As some of you Pathfinder fans may be aware, Paizo recently released a revised Advanced Class Guide playtest that was open access for everyone. I’ve seen the slippery slope that is power creep destroy 3.5 edition, mainly due to new base classes and prestige classes being added, so I was a little wary of this new offering. Nevertheless, I delved in and had a close look at all of their new classes, and I found the results quite mixed. Some of them seem a little stronger on paper, if you compare them to other base classes. Nevertheless, a lot of the concepts are good, and the abilities interesting and flavourful, which is the most important part; balance can always be tweaked. Anyways, let’s have a look at each class a little more closely, shall we?
Arcanist
Hit Die: d6
Alternate Classes: Wizard and Sorcerer
BAB: Low
SP / Lvl: 2
High Saves: Will
Profs: Simple weapons
Strengths:
– Gets to “prepare” the spells they want to spontaneously cast each day
– Can gain access to the majority of the most useful features of both Sorcerers and Wizards through Arcane Exploits
– Can spend points from their Arcane Resevoir to boost caster level or saving throw DC
Weaknesses:
– Needs to invest in more ability scores than a pure Sorcerer or Wizard
– Slower spell progression than a pure Wizard
– No nifty favored class bonuses
Summary:
If one of these classes in particular is overpowered, it’s probably this one (not surprising, considering it’s a hybrid of two of the most powerful base classes). You gain the best of both worlds when it comes to both spontaneous and prepared casting, and you have access to the vast majority of the stuff you would care about from Sorcerer and Wizard from your Arcane Exploit abilities. Bloodline Development gives you access to the all-important Bloodline Arcana for a Sorcerer bloodline of your choice. Potent Magic is another incredible option, allowing you to make your most important spells extremely difficult to resist. If you’re going more of a blaster route, taking School Understanding and grabbing the abilities of the Evocation school or the Admixture sub-school will make you a powerhouse that might even surpass the Crossblooded blaster Sorcerer. Of course, there are no favored class bonuses to elemental damage available for the Arcanist right now, so you would lose out a little there by comparison, but you would be far more versatile.
The biggest problem the Arcanist faces is managing its ability scores. Where having a Sorcerer or Wizard start with 20 Charisma or Intelligence was possible (if a little tricky), it is far more difficult for an Arcanist. Though their spellcasting is all based on Intelligence, all of their abilities rely on Charisma. That means that they’ll need a heavy investment in Intelligence, at least a moderate investment in Charisma, and a passable investment in both Dexterity and Constitution. In all likelihood, you’ll be starting at 18 Intelligence, which is still quite good, especially considering you can boost your DCs by spending points from your Arcane Resevoir.
These guys are going to be complete powerhouses, if they’re kept like this. If they had access to either a school ability or a bloodline, they would just be strong, but being able to take both makes them monstrously effective. I suppose a similar effect can be achieved by dipping a single level of Sorcerer on a Wizard in order to gain access to the Bloodline Arcana of your choice, but I would think that a lot of DMs would put the kibosh on that level of munchkinery. Long story short, beware of optimizers playing this class.
Bloodrager
Hit Die: d10
Alternate Classes: Barbarian and Sorcerer
BAB: High
SP / Lvl: 4
High Saves: Fort
Profs: Light armor, medium armor, shields, simple weapons, martial weapons
Strengths:
– Good base attack bonus and Rage ability makes them capable in melee
– Gains access to a few Sorcerer Bloodline abilities and feats
– Can cast a small number of Sorcerer spells
Weaknesses:
– No Barbarian Rage Powers
– Lower hit die
– Can’t wear heavy armor without suffering from spell failure
Summary:
While on the surface the disadvantages of playing a bloodrager are minimal, losing access to rage powers is devastating for a Barbarian. Some of them, like Superstition, are so powerful that high level Barbarians can become nigh-unstoppable; their hit point pools are exceptionally high, and they become practically immune to spells that allow saving throws if you take the human favored class bonus. That’s outside of the crazy pounce shenanigans you can get into with the totem powers.
