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Steamsaint
2010-12-21, 10:44 AM
I'm about to start playing an evil PbP on these very forums and I'm playing a half-orc oracle of the Flames mystery. I'm just wondering what you guys think of my character as he stands and what he could do to improve:

http://www.dndsheets.net/view.php?id=11233

This is my first time using Pathfinder, so if you find mistakes as well, tell me.

I've tried going for a diplomat and combat disabler, using burning disarm, cause fear etc. while keeping my allies alive. My damage comes from my Touch of Flame and Fire Breath revelations. I don't want to break the game, but I certainly don't want to be useless.

Sarakos
2010-12-21, 03:04 PM
For feats, switch out Persuasive for Skill Focus: Diplomacy or Intimidate. Skill Focus gives you a +3 right off the bat and upgrades to a +6 after you put 10 ranks in it giving you more bang for your feat buck. Heighten spell doesn't do anything for you at this level since you need to be able to cast spells of a higher level to apply this metamagic to your spells. I would then recommend switching out Heighten spell for either Cosmopolitan or Extra Revelation which is always nice for an Oracle. Wait until level 8 or higher to start taking metamagics. Both suggested feats are in the Advanced Players Guide

A 12 Intelligence you have a +1 modifier which allows you to start with a bonus language which is essential as you need to speak and understand each other to be able to intimidate or Diplomacy someone in the first place :)

For skills, I noticed you didn't factor in the +3 bonus you get for putting at least one rank in a class skill so that +3 in Sense motive is actually a +6.

For equipment, you seem fine but id like to make the suggestion of buying a War Scythe or two and making buddies with the party fighter, especially one with the quick draw feat. At next level you will get second level spells and i cant recommend Hold Person enough. Give the fighter a Scythe and once hes in melee trading blows with an enemy npc you can Hold Person that npc allowing the fighter to drop his current weapon as a free action and (with the quick draw feat) draw the Scythe as a free action then Coup de Grace the npc as a full round action. Its an automatic hit and crit and the npc has to beat a Fort save of 10 + damage dealt. A weapon doing 2d4 x4 makes a hefty save to beat.

For Spells, Command does the same as Cause fear and more besides, it also scales with your level as its not restricted by HD. You can command an enemy to drop its weapon, fall prone, flee (like Cause Fear), or Halt in place. You may also consider Doom but personally i kind of favor Command.

That's about all I can think of and I hope it helps. :)

Sarakos
2010-12-21, 03:37 PM
I just noticed, as an oracle you also get to add either all the cure or all the inflict spells to your spells known for free. I would recommend the cure spells as you need to get into touch range to use the inflict spells and that's a bad idea for one with an 8 Con, also concentration checks suck so stay out of reach.

I'd also like to recommend carrying a back up one handed weapon and a heavy shield in case you start getting hit by archers or something out of your reach. The extra AC might turn into a lifesaver

Kamai
2010-12-21, 03:47 PM
Your Melee attack bonus is off by 1 (should be 4 instead of 3), and same with your CMB.

You should also double check your skills and make sure that you're including all of your bonuses, and that you've checked off class skills, so they get their in-class +3. All of your class skills are off by this magnitude, and skills like Intimidate are even more wonky.

You haven't filled in base saves yet (+1/+1/+3).

In your spells, you should have burning hands as a known spell (from the mystery).

As mechanical suggestions go, unless you're going to start far away from civilization, you shouldn't need to start with 2 wands of CLW, freeing up some cash for other things, like masterwork Breastplate, and maybe some divine scrolls, or a Masterwork weapon or the like. Your only target for Heighten is Burning Disarm, so it might just be better off holding off on Heighten until you could affect more spells with it. You'll get the same effect with Elemental Focus: Fire early, with the upside that the +1 DC applies to your other fire spells too, with the obvious downside of the cleric list being short on fire spells, though some other useful/interesting feats include Extra Revelation: Cinder Dance which puts you at the same speed as Light armor users, or Toughness which makes up for your poor Constitution. On that note, Constitution is not a stat that one should dump. Given that all scores are even, I'm assuming point-buy, and with that, unless sickly is part of the concept, you should at least go 12 Str, 10 Con, and it may also be worth losing sense motive, and bumping Int down to 10 to get 2 more points of Con.

