Attraction and charm can be just as effective tools as any sword or spell in the right hands, and media is rife with characters that use a more subtle approach.
Now, to be clear, beauty and seduction are not necessarily the only way to go about doing this. Charisma takes on many forms, after all. (But it does help, certainly)
Enter the captivator! Whether they are self-taught charmers that supplement their smooth talking with a little magic, or a professional that has been trained from an early age to wrap others around their little finger, this archetype can make an enchanter that much more enticing, or give a non-spellcaster a subtle edge in their arts. Either way, as long as they can speak they have a decent chance of finding ways to get what they want without a fight, even if others might not agree if the spell runs out.
Others might question their morality if they use enchantment magic that subverts the will, but to a captivator such magics are simply a tool, one that they wield based on their own judgement.
Needless to say, unless they are trying to stay hidden, a captivator turns heads wherever they go, be it from attraction or simply their magnetic personalties. Perfect for seducers, grifters, master salespersons, the truly gregacious and friendly, and so on!
The base dedication for this archetype grants training in deception or diplomacy, and includes training in two occult cantrips, which must be either enchantment or illusion (that’s “create illusions or affect the mind in some way” for you new players that only know the Remastered version).
They also can learn basic spellcasting, developing mastery of a first, second, and third rank innate enchantment or illusion spell over time and practice.
With further practice, they can cast these spells more often each day as well.
Whether they are jealous of those that would turn away their thralls, groupies, or allies or simply wish to protect them, these charmers can use their own innate magics to try and counteract similar effects used by their foes.
Many even learn to improve their lesser magics to be more potent and effective as well.
As they grow in mastery, they learn more and higher level spells, going through the middle tiers into the higher with even more training.
A well-placed enchantment can turn an attacker into a friend, or at least give them different priorities, and these beguilers can master the art of casting their magic as a foe chooses to target them, potentially changing their mind on what they want to do.
Sustaining their captivator magic becomes second nature to many of these specialists, allowing them to focus on other things.
Despite many folks assertion otherwise, the same trick can in fact work on them twice given the right circumstances. As such, masters of the captivating arts have a trick where they can stop a spell that they realize isn’t going to work halfway through, keeping the spell in mind a precious extra few seconds to try once again on a subsequent turn.
This archetype is a fun way to add an element of magical manipulation to a character. With it you can make an enchantment and/or illusion mage that simply never seems to run out of tricks, add enchantment to caster classes that don’t get as many, like primal casters, or simply give a less magical character that edge of trickery. As such, bard, rogue, enchanter wizards, and the like are natural picks, but if you can come up with something else, like an exemplar with actual abilities that lend into the underrepresented clever trickster side of the class, then by all means go for it.
Like I said before, what spells this archetype gain and how they use them can vary a lot based on the character’s personal code and preferences. An amoral captivator might sport the full gamut of charms and domination spells, while others might use subtler enchantments or focus on illusions instead, or more likely, somewhere in between.
The Poisoned Tongue Guild uses corruptive and toxic arts in all it’s forms, harvesting toxins and poisons from the likes of sporeback frogs and other creatures, as well as mastering magical suggestions and illusions to figuratively poison the thoughts of others all in their service of manipulating the city of Armsreach from the shadows.
Sekin is no merfolk nor siren or any other naturally beguiling being, but the athamaru has always had a talented singing voice, and she mastered the art of using it to protect herself long ago far beyond the capabilities of either other bards.
With a single deadly sword stroke, Lord Kollad suddenly struck down the courtesan he had been attending functions with for all of a month now, claiming that she had been using magical charms to attract and bind him the whole time. However, as the party investigates, something is not adding up, and it seems more and more likely that the courtesan was innocent, and someone else put the idea in the Lord’s head.
Now that Gudaguda’s done and dusted, we can get back to going back to older servants in pathfinder! Today we’re showing off Euryale’s new form, where she’s become a Starlit Span Magus to combine her skill with a bow and arrow with her natural charms. Those charms are also why we pop into the Celebrity and Captivator archetypes, and once we run out of stuff from there we’ll head to the Archer archetype once more to arch slightly better.
Check out her build breakdown below the cut, or her character sheet over here!
