Pathfinder 1E newbie Wizard takes step into a big, scary Pathfinder world

[buddhafrog]

New to Pathfinder. I've only played D&D4e and AD&D 25 years ago. I'm now on my 5th game of Pathfinder and really like it. I played twice as a half-orc rogue/fighter (who died), then played twice as a human sorcerer (who just died). Damn, this Pathfinder is deadly.

So now I will play a Wizard. I'm going to jump into the campaign at Level 4. I'm a little overwhelmed (still learning Pathfinder and have only played a spellcaster once - the sorcerer who just got electrocuted). Building a Wizard is a little confusing but it's a good way to learn Pathfinder.

Elf Wizard 4th Lvl (16 pt buy)
Str 7, Dex 16, Con 12, Int 20, Wis 11, Cha 7

I need HP thus want to keep my 12 Con (bought at 14). After my multiple deaths, I want a high dex to boost my defenses. But I'm considering dropping my Dex to 14 and Wis to 10 and bump either Str or Cha to 10 - likely strength. Suggestions?

I think I have everything understood except questions about magic item creation. I have a few basic questions that I can't understand from the book:

1. Arcane Bond (decided over a familiar). I want to keep two hands free. And b/c I'm an elf with high dex I might keep a longbow as a backup range weapon. I'm looking at a ring or amulet for my bonded item. I want to pick up the Create Wondrous Item feat. I can get this feat at Lvl 3 and there are lots of item flexibility to help the whole party. How should this feat influence which item I get bonded? I can add abilities to my bonded item without a feat, so I'm thinking I will bond my ring... but I'll have to wait until CL 7 to add any abilities to it. Does this make good sense
2. If I buy a Ring of Protection +1 (2000gp), can I make this my Bonded Ring since I'm creating a character from scratch starting with 6000gp? When I'm able to add abilities to this ring (Lvl 7), if I want to make this a Ring of Protection +2, what would that cost? I understand that if I add an ability that is not related to the currect ability, the cost is x1.5 - for example adding Invisibility would cost me 15,000gp (base cost = 20,000gp), right? Is adding +2 protection simply 8,000gp - 2,000gp?
3. At an appropriate level, can I make an amulet of invisibility? Would this cost the same as a ring of invisibility? If I can't make it, why is that?
4. I will be using the Eleminster of Shadowdale as my miniature. He's holding a pipe that I'd like to incorporate into my character. I'm thinking of asking my GM if I can cast low-level spell like abilities into weed at the same cost as a scroll. Mechanically there is no benefit as it would take longer to smoke than to cast a scroll spell. I would only do this for a few non-combat spells that might work well with reflection/time or with smoke/mist (i.e. identify, obscuring mist). I wouldn't normally use it, but on occasion I would. What do you think? Or do you have any other ideas to make the pipe itself a Wondrous Item? [by coincidence, today is 4/20, an appropriate day to contemplate a magic smoking pipe]
5. Lastly, in my vast experience playing a sorcerer (two weeks), there were a few occasions where I had an opportunity attack but couldn't take it - not sure why - is this b/c my 7 strength gave me a negative BAB as a level 3 sorcerer? I'm once more considering minimizing my strength but sure do hate giving up free attacks. Are there any smart tricks for wizards to take advantage of opportunity attacks that wouldn't be drastically hindered by such a low strength? Even shocking grasp is a touch spell using strength, so it is one I would generally avoid memorizing. Alternately, I think this is where bumping strength ability slightly and taking away from dexterity might make sense, while picking up a bonded item quarterstaff. I worry this will limit me using wands and casting from scrolls - right?
6. Finally lastly, I'm building my Wizard Lvl 4 with 6,000gp. If you like magical shopping sprees on a tight budget, I'd love to hear your suggestions. Prices might be augmented if I picked up the Create Wondrous Items feat at 3rd level.

Thanks for helping me grasp these ideas. If I survive and come to an all-powerful but benevolent ruler of the land, I will remember you kindly by naming a peaceful valley in your honor.

 

[Mojo_Rat]

I personally would drop your int down to 18 and use the points elsewhere. however to answer your questions.

craft wonder is items doesn't really affect what your bonded item is, it just makes enchanting it cheaper.

as far as the pipe goes you could make it your bonded item. the problem with your smoking idea is enemies won't recognize it as a scroll which makes it king of powerful you may o better with the bonded item pipe.

only way to make the hitting easier is weapon finesse.

if dying is an issue look at toughness.

