[PoW/UP] Pathwalker/Awakened Blade

[Ninjaxenomorph]

I've wanted to play a Wisdom-based initiator that specialized in Sleeping Goddess, and the Pathwalker archetype for Psychic Warrior and going Awakened Blade seems like it would be the best option (or at least, the most fun way to play it). Race is Elan, going for two-handed Str-based to keep things simple. If I were to go straight Pathwalker for five levels, I get five feats (three normal and two bonus feats combat/psionic feats); of those, two have to be Psionic Body and Psionic Meditation to qualify for Awakened Blade. I also wanted to pick up Sleeping Goddess Style, which leaves me with two remaining feats. This is where my unfamiliarity with psionics comes in; normally, I'd want to take Power Attack and Furious Focus, I don't know (also I don't think I would be able to fit all those in before level 5, and my GM doesn't allow us to abuse retraining), what should be my feats? I already am getting Deep Focus and Psionic Meditation, so Psycrystal Containment and its followup would largely be redundant. Narcissism for the Resolute veil? Psionic Weapon? Psycrystal Affinity? There are so many psionic feats, I'm lost.

Following that is the issue of the PsyWar path and powers. I've mostly settled on the Sleeping Goddess path; the trance is irrelevant as is Call Weaponry, but Empty Mind is somewhat useful as a will-booster in case a counter isn't available, and the maneuver is pretty good, and the bonuses to Autohypnosis are pretty good. However, this leaves me with having to spend 2 of my 5 powers on the quickly obsolete Defensive/Offensive Precognition powers. This leaves me with a single 1st level power remaining, and two second level powers. For the first level power I was thinking Expansion, since size increases are never a bad thing to have, and Body Adjustment and Hustle for my second-level powers. Any other powers I should consider taking?

[Ramza00]

I am sorry I do not have anything to add. I am still playing / learning Path of War and Ultimate Psionics.

That said, thank you for this.


Narcissism for the Resolute veil?

I am currently making a Gestalt Aegis / Egoist where the Aegis side will eventually multiclass into more PoW stuff. Due to how Aegis works with psicrystals where each essentia is grabbing a psicrystal feat I was planning on making a superior psicrystal weapon and have the weapon refocus itself each round and thus I have more psionic focuses per combat I can shake a stick at. :smallbiggrin:

Free rerolls for a psionic focus is always good. 😈

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I wished I had something to contribute. Have you looked into Mindstones and Greater Mindstones?

2k bought for an extra psychic warrior 1st level known is nice. 4k bought for any 1st level psionic power is also good. Call Item (3.5) is a nice psionic power making you a mudane toolbox where you can just grab the right mudane item you need for some psionic power points.

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I am mostly responding to say thank you.

[upho]

his is where my unfamiliarity with psionics comes in; normally, I'd want to take Power Attack and Furious Focus, I don't know (also I don't think I would be able to fit all those in before level 5, and my GM doesn't allow us to abuse retraining), what should be my feats? Narcissism for the Resolute veil? Psionic Weapon? Psycrystal Affinity? There are so many psionic feats, I'm lost.This depends entirely on what you're aiming to focus on, especially in terms of your combat function/role and style.

If you're finding it difficult to decide on this, when it comes to combat I think a safe (and typically fun) bet for Sleeping Goddess and the Awakened Blade is a size/reach AoO melee control/debuff and/or damage defender, although in this case I believe you should also consider dipping a level of Ordained Defender and Fiendbound Marauder warder (for fiend's grip, Wis-based Combat Reflexes and additional Wis-based maneuvers). Doing so won't necessarily delay your AB entry, but it will delay your power progression and you'll effectively trade your 5th level psy-war bonus feat for the warder's Combat Reflexes. With Practiced Initiator, this also allows you to have warder IL 5 if you're taking the first warder level at 5th, and thus grant you higher level maneuvers (in comparison to psy-war 5).


For the first level power I was thinking Expansion, since size increases are never a bad thing to have, and Body Adjustment and Hustle for my second-level powers. Any other powers I should consider taking?You'll probably like elongate extremities (https://libraryofmetzofitz.fandom.com/wiki/Elongate_Extremities) throughout all levels, and depending on your choice of maneuvers, I'd at least consider psionic lion's charge instead of body adjustment, allowing you to more quickly get into position at the start of combat (and Radiant Dawn maneuvers can provide you with less costly minor healing anyways). Also, keep in mind that expansion is probably better to get in a cheap dorje, and that it's inferior to minor metamorphosis and especially metamorphosis, and you'll probably want to spend a feat on getting the latter as soon as possible (at 11th). But again, all this is of course highly dependent on what you're looking to do in and out of combat.

Finally, at some point during mid levels you'll most likely gain increasing advantages from having a dirt cheap essence forged weapon for 5k (and keep in mind these may grant you up to 5 additional combat feats via training), fueled by essence you gain primarily via great Radiant Dawn maneuvers. And this in turn requires you get an Access Chakra Slot feat to allow you to bind veils to your hands and/or (later) shoulders, plus Shape Veil or Narcissism.