Next up: Can PF2E do suicide attacks better than D&D? We’re about to find out the hard way!
Ancestry and Background
When we were making the snek sisters in D&D, Yuan-tis did a lot of heavy lifting for them. Unfortunately, Yuant-ti don’t exist in pathfinder. But if you want to make a small mischievous person who messes with people using magic it’s hard to go wrong with the Sprite. While this means you take a dip to your strength, you make up for that with an extra boost, giving you +2 in Intelligence, Dexterity, and Charisma. You also have to put up with a slower speed than most, but your low-light vision is helpful, and your Magical Strikes will make every hit you make a little more special even after you’ve run out of spells.
You’re also tiny, which is a little too small for our taste. Instead, become a Pixie so you’re only Small sized instead. You also gain Evanescent Wings, letting you reach higher shelves. Euryale doesn’t really fly, but some of those flips she does in her animations are clearly defying gravity.
At level 5 you can whistle a Catchy Tune as an action, making a performance check against enemy wills. If you succeed, they’ll slow down and become flat-footed for a round. It’s basically a charm without being a charm effect.
At level nine you can put on a Fey Disguise, casting illusory disguise once per day, allowing you to better match the beauty standards of those around you, what with you being the “perfect idol” and all. At seventh level this will disguise your sounds and scent as well, and at 9th you can even copy individuals perfectly if they’re the same size as you.
At level 13 you can use a Sprite’s Spark as an attack if you run out of arrows. It’s a ranged unarmed attack that deals 1d4 mental damage.
Finally at level 17 you can Energize Wings, giving you a proper flying speed of 30’ for one minute each hour. I mean you’re practically cupid, might as well be able to fly properly.
While “literal goddess” still isn’t a background in pathfinder, you can at least be Blessed by one. This gives you another boost in Charisma and Intelligence, and you become trained in the lore of the goddess who blessed you. So… Euryale Lore. Or maybe Stheno, it’s hard to tell. Either way, you can also cast Guidance at will, or maybe your DM will come up with something else for you. It’s an extra +1 bonus for a creature once per hour per creature, and that’s never a bad thing.
Class Levels
1. Euryale hits people with arrows and charms them, that’s a Magus if ever I did see one. This gives you another boost to Dexterity as your key ability, you also get trained in Perception, Arcana, Reflex saves, weapons, and unarmored, light, and medium armor. You’ll also get training in Religion and Diplomacy now, and Stealth, Deception, Occultism, Nature, and Society as your brain gets bigger. tbh I’m not sure if Euryale magic counts as religion or occultism, but you’ve got both now so whatever. On top of that, you’re an expert in fortitude and will saves, goddess core and all that.
Anyways, onto the important stuff. At level 1 you get another Ability Boost in Dexterity, Intelligence, Constitution, and Charisma. You gain some funky Arcane Spellcasting from a spellbook you carry around with eight cantrips and four 1st level spells, plus two more spells every time you level up. Much like a wizard, you can copy spells you find in later, but unlike a wizard you have very, very few spell slots. Two in your highest level of casting and two in your next highest level, to be specific. For most of the build anyway, make sure you check your handbook for the exact slots per level. You can heighten spells to cast them with the higher level slots, though.
The big part of the class is your Spellstrike, which lets you use a spell attack and a weapon attack at the same time. The attack takes two actions, and recharging for another spellstrike takes one action, or when you cast a focus spell. Right now you can only use spells that attack a single target, but we’ll mix things up in a second.
Normally spellstrikes have to be melee, but since you trained in the Starlit Span, you can use ranged attacks as well if you’re targeting something within the first range increment. For a shortbow, that’s 60’. Your focus spell lets you make a Shooting Star, a ranged strike that ignores concealment and reduces the effectiveness of cover. If it hits, then every attack against that creature gets the same bonuses for a round. Pink glowy arrows, right out the gate!
You can also enter an Arcane Cascade after you cast a spell or make a spellstrike to add extra damage to your weapon attacks. Your melee weapon attacks. So yeah, it’s useless here.
Finally, we have to talk about actual spells. You get eight cantrips and four spells, but you can only prepare 5 cantrips and one spell cast each day, at least for now. We’re only going to bring up four cantrips here, since that’s how many really fit, but we’ll talk about all the spells you get.
