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This is a brainstorm and discussion thread for amazing combos involving awakened animals. Contribute to it however you like.
I for one can't help but think that someone wanting to play a traditional animal (that is, one that does not appear obviously magical or unnatural) may want to pursue the monk class to empasize unarmed attacks and mobility, or perhaps the barbarian or rogue class, since those classes' combat abilities are not especially hindered by the lack of manufactured weapons.
If you don't want the weirdness of having hands on an animal that traditionally doesn't have opposable thumbs, but also don't want to be crippled, I might recommend the kineticist. Since you won't be wielding weapons, your "hands" will be free for your impulses, and you won't have to worry about feeling gimped in combat. You might even have some mobility or utility options to help you get around your (self-imposed) limitations.
I for one can't wait to play an awakened fiery leopard or smoldering leopard that taps into their innate fiery nature to deliver fire blasts and impulses, or a rhino that earth blasts enemies by gouging up and tossing boulders from the earth with their horn.
Play a champion of evil and take the zombie or ghoul dedication to play a circus animal visitant so tortured in life by their handlers that they returned as a vengeful spirit.
Or maybe play a reverse summoner, in which the humanoid is the eidolon. lol.
Or for something more martial oriented, take the Mind Smith or Soul Forger dedication and play a psyloch-styled anime space cat that crawled out of a wrecked pod among some Numerian wreckage and battles with psychic projections.
Or play as the hypnotic Kaa (from the Jungle Book), or as a spellcasting naga, with an awakened serpent and the Captivator archetype.
So many cool combos and ideas to be born from this! What are some of your own ideas?
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Kinda boring but my mind goes to just a standard fighter. Like I love the idea of a goat, like a devil-horned goat, walking on two legs with armor and a greatsword that you're like… how do you wield that with…hooves?
A snake thief rogue purely to play into the cartoon visual language where a snake's body winds around to perform the body-language of arms.
Alternatively there's a lot of meat in being a former adventurer's companion. A dead Champion's mount who's retained that spark of the divine to become a cleric or oracle. The Wizard's familiar who's rebelled against its master and combined what arcane magic it's picked up with blade or claw on the path of the magus. Hell, with a couple of these, a leshy, and a poppet you could have a whole party of ex-familiars!
With the recent playtest I also like the idea of a large awakened animal (or a centaur) Guardian, a horse or an elephant with a mobile battle-station built into your armor from which your tiny allies can attack from cover.
A dog nephilim who's what happens when you don't spay and neuter your hellhounds.
These are just off the top, looking forward to what others come up with!
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So I am thinking of making an Awakened Owl Cleric of Shyka, which has been the familiar of an Elven Fate Witch/Cleric of Shyka I've been playing for a while.
The twist is that this will involve Shyka time weirdness, because my Elven Witch will still be around with her version of the familiar, with the implication that the Awakened Cleric has come from the future, who has memories of her former mistress' death.
Especially fun because the owl's name has always been Future. (And the Elf's is an alternate spelling of Cassandra.)
Mechanically Future will be a Tiny Owl Cloistered Cleric with the Time Domain, and will take at least a few feats from the Winged Warrior Archetype, but will stay out of melee combat as much as possible.
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Townsend already mentioned in passing the funniest idea I have right now--an Awakened Horse. Currently loving the idea of a Horse Commander but I'm struggling to come up with a way for you to bring your own somewhat humanoid rider with you into combat. Nearest I have right now is the Undead Master archetype and throwing a zombie or skeleton companion up there. Alternatively an Awakened Horse summoner can easily conjure a phantom or other hominid eidolon.
Another silly idea that doesn't really seem to have any business going anywhere is an awakened wolf 'leader of the pack' Ranger who has the Beastmaster archetype and keeps taking more wolf companions with their "Additional Companion" feats. Since you can't use multiple companions simultaneously until level 16 this would mean just dumping up to 3 class feats in the drain for the bit, but what a bit it would be.
On the other hand, take that Wolf Ranger again and add th aforemention Undead Master archetype and watch as you swap between your wolf and ghost wolf companions - now with free flavour that your companions avoid one another. This way at least you might conceivably have different niches for each of your two companions (and could find more if you wanted to add zombie and vampire wolves)
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Swimming animal, armor inventor, with the aquatic wheelchair and Sterling Dynamo archetype
You are an awakened bivalve... like an oyster or a clam. you normally use your body mass as an arm, until you can pick up the sterling dynamo archetype for the advanced prosthetics.
Awakened Spider fate-mystery Oracle with the Ifrit versatile heritage. You know there is a human you are supposed to bestow a divine gift on, but after a blast of strange energy in numeria, you are lost and trying to find the human... you are the spider supposed to bite spiderman.