The trade-off, however, is still quite good. Being able to cast spells like Shield, Blur, Displacement, Haste, Heroism, and Stoneskin on yourself makes you far better than most Barbarians at defending against physical attacks, and decreases your reliance on fellow party members for your offensive buffs. The bloodline powers and spells you gain access to are much different from those of your Sorcerer counterparts; most of them provide you with options better for physical combatants. Unfortunately for you though, unlike the Magus, you have no way of reliably combining physical attacks with your spells. Given that you’re going to need high Strength, Dexterity and Constitution, your Charisma probably won’t be higher than 14. As such, your save DCs are not going to be competitive, making buff spells your best bet for your spells slots. Still, it is nice to have a Magic Missle or Scorching Ray in your back pocket for those occasions when an enemy thinks that hovering above your melee reach is an effective defensive strategy.
Bottom line, overall, is the Bloodrager more powerful than the Barbarian? The short answer is “maybe”; it depends how you played your Barbarians before. I can assure you that a Dwarven Barbarian with a lot of Strength, the Superstition Rage Power and the Steel Soul feat is unbelievably hard to deal with. Once they get Greater Beast Totem at level 10, it’s all over. With the Bloodrager, you’re forced to invest in what is in most cases a dump stat (Charisma), your saves against spells won’t be quite so ridiculous, and you won’t get the opportunity to pounce anyone. If we are comparing the average Barbarian (not the optimized one I was just discussing) to the average Bloodrager, well… the story might be a little different. Either way you slice it, I think this class is well-balanced enough to see play at my table.
Brawler
Hit Die: d10
Alternate Classes: Fighter and Monk
BAB: High
SP / Lvl: 4
High Saves: Fort, Ref
Profs: Light armor, simple weapons, handaxe, short sword, “close” weapons
Strengths:
– Can qualify for both Fighter and Monk feats
– “Real” full BAB
– Can give themselves temporary access to new combat feats on the fly
– Somewhat better at Combat Maneuvers
– Knockout ability can be dangerous
– Does not require as many high stats
Weaknesses:
– No Ki
– Low Will save
– No Wisdom bonus to AC
Summary:
These guys are… well, they’re a combination of a Monk and Fighter. Like me, you may be asking, ‘wait… wasn’t Fighter and Monk already combined in the Martial Artist Monk Archetype?’ Yes, it was in fact. I suppose they felt like it wasn’t… fighter-y enough, or something. Or, more likely, they’re running low on ideas. One of the nicer things about this class is that it doesn’t require a large investment in Wisdom, though your Will save will be pretty lackluster. You can and should wear armor, and will likely greatly benefit from throwing a feat into Armor Proficiency Medium and wearing Mithral. It still counts as light (though you do require the proficiency), so it won’t impede your abilities at all.
The Martial Maneuvers ability is the only other thing that makes these guys stand out, but it is pretty interesting. You start off being able to spend a move action to grant yourself the benefits of a combat feat of your choice for one minute. Later on, you can give yourself two or even three feats, or activate the ability as a swift action. This could have some neat applications, especially when you’re giving yourself access to more than one feat at a time. Martial Maneuvers takes feats that would normally be highly situational, and makes them eminently practical, since you can pick them up and drop them again at your leisure. Really need to bull rush that guy off of a ledge? Well, now you have the Improved and Greater Bull Rush feats. Find yourself imprisoned? How does Weapon Focus and Weapon Spec shiv sound? Yeah, I know you could just punch them, but I’ve always wanted to play a character with Weapon Spec shiv.
The verdict… these guys certainly aren’t overpowered. Arguably, a standard Monk is better thanks to their superior saving throws and access to Ki. Nevertheless, the flavor is interesting (I’m kind of picturing Kelgar from Neverwinter Nights 2), and the mechanics are sound, while still adding a unique twist in the form of Martial Maneuvers.
