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The Inquisitor’s
Symposium

(Image Copyright Paizo, reproduced with permission under Community Use Policy)

“Black sapphires, onyx gems, grave dirt—all the necessary ingredients for the raising of undead are here
in your satchel, Menlo. Perhaps you would explain how such an unlikely circumstance came to pass.”
—Valthro Ionex, Pharasmin Inquisitor
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Table of Contents

Legal

INQ101: Welcome to the Inquisition

INQ102: Survey of Divine Classes

The Inquisitor vs. The Cleric
The Inquisitor vs. The Paladin
The Inquisitor vs. The Warpriest
Conclusions

INQ109: Inquisitorial Development

The Chassis
Class Features

INQ165: Intro to Combat Styles

The Devastator (Two-Handed)
The Marksman (Ranged)
The Dervish (Two-Weapon Fighting)
The Duelist (Finesse Fighting)
The Mage (Spellcasting)

INQ265: Advanced Combat Styles

The Anatomist (Vital Strike)
The Phalanxer (Reach)
The Rager (Cleave)
The Specter (Intimidation)

INQ301: Race and Inquisition

 Core Races
Selected Other Races

INQ351: Domain Analytics

Deific Domains
Animal & Terrain Domains
Inquisitions

INQ405: A Survey of Spellcasting

Orisons
1st-Level Spells
2nd-Level Spells
3rd-Level Spells
4th-Level Spells
5th-Level Spells
6th-Level Spells

INQ440: Feat Dynamics

Cloaked Wolf
Living Grimoire
Monster Tactician
Ravener Hunter
Sacred Huntsmaster
Sanctified Slayer
Spellbreaker & Witch Hunter
Tactical Leader
Combat Style-Specific
Casting
Crit Fishing
Crossbow
Finesse Fighting
Intimidate
Ranged
Two-Handed
Two-Weapon Fighting
Deity-Specific
 Abadar
Asmodeus
Calistria
Cayden Cailean
Desna
Erastil
Gorum
Iomedae
Irori
Lamashtu
Norgorber
Pharasma
Rovagug
Sarenrae
Shelyn
Torag
Urgathoa
Zon-Kuthon
Teamwork Feats

INQ495: The Inquisitor’s Arsenal

A Few Notes
Armor Enchantments
The Wheat
The Chaff
Weapon Enchantments
The Wheat
The Chaff
Wondrous Items
All Inquisitor Builds
Casting Builds
Intimidate Builds
Melee Builds
Ranged Builds
Finesse & Crit Builds
INQ621: Archetypal Inquisition
The Wheat
Abolisher (Monster Hunter's Handbook)
Cloaked Wolf (Ultimate Intrigue)
Green Faith Marshal (Heroes of the Wild)
Heretic (Ultimate Magic)
Living Grimoire (Horror Adventures)
Monster Tactician (Monster Summoner's Handbook)
Oathkeeper (Merchant’s Manifest)
Preacher (Ultimate Magic)
Ravener Hunter (Blood of the Beast)
Royal Accuser (Inner Sea Intrigue)
Sacred Huntsmaster (Advanced Class Guide)
Sanctified Slayer (Advanced Class Guide)
Sin Eater (Ultimate Magic)
Spellbreaker (Ultimate Combat)
Sworn of the Eldest (Wilderness Origins)
Tactical Leader (Ultimate Intrigue)
Umbral Stalker (Ultimate Intrigue)
Urban Infiltrator (Magic Tactics Toolbox)
Witch Hunter (Ultimate Combat)
The Chaff
Cold Iron Warden (Demon Hunter's Handbook)
Exarch (Advanced Race Guide)
Exorcist (Ultimate Magic)
Expulsionist (Haunted Heroes Handbook)
Faith Hunter (Ultimate Intrigue)
Hexenhammer (Horror Adventures)
Iconoclast (Ultimate Combat)
Immolator (Advanced Race Guide)
Infiltrator (Ultimate Magic)
Keeper of the Current (Blood of the Sea)
Kinslayer (Advanced Race Guide)
Reaper of Secrets (Dirty Tactics Toolbox)
 Relic Hunter (Occult Adventures)
Secret Seeker (Ultimate Intrigue)
Suit Seeker (The Harrow Handbook)
Traceless Operative (Ultimate Intrigue)
Vampire Hunter (Inner Sea Magic)
Vigilant Defender (Ultimate Intrigue)

INQ705: Dips, VMC, Prestige, Gestalt

(Special Topics in Inquisition)

Dips
Variant Multiclassing
Prestige Classes
Aspis Agent (Paths of Prestige)
Brewkeeper (Path of the Righteous)
Chernasardo Warden (PF #116: Fangs of War)
Dawnflower Anchorite (Path of the Righteous)
Divine Scion (Inner Sea Magic)
Evangelist (Inner Sea Gods)
Gray Gardener (Paths of Prestige)
Hinterlander (Path of the Righteous)
Holy Vindicator (Advanced Player’s Guide)
Master Spy (Advanced Player’s Guide)
Noble Scion (Paths of Prestige)
Shadowdancer (Core Rulebook)
Umbral Court Agent (Paths of Prestige)
Gestalt Builds

INQ750: Build Sampling

The Animal-Friend
The Ascetic
The Blade Savant
The Brute
The Magehunter
The Mastermind
The Vigilante
 The Witch
The Wizard-Shield

INQ800: The 2e Inquisitor

INQ900: Graduation and Back Matter

 Legal
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The content of this guide is Copyright 2016 - 2019, All Souls Gaming.
 INQ101: Welcome to the Inquisition

Introduced in the Advanced Player’s Guide, Inquisitors are everything that I love to roleplay: single-minded, “for
the Greater Good” religious warriors, menacing and uncannily observant, who fear little—even the retribution of their
gods. Yet if you look online in forum topics about the Inquisitor, you'll see many players who think that the class is
something of a walking identity crisis, at least mechanically. As a ¾ divine caster, you can't control the battlefield or slay
enemies with spells like a Wizard or Sorcerer; as a ¾ BAB class with a d8 hit die, you can't expect to hop into combat and
tank all day; as a 6 + INT skill class, you can’t get away with zero out-of-combat contributions. You're MAD, requiring
decent scores in at least four attributes—STR, DEX, CON, and WIS—with visible benefits to boosting the other two. You
get Teamwork feats aplenty, but not the ability to share them with teammates; your spell list mirrors the “me first” attitude.
The Inquisitor class chassis is a mysterious parcel addressed to you, the player, with no note.

Behind the purely mechanical questions of how to build and play Inquisitors lie broader questions about what
Inquisitors are: where they fit into the scheme of faith and religion on Golarion, and where the similarities and differences
lie between Inquisitors and their other divine brethren (notably Clerics, Warpriests, and Paladins). Being a newer class in
the scheme of the Pathfinder system, Inquisitors have fewer publisher-official guidelines than do Clerics or Paladins, which
have existed in some iteration since Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. Larger supplements like Inner Sea Gods can get us
part of the way there, but the rest of our conclusions are left to extrapolation. To help us explore the mechanical and
existential niche of the Inquisitor, therefore, we'll look at the class alongside three other divine classes, and in the end make
some educated guesses about how Paizo sees Inquisitors as distinct from the rest of the pack. As a standard disclaimer that
applies to this entire guide, I (like everyone who plays RPGs) have a limited knowledge base to draw from. Rules are
complex; sometimes I misinterpret them. My understanding of Golarion’s politics, pantheon, and history is imperfect. I
may not be up to date on the latest errata. I may make mistakes! Send me an e-mail about those mistakes, and I promise to
amend them as best I can while crediting you, the reader.

