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I'm not really sure what I want to play so I wanted to know what people usually appreciate being brought to the table the most but generally don't see all that often or could use more of.
Cookies? Pizza?
In all honesty, every role waxes and wanes in any particular area. Two years ago in my neighborhood, everyone had a wizard or a life oracle, and no one had heavy hitters. Now, it's opposite- -all we have is bards and beef.
Best advice: Pick something you like; party composition can't ever be guaranteed. (Or play a bard and do a little of everything.)
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I agree with Jayson. It is going to be a regional thing as to what would be most useful. I have seen party healers feel useless because the monsters die at the hands of massive damage dealers before anyone ever takes serious damage. I have seen massive damage dealers feel useless because the party face keeps resolving issues without having to go into combat. About the only character build I have never seen feel useless is a party buffer. Everyone likes being buffed.
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Just be sure your character has alchemist's fire, acid flasks, holy water, rope, a healing wand for themselves or others to use, smoked goggles, potions to revive the wand user if they go unconscious, antitoxins, antiplagues, light sources, oils of magic/bless weapon and later on potions or scrolls of see invisibility.
Lastly, Trollbill is correct, buffers are awesome for always having something to do. Either bard or witch (with the hexes) work particularly well, although buff-focused oracles are good too.
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I tell you one thing that is useless: the character who can't adjust to circumstances.
Whether it's Blasty McSootems the fire evoker who is helpless vs. devils, or Pointy McShootsyou the archer who can't operate in a hurricane, you need a plan B.
Know how to adjust for a party with a lot of melee, or very little. Be ready to deal with only a bard as the 'healer'. So, be prepared to deal with a wide variety of circumstances, both in and out of combat. Because if you don't, the problem is you.
And if you build an over-specialized character, please don't complain if there isn't a lot for you to do. You're the person who built a character with five collective skill points, and a climb check of -4.
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I appreciate a player who brings a character with some flavor.So do the monsters.
On the monsters' end, that is what seasoning is for. If you look, written in invisible ink in the equipment section of every stat block, is a little note telling what sort of spices they carry for when they eventually get the party. It's Paizo's biggest secret, and now that it's out------
{paper golems are seen dragging ARGH's corpse out of the building}|
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Just be sure your character has alchemist's fire, acid flasks, holy water, rope, a healing wand for themselves or others to use, smoked goggles, potions to revive the wand user if they go unconscious, antitoxins, antiplagues, light sources, oils of magic/bless weapon and later on potions or scrolls of see invisibility.
Lastly, Trollbill is correct, buffers are awesome for always having something to do. Either bard or witch (with the hexes) work particularly well, although buff-focused oracles are good too.
One point: Potions of see invisibility are not legal in or out of PFS.
There are ways around this, of course, including several items that give see invisibility or similar to the user, but potions of personal spells are not Pathfinder (or 3.5) legal.
Citation: Core Rulebook, Magic Item section, Magic Item Creation, Creating Potions:
Spells with a range of personal cannot be made into potions.
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Hi Silverfang, welcome to Pathfinder Society! :)
First, to repeat what others have said, play what will be fun for you. If you have a fun character, other players at the table will appreciate that more than anything else.
That said...
When you build a character, keep in mind that specialists are either ON or OFF. When they are ON, they are extremely useful. But when they are OFF, they are no help to the team at all.
Generalists will be able to contribute at least a little bit in nearly any situation. They are often not as flashy as specialists, but they can get the job done.
If you build a specialized character, just try to make sure you have some backup plans in case your specialty isn't working out. If you are a melee smasher, don't go out without a ranged weapon. If your strongest powers only work against undead, at least carry some scrolls or wands that are useful against a wide variety of creatures.
And make sure you can contribute outside of combat as well. Try to invest in at least some of the social skills, Bluff, Diplomacy, Intimidate, Sense Motive. Disable Device is often useful, as are all of the Knowledge skills. If you are a spellcaster, carry some scrolls of spells that are "utility" spells, like comprehend languages or knock.
Lastly, every character should have a couple flasks of either alchemist's fire or acid.
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Venture-Captain, Germany—Bavaria
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Welcome to PFS, you don't have to be mad to stay.... we will take care of that ^^
In all honesty, consider playing pregens for your first (couple) of experiences, that will allow you to get a feel for the local community and check which local roles are under served.
Or just as your local GM/event organizer/VL/VC what he/she would suggest.
The most important suggestion is to make a character that can always do "something" and do not over specialize, you character might have to deal with a couple of robots in one scenario, and escort a dozen goblins in the next one.
