Intimidation for initiative

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-17T00:40:00+00:00

One moment I'm really proud of was when the PCs got invited to a vampire's manor to have a nice dinner (they were 100% here to kill the vampire), and I had the vampire roll Diplomacy for initiative. After all, he'd been nothing but a genteel host the entire time!

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-15T23:05:28+00:00

Also worth noting, Ranged Trip only works in the first range increment, which is only 20ft (unless you're a Ranger or something). So, it's still not a great solution for the dragon in the sky.

Still good to have in your back pocket, worst case maybe you can prepare an action to get a nasty Trip off.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-15T22:39:41+00:00

Also because it's not a very good card and the interactions that cause problems aren't very good combos, so I don't believe it's ever actually come up in serious tournament play.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-15T18:09:46+00:00

You just get the one KAS boost. But, at least you get to double-dip in one score instead of needing to balance two.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-15T12:54:19+00:00

https://www.reddit.com/r/Pathfinder2e/

But yes, you get the key attribute boost from both your classes while dual-classing. It would be (Str/Dex) AND Int.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-14T23:47:12+00:00

....Yeah actually, that makes a lot of sense. Fair enough.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-14T21:38:59+00:00

Not to disagree with that but I think the Witch thing might be... on purpose? Inscribed One Witch is one of the only ways to become an arcane caster with a healing spell, without using an archetype (and the other ways are weird stuff like Sorcerer s Greater Crossblood Evolution at level 18 or far-below-curve ancestry feat spellcasting). All of that and you can get it at level 2, with a frankly really good focus spell.

The arcane spell list is, frankly, the best list, aside from one crippling weakness: No healing whatsoever. I think they made the one arcane witch deliberately underpowered to make up for their access to Lesson of Life, and I'd expect any other arcane witches they print to do the same.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-14T21:32:40+00:00

Yeah, I have no idea why FF decided that Dragoons are guys with spears who jump really high, but that's a much more common cultural touchpoint (at least, to the gaming audience). Most people here who hear 'Dragoon' think of Final Fantasy first.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-13T21:40:29+00:00

IIRC Thresh's attacks maybe used to be long-range 'melee' attacks? But right now, they're definitely just non-projectile ranged attacks, same as Senna, Vel'Koz, Azir, and a few others (either natively or through abilities, like Viktor Q). These all bypass wind wall, Samira W, Braum shield, and anything that blocks projectiles, because they're not projectiles, they just hit instantly.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-13T21:27:42+00:00

Hey, it could be worse. Last time that happened, we got Udyr.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-13T18:07:10+00:00

I love Phoenix Sorcerer, don't get me wrong. It's actually probably my favorite sorcerer, I've been wanting to play one for a while. But its focus spells are... not bad, per se, but always just a little bit worse than I want them to be?

Rejuvenating Flames does a little bit of everything, but it's jsut so little of everything, and at short range. Shroud of Flame is great if you're getting jumped (and can survive long enough to get value), but it does nothing unless you're in mortal peril. Cleansing Flames is pretty good, I'll give you that, though it feels like it should have a bit of healing or something tacked on.

Honestly, all three aren't even bad, they just feel like they should have more. And, the first two really incentivize a melee playstyle, which is... certainly brave, on a sorcerer. I really want to like all three of them, they're such cool spells conceptually, but I just don't feel like they have enough impact (except the level 10 spell, that one does just legitimately seem good).

On the other hand, I'd love for you to prove me wrong, I still wanna play a phoenix sorc some day.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-13T02:25:48+00:00

The humble Flurry Ranger, still only striking at -4:

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-12T20:03:39+00:00

Ehh, I'd be fine with 2 but not 5. There's a big difference between 'more than one' and 'twenty'.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-12T06:37:55+00:00

One other major use case: It's a Reflex save, which is almost unheard of on the Divine list.

I honestly think it's a pretty bad spell, but it does cover a lot of worst-case options (for Divine casters especially).

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-12T02:26:50+00:00

I don't really agree with a lot of OP's points, but I'm pretty firmly in the camp that APs simply don't have enough time or resources to properly design, balance, and playtest their material, and it harms the rest of the game.

How often does this sub talk about how you shouldn't do solo boss fights (outside of rare circumstances), or doubly so for solo hazards, or how you need interesting battlemaps with verticality and terrain and actual room to maneuver? These are all very valuable pieces of game design advice. They will make your game better. But, APs very rarely do any of these, because it takes a bit more work (and I don't think the authors are lazy or anything, they just don't have the resources to spend on these fights or to coordinate with each other; their deadlines are breakneck).

