Part 1: sidekicks

companions at the first glance are different brands of terrible. this is my take on how to make use of them. it will not be level-by-level guide to cut the text and allow for flexibility. I will give suggested class spread and important things you have to have to make them work. this guide is mostly oriented towards new players and is designed to help them avoid making mistakes that would call for re-rolls.

feedback is appreciated.

general notice: ALL melee characters must get outflank at level7 no matter what
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Valerie:
she is a tank. little else but she can do the job well and support your efforts given you provide her with the tools needed.

final spread fighter(TSS) 13/rogue(thug) 4/monk(traditional) 1/stalwart1/vivisectionist1

important skills: persuasion, mobility 3
important feats: crane style, weapon focus, dazzling display, bull rush(greater), +AC feats, shield wall if you have 2nd shield user
stats: 1 in dex the rest in str

progression milestones:
lvl2 monk>crane style
lvl3 thug
lvl4-7 fighter
lvl8-10 thug
lvl11 stalwart
lvl12-19 fighter
lvl20 vivisectionist

take combat tricks for rogue feats. there is nothing that can be useful for us there otherwise.

keep her with bastard sword. there are enough of those for her to use and she doesn't need anything special. running with +1 sword for a long time won't be a big issue.

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Linzy:
a companion that is likely always to be around unless you are a bard yourself. pretty much THE party buffer out there. there is nothing wrong with keeping her a bard but I think we can do better.

final spread: bard 7/Eldritch Knight 10/rogue 3
important skills: trickery/mobility
she is a skill monkey. she is well suited to fill a 2nd rogue role so you have 2 tries at chests. fill the rest with what your party is lacking
important feats: spell focus: enchantment: gsf: enchantment, martial weapons rapid shot, manyshot
stats: cha

important spells:
lvl1 hideous laughter, remove fear
lvl2 heroism, sense vitals, cacophonous call
lvl3 good hope, haste, displacement

you should get a good grip at what spells are good by then and to be honest the game is the hardest at the beginning when your tools are limited

important note: bard is not your main healer. best she can do is to help repair damage after the combat/during rest. in combat she should use control spells and shoot at your enemies. if you need your bard to run over into danger and heal somebody you made some serious mistakes, and don't bother with summon spells on her. she will enver be competent summoner no matter what.

progression milestones:
lvl1-7 bard take martial weapons before 8
lvl8-17 EK
lvl18-20 rogue

give her a longbow when she will be able to use it. enchantment DC boosters are plentiful and welcome as well.

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Harrim
worst companion out there. unlike the rest he is rather irredeemable. worse than merc in every way possible, except for interaction.

final spread: cleric20
important skills: perception, religion, mobility3

important spells:
lvl2 hold person, restoration(lesser)
lvl3 resist energy(communal), animate dead, delay poison(communal)
lvl4 restoration, protection from energy(communal), death ward

progression milestones:
spell focus necromancy and enchantment can be useful.

if you plan to keep him around - give him a longspear. he will never be a good tank no matter what. won't die as fast this way.

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Amiri
she would be so much better if she was invulnerable rager and her stat count is criminally low. still she can do you some good

final spread: barbarian 12/fighter(two-handed) 7/vivisectionist 1
important skills: perception, athletics
stats: 1 dex, str

important feats: extra rage power, powe attack, cleave, cleaving finish, greater cleave, combat reflexes, seize the moment, extra rage
rage powers in the order of taking: reckless stance, lesser totem, totem, damage reduction x3, greater totem

progression milestones:
lvl2 THF
lvl3-11 barbarian > take extra rage power feat(damage reduction) at 9
lvl12-13 THF
lvl14-15 barbarian
lvl16-19 THF
lvl20 vivisectionist
do not take weapon feats till double-digit levels. you will know why when you get there. ditch her sword asap for some 2-hander. there are decent 2-handed maces and swords out there to use for now. to explain this class progression: she is made of paper and will die a lot unless we help her..best way to fix it in short-term is to give her plate armour. then we rush for barbarian DR rage power. there is mythral plate armour for her soon enough. use enlarge person spell or potion on her in every fight or she will die horribly. enlarge person not only gives damage but also (and more importantly) buffs your reach to 6ft!

