I think when it comes to making Batman, there's no way to really pull it off unless you feel like making a god-character. Because that's what Batman is.
I'd say Dexterity and Intelligence are his highest scores, followed by Strength and Charisma: he's very fast and nimble, even in armor; he's incredibly smart (World's Greatest Detective); he's pretty dang strong; and he has an incredibly powerful personality and force of character, whether charming the ladies' pants off or scaring the sh*t out of criminals.
As for Constitution and Wisdom, neither should be negatives, but neither need to be that high, either. Sure, Batman is perceptive, and he's got endurance and can take a hit. But a lot of his standing power in fights comes from the fact that he's wearing military-grade armor, and equally powerful technology comes into play a lot when it comes to detection and deduction.
That's why I feel that Batman is best represented by his items, when it comes to Pathfinder. Looking through the Core Rulebook the other day when I was thinking about this, I found some wondrous items I think fit:
Cloak of the Bat, for obvious reasons;
Boots of Striding and Springing, so he can move fast and jump far;
Goggles of Night, since he's a human and needs darkvision;
Lens of Detection, quite possibly attached to the goggles for easy use;
A Handy Haversack, so he can carry all his other stuff, and probably reflavored as the utility belt.
Obviously he'd also probably have some stat enhancers, if only the equivalent of magic tomes he read while in training.
As for class, I don't think there's any way to capture the true essence of the Dark Knight with a pathfinder class, or even a combination of them.
Monk: Unarmed combat, AC bonuses (unfortunately based on a stat I sidelined), saving throws, increased speed and acrobatics, and some nice special abilities. This has a good package, especially at low levels. But it's not really Batman, y'know? For one thing, we're missing some key class skills (see: all the social skills).
Ninja: This probably fits Batman's early flavor the best. After all, one of his many "backstories" is that he trained with a ninja group, as in Batman Begins. But it's less than perfect in many areas: unarmed combat is the biggest offender. On the other hand, it's got most if not all the class skills he needs, as well as some nice ninja tricks that fit him. And once you get high enough to take Unarmed Combat Mastery, the unarmed combat catches up a bit.
Urban Ranger: Favored enemy (humans) makes sense (although so does the Paladin's smite evil, as well as the Inquisitor's Judgment). It's got some good class skills and abilities, with Favored Terrain (urban) being a nice pickup. And (probably the biggest boost) it has the FULL BAB. But once again, it leaves some of Batman's capabilities in the dust, and offers little to no unarmed combat potential.
In the end, I'd grab perhaps a level of monk for flurrying and some unarmed ability off the bat (hehe), then take ninja for pretty much the rest of the way, grabbing Unarmed Combat Mastery when I can. But again, this is just one take among hundreds, if not thousands.
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Endless discussions when it's so simple...
Batman is obviously a Dark Knight.
Or an elated commoner.
A ring of sustenance would seem to be necessary equipment...
Equipment trick feat 'cape' for sure, and maybe a bat-wagon or bat-horse (clash of the titans black Pegasus).
Props to you, Astral Wanderer.
Roguerouge, I thought about that, but I think it's more that Bruce Wayne has trained himself to need very little food, water, and sleep. I want to say there's a ninja trick that does that, but I'm not sure where it is, and I don't want to go looking right now.
And I just realized I totally forgot about alignment! Long story short, I'd go NG. Why? Batman is pretty obviously a good character, even if he occasionally gets close to neutral. I mean, the guy has an ethical code about never killing anyone, even someone as sadistically, insanely evil as the Joker. That's far more "good" than most D&D and Pathfinder characters ever are, considering the corpses that pile up after one outing.
As for the Law-Chaos spectrum, I went Neutral because whereas Bats works with the cops and advocates following the law and doing justice (bigtime Lawful), he also really own relies on himself and a few close friends, takes matters into his own hands (the reason he became Batman in the first place was that the cops weren't doing enough in his mind), and frankly does things his own way with little to no regard for lawful, police procedure (see: beating the crap out of people, major physical intimidation, tossing Marone off a building in The Dark Knight, and any number of other things that are considered police brutality), which are all on the Chaotic end.
In the end, I want to restate that I don't think it possible to truly recreate Batman in Pathfinder; it simply can't be done. You'll either fail to really capture him, or you'll actually be kind of underpowered compared to other builds until high levels, at which point you may come back. Your best bet is to pay homage to the World's Greatest Detective-- whether by playing a fistfighter with a penchant for vigilantism, or by playing a character who loves bats.
