 7-11. The Ronin's 2nd level ability, paired with improved iron will and a shirt re-roll, will make you practically invulnerable to spells. There is an ioun stone that grants you immunity to mind-affecting abilities but at 4000 gp it is a little pricey.
Magic items: Your preference should be weapons>stat boost>armor>saves.
Weapon: +1 enhancement with keen
Stats: Always choose strength. If you can afford it, buy a headband of intellect and choose linguistics as your skill. You will be speaking over a dozen languages and can overcome many encounters through RP.
Armor: Wear an O-Yoroi with armor enhancement. When that becomes too pricey then ring of protection and amulet of natural armor.
Saves: Cloak of protection.
Also, the feats Iron Will, Improved Iron Will, and Toughness aren't extremely necessary and could be swapped out for preference feats such as lunge.
With this build expect to be an extremely reliable melee combatant able to tank your way through spells and smash your opponents quickly. This build is quite simple: Kill your foes with no fancy tricks involved.
On a side note, I would suggest either multiclassing 4 levels with weapon master or at least 2 levels in ninja. Not only does ninja fit with the Ronin theme but, by dropping Iron Will at 3rd level for extra ki, you will greatly increase your DPR. Ki should only be used for extra attacks. Pick up a ninja trick that does not draw upon ki.
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With a little PFSP experience. You will want some skills. As almost all faction missions require some kind of skill to complete. Allot of faction missions are based of diplomacy. Perception is the default most used skill ever.
Human
Samurai (Order Ronin)
Str 19 (All level up points here)
Dex 12
Con 14
Int 12
Wis 10
Cha 8
Skill Points Per level (4+1 Int+1 Human) Total 6
Bluff (Cha)(1/2), Diplomacy (Cha), Handle Animal (Cha), Intimidate (Cha)(1/2), Knowledge (Local)(Int), Perception (Wis), Ride (Dex)
You need handle animal and ride. Diplomacy, Knowledge (Local), are the two most common skill checks. That I have noticed. To take sense motive you could use your favored class bonus, for a extra skill point if you want.
Human : Weapon Focus Katana or Naginata
1: Power Attack
3: Improved Over Run
5: Weapon Specialization
6 Bonus Combat Feet: Improved Sunder
7: Charge Through
9: Improved Critical
11: Greater Over Run
12 Bonus Combat Feet: Greater Sunder
Simple fact in PFSP. There is only a hand full of times where the mount can be used. So spending feet's on top of skills is not the best option.
Come on guys, no charisma based build? i want to be the face.
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For the fist 4 levels Cha mod will make a difference. However from that point on it is more about keeping skill points in the skill than the ability mod it self. So Int is more important in having skill points then it is to have a high Cha for face skills.
There are only a hand full of times where higher Cha wins out over higher Int. My Cavalier only has a 6 cha due to being dwarf. There are only so many points to go around.
My suggested lay out if you want a higher cha. The down side is lower Dex for AC, and initiative.
Str 19
Dex 10
Con 14
Int 10
Wis 10
Cha 12
Weapon Finesse wakizashi order of the cockatrice halfling sword saint.
No the strongest powerhouse, but surely fun to play. Is strictly on my list for PFS characters. Two levels of ninja with a ki pool on a CHA heavy character add versability. Rogue would also be possible, with the side effect of having evasion.