Best 3-person party?

[FoxWander]

I'll be starting a new Pathfinder campaign soon, but we only have three players and the DM. What do you think would be the best mix of characters to cover the basic roles with just three people?

We'll be starting at 2nd level and using the 'heroic method' to gen stats (2d6+6). So we have the possibility to multi-class and we'll probably have good stats, but we're limited to core races and classes. That's not actually much of a "limitation" of course- just a restriction to keep in mind. Just looking for some ideas to create an interesting and fun party mix at low levels with limited people. Thanks.

 

[Aus_Snow]

No idea about "best", and to be honest, my experiences with Pathfinder tend to be (I suspect) a tad atypical, wrt standard balance and all that. Even so, I'll give it a go - but you have been warned!

Rogue 1 / Barbarian* 1 (going to Rogue 2 or 4, or however many, and probably the rest in Barbarian* - though Fighter is another way of heading, I suppose)
Wizard 2
Cleric** 2

I imagine that would cover most of the (usual) basics...? Doesn't look too shabby to me, anyway.


* Hm... or Ranger?

** With a bit of a fighty emphasis?

 

[IronWolf]

With three person parties it is hard to go too far wrong as long as you have a GM that realizes you might be missing a "normal role".

I run for the IronPups and one plays a cleric and the other a druid. They do pretty well. The four person group I am running Kingmaker for is composed of a druid, fighter, paladin and a wizard - no cleric or rogue.

While a cleric is nice to have something like a ranger or paladin can fill the role, especially if a wand is involved.

Not having a rogue is largely a matter of how the GM will handle things. For example, in the group I run for there is not a rogue so I make some allowances for that. One time they faced a locked exterior door. They thought about it a bit and then decided to use their horses to break through. Other times the GM can turn that lock on the door to a puzzle or something to solve to get it open.

So in most cases I would say just go with what sounds like fun!

 

[paradox42]

Flexible DM/GMming is often necessary for a good time with parties below the traditional four. IronWolf has that right.

Of the four basic roles, I'd say Rogue is usually the least necessary, though it depends on what sort of campaign you're playing- one set in a city, for example, would find a Rogue far more necessary than a campaign that often treks into the wilderness and/or avoids traditional dungeon crawls. When possible, you should look for classes that double up roles- Paladin is a great example (though starting at 2nd it'll be hard to argue against at least a Cleric or Druid being necessary- wands are not readily available that early in most games). You might also look at Oracle of Battle as a dual tank/healer role, assuming you're including APG in your definition of "core;" we have one in my game right now and he's an absolute monster in combat. He nearly always does more damage than our straight Fighter if he's allowed to put a buff or two on before combat.

For an Arcanist, I'd recommend having a Sorcerer rather than Wizard, since they get more spells per day; you lose some flexibility unfortunately but he'll be able to keep up with more combats before needing a rest. If you're not so worried about offensive casting, and want to at least partly cover the Rogue role, definitely look at Bard.

 

[Jeff Wilder]

I'm going to buck the trend and suggest you go warrior-less.

Speaking as a GM, the absolute easiest adjustment to make to run for a short party is to the combat strength of the encounters.

Secondarily, the rogue got a big bump in combat power in Pathfinder, and of course the cleric (while not as well armored as it used to be) is still a decent tank and flanker for the rogue.

I'd go with wizard for the flexibility over the sorcerer. While it's true the wizard doesn't have the staying power of the sorcerer, the last thing you want to give up in a short party is the ability to cast outside the box. Sorcerers can buy scrolls, of course, but that adds up fast compared to crafting them.

So I'd go pretty basic: rogue, wizard, cleric.

Of course, depending on how the magus ends up, that could change my picks.

 

[DragonLancer]

My recommendation:

Human Fighter.
Halfling Rogue.
Human Cleric.

I think you can do away with the wizard.

 

[Dilvias]

Are you the GM? If that is the case, I would suggest a wilderness campaign. Recommendations:

Barbarian
Druid
Bard

Barbarian is front line, killing things. Druid (and his animal companion) as backup and healing. Archer bard (covers ranged, skills, and arcane power.)

 

[FoxWander]

Thanks for all the replies.

To answer some questions- I'm just a player in this game, so I can't control the setting.

By core only, unfortunately that means just the Pathfinder core rulebook. Things might be more interesting if we had more options (and Oracle of Battle is a good one) but we're keeping it really basic because this is kind of a new group. Well, us three players have gamed together for quite a while, it's the GM that's new. So we're using a basic-ish game to get to know each other and our gaming styles to see how it will work out.

Some more info- the GM has said things will go a lot easier if we have a rogue. So I'm guessing lots of traps.

Right now the group is looking like it will be a Sorcerer, a Druid, and a Cleric/Rogue (played by me).

 

[ruemere]

Try not to handicap casters by multiclassing.

My advice would be to go with:
Wizard
Paladin or Druid
Cleric or Druid

Wizard will be able to take over Rogue's niche soon (with invisibility, unseen servants, summons).
Cleric for great front-line second-man and secondary backup for missing Rogue (divinations, restorations, summons, buffs).
Paladin - for sheer staying power. Properly built paladins just don't die (and are quite capable of healing themselves).
Druid - with buffs from Cleric and his companion can take a front line (though because of his AC he will need to be really careful).

Regards,
Ruemere

 

[Jhaelen]

My recommendation:

Human Fighter.
Halfling Rogue.
Human Cleric.

I think you can do away with the wizard.

I'd say: swap the rogue with the wizard.