Feat Selection help for Sorcerer like class + Rapier usage

[DangerDanger]

I'm joining a campaign soon as a "Magical Girl" class. It's basically a sorcerer with medium BAB progression and a more limited "thematic" spell list.
I've never played a caster before, little lone a full caster. I have spells down pretty well due to the various guides floating out there but feats seem a little over whelming to me. Feat progression is every odd level, but we're able to select feats from 3.5 and pathfinder content. I know meta magic is something I'll want to invest in, but we're starting out at level 1. Metamagic just doesn't seem reasonable until level 5 or 7. I could be wrong though since I don't know much about being a full caster.

Note: DM made the class.
Class info: At level 1 I'll have the abilities Little Girl, Magical Transformation, Summon Rapier, Dere Depravity.
Little Girl: Basically a huge neg to all of my non mental stats until I transform
Magical Transformation: Takes 1d6 rounds to undergo transformation -invincible while transforming. Enemies must make a fort save (level + cha. Mod) or be stunned for one round. Transformation lasts a number of rounds equal to your level times your Cha. Mod and is usable a number of times equal to 1+ you charisma mod
While transformed you gain back your penalties from being a little girl (+5 to Str,Dex,Con) and an AC bonus equal to your Cha Mod (and a hella kawaii outfit)
Summon Rapier: I can summon a rapier as a swift action. As I obtain stronger rapiers, the summoned rapiers will take the better one's form.
Dere Depravity: Basically a "taint" mechanic that determines if I'm deredere or yandere. Usually it's giving me a +2 Cha and -2 Int.

At level 2 I'll have a free Rapier Focus, and at level 6 I'll be able to throw rapiers with no penalties and auto have them under the "animate weapon" spell (without casting animate weapon). Transforming faster will also be a thing.

At level 1, I'm planning on picking up the spells "Mage Armor" and "Color Spray." I don't feel I need much spell help though. If you feel there are any "must have" spells, keep in mind I'm going to be a pure hearted happy go lucky magical girl who's all about throwing and animating rapiers.

The level 1 feats I'm looking at are "Expeditious Dodge" and "Mobility" with the intention of grabbing "Elusive Target" at 3. Why? Because I don't know what else to pick and I can only imagine me trying to derp around the battle field swinging my rapier everywhere trying not to die. I could argue my "Magical Girl" level as qualifying for fighter levels for the whole Weapon Supremacy line. I could probably also argue my thrown rapiers as being able to qualify for the usage of my feats (floating power attackers based on Cha rather than STR for the win??).

The possibilities are there. At the end of the day, being flashy and using rapiers is my characters thing. Any tips?
Notes: This a for fun, low optimization campaign where PCs basically won't die. I won't be PrCing and I doubt we'll make it past level 10.

[Bad Wolf]

Color Spray is a caster's best friend. You might want to look into the Spell Thematics feat. Basically, you get to pick a theme for your spells. If you pick 'nature' for example, your Color Spray might look like a flurry of different colored leaves. It can't affect the actual spell mechanics, but its quite fun to roleplay.

[Greenish]

Advice: don't get too attached to the character. Suddenly getting -5 to Con when the transformation ends seems pretty lethal if you've taken some damage.

[Asrrin]

Transformation seems pretty OP if it's at-will. Is there a limit to times per day? Stun + invulnerability can be abused to the point where it's more beneficial to be mid transformation rather than wasting rounds doing other things.

as far as feats, rapid metamagic, eschew materials, invisible spell, arcane thesis, etc. are all good candidates to take. Make sure to grab Heighten spell at some point so you can pump thje DCs of your lower level spells to keep them relavent with your small pool of spells known.

[aleucard]

I'm joining a campaign soon as a "Magical Girl" class. It's basically a sorcerer with medium BAB progression and a more limited "thematic" spell list.
I've never played a caster before, little lone a full caster. I have spells down pretty well due to the various guides floating out there but feats seem a little over whelming to me. Feat progression is every odd level, but we're able to select feats from 3.5 and pathfinder content. I know meta magic is something I'll want to invest in, but we're starting out at level 1. Metamagic just doesn't seem reasonable until level 5 or 7. I could be wrong though since I don't know much about being a full caster.

Note: DM made the class.
Class info: At level 1 I'll have the abilities Little Girl, Magical Transformation, Summon Rapier, Dere Depravity.
Little Girl: Basically a huge neg to all of my non mental stats until I transform
Magical Transformation: Takes 1d6 rounds to undergo transformation -invincible while transforming. Enemies must make a fort save (level + cha. Mod) or be stunned for one round. Transformation lasts a number of rounds equal to your level times your Cha. Mod and is usable a number of times equal to 1+ you charisma mod
While transformed you gain back your penalties from being a little girl (+5 to Str,Dex,Con) and an AC bonus equal to your Cha Mod (and a hella kawaii outfit)
Summon Rapier: I can summon a rapier as a swift action. As I obtain stronger rapiers, the summoned rapiers will take the better one's form.
Dere Depravity: Basically a "taint" mechanic that determines if I'm deredere or yandere. Usually it's giving me a +2 Cha and -2 Int.

