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I am joining a Wrath of the Righteous campaign that is already underway that lacks an arcane caster. I request suggestions for a Wizard Archmage at level 4 wizard, mythic tier 1 using a 20pt buy for attributes. I am considering an elven wizard with school specialization in conjuration (opposed schools of necro and enchantment), familiar which will later be improved, wild arcana, campaign trait, and taking many metamagic feats. My thought was to pick up mythic spell lore as a feat, two regular metamagic feats, and plan for four path abilities of arcane metamastery starting at tier 3, especially for lots of quickened spells followed up the same round with mythic spells. Better ideas? Is Improved Initiative (mythic) or mirror dodge a must for a quickened casting archmage?
Small note: They have modified Mythic so that the Archmage path doesn't cast Swift spells without the meta-magic feat - those Archmage paths are instead Standard actions.
You seem to have a good idea of where to go with this, however. Though the characters shouldn't get Mythic 'til level 6. Up to level 5, it's a standard wizard.
Wizards can be several things, though in my experience they are best suited to battlefield control and party support. They can certainly be other things, but other classes tend to out pace them at blasting or summoning.
My favored build pumps initiative and tacks on debilitating metamagic to spells that affect an area. Rime Ice Storm and Cone of Cold. Dazing Fireball and Ball Lightning. You can even play an Admixture specialist and adjust energy types to overcome resistances and immunities, or to give spells the necessary energy types to qualify for metamagic. Supplement with Grease, Create Pit, and buffs like Haste and Enlarge Person. Let the damage dealers deal the damage, and use your spells to make their job easier and less dangerous.
The build makes heavy use of Metamagic rods, metamagic feats, and goes for Spell Perfection. Mythic actually makes it easier since you can take Crafting Mastery and not have to waste feats to make your own gear, especially rods.
Whatever build you go for, anything you can do to overcome spell resistance and pump DC's is good. With a campaign full of Demons, Spell Resistance is going to be a huge obstacle if you cannot bypass it.
Small note: They have modified Mythic so that the Archmage path doesn't cast Swift spells without the meta-magic feat - those Archmage paths are instead Standard actions.
Does that apply to all three Archmage path abilities? The FAQ only mentions Wild Arcana.
Bear in mind that if you intend to cast a lot of mythic spells, you might want to consider using the Mythic Spellpower ability when it becomes available, since it allows you to cast a mythic spell without expending any uses of mythic power. Uses, plural. So a mythic spell that would normally take, say, 10 mythic power uses (e.g. Terraform)? It takes none.
Ohhhh now that IS interesting. I had not considered that possibility....
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I am joining a Wrath of the Righteous campaign that is already underway that lacks an arcane caster. I request suggestions for a Wizard Archmage at level 4 wizard, mythic tier 1 using a 20pt buy for attributes. I am considering an elven wizard with school specialization in conjuration (opposed schools of necro and enchantment), familiar which will later be improved, wild arcana, campaign trait, and taking many metamagic feats. My thought was to pick up mythic spell lore as a feat, two regular metamagic feats, and plan for four path abilities of arcane metamastery starting at tier 3, especially for lots of quickened spells followed up the same round with mythic spells. Better ideas? Is Improved Initiative (mythic) or mirror dodge a must for a quickened casting archmage?
There a lot of great options for the archmage!
My recommendations:
1) As a conjuration wizard, I would strongly suggest flexible school in your mythic progression to obtain divination arcane school abilities. Always acting in the surprise round and having the highest initiative is the most powerful option a wizard has to set the battlefield up.
2) Arcane metamastery is also extremely powerful. 10 rounds of free quicken metamagic each round in the BBEG boss fight is priceless.
3) Mirror dodge is a no brainer and a life saver.
4) There are very high spell resistances for bosses in WoTR. The mythic feat for spell penetration can tilt thing back in your favor with up to a +10 bonus (assuming you take spell penetration and greater standard feats), and this synergizes also with Eldritch Breach allowing to always roll twice for the highest result. I know a conjurer does not rely as heavily on bypassing spell resistance, however it never hurts to keep your spell options open on those SR 37 baddies.