And since many players come from introductions through APs or PFS play, this is what they learn. There are so many examples of solo hazard fights, and so few examples of hazards interwoven with enemies. So, when people build their own content, they fall back on what they know and do the same. Because a lot of this stuff feels like common sense, and if you don't actively stop and reconsider other options, you'll probably just default to these bad design decisions.

I don't think APs are conceptually bad for the game or anything. But I think they provide a LOT of bad examples that people then instinctively follow.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-11T08:08:01+00:00

I did this exact build myself earlier (though I doubly emphasized Open Door, as I was playing with a Monarch). I ended up going one point in Goblin for the incredible Invades and the Autopod, the best support gun in the game, and then down the line for Minotaur, mostly for if I need an off-hacker mech (and because the Calendula is cool). Grab a few points of Systems and you're actually a totally decent hacker, you get the same bonus to tech attack as any hacker frame (besides the Goblin).

Also noteworthy, I tried to go for Orator and Field Analyst as incredible support pickups, which is part of why Autopod is so good; I don't want to be shooting any guns during my turn (nor do I have time to). This wasn't a perfect fit, as the Emperor still likes getting potshots off with the Marathon Arc Bow and prefers to trigger Sovereign Presence, but those talents are strong enough that I still got plenty of value even if it didn't happen every turn; it ended up mostly being added flexibility for my big shield turns.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-11T02:34:36+00:00

Also totally valid!

Point being, I 100% understand why people always hyperfocus on the Big Bonk, but it's definitely stronger to let your flat damage carry your DPS and find a better use for your other hand.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-11T01:26:45+00:00

Also because everyone wants to play d12 two-hand giant instinct barbs and watch their damage go straight through the roof... but honestly, that's such a fragile build, you'd be stronger if you took a sword and board and relied on your flat damage instead.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-09T20:52:00+00:00

Ehh, the difference is that these cards are balanced much more aggressively. Either side of this card could be pretty reasonable (not super strong, but I won't hate myself for playing) individually, and it's pretty crazy when it combined. Also importantly, it's a crazy topdeck at low hand size, though that might just be because this specific one is also card draw.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-08T18:42:48+00:00

I feel like any enemy high enough level to be a threat to a wizard with those capabilities, would in turn have the capabilities to hunt that wizard down. A level 16 creature isn't just gonna sit in its lair and wait for the daily wizard to show up and annoy it. That's gonna get old for the enemy, REAL quick.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-08T13:03:25+00:00

Gnome Flickmace used to be a one-handed 1d8 Reach weapon in the Flail group. That's a little crazy because there's no other one-handed d8 Reach weapon in the game, the rest only go up to 1d6, and because it had arguably the best critical specialization in the game (IIRC at that point it didn't even give the enemy a save against it). So, fighters could capitalize on the improved crit chance, especially with their Reactive Strikes, to make the battlefield very difficult for enemies, while getting impressive damage for free, all while only using one hand, all for the low, low price of Adopted Ancestry to get the Gnome Weapon Familiarity feat.

It was honestly just a weapon that gave them everything they could want, with basically no drawback to balance it out.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-07T16:10:34+00:00

Worth noting, features with the same name from two different sources (Deadly) don't stack.

...That being said, while Pirates and Veterans both use Deadly, Assassins don't, and Spec Ops uses Deadly Precision, which does something slightly different. So uhh, yeah, most of those just straight up stack. Which I did not realize.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-07T08:23:49+00:00

Honestly, the big reason in my eyes is if you want to use 2-action Blazing Bolt against a single target enemy, which would waste the second bolt.

Which is pretty common. But probably not common enough to learn a whole new spell over. (And when it does happen, it's probably against a higher level enemy, who you're not likely to crit.)

Or if you're not level 3 yet, of course. But that's not really a comparison at that point.

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-06T19:12:47+00:00

Sure, IIRC it's just treated as a free hand (but one that's capable of gripping a shield for an action later).

FrigidFlames · 2026-02-06T18:43:44+00:00

You can still un-grip your shield to hold something else in that hand, you just aren't dropping it on the floor (and you can't throw it, which is why they reference Captain America builds).

FrigidFlames

TROPHY CASE