DO NOT take bite rage power on her if you are not doing freebooter one. it will force you into melee regardless of your reach and you will die.

Amiri alternative build
totally NOT lore-friendly. very tight on feats. no flexibility at all. lets make Amiri into a serviceable off-tank

final spread: barbarian4/freebooter14/stalwart defender1/vivisectionist1
important skills: mobility3
feats in the order of taking: shield focus, shield bash, outflank, dodge, shield master, improved unarmed, crane style, bashing finish, armor focus(medium)
ranger style feats in the order of taking: two-weapon fighting, imp. twf, greater twf, double slice
barbarian rage powers in the order of taking: guarded stance, animal fury

progression milestones:
lvl2-8 freebooter > will need +2wis item to get extra lvl2 slot(will have no slots otherwise)
lvl9 barbarian
lvl10 stalwart
lvl11-13 freebooter will need +4wis item at ranger10
lvl14 vivisectionist
lvl15-18 freebooter will need +6wis item at ranger 13
lvl19-20 barbarian

important spells:
lead blades, stat buff spells(to cover gaps in items if your team doesn't cover you on those), sence vitals(for added damage later on, mostly due to short duration), feather step(mass)(to allow your party to spam difficult terrain spells everywhere), aspect of the wolf.
magic fang and greater magic fang can be nice if you have pet class on the team that doesn't get it

don't get married to a weapon. give her the best you can find(preferably a keen one once you get bashing finish). use light shields for lesser penalties. use fighting defensively when you are against multiple opponents only. inner demon ring will come in handy. give her some decent breastplate and a dex buff/item

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Octavia
best "pure" mage companion you can get. she will cover most of your needs in arcane spell-casting but comes with some problems we are about to fix.

final spread: Wizard4/Rogue2/Arcane Trickster10/Eldritch Knight4 OR Wizard4/Rogue2/Arcane Trickster4/Eldritch Knight10

important skills: trickery, mobility, knowledge(arcane)
important feats: accomplished sneak attacker, spell focus: transmutation gsf:transmutation, metamagic: reach(can be done with rods too), spell specialization, precise shot, weapon focus(ray), empower, endurance, improved initiative
stats: 3int 1dex 1str

important spells:
lvl1 enlarge person(see: Amiri section), true strike
lvl2 sense vitals, web, scorching ray, glitterdust
lvl3 haste, slow,
lvl4 obsidian flow
lvl5 baleful polymorph
lvl6 disintegrate, hellfire ray
touch spells for metamagic:reach are nice too

progression milestones:
lvl3-5 wiz accomplished sneak attacker
lvl6-15 AT take martial weapons before 16
lvl16-19 EK
lvl20 rogue

OR

lvl3-5 wiz accomplished sneak attacker
lvl6-9 AT take martial weapons before 10
lvl10-19 EK
lvl20 rogue

now why do I give two builds this time and what is the difference?

AT10 gives us quite a bit more d6s on our sneak attacks, but it comes at a cost of lower AB. you will likely not hit anything with your rays before too long if you don't use true strike prior to that. on the bright side you will be able to sneak attack with your AOE spells eventually.

EK10 lands us in 15bab which is 3 more compared to AT10 and gives us feats that we really-really need. we also won't need to cast true strike to hit regular things and can lean heavy on rays. as for the sneak attack dice sense vitals gives a lot already.

she is not(!) an archer. do not try to make her one. use spells and rays instead. also her AI as of today still is dead set on using acid splash if there is no auto-cast so it's double bad to go bow with her. give her weapons with spells on tap and/or other bonuses. she will stay in back row so her AC is meaningless. and should anything bad approach her there is always vanish.

