5 Low-Level Protection Spells That Never Stop Being Useful (in Pathfinder)

Magic is one of the most useful resources in Pathfinder, but too often we end up letting our smaller spells sort of fall by the wayside, forgetting that our lower-level slots can still be useful even at higher levels of play. If you're looking for some ways to keep yourself (and your party) protected when crawling through dungeons and brawling through the bestiary, keep these simple spells in mind, as well as your daily preparations.

Also, for those who like to throw some mud in your enemies' eyes, check out 5 Low-Level Debuff Spells That Never Stop Being Useful (in Pathfinder) as well!

All right... let's talk protection!

#1: Delay Disease

Don't let charisma damage happen to you!

If you've ever played a paladin, then you understand exactly how invulnerable you feel when you can ignore the bite of a werewolf, or sneer at mummy rot because you are protected by a higher power. While getting permanent immunity to disease is tough, getting temporary immunity can be just as effective in the short-term.

Delay disease is a 2nd-level divine spell which also appears on the witch list as a 1st-level spell. Once cast it provides 24 hour protection against any disease taking effect on the target, and if there is already a disease present then the spell can halt it with an appropriate caster-level check. If you want to have something in place to keep your teammates safe before a dungeon delve, this is a solid one to keep in a wand and pass around before you kick in the door.

#2: Delay Poison

And I hit! What? Ah crap...

In the same boat as delay disease is another 2nd-level spell delay poison! This one only works for 1 hour per level, but it essentially stops the clock on any poison in someone's system (without a caster level check), and if someone is under the effects of this spell they can ignore any poison in their veins until it runs out. If you're high enough level that you have a lot of 2nd level slots to spare, this is a good one to keep on-hand, but even if you just have it in a wand for those rainy days when you need to stop a poison from spreading it's quite handy to have.

#3: Defending Bone

Don't worry boss, I got you!

Defending bone is a spell that is likely going to wind up on every character I ever play just for the way it looks. You animate either the femur bone or skull of a Medium-sized creature, and it floats around you. It interposes itself between you and physical attacks, granting you DR 5/bludgeoning. It lasts for 1 hour per level, and it will absorb 5 points per caster level with a maximum of 50 points before it gets turned to dust.

The most useful thing here is that the spell doesn't say you need to be aware of the attack for the bone to protect you. So if you're ambushed, or you have invisible rogues stabbing at you, the bone still interposes itself. Even better, if the DR negates an attack's damage entirely (say, a poisoned dart being fired from cover) then that will block any poison on the weapon as well.

#4: Protection From X/Y/Z

Don't touch me, don't touch me, don't touch me...

Protection from evil, and the variants that apply to good, law, and chaos are basic, 1st level spells that show up on most spellcasting lists. When we initially take them it's usually the boost to armor class and saves that we consider most important, but the other effects of the spell are arguably a lot more important at later levels.

The first is that it protects you from enchantment (compulsion) and (charm) effects, making it basically impossible for a big villain to just reach into the fighter's head and turn him into a party-killing puppet if there's a protected alignment in play. The second is that it means summoned creatures whose alignment matches the protection spell can't make contact with you unless you first attack them. This can be a life saver when a high-level villain is depending on summoned monsters to tear you to pieces, but the demons, archons, or chaos beasts can't get within a foot of you due to a lowly 1st-level spell.

While you get the biggest benefits from casting it at your character level, this is one that's fine to put in potions for immediate battlefield consumption.

#5: Stone Shield

Oh boy, that's gonna be nasty!

Stone shield is an immediate action spell that essentially lets you earth-bend a slab of stone out of the floor, making it rise up to protect you. It grants you cover (+4 bonus to AC and a +2 bonus to Reflex saves), and it basically lasts 1 round, or until something destroys it.

Those are relatively small bonuses, but they can be very helpful in a pinch. Especially when you consider that cover bonuses can be a life saver against ray spells, when there are so few things that help improve your touch AC. Additionally, if you have cover from an enemy, they can't take attacks of opportunity against you, so this is a great method to both cover your butt, and get the hell out of a dangerous situation while maintaining your standard action to heal up, or to cast something bigger once you're at a safe distance.

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Adventuring Isn't Just A Young Man's Game (5 Questions You Should Ask For Older PCs)

When you think of adventurous characters, chances are that you picture plucky farm boy heroes or fresh-faced wizards' apprentices. Acolytes who have only recently felt the touch of the divine are common, as are young warriors out to prove their valor. However, some heroes have gray in their hair, and crow's feet round their eyes. More than a few of them have already laid aside a lifetime in a trade before they hear the call to adventure.