There are lots of superheroes that would be way easier to recreate than Batman, the easiest of which I think are Hawkeye and Green Arrow. However, recreating some villains for Pathfinder may end up being easier, as well as a blast.
@xanthemann, nice ninja. Are there any cape tricks? I've been looking for them for a while, especially for a character I have who's a tribute to Batman, Robin and Nightwing.
Str: 14
Dex: 17
Con: 12
Wis: 15
Int: 13
Cha: 7
This build ensures Batman can:
Craft Batarangs (which he would purchase the returning property for), have a bat claw, attack from the shadows, fly (glide), be alert, make multiple attacks of opportunity, be great at stealth and perception, trip and disarm foes, power attack and sneak attack with a flurry of blows up to 1d10 each, can entangle enemies holding them in place and can throw down smoke bombs to disappear.
He'll have spiked bracers (purely aesthetic, offering no bonus - fluff) until he can afford bracers of armour. At which point, he'll craft blades to attack (again, for aesthetics only)with his disarm attempts, so they look like, work and are themed in the same way as Batman does it (where he disarms people with his forearm spikes in the movies, cartoons and comics).
Feats:
1. Skill Focus: Disguise, Skill Focus: Stealth, Combat Reflexes, Improved Unarmed Strike
2. Weapon Finesse: Unarmed Strikes
3. Death From Above
5. Skill Focus: Perception
7. Power Attack, Alertness
9. Combat Expertise
10. Improved Disarm
11. Weapon Focus: Unarmed Strike, Great Fortitude
13. Weapon Specialisation
15. Critical Focus
17. Improved Critical, Improved Trip
Skills:
Acrobatics 1 rank, 3 dex, 3 class = 7
Craft 1 rank, 1 int, 3 class = 5
Disguise 1 rank, -2 cha, 3 skill focus = 2
Perception 1 rank, 2 wis, 3 class = 6
Stealth 1 rank, 3 dex, 3 class, 3 skill focus = 10
Climb (Untrained until level 5)
Disable Device (Untrained until level 5)
Escape Artist (Untrained)
Fly (Untrained until level 5 - for cape, which uses the level 6 Alchemist Wing Discovery)
Intimidate (Untrained until level 5)
Traits: Undecided.
Heart of the Wilderness: Replace Skilled
Favoured Class: Monk
Gear: Smoke Bombs, Batclaw (Grappling Hook), Batarang (Bat shaped Shuriken), Batman Disguise, Tanglefoot Bag
Gear to get: +5 Amulet of Mighty Fists, +5 Ring of Protection, +8 Bracers of Armour.
Level Progression:
1. Monk
2. Monk
3. Alchemist
4. Monk
5. Rogue (Sneak Attack: 1d6)
6. Monk
7. Alchemist (Feat instead of Discovery)
8. Monk
9. Alchemist
10. Monk (Bonus Feat)
11. Alchemist (Feat instead of Discovery)
12. Alchemist
13. Monk
14. Alchemist (Wings Discovery)
15. Monk
16. Monk
17. Monk (Bonus Feat)
6alc bab4
10monk bab7
1rog bab0
Level 14 - Critical Focus (BAB 9)
Alchemist up to level 6 for Wings (Ultimate Magic), but describe it as just a cape that has manoeuverability.
6 levels Alchemist (Internal) - Ranks: 4 + Int mod.
- Class skills: Appraise (Int), Craft (any) (Int), Disable Device (Dex), Fly (Dex), Heal (Wis), Knowledge (arcana) (Int), Knowledge (nature) (Int), Perception (Wis), Profession (Wis), Sleight of Hand (Dex), Spellcraft (Int), Survival (Wis), Use Magic Device (Cha).
10 levels Monk (Martial Artist) - Ranks: 4 + Int mod.
- Class skills are Acrobatics (Dex), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Escape Artist (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (history) (Int), Knowledge (religion) (Int), Perception (Wis), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Sense Motive (Wis), Stealth (Dex), and Swim (Str).
1 level Rogue (Chameleon) - Ranks: 8 + Int mod.