Hunter
Hit Die: d8
Alternate Classes: Druid and Ranger
BAB: Med
SP / Lvl: 4
High Saves: Fort, Ref
Profs: Light armor, medium armor, shields, simple weapons, martial weapons
Strengths:
– Solid spellcasting and decent combat ability
– Stronger than normal Animal Companion that you can give flexible buffs to
– Share Teamwork Feats with your Animal Companion
Weaknesses:
– Benefits don’t seem to equal those of either the base Druid or Ranger
– Will likely fizzle out at double-digit levels
Summary:
These guys are a weird one. Their spellcasting follows the Bard / Inquisitor model of only reaching 6th level spells, and their Base Attack Bonus is equal to the worse of the two classes it is derived from. They are basically Animal Companion specialists able to buff up their companion (or themselves, for a more limited duration) and give them access to Teamwork Feats. My inclination is that they should be okay overall, but they’ll lack the kind of clout that a full-on warrior class would have. Animal Companions tend to be a little on the fragile side, and can start to dwindle in usefulness once you approach double-digit levels. Regrettably, I doubt this class will prove an exception to that general rule, especially considering they get very little love post level 8.
I feel like this class didn’t get enough to justify their decrease in casting effectiveness compared to the base Druid, which is already fairly powerful; perhaps an increase to high Base Attack Bonus would help balance them out a bit, though then their solid casting would need to be re-evaluated. They don’t have any particularly unique abilities outside of their ability to buff their companion and share teamwork feats with it, and the Cavalier can already do something fairly similar, only they grant it to the entire party! That said, at least there’s no rampant power-creep here, so for those who wanted a character who possesses a deep bond with an Animal Companion, maybe this will fit the bill.
Investigator
Hit Die: d8
Alternate Classes: Alchemist and Rogue
BAB: Med
SP / Lvl: 6
High Saves: Ref, Will
Profs: Light armor, simple weapons, hand crossbow, rapier, sap, shortbow, short sword, and sword cane
Strengths:
– Excellent skill user
– Has access to Alchemist Discoveries (including Mutagen) and Rogue Talents
Weaknesses:
– Studied Combat doesn’t last long enough to be reliable, and they only receive one “Sneak Attack” per standard action they spend setting it up
– Has to focus on Intelligence to make the most of their abilities, to the detriment of combat stats
Summary:
Investigators are the class for your group’s consummate role-player; they’re the ones that love speaking in character and write complex personalities and back-stories full of intrigue and subtlety. They’re excellent skill monkeys, possessing a number of tricky ways to bump up their skill checks. Investigators aren’t particularly useful in combat, though they can hold their own well enough if they take the right abilities, like the Alchemist’s Mutagen. Their access to Alchemist extracts also helps give them a bit more combat strength and general versatility.
Unfortunately, their only trick for doing less-than-shoddy damage is quite limited. Studied Strike is an ability that pairs with Studied Combat; the latter is activated first, and once it is switched on, provides a bonus to attack rolls equal to half their Intelligence modifier. The three glaring problems with this ability are that it requires a standard action to activate, it only lasts for a number of rounds equal to half their Intelligence modifier in addition to only using half as a bonus, and a target can’t be affected by it more than once per day. But wait, it gets worse. Studied Strike, (which already does significantly less damage than Sneak Attack) immediately ends your Studied Combat state, which means that you get one good hit, and then you’re fighting like a Rogue who has no Sneak Attack. In case you didn’t know, a Rogue without Sneak Attack is really, really bad. Actually a normal Rogue is pretty bad under most circumstances. So this is… well, it’s a special kind of bad normally reserved for Wizards who run out of spells and aren’t carrying staves or Pearls of Power. It really says something that even if they could do this at will, it still wouldn’t be good. Why the arbitrary limitations? Because they’re fairly good with skills? Using skills and being in combat are two completely different types of challenges; there is no reason one character should be punished in one for being good in the other. But anyways, that’s a difference in design philosophy on my part. and I digress.
An Investigator’s only solace lies in leaning on their Alchemist side. Drinking buffing extracts and a Mutagen could make them… well… not a complete waste of space on the battlefield, just don’t expect miracles here. Investigators don’t get access to the Greater or Grand versions of Mutagen, nor can they get the more powerful Alchemist Discoveries that push Alchemists up to a top-tier class.
Overall, even a standard Rogue will likely be more effective in combat than an Investigator, but if you’re planning a campaign in the Eberron setting wherein someone wants to play an Inquisitive (fantasy detectives), this would be the right class for it… just make sure most of the campaign involves conversation as opposed to combat.
