ELI5 the Shaman

[Razoack]

Hi all,

Basically as the title says, could I get a sort of beginners version on how to build / play a shaman? I've been playing PFS for a couple of years but every time I try to build a shaman it just becomes overwhelmingly confusing and I give up.

It's also something that a few of the people at my local lodge have attempted to do but also given up on.

My (very) basic understanding is that a lot of their power is in their flexibility with spirits, but even this aspect confused me.

[GM Lamplighter]

Well, I have no idea what "ELI5" means, so I'm glad you explained that...

LINK

[Ragoz]

Shaman is one of the most complex classes in the game but can be boiled down to being a divine caster witch who can change their hexes.

Each spirit has some abilities and its own unique hexes to choose from. At level 4 you can choose a new spirit in addition to your "main spirit".

I would be hesitant telling you a specific build simply because shaman can do almost anything they want.

Edit: OP means Explain it Like I'm 5 (years old. Not literally just keep it simple).

[Grandlounge]

Shamans.

Divine spell caster with 9 levels of spells.
Their spell is is broad,having lots of weird options, but not deep. You will find a couple spells to achieve a goal. A little blasting, a bit of controlling etc.

Their casting is supported by hex. Use all day magic that often debuff, but can do much more than that. Buffing, healing, crafting etc.

Shamans get their power from spirits. First from a primary spirit that takes the form of an animal. This is a familiar with a special spirit based ability. The spirit also gives you powers that you gain as you level. Finally the spirit gives you some special hexes you can pick up.

Each day you can ask for help from an additional spirit. It acts life you first spirit but it does not give you a familiar and you get abilities slower.

This extra spirit allows you change you spells and the focus of your abilities each day.

Hope that helps.

[pauljathome]

Note that you do NOT need to take advantage of the daily flexibility that the Shaman offers.

It is often simplest and most effective to just pick two spirits that give you what you want and never change them (or, at least, only change them in VERY special cases).

Freedom FROM choice can sometimes be good :-).

The spirits and hexes allow the class to be very versatile. No reason that means that your character has to be that versatile :-)

[Quentin Coldwater]

Shamans have a weird mix of Cleric and Witch spells, with some weird omissions, and some Druidic influences as well. I have two Shamans in play now, and I think their best use is as a controller with some support mixed in. Since your Hexes depend on your Wisdom, you'll naturally have high DCs, including spell DCs. Spells like Hold Person, Blindness/Deafness, Wandering Star Motes, and so on are all great ways to debuff enemies, and you have status removal spells at hand like Barkskin to help you allies. Add to that all the Hexes that mostly hinder your enemies and you have a Witch with an eclectic spell list and better HD and armour proficiencies. I personally see the Shaman more as a Witch/Druid hybrid than a Witch/Oracle, though those influences are present as well.

I'm sure there are also alternatives available, but I think a Shaman's best use is as a support caster and debuffer, much like a Witch, despite its medium armour proficiency. It does allow you to be more in the thick of combat, though, making those touch attacks more appealing.

[Markov Spiked Chain]

The main thing to know is that the Shaman spell list is very patchy. There are two important tools to deal with this:
The Human (and half-human) Favored Class Bonus lets them add Cleric spells one level lower than their maximum spell level to their list.
The Lore spirit Arcane Enlightenment hex let them pick up Wizard spells, but requires investment in both Cha (number of spells you can grab) and Int (max spell level you can grab.)

Arcane Enlightenment is probably the best hex Shaman have, but having to invest that heavily in mental stats is limiting. That's why most people suggest buff/support builds: you're not likely to have the Str, Dex or Con to optimally contribute as a weapon user.

If you want to try out a shaman build, my first Shaman was an Aasimar Life Shaman with the Witch Doctor arcehtype, built around the Fateful Channel feat. You can also do human or kindred raised half elf. You want good Wis and Cha, and ~13 Int. Grab Slumber, Misfortune, or Evil eye as your filler hex, then take Life Link. Take all the good channel feats, aiming at Fateful channel as your 5th level feat. Use your first two FCB for HP, then start taking Cleric spells with your FCB. At 6th, you can take Arcane Enlightenment with Lore as your Wandering Spirit and throw out Haste. At 9th, you can take Blessing of Fervor with your FCB and drop Haste if there are other Wizard spells you're looking at. This should be enough to get you started with a feel for the tradeoffs and spell list.

IMHO, the Shaman spirits are hit or miss. There are great Life, Heavens, and Battle builds, and good things to grab from Lore, Waves, Stone, Flame, Slums and Wood as wandering spirits. But a good chunk of spirits don't have much going for them (Wind, Nature, etc.) It's worth mentioning that a lot of Shaman stuff gets a huge bump at 8th from either hex scaling (lots of hexes double at 8th) or Greater Spirit Magic (Battle's Bane power is the reason to play one.)

Once you've got a good handle on everything, you can play an Unsworn Shaman for a stupid level of flexibility.

[pauljathome]

Quentin Coldwater wrote:

Shamans have a weird mix of Cleric and Witch spells, with some weird omissions, and some Druidic influences as well.

I find them a mix of largely unrelated elements with nearly no thematic underpinning whatsoever. One thing that they absolutely do NOT feel like to me is a traditional shaman (either real life or fictional representation thereof). They don't feel at all like they're actually communicating with spirits since that communication pretty much ENTIRELY consists of preparation in the morning which happens off screen (various Oracle incarnations feel much more like a shaman to me).

That said, that mix of unrelated elements can make for quite a wide range of interesting characters from a mechanical point of view

[Quentin Coldwater]

The spell list is pulling in different directions at once, also mainly because it's combining two entirely different spell lists with a third nature theme. The Shaman spell list mostly combines the supportive, growing aspect of nature with the Cleric spells for support, with status removal spells and healing. To get the "nasty, creepy" side of the Shaman, the Witch side has some blasting power, nasty debuffs, and curses (though there's also a lot of overlap with the Cleric list here). And finally, because Shamans are in touch with nature and the spirit world, quite a few spells that are only on the Druid/Ranger list, such as Thorn Javelin, Pass Without Trace, Barkskin, and so on.

It's a tricky list, but I think it's my favourite list of all the classes. It has a healthy mix of party support and debuff/blasts (though admittedly area damage isn't featured as much as I'd want), but you really need to take a while to figure out what it's capable of. Lots of intricacies that aren't in the Witch/Cleric list.

[ARGH!]

Now we just need an Explain Like I'm Calvin answer to this thread.