If Your Dice Are Cursed, Consider Building A Character Who Doesn't Roll

I've mentioned this a time or two on this blog over the past decade and change, but I am cursed. Any dice I roll regardless of the method, who handed them to me, or which game I'm playing will give me some of the worse possible results I could ever hope for nine times out of ten. I once rolled so many natural 1s that I started counting them as a streak (I hit 11 in a row before it finally broke, in case you're wondering), and it was one of the most horribly entrancing things I've ever done.

Also, irritatingly, this curse doesn't apply to me as a GM, because all of a sudden my dice wake up and remember how to be lethal when I'm sitting in the big chair.

Anyway, this curse is what taught me to mix max and point crunch any character I make, because I need to be able to actually succeed and participate even if I'm rolling somewhere between a 2 and a 5 for a majority of the night. And while I do take a certain amount of enjoyment in digging through a game to find every bonus and tool I can to help me combat fate (it's why I have an entire Character Conversions archive, after all), there is another solution for folks who are frustrated that their dice won't cooperate.

Play a character who rarely, if ever, has to roll a die to participate in the game.

Oh dearie... I'm not rolling dice. You are. Give me that save, won't you?

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Bonuses, Debuffs, And Controlling The Battlefield

Generally speaking, the sort of character I'm going to describe is going to be a spellcaster (for fantasy games), and likely some sort of psionic or technomancer for a more sci-fi related game. Exact mileage will vary, but keep in mind that this is meant to be a shift in perspective and strategy more than it is a recommendation for a specific particular class in a specific particular game, even if the following examples are from Pathfinder since I feel they make my point concisely.

All right? All right.

Now then, most RPGs that have you roll dice give you a bunch of bonuses and negatives, and you then have to either beat your enemy's roll, or you have to overcome some arbitrary number set as the difficulty. If you're attempting to persuade a door guard to let you into the tavern, you need to hit a certain number on your Diplomacy or Intimidate roll, or if you're swinging a power sword at a chaos space marine you need to have more successes than he has to parry your attack.

These are the situations where a dice curse can be an issue. Because no matter how much the odds are in your favor, there is always a chance that something goes wrong and your action is wasted. You miss your shot, you fail to persuade an NPC to your point of view, and so on, and so forth... and that's really the most frustrating part of things. You just aren't having an effect on the game, and you feel like you might as well be sitting there blowing raspberries instead of wasting everyone's time.

I believe that is where I come in.

One of the most visual examples of the character who doesn't roll, yet can still be the MVP of an encounter, is the bard. Seen across various editions (as well as in the Tactician caste in my own RPG Army Men: A Game of Tactical Plastic), the bard is typically thought of as a party booster. Their music grants bonuses to their allies, they can inspire courage and suppress fear, and they gain access to spells that can heal allies and hinder their foes even further. And while the enemy might receive a saving throw against these spells, the bard often doesn't have to roll anything (except for how many hit points they give back to an ally).

However, bards aren't the only class capable of this kind of play. Consider a transmuter wizard who is constantly enhancing the attributes of her allies through various buffing spells, or who reveals all the enemies with a well-placed glitterdust spell (which might even blind her foes, turning a fight into a rout very quickly). The sorcerer might have adhesive spittle on-hand, able to entangle a foe and stick them in place so they can become easy prey for the martial members of the party (since entangled foes receive negatives to attack, Dexterity, speed, and several other factors). A witch might have the ability to hex an enemy, forcing them to use the worst of 2d20 rolls when they attack, make saves, and so on, thus allowing their allies to avoid harm, and score more devastating attacks with their own spells.

I talked about more specifics in Vulgar Displays of Power as well as in Don't Underestimate Battlefield Control Spells for folks interested in more PF-centric advice.

With that said, if you want to avoid rolling dice for your character, then some of the things you should build your strategy around include:

- Granting bonuses to your allies (as well as healing), which tend to be automatic successes.

- Debuffing enemies in ways they cannot ignore, even on a failed saving throw (though there may be a lesser penalty on a successful save).

- Shifting the terrain of the battlefield entirely (creating pits, summoning walls, and so on).

An important thing to remember is that this strategy largely requires an individual to step out of the spotlight, and to act as the assist for other players to be the ones who clinch glory. That can be tough to accept, but it is often extremely satisfying knowing that your character is the power behind the throne, and that it is through your efforts that everyone else is succeeding (or at least avoiding death).