And now, cry “Onward!” to some general thoughts about Inquisitors:

1. As with all of the divine classes, there is no such thing as a "stock" Inquisitor, because each Inquisitor
serves a different deity; even two Inquisitors worshipping the same deity might cleave to different aspects of
that deity’s aims or domain portfolio, leading to wildly divergent roleplay styles.
2. My opinion is that, whichever deity you choose, Inquisitors are best built and roleplayed with the aims of
your deity in mind. Although you can cheese your way into a strictly "optimal" Inquisitor who takes all the
right feats at exactly the right times, what’s the use of playing a divine servitor of Gozreh if you don’t whip out
your +3 Trident of Sub-Optimal DPR every once in a while? Inquisitors get plenty of tricks on their own without
any investment from the player, and frankly speaking, your GM will probably thank you for not munchkining
the class too much, because they’re already capable of putting out nauseating levels of damage. As a GM myself, I
advocate strongly for bonus flavor feats, the bonus skill point system introduced in Pathfinder Unchained, and
other house rules that some would deride as Power Creep. However, I also insist that my PCs not optimize too
heavily: compelling characters have realistic flaws and weaknesses, and it’s a royal pain in the arse to have to
 accommodate one uber-gamer in the bunch when everyone else is just trying to tell a good story. Your mileage
may vary! Throughout this guide, you’ll often see traditionally sub-optimal choices marked in black.
3. Unlike Clerics and Paladins, who are bound to codes of conduct and try to embody all aspects of their deities,
Inquisitors are morally flexible, often choosing to follow only one of their deity’s aspects, duties, or
qualities. Perhaps you're okay with going sober for a night as an Inquisitor of Cayden Cailean if it means that
you'll be able to liberate those slaves more effectively; perhaps an Inquisitor of Pharasma might work with a lesser
necromancer temporarily, as long as doing so enables them to crush that powerful cult trying to turn one of their
members into a lich. Morality and ethics can be hazy to an Inquisitor, as they always are when your motto is "The
Ends Justify the Means."

From the minute you decide to play an Inquisitor, it behooves you to start thinking about which "corner" of your
deity's broader agenda you want to devote yourself to. Which tenets are you willing to give your life to uphold? Which are
you willing to bend—or even break? Which transgressions goad you into immediate action, and which are you willing to
bide your time over? More than many other classes, Inquisitors have the potential to make our mutual Pathfinder story
richer through their convergence of the ideals of faith and brutal, pragmatic reality. It's your job (and your GM's job) to
make that story as fascinating as possible.
 INQ102: Survey of Divine Classes

The Inquisitor vs. The Cleric

Let’s begin with pure mechanics: class structure, spell list, and domain powers. For starters, Clerics get a full 9
levels of spellcasting; although Battle Clerics exist thanks to divine casters’ lack of spell failure in armor, most Clerics will
lean into the caster side of their role. Clerics also prepare their spells each day, similar to the Wizard, which means that they
can react more flexibly to different situations, as long as they had a good hunch at preparation time which spells the day
might call for. Domains affect Clerics more strongly than they do Inquisitors (for those unfamiliar with divine casters,
Domains are thematic suites of abilities granted by deities that grant bonus spells as well as special abilities that can typically
be used several times per day): one Cleric with the Nobility and Luck domains might be a powerful buffer, whereas a
different cleric might go the debuffing route with the Madness or Darkness domain. Inquisitors get one Domain that grants
them zero bonus spells, causing them to feel less wedded to the theme than Clerics do.

In contrast with the more caster-ish feel of Clerics, Inquisitors were clearly designed to feel more at home amid
the chaos of battle. Their Judgment, Bane, and Solo Tactics abilities coupled with their self-buffs put their offensive
capabilities far ahead of Clerics. To make up for their sheer damage output, Inquisitors are less versatile than Clerics in
their spellcasting, due to their spontaneous casting mechanic—think of them like divine versions of the Bard class. As an
Inquisitor player, you'll be able to cast any spell you know at any time, but that makes your choice of which spells you
know that much more important: a spell has to be consistently, universally effective in order to get the nod from an
Inquisitor, while Clerics can afford to mix and match niche spells as needed. Outside of combat, Inquisitors are able to
conserve spell slots through their skill bonuses, and can easily take on the role of party face with minimal investment.
Clerics, meanwhile, are often stuck casting spells to get results.

In terms of roleplay flavor, Clerics feel much more attached to the everyday goings-on of their religion: they often
live and interact with other clergy members or faithful on a daily basis, and are expected to regularly perform all the rites,
rituals, and duties of their office. Clerics also attempt to align themselves as closely as possible with the ideals of their deity
—indeed, they can incur divine retribution if they don't. Inquisitors get to occupy a much more nebulous space within the
overall tapestry of their faith (which suits them just fine!) leading to more heterogeneous roles and personalities. Maybe you
see members of your faith every day; maybe you spend months infiltrating other religions or cults. Maybe you answer to
the ecclesiastical hierarchy of your church; maybe you answer only to your own interpretation of your deity's code. Maybe
you wear the symbol of your god openly on your person; maybe no one knows which god you serve until it's too late. If
Clerics are the black and the white, then Inquisitors are the gray.

tl;dr for combat: Clerics are good, versatile spellcasters, but will never be combat monsters without specific
builds; Inquisitors are combat-effective very quickly thanks to Judgment and Bane, but have weaker, more rigid
spellcasting.
 tl;dr for out of combat: Clerics need spells to make up for skills, and strive to embody all aspects of their deities;
Inquisitors use skills well already, and pick and choose aspects of their deity to fight for, usually not subscribing part and
parcel to the doctrine.

The Inquisitor vs. The Paladin

Speaking of the black and the white: Paladins. To the outside observer, Paladins seem like those Lawful Stupid
guys and gals who just can't leave well enough alone; much like Clerics, however, there's a very good reason why they can't
leave well enough alone: they risk having their powers and abilities stripped from them if they fall too far from the ideals of
their deities. As the player of a Paladin, you care less about whether you achieved the aims of your faith than about how you
achieved the aims of your faith. If a Paladin of Abadar has to lie, cheat, swindle, and extort in order to topple that corrupt
judge, then she is no Paladin in the eyes of her god. The victory was no victory at all. An Inquisitor of Abadar, however,
may have considerably more latitude in how to restore justice: catch the judge accepting a bribe that the Inquisitor herself
arranged? Fake a religious vision to scare the judge straight? Preach to the masses until an armed mob stages a coup? Abadar
is Lawful, but his Inquisitors don't necessarily need to act lawfully at all times—so long as the overall agenda of law, order,
and civilization is advanced.

