Can you please check if I did this Pathfinder Character Creation correctly? Thanks.

[Kaemon]

Not sure if I should have listed it as "Player Help" instead of "DM Help" .
As mentioned on another thread (that is still on first page as I post this) I'm about to start DMing Pathfinder using Roll20 for some friends, and even if we are not complete noobs (some are), we all lack a lot of experience and didn't really play along anyone who had truly experience to teach/correct us (so if we read/understand something incorrectly, when we share information everyone would get it incorrectly).
Since I will be both the DM and the most experienced player is quite important that I get this as correct as possible from the very beginning.

Anyway... I will now proceed to see if I can fill a Lv1 character sheet correctly and, if you don't mind, please point at anything I did wrong (or that even if correct feels wrong) or you think could be done better/different, or if doing things in a different order/way makes more sense or can be easier.
We settled on using a 15-Point buy (I prefer rolls, but this way we can avoid discussions or player wanting to re-roll to get better stats, not saying everyone would do so but maybe 1 or 2 of the players would be tempted to if they get average or lower rolls). Again, using Pathfinder. Mostly Core Rules, even if some players are looking at Advanced Classes/Races like this guy that wants to be a Summoner Drow with an Eidolon.
So here we go...

I decide (for this example to be as complete as possible) to be a Mage... So now I proceed to get my stats using 15-Point buy (using THIS LINK (http://jody-white.com/pathfinder-ability-score-calculator.php)). For this example I'm trying to min-max (tell me if something here is wrong) and I decide to go with STR 7, DEX 14, CON 14, INT 18, WIS 7 and CHA 7, then I choose to be an Elf (for min-maxing again) to get a +2 DEX/INT along with a -2 CON, my final stats look like this:

STR 7 (-2)
DEX 16 (+3)
CON 12 (+1)
INT 20 (+5) Extra spells, From Lv0 to Lv9 = (- 2 1 1 1 1 - - - -)
WIS 7 (-2)
CHA 7 (-2)

Since I will be playing Mage (in this min-maxing example) I can dump STR/WIS/CHA pretty much no problem. I decide to balance DEX and CON since they both increase my effective health by increasing both my Hit Points and my AC, and focus on INT to get more spells/day (already included up there after checking the table), learn more skills per leve and improve the chances of my spells affecting enemies.

Now I proceed to check what being a Mage and an Elf give me as class skills, weapon proficiencies and other bonuses in general:

Movement: 30 Feet (6 squares), from being elf.
Immunity to sleep effects, from being elf.
+2 to Saving Throws against enchantment spells and effects, from being an elf.
+2 to Spell Craft skill (for the purpose of identifying objects), from being an elf.
+2 to Perception skill, from being an elf.
+2 to Caster Level Checks made to overcome spell resistance, from being an elf. (I think this increases the number enemies have to reach to resist the spell?)
Languages: Common, Elven.
Possible Languages: Celestial, Draconic, Gnoll, Gnomish, Goblin, Orc y Silvan. (Mage allows to replace any of those with Draconic, no point).
Class Skills: Craft (INT), Spellcraft (INT), Linguistics (INT), Profession (WIS), Knowledge (Any) (INT), Appraise (INT), Fly (DEX)
Weapon Proficiency from Elf: Short Bows, Long Bows, Composite Short Bows, Composite Long Bows, Longswords, Rapiers, and I treat any weapon with the word "elven" as if it was a normal martial weapon.
Weapon Proficiency from Mage: Club, Dagger, Light Crossbow, Heavy Crossbow, and Quarterstaff.

Now, I'm not sure if there is such thing as "Elven Heavy Crossbow" or "Elven Composite Long Bow", but would I be proficient with it or would I need to get "Martial Weapon" proficiency? Or would I automatically be proficient with an Orc Heavy Crossbow (if such thing existed) because I'm already proficient with Heavy Crossbow?

Anyway... Now that I figured out what skill, proficiencies and languages my character is good with, I check how many points I can spend on them.
Mages gain 2+INT modifier, so I get 2+5 = 7 skill points to distribute. I also get +5 languages on top of Elf and Common to choose from the possible languages list.
Since I have a really high INT and I'm trying to min-max here just for doing so, I will mostly get INT skills. But since I get a bonus to perception from being an Elf (which is usually a quite important skill even with my dumped WIS) and I'm a mage with nice DEX, I also decide to put ranks on Perception and Fly.

Spellcraft: 1 (Rank) + 3 (Trained Class Skill) + 5 (INT Modifier) = +9 (+11 when identifying objects, because elf)
Linguistics: 1 (Rank) + 3 (Trained Class Skill) + 5 (INT Modifier) = +9
Appraise: 1 (Rank) + 3 (Trained Class Skill) + 5 (INT Modifier) = +9
Craft: 1 (Rank) + 3 (Trained Class Skill) + 5 (INT Modifier) = +9 (Do you have to specify Craft like Knowledge? Or is general crafting?)
Knowledge (Arcana): 1 (Rank) + 3 (Trained Class Skill) + 5 (INT Modifier) = +9
Fly: 1 (Rank) + 3 (Trained Class Skill) + 3 (DEX Modifier) = +6
Perception: 1 (Rank) + 2 (Elf Racial) - 2 (WIS Modifier) = +1

Now... I'm not an expert, but I believe Craft will work with the free Feat I get as Mage (Scribe Scroll) and/or one I may choose later for crafting things like Potions (or others), right? So since is a class skill that benefits from INT I would rather get this instead of a non-class skill. Also, not sure why, but I believe "Knowledge (Arcana)" is quite important for mages, because its used for counter-spells, learning spells from books/scrolls or something like that, right?
Now, since I have a very high INT on this char (+5 bonus) I get lots of languages (Common, Elf + 5), so I assume putting ranks into Linguistic can be quite effective since it applies to all the languages I know (and I believe it may help me deciphering things in ones I don't at times?), and at the same time it gives me an extra language to learn for a final +6 extra languages, right?

So in this example I choose to know (on top of the default Common and Elf) the languages: Celestial, Draconic, Silvan, Orc, Goblin and Gnomish.
Now, if all this is good, I only don't know "Gnoll" from my "Possible Languages as a Mage" list. Does this mean that the 3rd Rank I put in Linguistics (at Lv3 as early) won't give me a new language? Or can I choose any language when I put a Rank on Linguistics and the "Possible Languages because being X Class" are only for the purposes of the initial extra ones from high INT? If it works like that I could dump Gnomish (for example) and get Abyssal instead with my 1 Rank in Linguistics?