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Regongar
one of the best built companions out there. perfect stat spread. only thing that could be better is his alignment. can get enough AC to make valerie shy while dishing out good damage.

final spread: Eldritch Scion16/Dragon Disciple4
important skills: knowledge: arcane 5 for DD. mobility 3
important feats: dodge, improved unarmed, crane style, crane wing, crane riposte
stats: all in str

important spells:
lvl1 shocking grasp, shield, enlarge person
lvl2 mirror image, glitterdust, frigid touch, effortless armor
lvl3 displacement, haste, lightning bolt, vampric touch
lvl4 stoneskin, dragon's breath

progression milestones:
lvl1-7 ES
lvl8-11 DD
lvl12-20 ES

magus arcana must-have: arcane accuracy, enduring blade, ghost blade

you will mostly use touch spells in combat hence all str build. this will additionally pay off late-game with dragon-forms. for a weapon I would suggest scimitars as there are some useful enchantments for us on those.

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continuation below.

Hmmm.

Harris is not that weak, as you think of him. There was some encounter with Deatheaters, where he was the one, which were able to handle them best, while all the others needed some help at least. He is something in the middle: no tank, but can fight. No magician, but has a range of good spells and can heal.

And regarding giving Valerie dex: the problem is, that they are not only adventures, but important advisors as well. And Valerie is the best for the diplomat position. And for that she needs charisma.

But i must admit: when i go out adventuring, my favorite troup is Valerie as Tank. Tristian as Healer. Nok-Nok as rogue. Ekun, as ranger with animal. And as last person i switch between the rest of the guys. If i expect trouble with golems or elementars, then the gnome (i always forget his name) is the best (he has this lightning bombs, which are amazing against a lot of enemies). If i need more fighting spells, Oktaiva, and so on.

But yeah, everybody has its own favorite, as this is a fantasy rolegame.

What do you think of Tristian and Nok-Nok?

continuation

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Tristian
buff-bot? let me prove you wrong!

final spread: ecclesitheurge3/sorcerer(empyreal)7/theurge10
important skills: knowledge(arcana) 3, knowledge(religion) 3
important feats: spell focus evocation, spell specialization, gsf: evocation, elemental focus: fire, gef: fire, spell penetration, greater spell penetration
stats: wis

progression milestones:
lvl1-3 ecc
lvl4-7 sorc
lvl8-17 theurge
lvl18-20 sorc

important spells:
all fire save DC spells for sorc.
displacement, haste, glitterdust, mirror image, shield, mage armour, vanish, stone skin

must have cleric spells: restoration, death ward, raise dead, resist energy(communal), protection from energy(communal), delay poison(communal)

Tristian is late bloomer. he will have to sit in town for a long time. at least till lvl9 to be precise. but it pays off. yes you will lose channel goodness but it's worth it. you get swiss-army knife caster in return. have a dead cleric level(let's be honest - it's most of them)? fill it with sorc spells! need "cure X" but you never know when you'll need it? cast it with sorc spell slots! sorc has limited spell selection? no more of that either! he can fill two roles in the party so you don't have to micro two casters. ever wanted sturdier front-line? now you can have it. the later it goes the stronger tristian gets as the gap between him and other casters shrinks. he ends up being able to cast lvl8 sorc spells and lvl7 cleric spells. not bad, considering all the utility you get from him.

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Jubilost
pretty generic, but strong.

final spread: alchemist20
important skills: knowledge(arcana), knowldge(world), trickery, mobility, stealth
important feats: rapid shot, manyshot, improved critical(bombs), critical focus
alchemy: infusion, fast bombs, curse bomb, greater mutagen, explosive bombs
stats: int

important spells:
a lot of spells can be learned from scrolls. most of those for alchemist are available from priests. I will try to mark most of those with *
all levels cure wounds*
lvl1 shield*, enlarge person*
lvl2 barkskin, restoration(lesser)* +stat spells
lvl3 displacement*, thorn body, haste*, resist energy(communal)*, delay poison(communal)*, stone skin*
lvl4 death ward*, restoration*, greater invisibility
lvl5 stone skin(communal), spell resistance*

important note. with infusion discovery alchemist can give "personal" spells to allies. that makes barkskin and thorn body especially good on him. cast thorns on your offtank an see enemies hurt, a lot.

nothing much can be said. alchemists are good. mutagens stack with all other enchantments. can give personal buffs to others. if you want cheese and utility - look no further.