- Class Skills: Acrobatics (Dex), Appraise (Int), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Disable Device (Dex), Disguise (Cha), Escape Artist (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (dungeoneering) (Int), Knowledge (local) (Int), Linguistics (Int), Perception (Wis), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), Sleight of Hand (Dex), Stealth (Dex), Swim (Str), and Use Magic Device (Cha).
1st level Monk for Improved Unarmed Strike. Monk also gives Flurry of Blows, which is the centre of this build.
Might be fun to create Batman as a straight Ninja, too. Otherwise, Ninja/Ranger for Favoured Enemy and Terrain could work well.
Mine's based on The Dark Knight (Christian Bale films).
@xanthemann, nice ninja. Are there any cape tricks? I've been looking for them for a while, especially for a character I have who's a tribute to Batman, Robin and Nightwing.
It is covered under the Equipment Tricks Feat. It is in the small Armory book.
Batman is probably a class of its own.
A class with full BAB, all good saves, 6 skill points per level and a few caster levels (for crafting) and proficiency with heavy armor and monk weapons. Intimidate, Perception, Stealth, Sense Motive, Survival and a few Knowledge skills should be class skills.
Now that I think about it, a multiclass Ranger/Monk/Ninja really does seem like the closest option. Maybe a homebrew Ranger archetype? I like the idea of a Shadowdancer Paladin (Oath of Vengeance).
Maybe Monk 2/Ranger 5? Or Ninja 2/Ranger 5?
I'd say his stats are something like
Str 14 Dex 18 Con 14 Wis 16 Int 22 Cha 18
He probably has Weapon Finesse, Improved Unarmed Strike and Iron Will. Maybe Skill Focus. Equipment TRick is a nice idea too.
Alchemist not caster and a bit of tinkerer. Mostly monk or ninja. Maybe both. Some rogue abilities. Not necessarily all that strong, but stronger than Olympic level athletes.
It is covered under the Equipment Tricks Feat. It is in the small Armory book.
I've looked in that one before, and can't find any. Here's the feat:
New Feat: Equipment Trick
(Combat)
Choose one piece of equipment, such as boots, cloak, rope, shield, or heavy blade scabbard. You understand how to use that item in combat.
Prerequisite: Base attack bonus +1.
Benefit: You may use any equipment tricks relating to the item if you meet the appropriate trick requirements. If the item would normally be considered an improvised weapon, you may treat it as a normal weapon or an
improvised weapon, whichever is more beneficial for you.
Special: You can gain Equipment Trick multiple times. Each time you take the feat, it applies to a new type of equipment.
But it doesn't actually give any equipment tricks for anything but heavy blade scabbards and shields. I guess this allows me to use the cloak to attack? But that doesn't help at all.
It does mention cloak, so in a pinch our 'Batman' could use the cape to disarm his opponent or use it to defend against being hit and the like.
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I think you have to take into account the environment you're putting the character in, DC universe vs Golarion. In the DC universe you have to not kill people, but in Golarion its the opposite (side note I dont see why Improved Unarmed Strike is so necessary see it makes you do LETHAL damage when the same people are arguing against killing, I know it prevents AoO but thats beside my point). So i think Batman using a Sword isn't a big deal.
I also have trouble seeing Batman as a Bard, the only thing the bard brings is the Bardic Knowledge, but Batman isn't a "singer" (dont point to the 2 episodes of batman cartoons where he does) nor does he play an instrument or dance.
All the monk brings to the table is Improved Unarmed Strike, the WIS to armor is pointless as Batman wears Armor, the only other thing MIGHT be Stunning Fist, but thats not really replicating Batman to me.
Paladin is about basking in the light of a deity, Batman isn't about worshipping a god. So this one is just crazy in my opinion as is inquisitor.
Ninja is best starting out IMO, and if there is a feat that lets once a class skill always one, that would be great.
Personally I have heard many arguments for Batman being this and/or being that and I have to say none can fully cover the bat...at best you can only create a variant of the bat, so...whatever your interpretation is it will only be facsimile. Create a few and try them out...have fun with it (personally I am creating my version of a Green Arrow, well his nemesis at any rate).
I think the monk would be closer to the bat we all know, adding Wis to armor and all, seeing as how the comic Barman does not wear armor. Here we go with variants again. Comic, movie, cartoon, or TV show?
I think the Witch Hunter could give you an excellent variant of the Bat.