Now... My Hit Dice from being a Mage in Pathfinder is 1d6, and in this game on Lv1 we start with maximum hit points, so my Lv1 HP is: 6 + 1 (CON) + 1 (Favored Class, I choose HP instead of Skill point) +3 (Toughness Feat) = 11 Hit Points.
Toughness (not mentioned before) would be the Lv1 Feat I decide to pick (everyone has a Lv1 Feat, right? 2 if human, 3 if human and warrior but one must be combat, right?). As far as I know Toughness Feat gives +1 HP/Level, but it gives the benefits from both Lv2 and Lv3 from Lv1 for it to be more noticeable early on (So +3/0/0 HP on Lv1/2/3 and +1/Level from there on). Not saying this is a great Feat for Mage (I could probably get a more efficient one, feel free to give examples) but its one I know from the top of my head and is always nice having more HP.

At Lv1 my known spells are: All the Level 0 spells, and 2+INT Level 1 spells, so 7 Lv1 spells. I pick them from the Mage Lv1 Spell List and I'm done with it.
After that I get only +2 new spells per level, and INT bonus gets ignored for this purpose, right? I will only learn 2 free extra spells each level no matter how much INT, that those can be chosen from any spell level I can cast, right? Please correct me if I'm wrong.
As for Daily spells I would get 3 Lv0, 1 Lv1 and nothing else... But since my high INT gives me + 0/2/1/1/1/1, I would start instead with 3 Lv0 and 3 Lv1 spells, and I would have to wait to become a Lv3 Mage before learning the default 1 x Lv2 spell + the extra one INT gives me.

So far so good... I believe. For the moment I'm ignoring the magic schools.
Now, when I cast a spell on an enemy, their DC (is called DC? Not sure if I'm using English or Spanish terminology here) is DC 10 + Spell Level + INT Modifier + 2 (because the Elf passive), right? So if I cast a Lv1 Sleep spell with my Lv1 Mage on an enemy, he needs to get, on 1d20 + Whatever he may have to save spells, at least a result of 10+1+5+2 = 18. Did I do something wrong here? If he has a +1 Save against spell, a roll of 17 means he doesn't get affected by this spell in particular (since Sleep is an ALL-or-NOTHING kind of effect).
If my mage is Lv5 and still has 20 INT, is this save still 18 (since the formula specifies Spell Level and not Caster Level)?

So... Ignoring my School of Magic/Familiar... I end up with a char that has:
-2 for STR checks or to hit with melee weapons.
+3 for DEX checks, Armor Class and to hit with ranged weapons. (Both those are done with +0 BaB since mages have +0 at Lv1)
+1 for CON checks and +1 HP per level for a Total of 11 HP at Lv1 [d6 + 1 (CON) + 3 (Toughness) +1 (Favored Class)]
+5 for INT checks which includes a +5 for my enemies being affected by my spells (and another +2 from being an elf), 2 extra spells/day at Lv1 and 1 extra at Lv2/3/4/5 as I reach the levels needed to cast them, I know 5 extra Lv1 spells (7 total) from the beginning, and I know 6 extra Languages (including the skill point I spent on linguistic)
-2 for WIS checks, which most notably affects my Perception (a Skill I put 1 Rank into) and my Will Save. If I never use any WIS skill, it doesn't have any other effect on my char, right?
-2 for CHA checks which pretty much don't affect me at all if I don't intend to use any CHA based skill like Diplomacy.

Now... I know there are Characters Traits and Flaws... Do you recommend us to use those? Or just ignore them while we are pretty much playing Pathfinder for the first time?
If we decide to use them (or use them on the next characters if someone has to re-roll or if we play a new campaign in the future), whats the rule for them? I believe I read somewhere that it was 2 Traits per Character, +1 Trait per Flaw, maximum 2 Flaws. Is that right? Do you recommend us trying to use them as soon as possible? Or at least mention them to my players so they can start checking them? Or should we ignore them until we become comfortable with the system and we learn to do things (like creating this sheet) faster and understanding everything (because some of my players will probably have 0 knowledge about D&D/Pathfinder, not even knowing what Wisdom is or what is used for).

As for my Fortitude, Reflex and Will saves the mage has +0/+0/+2 listed, but those get affected by CON/DEX/WIS, right? So I would end having +1/+3/+0, meaning that when trying to resist an enemy spell, I would just use whatever came up in the d20 roll... Unless is something my char is immune to (like Sleep, from being elf) or an Enchantment Effect (where I would get to use +2 from Elf for a total of +2 [+2 From Mage LV1, -2 From low Wisdom, +2 From Elf).

So far I have been ignoring my Lv1-Mage extra things like Arcane Bond, Arcane School, Cantrips and Scribe Scroll... So let's take a quick peak at them:

Cantrips just means I can use the Lv0 pells (3 at Mage-Lv1, 4 from Lv2 onwards) I have memorized for that day as many times as I want, right?

Scribe Scroll has a formula that allows me to create scrolls with spells I have memorized (spending the spell, so I could only scribe 3 Lv1 Sleeps/day with this Elf Mage example) and the feat itself is pretty much is summed up as "You can buy scrolls for spells you know at half price as long as you spend some time and a little XP doing so". Does my skill Craft affect this in anyway? Or is a wasted skill if I don't go for crafting potions (for example)? I never used crafting nor profession skills, so I'm not really sure what you normally use those for.

Arcane School allows me to choose a favored magic school and two opposite schools, right? (Rather than the old "banning schools"). As I read I have to spend 2 slots when I memorize a spell from an opposite school (so I would need to use both my Lv1 slots to memorize a "Sleep" spell if I decided Enchantment is one of my opposite schools, and the enemy of the previous example would need a 14+ to save instead of a 18+ since I get a -4 to my opposite school DCs). So far so good?
Also, choosing a school gives me some neat powers related to the school (even if I don't choose any since I get the "Universal School" powers) along with an extra spell for each Spell Level I posses not including cantrips, as long as at least one of the spells (that extra one) is from my choosen school. So if my High INT (20/+5) mage decided to specialize in the Transmutation School, he would get as Lv1 spells: 1 (Default) +2 (from the 20 INT) +1 (as long as its transmutation), and if I wanted to memorize Sleep with Enchantment being one of my 2 chosen opposite school, it would use 2 of those 4 slots, it would be used at a -4, and one of those 2 other spells MUST be a transmutation spell (so I can't memorize a second Sleep).
Transmutation also seems to give a +1 to a physical ability score of my choice at from Lv1 (STR/DEX/CON) and an extra +1 (to the same stat) every wizard level that I gain that is multiple of 5, to a maximum of +5 at Lv20, and also at Lv20 get it for two of my physical ability scores instead of one (seems quite good).
I also get Telekinetic Fist, a spell-like ability that I can use 3+INT times a day (8 times in this case) and Change Shape when I reach Lv8 as a Wizard...
The other schools are similar, so is up to the player that wants to become a mage to check what each school gives him and what spells will end in opposite-territory.