Paladins' reputation of being Lawful Stupid also comes from the fact that they're, well, limited by which stats
they're incentivized to bump. You need good CHA for spells, smites, saves...but you also need STR, CON, and some DEX
to be an adequate front-line tank. Naturally, you dump both INT and WIS to achieve good scores in the other four
attributes. Now what? Your Perception is shit, and even when you notice that someone is acting suspiciously, your Sense
Motive is also shit. 2 + INT skill points per level doesn't leave much breathing room in out-of-combat roles, so you'll
probably pick Diplomacy and Knowledge (Religion) and call it a day. Congratulations, you're now stuck roleplaying a
Golden Retriever. Inquisitors, on the other hand, feel much more flexible: Stern Gaze gives you excellent bonuses to both
Intimidate and Sense Motive, and with 6 + INT skill ranks per level, a WIS focus, Perception on the class list, and your
various detect [alignment] spells, the wool just can't be pulled over your eyes. You're wool-proof. Having so many of the
bases covered naturally leaves Inquisitors free to specialize: do you want to be a mage hunter, a divine rogue, a social skill
monster, an assassin for your deity, a tactical terrifier? The choice is entirely yours.

The price that the Inquisitor pays for her increased flexibility and spell levels, of course, is that they're much more
up-and-down combatants than Paladins. Inquisitors require one swift action for Judgment, one swift action for Bane,
possibly several standard or swift actions to self-buff, and a few move actions to get positioned for Teamwork feats before
they're "ramped up" and ready to truly wreck face. Paladins? They don't need any wind-up time. They just run in and beat
enemies to a pulp with full BAB, heavy armor, unbeatable saves, self-healing, and immunity to fear, disease, and charm
effects; the only tactical decisions they have to make in the course of a combat are when and whom to Smite. Their steady
strength actually turns Lawful Stupid to their advantage: they're as obvious as a fox in a hen house on the battlefield, which
diverts attention away from the squishier party members—including you. In combat, Inquisitors let the Fighters and
Paladins have the spotlight for a bit as they make their preparations and get their buffs rolling. Once Bane, Judgment,
wrath, and divine power are in effect, any enemy of any alignment can be turned into a fine red mist within a round or two.
 tl;dr for combat: Paladins are steady-state tanks who don't need much help to perform in combat; Inquisitors
need a period of "wind-up" at the start of combat, after which they excel at high levels of single-target burst damage.

tl;dr for out of combat: Paladins are bound by their alignment, stat blocks, and limited skills, making Lawful
Stupid and a sole focus on Diplomacy or face skills too easy to fall into; Inquisitors can solve problems laterally, both in
terms of their skill set and how they're willing to employ that skill set.

The Inquisitor vs. The Warpriest

In combat, Warpriests feel like a combination of Paladins and Inquisitors. Like Paladins in that they are sturdier
(thanks, heavy armor and swift-cast healing) and smashier (thanks, bonus combat feats); like Inquisitors in that their action
economy is complicated (thanks, swift-cast buffs), they take a few rounds to reach their peak, and their damage is capable of
spiking to sickening levels (thanks, Sacred Weapon) once they hit that peak. If we were to draw an analogy to modern
military roles, Warpriests are the shock troopers, while Inquisitors are special ops; they've got about the same damage
output, but they achieve it in entirely different ways. Thanks to Warpriests' ability to mimic full-BAB classes for the
purpose of meeting feat prerequisites, their bonus combat feats, and their boosts to weapon damage regardless of what the
weapon is, Warpriests can often go for more complex or later-blooming builds like Vital Strike, Cleave, unarmed, or
thrown weapon builds that Inquisitors simply don't have the feats or early entry for. As an Inquisitor player, you will likely
need to stick to the basics with your combat feats in order to come up with a fully-baked, effective build.

Those distinctions carry over into general adventuring, too—Warpriests are never subtle. They're the kind of
people who won't shut up about whether you've accepted Sithrak as your god yet or not, and might just burn your house
down if you take too long to decide. Admirable wrecking balls when pointed in the right direction, but not the kinds of
people you want undertaking sensitive, independent investigations. Compounding the issue is their lack of skill ranks per
level, which forces them to rely on spells out of combat. Relying on a skill monkey is fine when you're with the whole
group, but Warpriests would have difficulty interrogating someone, navigating through an aristocratic party, or picking out
the perp with their eyes shut. The skill ranks that Inquisitors get lead to mechanical independence, which in turn leads to
RP independence.

tl;dr for combat: Warpriests put out egregious amounts of damage, and more closely resemble Fighters in their
builds; Inquisitors stick to a few tried-and-true combat builds, while relying on buff spells, Teamwork feats, Bane, and
Judgment to keep their damage output high.

tl;dr for out of combat: Warpriests are divine Hulks (AM SMASH) with all the subtlety that role entails;
Inquisitors can operate alone or in a team, shuffling skill ranks around as needed to fill just about any role in a team's
composition.
 Conclusions
If we were to rank our four divine classes in various areas, they might look like this:

Offense: Inquisitor = Warpriest = Paladin (vs. Evil enemies) > Paladin (vs. non-Evil enemies) > Cleric
Defense: Paladin > Warpriest = Cleric > Inquisitor
Spellcasting: Cleric > Inquisitor = Warpriest > Paladin
Utility: Inquisitor > Cleric > Warpriest > Paladin

Some conclusions we can draw about the niche that Inquisitors are meant to fill:

