Please review and make sure I am not forgetting any important things.
Human
Mad Dog Barbarian
Str-18
Dex-14
Con-14
Int-12
Wis-10
Cha-7
Traits: +1 Willpower Save
+2 Initiative
Feats: Power Attack
Combat Reflexes
Weapon: Bardiche
Armor: Lamellar Armor
Animal Companion: Wolf (Feat: Light Armor Proficiency)
Playstyle: Pet moves in to flank; attack / trip. I charge and attack with flanking and prone bonuses. If enemy attempts to stand, take AoO.
Am I missing any glaring options that can give me bonuses to my playstyle? A better trait? An optional racial trait? Also, I do not like my AC and would like to raise it quickly and cheaply, but I do not want to give up my increased movement; options for that? Just a ring of protection? Can I wear two?
wearing two rings of protection is the same as wearing one since the bonuses don't stack since they are the same type. Also as a barbarian it's hard to keep your AC up because you lower it with your rage. They're meant to take the hits like a man with their d12 and con boost. Also going medium armor does decreases your movement to 30, but you're still going faster for someone in medium armor.
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Make sure your pet takes the 'flank' trick or a GM may not allow the wolf to move into flank.
Also, some GMs may treat your AC as a creature that you direct via Handle Animal and not one that you directly control, so you may want to be ready for that (See Animal Archive, Page 2, "QUESTlONS TO ASK YOUR GM")
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RedDogMT is correct that the GM has the ability to control your animal companion. Personally, I also track Initiative separately and have the companion follow the orders it was given when its turn comes around. Absolutely make sure you are investing points into Handle Animal. You may run into some problems at low levels getting your companion to do what you want in combat.
At level 1 with that low Charisma score and one rank in Handle Animal, you have a +2 to the skill. Even with the +4 bonus from him being an animal companion, that means that on a 3 or lower, your wolf will not be attacking an enemy, and will certainly not be flanking with you. So a 15% chance to just have a wolf who will guard who you told him to guard by default. If your wolf gets injured, the DC to perform a trick he knows goes from 10 to 12, which means a 25% chance he won't stop savaging the dead guy you were supposed to keep alive.
Training is even worse, as it's a DC 20 to get most tricks onto your companion. Your first companion comes fully trained, but if he were to die, you would actually be unable to reliably train the replacement. You also are making it unlikely you'll ever be able to push your companion, as that's a DC 25 (27 when wolfy is injured). Pushing gives you a lot more flexibility, so I'd recommend planning with that in mind.
A few solutions include grabbing a trait that uses your Intelligence instead of your Charisma for the skill, grabbing Skill Focus instead of Combat Reflexes (especially through the Focused Study alternate racial trait), or just upping Charisma a bit.
I had a question about the Tricks. I see my AC gets ONE bonus trick at 1st level but I couldn't find where it lists how many tricks it initially begins with.
And perhaps I will adjust my scores to reflect a higher CHA score.
it's in the handle animal skill, it's 3 tricks per point of int.
OK, so with an INT of 2 my AC would have 6 tricks learned. The bonus trick applies how? Gives it a 7th?
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Yes, and in PFS your first animal companion comes fully trained. Technically, the 3 tricks per point of Int is a house rule (the Core Rules caps it out at six tricks), but it is a house rule that PFS uses. That means that raising your companion's intelligence raises the number of tricks your companion can know.
Keep in mind that you may be expected to roll to command your companion to do anything until you have a +9 to the Handle Animal skill (and +11 when your companion is injured).
Understood. I see that Druids and Rangers receive a +4 bonus to Handle Animal checks and was wondering if all "pet keepers" receive that bonus as well.
That would put my modifier to Handle Animal checks at level 1 at 9. This is of course after I adjust my stat allocation to end up with a CHA of 12.
Tricks: Attack, Attack, Flank, Down, Come, Defend, Track.
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Yes, you get that +4 bonus. I would personally recommend keeping your stats as they are and going with a trait that allows you to use Intelligence instead of Charisma for Handle Animal. If you were to combine that with Skill Focus for +12 at first level, you would be three levels from being able to Push your companion by taking 10, and by high levels you would be able to Push your companion without failure to act in whatever way you wanted.
Mergy, can you be more specific with the names of the traits and where I would find them?
Im currently a little hesitant to spend a Feat on skill focus for this as the DMs I have seen have not been entirely rigid on the AC skill checks. Of course, I've only been in a party with one character using an AC. Perhaps it was just the specific GM.
I would prefer to keep my stat allocation as is but could restructure a bit to keep my CHA at 10 and therefore not take a penalty. Of course, it might be kind of fun to have a Barbarian with a higher CHA act as the face of the party.
Yes, and in PFS your first animal companion comes fully trained. Technically, the 3 tricks per point of Int is a house rule (the Core Rules caps it out at six tricks), but it is a house rule that PFS uses. That means that raising your companion's intelligence raises the number of tricks your companion can know.