Improved Unarmed Strike gives you the option of lethal or nonlethal damage, which is important in a setting where some foes (undead, constructs, plants, anything with regeneration) is immune or practically immune to nonlethal damage. Also, Batman in no way would provoke AoO with his unarmed strikes.
The monk mostly reflects his training in the martial arts and unarmed combat. He trained in an eastern monastery or several, so monk actually fits him very well.
Paladin and inquisitor, yeah... They'd mostly be taken for mechanics rather than flavor. Although, since Clerics can devote themselves to an "ideal," Bats could do the same as either of those classes, the ideals being law and good.
Ninja, as always, fits pretty well, except for Poison Use. I understand he may have used it, but Bats doesn't strike me as the kind of guy who makes use of poison all that often. Trapfinding would fit better, as a Pathfinder-version of Batman's technical and hacking skills.
xanthemann, I agree that you can't capture the true Batman. Not without starting from scratch and creating your own class, which would almost certainly be vastly overpowered. The best bet is a tribute, variant, or pick another hero. Even Captain America would be easier to do-- buff your phys. stats, grab some light armor, and pick up all the shield feats you can get, along with perhaps some unarmed.
The way I see it, it's all about the gear.
I would go for ranger (trapper archetype) with 2 levels of Shadowdancer, maybe with a dip of 2 levels or more in Alchemist (grenadier archetype.)
(A ghestalt Trapper/Grenadier would be awesome)
Drop some feats on hand to hand combat.
Have fun with all the gadgets - booby trapped batarangs and smoke bombs? Check. Remote control detonation (with a discovery?) check. Stealth, Hight Bab and tracking/disarming? Check. Analytical mind and chemical analysis? Check.
Anyway, if you really like d20 and want to play Batman, take a look at Mutant and Mastermind. - You can use the system for fantasy, and nothing prevents you from dropping Batman in a fantasy game, as the system is robust and will balance out power levels. Quite a nice alternative to Pathfinder when you want to experiment with a more pulpy fantasy feeling.
Ninja 4, taking tricks for smokebombs and invisiblity so you can disappear and end conversations prematurely
Monk 1, gain unarmed strike, choose improved unarmed strike as your monk bonus feat, and for your chosen feat choose "Superior Unarmed Strike" from the 3.5 book Tome of Battle - your fists now do d8, and will do d10 once you hit level 12
go mostly ninja from here on out. get the trick for exploding shurikens (batarangs) and maybe poison for your smokebombs and put in something that causes unconsciousness or sleep
and, if your DM will let you, take "Knockout Punch" and "Improved Knockout Punch" from D20 Modern - Knockout Punch lets your FIRST unarmed attack against a flat-footed opponent automatically crit threat, Improved KOP turns that first auto-crit threat into an x3 critical.
**ALSO, I would argue Batman's WISDOM should be higher than his intelligence. LUCIUS FOX actually is the one who INVENTS the majority of Batman's inventions - Batman is able to innovate ingenius ways of using them, he comes up with unique and bizzare ways of combining multiple inventions into one useful gadget. That's wisdom, not intelligence. Granted, he makes a lot of stuff too and is super smart, but if one has to be higher, I'd say wisdom.**
the one thing that sucks is there is a 3.5 book with a Ranged Disarm feat, which would be PERFECT for using those shurikens with, but they require Point Blank Shot and Precise Shot, which make it not worth it if you are trying to make a build as true to Batman's as possible, unfortunately =(
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It is covered under the Equipment Tricks Feat. It is in the small Armory book.I've looked in that one before, and can't find any. Here's the feat:
But it doesn't actually give any equipment tricks for anything but heavy blade scabbards and shields. I guess this allows me to use the cloak to attack? But that doesn't help at all.New Feat: Equipment Trick
(Combat)
Choose one piece of equipment, such as boots, cloak, rope, shield, or heavy blade scabbard. You understand how to use that item in combat.
Prerequisite: Base attack bonus +1.
Benefit: You may use any equipment tricks relating to the item if you meet the appropriate trick requirements. If the item would normally be considered an improvised weapon, you may treat it as a normal weapon or an
improvised weapon, whichever is more beneficial for you.
Special: You can gain Equipment Trick multiple times. Each time you take the feat, it applies to a new type of equipment.
I always thought of it as a concept rather than as a feat, so I guess you could make some tricks up?
I like urban ranger with Improved Unarmed Strike. His animal companion is Robin.
