I had the idea of creating a character that was just a simple grave digger, but was then roped into a whirlwind adventure. Does anyone know what's the closest thing to a shovel weapons-wise? (PFS-legal would be preferred. I never get to have any local home games.)
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Mattock.
Find it here.
Also, you can just nab the Rough and Ready trait, put a rank into Profession(Gravedigger) and use a shovel as a weapon without penalty.
There's also the monk's spade, which essentially doubled as one. Supposedly buddhist monks carried spades in case they a) find a corpse on the road that needs to be buried and b) need to beat someone up (for great enlightenment and/or survival). It eventually ended up as this.
For a completely mundane western spade I'd say a club or shortspear could work. Both are simple, one-handed weapons, and not that great that anyone would object. Purely mechanically, I think the spade can be nastiest as a sort-of slashing implement using the sides of the blade (it's a bit heavy and short to thrust well imo), but there isn't a fitting simple slashing weapon.
I'd say if you want something simple, treat it as a go club. Pretty much any decent-sized bit of wood can be considered one, and bludgeoning damage tends to work well against undead.
I had a gravedigger Inquisitor with Catch-Off Guard. He would give Bane to his shovel and go to town. Fun character, didn't live long.
A shovel and catch off guard should be PFS legit. If you're in a dark place you can use a torch instead.
I also like BBT's and EvilMinion's idea.
If you make him a monk, you can keep him looking like a simple gravedigger. They also get catch off guard as a bonus feat at level 1. Monks of the empty hand are particularly good with improvised weapons (well, technically all weapons are improvised for them- I guess you use a sword as a club by holding the pointy end and hitting with the pommel). Not only can they use them for flurry of blows, but they can change the damage type and can use ki to add enhancement bonuses or make it do the same damage as their unarmed strike for a turn.
Evil minion, while that is the RAW description of a shovel as a weapon, that brings to mind a rather small shovel meant for yard work to me. For a shovel ready to dig six feet into the ground (or more... to discourage... certain types) I would think of it as a larger weapon and two handed. Also, while it can be used as a blunt weapon, most of the time a shovel is used as a slashing weapon. During World War I, sharpened shovels used to dig trenches turned out to be some of the deadliest weapons inside of the trench. Discuss with you GM if any of this seems appealing to you. You might find it easier to ask for if you remind him of the fact that picks are also martial weapons.