Before you try not to step on anyone's toes, you have to figure out where their toes are. I expect that the Pistolero is going to be shooting things, but what are the Magus, Wizard, Fighters, and Cleric planning on doing in combat (melee, ranged, buff/debuff, battlefield control, healing, etc)?
With a party of that size, I'd suggest focusing on mass buffs, either from class features (e.g. Bard, Sensei Monk, Evangelist Cleric, Strategist Cavalier) or spells.
Bard would also let you be the skill monkey when you aren't buffing everyone to the sky.
+1 for Bard.
Mass buffs and skill use makes you someone of great value.
Indeedy, Bard seems good.
Or an Anti-Paladin.
Why? Because.
Ranger.
bard. buffs and skills for the win. make nearly your whole party better.
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bard is good. For the wicked damage part, with the bard you can do major damage while boosting the major damage dealers in your party even further.
For the spells part, the bard has a pretty sweet selection.
Add to that skills and abilities.
Pretty nice if you would like playing one that is. Not everyone does of course.
The inspire courage will be big for the pistolero, the magus, and the two fighters. It will also help you and the cleric. The wizard will be happy if the spells are summoning ones.
Yeah, with 7 players, a bard will be everybody's best friend.
I agree with the trend here. I'd look at bard first (Don't go too crazy with archetypes and give up Inspire Courage!)
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If everyone else is focusing on damage output I think you and your group would be best served if you focused on buffs/debuffs. Inspire Courage is your big buff, along with buffing spells, heals, and such. You can debuff using Dazzling Display and spells (Grease is always fun). As a support Bard you will not keep pace with your group's main damage dealers. You are better off acting as a damage multiplier and skill monkey.
Bards can do as much or more melee damage than a battle cleric can if properly built. I'd look into the Arcane Duelist Archetype and pick a race that gives martial or exotic weapon proficiency.
Half-Elves and Half-Orcs can get some good weapons out of their racials, as can dwarves if you're willing to take the charisma penalty. Charisma isn't -too- important so long as you have 16 by level 12 or so, since nearly all your spells will not have DC's.
Also...remember that as a bard you can cast haste. Remember to tally all the damage you gave to the party. Hits that almost missed and the + to damage you give. With that many party members you're bound to be doing a lot of damage =)
If you don't want to go the Bard route everyone is suggesting, then try a witch. They are also good at buffing and are the best debuffers in the game along with full arcane spell casting and healing capability.
Bards can do good damage. Personally I recommend the standard bard, no archetype specializing in archery. Feats would be pretty standard - arcane strike, rapid shot, deadly aim, many shot. You should have plenty of skills to do what you will, inspire courage to make you and your group feel awesome, and a decent selection of spells.
Play a monk. beef the stunning fist. By level 10, should be forcing a dc of at least 23. Take rapid stunning to force two of those a round. Ki powaaaaaa!
For buffing and still having damage options you can take the holy tactician paladin.
He can give teamwork feats to everyone without duration limit and can still fight.
We got it - you like inquisitors:P
Sometimes I feel like getting a stuffed BBT, for superior cutness<3
Hey, nothin' wrong with liking Inquistors. They're definitely pretty high up on the BAMF Scale.
I would build a whip wielding trip bard mostly because you can sing and trip at the same time. Triping with the right feats can be an auto kill on a target if its surrounded and everyone else made their characters decently. Also from the buffing/debuffing not being as much fun, remember that if your buffing every time the numbers are close its you who one the day. So really in those moments where it really maters, you will be the most important person there. Also if you run around triping allot at least you get to roll dice plenty with that.
Orly?We got it - you like inquisitors:P
Sometimes I feel like getting a stuffed BBT, for superior cutness<3
Really!
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What exactly would be a good domain for an Inquisitor? Tripping seems interesting but won't that take a lot of feats to get good at?
Kasatha Infiltrator Inquisitor of Achaekek will allow you to dual wield Sawtooth Sabres, holding each one with two hands, for extra damage from Power Attack, and still counting as light weapons for the purposes of two-weapon fighting penalties.
Trickery Domain is good.
Achaekek's portfolio is here.
I GM for a seven group party and who have a lot damage dealers and the person who is missed most when he is not there, the bard.
Inspire Courage at level one grants a +1 to hit and +1 to damage. That is a potential 5 points of damage a round from you. This Bard has lingering performance and focuses on the Finale spell line, like Saving Finale. Saving Finale lets someone re-roll a failed save in exchange for ending your song, it is a first level spell. Lingering performance lets you keep the effect in play for two rounds after the song ends. So, he can drop a Finale Song which ends the performance, but keep the spell going. He really makes the others feel heroic, especially when they fail.
Because all of this does not happen on his turn, he is able to spend his turn doing whatever. Sometimes a spell, sometimes odd combat stunts and maneuvers or whatever catches his eye. He has a lot of fun, he basically focused on being a BAMF with a whip, so he swings around trying to trip and disarm people.
I'd play the character you want to start with. Don't nerf stats, and build him into the character you want to be. Just be thoughful on your level ups/archtypes. Multiclass if you want. That's just me though.
+1 vote for Whip Bard. I made a whip NPC to go against my PC's and he was a blast to play. He was a fighter, but as a Bard he would be even better, since Bards can do so many other things.
i think if you roll Inquisitor you will be disappointed. Nothing against Inquisitors, but with your group dynamic you won't fit in very well. You group will love it when you put the BBEG on the ground and send his weapon flying across the room, all the while buffing them up.
I would look at the Gnome Bard Archetype, Prankster from the ARG.
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/races/core-races/gnome/prankster-bard-gnome
Basically you have a wall of meat in front of you and now have a mechanical benefit to mocking all the NPCs your GM throws out at you. Plus, with this archetype, you still keep Inspire Courage and Versatile Performance.