Hello,
I've been toying with a character concept of a wizard in full plate. Following the classic build of Fighter (Armiger) 1, Wizard 5, Hellknight Signifier X, the character reaches -25% ASF by total level 9, which allows for a mithral full plate without failure, but the maximum reached is -30% at level 14, which does not allow non-mithral full plate (35%). Does anyone know any way to claim that final 5% so the character could wear a badass adamantine Hellknight full plate? I know there's the Hellknight Obedience for the Order of the Gate which eliminates ASF in any Hellknight armor at level 16, but if the character cannot do his obedience for any reason or is forced to wear an armor that isn't Hellknight, I would like to still be at 0% ASF.
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I'm not aware of anything else you can do to further reduce ASF. It sucks that arcane spell casters need to extra feats (and maybe a level dip) to wear armor effectively.
The other way around this is to use the still spell metamagic feat (oddly the rod version does not appear to exist).
Edit: I did some looking and found the shielded mage feat. It doesn't provide DR, but it might help keep your AC high.
Shielded Mage
There is a 3.5 Fighter Alternate Class Feature that may interest you (with GM approval)
Armored Mage
Rare is the fighter who hasn't envied the wizard's bag of magical tricks. Although even the most basic arcane spell remains beyond a fighter's abilities, those who aspire to such talents can, with practice, learn to cast simple arcane spells while wearing light armor. On its own, this alternative feature grants little benefit to a single-classed fighter; only in conjunction with one or more levels of sorcerer, wizard, or a similar arcane spellcasting class does this ability come into play.
Class: Fighter.
Level: 1st.
Special Requirement: Knowledge (arcana) 1 rank.
Replaces: You lose proficiency with medium armor and heavy armor.
Benefit: Choose one arcane spellcasting class, such as sorcerer. You can avoid any chance of arcane spell failure for spells gained from this class as long as you restrict yourself to light armor and light shields. This training does not extend to any other form of armor or shields, nor does this ability apply to spells gained from other spellcasting classes.
This benefit applies only to spells of a level equal to or lower than your fighter class level + 1.
Additionally, there is a Feat (Battlecaster) which allows no ASF in medium armor. I don't remember if it can be taken twice.
you could always play a Magus instead.
In your case there is the Signifer Armor Training feat. Ask your GM if he will allow you to activate the feat as a free action (the benefit the Hellknight Signifer prestige class offers Arcane Armor Mastery), which is not RAW but seems like something you should be allowed with this combination of feat and prestige class.
OmniMage wrote: The other way around this is to use the still spell metamagic feat (oddly the rod version does not appear to exist).
Edit: I did some looking and found the shielded mage feat. It doesn't provide DR, but it might help keep your AC high.
Shielded Mage
I did do a different character with Still Spells before, being a Sorcerer/Dragon Disciple with Dimensional Dervish, casting some still spells but mostly focused on Dimension Door, in full plate and getting full attacks. I'm not looking to create a similar idea again. I am well aware of the shielded mage feat but this is more about getting the adamantine DR on the armor and less about the total AC, so a shield is not really an alternative. If it was about AC, I'd go mithral and raise my dex. Hellknights, after all, are all about their armor (and mask for Signifiers).
Tom Sampson wrote: In your case there is the Signifer Armor Training feat. Ask your GM if he will allow you to activate the feat as a free action (the benefit the Hellknight Signifer prestige class offers Arcane Armor Mastery), which is not RAW but seems like something you should be allowed with this combination of feat and prestige class. That feat is great! I was unaware of its existence. It solves half the issue in that it works even if I can't do my obedience (in fact I wouldn't take both feats) although it doesn't work with an armor that isn't Hellknight. Still, such a situation should not really happen outside of being bulgarized or captured and escaping, so after getting that feat and crafting/buying an adamantine Hellknight full plate, I'm set!
On top of everything else, this feat also allows to choose a different order than Order of the Gate. Not that I was planning on a specific order yet, but it's good to have options.
Side question: when did Signifiers change from immediate action to free action? I'm sure I've seen immediate action on AoN in the past, and D20PFSRD still list immediate action. Was there a FAQ change or a reprint?
It likely happened in the Adventurer's Guide book.
Tom Sampson wrote: It likely happened in the Adventurer's Guide book. Correct, it was when the prestige class was reprinted in Adventurer's Guide.
Paizo's policy was that when an item from a softcover book became a "pick-up" (reprint) in a later hardcover, the later hardcover version was the one that should be used. Whether that was a power decrease, increase, or rules cleanup.
In this particular case, it was a rules cleanup. In Paths of Prestige the Arcane Armor Expertise ability changed the action to use Arcane Armor Training from a swift action to an immediate action at 5th level. Which... did nothing. If you use an immediate action on your turn it still counts as your swift. And if you use an immediate action when it's not your turn it eats up your swift for your next turn and you can't use another out-of-turn action (like casting a spell) and have to wait for your turn anyway. So when Adventurer's Guide changed it to a free action, it actually worked.
Belafon wrote: Tom Sampson wrote: It likely happened in the Adventurer's Guide book. Correct, it was when the prestige class was reprinted in Adventurer's Guide.
Paizo's policy was that when an item from a softcover book became a "pick-up" (reprint) in a later hardcover, the later hardcover version was the one that should be used. Whether that was a power decrease, increase, or rules cleanup.
In this particular case, it was a rules cleanup. In Paths of Prestige Arcane Armor Expertise changed from a swift action to an immediate action at 5th level. Which... did nothing. If you use an immediate action on your turn it still counts as your swift. And if you use an immediate action when it's not your turn it eats up your swift for your next turn and you can't use another out-of-turn action (like casting a spell) and have to wait for your turn anyway. So when Adventurer's Guide changed it to a free action, it actually worked. Well, it didn't actually do absolutely nothing: you could use it when readying an action to counterspell, which all other spellcasters with Arcane Armor Training/Mastery can't do. But yeah, it does make way more sense as a free action.
I've only recently started using AoN instead of D20PFSRD as my main reference, namely when I wanted to learn more about the gods of Golarion rule-wise. I wish D20PFSRD had the correct information since Adventurer's Guide came out, but it doesn't matter anymore since I prefer AoN now that I've got used to it.
Spidercat wrote: Well, it didn't actually do absolutely nothing: you could use it when readying an action to counterspell, which all other spellcasters with Arcane Armor Training/Mastery can't do. Maybe? Depends on how your GM chooses to interpret the last bit of Arcane Armor Training.
Quote: As a swift action, reduce the arcane spell failure chance due to the armor you are wearing by 10% for any spells you cast this round. It's "this round" not "this turn" so I would read that as "for 1 round" (until the start of your next turn), but a particularly pedantic GM could decide to have it last only until the end of the current round's initiative order.
I guess an immediate action would let you use a swift action for something else on your turn, then ready to counter (or cast any readied spell, really) knowing you could use the immediate to lower ASF if you needed to. Very niche case though, and almost certainly not what was intended.
By the way, there is no arcane spell failure chance for arcane spells without somatic components, so the Still Spell metamagic feat would also work for casting in armor.
not to dismiss the percentage but 10% ASF is not all that much so this is a lot of investment to make it go to zero. Why not just use guardian armor:T1(immd actn) or swift girding:T1(std actn) when needed and then suffer the ASF?
There is Celestial Plate
Technically, it isn't mithral, as its description doesn't say so.
If your GM allows it, you can get a Hellknight plate that works like a Celestial plate by paying 500 gp more than the standard cost (the difference between standard and Hellknight plate).
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