Lastly, it's important to remember that you can never remove dice rolls entirely from a character. Even if you primarily boost your allies in their endeavors (both in and out of combat), or your strategy is to force your enemies to work at a disadvantage, you're still going to have to make an occasional skill check, saving throw, etc. Still, there are a great deal of situations where you can absolutely leave a task up to someone else who doesn't have untrustworthy dice... and you can give them an extra slap on the back and a +1 for good luck if you have a spare spell slot!

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Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the Azukail Games YouTube channel, or my Rumble channel The Literary Mercenary! Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my dystopian sci-fi thriller Old Soldiers, my hardboiled gangland noir series starring a bruiser of a Maine Coon with Marked Territory and Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

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5 Overlooked Buff Spells (in Pathfinder)

People often say that Pathfinder characters are overpowered. That they're running on superhero levels of skills, power, and sheer wooge. That's not inherently wrong, but the problem is that when the monsters are just as extra as you are, you're still going to be the underdog when it comes time to roll initiative and throw down. Which is why it pays to have a few extra tricks up your sleeve the next time you get ready for battle.

For my money, these buff spells are far more useful than a lot of folks give them credit for.

How many hits of this am I supposed to take?

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Spell #1: Expeditious Retreat

I am speed!

The name of this spell always makes people think it's used solely for running away from something, but it just adds a 30-foot enhancement to your land speed for 1 minute per level. So while you could put that on your wizard in order to play ranged games with the slow-moving undead, you could also have a gnome fighter read off a scroll, or the halfling alchemist slam down an extract, so they can suddenly close with all kinds of enemies on the battlefield.

The major downside of this spell is that it's self only, so you can't have a caster beef up the party tank and then send them rocketing off into battle. But it can be quite useful all the same for those who find they're constantly a few squares short of being able to get where they need to go when battle is joined.

Spell #2: Feather Step

Difficult terrain? What's that?

Difficult terrain is one of those things that's never really an issue, until it is. Whether you're fighting in mountains, you need to rush up the stairs to get to a villain atop a dais, or there's just bones strewn all across the floor of a pit, having your movement suddenly and unexpectedly hampered can majorly tie your hands behind your back. Especially if your party already had limited movement due to heavy armor, small size, etc. Feather step is an ideal way to just ignore this problem.

While used fairly rarely, feather step can be a lifesaver in fights where difficult terrain is part of the challenge of the arena. Or if you have casters who are creating difficult terrain as part of area of effect spells, and you don't want your allies to get caught in the slog. In fact, that one-two punch can be particularly nasty for land-based foes, especially if you're high enough level to get mass feather step so the whole party can run around unhampered with a single casting.

Spell #3: Moment of Greatness

Now is the moment!

This is another of those spells that often gets overlooked because you really need to have the right components in place to get the most out of it. The most common situation is when you have a bard in the party who can use this to effectively double the bonus from many of their bardic music effects at a single go. However, it also applies to morale bonuses from things like barbarian rage, which can be quite useful when said barbarian is getting up to the point where they're adding +6 or more to their Strength and Constitution, and for a single moment they can double that.

Of all the spells on this list, moment of greatness is one that starts all right, but only gets better as long as the party has a reliable way to get serious morale bonuses slapped on them. And the more folks who get the bonus, the more useful this spell is.

Spell #4: Tactical Acumen

We've got the high ground!

Tactical positioning is always your friend when it comes to winning a battle, but tactical acumen can be a real bastard when it comes to boosting your party's effectiveness. The spell lasts 1 round per level, and goes off in a burst from the caster, hitting all allies in 30 feet. What it does, in short, is give you a +1 to attacks or AC anytime you'd receive a bonus due to positioning. So cover, flanking, higher ground, etc. are all worth an additional +1. What's even better is that it's an insight bonus, which isn't that common, so you don't have to worry about not stacking with luck bonuses, morale bonuses, enhancement bonuses, etc.

Best of all, this one goes up with you as you level, to a +2 at a 10th level caster, +3 at 15th level, and +4 at 20th. It won't make or break a fight all on its own, but if you've got allies who are already using enhanced mobility to get into advantageous positions, using mounts to attack ground-based allies, or who are flying to get above their foes (or who are using cover to defend themselves), this can add some more oomph to their efforts.