And last... Arcane Bond. I read the Magic Object bond and a player rolled that the last time we played, which is the easier one to create as they are quite simple (I don't recall nor read them right now, but it basically is an object that gives you extra spells and little more).
If a player decides to go with a familiar we have to check many things that he gains from the familiar, including how much HP/Attack the familiar has, and many special abilities as he level up.
Now, if in this example I went for the Familiar route, and choose Crow, the Crow could speak 1 language of my choice (usually Common I guess) as a super natural ability, I would get an extra +3 on my Appraise Skill (so form +9 to +12) and the crow would have half my Hit Points (11) rounded down, so he would have 5 HP... Now, how do you treat familiars in your games? I assume the player that owns him uses it as if it was another character of his own? He is the one moving it and decided what it does, or role playing him if necessary (like in the case of a Summoner Eidolon or a Mage's Talking Crow)?

So... That would be pretty much my process of creating a mage... Did I forget something? Was something done in a wrong/way order? Did I got some numbers wrong?


And now for a couple extra questions:

- Do Druids and Rangers have to do Animal Handle checks to give orders to their companions? Was never very clear on that... Or they just "move" them as if they were their characters, deciding when/where they move/attack/etc.
- How do you handle a mage's familiar death? I know Pathfinder removed lots of the forever-penalties of losing it, and you can recover it with some gold/etc, but with their low HP, even with high reflexes they could die in an unlucky area of effect. Any suggestions? I guess the least I could do is treat them like players (they don't die until they have higher negative hit points than constitution).
- In one of the "Worst GM you ever had" histories I saw this guy that wanted a Fire Elemental as familiar and the GM didn't allow, saying it would set fire to the forest-bla-bla-bla... For this I have 2 questions... First of all, how should I go about creating/allowing a familiar that is not in the default Wizard list? And second... Can you dismiss/summon your familiars somehow? I know in The Order of the Stick Varsuvius kept forgetting about his/her crow and it would pop into existence when needed (as a joke) and after his/her character grow it would always be on his/her shoulder (but its a crow). How would have you gone with a Fire Elemental familiar? Is not something you can always have by your side, don't you think?
- BaB and Reflex saves and similar, when multiclasing, is just a normal addition, right? As if I'm a Lv1 Wizard/Lv1 Fighter (Lv2 char) I get +1 BaB (0+1) +2 Fortitude Save (0+2), +0 Reflex Save (0+0), +2 Will Save (2+0), right? And, in the same example... Do I automatically win all the Fighter's weapon and armor proficiencies? Do all the Fighter Class Skills also just become Class Skills for me, allowing me the extra +3 if I train them? Like swimming, mounting, survival or handle animals? I guess you do and the downside is not getting the +1 Skill or HP for leveling a favored class.
- When a Mage is wearing any kind of armor, he gets the penalty every time he tries to cast a spell with somatic components, does that mean you can be a mage in the heaviest armor with no penalties to casting as long as you only use spells with no somatic components? Also, when does this penalty get applied? Could you give me an example of a mage wearing any kind of armor and how would you roll to see if he fails the casting? I'm not sure if mages always have to do concentration checks, or only under specific circumstances like heavy rain or receiving damage (like from an Attack of Opportunity) while casting, or if the armor is like a -X for the DC or what.
- Just curious but... Have you ever seen a player doing a High INT Human Rogue (8+INT modifier skills) that got a couple of levels on other classes for the main purpose of being really good on lots of skills?
- Also... Is the Wizard in this example (I will be the GM, not a player, so I won't be using it anyway) optimized? Would be this kind of character what you guys usually consider Min-Maxing? (I believe is hard to tell at Lv1, but still).
- How do you handle running in your games? Do you have any special rules (like not being able to turn corners or something)? 4x Times normal speed seems too much when playing using a map with squares.
- And last but not least... Could you give me some examples of good/useful/optimized Feats for Lv1-5 characters based on their classes, including future progression (like getting "Point-Black Shoot" in order to get "Precise Shoot" so you don't get the -4 for shooting into melee)? Is mostly so I know about some good ones so I can suggest them to my players, since I know for a fact they won't feel like reading what every one of the hundreds there are does...


And I think that is pretty much all for the moment. Sorry for the long text, just want to make sure I'm not forgetting any step on the creation of a character sheet for Pathfinder since if I get something wrong I will most likely not be corrected by the other players... I will be both the GM and the most experienced one that leads/teaches them and checks if they did something wrong themselves, so its quite important that I get it as right as possible from the beginning.
I haven't created one of those sheets in years (and even when I did so I was no expert and had to double check the steps and making sure I had all right).

Thanks in advance for reading and answering.

[dramatic flare]

You're close to the right forum, I believe. It should probably be posted in the Dungeon's amd Dragons 3.5 section.

Also that is one HUGE wall of text. I'm not going to handle quite all of it. I would recommend that you put your completed sheet into myth-weavers or some similar website so that others can review it at-a-glance without the extra wall of text. But for SOME of the questions you ask...



+2 to Caster Level Checks made to overcome spell resistance, from being an elf. (I think this increases the number enemies have to reach to resist the spell?)
The caster level check to overcome spell resistance is made by the caster. For example, if you want to affect a creature that has SR 13 with a spell, you must roll a d20 + your caster level for the spell to even do anything. As an elf, you get the d20 + 2 + caster level to this roll.