Actually he does have a great dane he occassionaly/rarely uses.
In terms of combat, take the Scout archetype, have Mobility and Snake Stance, and zoom around the battlefield doing massive amounts of damage to single foes here and there. It's a very "Batman: Arkham" way of fighting and can serve pretty well once you get to 4th level (assuming you're going straight Ninja).
I'm building a Batman character and he's a level 3 character which is Monk 1/Ninja 2. Once I get Advanced Tricks, then I'll take Unarmed Combat Mastery and be dealing some serious damage without too much of a sacrifice to utility.
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I played in a recent campaign where everyone at the table said my character was "Batman." It seems he was always prepared for anything. His stats were set through a point buy, but he was multiclassed. I used the Bounty Hunter class from Dark Sun (someone converted it to 3.5 or Pathfinder) and the Rogue Class. Between these two classes my character had virtually every skill and a lot of skill points to use.
But ultimately it comes down to roleplay and foresight. I had a lot of potions and some scrolls and wands that was on my character at the right time and place.
I had made a version of Batman awhile ago...Nobleman by day... Bat by knight
Made another build that has to do with taking Fighter (Brawler), Rogue (Scout) and Duelist. He's charged based fighting that will deal with mobility and Snake Style and have an awful lot of charge attacks...so far, he's a pretty interesting build. I need the opportunity to try him out, though.
"I suppose it is tempting, if the only tool you have is a hammer, to treat everything as if it were a nail."
--Abraham Maslow
;-)
Here's the version of Batman I wrote up as a test of my rogue revision.
LG Human Male
Str 15
Dex 22 (+2 level, +4 belt)
Con 18 (+1 level, +4 belt)
Int 18 (+2 human, +1 level)
Wis 14
Cha 12
FEATS
Combat Expertise
Dodge
Enforcer
Improved Unarmed Strike
Stunning Fist
Combat Reflexes
WF (Unarmed Strike)
Weapon Finesse
Boar Style
Dazzling Display
Gory Finish
Shatter Defenses
Weapon Specialization (Unarmed Strike)
ROGUE TALENTS (the revision has Int or Cha based grit as the gunslinger to fuel rogue talents, Batman would be Int-based)
Bully (gain half sneak attack dice against targets suffering from a fear condition)
Skill Adept (Intimidate) (spend a point of cunning to roll two dice and take better on any Intimidate roll)
Shadow Magic (spend a cunning for ninja's Vanish trick)
Cunning Resistance (spend a cunning for +Int to all saves for a round as an immediate)
Vicious Ambush (when coming out of invisibility or stealth, all attacks are sneak attacks rather than just the first, costs 1 cunning to use, advanced talent)
Redirect Attack (spend 1 cunning to attempt to redirect an attack at another target in their melee range)
Improvised Trick (as the ninja talent that lets you pick up non-advanced talents)
EQUIPMENT
Cloak of the Bat, Greater (+10 to Stealth and Fly, +5 resistance bonus, no polymorph effect)
Amulet of Mighty Fists +3 (+2 agility) (bat insignia on chest)
+5 Brawling Light Fortification Leather Armor
Belt of Physical Might (+4 Dex/Con) + Handy Haversack (in belt form)
The goal here was that in a straight fight against an opponent of his level that was immune to fear, he was in trouble. He specialized in attacking from ambush, which triggered Gory Finish against all the other mooks, at which point they were going to be intimidated, and thus he could beat them up effectively. He had a number of ways to inflict fear conditions (Enforcer, Gory Finish, Dazzling Display, Boar Style, the Intimidate skill). Once you were afraid of him he could beat you up with a flurry of blows enhanced by sneak attack damage due to Bully. If he got overwhelmed he could bug out and start the whole thing over again by an attack from the shadows.
So it is out now, if you want batman, you should check out the super genius Talented Monk. (Hint:It can be combined with the talented rogue, which include the ninja abilities)
I'm not sure how anyone can truly make Batman in this game. The best you can hope for is an aspect of Batman. Batman is the world's greatest detective, amongst the world's best martial artists and a brilliant inventor with lot's of tricks up his sleeve. How can anyone make this character with just one class? Ninja and Monk can come close, but truly lacks Batman's fighting skills (especially if he can't flurrying). Want a detective with lots of skills? Then rogue is probably the way to go. Alchemist or Trapper Ranger may approximate Batman's devices...Like I said, there's no way to build Batman with just one class.