Steamsaint
2010-12-22, 01:24 AM
Ok; Thanks for the help.

So far, I've switched out Persuasive as you suggested, Sarakos, but I just want to say that I could actually use heighten spell on Burning Disarm due to the trait magical lineage (which allowed me to treat a metamagicked version of it as one spell level lower), gaining +1 DC. To that end I've used Element Focus: Fire as Kamai suggested, and I'm just checking up whether or not that would apply to Touch of Flame and Fire Breath (my revelations) as well.

Cinder Dance is coming as my next revelation; there aren't enough Flame revelations that I like enough to get an extra one at the moment.

I've followed your recommended stat changes although I am supposed to by sickly; I've been blind since I was 14, according to my backstory. And yes, it's a 20 point buy.

Now, where was I; Yes, Hold Person is a spell I was definitely going for at level 2, although using a scythe just seems mean. We'll see.

I've already put the extra Cure Light Wounds on my spell list; Oracles only have 3 first level spells at level 3. Also, thank you for pointing out the Burning Hands thing; I assumed when I first read that, that I got it as a second level spell. Having it at first level is far, far better.

And I think I'll drop one of the wands for masterwork breastplate, as well.

EDIT: Suggestions for late levels are still very helpful. I'm planning to take all the Hold/Dominate spells that a cleric gets their hands on, plus most of the fire spells. Other than that, I have no idea. There doesn't seem to be any full casting prcs in the SRD that I can see, and I don't really want to slow down my revelations, so I guess I'll stick with just plain Oracle.

Sarakos
2010-12-22, 10:32 AM
The scythe trick is a bit greasy but not too bad as there are dozens of ways to counter that I can come up with off the top of my head. Any caster class has to roll less than like a 5 to fail the save, a paladin with a good charisma also has a decent chance of making it as well as monk. While monks are largely considered to he the laughing stock ofthe D&D world. Pathfinder did give monks a boost although even in 3.5 a monk could quickly close the distance with your squishy self, put you in a grapple you'll never break out of and slowly choke the life from your body as you curse yourself for not having taken still spell. Also hold person only works on people, I saw eventually you were going for all the hold ---- but for now it wouldn't be that hard for the DM to say the people you are fighting against train ravenous war dogs for the express purpose of seeking out enemy casters and attacking them, forcing the casters to roll concentration checks o lose their spell while also wasting time trying to heal themselves and get away

in the end though it still a bit of a cheese combo and the final decision is with you of course

Steamsaint
2010-12-22, 11:12 AM
It's just I want my character to work as not simply someone who blows things up. Disabling someone (hence burning disarm and command) is much more his style. He's a half-orc with a silver tongue, manipulating people behind the scenes and disabling those who attempt to fight back.

Of course, since he's in an evil campaign and I will probably be getting a scythe for myself rather than the party fighter, I can certainly imagine him going to war with a flaming (from the touch of flame revelation) scythe and immobilising his chosen foes before eviscerating them. :smallbiggrin:

If the DM chooses to stop me, so be it. I don't want to break the campaign after all.

Hmm... Perhaps I'll go for buffing my allies as well then. That would fit...

Sarakos
2010-12-22, 11:24 AM
It's just I want my character to work as not simply someone who blows things up. Disabling someone (hence burning disarm and command) is much more his style. He's a half-orc with a silver tongue, manipulating people behind the scenes and disabling those who attempt to fight back.

Of course, since he's in an evil campaign and I will probably be getting a scythe for myself rather than the party fighter, I can certainly imagine him going to war with a flaming (from the touch of flame revelation) scythe and immobilising his chosen foes before eviscerating them. :smallbiggrin:

If the DM chooses to stop me, so be it. I don't want to break the campaign after all.

Hmm... Perhaps I'll go for buffing my allies as well then. That would fit...

I just want to say, I like your style :)

Steamsaint
2010-12-24, 05:24 AM
I need to ask you guys...

How is a touch attack calculated?

With strength, or dexterity?

Sarakos
2010-12-24, 05:34 AM
A ranged touch attack is dexterity based

melée touch attack uses strength mod