● Inquisitors should not try to tank. You can take a hit decently enough, and you have some tools for escaping
sticky situations, but you never want to leave an enemy alive long enough to retaliate if you can help it. Medium
armor, d8 hit die, and no real bonus to saves (stalwart excluded) do not a tank make, so try to ensure that the
deadliest targets in a combat are also the deadest, preferably before they realize they should be focusing their
tender ministrations on you.
● Inquisitors should try to get as many extra attacks as possible, within reason. Thanks to Judgment, Bane,
and self-buffs, Inquisitors can boost themselves into full-BAB territory when attacking. Core Monks will look on
you with greenest envy as you proclaim that accuracy has “just never been an issue.” Importantly, however,
Inquisitors are not a full-BAB class: at ¾ BAB, you qualify for BAB-gated feats slowly and your iterative attack
progression is delayed. Because Inquisitors can deal an additional 2d6 damage per attack (4d6 in later levels)
through Bane, you need as many extra attacks as you can reasonably get. Two-Weapon Fighting, as we'll see in the
Combat Styles section, isn't a great way of achieving this goal, but buff spells like haste and feats like Rapid Shot
are just the drugs to satiate our attack habit.
● Inquisitors should use their spell slots primarily to self-buff. You will never have the save DCs of full
casters. Repeat that to yourself every time you sit down at your table like you're at a ¾ Casters Anonymous
meeting. Unless you invest significantly (and even with significant investment your offensive casting is likely to be
mediocre) you will not be able to use debuff, blast, or save-or-suck spells reliably, ever. This limitation is a blessing
in disguise, however, because it clarifies the purpose of your spellcasting: to self-buff. The Inquisitor spell list
features some wonderful self-buffs that you should be positively salivating to get your hands on. Divine power,
wrath, magic circle, acute senses—the list goes on and on. You get some team buff spells like bless or communal
protection from energy and should use them as pre-combat buffs if possible. In combat, however, your spells are
for you, so don't feel bad about buffing yourself into a frothing cloud of steel and divine retribution and tearing
the field apart like you were meant to.
● Inquisitors should pick spells that are always, always useful. It's an old precept for spontaneous casters, but
a good one to remember: barring certain favored class bonuses, you will only ever know 6 spells per spell level.
That's not a great variety. When you find yourself thinking about choosing a spell for your spells known on your
next level-up, first ask yourself whether you'd use it every day (or nearly). If your answer is "no," you're not
picking a good spell known—you're picking a good scroll or wand. Spells known should be your warhorses, your
standbys, your old chestnuts. The best ones can function in and out of combat, against every enemy type, with a
 good effect, and preferably without a save if it affects an enemy. Tall order, yes, but those criteria really help
separate the wheat from the chaff.
● Inquisitors should leverage their skills wisely. Monster Lore makes you great at Knowledges; where does
your team have gaps in those skills? Stern Gaze makes you excellent at sniffing out lies and intimidating people;
how can you turn those skills to your advantage? Some archetypes can do stealth, trapfinding, bluffing; does your
party need a Rogue alternative? Inquisitors can do lots of things (and some, like Intimidate, even have uses in
combat) but the responsibility of deciding exactly what your Inquisitor does lies with you.
● Inquisitors should work toward the goals of their deity without worrying too much about their
methods. Inquisitors are the living embodiment of the famous Machiavelli quote: "The ends justify the means."
If you can keep your hands clean and still accomplish something, extra brownie points to you, but Inquisitors
aren't afraid of getting their hands dirty, either.
● Summing up. You specialize in single-target burst damage after one or two rounds of "wind-up." Through
judicious use of skills, spells, class abilities, and Teamwork feats, you have a plethora of combat tricks up your
sleeve, and while your access to them will be patchy at first, you'll eventually have enough coverage between them
to keep you combat-effective all day long. Your 3/4 BAB progression, lack of bonus feats, middling spell DCs,
and spontaneous casting don't allow many of the tricks of full martials (maneuvers; feat-heavy combat builds;
oodles of iteratives) or full casters (save-or-suck spells; preparation of situational or niche spells; metamagic feats
like Quickened Spell) but you'll be able to do everything at 85% where they'll be stuck doing one thing at 100%
and everything else at 20%. You can be built into damn near anything, which means that you'll need to discuss the
party's composition needs closely with your GM and teammates.
 (Image Source)

“I love rumors! Facts can be so misleading, where rumors, true or false, are often revealing.”
— Col. Hans Landa, Inquisitor
 INQ109: Inquisitorial Development

Throughout this guide, you’ll see feats, spells, class features, etc. rated using a color coding system that was first
introduced by Treantmonk and since copied in many other guides. Everyone tends to use their own colors, though, so
here’s what we’ll be working with:

Blue abilities are the absolute best of the best: options that define the way an Inquisitor is played, or that otherwise provide
some exponential leap in effectiveness. Try your utmost to pick up these options.

Green abilities are almost universally useful, a good pick for nearly any build. If they’re not gamebreakingly powerful,
they’re definitely holding up the line at a solid B+.

Yellow abilities are our C standard, neither good nor bad. In some circumstances, yellow denotes situational abilities that
might be useful to some playstyles but not others.

Red abilities are the traps. Stay away from these.

Black abilities are mostly for flavor. Although they won’t find a home in most builds, I include them because I savor the
flavor! If you’re not rolling Drunken Sing-Along on an Inquisitor of Cayden Cailean, you’re a disappointment to your god.

The Chassis
d8 Hit Die: In line with other ¾ casters like Bards. I would have preferred a d10 for a class that mostly gets into melee
range, but it is what it is.

¾ BAB: Although it hurts not to have full BAB progression like your siblings-in-spirit, the Paladins, your ability to hit is
quite solid between spells, Bane, Judgments, and Teamwork feats like Outflank. ¾ BAB does mean delayed access to many
combat feats and iterative attacks, however, so you won't be blitzing into any fancypants, BAB-restricted feat lines like
Cleave or Critical Focus. Good, plain combat fare for the Inquisitor, yessir.

¾ Casting Progression: You're a spontaneous divine caster, so choose your spells known wisely, remembering that you
won't have the DCs to consistently hit with spells that require a save. We'll prefer self- and team buffs, and leave the
offense, debuffs, and battlefield control to the full casters who do it best.

Armor Proficiencies: You're proficient with light armor, medium armor, and shields. I really would have preferred heavy
armor be made available at the outset, as it is for the Paladin and Warpriest. The front line needs you, so many melee
Inquisitors will have to come up with the proficiency through a feat or invest in a Mithral Breastplate to make do with
medium armor.

Good Fortitude and Will Saves, Bad Reflex Save: This could be a great deal worse. The old adage goes that failed
Reflex saves will hurt you, failed Fort saves will kill you, but failed Will saves will kill your entire team. That’s not far from
the truth. You can pick up feats like Lightning Reflexes if you're really worried about the Reflex save, but I prefer strong
Fortitude and Will saves any day of the week. Your stalwart class ability will leverage those strong saves even more.

Skills: 6 + INT is great, on par with Investigators and Bards, the other skill masters (I don’t count Core Rogues, and even
Unchained Rogues can only lay a dubious claim to the Skill Master title). Your list is excellent, and includes Perception, all
the interaction skills, and all the relevant Knowledge skills for monster identification. Think about getting the Dangerously
Curious trait and the Divine Deception feat to pump Use Magic Device, because wands and scrolls (especially from the
Cleric list) greatly expand your spellcasting options.

Domain: You only get one, unlike a Cleric, and you don't get any of the bonus spells unless you’re a Green Faith Marshal.
That said, the domains feature powerful options to fit just about any playstyle. Even if there are no good domains in your
deity’s portfolio (lookin’ at you, Gozreh) you can always substitute an Inquisition for your domain.

Weapon Proficiencies: You're proficient with simple weapons, hand crossbow, shortbow, repeating crossbow, and
longbow. The other weapon proficiency you get is up to your choice of deity; these options can range from great, like
Gorum's greatsword, to terrible, like Irori's unarmed strike. Your race selection might also provide options for expanded
weapon proficiencies, a fact that I encourage you to consider as you build an Inquisitor.

Class Features
(1) Judgment: Judgment is one of your better class features, and I think it's a shame that I see it used so artlessly
so much of the time. "Which Judgments are you pronouncing?" I’ll ask in a session. "Justice and Destruction," comes the
expected answer, right on cue. From a design perspective, those choices make sense: Pathfinder at higher levels devolves into
a game of rocket tag where players are penalized for doing anything other than liquefying their enemies as quickly as
possible. When the enemy is slinging around world-ending magic that can kill you with one or two unlucky die rolls, any
action other than murdering as fast as possible starts to look like a sucker’s move.