Now, I'm not sure if there is such thing as "Elven Heavy Crossbow" or "Elven Composite Long Bow", but would I be proficient with it or would I need to get "Martial Weapon" proficiency? Or would I automatically be proficient with an Orc Heavy Crossbow (if such thing existed) because I'm already proficient with Heavy Crossbow?
There aren't unless the DM makes them. The obvious examples of "elven" and "orcish" weapons occur in the exotic weapons. As an elf, if your class gives you proficency in all martial weapons, you can wield elven exotic weapons as martial ones.
For example:
The Elven curved blade. (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/equipment---final/weapons/weapon-descriptions/curve-blade-elven)



Now... I'm not an expert, but I believe Craft will work with the free Feat I get as Mage (Scribe Scroll) and/or one I may choose later for crafting things like Potions (or others), right? So since is a class skill that benefits from INT I would rather get this instead of a non-class skill. Also, not sure why, but I believe "Knowledge (Arcana)" is quite important for mages, because its used for counter-spells, learning spells from books/scrolls or something like that, right?
Now, since I have a very high INT on this char (+5 bonus) I get lots of languages (Common, Elf + 5), so I assume putting ranks into Linguistic can be quite effective since it applies to all the languages I know (and I believe it may help me deciphering things in ones I don't at times?), and at the same time it gives me an extra language to learn for a final +6 extra languages, right?
Craft is a skill dedicated to the creation of mundane but useful equipment. Rope, shoes, or clothes for example. Weapons, scrolls, and potions all have seperate feats and each individual item has its own requirements for creation.
Also, most of those magical items use spellcraft for creation, not craft.

Knowledge (arcana) is used to indentify certain creatures and to learn spells from books. It might have some other, smaller uses. Counter-spells use Spellcraft.
You've basically got linguistics down though.


Now, when I cast a spell on an enemy, their DC (is called DC? Not sure if I'm using English or Spanish terminology here) is DC 10 + Spell Level + INT Modifier + 2 (because the Elf passive), right? So if I cast a Lv1 Sleep spell with my Lv1 Mage on an enemy, he needs to get, on 1d20 + Whatever he may have to save spells, at least a result of 10+1+5+2 = 18. Did I do something wrong here? If he has a +1 Save against spell, a roll of 17 means he doesn't get affected by this spell in particular (since Sleep is an ALL-or-NOTHING kind of effect).
If my mage is Lv5 and still has 20 INT, is this save still 18 (since the formula specifies Spell Level and not Caster Level)?
DC stands for Dificulty Class.
Perhaps nivel a difícil? I dunno. High School Spanish has come and gone a lot for me. Anyway.

No. the Elf modifier vs. Spell Resistance doesn't show up here. It would just be 10 + Spell level + INT mod.
And yes, its a meet or beat number, so if they roll higher than or equal to your DC the spell sleep would not affect them.
You are correct. The DC does not increase with caster level.


Now... I know there are Characters Traits and Flaws... Do you recommend us to use those? Or just ignore them while we are pretty much playing Pathfinder for the first time?
If we decide to use them (or use them on the next characters if someone has to re-roll or if we play a new campaign in the future), whats the rule for them? I believe I read somewhere that it was 2 Traits per Character, +1 Trait per Flaw, maximum 2 Flaws. Is that right? Do you recommend us trying to use them as soon as possible? Or at least mention them to my players so they can start checking them?

There is nothing wrong with using them, but there's a lot and they can get annoying. Since it sounds like you're playing Rise of the Rune Lords, I would recommend you have each of your players pick one Campaign trait tied to Rise of the Rune Lords and one Race trait (which already requires you to be of the race associated.) This will allow you to get comfortable with that portion of the game without overwhelming you with the giant list of all possible traits.
I would not recommend playing with any flaws in your first game.


As for my Fortitude, Reflex and Will saves the mage has +0/+0/+2 listed, but those get affected by CON/DEX/INT, right? So I would end having +1/+3/+0, meaning that when trying to resist an enemy spell, I would just use whatever came up in the d20 roll... Unless is something my char is immune to (like Sleep, from being elf) or an Enchantment Effect (where I would get to use +2 from Elf for a total of +2 [+2 From Mage LV1, -2 From low Wisdom, +2 From Elf). No. It's CON/DEX/WIS. You seem to use that later on in the paragraph though so maybe that was just a typo.


Cantrips just means I can use the Lv0 pells (3 at Mage-Lv1, 4 from Lv2 onwards) I have memorized for that day as many times as I want, right?
Yes.


Scribe Scroll has a formula that allows me to create scrolls with spells I have memorized (spending the spell, so I could only scribe 3 Lv1 Sleeps/day with this Elf Mage example) and the feat itself is pretty much is summed up as "You can buy scrolls for spells you know at half price as long as you spend some time and a little XP doing so". Does my skill Craft affect this in anyway? Or is a wasted skill if I don't go for crafting potions (for example)? I never used crafting nor profession skills, so I'm not really sure what you normally use those for.
Item crafting should take time but not XP. You just need to be of the prerequisite caster level to be able to cast the spell.
Your skill in craft would not affect that. Your skill in spellcraft would.
Brew Potion is its own Item Creation Feat.



That's all I have the patience to answer tonight. Mayhaps someone else can help you out with the other stuff or maybe I'll do it tomorrow.

[Kaemon]

Thanks a lot for your answers Dramatic Flare.
And yeah, I'm afraid its a huge wall of text that probably discourages many people for even trying to read it to help me out.
As for putting the sheet on myth-weavers; I was wondering where I could find that kind of site, since I have seen people using them. Thanks for the info. Checking it later.

About the spell resistance (that +2 the elf has to overcome it) it makes complete sense now that I read it the way you explained, thing is I had zero experience with creatures/enemies with Spell Resist so it didn't even occur to me it was that, and I assumed it was part of the DC 10 + Spell Level + INT modifier formula.
But yeah, you pretty much have to beat the Spell Resist from the enemy (when he has one) and the elf racial allows you to penetrate it. It makes more sense and is less OP that way (it looked like an extra +2 on the other formula was too strong).

"As an elf, if your class gives you proficiency in all martial weapons, you can wield elven exotic weapons as martial ones."
Okay. Gotcha. So that is mostly for classes (Fighters and the like) that have proficiency with all martial weapons. Still, if my mage for some reason wanted to get proficient with The Elven Curved Blade... Could he get a Feat into "Curved Blade" (I believe its Scimitar) instead and become proficient with both the "normal Curved Blades" (scimitars) and the Elven Curved Blade? (I assume that he wouldn't and that its only relevant for classes that automatically have proficiency with all martial weapons).

