History Characters / PathfinderClassesSecondEdition

* CriticalHitClass: [[CriticalHit Critical Hits]] are now tied to accuracy, and Fighter is the most accurate class in the game. Given the same ability modifier, a Fighter will score a critical hit 10 percent more than any other class. They're also unique in that they can use the critical specializations for any weapon they're a master in in every circumstance.

* GlassCannon: Though they qualify as a LightningBruiser class at their best with their ''massive'' damage potential and solid defensive profile akin to the Ranger, Magi lack the Ranger's 10+Con HP per level and instead get 8+Con HP per level, rendering Magi a touch frail. Toughness and multiclassing feats can mitigate this issue substantially.

** The Summoner is the only mage that comes with 10 + con mod health on level-up, but this comes at a cost. Not only is the Summoner ''not'' equipped to dodge attacks, their miniscule number of spell slots makes recovery during combat incredibly costly, and if the Eidolon stays close to their Summoner to defend them, area-of-effect-attacks become a death sentence for the duo. While they don't take combined damage, the assailant gets to roll twice when determining damage and confer the higher amount to the two. This means that while an Eidolon is about as sturdy as most martials on paper, the reality is that with the Summoner around, they're ArmoredButFrail.

* SummonMagic: What else would someone expect from a class called ''Summoner?'' Beyond their Eidolon, Summoners are given the opportunity to pick up numerous feats that allow summoned creatures to explode on arrival or come out while the Eidolon is swinging, and a feat path that allows them to sacrifice a number of spell slots to recieve double the spell slots they gave up so long as those spell slots are used exclusively for summon spells, with the feat chain culiminating in the Summoner being allowed to give up 9th level slots for two 10th level slots -- the only way a Summoner can cast at 10th level.

* {{Synchronization}}: A major aspect of the Summoner and their Eidolon is that they have different AC values and totals for saves (as the Summoner is often focused on Intelligence, Wisdom, and ''especially'' Charisma, while the Eidolons are largely focused on Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution, even if their save proficiencies update at the same time) but draw from the same pool of hit points and thus both get hurt if one member is harmed. While this ''does'' make Summoner the only 'mage' class that gains 10 + con mod HP on level-up, it also means the Summoner should primarily keep in the back of the group while the Eidolon does most of the heavy lifting in combat, since the easily assaulted Summoner makes for a good punching bag to get through the Eidolon's otherwise impressive defenses.

* MechanicallyUnusualClass: Though they fit the standard 'skill monkey' chassis of Rogues, Investigators tend to not be as offensively sound[[note]]Because Rogues have the option to make strength or dexterity their key ability, they'll typically be more accurate than Investigators are, even with the Investigator's ability to 'Devise a Strategem' so they can use their intelligence to strike, given that costs the Investigator an action to set up each time they want to use it.[[/note]] as Rogues and give up the Rogue's freedom of choice over what skills they choose to advance. In return, however, Investigators are some of the only characters in who have feats and abilities that allow their player to ''directly'' ask the [=DM=] questions about what's going on with the plot. 'That's Odd,' for example, ''requires'' the [=DM=] to note whenever something is off about a room or area the Investigator enters, while 'Red Herring' gives Investigators a mulligan when focusing on something that isn't important to the overall plot. Because of this, Investigators have an uncanny and unprecedented ability as [[UtilityPartyMember utility characters]] to figure out what's going on and turn the story itself to their advantage by unraveling key parts of it. At their peak, they can even take a feat that lets them see the rolls they make when they Recall Knowledge so they ''know'' when their checks are giving them accurate information and when they aren't getting all the facts.

* MechanicallyUnusualClass: Though they fit the standard 'skill monkey' chassis of Rogues, Investigators tend to not be as offensively sound[[note]]Because Rogues have the option to make strength or dexterity their key ability, they'll typically be more accurate than Investigators are, even with the Investigator's ability to 'Devise a Strategem' so they can use their intelligence to strike, given that costs the Investigator an action to set up each time they want to use it.[[/note]] as Rogues and give up the Rogue's freedom of choice over what skills they choose to advance. In return, however, Investigators are some of the only characters in who have feats and abilities that allow their player to ''directly'' ask the [=DM=] questions about what's going on with the plot. 'That's Odd,' for example, ''requires'' the [=DM=] to note whenever something is off about a room or area the Investigator enters, while 'Red Herring' gives Investigators a mulligan when focusing on something that isn't important to the overall plot. Because of this, Investigators have an uncanny and unprecedented ability as [[UtilityPartyMembers utility characters]] to figure out what's going on and turn the story itself to their advantage by unraveling key parts of it. At their peak, they can even take a feat that lets them see the rolls they make when they Recall Knowledge so they ''know'' when their checks are giving them accurate information and when they aren't getting all the facts.