Yeah... now you're getting it.

Sometimes we play older characters because it gives us stat boosts when we need them. Sometimes we do it because it fits the concept we have in our heads. But if you're going to do it, here are some questions you should ask yourself before you get started.

If you enjoy these, you should consider checking out my ongoing series of class-based advice at 5 Tips For Playing Better Base Classes (The Complete List).

Also, feel free to check out Simon Peter Munoz's thoughts on the subject over on the CRB with Age Is Just A Number.

Question #1: What Were You Doing All This Time?

Perhaps the first thing you need to ask is what has your PC been doing all this time that they haven't been out looting tombs and saving the world? Were they a simple farmer, trying to live a peaceful life? A woodcutter? A blacksmith? Did your PC settle down to raise a family, and now that the kids are grown he finds there's time on his hands? Or did this character used to be an adventurer, but it's been so long they're back to first level these days?

You've got a lot of options, here, but it's a good idea to know what you spent the earlier part of your life doing. Especially since that earlier part could be a few decades for a human or a half-orc, and the better part of a century or more for longer-lived races.

Question #2: Why Now?

Of all the things your character could be doing, what made them step up to the adventuring plate later in life? Is it a tale of revenge, but in this case it's a mother or a father coming to collect on someone who killed their children? Were you a late bloomer magically, with your sorcerer bloodline only awakening once you'd hit middle age? Did a god choose you after you had left your wild youth behind? Or have you just been quietly using your skills in your town as a healer, a guardsman, or an entertainer until there was a need for someone to deal with a threat, solve a mystery, or find a long-lost treasure?

This doesn't have to be a terrible event, like your town being attacked by goblins, or your grandkids being carried off by trolls. It might be that once you retired you finally felt you were able to go treasure hunting without risking your family's income and well-being. Sometimes adventurers are born out of convenience, instead of tragic circumstances.

Question #3: What Have You Seen?

When you're a young PC, you don't typically have much experience of the world. Even those who grow up in a cosmopolitan place likely don't know much beyond their own little patch of the city. While that might be equally true for older characters, you often have a lot more leeway regarding what events you've lived through.

For example, if you're a middle-aged dwarf or elf, how many established capitols were frontier outposts the last time you came through them? What wars do you remember that are little more than footnotes in history books? What major movements did you survive culturally that are just stories to the younger generation?

Keep in mind that not every character with silver threads in their beard is a world traveler, or was caught up in great doings. The local druid might have just been wandering the same patch of forest for the past three or four decades, and only knows what's happened this side of the mountain. Alternatively, the elven bard who's been a caravan master has traveled through six or seven countries, has seen empires rise and fall, and has friends and business acquaintances from the Bay of Stars to the dune riders of the Empty Crescent. Just because you're level 1 along with everyone else doesn't mean you haven't seen things in your time. Of course, it doesn't mean you have, either.

Question #4: What Is The Attitude Toward Your Age?

Different cultures will have different expectations for people as they age. For example, do people think you're a fool for putting your life in danger when you're over the hill? Or do people see it as noble that you, as an elder, are willing to stick your neck out so those with more life ahead of them can avoid the risks you're taking? Does age put an extra fine edge on your primary skills (such as wisdom, charisma, or intelligence-based magic), or are you struggling to overcome the sands of time as your strength is sapped?

Also, how does your character feel about their age? Are they constantly grumbling about being too old for this, with their creaking joints and aching muscles? Are they defiant that age effects them, showing how they can keep up with any young pup? Or do they accept their age and the limitations that come with it?

Question #5: Why Do They Do It?

This is a question you should ask of any character, but it becomes a lot more interesting with older characters. For example, are they called to duty? Is it the thrill of adventure after an ordinary life? Is it a mid-life crisis? Do they have no other options but to take up a dangerous trade after their home was destroyed, or a pestilence ruined their crops? Or are they seeking to make their lives mean something after a time that (to them, at least) felt mediocre and pointless?

There are all sorts of options here. So take a moment, and consider which ones fit your character best.

That's all for this week's Fluff installment. Hopefully it got some folks out there thinking, and contemplating fielding their own team of Expendables-style PCs. If you'd like to see more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio where I help out from time to time. If you want to stay on top of all my latest releases, then you should follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, and Twitter. Lastly, to help support Improved Initiative, consider Buying Me A Ko-Fi or tossing some loose change into The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page. Both options help out more than you know, and there is some sweet than-you swag waiting for you when you become a supporter.