Shaman
Hit Die: d8
Alternate Classes: Oracle and Witch
BAB: Medium
SP / Lvl: 4
High Saves: Will
Profs: Light armor, medium armor, simple weapons
Strengths:
– Flexible bonuses from different spirit animals
– Access to the Druid spell list without losing some of the best Cleric buffs
Weaknesses:
– Nothing really makes them stand out from your usual divine casters
– Abilities granted by spirits tend to be worse than the best Cleric domains and worse than most Oracle Mysteries
Summary:
I’ve read through most of what this class does a couple of times now, and I feel I can definitively state that I have no idea what to think of it. Their spellcasting progression is fast, and they have access to some solid spells, but at the end of the day, they just feel like a watered-down Cleric. Though they call them Hexes, the abilities you gain access to are closer to Cleric Domain abilities or Oracle Mysteries than they are to Witch Hexes, only they’re less powerful than either. Their proficiencies, hit die and casting stat are the same as a Cleric’s (which is weird, because neither the Witch nor the Oracle rely on Wisdom). Additionally they get this kind-of sort-of spontaneous casting ability, but it has more in common with a Cleric’s domain slot than it does with spontaneous casting. This whole class probably would have made more sense as a Cleric Archetype. Anyways, I’ll stop griping and get down to the nitty-gritty.
Shamans have some interesting flexibility thanks to their Wandering Spirit ability, but I don’t know how much of a help that would be in game, considering most of the spirit abilities are lackluster, outside of the Battle spirit. Interestingly, Shamans pull from the Druid spell list, and have a few of the better Cleric self-buffs thrown on for good measure. This could have some useful applications, including providing access to Barskin and Stoneskin, but it also gives you a lot of useless Animal Companion-related junk as well.
Shamans should be roughly on-par with a Cleric, which is certainly not the worst class to be tied with. If you like the idea of a character who runs around calling to the spirits to aid them in battle, maybe play one of these instead of a Cleric; they’re pretty much the same thing anyways.
Skald
Hit Die: d8
Alternate Classes: Bard and Barbarian
BAB: Medium
SP / Lvl: 4
High Saves: Fort, Will
Profs: Light armor (casting permitted), medium armor (casting permitted), simple weapons, martial weapons
Strengths:
– Throw your allies into a Barbarian-like Rage
– Your allies gain the benefits of Rage Powers while affected by your Raging Song
– Has a limited access to spells not on the Bard spell list
– Medium armor proficiency and ability to cast spells while wearing it
– Proficient with all martial weapons
Weaknesses:
– Effectiveness is primarily dictated by party composition
– Cannot use any of the “utility” songs of the standard Bard
– Still primarily a support character
Summary:
I can’t believe it, someone is actually trying to fix the Bard class. And, well… they actually did a decent job of it. Where many classes experienced substantial boosts in power from 3.5 edition, Bards were left mostly by the wayside. It is my theory that Paizo, like so many other producers of D&D-based game products, secretly hates Bards (see Grobnar from Neverwinter Nights 2 for an example of how much contempt some designers have for them). Bards share the bottom of the power totem pole with Rogues, who are notoriously spotty in effectiveness. Since the Ninja archetype has been introduced, Bards have held that lonely, shameful title all by themselves. Yes, their spellcasting is okay, but they primarily specialize on enchantment spells, and they’re a far cry from the effectiveness of a Fey bloodline Sorcerer. They can’t be competitive in physical combat either, as they lack the potent self-buffs of the Cleric, Oracle or Alchemist, the Sneak Attack of the Rogue, the Base Attack Bonus of the warrior classes, and the speed and endurance of the Monk. Their Bardic Music is okay, but the bonuses for Inspire Courage don’t stack with other competence bonuses, which can be obtained through equipment, spells or abilities which can remain active nearly all the time. You could say the other standard Bard songs don’t really strike a chord with me. That’s enough harping (HUZZAH BARD PUNS!) on the core Bard though; let’s take a closer look at these guys.
