The Irorian Cleric - Build advice.


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Guided Hand can be very useful, but so can split attributes. Sacred Fist can always Fervor Bull's Strength or Owl's Wisdom if necessary. With two feats to 'cash in', you can even go 16/18, 10, 12, 12, 16/18, 7 plus Toughness and Dodge. Sacred Fist 8 with a 22WIS and Magic Vestment is like wearing fullplate +1.

Sovereign Court

Maybe I could go this route?

Arsenal Chaplain of Mighty Fists:

Deity: Irori
Blessing: War

Human:
STR 12
DEX 14+2
CON 14
INT 12
WIS 16+2
CHA 7
2,5,5,2,10,-4

1) Unchained Monk 1: Bab +1, Crane Style (human), Dodge (monk)
2) Warpriest 1: Bab +1, WFocus: Unarmed Strike (WP)
3) Warpriest 2: Bab +2, Deific Obedience (lvl 3)
4) Warpriest 3: Bab +3, Power Attack (WP), +1 Wis
5) Warpriest 4: Bab +4, Channel Smite (lvl 5)
6) Evangelist 1: Bab +4,
7) Evangelist 2: Bab +5, Guided Hand (lvl 7)
8) Evangelist 3: Bab +6, WSpecialization: Unarmed (WP), +1 Wis
9) Evangelist 4: Bab +7/+2, Crane Wing (lvl 9)
10) Evangelist 5: Bab +7/+2
11) Evangelist 6: Bab +8/+3, Divine Interference (lvl 11), Greater WFocus: Unarmed (WP)
12) Evangelist 7: Bab +9/+4, +1 Cha

Equipment: Agile AoMF, +1atk ioun stone, +1ac ioun stone, +4dex belt, +4wis headband, Extend Rod, Gloves of Dueling, +2 cloak of resistance, +3 bracers of armor = 77k'ish

Flurry Full-Attack w/ Haste: 30/30/30/25
Flurry Defensive Full-Attack w/ Haste: 28/28/28/23

Attack: 9/4 + 5dpower + 2wfocus + 3gmw + 1ioun + 7wis +1 haste +2sweap + 3wtraining -3pa (-2defensive fighting) = 30/25 (28/23)

Total Dmg: 4d8 + 104dmg
Dmg: 1d8 + 5dex + 6pa + 3gmw + 2wspec + 2sweap + 3wtraining + 5dpower = 1d8 + 26dmg

AC: 36
Fighting Defensively: 40

AC: 7 dodge wisdom + 2 dodge protective grace + 1 insight ioun + 5dex + 3mvest + 4 deflection shield of faith + 3bracers +1 dodge = 38ac

or if going the Nethys route to get to-hit with Wisdom while keeping 1.5x on str and PA.

Nethys Monk:

Deity: Nethys
Blessing: War

Human:
STR 14
DEX 12
CON 14
INT 12
WIS 16+2
CHA 7
10,2,5,2,5,-4

1) Unchained Monk 1: Bab +1, Deific Obedience (human), Dodge (monk), Difficult Swings* (lvl 1)
2) Warpriest 1: Bab +1, WFocus: Quarterstaff (WP)
3) Warpriest 2: Bab +2, Dual Enhancement (lvl 3)
4) Warpriest 3: Bab +3, Power Attack (WP), +1 Wis
5) Warpriest 4: Bab +4, Channel Smite(lvl 5)
6) Evangelist 1: Bab +4,
7) Evangelist 2: Bab +5, Guided Hand (lvl 7)
8) Evangelist 3: Bab +6, Martial Focus (WP), +1 Wis
9) Evangelist 4: Bab +7/+2, WSpec: Quarterstaff(lvl 9)
10) Evangelist 5: Bab +7/+2
11) Evangelist 6: Bab +8/+3, Divine Interference (lvl 11), Greater WFocus: Quarterstaff (WP)
12) Evangelist 7: Bab +9/+4, +1 Cha

*Retrain 1st level feat to Difficult Swings at 8th level.

