Dragonmech: Necromantic mech pilot build

[Jackaccount]

Necromantic mechs looks great on paper, they're immune to crits, they're dirt cheap, and they only ever need one crew member, the necromancer who built it. However, you need 13 levels of cleric for the spells to make a Necromantic mech, and clerics don't get mech piloting as a class skill. Nor do any of the mech piloting classes (base or prestige) get full spellcasting progression. This build is my attempt to make a good necromantic mech pilot.

Overview:
None of the mech piloting classes get full spellcasting progression, but at least one gives you full spell slot progression. The grease prophet turns your divine spells into steam powers and gives you mech piloting, at the cost of being unable to cast non-engine/knowledge domain spells. So we want to take grease prophet after 13 levels of cleric casting, with as few spell improvements as possible since we'll be losing them.

Race: Cogling

Deity: Great Engine (the only god to grant the engine domain, Dotrak doesn't have clerics.)

Classes in order:
3 cloistered cleric,
5 Combat Medic,
5 earth dreamer,
7 Grease prophet.

Required feats:
1.Combat casting
3.Dodge
6.Earth sense
9.Craft steam gear
12.Craft wondrous item

[Curbludgeon]

The Reborn prestige class, as found in 2nd Age of Walkers, can add Mech Pilot to its list of class skills. It can be entered at level 8 with a single-class Cleric (BaB+5, Know(History)4 ranks, 2nd level divine spells, setting requirements), and the first three levels grant spell progression.

[Anthrowhale]

Would any of the generic ways to use a feat to acquire a skill work as an alternative? Aereni Focus (PGtF) and Flexible Mind (Dragon 326) come to mind.

There's also the 'Ancestral Speaker' variant cleric in Dragon311.

If you can accept losing a level of spell advancement, Able Learner also allows you to pay for cross-class skills at the in-class rate and Factotum makes every skill have max ranks as if in class.

Another thrust is leveraging spells for skills. Guidance of the Avatar, Divine Insight, using the spell domain to pick up Improvisation, and Surge of Fortune allow you to pass very high skill checks. With the Item Familiar feat, it's fairly feasible to make checks around 100.

[Jackaccount]

Would any of the generic ways to use a feat to acquire a skill work as an alternative? Aereni Focus (PGtF) and Flexible Mind (Dragon 326) come to mind.

Those would work yeah, but I hate using a feat just to get a single class skill.

[Anthrowhale]

Those would work yeah, but I hate using a feat just to get a single class skill.

So, a simple Ancestral Speaker Cleric 20 build would work?

[Jackaccount]

So, a simple Ancestral Speaker Cleric 20 build would work?

Yes, although mechs have only existed for a generation or two, so you might have to sell the GM on your ancestors teaching you how to pilot one.

[Curbludgeon]

I went back through the Dragonmech books to see if there were options I missed. Assuming one is limited to SRD+Dragonmech, then Reborn is the only PrC with casting at level 1 which can add Pilot Mech to its skill list. As a bonus the class actually adds all skills of one selected ability score, so there's a little mechanical support for making a sneaky cleric. The class does make resurrection checks even harder for cleric characters in the Dragonmech setting, such that a Cleric 7/Reborn 1 has to pass a DC 19 Will save in order to be raised. At 2nd level the Reborn is unable to select spells which return others from the dead, so a 1 level dip (perhaps taken in conjunction with the Able Learner feat) is probably for the best. Getting out of Cleric as quickly as possible to keep that save low is also suggested, which I'll discuss in a minute.

Another option which doesn't sacrifice caster levels is to be the target of the 8th level spell Implant Skill Knowledge. It costs the caster(either a Constructor wizard or Shintaji cleric) 650 XP, the caster must possess an equal or greater number of ranks of the skill(s) selected, and depending on the level of the recipient it imparts between 4 ranks in 1 skill and 8 ranks in 2 skills.

The Grease Prophet isn't a good choice for a Necromantic Mech pilot for a few reasons. The first is that it trades all ability to create or maintain a necromech for the ability to make a steam mech. Also, creating a necromantic mech requires the 7th level spell Resurrection, among others, and the feats Craft Magical Mech and Craft Wondrous Item, while to pilot one pretty much requires the feats Mechwalker and Mechanized Combat Practice. There are plenty of other feats useful to piloting or directing spells through a mech, and so I don't really see the utility in prereqs for PrCs like Earth Dreamer and Combat Medic.

The main question for a build, as I see it, is what alignment is this necromancer cleric going to be. If one goes for a good aligned build, it can take a couple of the good only PrCs like Church Inquisitor, along with a Contemplative dip. If it's an evil build I think there's a strong argument for sacrificing 1 caster level on one of the spooky classes like Divine Anima Mage(which frees up one of those item creation feat slots). A fun possible option is to stick a level of Grease Prophet on a Arcane Heirophant build, such that the character does Steam Mage right and still has access to magic.

Edit: Oh, and depending on if the character is meant to be in the Dragonmech Highpoint setting, I'd see about commandeering whichever Iron Choir (in Mech Manual) corresponds to the character's deity. They each prevent clerics of their respective god from not gaining daily spells in addition to a crazy bonus. For the two obvious examples, the evil death god's mech lets all Necromancy spells cast within operate at double the caster level, while the magic god grants clerics one additional spell slot of each level. Also, since each Iron Choir is 'only' 30' tall, a big enough necromech could wear the temple as a little hat.