HTH!

[Ramza00]

[QUOTE=upho;24378523]Also, keep in mind that expansion is probably better to get in a cheap dorje, and that it's inferior to minor metamorphosis and especially metamorphosis, and you'll probably want to spend a feat on getting the latter as soon as possible (at 11th). But again, all this is of course highly dependent on what you're looking to do in and out of combat
Metamorphosis remind me to mention Form Astral Armor.

For 5pp plus a full round action you gain an aegis suit plus 5 customization points. You also get to choose what you want such as the astral skin, astral juggernaut, or astral armor. Astral Skin stacks with your normal armor and goes underneath it.

Astral skin at ML7 gives you also Nimble aka +2 to Dex, Speed x2 giving you a 10 foot boost to speed, and Evasion. In sum these are 5 free customization points that are in addition to your 5 customization points.

At ML 12 you now get Improved Evasion.

———

So in sum if you mind giving up a round in combat, or you can prepare right before an encounter Form Astral Armor gives you the Swiss Army Knife capabilities of an Aegis.

[Ninjaxenomorph]

This depends entirely on what you're aiming to focus on, especially in terms of your combat function/role and style.

If you're finding it difficult to decide on this, when it comes to combat I think a safe (and typically fun) bet for Sleeping Goddess and the Awakened Blade is a size/reach AoO melee control/debuff and/or damage defender, although in this case I believe you should also consider dipping a level of Ordained Defender and Fiendbound Marauder warder (for fiend's grip, Wis-based Combat Reflexes and additional Wis-based maneuvers). Doing so won't necessarily delay your AB entry, but it will delay your power progression and you'll effectively trade your 5th level psy-war bonus feat for the warder's Combat Reflexes. With Practiced Initiator, this also allows you to have warder IL 5 if you're taking the first warder level at 5th, and thus grant you higher level maneuvers (in comparison to psy-war 5).

You'll probably like elongate extremities (https://libraryofmetzofitz.fandom.com/wiki/Elongate_Extremities) throughout all levels, and depending on your choice of maneuvers, I'd at least consider psionic lion's charge instead of body adjustment, allowing you to more quickly get into position at the start of combat (and Radiant Dawn maneuvers can provide you with less costly minor healing anyways). Also, keep in mind that expansion is probably better to get in a cheap dorje, and that it's inferior to minor metamorphosis and especially metamorphosis, and you'll probably want to spend a feat on getting the latter as soon as possible (at 11th). But again, all this is of course highly dependent on what you're looking to do in and out of combat.

Finally, at some point during mid levels you'll most likely gain increasing advantages from having a dirt cheap essence forged weapon for 5k (and keep in mind these may grant you up to 5 additional combat feats via training), fueled by essence you gain primarily via great Radiant Dawn maneuvers. And this in turn requires you get an Access Chakra Slot feat to allow you to bind veils to your hands and/or (later) shoulders, plus Shape Veil or Narcissism.

HTH!

Ehhh, I'm not really fond of any of those ideas. Expansion I was looking at because it scales well and its versatile, which a dorje wouldn't cover (and having to rely on psionic/akashic items is another problem entirely with our GM). Dipping anything just kinda loses the focus of what I want to do; I want to play a Sleeping Goddess specialist, and taking Radiant Dawn takes away resources for Sleeping Goddess (plus I am playing a Radiant Dawn-specialized veiled lord right now, and I would rather differentiate my characters). Hence why I chose body adjustment over psionic lion's charge, plus hustle is just a much more versatile version of it. And, body adjustment (or body purification, which I might take since I already am taking the Reconstruction racial trait for elan which covers healing plus boosts ML for healing powers), and it synergizes well with the Pathwalker's recovery method.

I considered a reach-control build going with a dex-build, but I declined, going with a simpler Str-based two-hander. Primarily I want to use the most of Sleeping Goddess to its fullest; full investment in the style feats, Discipline Focus (which I realize I could actually take at 1st level, solving the feat sequencing problem; Furious Focus will have to be put off).



Metamorphosis remind me to mention Form Astral Armor.

For 5pp plus a full round action you gain an aegis suit plus 5 customization points. You also get to choose what you want such as the astral skin, astral juggernaut, or astral armor. Astral Skin stacks with your normal armor and goes underneath it.

Astral skin at ML7 gives you also Nimble aka +2 to Dex, Speed x2 giving you a 10 foot boost to speed, and Evasion. In sum these are 5 free customization points that are in addition to your 5 customization points.

At ML 12 you now get Improved Evasion.

———

So in sum if you mind giving up a round in combat, or you can prepare right before an encounter Form Astral Armor gives you the Swiss Army Knife capabilities of an Aegis.

Yeah, I was definitely looking at picking up form astral armor as soon as I could. The versatility packed into one power is well worth the slot.