In an ideal world, however, I believe that each of the Judgments would have a niche in which it could operate on
equal footing with the other Judgments. Up against a horde of weaker enemies? Resiliency for DR. Up against one big
bruiser? Protection for AC. Up against casters or undead? Purity. Up against elementals? Resistance. The issue is that many
of the Judgments are simply too weak to justify picking them, an issue that I think merits some buffs to the “lesser”
Judgments. As it stands, there are no meaningful alternatives to Justice, Destruction, and Purity; consequently, there are no
incentives for using Judgment creatively to invent new tactics. This dynamic leads to an exodus out of the base class and
into archetypes, many of which trade away Judgment entirely. I’ll be proposing my changes to Judgment below, and I’d
encourage fellow GMs not to see that as threatening. Judgments need to be equivalent in order for the opportunity cost of
picking one over another to be impactful, and defense will never be such an overwhelmingly powerful option in Pathfinder
that you risk making a player OP. Inquisitors constantly opting for the boost to damage and to-hit? Now that breaks
encounters...and mechanics aside, I know you’re tired of handing your players nails just because they won’t pick up any
tool other than that damn hammer.

Destruction: Straightforward and good. No fixes needed.

Healing: Rare will be the combat that lasts long enough for this to heal a significant amount of damage. If you are
anticipating a longer fight, sure, drop it at the beginning and let it do its work—every little bit helps.

((Three fixes to this one: first, bump the fast healing up to 2 to begin with. Second, make the Judgment last half
your level in rounds, minimum 1, after combat finishes, as long as it remained unchanged throughout combat.
Third, stabilize automatically when reduced to negative hit points, again as long as Healing Judgment had been
active for the entire combat. Taken together, these three changes make your healing factor a bit more potent, net
you some free post-combat recovery, and prevent you from bleeding out absent a Heal check.))

Justice: Sacred or profane bonus, which will stack with just about every other bonus you can get. This is what makes you
equivalent to a full-BAB class, and much as I hate to say it, it'll be your go-to Judgment for your whole career if your GM
doesn't like the fixes provided here.

Piercing: Spell Resistance is a definite problem for full casters who want to land debuffs or save-or-dies. Remember that
grinding sound you heard coming from your Sorcerer’s teeth when she whiffed on that disintegrate? Yeah, that was SR at
work. You won't be needing much SR penetration, because you won't be casting debuffs or save-or-dies (saves-or-die, like
attorneys general?) with any regularity; the better bonus is the boost to concentration for when you're casting defensively,
which will be much of the time.

((Honestly, the bonus to concentration checks seems out of place here, being more defensive than offensive. I'd
keep the SR penetration, but add +1 to the save DC of a particular spell or school at 1st, 7th, 13th, and 19th
levels. You still won't be able to compete with full casters (not much room for metamagic, fewer spells per day,
lower DCs despite the buff) but it would bridge the gap enough that a dedicated WIS build could feel more
confident stepping into a combat casting role.))

Protection: The bonus here is just too piddly. Past 13th level or so enemies are capable of buggering your AC six ways
from Sunday no matter how hard you've focused on it, so it's always been to your benefit in Pathfinder to focus on other
elements of defense (e.g., saves, DR, energy resistance) that can help you when AC starts to fall flat.

((I can think of three potential fixes to this Judgment, all different, and all with their own benefits and drawbacks:

1. Double the bonus AC at every increment and give the same bonus to CMD. It's simple, but a little inelegant.
2. At 1st level, you gain a bonus equivalent to what partial cover would give you (+2 AC, +1 Reflex); at 7th, the
bonus jumps up to the equivalent of regular cover (+4 AC, +2 Reflex); at 13th, you get a constant 15% miss
chance, and at 18th, that miss chance jumps to 30%. In this scenario, you still provoke AoOs, and your bonuses
 only stack up to what normal cover or concealment would provide (i.e., you do not receive additional bonuses at
1st level for partial cover, and total concealment at 18th level only gets you to 50%, not 80%).
3. Add the ability to negate some amount of AoOs or iteratives per round with a Sense Motive/Intimidate check,
flavored as the Inquisitor being able to intuit how and where an enemy will attempt to strike, or striking enough
fear that the enemy falters for a split second. This option capitalizes on Stern Gaze and helps characters survive
later levels, where iterative attacks, reach, and horrible riders on successful hits are commonplace.))

Purity: Awesome bonus to all saves, and double for curses, poisons, and diseases at 10th level. Too awesome, even.

((My only nerf on the list. Either lose the bonus to all saves, or else give us a flat +2 or something vs. curses,
poisons, and diseases. It’s too much.))

Resiliency: DR is universally great. The issue you’ll run into later is that nearly every enemy will have the means to bypass
your DR.

((If I were going to fix this ability, I'd bump up DR every third level instead of every fifth, move DR/Alignment
to 7th level, and make 13th level DR/—. If DR/— was too excessive, I'd maybe keep it at DR/Alignment and
add SR to the DR gained every third level, maybe starting at 10 or 15. It won’t break the bank, because players
would be opting out of offensive options in order to use Resiliency. Just remember that: opportunity costs.))

Resistance: You won't always need it, but when you do, it's invaluable. Stacks with resist energy.

((As with so many of the defensive options on this list, I just think Resistance is too lackluster. Why should you
have to wait until 13th level to get the amount of benefit you could have gotten by casting resist energy, a 2nd-
level spell? Makes no sense to me. So, my proposed change: linear growth, 1 point of energy resistance per level,
but does not stack with resist energy. You get to decide whether you want to burn the spell slot for full protection
or burn a Judgment for a less heavy duty effect.))

Smiting: The Inquisitor’s Bane class ability functions as a temporary increase to enhancement bonus, not a permanent
increase, as in the weapon enchantment. Practically, this means that we can’t penetrate greater forms of DR just by
switching on Bane. We’ve got align weapon on our spell list, but the rest is up to us. That makes Smiting pretty decent!

((Looking at what you've got already makes it clear what you need: the ability to pierce DR/—. Based on the
trajectory of the base ability, I'd stick that in around 14th level. If that's off the table (and I get it, monsters have
DR/— for a reason) you might arrange some kind of ability to "sunder" or otherwise negate natural armor
bonuses (Flensing Strike is a good example of how this might be done), nullify supernatural senses, or ignore
select immunities/resistances of monsters you’ve identified. Again, GM fiat reigns supreme here, but they're all
options to discuss.))

(1) Monster Lore: Monster Lore's one of those abilities that effortlessly improves your ability to play multiple
roles in just about any party; it gives you your WIS bonus in addition to INT on all Knowledge rolls made to identify
creatures, which can be some of the most critical checks to pass to identify fast healing, regeneration, DR, SR, etc. It's a
favorite for archetypes to trade away, but try to keep it if you can—it'll serve you well, especially if your GM insists that you
pass a check to gain meta-knowledge of monster type weaknesses or other vulnerabilities. Nothing worse than watching
your Rogue friend try to sneak attack an Elemental because "Johnny O’Gankshanks didn't know it was an Elemental!"
(Thanks to /u/Ro9ge for reminding me that Constructs, happily, can be sneak attacked!)