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Ekundayo
pretty much perfectly built ranger out of the box. nothing is wrong with him. basic rangers don't multi-class well so...

final spread: ranger20
important skills: stealth, perception
important feats: improved critical(longbow), critical focus, rapid shot, manyshot, advanced crit talents
stats: dex

important spells:
lvl1 aspect of the falcon, hurricane bow
lvl2 sense vitals
lvl3 magic fang, instant enemy(will probably never work on harder difficulties)
lvl4 animal growth, inspiring recovery

fey are good pick for favored enemy. take 1st world as one of your terrains.

nothing fancy about pure rangers. no surprise there.

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Nok-Nok
ah, now here is something to think about. how about we make this little fella more monstrous?

final spread: barbarian(invulnerable rager)8/rogue(knife master)12
important skills: trickery, mobility, stealth
important feats. improved two-weapon fighting, outflank , greater two-weapon fighting, rage power: damage reduction.

progression milestones:
1-7 rogue(KM)
8-15 barb(IR) reckless stance, bite, speed. at 15 get damage reduction. keep using your feats to get more DR after
16-20 rogue(KM) combat trick at 8(get improved crit: kukri). finesse: bite. opportunist at 10, improved evasion at 12. combat reflexes at character level 19

now it does take some time to get him towards reasonable DR, but barb also fixes his AB. by the end of the day you will have 7 more ab than regular rogue. and it is much better to hit targets for less than hit them on 20s only for a lot. why reckless stance? cause it stacks with all buffs. making him awesome is pretty tight as you get him rather late, hence this is the most codified build of them all - no spare feats left.

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Jaethal
good stats. good class. good overall. slightly dead. bad weapon choice. lets fix it.

final spread: inquisitor16/freebooter4
important skills: perception, stat boost spells
important feats: cleaving finish, exotic weapon(fauchard), combat reflexes, seize the moment
stats: str

important spells:
heal wounds, inflict wounds, divine favor, remove fear, restorations, resist energy(communal)

progression milestones:
lvl2-3 freebooter take cleave as a 2-handed combat style
lvl4-10 inquisitor. take outflank and precise strike as team feats
lvl11-12 freebooter
lvl13-20 inquisitor

take exotic weapon(fauchard) around level 13. you will find one for sale at the tournament. bring a lot of gold with you. nice things are sold there. cleave from combat style allows you to take cleaving finish without power attack.

you should switch her to reach weapon asap. glaive will do the job. if you can't find a glaive - use longspear in the meantime. you can't enlarge her. so you have to do it. yeah scythes look cool and all but it's much better to be alive than cool. you can easily switch freebooter with fighter, but first - I like lead blades too much, and second - I like utility that allows you to hit stuff better. she does both this way.

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Part 2 below.

Cool! Moar!

part 2. #nicebuild

this section is devoted to builds and general concepts I find really potent. or cool. or both. they are geared towards your main but can be done on hirelings with minimal adjustments.

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section 1: general concepts.

your main must be as tanky as possible. there are several reasons for it:
1. if your main dies you have to reload. I hate reloads
2. there is a single story companion that can tank with any degree of success, so, unless you use hirelings for that, you need something sturdy as a 2nd front-liner. technically reggie can be a good tank but it takes some time. time we don't really have - we gotta progress.
3. tanky doesn't mean low damage. we can make it work with custom character.
4. there are spots in the game where you have nobody to help you. main character can not be a full support.

-your main character must be the best at hitting stuff. you can have perfect stat distribution. you should be able to hit things nobody else can. it can be critical to progress. fun factor is important, but making game to be endless suffering is no fun in my book no matter how interesting it is to try something.