The Skald has a few features that greatly differentiate it from the standard Bard, and all are extremely helpful. For one, the Skald loses access to the other standard songs of the Bard in exchange for a single, powerful one in the form of Raging Song (so much for “music calms the savage beast”). Raging Song does what you might expect; it allows the listeners to fly into a rage similar to that of the Barbarian class, though to a lesser degree (at first). This gives your allies a morale bonus to Strength and Constitution, which will have your party warriors showering you with loving adoration. It doesn’t stop there though; every three levels, the Skald gains a Rage Power that those under the effects of their song can benefit from, allowing you to do things like, oh, I don’t know… GIVE YOUR ENTIRE ADVENTURING PARTY POUNCE. I know, right? How about giving every character in your party the benefits of the Superstition Rage Power when you enter battle with a powerful caster? That’s an easy one.
Hold on, don’t get too excited yet… it gets better. The Skald’s Spell Kenning ability lets them cast a spell of your choice (of a level you can cast) from the Wizard or Cleric spell list once per day, giving you access to stuff like Divine Power, Teleport, Transformation, or even direct attacking spells like Fireball or Battering Blast. This helps give Skalds the tools they need to buff themselves, while at the same time fitting the “jack-of-all-trades”, versatile flavour of the class. The last big thing that Skalds get is the ability to wear medium armor while casting spells. This takes away the necessity of heavily investing in Dexterity and allows you to focus more on your Strength score, which will make you far more effective than most other Bards in melee combat. Throw a feat into Heavy Armor Proficiency and you can rock the mithral full plate like a champ! Slap on a two-handed martial weapon (which you’re also proficient with), and you’re ready for a night on the town! Oh and in case you weren’t impressed yet, you also get a little DR at higher levels.
The only real problem with this class is that its effectiveness is primarily dictated by your party composition. If your group consists of a melee Alchemist, a two-hander Fighter, a warrior-Cleric, a Strength-based Ninja and an archer wielding an Adaptive composite bow, you’ll probably be the MVP of your party for the entire campaign. If your party consists of a Magus, caster-Oracle, Sorcerer, Swashbuckler (see below) and a (shudder) vanilla Bard, your party members will probably scowl at you patronizingly when you start your Raging Song. Coordinate character creation with your gaming group to maximize the benefits of this excellent team-player.
Bards really needed some love, and love this surely is. Though this class can be very powerful in certain parties, I don’t think that’s really a bad thing; a character dedicated to a support role should be making a significant difference for their party. If these guys make it to print as currently written, it might finally be time to dust off your lutes, my friends.
Slayer
Hit Die: d10
Alternate Classes: Ranger and Rogue
BAB: High
SP / Lvl: 6
High Saves: Fort, Ref
Profs: Light armor, medium armor, shields, simple weapons, martial weapons
Strengths:
– High Base Attack Bonus and some Sneak Attack progression
– When sneaking up on enemies, can easily set up on them with Favored Target
– Gains access to your choice of (some) Rogue Talents and Ranger Combat Style feats
Weaknesses:
– Sneak Attack improves slowly
– No way to obtain the Ninja Ki Pool extra attacks
– Favored Target isn’t as useful when you don’t sneak up on your enemy until you hit 7th level
Summary:
I’ll start off by saying that I really like the Slayer. I love Sneak Attacking classes, and their Favored Target ability dovetails beautifully with a stealthy build. Boasting a high Base Attack Bonus to go along with their modest Sneak Attack progression, Slayers make for great assassins (either just in flavour or in prestige class). For those of you familiar with the Baldur’s Gate series of games, these guys play a little like a Fighter / Thief; they do better damage when they sneak up on someone, but they can really kick some teeth in in toe-to-toe combat too. Favored Target is quite powerful and far more versatile than Favored Enemy, but setting it up mid-combat will slow your momentum if you haven’t hit level 7 yet. Their class skills are good and they have an impressive number of points to spend, though regrettably they didn’t inherit Disable Device or Trapfinding from their Rogue half.
Slayers can cherry-pick the best of the Ranger Combat Style feats and have access to a good chunk of Rogue talents as well. Some of the Advanced Rogue Talents are glorious on a character so proficient in combat; Opportunist in particular will be devastating if you went with a two-handed weapon. Slayers benefit a bit from having a healthy Intelligence, so balancing your stats might be slightly tricky at times. Your Will save is already pretty bad, so dumping your Wisdom could prove dangerous, though Charisma is as viable a dump stat as ever, assuming you don’t care much about using Bluff, Disguise or Intimidate. I’m a little perplexed as to why they didn’t get access to the Knowledge (nature) skill though; having good Knowledge (dungeoneering) and Knowledge (nature) would make Slayers great scouts, and give them a unique niche way to spend their plethora of skill points. It would also fit with the whole part Ranger thing.