(1) Stern Gaze: Stern Gaze is the ability that puts mechanical oomph behind your roleplaying inquisitoriality—
and yes, I'm sticking with that word—by giving you a bonus equal to half your level (minimum +1) to Sense Motive and
Intimidate. If that shopkeep is wondering whether he managed to cheat you out of a few extra gold, gulp, he definitely
didn't. Then you crack your knuckles and remark on what a lovely shop he has, and what a pity it would be if anything
happened to it. Inquisitors are savvy, perceptive, slightly foreboding figures in their faiths, and Stern Gaze gives you the
firepower you need to project that image. Some favored class bonuses (notably the Half-Orc's) can give you a boost to Stern
Gaze, making for even more powerful fear-wielders.

(1) Detect Alignment: Unless your enemies are packing some high-caliber abjuration magic, detect alignment
will let you flag potential enemies before they reveal themselves to be enemies. If you're banking on encountering many
enemies of the same monster type within a certain area, Monster Lore can help give you information about which
alignment to "scan" for (e.g., you'd want to use detect chaos when scanning for Fey).

(2) Cunning Initiative: Getting your WIS bonus to initiative in addition to DEX is amazing because, well, it's
always better to shoot first. Han would have made an excellent Inquisitor. Going first lets you pronounce Judgment faster,
lay down self-buffs, move into an advantageous position, etc. Very few reasons not to be an initiative junkie in a game like
Pathfinder, where the upper levels encourage a “who shoots first, shoots last” mentality. Combine with traits like
Reactionary or feats like Improved Initiative for even more madness.

(2) Track: Using Survival to follow tracks is situational, to be sure, but nearly nobody does it better than you,
between Track and the spells you get that also improve the Survival. It's thematic, too, what with Inquisitors being the
"you can run, but you can't hide" class.

(3) Solo Tactics and Teamwork Feats: I'm going to include these together, as they're basically a single feature.
You'll get a whole mess of Teamwork feats throughout your career; rather than grant these feats to teammates as a Cavalier
would, however, you act as if they had those feats for the purposes of determining which benefits you get, which neatly
eliminates the problem of getting your team to coordinate feat selection. Allied Spellcaster, Coordinated Charge, Outflank,
Lookout, Shake It Off—there are more Teamwork feats published all the time, and some of them are very powerful. Many
players tend to forget about these or trade them away, despite their strength if your tactics are solid.

(5) Bane: You merely adopted the dark! Bane is amazing and definitely qualifies as one of the class-defining
abilities of an Inquisitor. Of note, the +2 enhancement bonus stacks past +5, but I’ve heard conflicting reports about
whether that enhancement bonus allows you to penetrate exotic forms of DR (Cold Iron at +3, Adamantine at +4, and
Alignment at +5). Check with your GM, because I’ve not been able to find a Paizo-official errata about it yet. You're
probably starting to notice that Inquisitors are strapped for swift actions between Bane and Judgment. Thankfully, many
of your best self-buffs are standard actions, so you can Judgment + Move + Buff in Round 1 to get near your position, then
Bane + 5-ft. Step + Full Attack in Round 2. In general, I think it's okay to metagame your knowledge of types and subtypes
a little here—if you're clearly fighting goblins, there's no reason to roll a knowledge check for it before declaring your bane.
 (5) Discern Lies: The immediate action means that you should be able to activate it as someone says an utterance
to fact-check it. Will negates, and there's no restriction on being intentionally evasive. Then again, Inquisitors specialize in
squeezing straight answers out of, shall we say, uncooperative persons, so you might need this power only occasionally.

(8) Second Judgment: You get two Judgments instead of one whenever you activate the ability. Manifestly great.

(11) Stalwart: It's basically evasion for Fortitude and Will saves—if a passed save would do half effect, you
instead get no effect. There aren't as many Fort- or Will-partial spells/abilities as there are Reflex-partial spells/abilities,
which is the only reason it gets green instead of blue. It also doesn't function in heavy armor, which screws Inquisitors who
dumped DEX and invested.

(12) Greater Bane: Woooooo woooooo, all aboard the Bane Train! Yessiree, 4d6 damage on top of every hit
turns you into even more of a buzzsaw than you were already.

(14) Exploit Weakness: Sure, why not? Not every enemy has DR, and you won't be dealing a critical every
round unless you built around that, but it's a nice effect when it happens.

(16) Third Judgment: Your final Judgment expansion doesn't disappoint, of course. Enjoy.

(17) Slayer: This is a pretty minor benefit for 17th level.

(20) True Judgment: What is it with Paizo and lackluster capstones? Full casters are literally tearing apart the
fabric of the universe, and you get a save-or-die that you probably won't be able to land except on lower-CR targets. How's
this for math? Most CR 20 creatures have Fort saves in the 18-25 ballpark; assuming your WIS caps out at 22-26, you're
looking at save DCs in the 26-28 range. At your best and their worst, you've got a 50% chance; at their best and your worst,
5%.
 (Image Copyright Paizo, reproduced with permission under Community Use Policy)

“Unclog your ears and listen to my words, little man: you take not one step further.”

—Bodrian the Bloodied

 INQ165: Intro to Combat Styles

As we discussed in our Survey of Divine Classes, the Inquisitors have some interesting restrictions on combat
styles. It’s nothing concrete, just a handful of design decisions that together encourage or discourage you from pursuing
certain options in a fracas. Here are your incentives and disincentives:

1. Inquisitors have ¾ BAB and spell progressions. These incentivize you to cast personal- or team-oriented
spells, rather than enemy-targeted spells; they also discourage you from pursuing high-BAB feat lines like the
Improved Critical, Vital Strike, or Two-Weapon Fighting families. With lower BAB comes lower CMB, as well,
meaning your maneuvers won’t ever be workable without specific help (the Crime Inquisition, e.g., grants a
bunch of Steal feats, and the Battle Mystery can help Ravener Hunters get pretty good at one maneuver).
2. Inquisitors get no bonus feats. This incentivizes you to stick with builds that can be combat-effective with as
little feat investment as possible. Combat Expertise or Mobility are annoying prerequisites for Fighters, but for
you, they’re poison, as each feat tax prevents you from getting to the meat of your build for another two levels.
3. Inquisitors like extra attacks. Again, this all comes down to Bane damage. More attacks = more Bane damage,
pure and simple, which is why we’re haste junkies in this class. Apart from the usual survivability benefits of
ranged combat, Rapid Shot is a huge factor in the positive column for a ranged play style precisely because it
grants an extra attack above and beyond what your iteratives can give you.

The Devastator (Two-Handed)

Pro Con

Requires nearly no feat investment: take Power
Attack at 3rd level and you’re done. This lets you
focus on other aspects of your character. Want to
bump Intimidation, casting, skills? The world is your
oyster.
You’ll be in the thick of the fighting where your d8
hit die and medium armor are weakest. CON should
stay at 12, preferably 14, and you should consider
picking up Heavy Armor Proficiency, Toughness, or
both.