-every melee must have outflank at/by 7. it is way too good to ignore.

-caster level after what your class needs for max level spells only affects spell slots.

-do not get weapon feats until you find something you wouldn't mind using forever. weapons are not spaced out well, unless you are using kukri(come in pairs), dueling swords or sabers(magus-oriented).

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section 2: builds.

Eldritch Scion.
a king of main characters in my book. ends up having insane AC no matter what. below I will describe 2 ways of doing it.

str scion.
race: human
alignment: lawful good
starting stats 16/13/14/7/8/19. all bonus stats go into cha. we have too many good DC spells to ignore
bloodline: draconic. any color would do. acid or fire are preferable.
final class spread: Eldritch Scion12/Dragon Disciple4/paladin(divine guardian)2/eldritch knight2

gear: best breastplate you can get. scimitar. +cha helmet. +str/+con belt. ring of protection. dex gloves(optional). amulet of natural armour. metamagic rods.

important feats: crane style, crane wing, crane riposte, improved critical(scimitar), spell focus: evocation, gsf: evocation, elemental focus(and gef) of your choosing.
important skills: persuasion, mobility 3
bloodline feat: improved initiative or toughness

leveling milestones
lvl 1-7 ES > lvl1: improved unarmed strike, dodge lvl3: crane style
lvl 8-11 Dragon Disciple
lvl 12-14 ES
lvl 15-16 paladin
lvl 17-18 ES
lvl 19-20 EK

must have spells:
lvl1: shocking grasp, shield, corrosive touch
lvl2: cat's grace, mirror image, glitterdust, frigid touch
lvl3: haste, fireball, displacement, vampiric touch
lvl4: stoneskin, dragon breath

magus arcana must have:
arcane accuracy, enduring blade, ghost blade

click on defensive fighting at level 3 and never turn it off again.

general tactics: buff and rush in. use arcane weapon in every fight. you will sooner run out of steam than out of arcane pool. use touch spells often - they don't cost you anything in terms of action economy. use AOE against hoards. don't forget you have arcane accuracy for things with a lot of AC. when you get ghost blade everything will get even easier.

this is a perfect MC. he is your talker. he can take on anything in the game and come out alive. ends up with 16bab(4 attacks) and 16CL(lvl6 magus spells)

dex scion
arguably better start, less melee damage at the end of the day. more AC, more DC. even more min-maxing than the str one. 1 skillpoint per level.

race: aasimar(musetouched)
alignment: lawful good
starting stats 7/20/14/7/8/19. all bonus stats go into cha. we have too many good DC spells to ignore
bloodline: draconic. any color would do. acid is nice(early robes). fire covers most spells.
final class spread: Eldritch Scion16/monk(scaled fist)2/paladin(divine hunter)2
important feats: weapon finesse, weapon focus: scimitar, slashing grace, crane style, crane wing, crane riposte, improved critical(scimitar), spell focus: evocation, gsf: evocation, elemental focus(and gef) of your choosing.
important skills: persuasion, mobility 3

leveling milestones:
lvl1 eldritch scion > weapon finesse
lvl2 scaled fist > crane style
lvl3-12 eldritch scion > weapon focus(scimitar) at 3, slashing grace - 5, outflank - 7, dodge - 9, wings - 11
lvl13-14 divine hunter
lvl15-19 eldritch scion
lvl20 scaled fist > improved initiative

gear: same as str one more or less except you will wear elemental robes for the most part and +5bracers
spells: same as the str variant except you can make use of scorching ray once you take paladin levels. also mage armour you get from bloodline will be useful

in prologue it probably is easier to go with crossbow of some kind. just strip one from tartuccio and make him autocast cantrips.
before you get to level 5 use touch spells, ranged cantrips and agile pick you find under the big tree
after that it's standard fare except you have a lot of AC. more than you'll know what to do with.

