The Warpriest

The Warpriest is a most interesting hybrid class mixing traits of Cleric and Fighters. It is a 2/3rd caster that can get great combat feats, deal tons of damage with its sacred weapons and be a great asset on the battlefield. Herein I will present five builds showcasing the valor of Warpriests as the armed fist of their deities.

A Note on Spellcasting

Warpriests, like the Cleric with whom they share the spell list up to 6th lvl spells, know all their spell list and can prepare any spell on it at any time, and they can spontaneously exchange a prepared spell for a cure or inflict spell depending on their alignment(or they can choose if they are neutral). As such, I will make no spell section for each build, as if a spell turns out to be completely useless you can quite literally just switch it up next day. I will however give you a list of three great spells of each level now once that is applicable to any alignment so you can have a rough starting idea of what to prepare or look up.

0-Resistance, Guidance Stabilize
1-Bless, Divine Favor, Shield of Faith
2-Bull’s Strength, Hold Person, Spiritual Weapon
3-Communal Resist Energy, Prayer, Shield of Darkness
4-Air Walk, Divine Power, Freedom of Movements
5-Disrupting Weapon, Plane Shift, Righteous Might
6-Animate Objects, Heal, Invoke Deity

Base Warpriest

Not two warpriests will be the same die to the differences of each Deity’s favored weapons, theme and domains(Blessings for Warpriests). However, due to Sacred Weapon, Warpriests open up combat styles that are usually seen as less viable due to higher weapon damage. This build is a good example of this.

Class

Warpriest 20

Deity

Besmara, the Pirate Queen

Blessings

Trickery, Weather

Race

We are going for Human, and we will put our floating +2 in Wisdom.

Ability Scores

Distribute equally between Dexterity and Wisdom

15Point-Buy

Str 10/Dex 16/Con 10/Int 10/Wis 16/Cha 10

20Point-Buy

Str 10/Dex 16/Con 14/Int 10/Wis 16/Cha 10

25Point-Buy

Str 10/Dex 17/Con 14/Int 10/Wis 17/Cha 10

Traits

Reactionary make us go first and we want to go first, Wisdom in the Flesh to add wisdom instead of strength to climb(useful as a sailor)

Favored Class Bonus

So this is where you usually hear me say something about HP being vital and whatnot. Except you can prepare cure spells and use a Wand of Cure Light Wounds without Use Magic Devices as it is on your spell list, so while still very much so useful, we can actually look elsewhere. Skills then? Nope. The Human’s Alternate Favored Class Bonus which gives you 1/6th of a new combat feat. Ayup. You read that right. Each 6 levels you gain a free feat, meaning one additional feat at lvl 6, 12 and 18. Also, they count as the bonus feats you already gain as a Warpriest so you can bypass certain prerequisites(namely BAB and count as fighter of same level for em which is crazy good)

Skills

Swim, Profession(Sailor), Climb

Feats by Level

1-Weapon Finesse

Human Bonus-Fencing Grace Bonus

1-Weapon Focus(Rapier)

3-Piranha Strike

Bonus 3-Dirty Fighting

5-Dodge

FCB 6-Weapon Specialization(Rapier)

Bonus 6-Vital Strike

7-Mobility

9-Spring Attack

Bonus 9-Greater Weapon Focus(Rapier)

11-Improved Trip

FCB 12-Greater Weapon Specialization(Rapier)

Bonus 12-Improved Vital Strike

13-Channel Smite

15-Whirlwind Attack

Bonus 15-Combat Casting

17-Improved Initiative

FCB 18-Greater Vital Strike

Bonus 18-Improved Critical(Rapier)

19-Toughness

We get the full Weapon Focus Fighter chain feat for the Rapier which is really good, with Weapon Finesse and Fencing Grace we attack and damage with Dexterity, Piranha Strike lets us deal even more damage, turning our damage output with the rapier in combination with Sacred Weapon easily comparable with a Two-Handed fighter specialist, Dirty Fighting is great both thematically and unlocks Improved Trip which is a fantastic combat maneuver, we get great mobility and combat presence via Spring Attack and Whirlwind Attack, as we are extremely mobile, and we can combine Spring Attack with the Vital Strike and Channel Smite feats for truly amazing damage without sacrificing mobility!

Equipment

A Rapier, a Chain Shirt and a (un?)holy Symbol of Besmara. And a tricorn because we are literally a warpriest of the goddess of piracy, common!

