Building an Oracle Healer

[5w337x7007h]

So I've started a new campaign with my friends after a prior Shackled City campaign. My entire party is that of a Rogue, a Fighter, a Sorcerer, and me. I honestly want to play a Jekyll/Hyde vivisectionist, but my party needs a healer, so I want to fill the role. I also want to be able to aid in combat, even if I need to do it from afar.
Any advice on mysteries? I'm looking at Dark Tapestry, Occult, or Life.

[Arbane]

Any good (or neutral who chooses cure spells) oracle can heal. If you want to be the best at healing, Life mystery is the way to go- it gets you energy-channelling like clerics have, plus some goodies like Life Link, which lets you absorb damage from your comrades at a distance.

As for helping aside from healing, there's always buff spells (favored by optimizers), using a crossbow, summon monster spells, etc.

[Spore]

Any good (or neutral who chooses cure spells) oracle can heal.

Even evil oracles can do that. Nowhere in the spells class feature is stated that healing is determined by alignment.

You obviously want to fill another role. No player wants to be the walking bandaid. What's your preferred playstyle? Melee/Maneuvers? Heavy supporting? Summoning? Necromancy (aka permanent "summons")? Blasting even? Want an animal companion? Or do you prefer battlefield control spells? Want an oracle to know almost everything?

If you want a simple healer, Vivisectionist/Chirurgeon Alchemist is sufficient (you can combine both archetypes). Go for Master Chymist on 9 and have fun. You are there to have fun not be a health dispenser.

[5w337x7007h]

I know you're automatically granted cure or inflict spells at the level you can access them. Also, I want to be a help to the party besides being a bandaid. Also, if I don't do this, we'll encounter several TPK scenarios. It's happened before, and very early on.

[grarrrg]

party needs a healer... I also want to be able to aid in combat

*ding* (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?257365-PF-Oradin-Mini-Guide-Or-How-to-be-a-Healbot-minus-the-bot)
10 character limit...

[MightyPirate]

Seconding Oradin. If you can swing a Ragebred Skinwalker you could even go Wolfscarred Curse and keep the Mr. Hyde vibe. The charisma penalty sucks but natural attacks play pretty well with smiting. The fluff is pretty wonky but at the same time I could see it working, so long as your GM would be lenient enough to allow the race in the first place (mine wouldn't).

[Spore]

As much as I like the idea of Oradin I RESENT in-combat healing and all forms of workarounds that push yourself into - even slight - inefficiency. And as the Oradin is covered anyway let me tell you that

An Oracle of Flame is a good blaster/supporter: Kill threats before they deal damage. Have something to resort to when defensive buffing isn't needed and offensive buffing is far too much/complicated.

Stats: Cha > Dex = Con > Rest

An Oracle of Battle is a nice melee support (flanking buddy for the rogue, tanking some hits for the fighter. Take spells like Aid that can be cast before battle for temp HP. It also works as single target Bless.

Stats: Str > Con > Cha > Rest

That'S my two alternatives to the Oradin. Pretty simple and straightforward. Also consider Oracle of Stone for battlefield control.

[Corvino]

The main question with any Oracle, as with Clerics, is how do you want to play? There are very viable options for melee, battlefield control, blasting and buffing, and each can also be a competent healer. Every spell you need to be a full healer is available as a standard choice to all Oracles. If you go Human, Half-Elf or Half-Orc you can use the Favored Class bonus to pick up any status removal spells you're missing pretty easily.

The Battle, Ancestor and Metal mysteries are all very good if you want to be a melee beatstick. All give you great revelations, though I'm not totally convinced by the spell lists of any of them. Any of these can heal effectively, and the Battle mystery gets a revelation that allows you to spend two spell slots to cast heals as a swift action. If you really want to go Dr Jekyll, you could consider the Lunar mystery, combined with Wolfscarred Face & Deaf dual-cursed archetype. This way you can get 3 natural weapon attacks, an Animal Companion, Charisma bonus to AC. Again, iffy spell list though.