 

[buddhafrog]

I personally would drop your int down to 18 and use the points elsewhere. however to answer your questions.

craft wonder is items doesn't really affect what your bonded item is, it just makes enchanting it cheaper.

as far as the pipe goes you could make it your bonded item. the problem with your smoking idea is enemies won't recognize it as a scroll which makes it king of powerful you may o better with the bonded item pipe.

only way to make the hitting easier is weapon finesse.

if dying is an issue look at toughness.

thanks for your ideas. For the record, my 3rd lvl sorcerer had toughness but couldn't overcome 41 HP damage in two rounds. I have a 17 Int + 2 Elf bonus, +1 4th lvl ability.

Re: pipe being too powerful b/c the enemy wouldn't recognize it as the source of magic. By this, do you mean it would be a problem for a DM to allow it? Makes sense. Maybe I could just use it only for non combative spells - lighting, smoking and getting a full essence of a weed would certainly take more than several full rounds anyway. Not very wise to pull off in combat.

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

New to Pathfinder.

Welcome! I like Pathfinder.

So now I will play a Wizard.

Good choice - have you considered which school to focus in? Generalists generally [hah!] get the short end of the stick in PF.

Elf Wizard 4th Lvl (16 pt buy)
Str 7, Dex 16, Con 12, Int 20, Wis 11, Cha 7

I agree with the Rat - start at a 16 bought Intelligence (+2 Elf, +1 4th-level) and use those points to shore up your weaknesses. A Str 7 will make bowshots pretty weak (1d6/8 -2), and therefore a poor back-up weapon.

You can keep Charisma weak unless you plan on making a lot of opposed Charisma checks (which'll only happen if you're using selected Enchantment spells).

I need HP thus want to keep my 12 Con (bought at 14). After my multiple deaths, I want a high dex to boost my defenses.

These are good ideas; also, consider making your Wizard favored class bonus go to hit points.

Arcane Bond (decided over a familiar). I want to keep two hands free. And b/c I'm an elf with high dex I might keep a longbow as a backup range weapon. I'm looking at a ring or amulet for my bonded item. I want to pick up the Create Wondrous Item feat. I can get this feat at Lvl 3 and there are lots of item flexibility to help the whole party. How should this feat influence which item I get bonded? I can add abilities to my bonded item without a feat, so I'm thinking I will bond my ring... but I'll have to wait until CL 7 to add any abilities to it. Does this make good sense

Good call on the bond; unless you're massively tricking out your familiar, it's the better choice. Craft Wondrous Item is a good choice regardless; my Magus just recently picked it up in our Rise of the Runelords campaign.

As far as it affecting you selection of bonded item, it doesn't matter. You're treated as having the proper creation feat whenever you meet the Caster Level prereq for purposes of your bonded item. So, if your bonded item is a weapon, you can Craft Magic Arms and Armor it as soon as you hit 5th-level, even if you don't pick up the feat.

If you make it an amulet, you can start making it a magic item immediately (since amulets are the province of Craft Wondrous Item, which you qualify for); if you make it a ring, you have to wait a bit longer.

If I buy a Ring of Protection +1 (2000gp), can I make this my Bonded Ring since I'm creating a character from scratch starting with 6000gp?

Yes. You can, in fact, turn any item into your bonded item at a cost of 200gp per Wizard level and 8 hours of work. You might want to ask your DM whether or not you'll have to pay the extra fee for an item you're starting with (e.g., you could have found the ring at 1st-level and paid 200gp, or you could pay the full 1,000gp for making it your bonded item now). I'd allow it at no cost, but your GM might not.

When I'm able to add abilities to this ring (Lvl 7), if I want to make this a Ring of Protection +2, what would that cost? I understand that if I add an ability that is not related to the currect ability, the cost is x1.5 - for example adding Invisibility would cost me 15,000gp (base cost = 20,000gp), right? Is adding +2 protection simply 8,000gp - 2,000gp?

In order to make a magic item with new abilities, first price out the item with all of those abilities. Then, subtract the value of what you've already got, and pay 1/2 of the difference in materials costs.