For cantrips, grab Detect Magic to sense magic. It would be awkward if you and your sister got in each other’s way, right? You also get Prestidigitation for minor magical effects, Time Sense for a perfect sense of time (… look they can’t all be super cool), and Protect Companion to improve Asterios’ AC when you fight by his side. In the same vein, Ant Haul will beef up his carrying capacity for a few hours, and Mage Armor increases your AC while you’re not wearing armor. You can wear armor, but that clashes with your look. Aside from that, you can Befuddle and Charm enemies, confusing or, well, charming them respectively.
2. At second level your Expansive Spellstrike lets you use spells that don’t directly attack a creature, so now you can charmlock motherfuckers while hitting them in the face at the same time.
Once you run out of spell slots, you’re still a Charming Liar, letting you make an impression at the same time you lie, as long as it makes sense for the lie to puff up your importance. You’re a goddess, make sure everyone knows it. Even if you’re only level 2.
This is also the first time we can take an archetype, like the Celebrity Dedication, letting you Upstage enemies as a reaction, making the same skill check they did. If you do better than they did, you get a +1 bonus to attacks, checks, and saves for a round. You also Earn Income more easily by mentally enslaving some poor shmucks.
We also get more combat-oriented spells like True Strike for advantage on one attack and Magic Weapon for improved odds with all your attacks. Though, all your attacks are already magic, so it’s not quite as big a deal as usual.
3. If you want to upstage people, you need to be good at just about everything. Fortunately, you’re a goddess, so your Untrained Improvisation is on point. That gives you half your level as a bonus on untrained checks, and at level 7 that increases to your full level.
Also, your Diplomacy gets a little better. We can mind control people, but that’ll eat through your spell slots so fast it isn’t funny. Best have a backup.
You can also play Mind Games to stun an enemy, making them lose a few actions each time they fail a save. We also pick up the first of your vampirism options this level. I don’t know why you’re a vampire, but you are. Umbral Mindtheft is weird, but it kind of fits the bill- you can make a steal action to take a lore skill from a creature- on a success you deal psychic damage, and you gain that knowledge. Is that what NP charge is? Probably not, but it’s cool.
4. At level four your Steady Spellcasting makes it a little easier to prevent disruptions while concentrating on spells. Losing mind control when you’re relying on it is super bad, don’t do it.
Even better, win people over without spells by Glad-Handing them as soon as you meet them. You get a demerit to the check, but you can try again at the usual time anyway so there’s literally no harm in trying.
Finally, as a celeb you Never Tire, letting you push off being fatigued for up to a minute. Again, goddess core baybee. No negative status effects allowed!
These spells are literally just Goddess Core again- Endure Elements protects you from either severe heat or cold, and Slough Skin helps you remove persistent damage and you get a bonus against contact poison. It’s gross, but you are snek after all.
5. Fifth level’s easy. an Ability Boost in Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma. Also, your Lightning Reflexes increase your reflex saves to expert, and you also gain expertise in Arcana and weapon attacks.
Fifth level also gets you third level spells, and it’s time for Vampiric Touch. It’s actual vampirism, with the only downside being that you have to be in touch range to- oh, what’s that? You can literally shoot spells at people? Well, isn’t that just dandy! You can also Enthrall people. It’s neat, they have a hard time noticing anyone else.
6. At sixth level, your Knowledge is Power. If you critically succeed at recalling knowledge on a creature, you get a +1 bonus on your next attack on them, to your AC on their next attack against you, and your next save from their effect- you can even give this to your allies! It works once per option, but lasts a minute. I mostly wanted it for the save boost, but the whole kit’s nice.
You can also Trick Magic Items, letting you use your Arcana, Nature, Occultism, or Religion to use a magic item that you normally wouldn’t. You spend an action, and if you succeed, you can use your other actions to use the item. We’re only getting Arcane and Occult spellcasting in this build, so this’ll help you reach godhood.
Finally, something more directly Euryale-ish. Your Mesmerizing Gaze can fascinate a creature who fails their will save once you lock eyes on them. It’s not stone vision, but it’s still pretty stunning, if I say so myself.
