Phoenix Bloodline?


Pathfinder Second Edition General Discussion


An idle thought that came to mind was the Phoenix Bloodline from PF1e, known mainly for its healing capabilities. Specifically, using fire spells to heal allies instead of damaging them. When thinking about it, first of all I realized that I'm not sure if it would be capable of such feats in 2e. There's no feat support for such a function, and Blood Magic is much more limited with its effects on yourself and others. Maybe a focus power, but otherwise I don't see it.

The second thing that came to mind; "what tradition would a Phoenix bloodline use?" Primal seems like the obvious choice on account of having a lot of fire spells, but given their ties to mythology and occasional treatment as borderline divine (bear in mind I'm not a mythology buff), I could see the Divine spell list as an option too. But it doesn't have a lot of fire spells.

I like phoenixes, both the mythological animal and as a motif. But I never played as or did a lot of reading into the Phoenix Bloodline; I only have a relatively vague recollection of the ways it could be abused. So while I don't have much of a dog in this race, I can't help but raise the question:

If the Phoenix Bloodline were to return, what tradition do you think it would have? What bloodline spells? Do you think they'd bring back its restorative powers in some way? Do you think they'll bring it back at all?


One of the LO books this year will have the Ruby Phoenix Bloodline.

About the Fire to healing, it could be a focus spell metamagic that modifies a fire spell to heal instead of doing damage or just a fire focus spell that you have the choice between healing or damage.


Phoenixes in the bestiary have Primal magic, so I'd imagine that that's what they'd default to. Primal also has the nice upside of having both healing effects and plentiful fire effects.

I'm not sure what sort of actual resurrection effect you could get away with making a focus spell, but you could sprinkle a few into the bloodline spells, and maybe have some healing (or flexible healing/damage) spells as focus spells.

I would hope that a Phoenix bloodline would have some kind of focus on restoration. Otherwise, the Elemental bloodline already exists, and while it's not a perfect representation of a purely offensively-focused phoenix, it's pretty close.

Liberty's Edge

As Joyd notes, Phoenixes are listed with Primal magic in the Bestiary and that tradition has both all the fire spells and some of the best healing, so I think it's almost certain to indeed be Primal.

I would imagine that their Bloodline spells would poach a bunch of Divine spells as well, though (most notably, I imagine it would have Raise Dead).

In terms of Bloodline Arcana, I could see something that healed you or others when you cast Fire spells, that's a well established PF2 mechanic that could be made to work, and I could definitely see a Focus Spell that was a Reaction that, like Orc Ferocity, prevented your own death but also healed a fair bit of damage when used, and/or did fire damage to nearby stuff. That's pretty on-theme and very much within what the mechanics would allow for a higher level Focus Spell.


Kyrone wrote:

One of the LO books this year will have the Ruby Phoenix Bloodline.

About the Fire to healing, it could be a focus spell metamagic that modifies a fire spell to heal instead of doing damage or just a fire focus spell that you have the choice between healing or damage.

This year as in within 2020? Or this year as in "by August of 2021"?


Pathfinder Starfinder Society Subscriber

If the source of that bloodline is supposed to be the AP for the Ruby Phoenix tournament, that AP comes out in April through June of 2021.


It’s in the Pathfinder Society guidebook thing in the LO line.


I would also say "primal." And I'd say it in such a way as to indicate that both (a) it is the obvious choice and (b) the only choice.

The reason for this is because while traditional phoenixes are fire based, there are ice, lightning, and air "phoenixes" if you look hard enough. Beyond that, the phoenix is the literal manifestation of fire, given undying life, raw and untamed.

And the only spell list that has these is the primal list.

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