So, in your case, you've got it easy: making a ring of protection +2 from a ring of protection +1 is simplesauce. Deflection bonuses to AC cost the bonus squared times 2,000 gp. So ...

RoP +2 = 2 * 2 * 2,000gp = 8,000gp
RoP +1 = 1 * 1 * 2,000gp = 2,000gp

Difference: 6,000gp
Cost to you: 3,000gp, and 6 days of enchanting work

A ring of invisibility costs 20,000gp. Let's say that, instead of making your RoP+1 into a RoP+2, you wanted to make it a "RoP+1 and Invisibility."

First, start with the most expensive part, and then add 1.5x the cost of the less-expensive part:

RoInvisibility: 20,000gp
RoP+1: 2,000gp * 1.5 = 3,000gp
RoP+1&Invis: 23,000gp

Since you're starting with the RoP+1, subtract its price from what you want, and pay 1/2 the difference in materials cost:

RoP+1&Invis: 23,000gp
RoP+1: 2,000gp

Difference: 21,000gp
Cost to You: 10,500gp and 21 days of enchanting work

At an appropriate level, can I make an amulet of invisibility? Would this cost the same as a ring of invisibility? If I can't make it, why is that?

It is not a currently existing magic item, so whether or not you can make it relies entirely on your GM's permission - and he gets to decide the price, too (probably using the ring of invisibility as a guide). If you can, it'd require the Craft Wondrous Item feat (or a bonded amulet).

I'd allow it, but I'm pretty permissive in this case.

I will be using the Eleminster of Shadowdale as my miniature. He's holding a pipe that I'd like to incorporate into my character.

I would skip any and all attempts to mechanically represent this, and instead just reflavor any spell I cast as involving the pipe. Much less troublesome this way. Ferinstance, when you cast Obscuring Mist, have the mist pour out of your pipe to cover an area. Describe Identify (make sure to review the changes to this spell in PF! I don't even need this spell anymore!) as the clouds of smoke forming various runes describing the item's function. Use Prestidigitation to make the smoke form amusing shapes, etc.

Maybe later make a magical pipe that actually has "Cast X spell Y times / day."

[*]Lastly, in my vast experience playing a sorcerer (two weeks), there were a few occasions where I had an opportunity attack but couldn't take it - not sure why - is this b/c my 7 strength gave me a negative BAB as a level 3 sorcerer?

If you were holding a melee weapon at the time, you should have been allowed an attack of opportunity. Were you unarmed?

Also, there's no such thing as a negative BAB; it can only go so low as +0. You might have a negative total attack bonus, but that's another thing entirely.

Even shocking grasp is a touch spell using strength, so it is one I would generally avoid memorizing.

Consider taking the Weapon Finesse feat and using a finessable weapon - with the added benefit that touch attacks benefit from WFinesse, as well.

Finally lastly, I'm building my Wizard Lvl 4 with 6,000gp. If you like magical shopping sprees on a tight budget, I'd love to hear your suggestions. Prices might be augmented if I picked up the Create Wondrous Items feat at 3rd level.

Pearls of Power. Invaluable assistance for the low-level wizard, and only 500gp a pop for the 1st-level variety (with CWI)!

Handy Haversacks to eliminate the need for a reasonably positive strength score.

 

[buddhafrog]

Thanks Elvenshae. Incredibly helpful. It *makes sense*. I'll be following a lot of your suggestions.

I sure wish I had another feat to take Finesse (have been toying with Human, but will refrain). I will take this eventually for sure, maybe now - I'll have to see what spells I choose first. Taking it only for a rapier isn't worth it - but if I get a handful of useful touch attacks - bingo.

Right now my feats will be Toughness, Create Wondrous Items, and.....? Finesse, Dodge, Improved Initiative, and Augment Summoning (considering Conjuration heavily).

Arcane School: Conjuration or Evocation

QUESTION: I looked up Pearl of Power, it said CL 17 - I misunderstood this to be caster level requirement which now I see is not the case. Great call on that item. Is this CL only the DC level to confirm that the item works properly?

I really want to keep the 20.... but now I will settle for 21. I could craft a Headband of Vast Intelligence to give me a +2 Intelligence. This is CL 8 (which I mistook for caster level requirement). This would cost me 2,000gp but boost my other abilities. Agreed?