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Sylvan Sorcerer
while not designed to stay in the fight for long, will sport respectable AC. and a cute cat.
stat boosts in all the right places and items will fix out str soon enough. also we don't plan on wearing any armour. gains 1 skill point on most levels(2 for monk). that is not a big deal. our job is to be there and look pretty. let companions do the rest. can be done as aasimar(muse), but everything will come later for him and he will lack size bonuses.

race: halfling
alignment: any lawful
starting stats 5/20/14/7/8/19. all bonus stats go into cha.
final class spread: sylvan sorcerer18/monk2
important skills: mobility3, persuasion
pet: smilodon

now important question would be what spells should we use? summoning is a lot of investment. conjuration does have some neat spells though. all considered I say: enchantment is one big trap, as there is nothing amazingly good in it past first few levels. our godlike cha should be good enough for that when we decide to sleep someone. my vote goes to transmutation. it has control, some damage and our ray spells will take care of the rest. evocation is good as well, but requires arcane bloodline to work well. our resources are better spent elsewhere.

best spells early on are control spells. we will not do a lot of damage with spells no matter what. disabling half the enemy blob and killing the rest is invaluable though and will allow you to cut reload times by a lot. we will have some offensive power from lvl1 to the end but our primary job for the first part of the game is making enemy suffer - kitty can take care of the damage

improtant feats. cautious fighter. spell focus: transmutation gsf: transmutation,metamagic reach. spell focus: evocation, spell specialization, metamagic empower, crane wing.

bloodline feats: precise shot lvl7. lvl13 dodge.

leveling milestones:
lvl1 sorc > spell focus: evo, spell specialization: magic missile
lvl2 scaled fist > crane style
lvl3-19 sorc > take take cautious fighter at 3, spell focus: thansmutation at 5, point-blank at level 7, reach meta at 9
level20** scaled fist>improved initiative

switch spell specialization between magic missile and scorching ray as they reach their thresholds. that way you will keep being above the curve till caster level11. then you can use it on obsidian flow or whatever damage spell you find yourself using often, eventually we will use it for disintegrate to push it to max damage and compensate for our monk levels. technically you can avoid spending one feat on evo - you do not use evo DC spells, but it gives a lot of tempo. and I already pointed I do not like to suffer.

important spells(more or less in the order of taking):
lvl1: magic missile, mage armour, shield, true strike, entangle(from bloodline and it's amazing. use it often!), reduce person(to use on yourself. get even more size AC/AB)
lvl2: web(entangle on steroids. A+), mirror image, scorching ray, sense vitals(sneak attack works for rays. it is 5d6 damage for you in most cases)
lvl3: slow(amazing against owlbears and other multi-attack enemies), displacement(pretty much doubles your HP against phys threats), vampiric touch(to be used with reach metamagic rods and your own metamagic reach to have a decent damage spell at lvl4/5), haste(will come too late somebody else will take care of it for the most part)
lvl4: animate dead(creates rather sturdy bodies on the field, no investments needed to work), obsidian flow(pretty much entangle with a bit of damage attached), stoneskin, false life
lvl5 baleful polymorph(real disable, at last), animal growth, geniekind
lvl6 disintegrate(our primary tool for damage), hellfire ray*
lvl7 power word blind(requires a bit of metagame or just look at enemies hp bar after you deal damage to estimate how much he has)

*there is a case to be made to take hellfire ray as a lvl6 spell to use spell specialization on it at CL17+. that will give you another big fire ray spell to diversify your damage sources. this will weaken disintegrate a tiny bit and you do already have scorching ray. still more than viable option.
**you can drop 1 level of monk for sorc19 if you don't value evasion and have all the good things it can bring.

the rest hardly matters. you will use disintegrate with metamagic for the most part. take some buffs or whatever you fancy there. remember you have to create metamagic spells prior to their use. click "metamagic" in your spell-book to do so. also don't forget to use metamagic rods. they are amazing and will help you ramp your damage by a lot. turning off defensive fighting when casting rays helps, but is not always possible. that's why crane style is there. webbed/entangled foes have -2AC. that's a nice boost for your rays. also unlike pnp true strike affects all rays in a salvo - use it to your advantage.