Thanks for the clarification in craft. As stated we never used crafting of any kind before (just shop weapons > go kill things with those weapons, pretty much).
Like so many other skills it then becomes useful on rare occasions that you can't predict at times, like that one time you try to make a rope out of clothes to get out using the window.
And from what you said I at least go right that both Spellcraft and Knowledge (Arcana) are really important for Wizards, even if I got some of the reasons mixed up.

As for CON/DEX/WIS affecting Fortitude/Reflex/Will, yeah, it was a typo. At first I wrote down INT (and even used the +5 from my elf) but I checked the Rule Book before posting and I saw my mistake and corrected it (but forgot to replace one "INT" with "WIS").

And as for scribing not requiring XP... I'm pretty sure its listed as using a small value of XP on the rules themselves, and since its quite small I was going to keep it, but will see to remove it if it feels too punishing. But I'm correct, right? Scribing pretty much spends time to get the same items for half the price (if there was a Magic Shop near by selling the same things you can scribe).

Thanks a lot for the answers. I'm happy to see I got most of the things right and you solved many of the doubts or the few things I got wrong :)
(Also yes, I'm planning on GMing Rise of the Runelords, but I believe I didn't mention it here? Probably you checked my other post? :P)

[dramatic flare]

"As an elf, if your class gives you proficiency in all martial weapons, you can wield elven exotic weapons as martial ones."
Okay. Gotcha. So that is mostly for classes (Fighters and the like) that have proficiency with all martial weapons. Still, if my mage for some reason wanted to get proficient with The Elven Curved Blade... Could he get a Feat into "Curved Blade" (I believe its Scimitar) instead and become proficient with both the "normal Curved Blades" (scimitars) and the Elven Curved Blade? (I assume that he wouldn't and that its only relevant for classes that automatically have proficiency with all martial weapons).
Martial Weapon Proficiency (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/feats/combat-feats/martial-weapon-proficiency---final)
Not really. The above feat will get you exactly ONE weapon proficiency, so an elven mage would take, "Martial Weapon proficiency: Elven Curve Blade." Some GMs (I'm usually one) are willing to group similar weapons together in this case along the lines of the Fighter Weapon Groups. In my case, I would give you proficiency in the Dueling sword, Elven Curve Blade, Falchion, Falcata, and Scimitar. However, the Rules As Written are one feat, one weapon.




And as for scribing not requiring XP... I'm pretty sure its listed as using a small value of XP on the rules themselves, and since its quite small I was going to keep it, but will see to remove it if it feels too punishing. But I'm correct, right? Scribing pretty much spends time to get the same items for half the price (if there was a Magic Shop near by selling the same things you can scribe).

Here's the d20pfsrd (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic-items#TOC-Magic-Item-Creation) long article on item creation. you'll notice that an XP cost never shows up. 3.5 used to cost you XP to create items, but that was silly and got dropped by pathfinder for a reason.

[dramatic flare]

- Do Druids and Rangers have to do Animal Handle checks to give orders to their companions? Was never very clear on that... Or they just "move" them as if they were their characters, deciding when/where they move/attack/etc.

They are special animals are get their own full turn as a regular character. All animals do, actually. A lot of your questions are really up to you as a GM.
On this page there's an entire section titled, "Animal Companions, Familiars and Followers per Ultimate Campaign," which can help you clarify your choices somewhat.
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/core-classes/wizard/familiar


- How do you handle a mage's familiar death? I know Pathfinder removed lots of the forever-penalties of losing it, and you can recover it with some gold/etc, but with their low HP, even with high reflexes they could die in an unlucky area of effect. Any suggestions? I guess the least I could do is treat them like players (they don't die until they have higher negative hit points than constitution).
In general, familiars tend to "hide" on a character unless needed to protect them from the rigors of combat. For information on what to do on familiar death you can read the bottom of the above webpage.



- In one of the "Worst GM you ever had" histories I saw this guy that wanted a Fire Elemental as familiar and the GM didn't allow, saying it would set fire to the forest-bla-bla-bla... For this I have 2 questions... First of all, how should I go about creating/allowing a familiar that is not in the default Wizard list? And second... Can you dismiss/summon your familiars somehow? I know in The Order of the Stick Varsuvius kept forgetting about his/her crow and it would pop into existence when needed (as a joke) and after his/her character grow it would always be on his/her shoulder (but its a crow). How would have you gone with a Fire Elemental familiar? Is not something you can always have by your side, don't you think?
Improved Familiar feat. (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/feats/general-feats/improved-familiar)
I wouldn't recommend going beyond the regular wizard familiar list and this one. There's plenty of options, even small elementals, on the improved list. The improved list, however, has a caster level requirement for each option.



- BaB and Reflex saves and similar, when multiclasing, is just a normal addition, right? As if I'm a Lv1 Wizard/Lv1 Fighter (Lv2 char) I get +1 BaB (0+1) +2 Fortitude Save (0+2), +0 Reflex Save (0+0), +2 Will Save (2+0), right? And, in the same example... Do I automatically win all the Fighter's weapon and armor proficiencies? Do all the Fighter Class Skills also just become Class Skills for me, allowing me the extra +3 if I train them? Like swimming, mounting, survival or handle animals? I guess you do and the downside is not getting the +1 Skill or HP for leveling a favored class.
Yes, they just add up.
You get all of the proficiencies of both your classes. One should remember, however, that the somatic components of spell-casting do not mesh well with heavy armor. Well, unless you're a 13th level magus.
Yes, those skills are now also your skills.


- When a Mage is wearing any kind of armor, he gets the penalty every time he tries to cast a spell with somatic components, does that mean you can be a mage in the heaviest armor with no penalties to casting as long as you only use spells with no somatic components? Also, when does this penalty get applied? Could you give me an example of a mage wearing any kind of armor and how would you roll to see if he fails the casting? I'm not sure if mages always have to do concentration checks, or only under specific circumstances like heavy rain or receiving damage (like from an Attack of Opportunity) while casting, or if the armor is like a -X for the DC or what.
er, not quite. When a mage is wearing armor, he gets an "automatic spell failure chance" of some percentage. for example, Chainmail has a 30% automatic spell failure chance. The easiest way to roll this is to roll percentile dice (2 d10 with one counting as the tens place, or just 1d100 if you're using a computer) and anything below that 30% chance of failure... fails. One could also use a d20 and, since statistically each face of the fie has a 5% chance of showing up, declare that on any roll of 6 or below, the spell just fails.
However, this chance is as you noted specifically for somatic component spells. So, if by some strange bit of character development (or just the eschew somatic components feat, though this does cause your spells to count as one spell-slot higher... or just the magus class) one could theoretically wear the heaviest armor and just cast non-somatic component spells just fine.
Mages do not always have to make concentration checks, only under very dificult circumstances.