I'm not sure how anyone can truly make Batman in this game. The best you can hope for is an aspect of Batman. Batman is the world's greatest detective, amongst the world's best martial artists and a brilliant inventor with lot's of tricks up his sleeve. How can anyone make this character with just one class? Ninja and Monk can come close, but truly lacks Batman's fighting skills (especially if he can't flurrying). Want a detective with lots of skills? Then rogue is probably the way to go. Alchemist or Trapper Ranger may approximate Batman's devices...Like I said, there's no way to build Batman with just one class.
Depends on how you define one class. The way I would do it (using homegame house rules which allow you to add one super genius games archetype to every character) I would do it the following way:
1. Stupid high stats (yea...batman rolled mostly 18s and 17s for his stats.
2. Super genius games talented monk and talented rogue - this product line turns all the abilities of both classes in to 'talents' and 'edges' allowing them to be combined into a single class.
3. Alchemical Archer Archetype from the Genius Guide to Archer Archetypes which allows the use and creation of extraordinary ammunision which can be shuriken, bolts, arrows etc. It can add alchemical items to ammunition, as well as injector ammunition (injects things like poisons, and potions into the target), grappling or bola ammunition as well. This fairly effectively coveres his equipment
...Actually I really want to do this with my next character...
Lvls-
Urban ranger 6/ MoMS 6/ Sleepless detective 8.
20 pt buy-
Str: 14
Dex: 14
Con: 12
Int: 13 (+2 human, +1 @ lvl 4,12, 16)
Wis: 12
Cha: 13 (+1 @ lvl 8)
Final without tomes: 18, 18, 16, 22, 16, 18 (realistic, balanced, and legal for a human.
Gear-
+4 belt and headband to all stats.
Cloak of the Bat, Greater (+10 to Stealth and Fly, +5 resistance bonus, no polymorph effect)
Amulet of Mighty Fists +5 (bat insignia on chest)
+5 Brawling Light Fortification Leather Armor
+ Handy Haversack (in belt form)
Wait... wait. I thought "Batman" was Bruce Wayne's class. And a pretty overpowered class at that! I can't imagine what his GM was thinking allowing a non-spellcaster to have that many class abilities. ;)
Eh, he allowed the players to bring in homebrew stuff without checking it first, it's his own fault. Bruces class isn't the worst. Clark brought a race that gets +100 str, dex and con, DR 20/-, 100ft perfect flight, at will scorching ray spell like ability, and +50 to perception checks. He is lucky Clark keeps taking Commoner levels.
Over thinking the obvious.
Bruce Wayne (Batman)
NG human ninja
Silver Tongued alternate racial trait
Charming trait
Feats: Sap Adept, Sap Master, Enforcer, Combat Expertise, Dodge, Mobility...
Doesn't need Improved Unarmed Strike, because his gloves could be considered cestus, unless you want some of the feats that require IUS.
EDIT: Lamellar Leather resembles the League of Shadows from Batman Begins.
Or simply use a Sap
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Bludgeoner + Enforcer is a great combination for a Batman character - I punch you, you're scared!
He would not use magical items. He would use items that negated magic and make the party Wizard feel like the party everything else.
Why 20th level, because batman has been around longer than i have been alive, which is way over 40 years. What i want to know, is how he stay looking so young. hehe
Would peg him as
10th level Rogue + 10 level Fighter, if just using the PHB.
My own personal interpretation of Bats is that he's a gestalt 9th level Investigator (Empiricist Sleuth)//Slayer that was given a 25 point buy for stat generation. Also he was allowed to take the average HP rounded up for each level past 1st.