Equipment: Quarterstaff, +1atk ioun stone, +1ac ioun stone, +4dex belt, +4wis headband, Extend Rod, Gloves of Dueling, +2 cloak of resistance = 63k'ish

Flurry Full-Attack w/ Haste: 30/30/30/25
Attack: 9/4 + 5dpower + 2 wfocus + 3gmw + 1ioun + 7str +1 haste +2sweap + 3wtraining -3pa = 30/25

Total Dmg: 4d8 + 128
Dmg: 1d8 + 10str + 9pa + 3gmw + 2sweap + 3wtraining + 5dpower = 1d8 + 32dmg

AC: 37
AC calculation: 10base + 7 dodge wisdom + 1 dodge feat + 2 dodge protective grace + 1 insight ioun + 1dex + 3mvest + 4 deflection shield of faith + 4Mage armor +2AoNA = 37ac

Sacred Quarterstaff of Nethys:

Blessings: Magic, Destruction

STR 14
DEX 14
CON 14
INT 12
WIS 15+2
CHA 7
5,5,5,2,7,-4

1) Sacred Fist 1: Bab +0, WFocus: Quarterstaff* (lvl 1), Dodge (human)
2) Sacred Fist 2: Bab +1,
3) Sacred Fist 3: Bab +2, Deific Obedience (lvl 3)
4) Sacred Fist 4: Bab +3, +1 Wis
5) Sacred Fist 5: Bab +3, Channel Smite (lvl 5)
6) Evangelist 1: Bab +4,
7) Evangelist 2: Bab +4, Guided Hand (lvl 7), ??? (WP Style)
8) Evangelist 3: Bab +5, +1 Wis
9) Evangelist 4: Bab +6/+1, Power Attack (lvl 9)
10) Evangelist 5: Bab +7/+2
11) Evangelist 6: Bab +7/+2, Divine Interference (lvl 11)
12) Evangelist 7: Bab +8/+3, +1 Wis

* Retrain to WFocus: Quarterstaff at level 2

Equipment: Quarterstaff, +1atk ioun stone, +1ac ioun stone, +4str belt, +4wis headband, Extend Rod, +2 cloak of resistance, +2 Amulet of Natural Armor = 55k'ish

Flurry Full-Attack w/ Haste + Ki Strike: 24/24/24/24/19/19/14
Attack: 9/4 + 5dpower + 1 wfocus + 3gmw + 1ioun + 7wis +1 haste -3pa = 24/24/19/19/14

Total Dmg: 7d8 + 147 (+35destructive blessing)
Dmg: 1d8 + 4str + 9pa + 3gmw + 5dpower = 1d8 + 21dmg

AC: 39
AC calculation: 10base + 7 dodge wisdom + 1 dodge feat + 2 dodge protective grace + 2 sacred fist + 1 insight ioun + 3dex + 3mvest + 4 deflection shield of faith + 4Mage Armor +2AoNA = 39ac

The Nethys route provides 3/day Mage Armor which will remove the need/cost of Bracers of Armor.

The Sacred Fist route offers the most AC and about 3 extra attacks, but the to-hit bonuses seems a bit low with power attacking. Also, I think I only get 1x str when using non-unchained Monk's FoB. Any way to increase the to-hit bonuses that I'm missing and any decent styles to take? Taking Crane Style would bring the AC up an extra +4, but I'd be taking another -2 to my attack bonuses.

Sovereign Court

BadBird wrote:
Guided Hand can be very useful, but so can split attributes. Sacred Fist can always Fervor Bull's Strength or Owl's Wisdom if necessary. With two feats to 'cash in', you can even go 16/18, 10, 12, 12, 16/18, 7 plus Toughness and Dodge. Sacred Fist 8 with a 22WIS and Magic Vestment is like wearing fullplate +1.

If FoB doesn't do 1.5x str, which original Monk's FoB states he uses his full str bonus and I assume Sacred Fist goes off the original Monk for calculations, then pumping str up a ton might not have worthwhile returns. Keeping dex up some will help with initiative, reflex saves, ac, some skills, and possibly when I need to make ranged attacks with shurikens.

I could go for the extra +2 to a stat but it's not just the feat I'm losing, it's also 12 skill points in addition. Feat + 12skill points worth trading in for +2 to a stat? Going Nethys with a quarterstaff or Irori with unarmed strikes I'm mainly dependant on a high Wisdom, str for both of those should only be 1x dmg when Flurrying. If that's the case then upping Dex looks more attractive, especially with an agile AoMF if going the Irori route.


