Trscroggs
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I have a character concept for a barbarian I would like to play in Pathfinder Society. Thing is while I have his character down, I don't have his stats and I've never built a Pathfinder barbarian before.
One important note, this barbarian is going to be aiming for Uflen Guard because it fits his character concept.
Bold things I am not planning on changing unless I get a compelling reason. Italics mean that this is something that I am probably going to dump/change before finishing the character.
Please excuse spelling mistakes.
Race: Human
Ethnicity: Uflan
Faction: Taldor
Class: "Fighter" (Barbarian, but he's not going to say that.)
Alignement: True Neutral or Neutral Good
Griss Thorhalson is the child of two Uflen Guard members that never left Taldor. He's spent his entire life amongst the Taldor people, and in many ways is more Taldor than Uflan. I am considering the Urban Barbarian archtype. I am also considering Invulnerable Rager, possibly even stacking them.
He even has his eye on a local girl, a beautiful third-daughter of one of the local nobles. She's receptive to his pursuit, but her father is not as . . . enthusiastic. The lord can't really afford to offend Griss's bloodline, but he has been making things as difficult as he can.
Finally Griss has put it all on the table and asked for the daughter's hand. The lord's counter offer is simple: if Griss can complete some impossible quest involving a long lost and forgotten artifact. If Griss is successful, the lord will allow his daughter to marry the barbarian.
Griss is not a stereotypical stupid barbarian, but he is aware that he isn't brilliant or well suited to research. He is aware that there are people that specialize in such; many of which work for the Pathfinder Society.
Griss has joined the Society and is working his way up the ranks to become a Venture Captian. At this point Griss assumes that he will have enough pull in the organization to get them to do the research in his quest. He assumes the information he needs is in restricted archives a normal member does not have access to. He will then retrieve the artifact himself. In the meantime, he supports Taldot's cause within the Society, hoping that he might find another way to earn the Lord's approval.
Three character facts:
1. Griss does not consider himself a Barbarian; in his mind he is a Fighter. Under duress he will admit he has a problem with his temper.
2. While he's fairly certain the object of his quest doesn't exist, if Griss can get a good enough description of it he isn't against get a fake made.
3. Though his connections Griss has some idea on what Princess Eutropia is up to. He whole-heartily agrees with her ambitions, but won't violate his oath as Guard to support her when the time comes. On the other hand, everyone has an off day....
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So as you can see I have a character concept, but I do not have a real idea of what I want to build him as, especially since he is aiming for a Prestige Class.
The prestige class seems to lend itself to a more defensive build, so I have been considering maybe a two-handed reach weapon. Especially since the bonuses only really work when adjacent to another character.
Reynard_the_fox
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Two-handed reach weapon isn't a bad plan. Getting Combat Reflexes, Bodyguard, and In Harm's Way would be pretty thematic too, though I wouldn't neglect to grab Power Attack first.
You might consider a multiclass with Lore Warden Fighter, actually; he'll need access to lots of Knowledges to complete his quest, and it sounds right up the ally for this character. I would recommend Lore Warden 3/Barbarian 2/Furious Guardian X. Three levels of Lore Warden gets you a boost to CMB and Combat Expertise as a bonus feat, which would all you to pick up Improved and eventually Greater Trip, which are great with a reach weapon. It also earns you a couple bonus feats, which are great for picking up In Harm's Way quickly. Two levels of Barbarian gets you a number of nice abilities: Rage, Fast Movement, Uncanny Dodge, medium armor, and access to Rage Powers via the "Extra Rage Power" feat. The "Berserker of the Society" trait supplements limited rage rounds, so you'll probably want to pick that up too.
PFS uses 20 point buy, if I'm not mistaken. I'd go with:
Str 16 (including racial bonus)
Dex 14
Con 14
Int 12
Wis 14
Cha 8
Nice and balanced, especially since you have Rage to boost strength to acceptable levels. Dex 14 is generally the baseline for a Combat Reflexes build, just as Con 14 is my personal baseline for a front-line class. High Wis is essential for a bodyguard, as failing a perception check or Will save can result in the death of your charge. Int 12 gives you a cool 5 skill ranks per level, and Cha 8 is fine for someone who isn't the party face. Of course, feel free to swap these around as you see fit.
Good luck! Protip: carry some potions of Enlarge Person for when you're in fights in wide-open areas. Combat Reflexes and a 20 foot reach will make GMs rip their hair out, particularly if you're tripping foes, too.