Pathfinder Sword and Axe Rogue Equipment

[RittenRemedy]

I am working on a rogue who uses the D&D feat high sword low axe. I have him all statted out and everything, but I am pretty new at creating equipment. Level is 7-10; currently I planned him to 10 so what I found for starting wealth is 62,140. (is that real?!)

I've already decided on a mithril shirt, long sword, and ax, and I was looking into cloak of elvenkind and ring of the ram just for fun (come to think of it I have no idea how much RotR costs... Should look at that)

Out of combat style is somewhat thuggish, but still dexterous, sneaky rogue. In combat is TWF, desent strength, a little CMB, and opportunist style.

[StreamOfTheSky]

Since both of those are slashing weapons (well...most swords are), you may want to look into the Blade of Mercy (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/traits/religion-traits/blade-of-mercy-goddess-of-dawn) trait and Enforcer (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/feats/combat-feats/enforcer-combat) feat. Especially if you can also grab the 3E feat Imperious Command (http://www.realmshelps.net/cgi-bin/featbox.pl?feat=Imperious_Command).

The Shatter Defenses feat line also goes nicely w/ Enforcer, though that's ending up being a ton of feats and can't even get Shatter Defenses till level 8+.

Since he's "thuggish" anyway, you would like the Thug archetype. Extends demoralization, lets you convert it for 1 round of frightened, and later on lets you debuff w/ sickened condition, too.

For equipment... Nothing special stands out from my recollection. Remember to stagger your AC boosters over the various items (armor, shield if applicable, ring of protect, amulet of nat armor, Dex +2/4/6, dusty rose iuon stone) to get more AC for your gp. Magical weapons... Cloak of resist... Dex item, con item, maybe str, maybe the mentals later. Circlet of persuasion rocks....

Only really good unique item for rogues PF has introduced thus far I'm aware of is sniper goggles, and that's for ranged sneak attacks. Once Ultimate Equipment is up on the PRD, might be able to help you more.

[StreamOfTheSky]

Also, if you're playing a melee rogue in a game where 3E material is allowed, it'd be irresponsible of me to not strongly recommend the Staggering Strike feat and Penetrating Strike alt. class feature (won't stack w/ Thug archetype). They're really really good.

Craven and Darkstalker feats are also great, but for any rogue.

[jmelesky]

Only really good unique item for rogues PF has introduced thus far I'm aware of is sniper goggles, and that's for ranged sneak attacks. Once Ultimate Equipment is up on the PRD, might be able to help you more.

There's also the Headband of Ninjitsu (from Ultimate Equipment). It has some bonuses to feinting and repositioning, but the nice bit is +2 (insight) to hit with sneak attack, and you can sneak attack enemies with partial or total concealment. Miss chances are still there, but you get full dice if you hit.

[StreamOfTheSky]

How much is that? Feint bonus is pretty meh, because feinting is a bad tactic, but finally having a way to SA in concealment other than paying a feat tax sounds lovely.

[jmelesky]

15k gp. It does give the ability to feint as a swift once/day. The feint bonuses also apply to reposition attempts, though that's an even less frequently used maneuver than feinting.

Also, sadly, uses the headband slot, so no mental item boosts available. Still, probably worth it, generally, for a SA-centric character.

[RittenRemedy]

[QUOTE=StreamOfTheSky;13932519]
Since he's "thuggish" anyway, you would like the Thug archetype. Extends demoralization, lets you convert it for 1 round of frightened, and later on lets you debuff w/ sickened condition, too.

For equipment... Nothing special stands out from my recollection. Remember to stagger your AC boosters over the various items (armor, shield if applicable, ring of protect, amulet of nat armor, Dex +2/4/6, dusty rose iuon stone) to get more AC for your gp. Magical weapons... Cloak of resist... Dex item, con item, maybe str, maybe the mentals later. Circlet of persuasion rocks....
I haven't played a archetype yet but I was looking into thug or scout (more sneaks yes). Is there a list somewhere for ability bonus giving items? I am working of Internet sources for things; my books are in the mail still gah.

