After having a break of a few months we've finally got back to playing and the GM declared that there shall bee a six month time skip in game. As part of this we've been given the opportunity to rework our characters if we so desire. I decided to drop the Hedge Witch archetype as I found it to be superfluous, even more so now we have a bard joining us. Thus I found myself with two more available hexes or feats.
It was going to be relatively simple: Misfortune and another hex or feat. But then I I decided to throw a couple of suggestions to the GM. He agreed to both which I was not expecting. So now I have a damage dealing hex (ranged touch attack, scales with level, based on kineticist energy blast, does half fire/half untyped and sets targets ablaze on a failed reflex)and animals I summon have the fey animal template in place of celestial/fiendish.
I will absolutely be taking the homebrew hex. I previously ignored the summon monster spells as they didn't thematically fit. Now I can apply the fey animal template to summons I've been looking more into it and quite like the idea of Augment Summoning. So the question is should I drop improved initiative and Misfortune (only just hit level 8 so I've not used the hex at all) to take spell focus conjuration and augment summon instead?
Summon guardian spirit does look like a interesting option though I'm not too keen on the fey improved familiar options. My main concern is losing improved initiative to take spell focus conjuration to meet the prerequisites for augment summon; as You said, the home brew hex makes me less likely to use misfortune. A +1 to the DC of conjuration spells isn't the worst use of a feat, they make up a significant proportion of my spells known and I usually have at least one conjuration prepared at each level.
Another idea that I had was to take the poison touch hex; giving my summons a DC 20 strength damaging poison attack sounds somewhat awesome to me. If I took the augment summon option now I would definitely take poison touch at level 9. Alternatively I could take spell focus and poison touch now and augment summon at level 9.
I'd prefer the guardian spirit be fey for the sake of thematic consistency. I like the Chuspiki and it fits with the call lightning sla that the guardian spirit can get and it's adorable; yes I probably could just say it's from the First World. Who knew how frustrating having so many good options could be?
Let's do an overview of the options:
- Improved initiative: I only have +1 initiative so having a +4 bonus is nice. Spell casters typically want to go first in the initiative order. Number boosting feats are boring and a feat should never be boring.
- Misfortune hex: A nasty hex to inflict on someone and good for when an enemy is immune to mind affecting effects but has low will; but the homebrew hex likely means I won't use it as often and it's nice to deviate a bit from the standard witch formular.
- Spell focus conjuration: Benefits many of my witch's spells and opens up augment summon. I find number boosting feats a bit boring.
- Augment summon: Increases the power of my summons and makes them more effective in combat. Presumably works with guardian spirit. It only comes into play when I cast summon monster and I'll typically only have one or 2 SM spells prepared.
- Guardian spirit: Interesting, flavourful, works well with my character, potentially useful and last 1 min/level. I like it but I think it deserves to be gained as part of my characters story development. Occasionally my GM talks about non exp/material rewards for quests so I might make him aware this feat exists.
- Poison Touch: Gives a level/int scaling poison attack that works well with my summons but can also be applied to myself, my team mates and their summons; also thematically appropriate. I have a feeling our GM is planning to send us against undead and/or constructs in the next part of the adventure.
If I had a non-archetype human witch I could probably take all the options. However, I like being a half orc and the pre-ultimate wilderness herb witch archetype has proved itself useful.
Yeah, you need high Initiative as a full caster. It's almost suicide not to, unless you have some nifty immediate action abilities from either items or racials that can save you.
I feel naked if I don't have at least a +7 or +8 to initiative as a full caster. And if I do end up with a crappy Initiative, then I have to play pretty conservatively and far from danger.
I'm making a witch for a campaign here in the near future, and I'm going with Greensting Scorpion familiar (+4 init), Improved Initiative (+4), and +2 from Dex, so +10. As soon as I get 500g, I'm getting an Ioun Stone for another +1 Init. +11 Init can take even a crappy roll and turn it into going somewhere in the middle instead of dead last.