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So because I’m new to Pathfinder I made some less than stellar choices in the creation of my first PFS character – a Swashbuckler.
Obviously their saves are horrible and I haven’t taken the usual steps to improve them (for example by playing a HalfOrc for Sacred Tattoo / Fates Favored or any other race with the irrepressible trait).
Im just about to hit Level 4 and my plan was to go to Level 5 to get the Improved Crit/+hit/+damage and then dip 2 levels of Paladin for Divine Grace which would net me +6/+3/+6 to my saves. Plus my HP and BAB would still be at the same progression & I would get Smite Evil – which clearly fits quite nicely on a Swashbuckler who uses Charisma as well. Unfortunately I have recently discovered that Divine Grace does not stack with Charmed Life (both untyped Cha mod bonuses to saves). To say I was upset was an understatement – I had visions of ultimate synergy but sadly it’s not to be. (Please correct me if im wrong here – I would love to be!)
So I’m trying to work out what dips would be good for boosting my saves. A 1 level dip in Paladin still seems solid. Smite Evil, +2/+0/+2 to my saves, still get the same BAB/HP progression & access to the spell list for wands & such. But there is no real point in a 2nd level in my view. So I’m trying to consider all of the other classes that have both good Fort & good Will saves to see if there is something else out there which gives me lots of goodies.
The choices seem to be Cleric, Druid & Monk from the CRB, Inquisitor from APG, Magus from UM & Warpriest & Skald from the ACG. Of these only Cleric & Warpriest seem to have any tangible benefits. Clerics get 2x domains powers & Warpriest’s get blessings. The best domains seem to be Good, Liberation, Luck, Nobility & Travel while the best blessings seem to be Good, Liberation, Luck, Nobility, Protection, Travel & War. Due to another minor hiccup in character design, my wisdom is too low to allow me to even cast level 0 spells but presumably I still get access to the spell lists for use with wands etc?
On a side note: Do the bonuses that say you touch an ally let you affect yourself instead? Are you an ally to yourself?
Anyway what does everyone think about dipping for improved saves? I was thinking 2 levels – 1 in each class for +4/+0/+4 to my saves. All of the above assumes base classes – archetypes were not considered – mainly because Im not familiar with them. Not that Im against archetypes. If there is an archetype out there which improves a classes value to me then Im all for it.
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Contributor
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The always-on, no action required aspect of divine grace still seems pretty good to me, even if it doesn't stack. You could retrain into a swashbuckler archetype that trades out charmed life.
You can, indeed, touch yourself the way you would touch an ally. ^_^
I'll think about archetype recommendations (for swashbuckler or dip classes).
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Contributor
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The occultist and spiritualist classes from the upcoming Occult Adventures favor the correct saves as well.
A spiritualist with the hatred emotional focus and the Charisma-casting archetype would give you Skill Focus in Acrobatics and Perception, plus access to some decent spells - shield and protection from evil seem like good spells for a swashbuckler. You can also send the phantom out to scout in incorporeal mode.
You might consider having a look once the book is released.
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The battle cry feat will also help your save worries, and make your party members do the happy dance. You will qualify for it at level 5.
As a front-line combatant, you'd want a pretty high constitution score to begin with, which would help with your Fort saves. Your Ref saves will already be off the charts because of your relatively high dexterity (you did make it high, right?). That will leave you with a relatively weak Will save, which could be corrected with items, or by being in a party with a good support class character.
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The battle cry feat will also help your save worries, and make your party members do the happy dance. You will qualify for it at level 5.
Yes I had lined up BattleCry for Level 5. Additional Traits is not bad either. I have not taken a faith trait yet. Only Combat and Racial I think.
Retraining into Daring Infiltrator seems like a solid option but not something I would want to do until I had my 2 levels of Paladin. Unfortunately Retraining itself is beyond my understanding as a relative noob. I've read the appropriate section in Ult Cam but putting it into practice is beyond me.
I probably should have mentioned that I already have an archetype (Inspiring Blade) which I would need to drop to take DI. They both trade away one of the same deeds.
The new Occult book will definitely be out by the time I need to decide so there is no great hurry.
Yes my Dex is high. After racial mods (Elf) my stats are 10,18,12,14,8,14. Again if I could redo I would.
I would go with paladin 2 even if you can't retrain to get rid of charmed life. Also: irrepresible won't stack with Charles (edit: charmed. I hate my auticirrect) life and uses (half) a feat.
The Steadfast Personality feat from the ACL should take care of your Will save worries. For Fortitude, just taking Great Fortitude should do it, since you already start out with a +1 from your attribute. Both saves of course will never be as good as Reflex save, but that is a problem every single good save class has to live with.
I have an 8th level Swashbuckler in PFS. I took Iron Will and Extra Traits for Indomitable Faith. Other than that Charmed Life is exactly Divine Grace. I have never run out of Charmed Life in any scenario, granted I don't use it for Reflex Saves, but it's never been a problem.