Captivator (Pathfinder Second Edition Archetype)
(art by VanEvil on DeviantArt)
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.