Sacred Fist isn't going to have as high an attack bonus as an Arsenal Chaplain (which is, keep in mind, a class with a ridiculously high attack bonus at high level). The point of Sacred Fist is that a horde of attacks with solid damage buries the target, even if some miss. 95%/95%/95%/85% = 370% chance to land hits; 85%/85%/85%/85%/60%/60% = 460% chance to land hits.

While the Sacred Fist can't use Gloves of Dueling, they can use Deliquescent Gloves in the gloves slot instead for a nice acid bonus on all strikes - and it's much cheaper.

The Sacred Fist could plug-in the stats I had above with Dual Talent, take Toughness to make 12CON have the same hp as 14CON would, and have 18's in both STR and WIS at the very beginning.

By level 8 you can easily have a +4WIS headband and +4STR belt (or just use Bull's Strength with Fervor), which means you can have 22/24 for STR and WIS, giving considerably more damage and solid defense.

Besides that, you aren't tied to any particular deity because of weapon - so you can take any deity you want with Sacred Fist. You can be a Sacred Fist of Iomedae, wield a 9-ring, get Good Hope through Evangelist and Iomedae's special spell rules, and use the Glory Blessing to be incredibly hard to harm.

Just a note on Glory Blessing for that matter - if you've got a stacked WIS, Glory Blessing is pretty absurd. Instead of charging in with a weak single attack, you can activate Glory and walk up to enemies, daring them to try to break your high-DC uber-Sanctuary while you prep a full-attack. Attacking an enemy doesn't break your magic Sanctuary defense against any other target. With a strong WIS, the DC is like a top-level spell from a Sorcerer.


Kysune wrote:
If FoB doesn't do 1.5x str, which original Monk's FoB states he uses his full str bonus and I assume Sacred Fist goes off the original Monk for calculations, then pumping str up a ton might not have worthwhile returns.

You don't get 1.5xSTR. However, Sacred Fist is about multiplying damage over a ton of attacks; even a small increase in damage goes exponential.

Agile AoMF is kind of a crappy way to have to go for multiple reasons. For the cost of an Agile AoMF, you can be wielding a weapon that has a +3 enhancement that breaks multiple DR types, and you don't give up neck slot.

Anyhow, as I posted above, the much bigger issue is that Guided Hand costs 2 feats and restricts other choices.

Sovereign Court

BadBird wrote:

The Sacred Fist could plug-in the stats I had above with Dual Talent, take Toughness to make 12CON have the same hp as 14CON would, and have 18's in both STR and WIS at the very beginning.

By level 8 you can easily have a +4WIS headband and +4STR belt (or just use Bull's Strength with Fervor), which means you can have 22/24 for STR and WIS, giving considerably more damage and solid defense.

Besides that, you aren't tied to any particular deity because of weapon - so you can take any deity you want with Sacred Fist. You can be a Sacred Fist of Iomedae, wield a 9-ring, get Good Hope through Evangelist and Iomedae's special spell rules, and use the Glory Blessing to be incredibly hard to harm.

I'm thinking with the Sacred Fist's bonus to AC, Evangelist's bonus to AC, and all the rest that I could play the AC game and stay ahead of the curve mostly. I'm not sure about dropping dex down to 10 and relying on the Glory domain to fully protect me though.

I don't think you can treat a 9-Ring Broadsword as a Longsword though, didn't see anything in the Nethys archives description concerning that. Going Iomedae I'd probably have to take Crusader's Flurry to use FoB with it.


Kysune wrote:
I don't think you can treat a 9-Ring Broadsword as a Longsword though, didn't see anything in the Nethys archives description concerning that. Going Iomedae I'd probably have to take Crusader's Flurry to use FoB with it.

There's zero reason for a Sacred Fist to have to use their deity's favored weapon if they don't need Guided Hand. That's one of the biggest benefits of not using it. Any deity you want can just wield a quarterstaff or 9-ring or whatever, it's all good.

Note that a Human Sacred Fist can use their Favored Class bonus to get a free combat feat at 6 (also 12, but I would usually only take the first one).

