Small Cavalier Build

[Jolken Jenkins]

I'm trying to make a small cavalier and can't really get it to work. So far, Halfling is what I'm thinking as far as race.

Can someone help me with the initial first level build? Weapons, armor, ability scores (20 points),feats, Order and mount. That would be awesome.

This is what I have so far.

Str- 16
Con- 10
Dex- 15
Int- 10
Wis- 10
Cha- 12

Order of the Sword and Wolf mount.

[Humphry B ManWitch]

get as much strength as possible.
"Power attack" "powerful charge"
two handed your lance.

if you like multiclassing.
dragon disciple prestige class is a good option (take 1 level of bard to get into it so you can cast in light Armour).
maybe some alchemist levels

use a lance and ride a Dog or wolf.

though ultimately cavaliers are sub par class options.

[blahpers]

Humphry B ManWitch wrote:

though ultimately cavaliers are sub par class options.

The mind boggles.

[XMorsX]

10 Con will not cut it. For stats I would do:

STR 15 (+1 every 4 lvl)
DEX 14
CON 14
INT 10
WIS 10
CHA 12

Order of the sword. Take the Beast Rider and Emissary archetypes.

Take Power attack as your first lvl feat. Your next feats should be Ride-By Attack and Spirited Charge.

Start with a Wolf, at 4 lvl change to an Ankylosaurus (high AC, very hard to kill), at 7 lvl change to a Deinonychus (pounce and 5 attacks!). Take the Charger archetype for the companion. For your mount's feats, start with Combat Reflexes and take Medium Armor Proficiency at lvl 2.

Use a Lance. Courageous is a good ability to put on it. You wear medium armor, Rhino Hide is useful until mid lvls. Take a belt of giant str, as well as a headband of charisma when you start using Charisma for your order abilities.

[Samasboy1]

You want a small sized cavalier. Check.

You like Halfling, but can you consider other races? Gnome, Goblin, Kobold, Ratfolk, Grippli?

[Tempestorm]

I play the only medium sized Cavalier I've ever seen... and I play him in Society play. Must be something wrong with me.

[lemeres]

combat reflexes is of course a must if you do go with a lance (which is often the default choice for mounted builds since it would get x2 damage when you charge).

When you are working with a small character, I am unsure whether you really need to go beast rider. The base wolf is already a fairly strong choice for a companion since it gets trip, a decent strength, and it can eventually go large at around the level where dungeons start be be made for larger creatures (being large also means it can trip larger creatures).

The single natural attack might seem like a disadvantage, but it actually helps the wolf's case. Since it only has one attack, it gets 1.5x STR and power attack damage, and at level 10 it actually gets an iterative due to the nature of the animal companion's multiattack ability. That matches three of the Deinonychus's primary attacks, meaning the wolf is only trumped by one (the secondary talons are there, but they kind of get lumps as a single attack since they both deal half str and power attack). The pounce ability has questionable usage since you will primarily be using your own lance to attack when there is a chance to charge.

[XMorsX]

Wolf is certainly a fine mount, no doubt about it. Still the 5 attacks from the dino will be utilized when his turn comes because he will be adjent to his opponent, right? You have a point though. I like Beast Rider because of the more exotic flavor and the fact that you lose very little by taking it.