As this is not a rules question, I am operating under the assumption that Cruel Hex is indeed compatible with Beast-Bonded and that Improved Familiars can be Mauler familiars. If you see any glaring problems that any normal GM would have against this then please let me know.
The idea came from trying to make a Demon-Sworn's Quasit more effective. This is my backup character should I die in our Ironfang Invasion campaign.
Stat Priority: Int>Con>Dex>Str>Wis>Cha
Class: Witch - Demon-Sworn stacking with Beast-Bonded
Alternate Racial Traits: Caretaker and Evasive Nomad
Traits: [need advice],
Campaign Trait will be Foxclaw Scout
Feats:
1. Fey Foundling (Transfer)
3. Power Attack (Transfer) [Battleform and Caretaker should be enough to qualify]
5. Light Armor Proficiency (Transfer)
7. Medium Armor Proficiency (Transfer)
9. Heavy Armor Proficiency (Transfer)
Familar: Hawk then Quasit at 6th.
Hexes:
1. Slumber
2. Mauler's Endurance (Familiar Feat)
12. Flight
I think my problem here is that my character himself has no feats. Is this build anywhere close to viable? Are the rule hand waves too much? Is there something else that does this but better? I really just want to be a caster with a cool demon bodyguard.
If you want it to be more viable (if you're willing to offset your casting by 2 levels), if you're just giving combat feats, why not multiclass two levels of Eldritch Guardian Fighter
Source Familiar Folio pg. 7
Eldritch guardians are trained to detect and give warning about magic threats to the people and places they protect.
Class Skills: The eldritch guardian adds Perception, Spellcraft, and Use Magic Device to his list of class skills, but does not gain Intimidate, Ride, or Swim as class skills.
Familiar (Ex): At 1st level, an eldritch guardian gains a familiar, treating his fighter level as his effective wizard level for the purpose of this ability. This ability replaces the bonus feat gained at 1st level.
Share Training (Ex): At 2nd level, when the familiar can see and hear its master, it can use any combat feat possessed by the eldritch guardian. The familiar doesn’t have to meet the feat’s prerequisites, but at the GM’s discretion may be precluded from using certain combat feats due to its physical form. For example, an eldritch guardian’s pig familiar with access to Exotic Weapon Proficiency (spiked chain) would not gain the ability to use spiked chains, since it doesn’t have any limbs capable of properly handling them. This ability replaces the bonus feat gained at 2nd level.
Steel Will (Ex): At 2nd level, the eldritch guardian gains a +1 bonus on Will saves against fear and mind-affecting effects. This bonus increases by 1 for every 4 levels beyond 2nd. This ability replaces bravery.
Would free up 3 of your feats, give you a little of a BAB boost, also martial weapon proficiencies. Hell throwing Gloomblade AT will guarantee you personally always have a weapon.
Source Planar Adventures pg. 14
The Shadow Plane’s substance is legendary for its versatility. In shadow-shrouded lands, secretive martial practitioners long ago learned to shape supernatural weapons from ribbons of pure darkness.
Student of Darkness (Ex): A gloomblade gains Acrobatics, Knowledge (planes), Perception, and Stealth as class skills, but does not gain Climb, Handle Animal, Ride, or Swim as class skills.
This alters the fighter’s class skills.
Shadow Weapon (Su): A gloomblade can create a shadowy weapon in a free hand as a move action. This can take the form of any melee weapon with which he is proficient. A gloomblade can have only one shadow weapon in existence at a time; creating a new shadow weapon causes an existing shadow weapon to vanish. At 3rd level, the shadow weapon acts as a magic weapon with a +1 enhancement bonus; this bonus increases by 1 for every 4 levels a gloomblade has beyond 2nd, to a maximum enhancement bonus of +5 at 18th level.
At 7th level, a gloomblade can create (and maintain) two shadow weapons at a time as a move action; if he does, each weapon has an enhancement bonus 1 lower than normal. If a gloomblade creates only one weapon, it gains a weapon special ability of his choice (chosen upon creation); the ability must be valid for the shadow weapon’s weapon type and must be chosen from defending, flaming, frost, keen, ghost touch, merciful, shock, thundering, or vicious. (Additional special abilities might qualify, at the GM’s discretion.)
