Creating a Werewolf character with leadership - Pathfinder

[BigGreenThings]

OK, this is my first post, so I'm sorry if I do something wrong.

OK, as the tittle says, I am trying to create a Werewolf character who is going to take the leadership feat. My intention is to be the "Alpha" of a pack of werewolves. I was thinking about starting as a bard for flavor reason, plus inspireing my pack of wolves sounds fun, but am not married to the idea. I'm not sure yet weather I want to be an afflicted or natural Werewolf. The party is level 5, and anything with the official pathfinder seal of apoval should be fine. I also am thinking about being a large race, as large wolves are fun. The party already has one Chaotic evil character, and one lawfull evil, so being and evil monster should not be a problem. I also would prefer not to use a weapon, and do most/all combat in hybrid or wolf form.

All that being said, what levels of what classes should I take? Do people know of any good prestige classes or feets that are especially good for this? What about race? The only thing I am sure of is the leadership feat. Maybe good gear for this idea? The DM likes to give players special items pretty often, so some random cool gear for this would be nice.

Anything helps. Thanks for the input.

[dascarletm]

One of my players is playing a 3rd party class, a Wolf Shifter (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/3rd-party-classes/paizo-fans-united/wolf-shifter) It is very similar to a barbarian, but it gives you an ability to be a werewolf without needing to grab a template or some-such. You could multiclass with bard or use unchained's rules for variant multiclassing with it.

[BigGreenThings]

Cool, thanks. The wolf shifter seems close to what I am going for, but I would like to be able to be a wolf/hybrid for as long as desired. I actually like the pathfinder lycanthrope template, and had assumed that was what I was going to be using. This still might suit my needs though. The wolf shifter also seems to need a weapon, I would much rather use only the wolf/hybrid natural attacks.

[dascarletm]

Cool, thanks. The wolf shifter seems close to what I am going for, but I would like to be able to be a wolf/hybrid for as long as desired. I actually like the pathfinder lycanthrope template, and had assumed that was what I was going to be using. This still might suit my needs though. The wolf shifter also seems to need a weapon, I would much rather use only the wolf/hybrid natural attacks.

True, you can take the beast totem rage powers to gain natural attacks, but if you'd rather use the template then it is a moot point.

[BigGreenThings]

I had no idea rage powers could do a thing like that. I have played little pathfinder, and mostly play casters of time sort, so I have never read the barbarian stuff. That definitely makes it a more viable. Thanks again for pointing that out. Still have the problem of not having time to eat my slaughtered enemies after combat though.

[dascarletm]

I had no idea rage powers could do a thing like that. I have played little pathfinder, and mostly play casters of time sort, so I have never read the barbarian stuff. That definitely makes it a more viable. Thanks again for pointing that out. Still have the problem of not having time to eat my slaughtered enemies after combat though.

wolf form lasts minutes instead of rounds if you don't mind munching down as a wolf :smallwink:

[Red Fel]

It's worth noting that if you do go with a Druid, they have access to the Wolf Domain (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/core-classes/druid/archetypes/paizo---druid-archetypes/animal-and-terrain-domains/wolf-domain). One of the granted powers of this domain is Pack Tactics, which suits a wolf alpha nicely. One of the spells in this domain is Animal Shapes (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic/all-spells/a/animal-shapes) (canine only), which lasts for hours per level, and targets up to one willing creature per caster level. So, you can turn not only your character, but other PCs as well, into wolves for your pack.

So, that's an option.

[BigGreenThings]

OK, this might work. Now my only problem is that "she can only switch between the two forms when she starts a new transformation." Which would mean I have to go human, wait on fatigue, and then go wolf and nom nom, but I think I could get the DM to wave that little tidbit, seeing as going from hybrid to wolf won't matter after combat is over anyway. Thanks again for the input. Know any good feats that would make my natural weapon fighting better? Silly me, I can just go google that XP

[Red Fel]

OK, this might work. Now my only problem is that "she can only switch between the two forms when she starts a new transformation." Which would mean I have to go human, wait on fatigue, and then go wolf and nom nom, but I think I could get the DM to wave that little tidbit, seeing as going from hybrid to wolf won't matter after combat is over anyway. Thanks again for the input. Know any good feats that would make my natural weapon fighting better? Silly me, I can just go google that XP

This list (https://sites.google.com/site/pathfinderogc/extras/community-creations/aliga-s-lab/Feat-Lists/unarmed-natural-weapon-feats) shows feats for natural weapons or unarmed strikes. The Feral Combat Training (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/feats/combat-feats/feral-combat-training-combat) feat allows you to apply unarmed strike feats to your natural weapons. Weapon Finesse (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/feats/combat-feats/weapon-finesse-combat---final) lets you apply Dex instead of Str to natural weapons, if you prefer. And, of course, Improved Natural Attack (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/feats/monster-feats/improved-natural-attack) is a simple go-to if you just want to increase your die size.

[BigGreenThings]

So, that's an option.

Thanks, this is quite interesting, but not quite what I'm going for. I appreciate it being pointed out though, as it may applie quite well in the future.

[BigGreenThings]

what you said

Perfect. Thanks for all the help. This seems like what I'll end up going with. Enough of the stuff I want in one thing. Now I need a race. I would love to find something large, but I don't know what pathfinder has/alows, or if it's even a good idea. Any thoughts?

[Red Fel]

Perfect. Thanks for all the help. This seems like what I'll end up going with. Enough of the stuff I want in one thing. Now I need a race. I would love to find something large, but I don't know what pathfinder has/alows, or if it's even a good idea. Any thoughts?

Ordinarily, to my knowledge, PF doesn't have races that are large by default. There are a few ways to become large, and some are thematically appropriate - for example, a Druid's Wild Shape ability allows it to (at a certain point) assume large forms; a Synthesist Summoner can merge with a large Eidolon; a Bloodrager with the Abyssal Blood (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/core-classes/barbarian/rage-powers/paizo---rage-powers/abyssal-blood-su) rage power can grow by one size category during a rage.

In terms of races, let's have a run-down, shall we? We can disregard the core races (Human, Dwarf, Elf, Half-Elf, Half-Orc, Gnome, Halfling) unless you want some Half-Orc (anger issues and mild deformities, appropriate) or Half-Elf (can't quite fit in, stuck between two worlds, appropriate) going on. Of the featured races, we can disregard the planetouched, and while there are animal-type races (e.g. Catfolk, Ratfolk, Tengu) none of them are specifically wolf-related. (Although, a cat that wants to be a wolf would be kind of funny.)

One race in particular that jumps out at me is the Kitsune (http://zenithgames.blogspot.com/2015/06/races-of-pathfinder-kitsune.html). Kitsune are fox-people, which is close to wolf-people, if not precisely. They also have a native ability to shift from human form into fox form. With a feat, they can shift into pretty much any human form, including that of a specific person, which is pretty sweet. They get a Charisma bonus, which is great for leadership.