Spell #5: Visualization of The Body/Mind

If given a knife and a hand in which to hold it...

Slot #5 is a shared one, because these two spells just have a lot of potential. Whichever visualization version you use, the spell lasts 24 hours, or until discharged. It costs 200 GP in various items, so it's not one to just blow willy nilly, but the bonus is not to be sniffed at.

Firstly, it offers you an untyped +5 bonus to all skill and ability checks associated with one of your attributes for either the next 24 hours, or until it's discharged. That's not nothing, especially if you actively use, say, Bluff to feint in combat, or Intimidate to demoralize enemies, or you want to be sure that ALL your Knowledge checks have a nice, fat boost. Or course, each attribute also has a handy, immediate effect you can discharge the spell for to get.

This is one of those spell choices that works best in a scroll form, or something similar. Because you can't have the other members of the party slap it on you, but it does have a flat duration and a flat bonus regardless of how powerful the caster level is... and that makes a big difference. It will get expensive if you apply it every day, but it's a good thing to slap on before you start the heist, delve into the dungeon, etc.

Looking For Some Additional Reading?

If you're looking for new places to use some of these spells, making sure you check out my growing Sundara: Dawn of a New Age setting. It's available both in Pathfinder Classic, as well as for Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition if that's more your jam!

And if you want to see at least some of these spells in use, don't forget to check out the ongoing series of pulpy short stories that tell the tale of my group's run through the Hell's Rebels adventure path! Devil's Night is a bit of a prologue, setting the stage with whispers of an urban legend in Kintargo that's slowly making its presence known in the night terrors of the dottari. And the more recent installment, From The Ashes, tells about the riot at the opera house, and how Thrune has planted the seeds of their own undoing with the resurrection of the Silver Ravens!

Like, Share, and Follow For More!

That's all for this week's Crunch topic! For more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio! Or if you'd like to read some of my books, like my alley cat noir novel Marked Territory, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now on Pinterest as well! And if you'd like to help support me and my work, consider Buying Me A Ko-Fi or heading over to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron! Even a little bit of help can go a long way, trust me on that one.

"Force Multiplication" is a Useful Idea For RPGs

Folks who've been around this blog for a while know that, while I love story and character arcs in RPGs, I am also very invested in strategic play, and accomplishing goals. A term someone used in a forum that caught my attention presents an interesting idea that can alter the way we think of our games, strategies, and resources, so I thought I'd talk about it this week.

That term is Force Multiplication.

Great, just what I need... more math.

 

What is Force Multiplication?

The short version is that force multiplication is a military term, and it refers to the degree by which an attribute (or combination of attributes) increases the efficiency of a particular force.

For example, say it takes 1 fighter with silver weapons to take out a werewolf. Without those silver weapons, it would take a force of 4 fighters to do the job. Therefore the silver weapon is a force multiplier of 4 in this situation.

Ah, now it begins to come clear...

While you don't necessarily need to crunch the numbers to work out exactly what percentage of effectiveness certain spells, magic items, abilities, etc. add to your party's effectiveness (you can if you've got the math chops for it, but you don't have to), this creates a useful lens to view your resources and abilities through in terms of strategic effectiveness in the game.

Spells like haste or abilities like bardic music? Those are force multipliers in a game, and I pointed out as much in Vulgar Displays of Power: Tips For Getting The Most Out of Your Magic in Pathfinder. A paladin's ability to grant their smite to their companions? Serious force multiplier when facing devils, demons, undead, etc. The same can be said of a ranger's ability to grant their favored enemy bonus to their companions in a fight. Anything which increases effectiveness falls into this category, and when it affects more than one person then it becomes even more effective overall.

Everything is Situational

Though I've said it before, I feel it needs to be repeated; everything in an RPG is situational. Certain spells, abilities, skills, etc. will be extremely potent in certain circumstances, and next to useless in others. This is important to remember when thinking in terms of force multiplication, because in order for the item, ability, spell, etc. to qualify it has to actually increase your effectiveness in the situation you'll be going into.

In other words, if you bring a gun to the knife fight, you're going to win. But even the biggest, shiniest knife isn't going to help you that much if everyone else brought a gun.