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My friends pointed out that, with the system options as they stand currently, it would be all too easy to make a Pokémon or Digimon character or campaign. Or a Kung Fu Panda campaign.
Or use the Beastkin versatile heritage to play an awakened animal from Avatar the Last Airbender, such as a turtle duck or polar bear dog.
Oh what it is to be alive in these times!
Is there a way for an Awakened Animal to change into a human shape ? I could then recreate my OA's hengeyokai unarmed kensai from 30 years ago (as a Monk obviously).
Masquerade scarf might also do the trick.
I was thinking about a deer who's forest ends up dealing with an otherworldly incursion that leads to their awakening due to a malevolent symbiotic entity bonding with them. They end up becoming an investigator to figure out how to stop it, all while trying to stave off the influence of the entity.
To my surprise, Fascinated by Society and Urban Jungle fits pretty well with Investigator. The announcement of the Palantine Detective for later this year is another boon to the idea, as I was considering the idea of them being a member of the Palatine Eye, albeit a tenuous one at best.
Otherwise, my playgroup has made some other fun ideas, such as a juggling zoophonia seal bard and a swarmkeeper sloth precision ranger who's swarm are the sloth moths that live upon it.
Does anyone know how well the "PC as mount" rules work, if you push them far enough? How close could we get to the venerable barbarian rage stack? (Giant Barb on the bottom to get someone huge, natch)
Alternate silliness: stack as many commanders as you can on one another, with something large and zippy at the bottom of the stack so that all fo the standards overlap and you an do funny things by cgranting the one at the bottom All The Bonus Moves.
In general, the basic idea of "How many Commanders can we fit on this bear?"
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Simple can be nice too:
Awakened turtle monk with monastic weaponry. Choose an appropriate colored bandana for the weapon of your choice though^^
Orange. Definitely orange.
Nunchaku don't get near enough love, and most every roleplayer is a jokester anyhow.
Boo. Somebody just pointed out to me that Beastkin can only be applied to humanoids, which awakened animals are not.
My first one will be a 52 lb jackal of Lamashtu scoundrel rogue with the beast master archetype and the bandit background named Reirei.
Other ideas include a cheetah investigator; an otter investigator with gunslinger archetype, duel wielding air repeaters; a leucrotta champion of Shelyn; a compsognathus witch with a rhamphorhynchus familiar; baryonyx barbarian; kangaroo monk
I want to play in a campaign where every PC is literally a cat. I think my literally a cat character is going to be a tiger style monk, but I want to read PC2 first.
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Well since Raven Black already mentioned my favorite, how about:
1. Deer gunslinger, Djbambi unchained.
2. Python psychic or occult sorcerer, "Kaa."
3. Commander Salamander. No real theme, I just like the name.
4. And of course, every group needs a Raccoon Inventor with the gunslinger archetype (or is it the other way around?)
Which was your favorite I mentioned ?
Of course, 3. should be named Alexander.
Maybe nicknamed the Pretender. With the profession of Bartender.
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Quetzal Caduceus - Awakened Animal Snake Warpriest Cleric with a Wing Graft that takes the Winged Warrior archetype
Playing a bit with the themes of the 4 Wardens and the 4 Awakened Animal Heritages…
“Oceans & Rivers!… Caverns & Burrows!… Forests & Meadows!… Peaks & Skies! Long ago the 4 Wardens lived together in harmony. Then, everything changed when… “
- The Last Avatar of the 4 Wardens of the Wilds! - Flying Awakened Animal (some type of bird for flying) Untamed Order Druid (cat and badger forms for climbing and burrowing) w/WereCreature archetype (werecroc or wereshark for swimming)
Moose & Squirrel - multiple personality Awakened Animal Barbarian who is a Flying animal for the mild mannered flying squirrel part, but has the WereCreature archetype for the WereMoose when his raging moose personality comes out to play.
Man-Bear-Pig should be a thing here somewhere too, but I’m feeling too lazy to bring myself to make it. I guess just make with an Awakened Pig with a WereBear archetype and whatever class you want.
I'd like to play an awakened goat diabolical sorcerer. Seeding distrust and playing mind tricks. ...Maybe with hellspawn nephilim mixed in. Black Phillip from the movie "The Witch".
I've been thinking about non-caster/Kineticist options.
Commander is great. Direct the flow of battle as a cat or ferret or something. Banner tied to tail? For anything at least small size, melee strikes feats give you some non-damage perks to using weak natural attacks. For a fully hand-off build, picking up an animal companion (maybe a housecat / big cat or dog / wolf duo?) covers your other actions.
Surprisingly, the most "hands full" class, Thaumaturge, works pretty well. Put your implements on your collar and have your metaphysical hands permanently occupied by them, then use a bite attack with the Thaumaturge damage buff.