On the flip-side, your Sneak Attack progresses quite slowly; in fact, you don’t even get your first die until level 3. The benefits of a higher Base Attack Bonus weighed against the amazing power of the Ninja Ki Pool isn’t clear cut either; yes, the Base Attack Bonus is always there and you always benefit from it, but being able to get additional attacks at your highest Base Attack Bonus is incredibly strong. You also can’t completely replace a standard Rogue, since you lack Disable Device and Trapfinding. Rangers have the advantage of some minor spellcasting and an Animal Companion, and Favored Enemy is undeniably punchier than Favored Target when a Ranger is fighting an enemy they can apply it to.
All told, this class is effective and well-balanced. I have no doubt that they will fit in fine within a party of core characters without your fellows crying bloody murder about power-creep. The flavour is fun too, and fits well with the underhanded, dishonorable, and practical warrior archetype, such as Bron from the Game of Thrones series.
Swashbuckler
Hit Die: d10
Alternate Classes: Fighter and Gunslinger
BAB: High
SP / Lvl: 4
High Saves: Ref
Profs: Light armor, bucklers, simple weapons, martial weapons
Strengths:
– Good damage with light, one-handed piercing weapons
– Some useful defensive abilities and other miscellaneous tricks
– Can generate attacks by spending Panache to parry
– Does not require exceptionally high stats
Weaknesses:
– Fortitude and Will saving throws will likely be very poor
– Can’t do much to enemies at a range
Summary:
And, at long last, Paizo reveals a Swashbuckler class. Overall, it is quite effective, though they make the Duelist prestige class seem pretty superfluous. Swashbucklers can do truly daunting damage thanks to their Precise Strike ability, and when under attack, can counter-stab enemies quite viciously. Combat Reflexes is practically a necessity, since Opportune Parry eats up an Opportunity Attack. Menacing Swordplay is another neat feature you get access to early, allowing you to spend a swift action to Intimidate enemies who you strike in melee. Swashbucklers, somewhat unsurprisingly, also really enjoy the use of bucklers, and are one of the only classes to do so. Perhaps the most amazing thing about Swashbucklers is that as of level 4, their levels count as Fighter levels for the purposes of meeting feat prerequisites. Weapon Specialization, Greater Weapon Focus and Penetrating Strike are all within reach for you, and all are godsends.
The Swashbuckler’s only good save is Reflex, which will probably already be very high thanks to their Dexterity-focused abilities, meaning that Fortitude and Will will likely be left lacking. They can make up for this deficiency with their Charmed Life ability, which lets them add their Charisma modifier to a saving throw roll as an immediate action. They actually get a pretty solid number of uses per day of this as well, incentivizing you to load up on Charisma for a reason outside of your Panache pool.
The effectiveness of this class might partially be affected by what types of weapon enchantments your GM allows you access to; a weapon with the Agile property would help stack on some more damage and turn Strength into a relative dump stat (10 or 12 would probably be sufficient). Otherwise, you might want to get it up to 14 or so to give you a decent base damage mod.
It’s hard for me to say this, because I really love the flavour of Swashbucklers, but I do think this class is a little overpowered. They outclass a sword-and-board Fighter in nearly every conceivable way by adding their level to damage, having access to all the fighter-only combat feats, being able to generate extra attacks for themselves, and having superior defensive options. The only real fix that is needed is a removal of the ability to take Fighter-only feats. If you do decide to allow this class at your table, I recommend you make that change. The Charmed Life ability should probably be toned down a bit too, perhaps starting with one or two initial uses. It’s a cool class with a cool flavour, it’s just a little bit excessive in its implementation.