- Just curious but... Have you ever seen a player doing a High INT Human Rogue (8+INT modifier skills) that got a couple of levels on other classes for the main purpose of being really good on lots of skills?
I'm sure its happened, but rogues already are so good at so many skills it really doesn't matter once their INT is high enough.


- How do you handle running in your games? Do you have any special rules (like not being able to turn corners or something)? 4x Times normal speed seems too much when playing using a map with squares.
Actually, corners are covered under Pathfinder rules. You can not "cut" through a corner space when attacking or walking unless extremely specific circumstances would allow otherwise. A good example of Specific circumstances otherwise would be an Earth Elemental's ability to Earth glide, so he could easy just punch through a corner since its just air to him.

[Kamai]

Let me see if I can get some of the questions that didn't get answered before.


So in this example I choose to know (on top of the default Common and Elf) the languages: Celestial, Draconic, Silvan, Orc, Goblin and Gnomish.
Now, if all this is good, I only don't know "Gnoll" from my "Possible Languages as a Mage" list. Does this mean that the 3rd Rank I put in Linguistics (at Lv3 as early) won't give me a new language? Or can I choose any language when I put a Rank on Linguistics and the "Possible Languages because being X Class" are only for the purposes of the initial extra ones from high INT? If it works like that I could dump Gnomish (for example) and get Abyssal instead with my 1 Rank in Linguistics?

The list of languages allowed for being an Elf (plus Draconic, since you are a wizard) are languages you can choose from high Intelligence. However, languages you get from Linguistics can be any non-secret language (like Druidic).



At Lv1 my known spells are: All the Level 0 spells, and 2+INT Level 1 spells, so 7 Lv1 spells. I pick them from the Mage Lv1 Spell List and I'm done with it.
After that I get only +2 new spells per level, and INT bonus gets ignored for this purpose, right? I will only learn 2 free extra spells each level no matter how much INT, that those can be chosen from any spell level I can cast, right? Please correct me if I'm wrong.
As for Daily spells I would get 3 Lv0, 1 Lv1 and nothing else... But since my high INT gives me + 0/2/1/1/1/1, I would start instead with 3 Lv0 and 3 Lv1 spells, and I would have to wait to become a Lv3 Mage before learning the default 1 x Lv2 spell + the extra one INT gives me.

You only get +2 spells per level for free. If you investigate the spell book class feature more, you'll find out that you can also learn spells by copying them into your spell book either through another Wizard that knows the spell, a scroll of the spell, or another Wizard's spellbook, however this does cost money. Also, as you figured out, the free spells must be from spell levels you can cast. You are right in not getting any 2nd level spell slots until 3rd level.



+3 for DEX checks, Armor Class and to hit with ranged weapons. (Both those are done with +0 BaB since mages have +0 at Lv1)

I'm not sure if I'm understanding what you are saying right, but your AC is not actually affected by your BAB.



Arcane School allows me to choose a favored magic school and two opposite schools, right? (Rather than the old "banning schools"). As I read I have to spend 2 slots when I memorize a spell from an opposite school (so I would need to use both my Lv1 slots to memorize a "Sleep" spell if I decided Enchantment is one of my opposite schools, and the enemy of the previous example would need a 14+ to save instead of a 18+ since I get a -4 to my opposite school DCs). So far so good?
Also, choosing a school gives me some neat powers related to the school (even if I don't choose any since I get the "Universal School" powers) along with an extra spell for each Spell Level I posses not including cantrips, as long as at least one of the spells (that extra one) is from my choosen school. So if my High INT (20/+5) mage decided to specialize in the Transmutation School, he would get as Lv1 spells: 1 (Default) +2 (from the 20 INT) +1 (as long as its transmutation), and if I wanted to memorize Sleep with Enchantment being one of my 2 chosen opposite school, it would use 2 of those 4 slots, it would be used at a -4, and one of those 2 other spells MUST be a transmutation spell (so I can't memorize a second Sleep).
Transmutation also seems to give a +1 to a physical ability score of my choice at from Lv1 (STR/DEX/CON) and an extra +1 (to the same stat) every wizard level that I gain that is multiple of 5, to a maximum of +5 at Lv20, and also at Lv20 get it for two of my physical ability scores instead of one (seems quite good).
I also get Telekinetic Fist, a spell-like ability that I can use 3+INT times a day (8 times in this case) and Change Shape when I reach Lv8 as a Wizard...
The other schools are similar, so is up to the player that wants to become a mage to check what each school gives him and what spells will end in opposite-territory.

The -4 DC does not apply to opposition school spell save DCs, that instead applies to Spellcraft checks to recognize and copy them into your spellbook. As far as specialization, exactly one slot is a specialist slot. Otherwise, you are correct in what you are saying here.



- In one of the "Worst GM you ever had" histories I saw this guy that wanted a Fire Elemental as familiar and the GM didn't allow, saying it would set fire to the forest-bla-bla-bla... For this I have 2 questions... First of all, how should I go about creating/allowing a familiar that is not in the default Wizard list? And second... Can you dismiss/summon your familiars somehow? I know in The Order of the Stick Varsuvius kept forgetting about his/her crow and it would pop into existence when needed (as a joke) and after his/her character grow it would always be on his/her shoulder (but its a crow). How would have you gone with a Fire Elemental familiar? Is not something you can always have by your side, don't you think?

As an aside to what dramatic flare already said about this, every Monster Manual entry that is suitable for a familiar has instructions on how to get it as a familiar. I wouldn't go book diving for this, but if the player sees a Faerie Dragon (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/bestiary/monster-listings/dragons/dragon-faerie), and asks if they can have something like that as a familiar, that leaves you a tool to work with if you're willing to deal with it.



- Just curious but... Have you ever seen a player doing a High INT Human Rogue (8+INT modifier skills) that got a couple of levels on other classes for the main purpose of being really good on lots of skills?