Keep in mind that you may be expected to roll to command your companion to do anything until you have a +9 to the Handle Animal skill (and +11 when your companion is injured).
Actually this is incorrect. In PFS your companion starts only knowing the 1 bonus trick. All other tricks must be trained by making a check after an adventure. (Same time you'd make your daily job check.) The max tricks your companion knows is 3 tricks per point of INT, bonus tricks earned threw level ups do not count against the limit.
I would seriously recommend not dumping CHA or you could have a hard time ever getting your companion to do anything.
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Yes, and in PFS your first animal companion comes fully trained. Technically, the 3 tricks per point of Int is a house rule (the Core Rules caps it out at six tricks), but it is a house rule that PFS uses. That means that raising your companion's intelligence raises the number of tricks your companion can know.
Keep in mind that you may be expected to roll to command your companion to do anything until you have a +9 to the Handle Animal skill (and +11 when your companion is injured).
Actually this is incorrect. In PFS your companion starts only knowing the 1 bonus trick. All other tricks must be trained by making a check after an adventure. (Same time you'd make your daily job check.) The max tricks your companion knows is 3 tricks per point of INT, bonus tricks earned threw level ups do not count against the limit.
I would seriously recommend not dumping CHA or you could have a hard time ever getting your companion to do anything.
Please check your facts before you call someone incorrect:
You can teach any animal a trick so long as you follow the rules for Handle Animal on pages 97–98 of the Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook. A GM must observe your Handle Animal check, and must initial what tricks the animal gained in the "Conditions Gained" section of the scenario's Chronicle sheet. The first time a character with levels in druid, ranger, or any other class that grants an animal companion gains an animal companion, the animal enters play knowing its maximum number of tricks as dictated by the animal companion's Intelligence and the character's effective druid level. If the character replaces the animal companion for any reason, the new animal starts with no tricks known, save for bonus tricks granted based on the PC's effective druid level. Once per scenario, you may attempt to train the animal companion a number of times equal to the number of ranks you have in the Handle Animal skill. Each success allows you to teach the animal a single trick; a failed attempt counts against the total number of training attempts allowed per scenario, and you may not attempt to teach the same trick until the next scenario. Alternatively, you may train one animal for a single purpose as long as you have enough ranks in Handle Animal to train the animal in each trick learned as part of that purpose. You may take 10 on Handle Animal checks to teach an animal companion tricks.
The trait you are looking for is Clever Wordplay.
Updated Character Profile
Human
Mad Dog Barbarian-Level 1
Str-18
Dex-14
Con-14
Int-12
Wis-12
Cha-7
Traits: Indomitable Faith (+1 Willpower Save)
Clever Wordplay (Handle Animal Uses Int Bonus, Not Cha)
Feats: Power Attack
Combat Reflexes
Weapon: Bardiche
Armor: Lamellar Armor
Animal Companion: Wolf (Feat: Light Armor Proficiency)
Playstyle: Pet moves in to flank; attack / trip. I charge and attack with flanking and prone bonuses. If enemy attempts to stand, take AoO.
2nd Level Rage Power: Beast Totem
3rd Level Feat: Cleave
Can someone review my 20 point stats, for some reason they don't look correct to me, but, its very early in the morning. PFS-20 Point Buy System. Racial Bonus to Strength.
Updated Character Profile
Human
Mad Dog Barbarian-Level 1
Str-18
Dex-14
Con-14
Int-12
Wis-12
Cha-7...
Can someone review my 20 point stats, for some reason they don't look correct to me, but, its very early in the morning. PFS-20 Point Buy System. Racial Bonus to Strength.
Looks correct to me
According to my research, the Mad Dog Barbarian is legal for PFS play.
Thats an interesting point about the Handle Animal check while raging. Is there an answer to whether this is possible or how it is bypassed? Raging, and then watching my AC just stand there doing nothing as I scream at it would not be terribly effective...
Your animal companion will do the last thing you told it to. So if you can pick a command that will let it keep fighting it'll keep fighting. Maybe not as efficiently as if you were directing it. but something is better than nothing.
There is a Feat in the ACG called skilled Rager.
Mad Dog Barbarian Doesn't even GET Rage until 4th level?
Pick Skilled Rager up as your 5th level feat.
Also note:
Mad Dog barbarians trade out uncanny dodge and improved uncanny dodge.
at lower levels I would use the medium armor and not worry about the 30 movement in medium armor, use the AC when it counts.
I would also not use a Bardiche, but use a battle axe and heavy shield.
You don't even get rage until 4th level. So maximize your AC until then.
maybe then move to a two hander, maybe not.
I wouldn't take Power Attack.
I'd take dodge, and eventually mobility.
There are rage powers that compliment mobility.
I'd also look at taking combat reflexes or the rage power quick reflexes(?) for more AoOs.
having an animal companion trades out a lot of rage powers for you, it's a difficult build.
until you get rage, max out your AC, and use tactics.
Chainmail, Heavy shield, dodge, 14 Dex… That's a 20 AC
That's almost reachable at level 1 and probably is halfway through that level.