* {{Synchronization}}: A major aspect of the Summoner and their Eidolon is that they have different AC values and totals for saves (as the Summoner is often focused on Intelligence, Wisdom, and ''especially'' Charisma, while the Eidolons are largely focused on Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution, even if their save proficiencies update at the same time) but draw from the same pool of hit points and thus both get hurt if one member is harmed. While this ''does'' make Summoner the only 'mage' class that gains 10 + con mod on level-up, it also means the Summoner should primarily keep in the back of the group while the Eidolon does most of the heavy lifting in combat, since the easily assaulted Summoner makes for a good punching bag to get through the Eidolon's otherwise impressive defenses.

[[folder:Rage of Elements Classes]]

* ElementalPunch: Well, 'Elemental-bash-of-some-stripe.' All Eidolons naturally attack with their bodies, and one of the starting Summoner feats confers an elemental affinity to one of the Eidolon's standard attacks. You can even have fun combinations, like a [[ViolationOfCommonSense Plant Eidolon slapping an enemy with fire, or a fire-focused Dragon Eidolon clawing at enemies with ice.]]

* MagicKnight: Of a different kind as opposed to most characters with such a distinction. The Summoner ''can'' pick up a weapon and fight alongside an Eidolon, but they're not given much incentive to do so as their accuracy and AC will always lag behind their Eidolon and fellow teammates. However, ''most Eidolons'' are physical bruisers or ranged warriors of some stripe, and as both the spellcasting Summoner and the attacking Eidolon are controlled by the same player, the class itself functions as 'gish.'
* MechanicallyUnusualClass: The Summoner stands out for not fitting in as a mage due to the fact it can't use its spells with the same frequency as other spellcasters (unless it takes Master Summoner and gives up spell slots to get more summoning spells per day, which really only pigeonholes it further), not fitting in as a skill monkey due to getting a somewhat large number of skills but having to choose carefully what skills it updates that are useful for the Eidolon ''or'' the Summoner, and not fitting in as a fighter because the Eidolon simply isn't on par with other martial classes. The Summoner ''can'' buff reliably, but the only creature that benefits from most of its buffs are the actual Eidolon. Instead, what keeps the Summoner competitive with everyone else is action economy; by using Act Together, Tandem Movement, and maintaining a Summoned creature, the Summoner can do more in a single turn than any other class with some careful strategy. Most of a Summoner's strategies with this improved action economy boil down to buffing its own Eidolon on a turn-by-turn basis to either make the Eidolon competitive with the other martial classes or to give it a unique set of tools to address odd and uncommon situations.
* MechanicallyUnusualFighter: Even beyond the Summoner differing from the classes around it, the Fey Eidolon goes further to diverge ''significantly'' from the other Eidolons. While any Eidolon can take a feat path that gives them some small degree of spellcasting ability, the Fey Eidolon takes this concept and runs with it, becoming a mini-mage attached to their Summoner. As a result, the Summoner themselves veer closer towards a traditional spellcaster role when aligned with the fey creature, gaining access to illusion and enchantment spells from the arcane spell tradition in addition to every primal spell they get access to simply by bonding with the Fey Eidolon.
* OurDragonsAreDifferent: One Eidolon option Summoners have access to is a draconic Eidolon. This Eidolon gives Summoners access to the arcane tradition of spells, but are not quite what their name implies; rather, they are the cast-off echo of some mental feedback left by an actual dragon in the astral plane. They take the form of the dragon that 'birthed' them, often appearing as traditional 'western' dragons but sometimes forming as 'eastern' ''Long'' dragons or other such draconic entities. Though they cannot fly naturally without feat investment or spells, they otherwise possess many qualities associated with actual dragons, though often noticeably weaker.

* PlantMooks: The Plant Eidolon is [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin a plant.]] They're often formed from the leftover energy used to create Leshys, and grant Summoners access to the primal tradition of spells.