Final Thoughts on the Build

We have full access to the cleric spell list up to 6th level spells which is really, really good. And with Fervor we can cast these spells as a Swift Action. This lets us cast a spell and Spring+Vital Strike each turn which is downright insane, making us extremely mobile, good at spellslinging/buffing/healing/debuffing and still do significant damage.

At level 20, our Vital Strike+Channel Smite, pre-buff and with no magic items, deals some 15d6+20 damage with a crit range of 15-20. And we get to move before and after the attack to avoid getting stuck in melee with something that will subsequently try to eat our face(with good reason with that kind of damage).

Champion of Enlightenment

Now, that is cool and all but what if I want to punch people in the face really hard with cleric spells? Well, the Warpriest does have an Archetype dedicated to that called the Sacred Fist, which we will combine with a multiclass of Paladin, Monk and the Prestige Class Champion of Irori. Our leveling should look like the following:

Class

Warpriest (Sacred Fist) 7/Paladin 1/Monk 3/Champion of Irori 9

Deity

Irori

Blessings

Strength, Rune

Race

Human again We are putting that floating +2 in Wisdom.

Ability Scores

Put everything in Wisdom.

15Point-Buy

Str 14/Dex 14/Con 10/Int 10/Wis 16/Cha 10

20Point-Buy

Str 14/Dex 14/Con 14/Int 10/Wis 16/Cha 14

25Point-Buy

Str 14/Dex 14/Con 14/Int 10/Wis 18/Cha 10

Traits

Heavy Hitter lets you deal +1 damage with your fists and Reactionary gives you a +2 to Initiative which is nice.

Favored Class Bonus

Hit Points, we need them hit points.

Skills

You need at least 5 in Knowledge(Religion) and either Linguistics or any other Knowledge by level 11. Besides that, everything should go into Acrobatics and Perception.

Feats by Level

1-Toughness

Bonus 1-Improved Unarmed Strike

Human Bonus-Dirty Fighting

3-Weapon Focus(Unarmed Strike)

5-Channel Smite

Bonus 6-Outslug Style

7-Guided Hand

9-Lunge

11-Outslug Weave

13-Outslug Sprint

15-Dodge

17-Mobility

19-Improved Dirty Trick

Via Outslug Style, we can dance in and out of the reach of an opponent, forcing them to move around to meet us, and with Guided Hand, we attack using our Wisdom modifier which is all kinds of nice. Channel Smite let us do some heavy damage to undeads which is very nice too.

Champion of Irori

We get some Smite for extra damage, and some very good bonuses to our Unarmed Strikes, plus we can do all Knowledge checks untrained which *is* pretty damned cool.

Equipment

Literally nothing but a Holy Symbol

Final Thoughts on the Build

We can cast spells up to 3rd level which is still very nice for some buffing and offloading some healing from our healers and Support classes, and we can get close and personal in melee with some very decent damage and mobility. We get Flurry of Blows and three Ki Pools for various shenanigans which is very, very nice too. Plus we can Smite both Evil and Chaos for some more damage too. And despite using our fists, we still attack from reach via Lunge+Outslug Weave, making us capable of staying out of harm’s reach too. We still have fervor meaning we can heal ourselves and Flurry of Blow+Lunge for great effects.

Red Mantis

One Organization in Golarion is feared beyond any other, and it is that of the Red Mantis, a group of zealots dedicated to Achaekek, the Mantis God and killer of false deities. To emulate him, they accept contract murders on anyone in Golarion that is not the legitimate ruler of a country.

They also happen to have both a dedicated Warpriest Archetype called the Mantis Zealot, and a Prestige Class called Red Mantis Assassin. Of course, we will be taking both for this build. Our leveling should look like the following:

Class

Warpriest (Mantis Zealot) 5/Red Mantis Assassin 10/Warpriest (Mantis Zealot) +5

Deity

Achaekek

Blessings

Death, Trickery

Race

Human again, this build requires a surprising amount of feats okay? Put that +2 in Dex.

Ability Scores

Put Everything in Dexterity

15Point-Buy

Str 10/Dex 16/Con 12/Int 10/Wis 14/Cha 14

20Point-Buy

Str 8/Dex 16/Con 12/Int 10/Wis 14/Cha 16

25Point-Buy

Str 8/Dex 18/Con 12/Int 10/Wis 14/Cha 16

Traits

Reactionary for extra Initiative, Birthmark to always have our Unholy Symbol on us and not have to carry something that can immediately identify us as a Red Mantis.