Draconic Sorcerer
But what about dragons?!

strong throughout the game. mobile artillery for the first half of the game. insane powerhouse late.

race: human/aasimar(angelkin)/half-orc.
not much can be gained for the half-orc but it only costs you just one feat, so it is doable if you want it. aasimar gives us 2more str, but we lose 1skill per level and 1 feat, 2 feats if you want earlier wings. human is best pick imo.

alignment: any lawful
starting stats 16/13/14/7/8/19. all bonus stats go into cha.
final class spread: sorcerer15/dragon disciple4/scaled fist1
important skills: knowledge:arcana5, mobility3, persuasion, athletics
bloodline: draconic. I would recommend fire for smoother progression. others are doable though.

much unlike sylvan sorc this is 100% damage-dealing sorc. we have no rays(quite frankly we can't afford the dex on this one) all we will use is DC spells an buffs. I highly recommend taking some serious front-line to keep you out of danger for the fist 10 levels. you do have spells to keep you alive but when you are doing that you are not doing damage.

important feats: spell focus: evo(lvl1), spell specialization(lvl1), gsf: evo, empower spell, elemental focus: fire, gef:fire, outflank(lvl11), crane style(lvl12), arcane strike, empower spell
bloodline feats: toughness, improved initiative, quicken spell (can be swapped with greater fortitude if you don't like the steep price of +4 levels on it. I think with rods it's totally worth it)

other good feats to take: dodge, combat casting, are decent picks there. +saves feats can be fine - can never have enough of those. don't think spell penetration is worth it as you will can rip those apart physically. but you can take it if you want

leveling milestones:
lvl1-6 sorc
lvl7-10 dragon disciple
lvl11 sorc
lvl12 scaled fist(can be taken as early as you want for added AC, even at lvl1. we don't plan on being in melee before now though and protection spells should be good enough to save us)
lvl13-20 sorc

important spells in the order of taking:
lvl1 magic missile, shield, reduce person, vanish (you will get mage armour for free)
lvl2 burning arc, mirror image, glitterdust, sense vitals
lvl3 fireball, displacement, haste*
lvl4 dragon's breath, animate dead, stoneskin
lvl5 beast shape3**, fire snake, geniekind
lvl6 transformation, sirocco, dispel magic(greater)
lvl7 firebrand***, legendary proportions, ki shout****
lvl8 seamantle, protection from spells
lvl9 fiery body*****

with metamagic we will get attacking spells at every level. those can be devastating when combined with rods. don't forget to turn off arcane strike before using quicken spell
spell specialization will help us ramp up our most used offensive spell it will help offset the levels we lost on multiclasses and keep us more or less on the power curve.

* can be taken sooner if nobody in your team gets it fast. I think linzy will volunteer for it in most games.
**you can't cast in beast form so be sure to pre-buff. taken to give you option to off-tank sooner when you need it.
***good synergy with our fiery spells. also you can cast sirocco on top of your guys should the fight get messy.
****taken to diversify damage sources and to make use of spell specialization at CL15+.
*****after you get this your only dragon form will be ice one as it gets ice immunity negating drawbacks.

build pointers:
-you will get wings at lvl16. don't forget to toggle them.
-beast shape3 can be skipped if you don't feel like you need that option
-transformation will bring up your ab to maximum for your level, but it prohibits spell-casting. be sure to pre-buff an go into dragon from before you cast it.

that's about it. being a huge dragon is fun, it's potent and you are still a sorcerer with a lot of spell slots per day.

