Useful Feats for a Animal Companion focused Sorcerer

[Gevurah]

I’m playing a Human Sylvan Sorcerer (currently lvl 7) with a Big Cat as Animal Companion.

Her Stats are:
STR 7
DEX 10
CON 16
INT 9
WIS 14
CHA 19

I took the Eye for Talent alternate racial trait, so I didn’t get any extra feat at first level. For lvls 1 and 3 I took Boon Companion and Totem Beast (Bull).

I also took Reach Spell at lvl 5 and I was planning on taking Distant Spell Link at lvl 7. But so far I’ve had little use to extend the reach of my spells, so I’m having second thoughts on it. I’m even thinking about retraining my lvl 5 feat.

The idea of the build is pretty obvious. She starts by casting Haste on the party and sending her Juggernaut to the front row and attack. On the following turns she stays away from the battlefield but in range for close range spells and keeps buffing the beast with spells such as Shield, Fly, Vine Strike, False Life, Protection from Evil, ect. She also uses Shield Companion to serve as an extra energy tank to the cat. If someone gets close or attempts to attack the Sorcerer, she tries to get away via Mirror Image, Invisibility, Dimension Door (eventually) or the like.

I’m considering keeping Reach Spell for emergencies and taking Spirit's Gift (Life Spirit) as my lvl 7 feat to heal the beast out of battle; not being a divine caster, she doesn’t have easy access to cure spells.

I’m still indecisive as to which feat or chain of feats to take. Any suggestions?

EDIT: Oh, I forgot to mention, please keep it PFS legal.

[Selvaxri]

There is the "Beast-Bond Brand" magic item that allows you to cast spells onto your you kitty without burning extra slots for Reach Magic. 1000 gold for ten charges worth of spells. so, retraining is probably better. the Brand is cheaper than a Lesser Reach Metamagic Rod.
as for spells, look into obtaining Rings and Pages of Spell Knowledge- a somewhat expensive way to increase your spell list.

Feat wise, at 7th, Spell Penetration is probably your best bet. i know you're a buffer mage, but you never know when you need a scorching ray or fireball something- at this level, numerous things will have spell resistance.
Toughness is never something to be scoffed at. Steadfast Personality can bolster your will saves. there's nothing worse than an opposing wizard dominating you. granted, doesn't help against non-mind affecting; but show me a spell with a will save that isn't mind-affecting.

What feats does the kitty have? Toughness, Dodge, Improved Natural Attack, Vital Strike may be the go-to's. i'm not a fan of "power attack for all melee builds" mentality.
as for out of combat healing- spend the prestige for a Wand of Infernal Healing.

[Gevurah]

Selvaxri wrote:

There is the "Beast-Bond Brand" magic item

Selvarxi, you're a lifesaver and Beast Bond Brand is a godsend. I'm definitely retraining out Reach Spell.

I usually hate wondrous items with a finite number of uses, but I've only used Reach Spell once or twice in 7 levels worth of adventures. I think the brand will last for a while.

Selvaxri wrote:

Feat wise...

I suppose Toughness is a solid choice, since I share my HP with the cat. I'm not entirely sold on Steadfast Personality, I already have a decent Will Save.

I'm considering maybe taking Combat Casting or Deific Obedience (Nethys); failing a concentration check has been a problem in the past.

Selvaxri wrote:

What feats does the kitty have?

Right meow it has Power Attack, Toughness, Weapon Focus (Bite), and Weapon Focus (Claws). For its next feat I'm selecting Extra Item Slot (Belt) and buying a Belt of Mighty Constitution.

I believe Improved Natural Attack is not PFS Legal. Vital Strike is nice, but the Cat can attack from 3 to 6 times per round (with a hasted pounce) which, IMHO, trumps Vital Strike. Also, taking Vital Strike would require that I allocate at least 1 ability point into INT (since the feat doesn't appear in the basic list), and the're all already spent.

Selvaxri wrote:

as for out of combat healing- spend the prestige for a Wand of Infernal Healing.

Agreed, this is much better than spending a feat on it. Great advice.

[Selvaxri]

Improved Natural Attack is legal, only if another source grants it as an available feat. >>highlighted of emphasis<<

From the Additional Resources

Quote:

Pathfinder Roleplaying Game: Bestiary

Animal Companions: ankylosaurus, aurochs, brachiosaurus, dire bat, dire rat, dolphin, elasmosaurus, electric eel, elephant/mastodon, frog, goblin dog, hyena, monitor lizard, moray eel, octopus, orca, pteranodon, rhinoceros, roc, squid, stegosaurus, triceratops, and tyrannosaurus; Familiars: all familiars listed on pages 131-133; Feats: none of the feats are legal for play for PCs, animal companions, or familiars unless specifically granted by another legal source; Other: all creatures in this book are legal for polymorph effects (including a druid's wild shape ability) within the boundaries of each spell or ability's parameters. All languages found in this book are available for a character to learn with the linguistics skill, except aboleth and drow sign language.

Animal companions [and rangers with natural attack combat style] may select Improved Natural Attack as it is one of the feats it has access to. But you have to select which natural attack to apply it to.

A PC with natural attacks cannot select INA as a Normal Progression Feat, as they don't have an alternative source that provides them with access to the feat.

Another magic item to consider: Dire Collar. Enlarge Person on your animal companion for a minute, once per day may be worth while. Save a spell slot.

[Gevurah]

Selvaxri wrote:

Improved Natural Attack is legal...

Nice catch, I'll probably take this feat eventually.

Selvaxri wrote:

Another magic item to consider: Dire Collar...

It is a nice way to save a spell slot, but Animal Companions have limited Item Slots and the cat already wears an Amulet of Mighty Fists.

Thanks again.

[XigXag]

This doesn't help at all in your case. My companion-focused Sylvan Sorcerer found the most useful feat to be the teamwork feat Paired Opportunists. This was for PFS.

See, the animal companion was an Axe Beak, and my gnome sorcerer rode it. The sorcerer always carried a longspear, despite having low strength. Both had the Paired Opportunists feat. The Axe Beak has reach, so both threatened 10' away. The axe beak also took the Combat Reflexes feat, giving it four (4!) AoOs.

Whenever a foe attempted to come close the sorcerer would try to trip it. With an extra +4. If that didn't work then the axe beak would also try to trip it. At +4. When the foe tried to stand up then both PC and Companion would get more AoOs, this time at +8 (!!!).

The overall effect was that melee foes had a very difficult time getting close enough to attack. Most attackers fell down, took damage, and failed to attack. Smarter foes would sometimes just remain prone and 10' away, to avoid further punishment.