Favored Class Bonus

Yeah, HP it is once again.

Skills

Intimidate, Stealth, Perception, Acrobatics and Disguise will be our main go to.

Feats by Level

1-Weapon Finesse

Bonus 1-Weapon Focus(Kukri)

Human Bonus-Two-Weapons Fighting

3-Slashing Grace(Kukri)

Bonus 3-Weapon Focus(Sawtooth Sabre)

5-Alertness

Bonus 6-Weapon Specialization(Sawtooth Sabre)

7-Slashing Grace(Sawtooth Sabre)

9-Improved Two-Weapons Fighting

Bonus 10-Greater Weapon Focus(Sawtooth Sabre)

11-Piranha Strike

Bonus 12-Greater Weapon Specialization(Sawtooth Sabre)

13-Double Slice

15-Improved Critical(Sawtooth Sabre)

Bonus 6-Greater Two-Weapons Fighting

17-Improved Initiative

19-Toughness

Bonus 19-Two Weapons Rend

So we do start off passing ourselves off as a kukri user, as we cannot use Weapon Finesse with the Sawtooth Sabre until we take our first level in Red Mantis Assassin. But as soon as we do we switch to our Deity’s main weapon and start ripping apart our enemies with a combination of Two-Weapons Fighting, Piranha Strike and Sneak Attack buffed with some nasty buffs from Fervor and our free Weapon Focus feat chains, downright savaging our enemies into gore all over the place in a matter of seconds.

Red Mantis Assassin

We continue our Sneak Attack progression, and can turn into a Giant Mantis that deals Bleed damage and uses our Sawtooth Sabre magical bonuses.

Red Mantis Spells gained by Level

6-Vanish, Disguise Self
7-Obscuring Mist
8-True Strike
9-Invisibility, Mirror Image
10-Cat’s Grace
11-Alter Self
12-Feather Fall, Fly, Haste
13-See Invisibility
14-Fog Cloud
15-Summon Swarm, Dimension Door, Greater Invisibility

Equipment

A pair of Kukri, a pair of Sawtooth Sabre that you hide in your possessions, a Chain Shirt. Eventually you want the Red Mantis serie of magic items

Final Thoughts on the Build

You can Fascinate a target for three rounds then coup de grace em for a bajillion damage, and a full attack deals some 6d8+36d6+1d10+133 damage p re buff. That is some damage alright. That is an average of 270 damage per round. Pre Buffs. Yeah, you are absolutely tearing your targets a new one.

Protector of the Community

This one is a very interesting build that lets us get Stigmatas to significantly increase our damage output and our Channel Energy abilities. We will be taking the Holy Vindicator Prestige class. Our leveling should look something like the following:

Class

Warpriest 10/Holy Vindicator 10 (Erastil)

Deity

Erastil

Blessings

Community, Animal

Race

Tengu, these ravenfolks get some neat bonuses and some fun weapons proficiencies which we will make use of.

Ability Scores

Everything in Dexterity

15Point-Buy

Str 10/Dex 16/Con 12/Int 10/Wis 16/Cha 10

20Point-Buy

Str 10/Dex 18/Con 12/Int 10/Wis 16/Cha 10

25Point-Buy

Str 12/Dex 19/Con 12/Int 10/Wis 16/Cha 10

Traits

Reactionary for extra Initiative, Rich Parents to get the best equipment from the get go.

Favored Class Bonus

HP, we will be predominantly at range but never a bad idea to invest in it anyway

Skills

Knowledge(Religion), Perception, maybe some Survival too.

Feats by Level

1-Point-Blank Shot

Bonus 1-Weapon Focus(Longbow)

3-Precise Shot

Bonus 3-Rapid Shot

5-Deadly Aim Bonus

6-Manyshot

7-Weapon Finesse

9-Alignment Channel Bonus

9-Clustered Shots

11-Weapon Focus(Aldori Dueling Sword)

13-Slashing Grace(Aldori Dueling Sword)

15-Improved Precise Shot

Bonus 15-Channel Smite

17-Piranha Strike

19-Improved Initiative

Precise Shot, Rapid Shot and Manyshot significantly increase our capabilities with our Longbow, and as a Tengu, since we are automatically proficient with all sword like weapons, we can invest in the Aldori Dueling Sword too, turning us into a great switch-hitter with minimal investment.

Holy Vindicator

We can bleed in exchange of getting our Holy Vindicator level to AC, Attack, Damage, Caster level or Saving Throw. This is huge, but it does mean we take damage each round. But that’s fine because all Cure spells we cast on ourselves are automatically Empowered.