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Aldori Duelist
seems to be a popular flavor option. so what I can do is explain how it can be done without hating every second of it. it is important to know that most of what we will do is negating our bad choice of primary stat as str aldori can sport a tower shield and a plate while dumping dex to 13 with no penalties whatsoever. but we will get at least some benefits from this choice.

race: Aasimar (plumekith) - we do need those stats and wings.
alignment: any lawful. LG gets nice robes that are a perfect fit for you.
starting stats 7/19/14/16/16/7 or 7/19/14/14/18/7 all bonus stats go into dex. with 2nd option we get less skill-points, but will get 1 armour faster and will have +1 will save. I like skill-points better.

final class spread: aldori9/monk(traditional)2/duelist7/bard(archaeologist)2

important skills: mobility3+. you will have 43 skill-points at level 20, so you can max any 4 skills by the end of the game. pick whatever your party needs. perception is always good to take on as many people in your party as you can.
persuasion is not the worst option despite low cha. UMD is nice for lead blade wands.

feats in the order of taking: weapon focus: dueling sword, dodge, crane wing, combat mobility, crane riposte, wings, seize the moment, weapon specialization, greater weapon focus, improved critical: dueling sword[url=][/url]
fighter feats: weapon finesse, slashing grace, outflank
monk feats: crane style, deflect arrows
bard combat trick: critical focus or improved initiative
fighter weapon training: heavy blades

leveling milestones:
lvl1-2 aldori > take tartuccio's crossbow and use it till lvl2. do not use shields ever as they will cancel slashing grace
lvl3 traditional monk > dump armour at this point. use armour bracers or mage armour. click fighting defensively and never turn it off again.
lvl4-7 fighter
lvl8-12 duelist
lvl13-15 fighter
lvl16-17 duelist
lvl18-19 archaeologist
lvl20 monk

bard spells: do not matter much but remove fear is nice to have.

you will need an alchemist of any kind in your party to give you shield spell through infusion. it is recommended that you take use magic devices skill for lead blades wands and other goodies. you also can get shield spell this way but duration will be annoying to deal with. shield spell is plain better than aldori dueling mastery, and we get a better part of it through slashing grace. sadly, we can't fit in critical effect feats. duelist 10 is not worth it. we will never have enough int to make full use of it without gimping ourselves badly. bard is taken as an easiest way to uncanny dodge.

now to the good news: first of all we will get one item on main character that will boost all mental stats by 6. we make full use of it gaining 6AC in the process. second, we will have no penalties from fighting defensively at all. will sport good enough AC and deal decent damage. at the very least this one will stay at the power curve needed. we are at the top condition by lvl15. everything after won't change our world but still will offer steady progression. we will love any crit builds around as it will proc seize the moment.

can be done as musetouched aasimar by swapping monk to scaled fist and wis for cha, will cost you a lot of will save but will synergize better. I decided against it mostly cause I have made too many cha classes already.

What does the number 3 signify, when you place it after a skill? As in knowledge(arcana) 3, knowledge(religion) 3, mobility 3...

minimal level you need to have for varied reasons. either prestige requirements or for some abilities. like mobility3 improves AC from fighting defensively by1

sylvan sorc guide added

redone Amiri section again. optimized level progression better. added alternative build.

dragon sorc added.

I think I'm more or less done with this one don't have any concept that would be strong and complex at the same time. something like vivisectionist is bonkers strong and broken but really pointless to write about. as it's best served with pure lvl20. same with rangers, sword saints etc. I might revisit some companion builds down the line as I'm not totally satisfied with them, but don't see what should I swap awkward stuff with. like jaethal freebooter dip I think can be swapped for something better, but can't think of anything with full bab that will be a better fit. same with linzy late rogue levels - I'm kinda torn between evasion and vivisectionist mutagen

if someone wants me to build something on their concept I can do that. or wants an advice.

if you have some good idea about what can be added feel free to comment.

hope this wall of text helps someone. cheers.

added complete Aldori dex Duelist guide.

Hello InEffect, Very useful guide if your still available I would love an undead bloodline (spellcasting) and (martial) build like an undead fighter/cleric caster sword and board lord and a necromancer/sorc vampiric ranged touch evil classes multiclass each as much as necessary to make em bad ass to play tyvm... I've been banging my head against the wall trying to build one I tried with a barbarian for the speed, rage, and flavor but had allignment issues somewhere and yeah it's tough trying to build these for me thx.. =P