And take care not to RP your character into a corner, you really don't want to be the "cool silent mysterious type" who during the scene in the bar does nothing but stand in the corner and look mysterious (which is so usually just utterly boring).
All those examples come from published scenarios, and some of them punish players in one way or another, for not being flexible.
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Just do what you love. And minor in something else...
Have one if not two in combat schticks. There will be combat, you should pull your weight. In a planned 4 man party "I AM THE ULTIMATE HEALER!" is an awesome role. You may wind up in a party with 2 or 3 of those and then it just takes you a loooong time to die.
PFS is skill heavy, and the faction cards just added a bit to that. Perception, Diplomacy, survival, disable device, perception, knowledges, and diplomacy checks are very common and occasionally crucial to achieving the full objectives of the mission.
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Clerics- healing is always good; but play what you like best.
Mmmm... I would say 'healer', not 'cleric'. Last time someone said 'cleric' around here...people built clerics all right. Negative-channeling, melee-oriented, channel-smiting, ass-kicking clerics that did nothing to heal the party and may or may not have had Siphon Channel as a feat.
Shaman, oracle, bard... all of those have half-way decent healing options; I've seen a shaman built for heals that out-heals most clerics (not the ass-kicking kind, obviously). Bards are amazing generalists, and can be decent combat builds as well. Anything with lots of skill ranks and/or investigator levels can be useful. And good roleplay will get you places. Sometimes they are places you did not wish to go to, but they're places.
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I tell you one thing that is useless: the character who can't adjust to circumstances.
Whether it's Blasty McSootems the fire evoker who is helpless vs. devils, or Pointy McShootsyou the archer who can't operate in a hurricane, you need a plan B.
Know how to adjust for a party with a lot of melee, or very little. Be ready to deal with only a bard as the 'healer'. So, be prepared to deal with a wide variety of circumstances, both in and out of combat. Because if you don't, the problem is you.
And if you build an over-specialized character, please don't complain if there isn't a lot for you to do. You're the person who built a character with five collective skill points, and a climb check of -4.
*standing ovation*
This is why I get so sick of people talking about "optimization" as though anyone who doesn't think in that groove is stoopid.
Hmm, maybe a list of the 'minors' would be useful. By this, I mean things characters can do in addition to their major focus.
1) smart person. Someone who can at least take a stab at most knowledge skills, and has one or two that are excellent.
2) social person. Someone with at least one good social skill and moderately good at the rest. No, intimidate isn't enough. And remember, talking to people requires you to speak the language.
3) observant person. Someone who has a good perception, preferably tied into a good stealth and disable device. Perception and sense motive is another good combo. Tracking is a nice boost here as well.
4) someone with the heal skill. You don't always need it, but when you do...
5) prepared person. If you can handle the weight, it's nice to have 100' of rope, a crowbar, a shovel, extra sunrods, etc. available in the party. Climbing kits, anyone?
6) the athlete. Someone who can reliably climb, jump, and swim. It's only at the high end of the game where its trivial to fly all day.
7) the worker bee. A single rank in a profession is useful sometimes. If you're wisdom heavy, consider a second or third.
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My preference when I started was to play a local game or two, figure out what most people played, and then jump in with a role that wasn't usually filled and build it so I'd have fun playing it. Admitedly it worked out for me because I can't come up with certain character ideas for certain roles, but those were in wide supply when I started.
So, I saw the landscape had a pretty decent spattering of roles, but were utterly lacking in characters with good physical skills or combat maneuvers (non-magical combat control). The ACG was just about to come out and the brawler looked fun, so I went with it. Still one of my favorite characters.
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It's going to vary both by region and by time. Sometimes there's a lot of casters, sometimes there's a lot of melee or ranged damaged. Best thing to do is ask your local group. I rather like the idea of playing pregens for the first few sessions. That'll let you get a handle on what YOU like as well.
In a home game environment, when you're building for a group that you're going to see every session, a team of specialists is much better. You know exactly what's covered and who needs to cover it. In PFS, where you could play with a different character at every session, it's better to be a generalist. As other have said, skills are important. Try to have a character who is good at one thing and decent at two others, as opposed to having a character who is spectacular at one thing.
For that, i recommend the 2/3 BAB classes. Most of them are very flexible. Druids, clerics, inquisitors, bards, warpriests, alchemists, and investigators are all great examples. From the full BAB department, rangers and slayers are pretty diverse as well. I'm probably missing a few because I don't play them. Some archetypes are more flexible than others as well.
One of the biggest things your tablemates are going to appreciate is having a character with... character. Make sure that you create someone with a personality that is entertaining and fun to play. That tends to be the biggest thing people take away from a game they've played with your character.