At level 2 I'll have a free Rapier Focus, and at level 6 I'll be able to throw rapiers with no penalties and auto have them under the "animate weapon" spell (without casting animate weapon). Transforming faster will also be a thing.

At level 1, I'm planning on picking up the spells "Mage Armor" and "Color Spray." I don't feel I need much spell help though. If you feel there are any "must have" spells, keep in mind I'm going to be a pure hearted happy go lucky magical girl who's all about throwing and animating rapiers.

The level 1 feats I'm looking at are "Expeditious Dodge" and "Mobility" with the intention of grabbing "Elusive Target" at 3. Why? Because I don't know what else to pick and I can only imagine me trying to derp around the battle field swinging my rapier everywhere trying not to die. I could argue my "Magical Girl" level as qualifying for fighter levels for the whole Weapon Supremacy line. I could probably also argue my thrown rapiers as being able to qualify for the usage of my feats (floating power attackers based on Cha rather than STR for the win??).

The possibilities are there. At the end of the day, being flashy and using rapiers is my characters thing. Any tips?
Notes: This a for fun, low optimization campaign where PCs basically won't die. I won't be PrCing and I doubt we'll make it past level 10.

....... =_=;; I'm gonna need a drink for this. Gimme a minute.

Later..... (tm)

Alright. First thing I notice, this has some of the trappings of the speed-gish on its own, though it'd help much more if your Sailor Suit or whatever the **** you end up calling it (I honestly don't know if I could play in the same game as this and not either burst out laughing in a maniacal fashion or break things every session) were to actually help your stats rather than return them to normal, which likely aren't that great if you give Cha the focus it deserves as a Primary Caster. Second thing, early level you're basically going to be checking for Nat 1's exclusively for that Fort Save Against Kawaii thing, though you'll start beating most spells with that around Epic level (good ****ing luck getting there, but anyway), and even then almost everything that would fail north of a 1 roll is going to be something that's so weak a free round isn't going to be that much help, maybe if you abuse the fact that it's range-infinite when against an army when you get strong enough to be noticed. Third thing, that rapier thing looks mighty useful to a sneak attacker, especially if you splice it with some skill tricks, feats, and/or stealthy PrC's. Ask your DM how the, er, additions interact with crap like Unseen Seer, and if the way it works means you effectively have Quick Draw since several useful things need that as a prereq and shaving that sort of thing off when you can is ALWAYS appreciated. Ask if you can actually swap between enchantment and weapon-crystal loadouts as a Swift, that'll be nice if you end up fighting a mixed bag. Fourth thing, this early and with as little boosts to your actual survivability as you have, getting into close range is a Very Bad Idea. Getting something that'll be usable at range to good effectiveness will be near-mandatory if you want this character to last. Color Spray is a good choice for this level, but don't be surprised if you end up with it being useless later.

As for suggestions? Go full-monty on the Dex-Cha gish thing. Depending on how you build the character, you could end up being a decent backup trap-monkey or Face, especially if you go for sneaky PrC's. For Spells, Grease will be both helpful to everyone and make the skillmonkey your friend, even if you're stepping on his/her toes after my previous suggestions, and Charm Person lets you Jedi Mind Trick people, which is always nice when you pull it off. Expeditious Retreat will help with your mobility, and Enlarge Person is a good buff when you have a BSF in the party. I do not recommend you take the Weapon Focus style feats in the slightest, your plate will be full for doing other things already. Reserve Feats aren't quite as useful for you as they are for others, thanks to your already-existent Rapier summoning/launching thing. Most of the other Sorcerer-friendly feats are still there, though, and things that modify your speed/stealth gish chops are going to be welcome. Arcane Strike may be even more useful to you than it is under normal circumstances (especially since you will have spell slots to burn and full BAB). For later, if you want to take the speed gish ball and run with it to the moon, I'd recommend looking up the Swiftblade PrC. You probably won't be able to take full advantage, but it fits perfectly.

[nedz]

One problem is that Magical Transformation takes you out of combat for 3.5 rounds on average. Depending upon the campaign the encounter may well be over by then; also the Little Girl stat penalties are irrelevant for a caster (well maybe not the Con).