Warpriest
Hit Die: d10
Alternate Classes: Cleric and Fighter
BAB: Medium (technically)
SP / Lvl: 2
High Saves: Fort, Will
Profs: Light armor, medium armor, heavy armor, shields, simple weapons, martial weapons
Strengths:
– Killing things
– Buffing and then killing things
– Healing self, for to better continue killing things
Weaknesses:
– Requires a number of ability scores
– Channel energy is a waste of an option
– “Fake” high Base Attack Bonus slows meeting prerequisites for feats
– Few Skills
– Fighter party members will whine about how awesome you are 😥
Summary:
Oh Warpriest, Warpriest, Warpriest… what am I going to do with you? In the first playtest package you were too weak, in this one, you’re too strong. Surely there’s a happy medium somewhere?
This is a guy (or girl) well poised to ruin your day. For starters, although Warpriests technically have a medium Base Attack Bonus, while wielding their Sacred Weapon (ie. anything they have Weapon Focus with, apparently), they count as having a high one. That means a dauntingly high attack bonus, and faster progression to iterative attacks. Slap on Inquisitor spell progression, self-healing as a swift action, and the ability to quicken any spell they have prepared multiple times per day and you have the basic skeleton of the Warpriest. Yes, you read that right; MULTIPLE SPELL-LEVEL INDEPENDENT QUICKENS PER DAY. If your jaw hasn’t dropped off your face yet, I don’t think you realize just how unbelievably powerful that is. Warpriests have a pool called Fervor, which they can use to heal themselves as a swift action, heal others as a standard action, or quicken a spell they have prepared. The only real restriction here is that you can only target yourself with the spell. BOO-HOO, I can only quicken my SELF-ONLY buffs which are my BEST SPELLS TO BEGIN WITH. So how large is this Fervor pool, you may ask? Half your level plus your Charisma modifier points, that’s how many. And I’ll tell you something… that’s actually a LOT OF USES for something so earth-shatteringly powerful. Granted, it shares uses with your swift action self-healing, but if you took the Healing Blessing (Warpriest’s version of Domains), you can quicken healing spells on yourself with a SEPARATE POOL OF QUICKENS, and THAT pool is equal to THREE plus half your level. Anyways, I think you get the idea.
Thankfully, Warpriests don’t get to snag all the Fighter feats like a Swash can, but they do get a Magus-like ability to temporarily enchant their weapons and armor, adding bonuses and properties to them. You can only enchant your weapon for 1 round / level per day, with the armor one lasting 1 minute / level per day, though you don’t acquire it until level 7. Warpriests also pick up Channel Energy at level 4, though they would have to expend uses of their Fervor pool for it, and SCREW THAT NOISE. Warpriests get to select two “Blessings” at level 1, giving them access to a couple of unique abilities. As I mentioned earlier, they function a lot like domains, but they give you specific abilities you can use a limited number of times per day, and don’t grant any extra spells. Some of those, like the aforementioned Healing Blessing, are quite powerful. The Strength Blessing is another winner, giving you a bonus to all of your attacks equal to half your Warpriest level for 1 round as a swift action (are you sensing a theme here?), though Liberation and Luck are other fantastic ones, also activated as swift actions.
The last awesome thing about Warpriests is that their weapon damage dice with their Sacred Weapon is determined by an increasing progression based on their level or their weapon, whichever is better. This is more flavourful than it is powerful, but it has some neat applications. A high-level Warpriest with good Dexterity dual-wielding kukris could be quite fun, and surprisingly effective. Certain weapons that have interesting properties but poor damage may see some use here as well, such as a bill or scythe. I would be very interested in statting out a Warpriest built around shield bashes or armor spikes with this in mind, too. If you didn’t mind spending lots of money on ammunition, you could even make a badass shuriken Warpriest.
In short, this class is stupid, stupid powerful. Between swift action stuff all over the goddamn place, a very solid spell progression and a functionally full Base Attack Bonus, the Warpriest shrugs nonchalantly when a Fighter boasts about their Weapon Specialization and Weapon Training. They chuckle audibly when the Ranger proudly mentions their ability to cast spells that supplement their combat prowess. They quirk an eyebrow at the Paladin who declares himself the ultimate divinely-powered warrior. They scoff openly when the Magus declares herself the best at combining spellcasting with combat. In other words, these guys are kind of overpowered, and probably need a solid whack from the nerf bat.
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Well, that’s it for my analysis of the new revision of the playtest! Go try out your favourites, and happy gaming to you.
Uni
Renaissance Gamer 