* MechanicallyUnusualClass: The Kineticist is a mixture of a spellcaster's elemental magic and area-of-effect focus, but they don't cast spells (except via magic items, through a feat). Instead, they manifest their elemental magic via feats and can do so without limit such as spell slots, though more powerful Impulses can impose a heft tax upon their action economy. In a sense, they're closer to a Fighter, who can uses maneuvers gained from feats as often as they like.

* FiringOneHanded: Enforced. Because of their need to carry esoterica in one of their hands, thaumaturges cannot use any two-handed weapon without losing access to many of their abilities. To compensate for this, they deal 2 additional damage per damage die on the weapon held by their other hand.

[[folder:Rage of the Elements Classes]]

* AwesomenessByAnalysis: A specialty of the thaumaturge that learn the "Diverse Lore" feat which will allow them to roll their Esoteric Lore for any knowledge check they wish with only a -2 penalty and also gives them a free Recall Knowledge check when they succeed on a Exploit Vulnerability.
* AttackItsWeakPoint: Their specialty, as they have a custom battle action that allows them to figure out an opponent's vulnerabilities and automatically trigger them when attacking... or ''create'' a vulnerability if the opponent doesn't already have one.
* FiringOneHanded: Enforced, because of their need to carry esoterica in one of their hands they cannot use any weapon that requires two without losing access to many of their abilities. To compensate they receive a damage bonus equalizing their weapons damage dice one step higher then they typically would be.
* ItemCaddy: Like the Alchemist, the Thaumaturge can lean how to create temporary items with certain feats although theirs are spell scrolls and talismans rather then alchemical items.
* MuggleWithADegreeInMagic: While their esoterica would be ordinary trinkets of no value in anyone else's hands, a thaumaturge's ability to draw on the latent magic within them turns them into artifacts of great power despite not having the natural ability to cast spells. This trope is even further exemplified with the Scroll Thaumaturgy and Esoterica chain of feats which will allow a Thaumaturge to wield spell scrolls from any school of magic without having to make a check and even cobble together several free spell scrolls every day.
* SympatheticMagic: One of the examples of how a thaumaturge can create vulnerabilities to enemies is to use the symbolic meaning behind object and use them to forge a connection to harm enemies. More traditionally they also have a feat that allows them the ability to create a VoodooDoll of an enemy after damaging them making them weaker to their spells and abilities.
* UnorthodoxReload: The Ammunition Thaumaturgy feat allows them to reload a hand crossbow/pistol even while they have their other hand occupied by their Esoterica, making ranged thaumaturges viable.

* ChemistryCanDoAnything: Unlike the first edition, alchemy is now completely nonmagical, thus closer to this trope.

* BadassNormal: Barbarians of the fury instinct don't have any of the supernatural abilities other barbarians possess, but they're still more than capable of holding their own.

* AdaptationalBadass: Quite possibly the biggest example in the jump between editions. In Pathfinder 1e and most other systems Bards are "2/3rds" casters, only ever getting as high as 6th-level spells that, while powerful, didn't put them anywhere close to the level of full casters and instead focused on utility. In Second Edition however the Bard represents the occult tradition of spellcasting in the core rulebook, and thus has been promoted to being just as effective a spellcaster as the likes of Wizards, Sorcerers, Clerics, and Druids. While still exceptional {{Support Party Member}}s, the occult spell list is positively rife with devastating debuffs and {{Mind Rape}}y spells that a Bard can expect to make full use of.
* TheBard: [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin But of course.]]

* MagicMusic: As always, one medium for the bard's magic is music. Some composition spells make use of the Performance skill.
* TheMuse: The name of the bard's subclasses. The book offers several suggestions as to possible muses, including supernatural creatures and deities.

* YourMimeMakesItReal: The House of Imaginary Walls spell is only usable by bards and allows them to create magical barriers by miming.

* EmotionsVersusStoicism: The subconscious mind you pick determines which side of the debate you fall on. Two subconscious minds prefer emotion -- one which channels raw emotion, and another which utilizes imagination. The other two prefer reason -- one through rote memorization of psychic powers, and the other by using calculations to build a psychic power from scratch.

* EmotionsVersusStoicism: The subconscious mind which you pick determines which side of the debate you fall on. Two subconscious minds prefer emotion -- one which channels raw emotion, and another which utilizes imagination. The other two prefer reason -- one through rote memorization of psychic powers, and the other by using calculations to build a psychic power from scratch.