At 11th level, a gloomblade’s shadow weapons each gain their full enhancement bonus if he creates two weapons. If a gloomblade creates only one shadow weapon, it gains additional weapon special abilities; the total effective bonus of these abilities cannot exceed +3. The gloomblade can now choose from the of anarchic, axiomatic, flaming burst, icy burst, holy, shocking burst, unholy, and wounding weapon special abilities as well as those from the list above.
At 15th level, a gloomblade’s shadow weapons each gain magic weapon special abilities with a total effective bonus of +2 per weapon. If a gloomblade creates only one shadow weapon, its magic weapon special abilities cannot exceed a total effective bonus of +5. The gloomblade adds brilliant energy, dancing, and speed to the options he can choose as weapon special abilities for his shadow weapon.
This replaces the fighter’s armor training and proficiency with heavy armor and shields (he retains proficiency in light and medium armor).
Shadow Weapon Training (Ex): At 5th level, a gloomblade gains weapon training, except that he does not select a weapon group; instead, the bonus applies to the shadow weapons he creates. A gloomblade does not select additional weapon groups as he gains levels.
At 9th level, whenever a gloomblade creates one or more shadow weapons, he can apply any one of the following shadow effects (chosen upon creation) to one of them.
During the gloomblade’s turn, he can increase his reach with that weapon by 5 feet.
The gloomblade can increase a thrown shadow weapon’s range increment (if any) by 20 feet.
When he hits a foe with a melee attack with the weapon, he can use it to perform a reposition combat maneuver against the creature hit as a swift action. This does not provoke attacks of opportunity.
Attacks made with the weapon ignore hardness equal to or less than the gloomblade’s fighter level.
For every 4 levels he has beyond 9th, a gloomblade can apply an additional effect to his shadow weapons, to a maximum of three effects at 17th level; these effects can be split between multiple shadow weapons as a gloomblade desires, but they don’t stack with themselves.
This alters weapon training.
Magical Knack trait will make sure you don't lose any CL, but as I wrote above you do still set back casting by 2 levels.
Being a caster never means you should be defenseless, and a big Quasit who doesn't care about your moral standpoint shouldn't break anything...
Hmmm, the party has a cleric and spiritualist so I may be able to dip my casting. I've always wanted to play a Gloomblade and Eldritch Guardian is cool but there are some problems. EG trades his first feat for a familiar, which I would already have and I'm not sure that the familiar shares fighter proficiencies. Quasits get martial weapon proficiency just for being outsiders but this will allow my hawk to wear barding. Gloomblade alters skills making it incompatible with EG and it loses heavy armor proficiency, such a shame.
If EG does indeed grant proficiencies then this will be my updated build,
Witch 1 / Fighter 2 / Witch +
This will allow me to give the familiar Fey Foundling and I could take extra hex to get flight earlier and not die when I fall off my hawk. My hex effectiveness will be irreparably behind two levels as well but that should be fine.
Personally I would not dip and would rather keep pure witch progression; consider that at level 15 you cleric would be throwing around level 8 spells and you'd have level 7 spells and a lower hex. As someone who plays a witch I mostly just take the Extra Hex feat so lack of personal feats I don't think is a huge issue; the major problem in my view is the lack of hexes. Hexes are a major asset so I'm not sure giving up so many is worth it. I mean you have no major hexes and I'm not even sure if Slumber would work with Cruel Hex since the damage might wake them up.
I'd also consider swapping out Fey Foundling. I'm just not sold on how useful those few extra points of healing would be compared to additional hexes. How essential is being a halfling? If you were a gnome your favoured class bones would get you an extra hex every 6 levels. Have you looked into the Infernal Contract unique Patron (Blood of the Coven)? It works thematically and gets you the Misfortune hex at first level as a bonus. I would also recommend taking the Ritual Hex feat at some point.
Something else to consider is that what impact weight and barding might have on your familiars ability to fly. Some might argue that your familiar won't be able to fly in medium or heavy barding.
If all you want is to be a spell caster with a demon bodyguard have you considered taking an archetype to get rid of the familiar and then taking the Leadership feat for a demon cohort? If you're not bothered by what kind of spell caster you are you could go for the summoner and take a demonic eidolon.