I've personally tried this (without dipping other classes), and it's really not as amazing as it sounds on the surface. If you really wanted to do this, though, Bard is the better one to start with, due to having all of the knowledges, and a feature that progresses them without skill ranks.



- Also... Is the Wizard in this example (I will be the GM, not a player, so I won't be using it anyway) optimized? Would be this kind of character what you guys usually consider Min-Maxing? (I believe is hard to tell at Lv1, but still).

You don't have a chosen spell list on this, so that is very hard to tell. A wizard lives or dies by it's spell list. In my opinion, the attributes are min-maxed in a way that leaves a glaring weakness (Will saves). If I saw that sheet, I'd point out just how much trouble their character could run into, and warn them that I will take advantage of that weakness. There are some really terrifying and disruptive builds out there, and I would not consider this one of them.


- How do you handle running in your games? Do you have any special rules (like not being able to turn corners or something)? 4x Times normal speed seems too much when playing using a map with squares.

The run action is a specific full-round action that lets you run 4x your speed. When you do this, you're flat-footed, you cannot turn corners, and you take attacks of opportunity for running. It's actually very rare to see anyone use this action within combat, and outside of it, it's fair game to call for Constitution checks if they are running at full sprint more than 30 seconds to a minute (for reference, the world record of the 400m dash is 44.6 seconds).



- And last but not least... Could you give me some examples of good/useful/optimized Feats for Lv1-5 characters based on their classes, including future progression (like getting "Point-Black Shoot" in order to get "Precise Shoot" so you don't get the -4 for shooting into melee)? Is mostly so I know about some good ones so I can suggest them to my players, since I know for a fact they won't feel like reading what every one of the hundreds there are does...

Staple Feats:
Archery: Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Rapid Shot, Deadly Aim
Melee: Power Attack, Combat Expertise, Improved Trip
Rogue: Weapon Finesse, Two-Weapon Fighting
Casting: Spell Focus (Favorite School), Extend Spell, Craft Wondrous Item
General: Improved Initiative, Toughness, Extra X (Rage, Bardic Music, Rage Power, Rogue Trick)

These aren't the most optimized feats, but they either let the character assemble a style, or have more options to what they want to do, without you having to dig through a thousand more choices. If you have a more solidified idea of what they want, we'd be happy to throw more specific ideas at you.

I know you didn't ask this, but I would strongly advise not having people play a Druid, and pushing your Cleric/Wizard players towards Oracle/Sorcerer. Full casting from a massive list is extremely hard to deal with as a new player or a new DM, and it gets even worse when Summoning is added to the mix. Oracle and Sorcerer at least have "These are all of the spells you'll ever need to remember once you've picked them".

[Kaemon]

Thanks a lot again guys. I did read all your answers twice :)
Will proceed to read now some of the links you provided (for Familiars and Magic Items creation) and I will let my players know about the staple feats you listed so they have something as a base. That way not only can they choose those if they don't feel like looking for more, but they can also compare the ones they do read against something, and decide what they like more.

And yeah, I know BaB doesn't affect AC, that was a weird brain fart. XD

Specially useful was learning that the -4 for opposite schools was for learning/identifying the spells, not for the save throw enemies must pass. I guess the fact that the spells need double the amount of slots is already punishment enough. Making them that much easier to defend against (on top of employing double the spell slots) would be way too harsh. Thanks for that clarification.

And as for running from combat... I guess I will only allow 4x in a straight line on easy terrain, 3x if they have to "turn a little" (but not cutting corners) and just 2x (aka, double movement action, not running) if they have to cut 90º corners like the ones you can find in dungeons; or something like that.
I think I should be prepared for this, to know how to react if my players try to flee from a losing combat.
Now... If they are running from something that can catch them running... That thing pretty much can only do an AoO every time they would start their next running, right? Or not even that if the run away at "withdraw" speeds, right? It seems a little silly. I'm seriously thinking about making withdraw a normal movement (instead of double) that doesn't provoke AoO, and ban running (so we use instead 2 movement actions)... Or... I really don't know. The 4x seems like they automatically scape any area with a grid of sorts...
Whatever the case I will check the exact rules on those constitutions checks. Maybe it can be fun to run away from orcs (you being faster or having a slight advantage over them) just to find out that they can keep running longer than you can, just to find yourself surrounded AND fatigued (or is it exhausted?).

BTW, do you guys usually use the 100-pages (each spell uses up as many pages as their level) rules? Or just ignore them?
If you follow them, can the mage make a second book, and "learn" more spells that way? I assume he can, and that can be pretty "nice/cool" to get to the point where you have 2 wizard books instead of 1.

[dramatic flare]

And as for running from combat... I guess I will only allow 4x in a straight line on easy terrain, 3x if they have to "turn a little" (but not cutting corners) and just 2x (aka, double movement action, not running) if they have to cut 90º corners like the ones you can find in dungeons; or something like that.
I think I should be prepared for this, to know how to react if my players try to flee from a losing combat.
Now... If they are running from something that can catch them running... That thing pretty much can only do an AoO every time they would start their next running, right? Or not even that if the run away at "withdraw" speeds, right? It seems a little silly. I'm seriously thinking about making withdraw a normal movement (instead of double) that doesn't provoke AoO, and ban running (so we use instead 2 movement actions)... Or... I really don't know. The 4x seems like they automatically scape any area with a grid of sorts...
Whatever the case I will check the exact rules on those constitutions checks. Maybe it can be fun to run away from orcs (you being faster or having a slight advantage over them) just to find out that they can keep running longer than you can, just to find yourself surrounded AND fatigued (or is it exhausted?).
Running is an odd duck. basically, if its easy terrain and it's a straight-ish line, you spend a full round action (and take an AC penalty) for 4 times your movement speed. I wouldn't punish my players too hard for gentle curves at run speed, especially considering the 5ft/10ft alterating diagonals already in play. However, I would argue that anything that would force a character to stop in some fashion, such as sharp corners or obstacles prevent a player from effectively running. Then it would be a double move action.

Any movement except a withdraw action out of a threatened square counts for Attacks of Opportunity, even running. Especially runnning.
However, I really think you're not going to find this is such a problem. Most players have a hard time accepting defeat and straight-up running away as fast as they can. It does happen, but by the point they've escaped enough that sprinting is an option, the batle is over anyway.



