I've been thinking about building a hangover cleric for some time now.
Now I decided to give it a try.
I might take another dip if it grants me further channel energy which I can apply variant channeling to.
Cleric of Sun Wukong 4 / Fey Trickster Mesmerist 1 / whatever 1
I don't have a full build yet, but here is what I planned:
Race: Not fully decided but might be Halforc for Intimidating and sacred tattoo.
Alignment: CN
Traits: Sacred Conduit +Dominator
Feats:
1: Selective channeling
3: Improved channel
5: Ability focus (channel energy) assuming I am allowed to take. Please don't discuss this.
Channel negative energy
Domains: 2 of Animal, Liberation, Travel not decided yet
Variant channeling Ale/wine
The idea is to apply my Hypnotic Stare to the main enemy, then channel negative with ale/wine variant or intimidate.
Later I might take either command undead or quick channel
On second thought I think I'll take extra channel at level 5 and put ability focus to later levels.
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Good plan to take Extra Channel at 5th! I played a Sun Wukong Hangover Cleric for 10 levels. I learned that Extra Channels are in demand!
Consider also taking at least a 14 Strength and a reach weapon, for what I call basic martial competence. That's all you need to be a moderately effective melee combatant. This turns out to be quite useful & important for a hangover cleric. Foes who save will likely make you a priority target. STR 14 plus a reach weapon keeps you MUCH safer than, say, using a shield. This because you can often trip or stab foes who try to come near, which sometimes prevents them from attacking you at all.
Surprisingly, you do NOT need any feat investment, nor more than STR 14, to pull this off. STR 12 is not sufficient, but STR 14 is. Everyone gets one AoO. STR 14 is the magic number at which your longspear attacks become reasonably effective.
You'll hardly ever use your longspear to attack during your round, except possibly in the 'cleanup' phase of combat.You may be surprised how much and how often your single AoO will contribute. This approach is 'reach cleric light', and is quite an effective way to add defensive power to any PC at minimal cost.
For example, if one plays Kyra the Iconic Cleric (STR 14) and gets her a longspear, one will find that she takes less damage, inflicts more damage, and exerts more battlefield control. I've done this quite a few times. If you have the chance to swap out her (poorly chosen) default spells for Summon Monster spells she will be even more effective.
The benefits of basic martial competence gradually decrease as you level up. Improved survival rate and increased group contribution at lower levels makes it totally worth it, though.