Sovereign Court

BadBird wrote:
Kysune wrote:
I don't think you can treat a 9-Ring Broadsword as a Longsword though, didn't see anything in the Nethys archives description concerning that. Going Iomedae I'd probably have to take Crusader's Flurry to use FoB with it.

There's zero reason for a Sacred Fist to have to use their deity's favored weapon if they don't need Guided Hand. That's one of the biggest benefits of not using it. Any deity you want can just wield a quarterstaff or 9-ring or whatever, it's all good.

Note that a Human Sacred Fist can use their Favored Class bonus to get a free combat feat at 6 (also 12, but I would usually only take the first one).

Sacred Fist has a really limited amount of weapons that they are proficient with. Unlike UC Monk which is proficient with any weapon with the Monk quality. I'd be spending a feat just to be proficient with something outside of Unarmed or Quarterstaff. :/

I've thought about going the full 6 levels for +1 feat instead of +5hp but I'm delaying my progress on the Evangelist prestige abilities/boons and also loses 4 skill points in the long run. It's a tough decision since it is 5hp lost and if the deity has good 1st or 2nd tier boons.

EDIT: I take it you mean there's no reason to use the deity's favored weapon if you go 16+2str and 16+2wis, but tanking dex and con. Which frees up Channel Smite and Guided Hand feats from being required. And then you'd use one of those feats to get proficiency in some other weapon?


You don't have to go 18/18 and dump other stats; that was just an example. 17/17 works as well with Dual Talent.

Spending a level 1 feat on a better weapon when the best you've got is quarterstaff is hardly a bad thing, even if not necessary.

--------

It might be helpful to take a step back and figure out what you want as a character concept. The tools are there to make a strong character out of whatever concept you want, rather than just chasing the biggest level 12 numbers possible.

What deity/obedience does this character follow?

What weapon do they use? Greatsword, 9-ring, quarterstaff, fist?

Are they combat-focused, or is there strong magical ability there as well?

Figure out who the character is - at least partly - and then optimize.

Sovereign Court

BadBird wrote:
What deity/obedience does this character follow?

It would either be Irori, Shelyn, or Sarenrae.

Irori - Self Perfection / Monk aspects
Shelyn - The Beauty of Martial "Arts" and Graceful movement.
Sarenrae - Seems to be the only way to finesse a 1handed sword via Deity's favored weapon and Crusader's Flurry with it.

Irori: +4 to all knowledge skills, Strength & Healing blessings.
Shelyn: Good Hope spell, Glorious Might boon, Plumed Blade boon, Charm & Air blessings.

BadBird wrote:
What weapon do they use? Greatsword, 9-ring, quarterstaff, fist?

Since I've been leaning Dex based, I think either Unarmed Strike or Scimitar (Weapon finesse & 2handed PA).

BadBird wrote:
Are they combat-focused, or is there strong magical ability there as well?

Somewhat well rounded, more graceful than brute strength. Typical Eastern Monk martial artist with Divine spells for protection and offense.

Here's the two builds I drafted based on the above. I think the Sacred Fist's many attacks is more of the picture I had. Let me know if I missed anything.

Sacred Scimitar:

Deity: Sarenrae
Blessings: Glory and Healing

STR 13
DEX 16+2
CON 12
INT 12
WIS 15+2
CHA 7
3,10,2,2,7,-4

1) Sacred Fist 1: Bab +0, Weapon Finesse (lvl 1)
2) Sacred Fist 2: Bab +1,
3) Sacred Fist 3: Bab +2, Deific Obedience (lvl 3)
4) Sacred Fist 4: Bab +3, +1 Dex
5) Sacred Fist 5: Bab +3, Dervish Dance (lvl 5)
6) Sacred Fist 6: Bab +4, Weapon Focus: Scimitar (WPFCB), Crane Style (WP Style)
7) Evangelist 1: Bab +4, Crusader's Flurry (lvl 7)
8) Evangelist 2: Bab +5, +1 Dex
9) Evangelist 3: Bab +6/+1, Power Attack (lvl 9)
10) Evangelist 4: Bab +7/+2
11) Evangelist 5: Bab +7/+2, Divine Interference (lvl 11)
12) Evangelist 6: Bab +8/+3, +1 Wis