Less MAD than other styles, due to its reliance on

STR alone for combat.

Suggested Feat Path

Heavy Armor Proficiency (1)
Power Attack (3)

Final Thoughts
Good reward with very little risk or feat investment makes the Two-Handed playstyle eternally popular for
Inquisitors. With all those extra feats you can shore up your spell DCs, focus on skills or saves, or pick up a Deific
Obedience. What you give up in combat depth you make up in the breadth of your other roles.

Inquisitors who choose the Ravener Hunter archetype can select the Battle Mystery, which grants a huge array of
bonus combat feats (Weapon Focus, Greater Weapon Focus, Improved Critical, Martial Weapon Proficiency, Heavy
Armor Proficiency, Improved and Greater Maneuvers) through various Revelations. If you’re truly strapped, the archetype
is a great way to compensate for your combat weaknesses without sacrificing much of the Inquisitor chassis. Then again,
I'm heavily biased for the Ravener Hunter because it's fantastic. Seriously.

The Marksman (Ranged)

Pro Con

Rapid Shot and Manyshot. More attacks = more Ranged combat is incredibly feat-intensive. This is
Bane procs = more damage. I wish there were a subtler the biggest strike against the combat style; you’ll be
or more varied way of saying that. getting up to speed until at least 9th level (barring a dip
in Zen Archer) due to all the feat taxes.

Clustered Shots. DR can become a real problem at
later levels, but this feat lets you ignore some portion of
DR on every full attack.
Fewer Teamwork feats function at range. The
Ranged Tactics Toolbox alleviated this issue somewhat
with feats like Coordinated Shot and Target of
Opportunity, but Bowquisitors can still find themselves
at a bit of a loss for what to pick. The Preacher
archetype is your best friend if you’re not going for one
of the other Big Ones.

Ranged combat is inherently safer than melee
combat. With your strong Fort save, you might even
consider dumping CON down to 12. Do keep a melee
weapon on hand, though, for the inevitable times
when an enemy breaks through to the back line.
You’re a bit more MAD than melee Inquisitors.
Not by much, but a little. DEX decides your accuracy
and many feat qualifications; STR gets you access to
compound bows; CON is constant; WIS is necessary
for casting and Domain abilities.

Full attacks are much easier to pull off from

range. A good GM will find ways to mess with cover,
etc., but at the end of the day, ranged attacks are just
 brokenly good in Pathfinder. In other news, the sky is
blue.

Ranged combat is compatible with flight. Nearly

everybody will be flying eventually, and ranged
characters are much better equipped to deal with that
than melee characters.

Suggested Feat Path

Point-Blank Shot (1)
Precise Shot (3)
Deadly Aim (5)
Rapid Shot (7)
Clustered Shots (9)
Manyshot (11)
Hammer the Gap (13)
Improved Precise Shot (15)

Lob Shot has the annoying prerequisite of Far Shot, but should be taken early in the feat chain if you need a way
to ignore cover—until Improved Precise Shot at 15, you’re shit outta luck on cover. Crossbow users will need Rapid
Reload and possibly Crossbow Mastery in order to make that route viable, while thrown weapon users will probably need
Quick Draw and Close-Quarters Thrower. More feat taxes…

Final Thoughts
High investment and high reward are the name of the game for a ranged play style. You’ll spend every last ounce
of your character’s potential and versatility in order to become good at one thing—but boy, what a powerful one thing.
Listed below are a few ideas that might make your Bowquisition a bit easier on you:

● Although a three-level dip is no small thing, the Zen Archer monk archetype can provide a total of six bonus feats:
two bonus feats chosen from Far Shot, Point-Blank Shot, Precise Shot, and Rapid Shot; Perfect Strike; Weapon
Focus; Point-Blank Master; and Improved Unarmed Strike (important because it lets you make AoOs against
those attempting to sunder your bow). In addition, Zen Archers use their WIS modifier instead of DEX to
determine accuracy; Inquisitors of Erastil can pick up this ability through the Erastil's Blessing feat. You'd be
delaying your spellcasting and class abilities significantly, but this is still a powerful option.

● Inquisitors who choose the Ravener Hunter archetype can select the Wood Mystery (for Wood Bond), which
specifically improves bows, or the Battle Mystery, which can provide several ancillary feats. Again, I can't
recommend Ravener Hunter highly enough, especially for an AP like Wrath of the Righteous, where fighting
demons is the name of the game anyway.
 ● If 3rd-party content is allowed at your table, take a look at the Spheres of Might supplement by Drop Dead
Studios. Unlike Path of War, which in my opinion breaks the power curve a bit, Spheres attempts to give martials
varied (yet balanced) things to do apart from full-attack, five-foot step, lather, rinse, repeat. The Barrage and
Sniper spheres in particular have excellent abilities that let you build an effective ranged attacker from 1st level.

The Dervish (Two-Weapon Fighting)

Pro Con

More attacks = more Bane damage. There are, Two-weapon fighting is moderately feat-intensive.
however, a few TWF-specific caveats that we’ll get into Not as bad as ranged combat, but still pretty bad. You’ll
later. need TWF and Improved TWF for starters, plus
Double Bane if you want to go that route.

More MAD than most. TWF feats have high DEX

scores as prerequisites, but still require STR for to-hit
and damage. If you go the Weapon Finesse route to
focus solely on DEX, you’re locked out of DEX-to-
damage feats, which require that you wield only one
weapon to function. Rock, meet hard place.

Slower access to iteratives. ¾ BAB = fewer iterative

attacks, which hurts a TWF build in the long run.

The Bane problem. Bane only affects one weapon at a

time. You can get the Double Bane feat to patch that
hole, but then you’ll use up double your rounds per
day… leaving you back at square one, if not square zero.

Suggested Feat Path

Two-Weapon Fighting (1)
Improved TWF (9)

Final Thoughts
The TWF path makes the compelling argument that it's possible to be too invested in maximizing Bane damage.
It’s too bad, because those blender builds are a ton of fun, but Inquisitors would do well to look to the example of the Core
Monk, a class famous for launching what seems like 25 attacks…only to land two of them. Inquisitors need to be lean and
focused in their feat selection and attribute assignment, and TWF unfortunately doesn’t lend itself to those goals.

The Duelist (Finesse Fighting)

Pro Con

A DEX focus gets you more, on balance. More Weapon Finesse is moderately feat-intensive. Three
DEX means better initiative, no ACPs, and a boost to feats minimum, with an additional fourth if your GM
your Reflex save. lets you take Piranha Strike.

Limited weapon selection. Inquisitors don’t have a

huge variety of weapons to choose from, so you’ll likely
be stuck with your god’s favored weapon. The
appropriate feats for deities that have them are listed in
the Feats section.

