Multiclassing Help: What to Do with only Ten Levels

[Dazhbug]

In any one class, that is.

One of my best buddies (and frequent ST) is sounding the horns for a new game. Of course, he's got a new cockamamie scheme going, and I'm always ready to take a weird and crazy concept and limitation and play it well. This time, the name of the game is multi-classing, as he won't be allowing any players to take more than ten levels in any one class. The basic set-up runs like this:

- Elves meeting humans for the first time; all PCs will be elves (elves are becoming much more varied and you can assume that the PCs can get the stat bonuses they're looking for).
- There is a stark class separation between elves and humans; humans have the prepared casters, anything with a hint of mechanical aptitude (such as rogues), and paladins. Elves tend towards spontaneous casters, druids/rangers, and the like (including Warlocks, which are getting ported in).
- The aforementioned 10 level limit on any one class (PrCs are considered separate classes).
- Some of the more common feat taxes are being done away with, as per this (http://theworldissquare.com/feat-taxes-in-pathfinder/)

Anyway, my initial thought was to roll with an Arcane Trickster, since it fits the multiclass requirement nicely and I've always wanted to try one. That said, I am making serious considerations towards being the party bruiser, since we don't really have one at present; unfortunately, my experience with multiclassing is limited, to say the least, and most of the guides and discussions I've found stick with small dips to limit issues with BAB/spell progression. So, I would ask some assistance in either A) prestige classes that are nicely workable to produce interesting bruisers/gish builds, and/or B) multiclass combinations that don't entirely suck due to destroying their BAB/spell progressions.

Any advice/thoughts are hugely appreciated! And if a build isn't Amazing but is still a blast to play, I am likely to strongly consider it, so extra points for Rule of Cool.

[Psyren]

One of my best buddies (and frequent ST)

Frequent what?



- The aforementioned 10 level limit on any one class (PrCs are considered separate classes).

If PrCs are considered separate classes then I'm not sure what this is supposed to accomplish. What's to stop you from taking Base Class 10/PrC 10 and getting 20 levels of progression? Hell, you can take Base Class 10/Evangelist 10 and even get 19 levels of all your class features.

For your Arcane Trickster idea - all you need here is Accomplished Sneak Attacker and you'll barely lose any spellcasting progression.



- Some of the more common feat taxes are being done away with, as per this (http://theworldissquare.com/feat-taxes-in-pathfinder/)

Now this I'll be bookmarking :smallbiggrin:

[Rezialn]

If PrCs are considered separate classes then I'm not sure what this is supposed to accomplish. What's to stop you from taking Base Class 10/PrC 10 and getting 20 levels of progression? Hell, you can take Base Class 10/Evangelist 10 and even get 19 levels of all your class features.



Any way to get class progress PrC other than Evangelist?

[Psyren]

Any way to get class progress PrC other than Evangelist?

There are a handful of PrCs that can progress specific class features, e.g. Winter Witch progresses Hexes and Dragon Disciple progresses your (draconic) Bloodline. And there are of course lots of PrCs that just progress spellcasting e.g. Loremaster, while replacing your base class features with features of their own. But Evangelist is the only one I know of that can progress the features of any base class you enter with.

[Dazhbug]

Frequent what?

Yeah yeah, I'm building a Mage character at the moment as well, and I tend to use all the various acronyms interchangeably. It's all the same job (ST = Storyteller, in case it was a serious question).


If PrCs are considered separate classes then I'm not sure what this is supposed to accomplish. What's to stop you from taking Base Class 10/PrC 10 and getting 20 levels of progression? Hell, you can take Base Class 10/Evangelist 10 and even get 19 levels of all your class features.

For your Arcane Trickster idea - all you need here is Accomplished Sneak Attacker and you'll barely lose any spellcasting progression.

Hey, who can fathom the mind of the DM? But it's a question worth asking, if only so the PCs all stay relatively balanced. Of course, Mythic tiers are happening so "balance" is a (laughably) relative term.


Now this I'll be bookmarking :smallbiggrin:

I know, right? Excellent stuff, and definitely frees up some room in the old build order.