So you have to decide: do you want to play a caster and just not bother with the transformation too often; or do you want to try and Gish it up, in which case you won't have much time for any additional buffs. This decision will influence your choice of feats.

[DangerDanger]

Color Spray is a caster's best friend. You might want to look into the Spell Thematics feat. Basically, you get to pick a theme for your spells. If you pick 'nature' for example, your Color Spray might look like a flurry of different colored leaves. It can't affect the actual spell mechanics, but its quite fun to roleplay.
I never knew this existed until now and it is an absolute gem. I might not take it until I get spells I could use it with, but it could open up my spell casting capabilities significantly. I can see my spell list opening up now that most spells are "thematic." This is too perfect.


Advice: don't get too attached to the character. Suddenly getting -5 to Con when the transformation ends seems pretty lethal if you've taken some damage. We havn't started the campaign yet and the DM recently mocked up the class. I'm pretty sure it'd work where the "bonus CON" from transforming would be extra HP tacked over my base as to, you know, not kill me ^^; Also, as noted, no one will die in this campaign. Reason 1: I'll be too cute to die Reason 2: It has a video game thematic with "Save Points." So if anyone does die, unless they've come to hate their character, I'm pretty sure we'd reset the mission.


Transformation seems pretty OP if it's at-will. Is there a limit to times per day? Stun + invulnerability can be abused to the point where it's more beneficial to be mid transformation rather than wasting rounds doing other things.

as far as feats, rapid metamagic, eschew materials, invisible spell, arcane thesis, etc. are all good candidates to take. Make sure to grab Heighten spell at some point so you can pump thje DCs of your lower level spells to keep them relavent with your small pool of spells known. "is usable a number of times equal to 1+ you charisma mod" The mechanic is a play on this (http://brickme.tumblr.com/post/94237039468/why-magical-girls-are-never-attacked-during-a) post. I mean, there could come some critical points in the campaign where I may use the Transformation as a tactic but it's mostly going to be "fight starts => transformation." Eschew materials isn't necessary. We're lazies and don't pay attention the material costs. The other feats may come in handy for the future though :smalltongue:


So as it stands, first few feats being E. Dodge, Mobility, and Elusive Target? The only stuff I find for early feats for full casters are basically improved initiative, PrC pre requisites, and early access cheese (the former being a possibility and the latter two unapplicable to my non-prcing)

[DangerDanger]

One problem is that Magical Transformation takes you out of combat for 3.5 rounds on average. Depending upon the campaign the encounter may well be over by then; also the Little Girl stat penalties are irrelevant for a caster (well maybe not the Con).

So you have to decide: do you want to play a caster and just not bother with the transformation too often; or do you want to try and Gish it up, in which case you won't have much time for any additional buffs. This decision will influence your choice of feats.

Chances are I'll get faster at transforming over time (just like in the tv shows :smalltongue: ). Not that the dice will magically become 1 and 2 more often, it's just I'm pretty sure the group will realize taking maybe 5 to 6 turns to have their magical princess ready is suffering. When it comes to battling, I'll always be transforming!! Gishing it up will be fun, but I'd like to develop into more of a full caster as the game progresses and gish when I have to. If my animated Rapiers get my combat feats later on, it'd probably be a boon to my casting to gish it up early! (assuming my DM lets that happen xPP)

[Greenish]

We havn't started the campaign yet and the DM recently mocked up the class. I'm pretty sure it'd work where the "bonus CON" from transforming would be extra HP tacked over my base as to, you know, not kill me ^^;As in, temporal HP. Yeah, that's better.


Eschew materials isn't necessary. We're lazies and don't pay attention the material costs.Cost isn't the reason you take Eschew Materials. Not being crippled by losing your pouch, and not needing hands (for that) are the main reasons. Also flavour. Doesn't sound like that's an issue here, though.


You should ask nicely for the DM to use normal scaling (10+1/2 lvl+stat) on the transformation sequence stun. Remind him that the enemies are adding 1-20 to their saves.


As for feats, Dodge and Mobility suck, but Elusive Target is nice, so if you really can't figure out anything better, sure.

[DangerDanger]

You should ask nicely for the DM to use normal scaling (10+1/2 lvl+stat) on the transformation sequence stun. Remind him that the enemies are adding 1-20 to their saves.


As for feats, Dodge and Mobility suck, but Elusive Target is nice, so if you really can't figure out anything better, sure.

My DM may just feat tax me with something like "Improved Transformation" which allows me to cut down on transforming time and scales the stun up.
I mean, taking sucky or w/e feats is lame, but I am a full caster. To some people, that doesn't mean much, but honestly, I'm a full freaking caster (with 11 feats over my 20 potential levels no less). Idm feat tax as much but I'm still in the mind set of living up to my potential.