Human Investigator (Empiricist Sleuth)//Slayer
Str: 14
Dex: 14
Con: 12
Int: 15
Wis: 13
Cha: 15
1: +1 Skills (Acrobatics, Climb, Craft (Alchemy), Disable Device, Disguise, Escape Artist, Intimidate, Linguistics, Perception, and Stealth), Improved Unarmed Strike, Extra Inspiration (human bonus feat)
2: +1 Skills (Acrobatics, Climb, Craft (Alchemy), Disable Device, Disguise, Escape Artist, Intimidate, Linguistics, Perception, and Stealth), Ranger Combat Style (Faithful - Irori(Monastic Legacy))
3:+1 Skills (Acrobatics, Climb, Craft (Alchemy), Disable Device, Disguise, Escape Artist, Intimidate, Linguistics, Perception, and Stealth), Underworld Inspiration, Extra Investigator Talent (Inspired Intelligence)
4: +1 Skills (Acrobatics, Climb, Craft (Alchemy), Disable Device, Disguise, Escape Artist, Intimidate, Knowledge (Arcana), Knowledge(Dungeoneering), Knowledge (Nature), Knowledge(Religion), Linguistics, Perception, and Stealth), +1 Intelligence, Foil Scrutiny
5: +1 Skills (Acrobatics, Climb, Craft (Alchemy), Disable Device, Disguise, Escape Artist, Intimidate, Knowledge (Engineering), Knowledge(Geography), Knowledge (History), Knowledge(Local), Linguistics, Perception, and Stealth), Extra Slayer Talent (Rogue Talent (fast stealth)), Rogue Talent (ledge walker)
6: +1 Skills (Acrobatics, Climb, Craft (Alchemy), Disable Device, Disguise, Escape Artist, Intimidate, Knowledge (Arcana), Knowledge (Nobility), Knowledge (Planes), Knowledge (Religion), Linguistics, Perception, and Stealth), Ranger Combat Style (Two-Weapon Fighting)
7: +1 Skills (Acrobatics, Climb, Craft (Alchemy), Disable Device, Disguise, Escape Artist, Intimidate, Knowledge (Dungeoneering), Knowledge (Local), Knowledge (Nature), Knowledge (Nobility), Linguistics, Perception, and Stealth), Extra Investigator Talent (Quick Study), Perceptive Tracking
8: +1 Skills (Acrobatics, Climb, Craft (Alchemy), Disable Device, Disguise, Escape Artist, Intimidate, Knowledge (Geography), Knowledge (History), Knowledge (Local), Knowledge (Planes), Linguistics, Perception, and Stealth), +1 Charisma, Deadly Range
9: +1 Skills (Acrobatics, Climb, Craft (Alchemy), Disable Device, Disguise, Escape Artist, Intimidate, Linguistics, Perception, and Stealth), +4 Skills (Sense Motive), Extra Investigator Talent (Empathy), Combat Inspiration
This build gives him all good saves, good BAB, a bunch of skills and solid HP before accounting for requisite items. Meanwhile Clark is a level 1 Expert with a ridiculously overpowered template that boosts his CR to 27+.
Oops, just noticed that Empiricist can't stack with Sleuth as both replace swift alchemy. Since that is the case, my redone build drops the Empiricist archetype. It is otherwise the same as the one I posted yesterday.
Investigator is a must. Maybe keep Empiricist instead of Sleuth, and give him the Amateur Swashbuckler feat.
Slayer is also a must.
I'd recommend to throw in a couple levels of Noble Scion at least for money and Robin.
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Taken from a thread involving the Slayer class.
Improved Unarmed Strike, Bludgeoner, Sap Adept, Sap Master, Improved Grapple, Cudgeler Style, Cudgeler Takedown, Cudgeler Sweep. Ta-Da, an experienced martial artist who specializes in stealth, intimidation, and acrobatics, and non lethally takes his enemies down with fisticuffs and knockout blows. I mentioned this already with my "secret agent judo chop" bit earlier.
And before you get your knickers in a twist about the great detective bit, he's an excellent tracker, good at spotting clues and seeing through lies, and his Knowledges are relevant to being well-informed about the people and goings-on in a city he operates in. So yeah, Slayer's probably the best example of Pathfinder Batman unless we're going for a Brawler/Monk-Investigator Gestault.
I felt this post could do well in building on what has already been said, more though I would like to ask about the feats suggested above... which I have placed in bold to be more easily seen.
Does this seems like good choices for feats? A good point was made in another thread involving how the Investigator alchemy doesn't really apply much at all to Batman.
Yeah, I like Batman as a slayer, either with a brawler dip or with some home brew that gives the slayer/rogue chassis but gives flurry of blows instead of sneak attack.
He doesn't really assassinate people, so a lot of the sneak attack stuff to me at least seems not very Batman like unless he's doing non lethal, which cannot be done with anything but a sap.
I'll post a build later.
Or we can go 1930's style and make him a mysterious stranger gunslinger, but most Batman fans don't acknowledge those comics as being true Batman.