I wanted to avoid summoner just because of the eidolon and evolution points being too confusing. Cruel Hex should apply before the sleep effect as the hex hits, damage and save are simultaneous with the sleep kicking in right after the save is failed. What hexes would you recommend because buffing and healing would be counter intuitive when my hex does damage. I am a halfing so that I could raise my familiar's str by 2 with Caretaker. The problem with leadership is that I'd have to be evil but with Demon-Sworn I could just be on the wrong end of a bad deal but have a cool demon anyways.
As for barding, I was planning on having the hawk wear light armor and by 9th have the Quasit wear heavy armor. I haven't checked but I think that with a perfect flyspeed, he should be able to fly in heavy armor and if not then I might do mithral breastplate. I will certainly have to check. If I stay in one class and heavy barding hinders perfect flight, I'll just get him some elven chain and save two feats. Thank you for the advice.
I'm not too familiar with Hexes and none of the major hexes looked too major so some suggestions would be much appreciated. Another thing I need help with is an alternative familiar if hawk ends up being a no-go. I still want something that could defend me on the backline and maybe rush in to aid the frontline.
I have not even looked at patrons as I thought Demon-Sworn had its own but that is not the case. Infernal Contract looks great though it combined with Demon-Sworn means that I effectively have no bonus spells from my from patron itself. I think I will take it regardless so the question will be which Patron Theme to choose? I think strength is thematic enough though vengeance could work since its Ironfang. Its just fluff at this point.
You could make familiar a Patron Familiar AT, you get your patron spells a level late but your familiar gets a boost based on the selected one (my favorite is agility to boost your familiars movements by +10/+20/+30).
Source Familiar Folio pg. 17
Witches’ familiars are often tied to their patrons, enhancing and reinforcing the spellcasters’ connections to the sources of their magical might. Just as a sorcerer can gain a bloodline familiar, a witch can gain a patron familiar by choosing one at 1st level in place of her standard familiar. A patron familiar acts in all ways like a standard witch’s familiar, with the addition of the special ability indicated below according to the witch’s patron. In addition, the witch gains her patron spells 1 level later than she normally would—gaining the patron spell she’d normally receive at 2nd level at 3rd level instead, and so on.
Agility—Supernatural Speed (Su): The familiar is incredibly fast for its type. It gains an enhancement bonus of +10 feet to each of its movement speeds. This bonus increases to +20 feet at 10th level, and to +30 feet at 20th level.
Animals—Animal Speaker (Su): The familiar gains the ability to speak with animals of its kind at 1st level. If it would normally gain this ability at 7th level, the familiar gains the ability to speak with all animals (as though constantly under the effects of speak with animals) at 7th level.
Deception—Distracting (Su and Sp): The familiar gains Bluff and Sense Motive as class skills. At 10th level, the familiar can throw its voice at will, as if using ventriloquism.
Elements—Elemental Touch (Su): Choose an energy type: acid, cold, electricity, or fire. The familiar gains resistance 5 to the selected energy type. Whenever the familiar delivers a touch spell that deals energy damage, it can change the type of energy damage dealt to the selected energy type.
Endurance—Endure Afflictions (Su): The familiar is unnaturally talented at resisting bodily corruption. The familiar and any ally touching it gains a +2 resistance bonus on saving throws against nonmagical poisons and diseases. At 10th level, this bonus also applies against magical diseases and poisons. At 20th level, this bonus also applies against curses.
Plague—Diseased Touch (Ex): Once per day, the familiar can inflict filth fever with its natural attacks for 1 round. At 10th level, the familiar can inflict red ache instead. At 20th level, it can inflict demon fever instead. See page 557 of the Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook for details on these diseases. The familiar may be able to inflict other injury diseases instead at the GM’s discretion.
Shadow—Fearsome Shadows (Sp): Once per day, the familiar can use cause fear as a spell-like ability as long as it is in an area of normal or dim light, affecting a single living creature with a number of Hit Dice up to the familiar’s Intelligence score. Thus, creatures normally immune to cause fear because they have 6 or more Hit Dice may not be immune to the familiar’s cause fear spell-like ability.
Strength—Strength of Mind (Su): A number of times per day equal to its master’s Intelligence modifier (minimum once per day), the familiar can swap its Strength and Intelligence scores as a standard action. This effect lasts for a number of rounds equal to 1/2 the master’s caster level.