6/6/1/1/-4 + 7dex + 3weap + 5dp + 1wfocus + 1ioun = 23/23/18/18/13

Defensive FoB + Haste & Ki Strike: 21/21/21/21/16/16/11
Power Attack FoB + Haste & Ki Strike: 20/20/20/20/15/15/10

Dmg: 1d8 + 7dex + 9pa + 2ghope + 3weapon + 5dp = 1d8 + 28
FA: 7 x (1d8 + 28)

10 + 6 dodge wisdom + 2 dodge protective grace + 2 SFist + 1 insight ioun + 7dex + 3mvest + 4 deflection shield of faith + 3bracers + 2AoNA
AC: 40 (44 fighting defensively)

Sacred Palm:

STR 10
DEX 16+2
CON 12
INT 12
WIS 16+2
CHA 7
0,10,2,2,10,-4

1) Sacred Fist 1: Bab +0, Weapon Finesse (lvl 1)
2) Sacred Fist 2: Bab +1,
3) Sacred Fist 3: Bab +2, Toughness (lvl 3)
4) Sacred Fist 4: Bab +3, +1 Dex
5) Sacred Fist 5: Bab +3, Deific Obedience (lvl 5)
6) Evangelist 1: Bab +4,
7) Evangelist 2: Bab +4, Diverse Obedience if Shelyn (lvl 7), Pummeling Style (WP Style)
8) Evangelist 3: Bab +5, +1 Dex
9) Evangelist 4: Bab +6/+1, Wfocus: Unarmed (lvl 9)
10) Evangelist 5: Bab +7/+2
11) Evangelist 6: Bab +7/+2, Divine Interference (lvl 11)
12) Evangelist 7: Bab +8/+3, +1 Wis

Agile Bodywrap of Mighty Strikes – 12k gold
Shocking Frost Amulet of Might Fists – 16k gold
Deliquescent Gloves – 8k gold

6/6/1/1/-4 + 7dex + 3gmw + 5dpower + 1ioun + 2ghope + 2boon +1wfocus = 27/27/22/22/17
FA with Haste & Ki Strike: 27/27/27/27/22/22/17

1d10 + 7dex + 5dpower + 2ghope + 2boon + 3gmw + 1d6 electric + 1d6 cold + 1d6 acid =
Pummeling: 7 x (1d10 + 19 + 3d6 elemental)

6 dodge wisdom + 2 dodge protective grace + 2 SFist + 1 insight ioun + 7dex + 3mvest + 4 deflection shield of faith + 3bracers + 2AoNA
AC: 39

The unarmed route uses Agile Bodywraps + Shocking Frost AoMF + Deliquescent Gloves. While the Scimitar build, that same amount of money could almost buy a +3 Keen Scimitar.

Scimitar build has the high crit range while the unarmed build get Pummeling Style and later goes into Pummeling Charge when I continue to character into some PFS sanctioned modules at 12 level+.

The Sarenrae route takes a little while to get Dervish Dance and Crusader's Flurry but shouldn't be difficult to survive till then using Unarmed Strikes.

Thoughts? Improvements?

daydream of a monk on the battlefield:
I did envision an epic fight on the battlefield where the monk plants their sword in the ground and charges towards an enemy. After a while of toying with the enemy, the monk "calls" their sword to them or acrobatics over to it and picks it up and then finishes the enemy off. Unfortunately I found out that the "Calling" enchant is a +1 cost which makes it not so attractive lol. Was just a daydream I had which seemed like it came out of an oldschool martial arts movie or dragon ball z. Mechanically a horrible idea but just seemed like a really cool fighting cutscene from a video game.

Sovereign Court

Well, the Scimitar route actually doesn't work. Dervish Dance won't let you 2hand and use Dex for atk/dmg. The only way would be to alternate between scimtar and punch/kicks with FoB, meaning half the attacks would not be with a scimitar.
------
I think I've settled on my Sacred Palm build using Charm/Air blessings. Later on in PFS modules past 11th level it meshes together well to Quicken Blessing: Soaring Assault + Pummeling Charge on turn 2.