* {{Irony}}: The universal Tenets of Good (the items of the ObstructiveCodeOfConduct all Good champions agree on) are actually ''less'' restrictive and more respectful of the champion in question than the Tenets of Evil, for all that the Evil gods proclaim more freedom to their worshipers, as the Tenets of Good do ''not'' have a proclamation to be utterly loyal to your god's interests and your own, in that order, while for a Good champion, they are simply to NeverHurtAnInnocent and to defend innocents when you can reasonably do so - since the universal tenets always take precedence over the more personal tenets, this also means Good champions can always chose Good when faced with ToBeLawfulOrGood without worry, and if things are currently calm to take a vacation or day off, allowing them to act more [[MrViceGuy selfishly]] on their own terms than Evil champions.

* MagicKnight: All of them are tanky fighters with divine magic - Good champions are {{Combat Medic}}s while Evil ones double down on damage and debuffs.

** Battledancers gain it by using Fascinating Performance (does what it says on the tin - causing enemies to gain the fascinated condition with your performance).

* CripplingOverspecialization: Downplayed; Magus' Spellstrike is its bread-and-butter skill, with a lot of power focused either directly or indirectly into the feature. Arcane Cascade empowers your weapon strikes (like Spellstrike) with additional damage, all of the class' focus spells innately recharge Spellstrike, and the majority of Magus' class feats are centered around improving, empowering, or otherwise better facilitating a Magus' ability to use Spellstrike. While they can definitely and at times are encouraged to make due without it- see below- it's where most of their power lies and where the class is intended to shine.
* CriticalHitClass: Not to anywhere near the degree of Fighter or 1e Magus, but with critical hits doubling the damage of both the weapon strike and the spell this just comes naturally. With a sufficiently strong spell- such as the infamous Shocking Grasp- a Magus can absolutely ''devastate'' the hitpoints of even the hardiest opponents with a single critcal hit Spellstrike. It used to be even '''worse''' during public testing; critically striking with a Magus' spellstrike while using a save-based spell forced the target to use a save result one degree worse than whatever they rolled. This encouraged a positively ridiculous amount of crit-fishing for the class and proved to warp its balance too much, and was changed prior to the class' official release.

* FighterMageThief: An interesting case in that many of the Magus' subclasses- referred to as "Hybrid Studies"- fall into this dynamic. "Inexorable Iron" and "Sparkling Targe" both fall under the Fighter, specializing in using heavy two-handed weapons for Inexorable Iron while Sparkling Targe specializes in KnightlySwordAndShield. Inexorable Iron's features are specialized for sustaining itself while in the thick of battle while unleashing devastating strikes, whereas Sparkling Targe empowers its shield against magic and makes itself an unyielding wall. "Laughing Shadow" is the Thief; it specializes in moving fast and staying light on its feet, benefitting from wearing as little armor as possible and doing extra damage to flanked or distracted foes. It gains abilities to feint and obfuscate enemies and even teleport across the battlefield for quick hit-and-run tactics. "Twisting Tree" meanwhile fills the role of Mage; as the Hybrid Study that specializes in the use of staves it naturally has more spells available to it than other Magi and can make use of staves without interfering with its other features, something the other Hybrid Studies struggle with. Its features likewise make the most of staves, allowing them to strike from greater distances with the weapon and further empower their staff via runes and weapon traits.
* FullContactMagic: The Magus' whole shtick, emphasized by its class feature Arcane Cascade; a specialized stance that a Magus can only enter immediately after casting a spell. Essentially channeling the magic from their spell throughout their body, it empowers the Magus with certain benefits based on their hybrid study- temporary HP, a stronger shield, faster movement, etc- and universally grants bonus damage to their weapon strikes based on the type of spell cast before entering Arcane Cascade. It can be taken even further with the "Arcane Fists" class feat, improving a Magus' unarmed attacks and making it entirely practical to literally punch enemies with fistfuls of magic.

* LightningBruiser: It varies based on your Hybrid Study- some are more bruiser, some are more lightning- but medium armor proficiency, martial weapon proficiency, and 8+Con HP/level put Magus in the same league as the likes of Ranger and Monk, if slightly squishier. Combined with access to buff spells like Haste, Mirror Image, Blur, and more, a Magus can be a self-sufficient terror in a fight that can not only hit hard and fast but also withstand a surprising number of hits as well.

