Making Channel Energy especially scary...

[ArendK]

So I'm building an NPC and looking to make a channel energy-based cleric of Urgathoa with some necromancy tidbits. Around 8th level, not too much flex for more levels (10 at most). Physical stats are largely a dump stat for him, so he's packing both high charisma and wisdom, as well as Constitution.

Thus far, I have Spell Focus (Necromancy), Bloatmage (fitting for style more than anything, and a +1 to necromancy spells is never a bad thing), Variant channeling (disease, half damage channels but failed save results in sickened condition), Improved Channel, Shatter Resolve (Will save vs. Shaken when channeling).

I was contemplating the Phylactery of Negative channeling to get the 4d6 channeling to 6d6 w/Will save for half/shaken (4d6 flat damage with the disease variant with a save vs. sickened and shaken conditions). The usual headband slot for a headband of mental prowess (Charisma+Wisdom), so that would be a nice shift in build. My thought is that would be a HUGE debuff to wade into battle with.

Currently rocking the Death and Cannibalism domains for Urgathoa, but open to other options. I contemplated the Divine Paragon archetype for the Obedience boon (another +1 necromancy caster level), but I really like the granted powers of both my domains.

Any ideas to make the character a bit more terrifying?

[the_david]

Crazy idea, give up some of your feats for variant multiclassing. VMC into a cavalier in the Order of the Stars. Now you can channel energy as a cleric of 1.5 times your level.

Edit: Really crazy idea, play an Incanter from Spheres of Power. Now you can get Channel Energy as a Cleric, accept that you use your casting stat for Channel Energy. (Choice of intelligence, wisdom or charisma.) You can still get the VMC into Cavalier. You can also specialize in the Death sphere, or take 3 domains (Without the bonus spells.) or get 3 bonus feats at level 8.

[Eldonauran]

Eh, our table has a house rule that a cleric (or similar class) gets to add their level to the damage that their channel energy deals/heals. Maybe you could adopt that houserule, or use it to your advantage by making it into a feat, or feat chain.

[ArendK]

Hmmm....

Could drop bloatmage (and just let fluff do the talking for being an obscenely fat character) and Spell Focus and that would get the feat cost out of the way to VMC into Order of the Stars Cavalier; channels with the phylactery would become 8d6 (save for half) with fear as a rider or 6d6 (no save) with sickened/fear rider effects (Save). Now THAT is tempting, though it seems a bit cheesy. High charisma would make the other perk of Order of the Stars (Charisma bonus to various d20 rolls for 1 minute) really interesting. The other giggly part is turning the challenge (level-2) into a touch-weapon engine of destruction. Just need to find a cleric spell or effect with multiple touches that does damage (something like Produce Flame where it's essentially 1 attack/level would be awesome, or would the Bleeding Touch from the Death domain work?)

[ArendK]

Eh, our table has a house rule that a cleric (or similar class) gets to add their level to the damage that their channel energy deals/heals. Maybe you could adopt that houserule, or use it to your advantage by making it into a feat, or feat chain.

I try to keep my houserules to a minimum; easier for other players to go to other groups, and easier to join new tables without an adjustment. One of the few that we use is with channel energy, it's never a "heal or harm" choice. A burst of negative energy is a burst of negative energy, so it heals undead and harms the living indiscriminately.

[Eldonauran]

I try to keep my houserules to a minimum; easier for other players to go to other groups, and easier to join new tables without an adjustment. One of the few that we use is with channel energy, it's never a "heal or harm" choice. A burst of negative energy is a burst of negative energy, so it heals undead and harms the living indiscriminately.We use the same 'burst effect' rule. Never liked the idea that you had to pick between the two.

[ArendK]

I can kind of get it for a balance reason, but it's not enough of a switch to drastically change the balance.

[denthor]

I can not find it but one of the players at my table says that he has a feat that heals his character when he negative bursts.

[Kaouse]

Play a Dual Channeler Soul Weaver from Spheres of Power. Take the Channel Surge (http://www.aonprd.com/FeatDisplay.aspx?ItemName=Channel%20Surge) feat. Channel Surge combined with the Dual Channeler's Grand Channel can definitely keep your damage competitive. But if you want to make it scary, then you can combine it with the Spheres of Power feats, Channel Destruction and Greater Channel Destruction. Channel Destruction lets you use any blast type you have in place of positive/negative energy, allowing you to apply rider effects to your channel. The Greater version lets you double the dice with a spell point (like the regular Destruction Sphere). It's expensive, but with it you can get up to a 30d10 burst effect w/ riders @ level 20.

[Eldonauran]

I can not find it but one of the players at my table says that he has a feat that heals his character when he negative bursts.Clerics can always include/exclude themselves in the effect of the burst when they use it. They just need to have a feat or ability that treats them as undead for the effects of the channel ability. If they don't have such a feat or ability, the burst does nothing to them (unless you play with the house rule that the burst effects everything, you don't have to pick undead/living)