Deity: Shelyn

STR 10
DEX 16+2
CON 12
INT 12
WIS 16+2
CHA 7
0,10,2,2,10,-4

1) Sacred Fist 1: Bab +0, Weapon Finesse (lvl 1)
2) Sacred Fist 2: Bab +1,
3) Sacred Fist 3: Bab +2, Toughness (lvl 3)
4) Sacred Fist 4: Bab +3, +1 Dex
5) Sacred Fist 5: Bab +3, Deific Obedience (lvl 5)
6) Sacred Fist 6: Bab +4, Wfocus: Unarmed (WPFCB), Pummeling Style (WP Style)
7) Evangelist 1: Bab +4, Diverse Obedience (lvl 7)
8) Evangelist 2: Bab +5, +1 Dex
9) Evangelist 3: Bab +6/+1, FREE (lvl 9)
10) Evangelist 4: Bab +7/+2
11) Evangelist 5: Bab +7/+2, Divine Interference (lvl 11)
12) Evangelist 6: Bab +8/+3, +1 Dex

Any ideas on optimizing this build further?


I think at level 9 you could pick up Pummeling Style as your regular level 9 feat and retrain your Sacred Fist bonus feat to Pummeling Charge.

Quicken Blessing might be a good idea, though uses/day of Blessings is somewhat limited and swift actions are in somewhat high demand. Still, being able to activate Charm as a swift action after you attack is pretty outrageously strong.

Sovereign Court

BadBird wrote:
I think at level 9 you could pick up Pummeling Style as your regular level 9 feat and retrain your Sacred Fist bonus feat to Pummeling Charge.

Would that actually work? Only reason I'm not sure is that it states a style feat for 6th level and at 12 level it states either another style feat or a feat that requires a style feat as a prerequisite.

Sacred Fist: Bonus Style Feat wrote:
At 6th level, the sacred fist gains a style feat as a bonus feat. The sacred fist must meet the style feat’s prerequisites. He uses his warpriest levels as monk levels for the purposes of meeting the feat’s prerequisites. At 12th and 18th levels, a sacred fist gains either another style feat or a feat that requires a style feat as a prerequisite. This ability replaces the bonus feats gained at 6th, 12th, and 18th levels.

If you can retrain your 6th level style feat at 9th level and gain Pummeling Charge that would be awesome though.


You know, I never noticed that the SF 6th level bonus was only a 'Style feat'... that's awful on so many levels.

Sacred Fist of Cayden can use an Agile rapier, which has the side-benefit of being able to use Swordmaster's Flair. Not saying you should do that necessarily, just pointing it out; it has a 'wandering warrior' martial arts vibe to it, and a rapier is basically a jian.


Kysune wrote:
Well, the Scimitar route actually doesn't work. Dervish Dance won't let you 2hand and use Dex for atk/dmg. The only way would be to alternate between scimtar and punch/kicks with FoB, meaning half the attacks would not be with a scimitar.

What are you saying? FoB is able to use the same weapon for all of their attacks. So yes, you can't TH your weapon for more damage using dervish dance, but you're able to use it for all of your attacks.

Sovereign Court

Chess Pwn wrote:
Kysune wrote:
Well, the Scimitar route actually doesn't work. Dervish Dance won't let you 2hand and use Dex for atk/dmg. The only way would be to alternate between scimtar and punch/kicks with FoB, meaning half the attacks would not be with a scimitar.
What are you saying? FoB is able to use the same weapon for all of their attacks. So yes, you can't TH your weapon for more damage using dervish dance, but you're able to use it for all of your attacks.

I thought you had to two-hand a weapon or you have to alternate between hands for attacks for Flurry of Blows, similar to TWF.


Kysune wrote:
Chess Pwn wrote:
Kysune wrote:
Well, the Scimitar route actually doesn't work. Dervish Dance won't let you 2hand and use Dex for atk/dmg. The only way would be to alternate between scimtar and punch/kicks with FoB, meaning half the attacks would not be with a scimitar.
What are you saying? FoB is able to use the same weapon for all of their attacks. So yes, you can't TH your weapon for more damage using dervish dance, but you're able to use it for all of your attacks.
I thought you had to two-hand a weapon or you have to alternate between hands for attacks for Flurry of Blows, similar to TWF.

