Help me optimize my Ancestor Oracle

[Blue_frog]

Hello,

My last character died, so we're trying something new, and I thought it was the perfect time to see if Oracle were as fun as they seem.

I'd like to go with an ancestor oracle since I love the mechanics. To me, it's probably the most colorful class in the whole game. Do what your ancestors tell you or get punished - but wait, they also fight each other for control. Really fun.

Anyway, the curse can severely hamper one's game if you don't roll with it, so I'd like to try a character that does just that: follow the voices of his ancestors no matter what - since the bonuses are pretty hefty.

So I'll go as soon as possible to Major Curse, then follow the will of my ancestors.

This means that if I am nudged by a spellcasting ancestor, I'll cast a spell. If I'm advised by a battle ancestor, I'll strike. And if I get the Skilled Ancestor, I'll trip, Demoralize or use Medicine like there's no tomorrow.

I'm thinking about some kind of melee build going heavy armor and shield, but I'm torn about my ancestry. I mean, ancestor Oracles is all about ancestry, and you get two more ancestry feats at level 1 and 11.

The shield is pretty useful here since I usually won't split my actions, and I won't have the accuracy to benefit from a second attack.

Fight turn: Move, Strike, Raise Shield. Or Strike x 2, raise shield.
Spell turn: Cast a spell, Raise shield or move.
Skill turn: Trip, Demoralize, Bon Mot, Medicine...

Here's a rough draft, but I'm sure you guys could make it so much better.

Ancestry: Human (Half-elf)
Class: Ancestor Oracle
Background: Warrior (Intimidate + intimidating glare)
STR 16
DEX 10
CON 12
INT 10
WIS 12
CHA 18

Raises in STR, CON, WIS, CHA.

Human: Armor Proficiency
Human: Adapted Cantrip (Electric Arc)
1: Reach Spell
2: Sentinel dedication, Titan Wrestler
3: Toughness
4: Divine Access (Isis for breadth or The Prismatic Ray for fireball), Steel Skin
5: Human: Adapted Adept
6: Armor specialist, Bastion Dedication
8: Advanced Revelation, Bon Mot
10: Quick Block
12: Greater Revelation
14: Mysterious Repertoire
16: Nimble Shield Hand
18: Divine Effusion
20: Oracular Providence

[Mellored]

Grapple and Trip are also skills.

And you do not get an Oracle feat at level 1.

[Blue_frog]

Mellored wrote:

Grapple and Trip are also skills.

And you do not get an Oracle feat at level 1.

Duly noted about the oracle feat ^^

But I don't understand your point about Grapple and Trip, I know they're skills since I'm building around it.

[Mellored]

Blue_frog wrote:

Mellored wrote:

Grapple and Trip are also skills.

And you do not get an Oracle feat at level 1.

Duly noted about the oracle feat ^^

But I don't understand your point about Grapple and Trip, I know they're skills since I'm building around it.

Yea, you are fine. That's what I get for skimming.

What I keep going back and forth on is Spiritual Weapon. That is a Strike, but also a spell attack...
Can't decide how that plays out..

[HumbleGamer]

Starting stats

Str 14
Dex 16
Const 10
Int 10
Wis 10
Char 16

Lvl 2 staff acrobat dedication
Lvl 4 bullying staff
Lvl 6 staff sweep
Lvl 5 str/const/Wis/char
Lvl 8 blessed one dedication
Lvl 9 multi talented > monk
Lvl 10 monk weaponry ( str/Wis/const/vhar)
Lvl 12 monk flurry
Lvl 14 whirlwind stance

Rest up to you

The point of the whole build is to provide a good range of 1 action skills while being able to save 2 actions to cast a spell.

Shortly,

Fighter ancestor in charge

1) Flurry of blows ( 1 action )
2) Cast spell ( 2 actions)

Skilled ancestor in charge

1) Staff sweep ( 1 charge)
2) cast a spell ( 2 actions)

Spell caster ancestor

You will also have lay on hand as 1 point action focus spell if needed ( or if you are afraid to fail the spell check).

So you will be covered in any circumstance.

By lvl 14 you will also have +2 ac given the stance.

You will have no issue regardless the situation.

Ps: your weapon will be a Bo staff with

- reach
- trip
- shove
- +2 AC given by stance

And you will be able to deal even with huge enemies given your bullying staff feature.

Remember to take athletics as main skill, rest up to you.

[Kyrone]

Instead of advanced revelation I would pick Debilitating Dichotomy, really powerful focus spell even with the self damage risk.

Lizardfolk might be interesting for Ancestors

Going Frilled Heritage for Threatening Approach + Trip can be very powerful when skill ancestor is up.

[cavernshark]

I think you might be oversubscribing yourself to too many different disparate styles. On paper that looks like you've got a lot of action choices, but so many of your tactics are sort of gated behind multiple feats that it'll be awhile before you can reasonably get them all going.

An alternative approach might be to get a set of actions that don't conflict with any of the ancestor actions so that you have some common set of abilities you can always fall back on.

The Marshal looks well suited to this. You'll need a Weapon Proficiency from your ancestry (not a problem) to get in at 2 and that immediately gets you expert in Intimidate or Diplomacy as well (probably Intimidate) to help your intimidate actions stick.

Steel Yourself (4) and Cadence Call (6) give you two actions that aren't skills, spells, or strikes that you could use on allies within 10 feet, no matter what ancestor happens to be working with you.

You can still pick up Titan Wrestler, Toughness, etc

Alternatively, you could do Champion Dedication to get heavy armor and Divine Ally at 6 to get an animal companion (horse) which you could always order around. Champions Resiliency at 4 might free you up from Toughness to grab a different General Feat at 3 to help get your skill feats going sooner.

[kripdenn]

If you're not wedded to being a melee combatant, you could focus on using ranged attacks and taking the archer or eldritch archer archetype. That way you can focus more of your feats on offense rather than defense.

[Hikiomaru]

I was looking too at the Ancestors Oracle and i found out that a good dedication to play with it is the beastmaster dedication or the cavalier dedication.
Those dedications give you a fast progress animal companion that you can order whatever dominant spirit you have that turn, since the command an animal action for an animal companion is not a skill nor a strike nor a spell, thus making you able to "fill the gap" in your turns.
For example, you could cast a spell and then command your animal to move and attack, keeping up your dps, or commanding him in your battle spirit rounds, making a use of a third action that won't get a good use in a third strike and also giving you a self sufficient way of flanking, that being a good thing to improve your accuracy.
Also in the skill rounds you could make some combat maneuvers as some others said and also use your animal companion to, again, flank and keep up the dps.

I think that's a pretty good choice (and the one i'm taking if i don't see anything better) since it gives you versatility and also gives it from very early levels (level 1 if you choose elf or half-elf, altough a duskwalker ancestor oracle could be a good mechanic and roleplay choice). That way you have options for whatever thing you manage to have a bonus and also something to fill the gaps. Combine that with a good selection of spells, a focus on athletism and maybe a reach weapon or more heavier armor and you have a "jack of all trades".

[kripdenn]

I noticed you don't say what weapon your oracle will use and don't have any feats that would give proficiency in martial weapons. Is this character only going to use simple weapons? And I don't see why you chose a half-elf character. The versatile human heritage would probably be more helpful because then you could get the armor proficiency general feat, adapted cantrip, and unconventional weaponry with the extra ancestry feat from your mystery.