* SignatureMove: Take a wild guess. The Magus class is all but built around its ability to Spellstrike, something no other class can do or replicate outside of multiclassing into- of course- Magus. As said above most of the Magus' class feats are centered around making Spellstrike more powerful, more versatile, and allowing the Magus to Spellstrike more often.

As spellcasters who can choose one of the four primary magical traditions to draw power from, Summoners are mages who can only take a few spells from whatever tradition they are studied in; at most only five at any given time. However, the true strength of Summoner lies in their Eidolon, a special ally bonded to them through some crux of fate, magical accident, prayer to a God in times of need, and so on that represents the Summoner's connection to their tradition - and often, vice-versa. Together, Summoner and Eidolon form a potent team with access to might greater than what either can achieve alone.

** A Summoner ''easily'' gets a large number of skills and languages thanks to their connection to the Eidolon, which gives out two skills for free ''in addition'' to the three Summoners get with the bonus skills from their intelligence modifier - above average overall. Their skill ranks increase at the standard frequency, too. What holds a Summoner back is, though their level of competency in a skill is shared with the Eidolon, they need to factor in the different attributes each member of the pair has when updating a skill. It's all well and good to become a Legendary athlete to ensure one's Eidolon can compete with a Barbarian in terms of lifting things, but if the Eidolon for whatever reason isn't available, the Summoner is left with a useless Legendary status in a skill they likely haven't invested much in. This ensures a Summoner cannot simply replace their entire party by being both a physical and mental powerhouse combined in one character.

* SummonMagic: What else would someone expect from a class called ''Summoner?'' Beyond their Eidolon, Summoners are given the opportunity to pick up numerous feats that allow summoned creatures to explode on arrival or come out while the Eidolon is swinging, and a feat path that allows them to sacrifice a number of spell slots to recieve double the spell slots they gave up so long as those spell slots are used exclusively for summon spells, with the feat chain culiminating in the Summoner being allowed to give up 9th level slots for two 10th level slots - the only way a Summoner can cast at 10th level.

* FantasyGunControl: Played with. On Golarion the reintroduction of Gunslinger early into the lifespan of Pathfinder Second Edition subverts this, as firearms are integrated into the various cultures of the various regions with much more ease. Their accessibility and power are likewise much more balanced when compared to First Edition. However firearms- and in fact the Gunslinger itself- are uncommon and thus are up to a GM's discretion regarding their inclusion. DevelopersForesight grants the Gunslinger class proficiency in crossbows as well as firearms, ensuring that Gunslinger is (at least mostly) playable even should guns be a non-factor in a given campaign.

* UtilityPartyMember: Not immediately apparent when one looks at Gunslinger and its proficiency with firearms, but this is actually their niche. Firearms are devastating damage dealers- when they crit. When they ''don't'' the damage is a bit subpar and the reload requirements ensure that you're not lobbing a lot of shots in one turn without some way around it. Instead what the Gunslinger excels at is using their firearms in creative ways; terrifying enemies with warning shots, blasting locks off of doors, increasing their jump distance via recoil, cauterizing bleeding wounds with a smoking barrel, and more. This is even reflected in the firearm critical specialization, which inflicts the stunned condition on enemies. This isn't going to deal more damage, but it takes an action away on their turn and prevents them from using any reactions until then, making the stunned condition devastating for an enemy's action economy.

* EmotionsVersusStoicism: The subconscious mind which you pick determines which side of the debate you fall on. Two subconscious minds prefer emotion - one which channels raw emotion, and another which utilizes imagination. The other two prefer reason - one through rote memorization of psychic powers, and the other by using calculations to build a psychic power from scratch.

* SuperMode: Psychics can enter a state called "Unleashed Psyche", which increases the damage they do with spells and allows them to use certain abilities that they couldn't use otherwise.

[[/folder]]

* UnusualReload: The Ammunition Thaumaturgy feat allows them to reload a hand crossbow/pistol even while they have their other hand occupied by their Esoterica, making ranged thaumaturges viable.

* UnusualReload: The Ammunition Thaumaturgy feat allows them to reload

* BlessedWithSuck/CursedWithAwesome: The origin of their abilities, tapping into the divine powers of the gods without needing to necessarily be a worshiper of any… but also suffering from the strain of utilizing those powers. An example can be seen in their Minor and Moderate Curses: while the Minor curse has only downsides, the Moderate curse brings more downsides but also some usable upsides as well.