Animal Barbarian works, and opens up some mythical creatures. Turn your rabbit into a jackalope, your horse into a unicorn, or your lion into a manticore.
Apothecary bee Alchemist. The class always has their hands full with vials and such, so just make that be something other than hands.
Is there any way to Grapple/Trip Huge/Gargantuan creatures even if you're tiny? Titan Wrestler will get you Small, Medium, and Large but if you want to be a kitty cat who can grapple a T. Rex is there any way to do this?
With my jackal rogue I am thinking of taking the nephilim heritage to better connect her to Lamashtu and represent how fat she is.
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Is there a way for an Awakened Animal to change into a human shape ? I could then recreate my OA's hengeyokai unarmed kensai from 30 years ago (as a Monk obviously).
Druid w/ Anthropomorphic Shape & Form Control for extended times. Best bit it isn't a Battle Form so you can use your full suite of abilities though it may lead to strange situations if you drop some of your gear.
I also fancy the idea of an Animal Barbarian choosing Ape Instinct.
What kind of ape? Homo Sapien. Or heck, Neanderthal though I'm unsure how much Golarion's anthropology matches Earth's. I could imagine an Awakened Cat thinking that of course humans are brutish animals. "Raised by such primitive beasts, I have become one with them!" (Now thinking of a cat much like Stewie from Family Guy; ornery, yet vulnerable to cuddles & other appeals.)
"That guy is always mad!"
"He can only appear when mad."
"What?"
"Never mind."
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I also fancy the idea of an Animal Barbarian choosing Ape Instinct.
What kind of ape? Homo Sapien.
Back before we had the first glimpse of what the werecreature rules would look like, I had been joking something similar... an awakened wolf who, every full moon, transforms into a human and indulges in such primal human instincts as getting drunk and paying taxes.
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Is there any way to Grapple/Trip Huge/Gargantuan creatures even if you're tiny? Titan Wrestler will get you Small, Medium, and Large but if you want to be a kitty cat who can grapple a T. Rex is there any way to do this?
Spells like Grasp of the Deep etc.
The size limitation is given in the Grapple check not in the Grab condition.
So yes there are ways to do it you just need to find an ability where the writer didn't put it in.
Example Combat Grab.
Combat Grab
[one-action]
Feat 2
Fighter Press
Source Player Core pg. 141
Archetypes Wrestler*, Zombie*
Requirements You have one hand free, and your target is within reach of that hand
Using your prior attack to shift your opponent’s guard, you take another swing and grab them. Make a melee Strike while keeping one hand free. If the Strike hits, you grab the target using your free hand. The creature remains grabbed until the end of your next turn or until it Escapes, whichever comes first.
So a tiny Sprite Fighter can grab the Tarrasque and immobilize it.
Run that one by your GM, that should get his heart started.
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...
The size limitation is given in the Grapple check not in the Grab condition.
So yes there are ways to do it you just need to find an ability where the writer didn't put it in.Example Combat Grab.
...
So a tiny Sprite Fighter can grab the Tarrasque and immobilize it.
Run that one by your GM, that should get his heart started.
*Heart started*
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Well since Raven Black already mentioned my favorite, how about:
3. Commander Salamander. No real theme, I just like the name.
Except is her name Coriander? and she would clearly be built for an aquatic campaign other wise why would we all talk about her single-hander belly-lander!
Anyone who gets this reference you are awesome... and a nerd.
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Back before we had the first glimpse of what the werecreature rules would look like, I had been joking something similar... an awakened wolf who, every full moon, transforms into a human and indulges in such primal human instincts as getting drunk and paying taxes.I also fancy the idea of an Animal Barbarian choosing Ape Instinct.
What kind of ape? Homo Sapien.
Animals get drunk too and the alpha eating first might sound like taxes.
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Well since Raven Black already mentioned my favorite, how about:
3. Commander Salamander. No real theme, I just like the name.
Except is her name Coriander? and she would clearly be built for an aquatic campaign other wise why would we all talk about her single-hander belly-lander!
Anyone who gets this reference you are awesome... and a nerd.
Had to Google it, but much impressed.
Had to Google it, but much impressed.Well since Raven Black already mentioned my favorite, how about:
3. Commander Salamander. No real theme, I just like the name.
Except is her name Coriander? and she would clearly be built for an aquatic campaign other wise why would we all talk about her single-hander belly-lander!
Anyone who gets this reference you are awesome... and a nerd.
"Commander Coriander Salamander and 'Er Single Hander Bellylander" linkified for everyone's convenience.
(EDIT: I made a picture of what I imagine she'd look like.)
Would this be a terrible time to mention that I made a Calvin and Hobbes spoof character a ways back?
Halvin (aka Spaceman Fipps), imaginative kid explorer (CN male irongut goblin animal whisperer ranger 6)