For your other third level spells, Hypnotic Pattern and Distracting Chatter will both ruin someone’s life- the former works in a specific area, hypnotizing anyone inside. The latter forces some poor sap to hear dozens of voices from nowhere, generally interrupting his day.
7. At seventh level, your Arcane Sense lets you detect magic innately. You’re just better than other people. Also, this way you and your sister don’t stumble into each other’s magical nonsense.
You also get better at lying to people about which sister you are thanks to your expertise in Deception, and if that doesn’t work you can shoot them harder with your Weapon Specialization.
The unique thing this level is your Studious Spells, which give you two extra 2nd level spell slots which can only be used on a reduced list of spells. The only important ones right now are True Strike and Darkvision. These slots also level up as you do, and we’ll go over them again when that happens.
You’ve gotten so convincing you can tell people something has a False Nature and they’ll naturally believe you. Call a piece of wood stone and everyone who didn’t see it before will immediately agree with you until they break the illusion the old-fashioned way. If someone sees you do this they get a save, but that’s still not a guarantee they won’t fall for it.
You also gain some Reflective Scales, giving you resistance against one type of elemental damage. As they block damage, they store that energy- as a two action move, you can end the spell early to blast that energy out in an area around you. The explosion isn’t very Euryale, but the protection’s nice.
8. Eighth level makes your Arcane Cascade actually do something for a change- while in the stance, your Starlit Eyes lower the DC to target hidden and concealed creatures, removing the check entirely for striking a hidden creature with Shooting Star.
You also learn how to Sow Rumors during your downtime, altering other peoples’ ability to gather information on a subject. Rumors like how tall your sister is, for one.
We’ll also pop into a new archetype this level as a Captivator. This will make you a master of Deception, and you can Daze and Phase Bolt enemies innately.
You also get more magus spells- Dimensional Anchor prevents a creature from leaving this plane, attempting to counteract any teleporting spells cast on them for up to an hour. This is meant to be used to keep slippery enemies from escaping, but there’s nothing preventing you from using it for extra protection against spellcasters.
You can also use Enervation to weaken people. This doesn’t quite have the 100% vampirism we’re doing for, but any excuse to weaken an enemy is a good one.
9. Another fast one. Your Resolve makes you a master at will saves, and your successes are always critical. All the others are flat increases- expert in Perception and Arcane Spells, master in Diplomacy.
You can use that extra spell power to create a Blood Feast. The flavor is terrifying, but it’s basically big vampirism- deal a bunch of piercing damage, gain temporary HP for a minute, and you can even deal persistent bleed damage on a crit. While this is another touch spell, you’ve got a bow.
For a more standard Euryale spell, check out Glimmer of Charm. You gain an aura for a minute- any creature ending its turn near you needs to make a will save or they’ll like you more and can’t take hostile actions against you.
10. Tenth level is another beast entirely. You get an Ability Boost in Dexterity, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma, and your Rapid Recharge lets you refill your spellstrike as a free action once per day.
You might use that extra action to let out a Bon Mot, distracting an enemy with a clever insult, reducing their will saves for up to a minute, or until they have a proper comeback. You’re good at needling people, and this weakens their saves against your charms. Win-win! If we’re counting you as both halves of the win. Which we should!
You also get Basic Captivator Spellcasting, letting you cast a first, second, and third level spell for free once a day. Basically it’s three more spell slots, which we desperately need. Command and Enthrall are pretty self-explanatory, but we also grab Touch of Idiocy to dumb down anyone hanging out too close to us. If they fail a wisdom save, they’re stupefied, reducing all their brain-based checks and saves. On top of that, they have to pass a check to cast any spells.
You can also put on a Cloak of Colors for protection from most attacks. Nearby creatures are dazzled by your glory, and any creature making a melee attack against you needs to make a will save or become blinded, or even stunned for a round.
For a slightly closer to FGO rendition of vampirism, Shadow Siphon eats away at magical power as a reaction, attempting to counteract a spell and make it deal half damage. Since it’s only half a counterspell, it gets a bonus to its counteract check too.
11. At eleventh level, your Doublespeak means people who don’t travel with you regularly can miss out on what you really mean. God know I have no fucking idea what you’re talking about in your interludes. Also you’re an expert in Armor and Religion.