It seemed like a good deal when I bought it!

As an example, take an ability like Improved Evasion. This ability is a huge deal if you're going through a dungeon that has primarily area of effect traps, or if a majority of your enemies use things like breath weapons, fireballs, etc. In situations like these the benefits of this ability cannot be overstated. But if you never fight a sorcerer who tosses around fireballs and lightning bolts? If there's never an area effect you need to nimbly dodge aside from? Well, then it's just sitting on your sheet gathering dust.

This is something to keep in mind for everything you expend your resources on; you need to keep in mind the goals you have, and the challenges you're actually facing.

The paladin smite and ranger favored enemy I mentioned above? Those are potent benefits against the proper foes, but if you're not facing the right enemies, they're useless. The ability to fly is usually considered a force multiplier, but if the arena is too small to make full use of it, or if you cannot use it to put meaningful distance between yourself and an enemy (they can also fly, they have reach/range, etc.) then its effectiveness is hampered. The ability to turn invisible, or to protect yourself and your companions with illusions is usually a powerful ability, but against enemies who have blindsight, true seeing, or other effects, it's rendered moot.

One truism that players often forget is that what I said in Everything Has A Weakness (So Be Sure You Know Your Options) also applies to the PCs. Just because you have an ability that is particularly potent in one situation, that doesn't mean it applies to all situations.

Keep that in mind when you're looking at all the available levers you have to increase your party's force with.

Like, Share, and Follow For More!

That's all for this week's Crunch topic! For more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio! Or if you'd like to read some of my books, like my alley cat noir novel Marked Territory, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now on Pinterest as well! And if you'd like to help support me and my work, consider Buying Me A Ko-Fi or heading over to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron! Even a little bit of help can go a long way, trust me on that one.

Increasing Your Movement Speed in Pathfinder (A Beginner's Guide)

It's been a while since I've done an in-depth piece on how to tweak a particular part of your PC in my favorite game, so I figured it was time to do another one of those! And if you've ever had one of those frustrating moments where you were 5 feet out of range of the enemy, well, then this collection of tips and tricks may be just what you've been looking for!

Oh that's cute... you thought I couldn't get to you!

And if you like this particular guide, you might also want to check out:

- Tips For Building a Whip-Wielding Swashbuckler
- Aid Another in Pathfinder is More Powerful Than You Think
- How To Increase Spell DCs in Pathfinder
- How To Weaponize Your Intimidate Check in Pathfinder

Anyway, onto this week's musings!

Classes and Feats

You can learn to be faster. Here, let me show you!

One of the easiest ways to increase your speed is to invest in a class that gives you the Fast Movement ability. This typically boosts your base speed by 10 feet, but some classes give you additional boosts as you go up in level. The trade-off is that you typically can't wear more than a certain amount of armor while also maintaining said speed. Still, if you don't need a heavy metal tank, you can try out the following options:

- Barbarian (level 1): Add 10 feet to base speed as long as you're wearing medium armor or less, and not carrying a heavy load.

- Bloodrager (level 1): Second verse, same as the first. It's identical to the barbarian ability.

- Monk (starting at level 3): Monks add 10 feet to their movement starting at level 3, and they can add up to 60 feet as they progress. They lose this bonus if wearing any armor, or carrying a medium or heavy load.

- Hinterlander (level 2): A prestige class found in Paths of The Righteous, the Hinterlander gets an additional 10 feet of land speed, but there are no stipulations regarding load or armor for keeping it. Then again, this prestige class has such high prerequisites that you're probably already juggling other concerns.

You're probably noticing a theme here... classes that get fast movement typically have to give up defense. This makes it pretty tough to build a fast-moving tank. Even the feat Fleet (found in the Core Rulebook) comes with the stipulation that you can wear no more than light armor and carry no more than a light load, or you lose the bonus 5 feet of movement it grants you.

Not great options, really. Fortunately, that's what magic is for.

Spells and Magic Items

Now we're getting somewhere...

Magic allows you to re-write the laws of reality, and it's one of the best ways to give yourself a bit of a boost to your speed. So, to start with, here are a few spells you may want to keep in mind if you've got a time for some pre-casting.