For pure healing the Life Oracle is obviously going to win. But it is far more limited than other mysteries - you can be a good healer regardless of mystery, so why spend a good chunk of your resources optimizing toward it? Every spell on the list is a default option for Oracles, while the good spell lists open up new possibilities. There are also too few truly great Revelations - there are a few (Energy body, Life Link, Combat Healer), but many of the rest (including Channel) are either sub-par or require a lot of narrow optimization and feats to shine.

As for being a more pure caster, there are loads of options. You've already mentioned Dark Tapestry for the great Black Tentacles and Feeblemind. The Ancient Lorekeeper archetype for Elves and Eldritch Heritage (Arcane) line of feats could help here too - Cherry-pick the Wiz/Sorc spells you most want. All the standard useful caster feats apply, though you're at a slight summoning disadvantage compared to Clerics because you lack an Aura and can't grab Sacred Summons.

[5w337x7007h]

I've decided on my race, Changeling straight out of Ustalav. I love that region. So I'm not going to actively participate in combat except to buff my allies, heal them when needed, and debuff my enemies.
Dark Tapestry is looking good for that, so I'm going to do that mystery, with the oracles curse, haunted. Which reverse gravity overlaps in curse and mystery. So with that I should follow up with Eldritch Heritage (Arcane), which means I can get a familiar, and the feat improved familiar which allows me to deliver touch spells. It also means I can get certain spells from the sorcerer/wizard spell list, correct?

[5w337x7007h]

Quick question! With the Dual-Cursed Oracle, if I chose tongues first, and Haunted second, would I be able to access the spells granted by the Haunted curse? I ask because the way haunted is written, it doesn't technically grow, acting like a mystery or a bloodline with a reasonable drawback.

[grarrrg]

I ask because the way haunted is written, it doesn't technically grow, acting like a mystery or a bloodline with a reasonable drawback.

Doesn't grow?
At 5th you get some spells.
At 10th you get some spells.
At 15th you get some spells.
You get bonuses as your level increases. That's how all Curses work.

So a Dual-Cursed with Haunted as secondary means you get Mage Hand and Ghost sound and you're done. No other spells.

[5w337x7007h]

Alright, well that's what I get for thinking with half a brain when I posted that.

[inertia709]

I honestly want to play a Jekyll/Hyde vivisectionist, but my party needs a healer, so I want to fill the role.

Play the Jekyll/Hyde vivisectionist, you'll fill the healer role just fine. Any self-respecting alchemist takes infusion, which means that you can hand out "cure" extracts to the party at the beginning of the day. One advantage this is that you won't be spending your own actions healing, since infusions work like potions. And alchemists can automatically use spell-trigger items if the relevant spell is on their extract list, so you can pick up and use the ever excellent wand of Cure Light Wounds. In combat healing is overrated anyway, and with a wand of CLW you'll be just as good as an oracle at healing outside of combat, and almost as good in combat.

[Corvino]

If you do go for Eldritch Heritage (Arcane) to pick up the familiar, it's only 1 more feat to great Improved Eldritch Heritage and the "New Arcana" bloodline power for 3 arcane spells of your choice.

[Spore]

One advantage this is that you won't be spending your own actions healing, since infusions work like potions.

Using up their own turn for healing will cure them from in-combat healing anyways.

[5w337x7007h]

My Alchemist is on the shelf, and I don't mind. It's my favorite class and I love working with it. My prior GM got really upset with me when I, a squishy little alchemist, could almost out-damage the barbarian.
I'm refining the details as I go, probably a switch-hitter combat and bombs when my mutagen wears off, prestige to Master Chymist when I get there.
What I'm going to do for this campaign is build on the fears of my enemies, and support my party how I can. Maybe deeper darkness, waltz through the battlefield and use slay living on the casters.

[Spore]

Then I would strongly suggest Dark Tapestry. It is basically written for fear of darkness/night/horrors.

[5w337x7007h]

Alright, late response, but thanks for the ideas. I'm going Drow Oracle of the Dark Tapestry, haunted mystery. Building on the drow nobility feat chain with amplification to battlefield control.