It looks great to me! I commend you on your choice of hexes. Lot of players are gaga over Evil Eye, but I don't really like it so much until 8th level.
Why Half-Elf instead of Half-Orc?
You have two traits that give trait bonus to initiative?
You have two traits that give trait bonus to initiative?
Yes, that doesn't work as trait bonuses don't stack as far as I know.
sure, but it puts a smile on the GM's face when they say 'sure, those are both legal trait selections... they don't stack though' ;-)
You could pick the trait that lets you lower the impact of a metamagic feat for one spell (I think it was magical knack) if you plan on ever taking metamagic feats.
Remember that Half Orcs can get a +1 to all their saves in a similiar way that Half-Elves can get that +2 to their will saves, and this save you a feat to get, say, Iron Will which has the same effect.
Though honestly I'd just ask your DM if you could just be a Half-Elf Witch Doctor, since racial restrictions on anything but racial trait specific archetypes like Grey Disciple are pretty silly and technically not RAW.
I chose Half Elf because I felt like +2 to will saves (Dual Minded) and +2 to enchantments PLUS +2 to perception was better than +1 to all saves which I feel would be the only real benefit half orcs would have over half-elves
Being a half-orc would get you a feat, darkvision and a good weapon proficiency. If you want to play a half-elf, that's cool, but it's not mechanically stronger.
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Does Racial Heritage allow for the Scarred Witch Doctor archetype? I was under the impression that it allowed for effects, but archetypes and such weren't effects?
No, that feat would allow you to take other feats related to that subtype.
The problem lies in the fact that that feat is Human Only, and the Half-Elf trait Elf Blooded reads that they are counted as humans and elves for any EFFECT related to race. That does not include feats.
Thus, the only way to actually pull this off would be to be a human to begin with. Or a Sorcerer of the Orc Bloodline.
No Zen Archer but allowing the scarred witch doctor? Interesting.
If you're going Strictly By The Book, the you technically can't be a half-elven scarred witch doctor. You choose your class and archetype before you choose your feats, and since you don't qualify for scarred witch doctor at the time you take your first level in Witch, and it modifies first level abilities, you can't take it.
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Does Racial Heritage allow for the Scarred Witch Doctor archetype? I was under the impression that it allowed for effects, but archetypes and such weren't effects?No, that feat would allow you to take other feats related to that subtype.
This is incorrect, please see the FAQ below. However, I do a agree that it is a human only feat so you will be unable to take the feat unless you are a human.
Can a human with the Racial Heritage feat take levels in an archetype that requires you to be of a specific race?Yes, the Racial Heritage feat allows you to qualify for archetypes that have the chosen race as a requirement, assuming you still meet all of the other requirements to take levels in the archetype.
—Jason Bulmahn, 07/27/12
Edit: Ninja'd by the OP...
Also I have a question about Craft wondrous item for the witch doctor's mask... are you only able to craft the enchantments listed under headgear in the craft wondrous item section? I.e. I can't make my hat a +2 con hat or hat of bears endurance?
I only ask cause we've played for 15 years as a group but basically were never allowed to craft cause dm said it was too easy to craft great things. Now he's letting us if we take the feats and such just not giving us much gold to work with lol
Masks use up the head slot, not the headband slot.
Yes, they're different. No, I don't know why.
Also I have a question about Craft wondrous item for the witch doctor's mask... are you only able to craft the enchantments listed under headgear in the craft wondrous item section? I.e. I can't make my hat a +2 con hat or hat of bears endurance?
You can enchant any item to have any ability, regardless of what slot it's worn in. That used to be restricted in a previous edition of D&D, but Pathfinder did away with the restriction.
I would pick a different patron than Endurance. Miracle is awesome, but that comes very late and everything else is mediocre at best.
I would not learn Miserable Pity. It's a horrible spell, it's basically Sanctuary, except higher level and less good.
If you're going Half-Elf, you should be planning on using the Skill Focus to qualify for Eldritch Heritage. If not, I would go Human or Half-Orc instead.
half orcs could get darkvision 90 and skilled as well. not spend a feat, which could be instead spent on fast learner, giving your witch 6 skills per level. and darkvision 90 is far better than low light.
you trade darkvision for skilled
than trade ferocity for enhanced darkvision, giving you darkvision 90 and skilled for the price of ferocity.
half orcs and half elves can't be scarred witch doctors as it's been pointed out before, only humans with racial heritage or straight orcs
instead of restricting it based on species, i would restrict such an option based on background. a half orc raised by orcs should be able to become such, as should a human or half elf (or other race) from a tribal background.
unfortunately our dm doesn't see it the same way
Orc Blood counts a half orc as both a human and an orc for the purpose of racial effects and prerequisites.
half orcs and half elves can't be scarred witch doctors as it's been pointed out before, only humans with racial heritage or straight orcs
No. Half-Orc's orc blooded has the same wording as the Racial Heritage feat.
And leaving aside the RAW for a moment, seriously...
How can it not be viewed as utterly moronic that Half-Orcs, who are literally half of orcish origin and who *ALL* have an intrinsic racial feature explicitly to say so, do not get to count as orcs, but a human can have a feat that gives him a "heritage" of orc ancestors and HE qualifies?
the ability to choose a racial archetype is an effect. not the archetype itself, but the ability to choose one.
Ok. So the devs have said archetype is an effect and favored class options are not. I agree that's a dumb place to divide it, but that still doesn't make Racial Heritage work for stuff orc blooded does not. Those questions were asking about different "effects", if they count as such. They just also happened to use different sources of gaining race-related effects. But the fundamental question for each was "is this an effect?"
It doesn't matter if that's an effect or not, the Devs were plain dumb not letting Half Orcs pick that archetype AND letting someone with the racial heritage feat qualify.
Really outside of PFS and their RAW Hell you should waive the race restrictions for archetypes except in the cases where a racial trait is actually specified(Like the Grey Disciple)
It doesn't matter if that's an effect or not, the Devs were plain dumb not letting Half Orcs pick that archetype AND letting someone with the racial heritage feat qualify.
Well, they released a SAD caster that uses constitution as their one stat. What did you expect? :p
It doesn't matter if that's an effect or not, the Devs were plain dumb not letting Half Orcs pick that archetype AND letting someone with the racial heritage feat qualify.Well, they released a SAD caster that uses constitution as their one stat. What did you expect? :p
That is a huge boon, but just the idea that a human can say he's an orc and be a Witch Doctor but a Half Orc can't is silly.
It doesn't matter if that's an effect or not, the Devs were plain dumb not letting Half Orcs pick that archetype AND letting someone with the racial heritage feat qualify.
Show me where it says they can't pick it. All I've seen is an FAQ saying they can't take favored class options. And an FAQ saying the feat lets you take an archetype.
People keep asserting half-orcs can't take scarred witch doctor with no factual basis behind that statement. At worst, it is "unclear." I think the fact that archetype is called an effect by a rules statement and orc blooded counts for effects, then by the transitive property, orc blooded works. But I realize a lot of people dislike logic and reason, so I guess it is most correct to call it "unclear."
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I've houseruled when I'm DMing that Half-elves and Half-orcs can take Elven and Orcish archetypes, respectively.
It's silly that they can't, especially when two options that are written the same way apparently don't give the same effect. It's not like it makes sense that an Human who happens to have Orc in his blood CAN take Orc archetypes, while a Half-orc who is directly descended from an Orc, cannot.