5) I do not recommend building a conjurer who relies primarily on summoning. Summoning always tends to fall a little behind in the final couple of levels, and this is magnified in mythic play. There are few to none options to keep your summons relevant later in the game, and you will find them to be annoyances rather than threats to your enemies (as they will almost never hit or have relevant DRs for the stronger mythic foes). This is not to say that summoning has no place, it just translates weaker than in a standard adventure path.
6) Divine source is the coolest ability in the history of pathfinder. You become a deity and grant domains to your followers. Oh yeah, and you gain a spell like ability for each level of mythic from the divine spell list. Mass heal 1/day when your cleric is down opens up your options.
7) Channel power. Take this as soon as you can. Period.
FYI, I am running a divination wizard in my WoTR campaign. It is still relatively early, but have done a fair amount of research into optimization that falls within my character concept (that of a mage who ascends to divine status and power after heroic triumph over these demon lords).
Planned wizard feat progression:
1-Improved initiative, Toughness
3-Spell penetration
5-Greater spell penetration, Persistent spell
7-Improved familiar
9-Empower spell
10-Opposition research (evocation)
11-Maximize spell
13-Quickened spell
15-Spell perfection (enervation), True name
17-Great fortitude
19-Lightning reflexes
20-Immortality
Mythic Feats:
1-Mythic Spell Lore
3-Improved Initiative
5-Spell penetration
7-Extra path ability
9-Toughness
Mythic Abilities/Specials:
1-Wild arcana, Flexible school (conjuration/teleportation)
2-Eldritch breach
3-Mirror dodge
4-Divine source
5-Arcane metamastery 1
6-Channel power
7-Arcane metamastery 2 & 3
8-Arcane metamastery 4
9-Greater familiar link
10-Enhanced ability (int)
NIce
Was Flexible school (conjuration/teleportation) worth taking it? I ask this cos there are other thinks available like Extra Mythic Power, and I am undecided.
We just finished the first book and I am looking for some advice for the Mythic Path.
I also see that you spend a lot into overcoming SR. What spells did you prefer?
br!
I ran an Elven Wizardess Archmage with levels of Riftwarden. She was suprisingly durable and because of her Riftwarden levels, her elven bonus, and feats, Spell Resistance became not a thing to her.
I am DMing this campaign with some pretty experienced players and the Archmage of the party is hands down the most powerful character I have ever seen in any game ever. He is a banisher/abjurationist and the path ability that Destroys enemy casters is flexible counterspell. I have had to implement rules about invisible casters and silent spells being more difficult to identify because otherwise no single caster ever gets a spell off. He also took the spell sieve ability, so half the time he just casts whatever they were going to hit him with back at them. We are in the third book, party of four, and we just hit level 10 tier 3. The party's paladin is regularly hitting demons for 120+ points of damage a round and the party is almost entirely immune to enemy casters, so it is a real challenge for me as a DM to make any encounter with a demon challenging.
I would echo that this campaign makes cohorts and summons increasingly less effective over the course of the 6 books, in comparison with other APs. Mythic heroes and enemies are just on a different level.
The only problem a mythic wizard faces is that your enemies are largely immune to Save and Suck spells as they can spend a mythic point to lose almost all conditions.
Summoning is also utterly pointless by about level 12 as your summons are so weak they can be ignored their only use is to cast a few healing spells.
The Archmage in my campaign found the 2 most useful things he could do (apart from wishes)
was Limited wish(usually combined with a second limited wish to give -7 to saves) to cast extended litany of righteousness which was by level 20 worth about 450+ a round bonus damage for the Paladin.
Or Mythic Timestop on himeself 3 other pc's and one badguy usually the caster leaving the caster in single combat against the entire party and dead in 1 round.
The challange in this campaign is not to create and game breaking character , I have never managed to do that.