Particle_Man
Explorer
This is, AFAIK, completely rules-legal. It is not an official archetype, but resembles one, so I call it a pseudo-archetype.
Sage (Catfolk Bard pseudo-archetype).
Prerequisite: Catfolk race, Int: 18 (to max out the potential - one could be less of a sage with a lower int score).
Skills: Max out all 10 Knowledge skills
*Note that Jacobs intends Knowledge (local) not needing to be sub-specialized, as per this thread:
http://paizo.com/threads/rzs2kdw7&page=2?Knowledge
Favoured Class: Catfolk bards get +1/2 to bardic knowledge.
So what do we gain with this archetype and what do we lose? Let us start with the latter:
Well for one thing, if you put int at 18, presumably that hurts one's other stats on a point-buy system or a "roll dice, assign stats as you see fit" system, so that could affect one's charisma, dexterity, etc.
Also, all of one's 10 skill ranks per level being assigned for knowledge means that none is left for such lovely skills as Perception, Stealth or Perform (but see below).
This also means that Countersong and Fascinate, while not lost entirely, are much less useful to this bard. Also, Versatile Performance loses a lot of its appeal, although if one's charisma bonus is higher than one's wisdom bonus, it can improve one's sense motive, and if one's charisma bonus is higher than one's dexterity bonus, it can improve one's acrobatics and fly. And it is still a way to get a (minimal) access to handle animal, which otherwise is a trained-only skill.
Finally, one can probably forget about using Perform to actually earn a decent living, since while one can still sing, dance, etc., one will be relying solely on one's natural talent (one's charisma bonus).
Ok, but what does one gain?
Well you do very well with Bardic Knowledge. Because of the catfolk favoured class ability helping out one's class ability, you gain a +1 bonus at 1st and 2nd levels, and a +2 bonus at every even level, to all 10 knowledge checks. This adds up pretty quickly. When lore master kicks in at level 5, one will already have a +16 bonus (5 ranks + 4 int + 3 class skill + 4 bardic knowledge (class and racial)), so could hit DC 26 knowledge checks (and 1x/day a DC 36 knowledge check). And it keeps getting better. Eventually at level 20 on has an astonishing +47 bonus (20 ranks + 4 int + 3 class skill + 20 bardic knowledge (class and racial)) bonus so one can regularly hit DC 57 knowledge checks and 3x a day hit DC 67. That, for example, is enough to give six useful pieces of information about the Tarrasque.
Wanna know something? Ask the Sage. Frankly I think it leaves even the Lore Master in the dust.
And this pseudo-archetype doesn't cost any feats or traits, and doesn't take into account any magic items or any increases to intelligence (although note that a headband of intellect might, by default, only give ranks in knowledge skills, which would be less useful to the sage that already has those knowledge skill ranks). You still get the bard spells (although fewer spell slots per day with less of a priority on charisma, as well as a lower DC for spells). Bardic abilities are mostly unaffected (although again the DC for some of them is lower). But the "Bread and butter" bardic performances are buffs anyhow, and those don't use save DCs anyhow. It is odd, but one does not need a single rank in any perform skill to use those bard performance abilities.
The only mystery left is why catfolk, of all races, is so very good at this. I don't know if there are any other races whose favoured class ability for bard adds to bardic knowledge.
Sage (Catfolk Bard pseudo-archetype).
Prerequisite: Catfolk race, Int: 18 (to max out the potential - one could be less of a sage with a lower int score).
Skills: Max out all 10 Knowledge skills
*Note that Jacobs intends Knowledge (local) not needing to be sub-specialized, as per this thread:
http://paizo.com/threads/rzs2kdw7&page=2?Knowledge
Favoured Class: Catfolk bards get +1/2 to bardic knowledge.
So what do we gain with this archetype and what do we lose? Let us start with the latter:
Well for one thing, if you put int at 18, presumably that hurts one's other stats on a point-buy system or a "roll dice, assign stats as you see fit" system, so that could affect one's charisma, dexterity, etc.
Also, all of one's 10 skill ranks per level being assigned for knowledge means that none is left for such lovely skills as Perception, Stealth or Perform (but see below).
This also means that Countersong and Fascinate, while not lost entirely, are much less useful to this bard. Also, Versatile Performance loses a lot of its appeal, although if one's charisma bonus is higher than one's wisdom bonus, it can improve one's sense motive, and if one's charisma bonus is higher than one's dexterity bonus, it can improve one's acrobatics and fly. And it is still a way to get a (minimal) access to handle animal, which otherwise is a trained-only skill.
Finally, one can probably forget about using Perform to actually earn a decent living, since while one can still sing, dance, etc., one will be relying solely on one's natural talent (one's charisma bonus).
Ok, but what does one gain?
Well you do very well with Bardic Knowledge. Because of the catfolk favoured class ability helping out one's class ability, you gain a +1 bonus at 1st and 2nd levels, and a +2 bonus at every even level, to all 10 knowledge checks. This adds up pretty quickly. When lore master kicks in at level 5, one will already have a +16 bonus (5 ranks + 4 int + 3 class skill + 4 bardic knowledge (class and racial)), so could hit DC 26 knowledge checks (and 1x/day a DC 36 knowledge check). And it keeps getting better. Eventually at level 20 on has an astonishing +47 bonus (20 ranks + 4 int + 3 class skill + 20 bardic knowledge (class and racial)) bonus so one can regularly hit DC 57 knowledge checks and 3x a day hit DC 67. That, for example, is enough to give six useful pieces of information about the Tarrasque.
Wanna know something? Ask the Sage. Frankly I think it leaves even the Lore Master in the dust.
And this pseudo-archetype doesn't cost any feats or traits, and doesn't take into account any magic items or any increases to intelligence (although note that a headband of intellect might, by default, only give ranks in knowledge skills, which would be less useful to the sage that already has those knowledge skill ranks). You still get the bard spells (although fewer spell slots per day with less of a priority on charisma, as well as a lower DC for spells). Bardic abilities are mostly unaffected (although again the DC for some of them is lower). But the "Bread and butter" bardic performances are buffs anyhow, and those don't use save DCs anyhow. It is odd, but one does not need a single rank in any perform skill to use those bard performance abilities.
The only mystery left is why catfolk, of all races, is so very good at this. I don't know if there are any other races whose favoured class ability for bard adds to bardic knowledge.
