So, I've been requested by one of my players to try designing a 1-20 Angel Class, in an attempt to create a cool class that is also fairly balanced.
I think what I want to do is start with a Cleric basis, that way the 9-level spells are preserved. Spell-like abilities would be heavily limited, akin to domains... Probably going to remove the DR and potentially decrease the Fly speed?
Items that can be pulled out of the Cleric design: Channel Energy, spontaneous casting, Domains.
Would a scaling flight speed that comes online about the time that Fly becomes available be good?
Domains could be edited somewhat to grant some abilities that are Angel-iconic, with the same availability? Granting some spells as Spell-likes?
Spontaneous casting: Not sure how to replace this or what to replace it with. Potentially also in the cost of Flight?
I may also introduce a base Angel race, to make things slightly easier on me.
Sonds like it'll be easier to just make an archetype for a cleric, tha swaps domains for flight and some other powers, so not to overthing or overcomplex.
An Empyreal Knight paladin or a Celestial sorcerer could be what your player is looking for.
Wouldn't an alternate oracle (or maybe paladin) class would be more appropriate?
Do you mean someone who is a literal angel? Or do you mean some kind of gradual transformation? Its been a while since class and race intermixed except in optional rulesets like savage species.
I think you will face some issues revolving around the fact that angels are fairly varied in their capabilities, and wont be well presented by any single class. There are warrior angels (martial classes) and castery angels (divine caster classes). If you make them a cleric you might not get the warrior angel feel if thats what the person is going for. Keep in mind though, that you probably want to go for 'descended from angels' rather then an actual angel, IE, a class isnt going to accurately represent a powerful outsider at low levels. Thats not how the game is meant to work. So a shift in theme is probably required.
My recommendation would be to either use the aasimar as your basis, or create a completely new custom race (but not one more powerful then the core races) and then use the Genius Guide to the Godling. The godling (particularly when incorporating the godling ascendant) is a super flexible and divine inspired class. When creating one you could mix and match from a whole host of classes abilities, including domains, revelations, chaneling, spellcasting(any list) and a host of new abilities revolving around being a divine inspired character. Some wouldnt make sense for an angel, but lots of them would, and it would just be a matter of choosing those that fit the theme of someone descended from angels.