- Longstrider: An old standby for rangers, this spell grants you a +10 foot enhancement bonus to your base movement speed, but no other movement types. A greater version of the spell in the Advanced Class Guide grants a +20 foot enhancement bonus to your land speed, and a +10 foot enhancement bonus to any other forms of movement a character actually has. The advantage of these spells (1st and 3rd level respectively) is that they last for hours per caster level, which makes them a great pre-cast. Sadly, they're self only, meaning you need a spell completion item, or the ability to share spells with your target (such as casting this on a mount or a familiar who will be delivering your touch spells).

- Burst of Speed: A solid spell from Ultimate Combat, this spell seems a little weak for a 3rd-level spell slot at first glance. As a swift action you gain a 20 foot bonus to your speed (untyped), or a 10 foot bonus if you're wearing medium or heavy armor. The advantage is that your movement doesn't provoke attacks of opportunity, and you can move through spaces of creatures larger than you as long as you don't end your movement there. Again, it's only usable on the self, but it's a handy trick to have up your sleeve if you need to close with an enemy (or get behind them for a flank) in a big damn hurry.

- Haste: Everyone's favorite party boosting spell, haste adds 30 feet to a person's movement in all forms. This counts as an enhancement bonus, so it won't stack with other enhancement bonuses. However, it has the advantage that it can affect several people at once, and that it will boost party members who can fly, swim, burrow, climb, etc. It also eats a 2nd or 3rd level spell slot, depending on your casting class, so you can keep it in spell-completion form, too, should you need it.

- Expeditious Retreat: A lower-level way to give yourself a 30-foot bonus to your speed, expeditious retreat is also treated as an enhancement bonus. It lasts for minutes per level, and it's a great way to get around the limitations placed on you because of heavier armor, shorter movement speeds from size, etc. And, despite the name, you can use this spell to move into an attack position if that's what you'd rather do!

- Blessing of Fervor: A spell that gives you and your allies all sorts of options to pick from, one of them allows you to add 30 feet to your speed. This doesn't stack with haste and other similar spells, but it's another useful spell for giving the party some options.

Again, there's a theme here of spells all granting enhancement bonuses, ensuring that you can't stack them up to suddenly turn yourself into the Road Runner with a greatsword. However, if you don't have spells at your beck and call, or if you just want a more permanent sort of boost like what you'd get from a class feature, then you could also add some of the following magic items to your roster.

- Expeditious Armor: Named after the last spell mentioned above, this enchantment allows you to flick a switch 3 times per day as a swift action, and add a 10 foot enhancement bonus to all forms of movement for 1 round. It can only be put on armor, and while not great, it comes with a flat gold cost rather than a magical enhancement value, so there is that.

- Boots of Striding and Springing: An old standby, these boots add a 10-foot enhancement bonus to the wearer's base land speed, and they're a very common way to overcome penalties from heavier armor. Also, they provide a +5 competence bonus on Acrobatics checks, so that's nice to have as some icing on the cake.

- Boots of Speed: While wearing these boots, as a free action, someone can click their heels together and act as if under the effects of haste for 10 rounds per day. Snazzy if you can find them, and you don't want to wait for your party caster's initiative to come up.

- Horseshoes of Speed: For mounted warriors, or those who managed to convince their DMs to let them play a centaur, these horseshoes add a 30 foot bonus to the creature's land speed. It counts as an enhancement bonus, of course, but with an extra 30 feet how much more do you really need?

While a few options have no doubt slipped through the cracks (and if I missed any really good options please leave them in the comments so I can update the list), these are the options you're going to find the most often.

Why Do You Need All This Speed, Anyway?

Getting the hell away from that, for starters.

While having an increased speed is nice, it might not be clear right away what you can actually do with it. After all, it is going to be kind of situational, as once you're in fighting range it's time to focus on swinging. With that said, though, there are a few reasons to invest in upgrading your ability to get around the battlefield.

The first is so you can play range games with your opponents. Because staying out of reach of your enemies while still being able to harry them is a solid path to victory. Whether you're dealing with shambling undead, or humans in heavy armor who can only move 20 feet or so, if you can hit and move (either with a ranged or reach weapon, a spell, or a feat like Spring Attack) then you can basically dominate a particular fight while not letting yourself get surrounded.