Transformation—Shapechanging Familiar (Su): The familiar is able to transform itself. For a number of minutes per day equal to its master’s witch level, the familiar can alter its appearance so that it looks like a different creature of its type and size. The duration doubles at 8th level, and triples at 16th level. This duration need not be consecutive, but it must be used in 1 minute increments. For instance, a cat familiar could appear as any Tiny animal. This change is purely cosmetic, and doesn’t alter the familiar’s statistics.
Trickery—Familiar’s Illusions (Sp): The familiar has a mischievous predilection toward simple illusions. Once per day, the familiar can use a 0-level illusion spell on its master’s spell list as a spell-like ability. At 10th level, it can also use a 1st-level illusion spell on its master’s spell list once per day. At 20th level, it can also use a 2nd-level illusion spell on its master’s spell list once per day.
Water—Amphibious Familiar (Su): The familiar can breathe water for a number of minutes per day equal to 1/2 its master’s witch level. These minutes need not be consecutive, but they must be spent in 1-minute intervals. If the familiar can already breathe water, it can breathe air for the same duration. At 10th level, the familiar gains a swim speed of 30 feet (or a land speed of 30 feet if it already has a swim speed) while using this ability. At 20th level, the familiar can move through water as though under the effects of freedom of movement while using this ability.
Wisdom—Preternatural Wisdom (Su): The familiar gains a Wisdom score of 6. This score increases by 1 point at 3rd level and every 2 levels thereafter (at the same rate as its Intelligence score). This may cause a familiar whose Wisdom score is typically higher than 6 to start with a lower Wisdom score than normal.
Also if I could if you have a cleric, when you switch to the Quasit cash out <Fey Foundling> for a feat for yourself, as your cleric would need alignment channel to affect it, and its fast healing would take care of itself (also <Fey Foundling> doesn't benefit from Fast Healing as there is no die rolled). Alternatively just take <Mauler's Endurance> 1st level and keep your 2nd witch level hex or grab <Accursed Hex> at level 1 just so if you fail to hit them with the effects the first time you get another shot (or at the very least stack up the nonlethal damage from Cruel Hex).
Source Ultimate Magic pg. 1
You can make a second attempt at failed hexes.
Prerequisites: Hex class feature.
Benefit: When you target a creature with a hex that cannot target the same creature more than once per day, and that creature succeeds at its saving throw against the hex’s effect, you can target the creature with the same hex a second time before the end of your next turn. If the second attempt fails, you can make no further attempts to target that creature with the same hex for 1 day.
Normal: You can only target a creature with these hexes once per day.
Also ask your GM if you can use the feat <Ability Focus> with hex to boost those saves by 2. It's not game breaking but some DMs say no to it as it's considered a 'monster' feat.
Benefit: Choose one of the creature’s special attacks. Add +2 to the DC for all saving throws against the special attack on which the creature focuses.
Special: A creature can gain this feat multiple times. Its effects do not stack. Each time the creature takes the feat, it applies to a different special attack.
Hexes are awesome and you'll want to get lots of them. The extra hex feat and unique patron can help offset the archetypes but after giving it a little though I'd consider dropping the Beast Bonded archetype.
There are three main benefits to the archetype: 1. the transfer of feats 2. at level 10 you get functional immortality with Twin Soul 3. the benefits of Twin Soul also apply to your familiar so the risk of losing all your known spells is slim to none.
1. Most of the feats your looking at transferring aren't worth it. As Alphavoltario points out regarding Fey Foundling, the quasit has fast healing 2 and a few extra points of healing from spells just isn't worth the feat in my view. Three feats are being used up just so your familiar can wear barding, you could instead use Share Spells to give them a defensive boost; why use 3 feats+gold when you could use the Mage Armor and Ironskin spells to boost AC instead?
2. OK this is pretty cool and I don't really have an argument against it.
3. The Demon Sworn archetype lets you recreate the exact same quasit with all the same spells known.
Between the Demon Sworn archetype and Infernal Contract your choice of patron theme only determines what 2nd level spell you get at level 4. The Infernal Contract limits your choice of themes to Enchantment, Strength, Trickery and Vengeance. There's certainly nothing wrong with choosing on a purely thematic basis but Trickery gives the Mirror Image spell. Otherwise unavailable to the witch, Mirror Image is a powerful defensive spell representing a significant boon to a class who's spell list contains few strong defensive buffs.