BTW, do you guys usually use the 100-pages (each spell uses up as many pages as their level) rules? Or just ignore them?
If you follow them, can the mage make a second book, and "learn" more spells that way? I assume he can, and that can be pretty "nice/cool" to get to the point where you have 2 wizard books instead of 1.
Most groups ignore the rule, but its not a bad choice to include it. having your spell-book stolen is a huge, quest demanding ordeal for a magical class.

[Kaemon]

Extra question if you don't mind... What would you think if I house-ruled that weapon proficiency was handled by Skills instead of Feats? (Even if you may use, for example, 2 points instead of 1).
I mean... Skills are pretty much things that you "train" to become better at (like learning a language, disarming traps, swimming), and the smarter you are, the more things you can learn... To me it makes sense if weapon proficiency was handled with those. Losing a feat (which can be pretty powerful) to learn how to handle an exotic weapons seems like a huge punishment that keeps players from deviating from the Basic/Martial weapons that they are already skilled with. Again, not expert here so maybe you can explain me to me a reason why is better for them just being Feats instead.
BTW, "only" -4 to hit with weapons you aren't proficient with, right? (Or also -4 damage?).

Also... Untrained skills (Class or not) are done at a +0 (you don't have negatives like an untrained weapon I mean) +/- whatever the skill uses (INT, DEX, etc), right?
And last... Does "Knowledge (Local)" have to be skilled per area? As in "Knowledge (Sandpoint)" (City) or "Knowledge (Varissia)" (Area? Country?)?
Sorry for bombarding so many questions, but I think I'm pretty fine now for starting the campaign.

[dramatic flare]

Extra question if you don't mind... What would you think if I house-ruled that weapon proficiency was handled by Skills instead of Feats? (Even if you may use, for example, 2 points instead of 1).
I mean... Skills are pretty much things that you "train" to become better at (like learning a language, disarming traps, swimming), and the smarter you are, the more things you can learn... To me it makes sense if weapon proficiency was handled with those. Losing a feat (which can be pretty powerful) to learn how to handle an exotic weapons seems like a huge punishment that keeps players from deviating from the Basic/Martial weapons that they are already skilled with. Again, not expert here so maybe you can explain me to me a reason why is better for them just being Feats instead.
BTW, "only" -4 to hit with weapons you aren't proficient with, right? (Or also -4 damage?).
That would be an odd choice. I an understand the desire to apply weapon training in other methods, but quite simply if they need martial weapons and are not a martial class, they should take a level in any martial class. a 2-level fighter dip can help many characters. And exotic weapons should probably take the feat penalty. They almost always come with higher damage and special abilities over and above all similar weapons.
a -4 to-hit penalty for an untrained weapon is a pretty steep penalty, but they do not also penalize damage.


Also... Untrained skills (Class or not) are done at a +0 (you don't have negatives like an untrained weapon I mean) +/- whatever the skill uses (INT, DEX, etc), right?
If the skill can be done untrained, then yes it only uses the ability modifer attaached to the skill.

And last... Does "Knowledge (Local)" have to be skilled per area? As in "Knowledge (Sandpoint)" (City) or "Knowledge (Varissia)" (Area? Country?)?
No. Knowledge (local) represents your ability to find and gather basic information about a place over a period of time. Low amount of the skill means finding the town gossip is going to take a few hours and maybe draw attention to yourself. High amounts mean you can find it in ten minutes, and maybe the local black market dealer too because you're a discreet individual.

[Kamai]

No. Knowledge (local) represents your ability to find and gather basic information about a place over a period of time. Low amount of the skill means finding the town gossip is going to take a few hours and maybe draw attention to yourself. High amounts mean you can find it in ten minutes, and maybe the local black market dealer too because you're a discreet individual.

Sorry, I had to jump on this one, because this skill is terribly named. What you're describing sounds more like a Diplomacy (Gather Information) check. The better way to think about Knowledge (Local) from what I understand is Knowledge (Humanoids) or Knowledge (Material Plane Civilizations). You pull this check as you're trying to find out the important people and power structures through Humanoid civilizations, as well as figure out the weird weaknesses of some Humanoids (like Orcs and Trolls).

Now, you would be fair to give bonuses (and let the skill be used untrained) for their home civilization, but you shouldn't penalize unfamiliar civilizations that are generally known any more than you should penalize a Knowledge (Planes) check for the City of Doors (assuming no PCs came from there).


Extra question if you don't mind... What would you think if I house-ruled that weapon proficiency was handled by Skills instead of Feats? (Even if you may use, for example, 2 points instead of 1).
I mean... Skills are pretty much things that you "train" to become better at (like learning a language, disarming traps, swimming), and the smarter you are, the more things you can learn... To me it makes sense if weapon proficiency was handled with those. Losing a feat (which can be pretty powerful) to learn how to handle an exotic weapons seems like a huge punishment that keeps players from deviating from the Basic/Martial weapons that they are already skilled with. Again, not expert here so maybe you can explain me to me a reason why is better for them just being Feats instead.
What you'll find is that even if the Fighter, Paladin, and Barbarian can buy this skill 1 for 1, it'll be much easier for a skill based class or an intelligence based caster to buy up weapon proficiencies. What you might want to try houseruling, though, is that people can buy weapon groups (as per the Weapon Training class feature), and that people that start with all martial weapons can pick up the Exotic weapons in the group, but otherwise keep the Exotic Weapon Proficiency feat. This actually lets people play with an assortment of weapons, while keeping the balance towards the fighter types.

[dramatic flare]

Sorry, I had to jump on this one, because this skill is terribly named. What you're describing sounds more like a Diplomacy (Gather Information) check. The better way to think about Knowledge (Local) from what I understand is Knowledge (Humanoids) or Knowledge (Material Plane Civilizations). You pull this check as you're trying to find out the important people and power structures through Humanoid civilizations, as well as figure out the weird weaknesses of some Humanoids (like Orcs and Trolls).
Gather information is another method of obtaining this knowledge. The way its worded, Knowledge (local) is just what you already know about the place and that's it. However, all of the things you can "know" in the examples of the skill are things you can find out with a Gather Information check. I can see how keeping them seperate would be useful, but I find it more helpful to let them overlap to some degree.
From the way you word it though, it seems more like a combination of anatomy and law. Both of these are covered under knowledge local, to be sure, but I see no reason to not just throw anatomy under knowledge nature and then make knowledge local into knowledge law if that was how I was going to run the game.
In other words, different strokes for different folks.