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Looking for some advise on how to build a savage technologist for PFS. Build must take Gunsmithing feat to be allowed to have firearms.
Thanks in advance!
Any additional information for us? Point buy, race, etc It helps a lot :)
PFS standard point buy. I am open to any phb race, plus wayaang, kitsune, nagaji, and tiefling.
Gunsmithing is needed feat as otherwise can't buy a firearm in pfs.
what exactly do you mean by 'savage technologist'? are you looking for someone who uses technology savagely or 'a savage' (as in an unusually primitive person) who has embraced technology far beyond their native culture?
if the first (which seems less likely), i'd suggest a half-elf alchemist starting off with gunsmith (and ancestral arms for EWP[firearms]). add amateur gunslinger at 3rd and the explosive missile discovery at 4th.
if the second... that sounds to me like a multiclass character... start off with a level or two of something suitably primitive and then dive into gunslinger. or just make a gunslinger and say he grew up in a primitive tribe, maybe have him dress that way still or take a trait or feat to represent that heritage.
Savage Technologist is a Barbarian archetype from the technology book. It allows a barbarian to rage and get bonuses to Dex and str. They also get multi fighting with a light weapon and a firearm. Later on they get to add their Dex to damage for firearms.
Unless the Gm is being super nice and allowing the tail to reload, by RAW all it can do is retrieve things. The archetype does not suffer AoO while TWF with a pistol + weapon if the character limits itself to attacks with those two weapons in a given attack action. What I would do would be grab a race with a +2 racial to Dex (probably human). Assuming human, a starting statline of:
Str12/Dex18/Con14/Int10/Wis14/Cha8
Feats
1:Weapon Finesse
Human Bonus:Weapon Focus (Light/Onehanded Weapon)
3:Slashing Grace (Same Light/Onehanded Weapon)
5: Point Blank Shot
7: Precise Shot
As for Rage Powers, I'd look for ones that compliment the build such as:
Reckless Abandon - Trace AC for to-hit.
Superstitious - Saves, always good.
Fiend Totems - 3rd Attack, attackers take damage, non-evil adjacent to you are shaken.
Fueled by Vengeance - Sustain rage for free.
Build concept, take your dex and use it for your main combat stat.
The biggest problem I foresee a Savage Technologist having in PFS is reloading. The Archetype assumes that more advanced guns will be available, and they probably won't be in PFS. Consider the following:
The archetype gives sword and gun free at 2nd level. This fighting style has issues with reloading however, just like any other TWF style with guns. Either you fire one shot and drop your gun, or you have to do some shenanigans with 3rd "arms" (vestigial arm/tail/hair hex), or you have shenanigans with Gun Twirling (using pistols that are both melee weapons and ranged weapons, like sword cane or dagger pistols).
Worse, you do not get Dex to damage unless you are raging. Even the most lenient GM will say that reloading a firearm is an action that requires concentration.
My advice is: unless you have it on good authority that you will be picking up a non-early firearm, don't do it.
There are slashing light weapons, wakizahi would probably be the best bet.
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Pepperbox won't work for TWF: it requires a free hand to rotate the barrel housing.
I think the best use of savage technologist for PFS would be to ignore the TWF piece and go with a defensive barbarian: you lose the penalty to AC while raging and gain a bonus to DEX - why not focus on a high AC high STR barbarian? You would still get the DEX-to-damage for guns at level 5, giving you a nice ranged combat option.
The bread and butter of a savage technologist is using a gun and something to hit close.
Human is a really good choice, because you´re a bit feat starved.
From there you can go two ways, ignore guns or take one.
Generaly i would keep stats even, meaning you go for a 14 at least in STR/DEX/CON, then you can decide to have a 14 in WIS too, what is surely a help. Or you go 16/15/15, putting points from leveling into the 15s.
The Raging Vitality feat will help you a lot probably, since it gives you more CON while raging.
Other feats are:
-Power Attack (you´re barbarian after all)
If guns:
-Gunsmithing is obvious in PFS if you want a gun.
-Rapid Reload! Take this over other ranged combat feats. You have high boni and target touch attacks, so you´ll be hitting good anyway.
You still have problems reloading without a free hand, what is really the trap of the archetype. It was most probably written assuming you have reliable access to hightech weapons like lasers etc and be able to rage cycle.
Earlier, a weapon cord would have provided a solution, but thanks to some folks who need to abuse everything they can, there was a FAQ making retrieving a weapon a move action.
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That's an interesting idea: shooting people with a gun and punching them in the face with the other "free" hand. Unarmed Strike wouldn't be an option for PFS, as the rule book lists unarmed strike separate form either light or one handed melee weapons (a home campaign might reasonably allow that), but a cestus might work pretty well!
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The bread and butter of a savage technologist is using a gun and something to hit close.
I'd like to respectfully disagree. The combat bonuses gained by doing so are relatively minor. My Savage Technologist for PFS is basically an even more tanky barbarian because of the Dex boosts. I'll only buy him a gun and gunsmithing (though he is a little feat starved) later, when he has plenty of cash. I understand that this is the way lostpike wants it, but I wouldn't go two guns. Depending on how switch-hitting he is, I might spring for a weapon cord on a musket or something.
So, sorry to necro but how I figured out how to get around this was to carry 10 swords and use the quick draw feat. Sword attack, Gun attack, drop sword, reload gun, draw a new sword.