On top of that, your studious spells are third level now. You get more, but none of them are really needed for the Euryale experience, so just keep upcasting.
Eleventh level magi get sixth level spells. True Seeing is detect magic on steroid, letting you see through any illusions nearby. We’ll also give you Flesh to Stone for shits and giggles.
12. At twelfth level you grow a Spirit Sheath, which I’m desperately trying to not make a joke about its name. It’s a secret compartment for your weapons, and it’s hard to notice, giving you a bonus to concealing items in it. It’s still possible to get owo what’s this’d, but it’s harder. You can also draw your weapon as part of the same actions you use to spellstrike.
If you need to lie about your sheath, your Slippery Secrets will make that a lot easier since it lets you make a deception check to lie to even magical effects.
Speaking of magic, Expert Captivator Spells. Same as last time, but higher level. You get Subconscious Suggestion now, another brain bender, as well as Mirror’s Misfortune. Summon Stheno to an adjacent space, creating an exact copy of you. If an enemy hits Stheno instead of you, they get to make a Will save, taking disadvantage on their next few attacks if they fail.
Vampiric Exsanguination is probably a little too powerful for Vampirism C, but screw it, let’s live a little. You deal negative damage to creatures in a 30’ cone, and gain temporary HP based on the creature you hurt the most.
If you prefer a little subtlety, Vibrant Pattern creates a floating pattern that lasts up toa minute, dazzling creatures inside. Additionally, creatures inside need to make a will save, or they become blinded for up to a minute.
13. Thirteenth level is another one of those “more of what you got” levels. Mastery in Arcana and your Weapons, plus your Studious Spells are fourth level now, and you can pick Freedom of Movement as well. You ever try holding onto a child? It’s impossible.
Contingency is neat if you need to slip on some magic in a pinch, though using two slots for one spell is a high price to pay when that’s half your best slots gone in one go.
Also, your Entrancing Eyes can force a will save on creatures, stupefying and fascinating them if they fail a will save.
14. If you’ve spent time this turn casting spells, you can turn that magic into an Arcane Shroud, giving you an Arcane Cascade as well as a free copy of a spell based on the school of the spell you just cast.
You also get Assurance in Deception, so you can ignore any positives and negatives affecting the roll and just take a 10 plus your proficiency bonus. It’s cost-effective magic.
Speaking of effective magic, your Effortless Captivation lets you sustain illusion and enchantment spells as a free action, so now you really can mix fighting and casting without missing a beat.
Your Prismatic Armor protects you from every elemental option at once, and can even blind attackers instead of dazzling them. Again, we’re mostly here for the resistances but it’s free blinding, who doesn’t love free blinding?
Your charm magic gets powerful enough to Warp Minds, forcing a will save on a target creature- without the option of using counterspells, might I add. Depending on how badly they roll, they could be confused for an action, a minute, or forever.
15. At level 15 you get an Ability Boost in all your soft stats and constitution. You’re also a Juggernaut now, making you a master of fortitude saves, and your successful saves are always critical. You don’t look the part, but when in doubt blame Goddess Core.
You’re also an expert in Stealth and know Greater Weapon Specialization. It’s more damage.
For something new, you can now make utterly Shameless Requests of others, reducing the DC needed to succeed on outrageous requests, and preventing a loss of standing if you critically fail.
This is where we start reaching the awkward point of spellcasting. To be honest, we simply don’t need the highest level spells to emulate Euryale, so feel free to take what you want. Though Scintillating Pattern is still a good option. Again, it makes an illusionary area, confusing or stunning creatures inside.
16. At sixteenth level you can make a Hasted Assault as a focus spell, giving you an extra action each turn that must be used to strike for a minute.
Off the battlefield, you’re a Confabulator, making it a bit easier for you to cover for lies that didn’t go the way you planned.
You can also Command Attention as an action, giving nearby creatures stronger saves against visual effects (because they’re too busy looking at you) and giving anyone using visual attacks a hard time if they try to target someone else (because they’re looking at you). Being the center of attention isn’t easy, but it’s your destiny.
17. At seventeenth level you become a Master Spellcaster, making all your charms harder to resist. You also become a master with your Armor, and an expert in Occultism as well.
