I'm tossing around some ideas for a Witch I may want to build in an upcoming game. The Cackle hex mixed with other hexes seems to be a very effective way to debuff opponents, and since it takes a move action, it seems like a mount may be a useful investment, but I've never played a mounted character before, and I'm not certain I know how a lot of this stuff works. Particular questions that come to mind at the moment:
1) If I purchase a horse, can I decide which feats it starts with? Run would be mostly useless for a Witch, whereas Stable Gallop would be much more relevant. I understand that the monster templates basically represent the average specimen, and that an individual member of the species could easily deviate in a lot of ways; does that imply that I could pick a horse with Stable Gallop instead of Run when I shop for one?
2) In a similar vein to the above, can I choose the feats on a horse summoned with Mount? It would be a bit of a money-saver if it worked that way, but it may be worthless to use my spells to get an inferior horse just to save myself a couple hundred gold.
3) If, for example, I buy a horse at level 1, and if, by a stroke of fortune or genius, the horse is still alive when I reach level 20, does the horse level up or any such thing, or is it the same horse it was when I bought it?
Let me know if I'm getting wrong what little I think I know, and also please let me know if there's anything that seems relevant that I haven't considered here. :P
1) The base assumption is that the horse in the Bestiary entry is precisely what you get when you buy a horse, no matter what. Feats like Stable Gallop are more the domain of animal companions, which are supposed to be more powerful and more customizable than something you can buy for 75 gold. As a GM, I would consider letting a differently trained horse be available, perhaps with a Diplomacy check to gather information, but it'd be far from automatic, and certainly more expensive.
2) Since it says it summons a light horse or pony, it would summon them just as they appear in their Bestiary entries, with the usual feats. Again, as a GM I might consider it, but I'm pretty sure I'd stick with entries-as-written.
3) It does not level up at all - it stays precisely as it is forever, unless your GM by some wild hair wants to give it XP along with the group. If you want a mount that levels up, play a druid or cavalier, or take Leadership and try to talk your GM into letting you take something you can ride as your cohort.
Another method you could consider is playing a Small race and making your familiar a mauler familiar. That way, at level 3, it gains the ability to grow to Medium size, which means as a Small character you can ride it comfortably. It's not a perfect solution, but it definitely works.
Fair enough, that's about what I figured on all accounts, just wanted to make certain. Regarding the comment about being a druid or cavalier: that's why I began by mentioning that I'm a Witch looking for more move actions. The horse is a means to an end, not the end itself. If I gotta buy a horse that never levels up and doesn't get the feats I want, so be it. It's still an incredibly useful tool that gets me a free move action every round while outdoors. :P
Thanks for the help! And thanks for the Mauler Familiar idea, I never would have found that otherwise. :)
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1) If I purchase a horse, can I decide which feats it starts with?
Well, you could use this FAQ to argue your case. While the FAQ addresses a specific feat and a specific kind of animal, I take the resolution to tacitly imply that you can swap trained animal feats so long it is not unreasonable and they meet the prerequisites.
You could, for example, look for a place that supplies horses for mounted archers (who would benefit from their horses galloping more steadily). I presume that a place like that would look for specific breeds which better serve their purpose and train them differently than they would a melee oriented horse.
Now, if you find it to be a stretch that the town/city you live in conveniently has a place that trains horses for mounted archery, you can always rear the horse or purchase an already domesticated foal and raise it. I find it more compelling that if you trained the horse yourself since it was a foal you can get it to learn the feats you find more convenient. Again, the book doesn't state (AFAIK) that you can indiscriminately swap animal feats even if you rear or train them, but you can go back to this FAQ to make your case and, with your GM's permission, teach them whatever feat you want so long it is not unreasonable and you don't exceed the feats the animal naturally gets.
Finally, some time ago I found this guide which I find very informative and, while its got tons of caveats and constantly mentions that this is just how the author interprets the rules and that you should ask your GM, it is very complete nonetheless.
You might not even want to go this far for a feat given that you said "The horse is a means to an end, not the end itself", but if you do decide to give it a try I hope you find this reply helpful.
Cheers!
3) It does not level up at all - it stays precisely as it is forever, unless your GM by some wild hair wants to give it XP along with the group. If you want a mount that levels up, play a druid or cavalier, or take Leadership and try to talk your GM into letting you take something you can ride as your cohort.
Or you can get your own leveling Animal Companion by taking two feats: Nature's Soul and (at 4th level or later) Animal Ally. Horse is on the Animal Ally list. You can make up for the three-level deficit with a third feat - Boon Companion.
I'm tossing around some ideas for a Witch I may want to build in an upcoming game. The Cackle hex mixed with other hexes seems to be a very effective way to debuff opponents, and since it takes a move action, it seems like a mount may be a useful investment, but I've never played a mounted character before, and I'm not certain I know how a lot of this stuff works.
Although it was written for Archery Rangers, Lastoth's Guide has some good general information on riding rules and feat selection for Horse Animal Companions.
Ah, I should have figured there'd be a feat like that!.... hmm, but the more I think about it, the more I'm sorta thinking all this stuff might be unnecessary. Two feats just for a mount that won't die and has easier concentration checks when double-moving might be excessive, given that eventually the Mount spell will last all day and I can make MYSELF better at ALL concentration checks for the cost of ONE feat. As for the familiar.... if I take that archetype, I'm basically stopping my familiar from doing anything more interesting then schlepping me around the battlefield, like using touch-range wands or dropping caltrops or what have you.
But then, this is getting a little beyond the scope of simple rules questions. Thanks for all the ideas! I will put this data to good use. :)
EDIT: Small mistake on the comment about "all concentration checks." Combat Casting doesn't actually do that, only checks made while casting defensively or grappled. Either way, the concentrate checks only affect my CASTING, and hexes will be much more the focus here then the spells, so jumping through a lot of hoops for that feat isn't worth it.