Secondly, the ability to get around a battlefield is often greatly hindered by the abilities of enemies and the terrain itself, and a little enhancement on your part can really help in breaking through those obstacles. Difficult terrain costs double your movement, for example. So does tumbling past opponents to avoid attacks of opportunity, and moving stealthily (without the proper rogue talent, at least). A simple tanglefoot bag can chop your speed in half, and that's without even getting started on all the ridiculous spells there are out there that can stagger you, and make it hard to get around. So it's important to have an ace up your sleeve for when the bad guys think they've got you in a trap.

Like, Share, and Follow For More!

That's all for this week's Crunch topic! For more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio! Or if you'd like to read some of my books, like my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife, head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now on Pinterest as well! And if you'd like to help support me and my work, consider Buying Me A Ko-Fi or heading over to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron! Even a little bit of help can go a long way, trust me on that one.

3 Bloodlines For Healing With Sorcerers (in Pathfinder)

One of the most common complaints I've heard from players who favor arcane magic is that they dislike that arcane magic can't heal. While there are entire screeds that have been written on the subject of game balance, and keeping certain powers exclusive to certain classes, archetypes, or builds, that frustration still lingers. After all, it's magic... why is there something it can't do?

Well, for those who like to twist and mold things into new and unexpected forms, I figured I'd present the results I've had on this topic. Some of them may be familiar to you, and others strange, but this is what I've come across so far. Hopefully it helps ease some of these frustrations.

Also, if you enjoy this week's advice, you might also get a kick out of 5 Tips For Playing Better Sorcerers!

#1: The Celestial Bloodline

Can you stand before my fire?

This is both the most familiar method of getting healing from a sorcerer, and honestly the least impressive. The Celestial bloodline, which debuted in the original Core Rulebook, grants you Heavenly Fire as your first-level sorcerer bloodline power. It's a ranged touch attack that deal 1d4+1 per 2 sorcerer levels of damage to evil targets, and it heals that much damage for good targets.

At low levels, that can be a seriously potent ability. It's life-saving, in a lot of cases, and it allows your sorcerer to stay out of harm's way as long as they have good-aligned allies on the field. As a spell-like ability, it also triggers feats like Fast Healer, which can give it a little extra oomph, but overall it's pretty weak on its own. There are ways to boost it, such as the monster feats that empower spell-like abilities, but for a lot of players the reward simply isn't worth the investment it takes to jack it up to meaningful potential.

#2: The Unicorn Bloodline

Because a healing arcane caster really is a unicorn.

This bloodline, which dropped in Heroes of Golarion not all that long ago, this is the easiest way to play a healing sorcerer. Unicorn sorcerers get cure spells as part of their bloodline, and as a bonus they can randomly restore bonus hit points to allies they can see whenever they cast a spell. If no one is willing to step up and play a divine caster, then a unicorn-blooded sorcerer is a great, out-of-the-gate replacement as long as someone is comfortable being a healer and party buff for everyone else.

And, of course, adding in metamagic rods and a couple of feats to really juice your healing (Healer's Touch out of the Legacy of Fire Player's Guide comes to mind) can turn you into an absolute support monster.

#3: The Phoenix Bloodline

Hold still... this might sting a bit.

If you've been listening to the gossip round the Internet, you've likely heard of the trick to turn this damage-dealing bloodline into a party heal. But in case you didn't, I'll lay out just what makes the Phoenix bloodline from Heroes of Golarion so much fun.

Your bloodline arcana states that whenever you cast a spell that deals fire damage, you can instead choose to heal targets for half damage. So you could, in theory, drop a fireball on the party and mass heal them. Which, if you maximize and empower it, is going to stack some pretty impressive numbers in a big hurry. Especially if you have the ability to exclude certain squares from your area of effect spells.

What can really unlock your potential, though, is taking a Cross-Blooded sorcerer. Found in Ultimate Magic, a Cross-Blooded sorcerer lets you mesh together two bloodlines, gaining both arcana. By combining the Phoenix bloodline with the Elemental (Fire) bloodline, now you suddenly have access to a wide variety of spells that could all be turned into fire spells... including cantrips! So if Ray of Frost Fire is a great way to avoid spamming wands of Cure Light Wounds to heal up after a tough fight, then this might be just what you've been looking for at your table.

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That's all for this week's Crunch topic! For more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio! Or if you'd like to read some of my books, like my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife, head over to My Amazon Author Page!

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