Thanks everybody for the help! One more question: I have enough cash for one more enhancement on the axe. It's mate is a +2 wounding long sword and the axe is currently +2. Should I give the ax an effect bonus or just stick with the enhancement?

[StreamOfTheSky]

Unfortunately in PF, ability boosters are limited to belt slot for physical stats, and headband for mental stats. That means you get stuck paying +50% for a stat past the first. Since casters only need 1 mental stat but non-casters basically always need str or dex + con (or all 3), this basically just screws over noncasters.

Rant over...the belts and headbands are in the core rules.

For weapons...what level are you? I'm getting the impression you're spending too much on them vs. other gear...
In general, I would always go with more enhancement. But if you have a caster to buff you with Greater Magic Weapon, go for special properties.

[RittenRemedy]

Unfortunately in PF, ability boosters are limited to belt slot for physical stats, and headband for mental stats. That means you get stuck paying +50% for a stat past the first. Since casters only need 1 mental stat but non-casters basically always need str or dex + con (or all 3), this basically just screws over noncasters.

Rant over...the belts and headbands are in the core rules.

For weapons...what level are you? I'm getting the impression you're spending too much on them vs. other gear...
In general, I would always go with more enhancement. But if you have a caster to buff you with Greater Magic Weapon, go for special properties.

I am planning him out to level 10, though there is a possibility of scaling back to seven or eight depending on the campaign. And you are correct. I have a habit of picking a theme and running with it, so sometimes I spend the most on the armour, sometimes some nifty gear, and this time it's clearly going into the melee weapons. Doesn't help that there's two. :/

Are there still bracers? Like of Dex from 3.5? I'm still relatively new to pathfinder. ://

[StreamOfTheSky]

I honestly don't know.

The PF rules only show the belts and headbands, but I've seen diehard paizo fans claiming that those are just "examples" or "options," and the 3E body slots for ability score boosters are still also valid choices.

If there is a final word on the matter, I'd like to know myself.


As for your weapons... it's just that weapon enhancements are VERY expensive as they go up, and as a TWF character, you have to pay it twice.
So when I see "+2 wounding longsword" (+4 equivalent, so that's over 32000 gp!) for a PC that I suspect is not high level, along w/ another magical weapon...it makes me think he's devoting too much money to weapons. I mean, say that sword was a +1 wounding longsword instead. That drops the price by (32k - 18k) 14000 gp. For 14,000 gp, you could get Dex +2, Ring of Protect +1, Amulet of Natural Armor +1, Cloak of Resistance +2, and still have 2000 gp left.
And I'm really not sure a +1 wounding sword is worth it at your level, either.

[RittenRemedy]

As for your weapons... it's just that weapon enhancements are VERY expensive as they go up, and as a TWF character, you have to pay it twice.
So when I see "+2 wounding longsword" (+4 equivalent, so that's over 32000 gp!) for a PC that I suspect is not high level, along w/ another magical weapon...it makes me think he's devoting too much money to weapons. I mean, say that sword was a +1 wounding longsword instead. That drops the price by (32k - 18k) 14000 gp. For 14,000 gp, you could get Dex +2, Ring of Protect +1, Amulet of Natural Armor +1, Cloak of Resistance +2, and still have 2000 gp left.
And I'm really not sure a +1 wounding sword is worth it at your level, either.

Now that is not the math I had figured, but I think I see where I went wrong just from the figures. Like I said I am new at this. Correct me if I'm wrong but to get 32k and with the rules I found:

Enhancement cost = X^2 x 2000
And the wounding property is a +2
So 4^2 x 2000 = 32k
That right?

If that's the case, you have solved my problem as to weapon bonuses because I certainly can't afford that. I think I'll see what house rules are on the belts.