 

[sheadunne]

Increase your strength, bond with your bow, take the Gravity Bow spell, exchange toughness and dodge for Point Blank Shot and Precise Shot.

Choose spells that add to defense like Mirror Image, blur, etc.

I also enjoy specializing the the Divination School (choosing the Foresight subschool). Prescience is a great ability. Using your extra Divination spell slot to take True Strike (1), See Invisibility (2). It's not the greatest school to specialize in, but it's fun. Scribe a bunch of scrolls of identify as well.

I was fairly successful playing a Wizard with a 10 AC and minimum HP (I ended up around 50 HP since I was getting a negative to it every level) up to level 20. The important thing to remember is that a miss chance is usually better than a high AC and strategic placement is better than HP.

It really all depends on the type of Wizard you want to make. They're pretty flexible.

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

I sure wish I had another feat to take Finesse (have been toying with Human, but will refrain). I will take this eventually for sure, maybe now - I'll have to see what spells I choose first. Taking it only for a rapier isn't worth it - but if I get a handful of useful touch attacks - bingo.

If you aren't going to be focusing on touch attack spells, I wouldn't worry too much about WFinesse. One of the benefit of melee touch attack spells is that if you miss, you get to try again; the spell isn't wasted.

Arcane School: Conjuration or Evocation

Evocation, in general, is the least awesome school to emphasize for normal wizards - battlefield control and buffing / debuffing tend to be more powerful (contrast the effectiveness of Sleep with Burning Hands).

That being said, damage is fun.

Is this CL only the DC level to confirm that the item works properly?

That CL is the default for a randomly generated item in treasure. If you're making an item yourself, you can generally set the CL to whatever you want it to be. For 1st-level pearls, there's no benefit to having a CL higher than 1; yes, they'll be easy to supress with a dispel magic spell, but who cares?

Some items have hard CL prereqs (such as enhancement bonuses on magic weapons). Others have prices which are affected by CL (wands, scrolls, items which actually cast spells, etc.), and therefore that will be taken into account by the price.

For most other stuff, though, just set it as low as you need to and as high as you can.

I really want to keep the 20.... but now I will settle for 21. I could craft a Headband of Vast Intelligence to give me a +2 Intelligence. This is CL 8 (which I mistook for caster level requirement). This would cost me 2,000gp but boost my other abilities. Agreed?

Make it at CL 3, instead. And, yes, it'll boost your abilities, but it might be a little too expensive to start out with right now.

 

[Nebten]

Short comment:
I would ditch using a bow all together. You get unlimited use of 0 level spells (ie: Ray of Frost/ Acid Splash). Sure the damage is 1d3, but it isn't going to be much more then 1d6/8-2, and you will hit more often.

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

Ray of Frost and Acid Splash have really crappy ranges, though.

My Magus always has one of them prepared (I might go with both, actually, at some point), but I keep a short bow for the long-range stuff.

 

[buddhafrog]

Evocation, in general, is the least awesome school to emphasize for normal wizards - battlefield control and buffing / debuffing tend to be more powerful (contrast the effectiveness of Sleep with Burning Hands).

What is your opinion on the most useful Wizard school? I was thinking of picking Conjuration school but adding in some offensive Evocation spells.

I don't envision using the bow often, but at times it might be nice to have. I'll be carrying a rapier as well but will rarely if ever pull that out in battle. I didn't know that touch spells were not discharged unless they hit - that's awesome! Clarification: if I cast Shocking Grasp but miss, if I cast a different spell next round is the Shocking Grasp this discharged and wasted - meaning that a missed touch attack isn't wasted but it must continually be attempted until hit/discharged?

I think I'm going with the Strength 19 which will let me do this:
Str 10, Dex 16, Con 12, Int 19, Wis 10, Cha 7

I might wait until my 5th level Wizard bonus feat to pick up Crafting Wondrous Items, at which point I'll then magically boost my Int to 21. This means I'll be paying a little more for items at my start level, but that's OK. This way I'll be able to pick up a wand of something offensive as a standby weapon at this stage.

By the way, I didn't comment specifically earlier, but I will follow your the recommendation to use the pipe as a "prop" of sorts when describing my spells. This will give me lots of flexibility and won't create any mechanical tweaking. Great, simple, and obvious suggestion.