Nope, you're free to use the same weapon for all the attacks.

Sovereign Court

That's good, so the Scimitar build is still worthwhile then. Is the 12con, no FCB to hp, and no toughness going to be a major issue? I'm not sure how to work the Toughness feat into the scimitar build and getting a +2 to Con will have to wait till later since it's an 8k investment for an ioun stone.

Sovereign Court

@AVR, BadBird, Chess - Should I put my 4th and 8th level stat increase in Dex or Wis? Also, should I swap my 9th level Power Attack feat to Toughness since my to-hit isn't the greatest and just fish for crits? In build below I removed 3 from Str and moved it to Con due to removing Power Attack.

Sacred Scimitar:

Deity: Sarenrae
Blessings: Glory and Healing

STR 10
DEX 16+2
CON 14
INT 12
WIS 15+2
CHA 7
0,10,5,2,7,-4
(Either Swap Dex or Wis around depending on which should be highest)

1) Sacred Fist 1: Bab +0, Weapon Finesse (lvl 1)
2) Sacred Fist 2: Bab +1,
3) Sacred Fist 3: Bab +2, Deific Obedience (lvl 3)
4) Sacred Fist 4: Bab +3, +1 Dex or Wis
5) Sacred Fist 5: Bab +3, Dervish Dance (lvl 5)
6) Sacred Fist 6: Bab +4, Weapon Focus: Scimitar* (WPFCB), Crane Style (WP Style)
7) Evangelist 1: Bab +4, Crusader's Flurry (lvl 7)
8) Evangelist 2: Bab +5, +1 Dex or Wis
9) Evangelist 3: Bab +6/+1, Toughness (lvl 9)
10) Evangelist 4: Bab +7/+2
11) Evangelist 5: Bab +7/+2, Divine Interference (lvl 11)
12) Evangelist 6: Bab +8/+3, +1 Dex or Wis

*Retrain 6th level feat to Weapon Focus: Scimitar at 7th level when I gain proficiency with Scimitars through Evangelist prestige class.


Given what you're trying for here it's Dex all the way. If you do so then you could steal a point off Wis in the last build and make Str 12, which would make for a slightly easier first 4 levels.

Toughness is more useful to you than Power Attack, agreed. Especially since as a warpriest of Sarenrae you're allowed to prepare Flame Blade as a 3rd level spell and Power Attack is useless with touch attacks. Personally I might get Lunge instead of either, YMMV.


You've got Dervish Dance in there before you have scimitar proficiency, though a bit of retraining-shuffle can solve that. Snapping Turtle Style is an option instead of Crane, if you would prefer a simple +1AC with no penalties instead of having to eat a painful -2 to attacks. If you want to use Crane, I would at least consider taking the whole thing by 11. The fact that you may need to spend a precious starting swift action to even begin a style also raises the question of how often you'll even want to use it; you could also consider a niche style like Monkey that you'd only turn on when appropriate.

The issue with dropping Power Attack is that the Dervish Dance thing is on the low side for raw damage output already; even one-handed Power Attack makes a pretty significant difference when applied to a one-handed 1d6 weapon. I'm not saying Power Attack is necessarily the way to go, but be aware that without it you're really going to want to do everything you can to beef-up your damage rolls. Deliquescent Gloves and a Holy scimitar with GMW might be a pretty good way to go in the long run.

Flame Blade is a really cool spell, but personally, I don't think I would use it on a build that wasn't hyper-specialized for it. Unless you've got metamagic and special abilities to add to it, I don't see a 1d8+1/2level weapon with no ability score bonus that's vulnerable to SR and fire resistance as anything but an interesting backup option.

For a really nasty spell option at higher levels, you could take Additional Traits and Persistent Spell to add Wayang Spellhunter: Instrument of Agony and cast Persistent Instrument of Agony as a level 3 spell (where it doesn't interfere with your limited uses/day of Divine Power and Aura of Doom). Level 3 Persistent Instrument of Agony will last quite a while with an Extend Rod, so pre-casting it means you've got a brutally strong debuff attack as a free action. And of course an extra free trait pick is always nice, even just to grab Reactionary.

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