The weapons made by the scroll masters have exactly the hitpoints specified under the class feature of the archetype, neither more nor less.
Suggestions (PFS legal)
By 5 first level spells on a scroll with 2 prestige. You will have the cheapest, earliest fastest magic weapons. Or 2 third level spells.
Cast the spells prior to using up the hitpoints. You can use a free action to switch a scroll between sword and shield. So you never need to lose a scroll due to an enemy whacking at you.
Fortifying stone.
Carry a bunch of regular empty parchment, as well as zero level spells on scrolls.
Better archetype than is given credit for.
The ability explicitly says that the scrollmaster can use any piece of paper, parchment, or cloth scroll as a weapon. Since the ability obviously wouldn't function otherwise, there must be a minimum of 1 hit point. For spells that don't have spells written on them, they wouldn't gain any enhancement bonus nor would they get the masterwork bonus. They'd simply count as a non-magical non-masterwork shortsword.
As a practical matter, the ability is pretty terrible. You need at least a 2nd level scroll before it counts as magical, and even then you only get one hit before further use will destroy the scroll, and even then you're talking about sending your wizard into melee armed with a single-use weapon. That's just ludicrously impractical.
The real reason to take this archetype is for its amazingly good 10th level ability. There are a lot of great spells that aren't useful in scroll form because of the bad DC or caster level. This ability fixes that and makes them useful. Summon Monster I is a good example; it's 1 round duration with a usual scroll, which is useless. A scrollmaster gets a full minute out of the creature, which makes it actually usable as a utility spell.
I'm pretty sure that it is any (paper, parchment or cloth) scroll not any paper, parchment or (cloth scroll). The rest of the text, referring to scrolls, bears that out. So unless it is a scroll, it doesn't do anything and in game terms a scroll is a specific magic item, not just any piece of rolled up paper.
It is a terrible archetype.
I'm pretty sure that it is any (paper, parchment or cloth) scroll not any paper, parchment or (cloth scroll). The rest of the text, referring to scrolls, bears that out. So unless it is a scroll, it doesn't do anything and in game terms a scroll is a specific magic item, not just any piece of rolled up paper.
It is a terrible archetype.
I agree.
While, the 10th level ability is pretty cool. You can't get it until you're 10th level. The prestige class Pathfinder savant gets a similar ability at 3rd level, meaning if you fast track the prestige class you can get it at character level 8. While the archetype does let you boost the save DCs of scrolls, this is only useful if you're using scrolls offensively. Usually when a character of mine has a scroll of a particular spell it's either a buff or utility spell that is so specific that it's not worth having memorized all the time or it's an emergency healing/escape type spell.
In none of those cases am I going to care what the save dc is, but caster level is very important since it could affect the other aspects of the spell which do matter. If I need extra firepower staves and pearls of power have been sufficient.
Scroll: a roll of parchment or paper for writing or painting on. (Dictionary.com).
Parchment can be bought in core. It is ...usual to think it can be rolled up either with a magic spell on it or without.
Putting multiple spells on a scroll will give it more hitpoints. For example in pfs you can get a scroll of 2 thirdlevel spells (buy it with 2pp).
Wizards will always have scrolls. Having the right scroll for the job can be crucial. This gives a wizard a way of getting use out of these scrolls beyond just spell utility.
It is a different way of playing, for sure. And it will never compete with a diviner, for example.
But a +3 sword costs a scrollmaster 1650 gold - a lot cheaper than any other class. +3 Shield - likewise. Meaning you have a lot more money for other gear.
Miscellaneous side benefits: You don't really worry about sundering or rust monsters or remorhaz etc. Not uberstrong - but still better than commonly supposed.
The prestige class Pathfinder savant gets a similar ability at 3rd level, meaning if you fast track the prestige class you can get it at character level 8.
Getting into Pathfinder Savant effectively has a 3-feat tax (one for the prerequisite, two for prestigious spellcaster to buy back the lost caster level) while the archetype just loses you one bonus feat and your arcane bond. It's actually a very low-cost archetype so it doesn't need to have very strong abilities to be viable, and that 10th level ability alone is enough to carry it.
Scroll: a roll of parchment or paper for writing or painting on. (Dictionary.com).
Parchment can be bought in core.
I'd agree. The ability doesn't specify that it must be a magical scroll, so a non-magical one will do. Non-magical parchment has an established price of 2 sp, and rolling parchment into a scroll is something anyone can do.
Putting multiple spells on a scroll will give it more hitpoints.
No it doesn't. The hit points are determined by the highest-level spell on the scroll, not the total number of spells. There is no benefit to using scrolls with multiple spells scribed upon them.
But a +3 sword costs a scrollmaster 1650 gold - a lot cheaper than any other class. +3 Shield - likewise. Meaning you have a lot more money for other gear.
And ten +3 arrows will cost 1800. The scroll blade is not a very big savings over other comparable single-use items, and you're stuck wielding this thing in melee with wizard BAB and stats. This is not a very practical fighting style at all.
Spending 1650 for a +3 shield is a complete ripoff for the Wizard when the Shield spell costs a 1st level spell slot and will get you the same AC.
Spending 1650 for a +3 shield is a complete ripoff for the Wizard when the Shield spell costs a 1st level spell slot and will get you the same AC.
Except that its a +3 shield out of an item that you would have anyway; and that gives you a spell slot. A scroll of haste, for example that you can use for a shield. And it returns you the slot for shield - several times per day.
Except that its a +3 shield out of an item that you would have anyway; and that gives you a spell slot.
I can get an extra 1st level spell slot for 1000 gp with a pearl of power, if I really want it. Personally I'd consider the free equipment slot (the scroll shield takes your off-hand) more valuable than the 1st level spell slot to begin with.
Secondly, you'd need a 6th level scroll to get that +4 AC. A 3rd level scroll only gets you +2 to AC, and there's actually a pretty big risk that an unlucky streak on your turn could destroy that scroll since 3 hits destroys it. I don't think that risk is worth the small AC bonus when you've got a better option from a 1st level slot.
Finally, there's the issue of the scrolls taking damage. You can't risk them actually being destroyed, otherwise that completely negates all the benefits of the ability and you'd have been better off having never used it at all. So you need to put them away when they still have 3 or 4 hit points to be safe. For a 6th level scroll, that means putting it away after you've been hit twice. This is actually a pretty huge issue, as losing your shield bonus to AC just after having taken HP damage is very dangerous, and it takes two move actions to swap out the scroll for another.
This ability is just really impractical.
Again. Fortifying stone.
And it's a free action to convert yout shield to a sword. In actuality the chance of losing a scroll is very very small.