Help for a Sylvan Sorcerer

[grindyelmo]

Dear community, I'm looking for your insight into the development of my character. We're playing Carrion Crown and are almost through the second book. At the end of last session we turned level 7 and I'm unsure how to proceed. Next to me my party consists of a standard strength based tiefling magus focused on shocking grasp and an aasimar angelfire apostle cleric with glory and day domains. My character is an aasimar sylvan sorcerer that up to know mostly buffs her devil monkey that is the biggest damage source for the team. Sometimes I use scorching ray/magic missile.

Str 12 Dex 18 Con 16 Int 14 Wis 10 Cha 20

Traits: Beat Bond, Focused Mind
Feats: Celestial Servant, Boon Companion, Wasp Familiar

Feats of the devil monkey: Combat Reflexes, Power Attack, Hefty Brute
The wasp familiar has the protector archetype.

At level 7 I'll probably get Improved Initiative from my sorcerer bonus feats but I'm really open to suggestions.
How would you proceed with feats and spells? I see a potential in getting weapon finesse and polymorph myself into smaller forms. I'll be choosing polymorph spells for the devil monkey anyway but damage might be an issue for my sorcerer. Or should I go for a blaster role? Or focus on more transmuting spells and pick some offensive ones?

Up to now we have not encountered anything that we couldn't power through. Traps are circumvented or disabled with wand of mount/break. Skills are well spread.

Thanks for your help!

[Ryze Kuja]

Sylvan Sorcerers pwn; the only spell you absolutely *need* is Greater Polymorph, so you can turn your AC into a Dragon, because that's just fun. Other than that, you can kinda pick a little bit of everything. Get a couple blasters like Fireball and Scorching Ray, a couple buffing spells like haste, displacement, some debuffs like Enervation and Slow, make sure you have dispel for counterspelling and magic removal, maybe a Save or Die spell like Hold Person, and you're golden. I would focus on being a well-rounded caster, especially since you have a Magus and Cleric who are probably going to cover a lot of blaster/buff spells.

[ErichAD]

It's probably useful to pickup monstrous physique for the deathsnatcher. I doubt you'd be able to tip the scales with your sorcerer as a melee unit, it could be fun to pickup weapon finesse like you said, but I wouldn't expect any benefit other than fun.

If your companion is outperforming the rest of the party in damage output, it could be useful to look at better ways to support them. You're also probably the best option for area of effect damage, so make sure you have something for swarms and mobs.

[Mark Hoover 330]

Returning Weapon, or the Communal version? The Devil Monkey has Rock Throwing; maybe you could find spells that enhance that? A nice buff for the AC might also be Elemental Aura, shared to it through Share Spells. Another one along those same lines is Eruptive Pustules.

Also, does Carrion Crown allow any Downtime for making consumables? If so and no one has any item creation feats, maybe taking Scribe Scroll, Brew Potion, Craft Wand or Craft Wondrous Item could be helpful. I know that's kind of generic but that's another way to go.

[grindyelmo]

Thanks everyone for your suggestions.
I'm already polymorphing the devil monkey into a deathsnatcher via Monstrous Physique 1 if he's not throwing rocks while doing reach tactics. It's pretty cool and flexible.

I think if we both took the Improved Spell Share teamwork feat on 7th and 8th level buffing in the first round would be more effective. Elemental Aura is a great idea, so is maybe Call the Void.

Maybe I'll really go into a more broad utilitarian direction. Until I'd say that there's almost no downtime for crafting.

If anyone has more ideas for development or tactics, please share!

[keerawa]

It is not worth spending feats trying to make a sorcerer useful in melee. You probably already know this, but defenses like Mirror Image, Blur, Magic Circle vs Evil, etc, are essential for keeping your companion alive. Enemies will target his saves. If he doesn't already have Iron Will, pick it up!

Improved Spell Sharing is 100% worth it! Getting off a clutch Resist Energy Fire in that first round on both of you before the dragon breathes fire is great, and a single casting of an hour or 10 min/level spell can cover both of you.

Evolved Companion or Spirit's Gift might be good feats for you - check them out and talk to your GM to see what options they'll allow.

As you reach higher level, think about how your party can overcome DR. If something has DR 15/adamantine, can your companion and the other two cope with that?

Spell Resistance becomes common, so make sure you have the ability to overcome that or have spells that ignore it. Glitterdust, Wall of Force, buffs, etc.

Metamagic is starting to become useful. Extend, Persistent, and Quicken are my favorites; Heighten can also be good for a sorcerer. A quickened Vanish WILL save your life.

For a sorcerer, the Shadow Conjuration, Evocation, and Enchantment spells offer incredible flexibility. They are not just for attack, but also for utility, in case you need to Grease someone who is grabbed, get some acid damage onto a troll, cast Heroism on everyone before an Occult Ritual, etc.

Speaking of grab - Liberating Command is very, very worthwhile. Dispel Magic is GREAT for a spontaneous caster. You can recast as needed if it doesn't work, and it can be used offensively or defensive. As Ryze mentioned, your group seems light on AoE, so picking up at least one of those to deal with swarms is useful. My favorite for a sorcerer is Dragon's Breath, because of the flexibility.

I believe Carrion Crown has all types of horror creatures. Make sure you can deal with undead! Slow is effective, and it might even be worth picking up a spell or two that targets them specifically, like Command Undead or Halt Undead

ood luck!G

[grindyelmo]

Thanks! Much appreciated!