Knights of the Sacred Seal and their Patrons

[Xuldarinar]

A simple question and information to go along with it. Who is the best vestige to have as your patron as a Knight of the Sacred Seal? In terms of flavor or abilities.

Now, the vestiges and how early you can become a knight of the Sacred Seal of them. The table below refers to both the minimum binder levels required to summon the vestige, and the minimum number of class levels required before becoming a KotSS.

Vestige|Minimum Binder Level|Minimum Level
Abysm|15th|15th
Acererak|8th|8th
Agares|5th|6th
Ahazu|3rd|5th
Amon|1st|5th
Amun-her Khepeshef|15th|26th
Andras|5th|6th
Andromalius|3rd|5th
Ansitif|13th|13th
Arete|5th|6th
Ashardolon|15th|15th
Astaroth (Both)|5th|6th
Aym|1st|5th
Balam|8th|8th
Buer|5th|6th
Cabiri|5th|6th
Chupoclops|10th|10th
Dahlver-Nar|1st|5th
Dantalion|8th|8th
Desharis|10th|10th
Eligor|13th|13th
Eurynome|5th|6th
Focalor|3rd|5th
Gaia|15th|22nd
Geryon|8th|8th
Haagenti|1st|5th
Halphax|15th|15th
Haures|10th|10th
Ipos|10th|10th
Karsus|3rd|5th
Kas|5th|6th
Leraje|1st|5th
Malphas|1st|5th
Marchosias|13th|13th
Naberius|1st|5th
Orthos|15th|15th
Otiax|8th|8th
Paimon|3rd|5th
Primus|3rd|5th
Ronove|1st|5th
Savnok|1st|5th
Shax|10th|10th
Tenebrous|5th|6th
Tkhaluulijin|15th|27th
The Triad|10th|10th
Vanus|10th|10th
Zagan|10th|10th
Zceryll|10th|10th
Zuriel|15th|24th

[Dr. Azkur]

I'm quite new to binders, but I really liked both the fluff and crunch. I'm far from mastering them and mechanically I only understand them so much, I couldn't truly say which is better but being a champion of Orthos just seems like the coolest concept.

Being the champion of a being nobody understands... and the reminders of it are unnerving. Not only it doesn't truly exist, but it doesn't even seem to.

Best vestige. It gives me the chills.

[Psyren]

Orthos has useful powers (including a nice "major" to use with Vestige's Surge) but I wouldn't consider him the best choice though because he is so high level. You have to wait until EBL 15 to enter KotSS if you want him, and you won't get VS until level 20.

If you want to get into KotSS as soon as possible, that limits you to 4th-level vestiges and lower (with Improved Binding, otherwise 3rd and lower.) A good choice is Dahlver-Nar; His AC and Shield Self are great for a melee binder, and maddening moan is a great ability to Surge on the front line away from allies.

If you're willing to wait until 10th level, another great choice is Chupoclops. He gives you a bite attack, pounce, blindsense, and an ethereal jaunt to get you out of trouble which you can surge again. So if you get grappled/pinned/paralyzed by something nasty, you won't need the party to come to your rescue, you can simply slip away.

Dantalion is fun if you then PrC into Scion of Dantalion. Yo dawg I herd u liek Dantalion etc.

[Sith_Happens]

Zceryll is another good option. Surging Summon Alien or Bolts of Madness is delicious.

[Ryuuk]

I've always liked the idea of a Knight of Balam. Great for that moment when you absolutely need a good d20 roll.

[Xuldarinar]

Fortunately, given the nature of the PrC and Vestiges, you can always complete the PrC pre-epic levels no matter which vestige you decide to be your patron. Unless you choose an epic vestige, but thats a different story.

I would say there are plusses for Dantalion and Tenebrous, as there are prestige classes specifically devoted to them and there is more than enough to complete them after completing Knight of the Sacred Seal.

[avr]

Malphas is a useful low level vestige. Low enough level that you could sneak a level of bard in there along with the snowflake wardance feat for even more CHA-to-combat, and still get into Knight of the Sacred Seal ASAP.

OK, maybe not the most powerful choice, but it's the one which interests me.

[Vanitas]

I like Paimon a lot.

[Xuldarinar]

Andras looks like a decent vestige for the job, though it does add quite the paladin flavor.

Kas could be fun, especially if you mostly go up against servants of Vecna.

Astaroth, the question lies in which.

And Amon… Nobody likes amon.

[Naanomi]

I have a KotSS in current play bound to Savnok... not high enough level to 'ultimate' yet but I have been in situations where a swap with an ally while it was on cooldown would have been very helpful.

[Xuldarinar]

Generally, would you say its better to have a lower level vestige for a patron, allowing earlier access to the PrC, or would you say its better to have a higher level vestige for a patron, giving you stronger abilities.

What about being a knight of the sacred seal to an epic vestige?

[Person_Man]

I'm going to say Zceryll for power. By itself Zceryll is responsible for moving the Binder up from Tier 3 to Tier 2. And moving Summon Alien and Bolts of Madness down to 4 rounds each means that you only need to cover 2 rounds with some other action.

[Xuldarinar]

I'm going to say Zceryll for power. By itself Zceryll is responsible for moving the Binder up from Tier 3 to Tier 2. And moving Summon Alien and Bolts of Madness down to 4 rounds each means that you only need to cover 2 rounds with some other action.

Rapid recovery is a great feat, I will give you that, and it goes very well with the prestige class. If you are going to focus on a vestige, might as well boost it with feats.

Looking over the vestiges, a thought came to me. A binder who works primarily with, and specializes in using Otiax, Tkhaluuljin, and Zceryll. It takes epic levels to do so, sadly, but it would certainly be interesting.