3.P Arcane Hierophant build?

[Sajiri]

While we were taking a break from our usual campaign due to lack of members, and I was making a much more simple pirate character for a solo campaign, my DM has also been bugging me to make a 2nd character to go along with my magus for the original campaign. I suppose we're going to play it with just me using 2 characters until we find more people someday :smallconfused:

Anyway, I had started making one before, using the fochlucan lyrist conversion in my sig, but for reasons I can't quite remember anymore, I decided I hated the character I built, and it was too much hassle, so I'm thinking of creating an arcane heirophant instead. The DM had always insisted this was a HARD campaign (as opposed to pirates which is much more sandbox and casual apparently), which was meant for 4 people, but instead it's just me with 2 characters, so I guess I'm looking for some optimization help?

I plan to base it off my recent skyrim character, who I suppose I actually tried to base off this class. Pathfinder rules, 3.5 content is welcome and simply converted where necessary.

Things I'm thinking.

Divine casting is obviously druid, but as for arcane casting...? Wizard, sorcerer or witch even? (witch probably suits the CHARACTER better, but I've never used it in PF, so I'm not entirely sure how well it plays.) Heck, maybe even bard for something different considering there's already an arcane caster (albeit not a great one).

Decent options for a companion familiar? I just have a perpetual love of tressyms and want to use one, but its probably (obviously) not the best idea I could have.

I initially wanted to make a beastmaster type character making heavy use of handle animal with pets, but the DM quickly shot down that idea with my previous character, although when I brought it up to him today he seemed suprised that he refused it, so I don't know whats going on with that. Maybe I should stick to summoning.

Suggested feats? Spells? Races? Anything useful?

[Palanan]

The entire Playground may jump on me for even saying this...but how about beguiler?

I say this first, because I really love the beguiler class, and second because I've been wondering how a druid/beguiler/arcane hierophant would work. --I know, I know, it's not OP, burn the heretic, etc. etc.

But to me, the concept is fun. I could see the character as a woodland trickster, a sly ghost of a scout who's so good at slipping in and out undetected that he can't resist leaving a calling card, or a subtle prank, something to perplex and befuddle whoever's out there in the wilderness with him.

And I must confess, I have a soft spot for tressyms as well, and I once used one as a familiar for a halfling-sized warforged sorcerer. I scaled down the tressym by a size category to match--and it was hilarious to watch the party ranger tracking kitten-sized footprints across a high mountainside, only to see the tracks suddenly deepen, and...disappear.

[Zovc]

This (http://community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/75882/19868490/The_Arcane_Hierophant_Examined) might be of interest to you. It's designed for traditional 3.5, but so is the Arcane Hierophant, from what I can tell.

I'm at a loss, but you might be able to find prestige classes that can give you the trackless step class feature to qualify for Arcane Hierophant as a different divine spellcasting class.

Assuming druid is a constant, here are (non-sorcerer, non-wizard) classes you could consider mixing with it: Bard, Beguiler, Dread Necromancer, Duskblade, Spellthief, Warmage, Wu Jen.

I can't think of any arcane casters that cast spells off of Wisdom (only really familiar with 3.5 material), but you could use the Illumian race to use your Strength or Dexterity modifier for determining your bonus spells for one or both of your classes--if one of your spellcasting stats isn't as spectacular as the other.

[Sajiri]

http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=10546562&postcount=11

I've had Fey Blood here OK'd for use in the past (when I was making the F.Lyrist) so I assume I could use it this time, just thought of this. I suppose that would make a compelling case for any arcane caster that uses CHA? Off the top of my head I can only think of sorcerer and bard, I know wizard and witch use int, aside from that I can't remember what other casters use.

[Sajiri]

I'm not so sure about beguiler. That concept sounds kind of neat, but it reminds me of my magus I already have a little. She's not a woodland trickster, but she's a gloaming who kinda fits the rest of that.

Still looking for any other suggestions :)

[AdamT]

If 3rd party is possible, I always thought Houri (http://www.scribd.com/doc/5888196/bastards-and-bloodline) going into arcane heirophant would be very fun... IF la buyoff is on the table. Yes, there are 5 la, but you get 2 druid casting levels out of it, can buy off a couple of those la, leaving you at only 1 lost casting level. You would start off VERY slow since you would have to start with druid 3 which would put you at 8th character level with only 5th level casting. Then it would get even worse with a side trip into sorcerer, but would start catching up and pulling its own weight in the lower teens.

[AdamT]

Oh yea, if you take your first class level as sorcerer you can pick up the precocious apprentice feat to cover the arcane heirophant requirement of 2nd level arcane spells with only a single level devoted to the arcane side. That would leave a total of 2 lost levels for the divine side, at the expense of arcane casting caping out at 13th level.

The build
Sorcerer 1 / Druid 4 / Arcane Heirophant 10 / Theurge 2

or, to get wild shape in exchange for one more sorc caster level
Sorcerer 1 / Druid 5 / Arcane Heirophant 10 / Theurge 1

[Sajiri]

If 3rd party is possible, I always thought Houri (http://www.scribd.com/doc/5888196/bastards-and-bloodline) going into arcane heirophant would be very fun... IF la buyoff is on the table. Yes, there are 5 la, but you get 2 druid casting levels out of it, can buy off a couple of those la, leaving you at only 1 lost casting level. You would start off VERY slow since you would have to start with druid 3 which would put you at 8th character level with only 5th level casting. Then it would get even worse with a side trip into sorcerer, but would start catching up and pulling its own weight in the lower teens.

Actually....unless I had a good suggestion otherwise, houri was what I was going to use :smallbiggrin: its what my f.lyrist was going to be, however I used the ARG in PF to recreate it as a standard race with no LA. I can't recall what I did for it, something along the lines of +4cha, +2 dex, -2 str, entangle and barkskin(I think) once per day, resistant against disease and poison...pretty sure Im forgetting something else.