We also get ninth level spells, and there are a few I want, actually. Last ones though, promise. Bilocation lets you summon Stheno properly, giving you a second body to move around in. They share the same HP pool, and you don’t get any extra actions, but they can move at the same time, and when the spell ends or is dismissed, you can pick which body sticks around. It also only lasts 10 minutes, but that’s ten minutes of Shining-tier twin time, baby!
You can also use Divinity Leech to eat away at the godliness of a divine spellcaster. Every time they try to cast a divine spell, you gain HP, and have a chance to destroy or weaken the spell in the process. This is the closest we can get to FGO’s vampirism, though sadly this doesn’t give you more spell slots.
18. At eighteenth level you can perform a Cascade Countermeasure once you’re in an Arcane Cascade, giving you resistance 5 against spells. Goddess core and all that, you get it by now.
You can also shadow Mark using a Shadow Mark, making it harder for people to notice you following them. You snuck into Chaldea at some point around the second singularity and we never noticed you since. Very sneaky!
Finally, once per day you can make your target Look Again to recast an innate enchantment or illusion spell. You have to call your shot, but it makes risky moves slightly less risky. It’s worth noting this doesn’t work with Spellstrike.
19. Speaking of spellstrikes, at nineteenth level you can make a Double Spellstrike- when you cast a spell with spellstrike, the next time you use it in the next minute you can spellstrike again with the same spell, no slot required.
You can also make A Home in Every Port thanks to being humanity’s perfect idol. Spend 8 hours, and you’ll find someone willing to put up with you and your friends for a full day at no cost. To help you along, you’re now legendary in Diplomacy.
20. Our final level nets you a Supreme Spellstrike, giving you a permanent extra action that must be used to attack or spellstrike. The flavor text says you make it look effortless, which makes sense since again, god.
For your final mind trick, your Legendary Negotiation lets you make an impression even on people you’re actively fighting. It’s not exactly mindbending magic, but it’s pretty close.
Finally, since we ran out of stuff to give you from the other archetypes, you might as well get the Archer Dedication to separate you from Stheno. It gives you your Critical Specialization with bows and arrows- if you score a crit, the enemy gets posted into a nearby wall by the arrow, taking an action to break free.
Pros and Cons
Pros:
Thanks to your spellstrikes, all your spells have enhanced range, hitting up to 60’ away no problem. Turning your head into a giant mouth and eating people who get to close is scary. Doing all that from across the room is terrifying. Also, since you’re attacking and casting at the same time, you’ve got more flexibility when it comes to the moment-to-moment combat.
High level enemies probably have strong debuff resist, but you’ve got a ton of debuffs to work with, so odds are at least one of them can get through. Worst case scenario, you just go with the greatest debuff of all- death!
You have good AC, you can fly, you can heal yourself, and you don’t have to get into melee range to fight effectively. All this means you are a terror to take down. And that’s before we get into the twin shenanigans you can pull off.
Cons:
You have six slots from being a magus and six from being a captivator. While you do have some focus spells to help out too, that’s not a lot of casting to get you through a full day. While you can bend reality to your whims, you’ll have to pace yourself.
Ranged attacks and casting spells are both things that can be interrupted by melee fighters. We haven’t gotten to Asterios yet, so for now anyone who can keep up with you will be a big hassle. And keeping up with you is easy when you can fly, since your stubby little legs don’t move too fast.
Your limited spell slots require you to plan ahead, preparing your magus slots down to the exact spell each will cast. Even with doubled spellstrikes, that means you have no flexibility after you’ve made your choice for the day. Who would have thought an intelligence caster would require a big brain to play?
THIS IS MY ART AND MY OWN CREATION :) this is my offering to the world :) this is something I'm going to put out there and let the next generations blow my mind with what happens with this art :) But b4 I let that happen :) I have to stay on top of my game :) Ain't no one touching me with my hat flow :) #swarf #swarfsta #hattricks #neweracaps @neweraatl @newerabrm @newerabuf @neweracaps @neweraeurope @newerala @newerabrasil @neweramia @neweranyc @samfogden @lydiamoxey @jonnyldn @lilbuckdalegend #love #cap #hat #captivator #dance #hiphop #lasvegas #pinoy #killingem #killoff #skills #passion #creativity #keepthloveabove