Now hexes. Hexes add a lot of power and versatility to the witch, most hexes are more powerful than the available feats. Now for recommendations in alphabetical order:
Hexes:
Cackle: A classic. As a move action any creature within 30ft that is under the effect of an agony hex, charm hex, evil eye hex, fortune hex, or misfortune hex that was caused by you has the duration of that hex increased by one round. Since you have Cruel Hex this would also deal 1d4 nonlethal damage.
Cauldron: If you want to brew potions take this hex instead of the Brew Potion feat. It gives to the aforementioned feat as a bones and +4 to craft alchemy.
Evil Eye: Another classic choice and a strong one at that. You can apply the different penalties to the same creature. Lowering saving throws will help you land your spells and hexes, lowering ac will help your familiars attacks.
Flight: This should be taken early on. You get a lot of bang for your buck with this hex. by level 5 you'll have at will Featherfall, 1/day Levitate, 1 min/level fly and a +4 racial bonus to swim.
Gift of Consumption+Greater Gift of Consumption: Lets you share (Gift of consumption) or entirely redirect (Greater Gift of Consumption) the effect of anything that requires a fortitude save to a target creature within 30ft.
Misfortune: You get this free with the Infernal Contract unique patron. It's a solid hex.
Murksight: See though natural fog, mist and rain without penalty and see up to 15ft if the effect is magical. This lets you make effective use of fog spells. This hex + Delay Poison + Stinking Cloud make for a potent combination.
Poison Touch: Use on yourself, your familiar, summoned creatures and teammates to give them a poison (Witch Toxin - 1d2 Str damage) claw attack. Not sure how it would interact with the quasit's preexisting poison claw attack though. At level 10 the hex lasts long enough that you could milk yourself or your teammates for a dose of poison.
Swamp Hag: Useful if you're travelling through the relevant terrain. Could work well with the Swamp's Grasp hex.
Water Lung: Breath under water. Useless if you never go near water; useful and potentially life-saving if you do.
Major Hexes:
Agony: Nauseated is a deeply unpleasant condition and one you'll want to apply to your enemies.
Animal Skin: While you wear the skin of an animal you become that animal. A good utility option if you keep a variety of different animal skins. You can still use hexes while polymorphed.
Ice Tomb: A rare hex in that it deals damage. Shuts down an enemy for long as the ice lasts and leaves them staggered if the ice is broken.
Regenerative Sinew: You can use it to apply fast healing 5 or heal ability score damage. At level 15 you can use it to regrow limbs, organs etc. as per regenerate. You can fluff the nonlethal damage caused by Cruel Hex as being a painful healing process. Also 2d4 nonlethal is nothing at the levels you get this hex.
Restless Slumber: Requires the Slumber hex as a prereq. Causes the target creature to take 1d10 damage each turn, this damage doesn't wake them up. when the creature wakes they suffer confusion.
Retribution: when the target creature deals damage in melee, it takes half that damage back, ignoring resistances, immunities etc.
Weather Control: Control the weather. While it has a long casting time you get what is equivalent to a 7th level spell (Control Weather) 3 levels earlier if you take it at level 10.
Finally in addition to the previously mention Ritual Hex feat, at level 11 you'll probably want to take the Split Hex feat which let's to target to creatures with a single hex.
I'm tempted to drop my fighter levels all together though I think I want to be able to share feats with Quasit still. He will never power attack without EG or Beastbonded. Two levels for power attack probably isn't worth it but other feats should help as well. EG should grant my Quasit heavy armor prof and I could give him power attack. Fullplate should be better than Mage Armor and Shield especially since I'm tanking his dex with Mauler.
Going Demonsworn Beastbonded will cost me too many feats and hexes. These are properly good archetypes on their own but they don't seem to be meshing together too well. I think I will go with the Trickery patron for mirror image. The patron familiar options for Infernal Contract aren't too great though if I dropped that patron all together then I'd be able to go with agility. I now have some extra hexes and feats to make this work but I like the flavor of the infernal contract so I will stick with it.
Thank you all, I now know my options. I'd consider this thread closed but I wouldn't mind some new profound options either.