You know, Cure spells, those we can Spontaneously cast and with Fervor as a Swift Action letting us still do our full attack? Yeah. Also, Higher BaB means four iterative attacks at lvl

20. Oh, and when we Channel Smite, we make our enemies sickened and take Bleed damage too. Unfortunately our Channel Energy is Positive so we are also healing them(unless it is an undead or evil outsider via Alignment Channel). Still, a neat upgrade to our melee combat.

Equipment

A Masterwork Composite Longbow, a Chain Shirt and a Aldori Dueling Sword, along with a Buckler and a Holy Symbol.

Final Thoughts on the Build

You can self-buff through the roof between your Stigmatas and Fervor for self-buffing, which amplifies our Range Combat into a very, very dangerous archer build that can still do melee very well, and we can heal ourselves fairly well too. If we use Manyshot and Clustered Shot, we apply DR only once on all of our attacks, and our damage in one round looks like 6d10+102, again, applying DR only once and pre-buff. That’s a buckload of damage for an archer alright.

Cultist of Rovagug

The final Warpriest build is a wild idea I had some times ago and wanted to test as this class is making some very fun but considered underpar combat styles much better. We will be taking the Cult Leader Archetype but staying Warpriest the whole way through.

Class

Warpriest (Cult Leader) 20

Deity

Rovagug

Blessings

War, Destruction

Race

We’re taking Half-Orc here with the Sacred Tattoo Alternate Racial Feature. Put the floating +2 in Wisdom.

Ability Scores

Put everything in Strength and laugh very very hard.

15Point-Buy

Str 15/Dex 13/Con 10/Int 10/Wis 16/Cha 10

20Point-Buy

Str 16/Dex 13/Con 12/Int 10/Wis 16/Cha 10

25Point-Buy

Str 17/Dex 13/Con 12/Int 10/Wis 16/Cha 10

Traits

Tusked to get a Bite Attack, Fate’s Favored to double all Luck Bonuses(including that of Sacred Tattoo giving us +2 to all Saving Throws!!!)

Favored Class Bonus

Hit Points. We will be doing a lot of melee so we will need all the HP we damn can.

Skills

As a Cult Leader we get a few more skills, so invest in Stealth, Perception, Acrobatics and Disguise(We do not want people to know we worship Rovagug at all).

Feats by Level

1-Racial Heritage(Dwarf)

3-Power Attack

5-Cleave

7-Surprise Follow Through

9-Greater Cleave

11-Improved Surprise Follow Through

13-Goblin Cleaver

15-Cleave Through

17-Orc Hewer

19-Giant Killer

As a Half-Orc, we count as both Orc and Human for everything, meaning we qualify for Racial Heritage, which allows us to take Dwarf only feats. Power Attack is a no-brainer with a Greataxe. We are doing a Cleave build, and with Surprise Follow Through, we make our Cleave targets Flat-Footed meaning our Sneak Attack triggers on each attack. We can take a 5foot step as a free action between each Cleave attacks, and via the Goblin Cleaver feat chain, those targets do not need to be adjacent to each other, meaning in our round we can go around the entire battlefield hitting everything over the head with our Power Attacking, Sacred Weapon, Fervor buffed, Sneak Attacking Greataxe.

Equipment

A Chain Shirt and a Greataxe. A Unholy Symbol. Aim for items that grant more speed.

Final Thoughts on the Build

Ok. So, we can do a full attack action with our Greataxe and Bite attack for damage looking like 6d8+1d4+24d6+83. Which don’t get me wrong, it’s not bad at all for pre-buff damage. But our main method of fighting, namely Great Cleave+Cleave Through let us do so much more than that. It all depends on the number of enemies in an encounter, but our damage per enemy is 2d8+6d6+25 pre-buff. And we can keep hitting enemies once each as long as they are either within reach or within reach of a five foot step.

With good initial placement, you can literally go around the entire battlefield hitting everything for maybe not all that much damage per creature, but your total damage will be downright ridiculously high and make long and tedious battles with many enemies end in a few rounds as you keep attacking all of them each turn.

Let me give you an example. You are fighting an army, you start surrounded by mooks and each five foot step lets you get in range of three new targets. At the end of a 30ft movement, you will have attacked 26 different creatures for a damage total in one round, again, pre-buffs, of 52d8+156d6+650 damage, for an average of 1126 points of damage per round.