You can enhance your weapon to a maximum of +5 (at 17th level) enhancement bonus. These bonuses stack with the existing weapon enhancement bonuses (up to +). So you purchase a +3 longsword. You could use your Arcane Pool to enhance the weapon further, making it +4 or +5.
To further complicate things, you may also add weapon special abilities, the base abilities listed and then the abilities you pick up with your Magus Arcana. The total enhancement bonus and ability bonus you can give your weapon is an additional +5.
You have that +3 longsword still. You can then spend a point to add flaming (+1), keen (+1), shocking burst (+2), and an additional +1 enhancement bonus to your weapon for 1 minute. This gives you a +4 Flaming Keen Shocking Burst Longsword.
Something to remember, even enhanced by a Magus a weapon cannot exceed the +10 max weapon enhancement (+5 to the numerical bonus or any combination of at least a +1 numerical bonus and any number of weapon special abilities).
Arcane Pool (for weapon enhancement) is nice because you can have a simple +5 weapon and then cherry pick the specific abilities you need for the fight you are in and save a large chuck of change on magical weaponry.
In addition it helps make you a good 'default' person for whatever weaponry your group comes across:
+2 Heavy Pick? Sure you can use it.
+3 Longsword? Alright
+1 Keen Scimitar? Yeah that'll work
Adamantine Battleaxe? Meh, why not?
Yeah I personally prefer STR = INT magus builds myself, but to each their own.
Well I like the whip in general, however undersized polearms are nice too. If you have the feats to spare a falcata makes for a very nasty swing (weapon and spell damage x3 roughly 25% of the time? YES PLEASE)!
Arcane accuracy is a wonderful thing for those times when you have to land multiple attacks. Also consider Kirin Style -- granted it's only once per round but that once a round you add double your intelligence bonus on damage rolls... just be careful about how many swift action options you have.
In my opinion the real challenge of the Magus is balancing possible swift actions. You have the possibilities of arcane strike, arcane accuracy and kirin style all to balance against along with limited resources (spells and arcane points).
For this reason I like hexcrafters -- they give you something to do on the rounds you don't spell strike with something that:
1. makes your enemies easier to hit, swing less accurately or save less often...and...
2. Has a save throw that keeps up with the level you are at instead of lagging like your spells will (since it's 10+1/2 lvl+int mod) and...
3. is an unlimited resource.
I'll give up spell knowledge (something you can get out of pearls of power generally) for that sort of stuff almost any day.
(weapon and spell damage x3 roughly 25% of the time? YES PLEASE)!
With Spellstrike you only use the weapon's crit range, not it's modifier so you would still only do x2 spell damage with a falcata. That's the reason everyone says 18-20 keen is the way to go. Scimitar is still your best bet even if you do go strength build.
Darn it that's right, I had forgotten -- I'll still take it in general though for a strength build (two handing when you aren't using spell combat is a viable option), and generally when a spell crit lands that's it for the creature anyways.
I'd still say a go scimitar even if you are just two handing. Doesn't cost you a feat for EWP and 15-20 crit is still nice for a straight melee guy, and you are going to be spell striking eventually.
Not saying scimitar is a bad choice -- just listing other possibilities. Falcata is fun if you have the room for it, if not it's not a huge loss (for this class).
Fair enough, Falcata is one of the few weapons worth getting EWP for. If we're going for style points though with EWP it's all about Urumi.
If only they hadn't nerfed it to all get out...
Was it badass in 3.5? Curious because I never actually heard anyone mention it... Spiked Chain and Mercurial -whatever- seemed to be the all the rage. It doesn't do anything special now besides essentially being a really cool looking scimitar that does an extra average damage, but I'd probably take it if I ever played a Kensai or martial Half Elf.
It was an earlier pathfinder weapon that got nerfed in later books, originally it had 10 foot reach... as such it was a good EWP choice -- 10 foot reach on a 1d8 19~20 one handed weapon.
Now it's just another trap.
Yeah be good to your arcane pool and it'll be good to you.
So at level 5 I can add +2/+2, +1/+1 and Keen, or Keen and Flaming.
And at maximum I can add +5/+5 or I can add +X(where X<5)/+X and an enhancement or a number of enhancements.
Did I get that right?
Yes, with the caveat that you could not add Keen and Flaming to a weapon unless it either already had a +1 enhancement bonus, or you had an extra point to add the +1 yourself. You can't add special abilities to a weapon unless it has at least a +1 enhancement bonus, and that restriction includes the arcane pool buff.