Now, I was planning on doing ATrickster if nothing else presented itself, but I'm taking a long, hard look at The Way of the Angry Bear (https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1bu5RkMqNkZR1hpQjNfcDNsUEU/view?pli=1). I realize that there were some errata to Feral Combat Training recently that hurts the build-as-written, but I really like the idea of a shapeshifting face puncher, so any advice in that vein would be aces.

[Psyren]

Yeah yeah, I'm building a Mage character at the moment as well, and I tend to use all the various acronyms interchangeably. It's all the same job (ST = Storyteller, in case it was a serious question).

It was - is that the term for DM from another game or system? I never saw it before so I was curious.



Now, I was planning on doing ATrickster if nothing else presented itself, but I'm taking a long, hard look at The Way of the Angry Bear (https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1bu5RkMqNkZR1hpQjNfcDNsUEU/view?pli=1). I realize that there were some errata to Feral Combat Training recently that hurts the build-as-written, but I really like the idea of a shapeshifting face puncher, so any advice in that vein would be aces.

FCT wasn't errata'ed - Pummeling Charge was. But that guide appears to take the new rules into account, so have at it.

[GreyBlack]

Yeah yeah, I'm building a Mage character at the moment as well, and I tend to use all the various acronyms interchangeably. It's all the same job (ST = Storyteller, in case it was a serious question).



Hey, who can fathom the mind of the DM? But it's a question worth asking, if only so the PCs all stay relatively balanced. Of course, Mythic tiers are happening so "balance" is a (laughably) relative term.



I know, right? Excellent stuff, and definitely frees up some room in the old build order.

Now, I was planning on doing ATrickster if nothing else presented itself, but I'm taking a long, hard look at The Way of the Angry Bear (https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1bu5RkMqNkZR1hpQjNfcDNsUEU/view?pli=1). I realize that there were some errata to Feral Combat Training recently that hurts the build-as-written, but I really like the idea of a shapeshifting face puncher, so any advice in that vein would be aces.

Speaking as someone who accidentally did the Way of the Angry Bear in a campaign? I whole heartedly endorse this. There isn't quite anything like turning into a gigantic bear (the DM allowed me to fluff my wild shape to have ursibe features, because I stayed in character and made my character believed he was a bear, despite being obviously a half-orc) and trampling your enemies. I recently became the god of the bears. It is fantastic.

[Dazhbug]

It was - is that the term for DM from another game or system? I never saw it before so I was curious.

Indeed, most of the White Wolf RPGs (World of Darkness, Exalted, etc.) use ST (Storyteller) instead of DM/GM.


FCT wasn't errata'ed - Pummeling Charge was. But that guide appears to take the new rules into account, so have at it.

From what I can tell, it was altered in... Ultimate Combat, I believe? Specifically, the feat used to say "Choose one of your natural weapons. While using the selected natural weapon, you can apply the effects of feats that have Improved Unarmed Strike as a prerequisite, as well as effects that augment an unarmed strike.", and the final clause was removed.

There's a long discussion thread with regards to the guide, and the last page has some interesting insights; in particular, a re-write of the build concept using a War-Priest and Sacred Weapon damage. That said, I'm exploring some other options, including the possibility of custom/homebrew stuff. To that end, I'll probably be opening up a thread in the Homebrew forum, since I have some ideas about combining a druid or bloodrager with a summoner's evolutions in some way.


Speaking as someone who accidentally did the Way of the Angry Bear in a campaign? I whole heartedly endorse this. There isn't quite anything like turning into a gigantic bear (the DM allowed me to fluff my wild shape to have ursibe features, because I stayed in character and made my character believed he was a bear, despite being obviously a half-orc) and trampling your enemies. I recently became the god of the bears. It is fantastic.

Strangely enough, I got back in touch with my DM, and the purpose of the multi-classing is that he really wants off-brand, interesting characters, not just the usual cookie-cutter, and the whole impetus of this game is rags to godhead. So my current aim is to become, essentially, the God of Nature/Evolution. If you've played with the build semi-recently, I'd love some advice to help me along my way in that area.