Suggested Feat Path

Weapon Finesse (1)
Weapon Focus (3)
DEX-to-Damage Feat (5)
Piranha Strike (7)

Final Thoughts
I have to admit, I’ve got a soft spot in my heart for Weapon Finesse, having come up playing Rogues and
Investigators. It’s not optimal, for sure: you’ll need four feats to do what STR builds can do in two, and even then the
Devastators will probably still come ahead in damage thanks to the 1.5x damage multiplier when two-handing weapons…
but if Pathfinder were meant to be a purely mathematical affair, we’d dispense with roleplay altogether and sit around
comparing spreadsheets for fun. More than we do already, I mean. There are far, far more DEX-boosting races than STR-
boosting races, many of them fun as hell. I encourage you to give a Grippli Inquisitor, or an Undine Inquisitor, or hell,
even a Ratfolk Inquisitor a try. The best, most memorable builds often lie somewhere south of optimal.

The Mage (Spellcasting)

 Pro Con

You have the means already. While extra investment
in feats, traits, and equipment never hurts a caster,
Inquisitors already have the tools necessary to do some
kinds of casting on their own.
Naturally occurring plateau. It’s an unfortunate fact
of life that ¾ casters have a harder time with save DCs
than full casters. This becomes even more of an issue
when you consider that Will saves in the Bestiaries scale
faster than even the save DCs of full casters anyway.

Versatility. Every bit of investment in spellcasting
makes you that much more versatile. Some FCBs give
you a wider roster of spells known; feats can increase
your SR penetration or save DCs. All give you greater
efficacy against a wider variety of targets.
Not much room for metamagic. Fewer spell slots at
higher levels means less room for modification of
existing spells through metamagic. A Rod of Extend
Spell might be a worthy investment for getting as much
mileage out of your buffs as possible, though.

A Selection of Feats
Destructive Dispel
Dispel Synergy
Spell Bane
Spell Focus
Spell Focus, Greater
Spell Perfection
Spell Penetration
Spell Penetration, Greater
Warrior Priest

Final Thoughts
The thought on every casting-focused Inquisitor’s mind should be, “How can I make my enemies fail more of
their saves?” You don’t get many no-save spells; you don’t get much static battlefield control, like walls or pits; you don’t
get spells or hexes that help you by tanking saves. How, then? Boosting your own spell save DCs is certainly an option, and
for those purposes Spell Bane will probably give you the greatest bang for your buck. Because you can’t rely too heavily on
save DC boosts, however, it’s best to supplement with methods of lower your opponents’ saves. Some domains (Madness
especially) can drop Will saves down, but your best bet is to make enemies shaken and sickened, both of which apply a -2
penalty to saves. Thanks to Stern Gaze, Inquisitors who engage even a little with Intimidation should have no trouble
demoralizing opponents for the shaken condition, and certain spells or enchantments (cruel weapons, e.g.) can tag on the
sickened condition, as well. You’ll never be a Wizard or Sorcerer, but doing your part in the debuffing ensures that you’ll
benefit just as much as the full casters in your group will.
 (Image Copyright Paizo, reproduced with permission under Community Use Policy)

“It can be a fearsome weapon, patience. One that few men ever learn to use. A hard thing, to keep your
mind on killing once you’re out of danger and your blood’s cooled off.”

—Inquisitor Sand Dan Glokta (The First Law Trilogy)

 INQ265: Advanced Combat Styles
In addition to the main combat styles, Inquisitors also have several adjuncts available to them—smaller feat paths,
force multipliers, scaffolds that can improve upon existing capabilities. You’d have a hard time making an Inquisitor
“build” out of any one of these, but they’re all strong, modular options to consider adding if you happen to have extra
space.

The Anatomist (Vital Strike)

Pro Con

Full attacking won’t always be possible. Let’s face
it: not every combat pits PCs against enemies and
makes them whack away at each other until someone
dies. You’ll need to use your move action sometimes,
and when that happens, a Vital Strike is better than a
standard attack.
Very late access. You won’t be able to grab the entry-
level feat until at least 9th level, and you’ll be waiting
until 15th to get the Improved version. Lacking a
fourth iterative attack, you never get access to Greater
Vital Strike.

DR penetration. Plain and simple, one big hit suffers Bane, bane, bane. Bane is counted as precision damage
less from DR than three little hits. (i.e., not modified by criticals, Vital Strike, etc.) so your
single attack action per round will put out a piddly
amount of Bane pain.

Plays nicely with some Divine Fighting
Techniques. Gorum and Torag have two of the best
Divine Fighting Techniques; that’s largely due to their
ability to slot Vital Strike into actions that otherwise
wouldn’t qualify for Vital Striking (charges in Gorum’s
case, and AoOs in Torag’s).
Finicky action economy. I’m not convinced even
Paizo knows how Vital Strike figures into their action
economy. It can’t be applied to full-round actions (like
charging) or actions-that-are-not-actions (like attacks of
opportunity) but other applications are less clear about
what constitutes a standard action, and what
constitutes an attack action, which is a type of standard
action. Does it apply to Spring Attack? Who knows?

Attack at highest BAB. Your iteratives will never be

all that stellar, so it’s nice to be able to attack with your
highest bonus.
 Suggested Feat Path
Vital Strike (9)
Vital Strike, Improved (15)

Final Thoughts
Does it get you much in the long run? Perhaps not. But melee Inquisitors should have many of the feats they need
by 9th level, which might leave them free to add another tool to the toolbox. If you’re an adherent of Gorum or Torag,
Vital Strike becomes practically mandatory so you can pick up those deities’ excellent Divine Fighting Techniques:
Gorum’s gives you some powerful anti-casting tools, while Torag’s synergizes extraordinarily well with trip tactics. Due to
its BAB requirements, this feat line will always be better for Paladins, Warpriests, Fighters, and Swashbucklers —but that’s
no reason for Inquisitors not to join in the fun, too.

The Phalanxer (Reach)

Pro Con

Increased threatened area. More threatened area
means more AoOs, and more AoOs mean better use of
the action economy and Bane damage. Adding feats
like Combat Patrol can increase your threatened area to
absurd ranges.
No 5-ft. Reach. It stinks, not threatening right next to
you. Worshipers of Shelyn can use the Bladed Brush
feat (which they’ll already be selecting anyway, most
likely) to alleviate this issue.

Keeps you back from big bruisers. We ideally want

as much distance between us and baddies as we can get,
and reach weapons accomplish that goal neatly.

Innate proficiency. We’ve already got simple weapon

proficiency, which is all we need to get rolling with a
longspear. Comes out of the box effective.

Suggested Feat Path

Combat Reflexes (1)
Dodge (3)
Mobility (5)
Combat Patrol (7)
 Final Thoughts
Reach characters planning on taking advantage of AoOs will need to balance DEX and STR in their initial point
buy, as no DEX-to-damage or Finesse feats exist for spears (Shelyn’s Bladed Brush excepted). Even with this split focus,
spears are still incredibly effective for Inquisitors, giving them better defense and better offense with minimal investment.
The addition of Combat Patrol makes large swaths of the battlefield a no-fly zone for most enemies unless they want to get
speared constantly. You’ll typically need to switch from your reach weapon if an enemy is truly dead set on closing with
you, so Quick Draw or Quick Stow can be useful additions to this build. Or, ya know, just wield a glaive and use Bladed
Brush to choke up.

The Rager (Cleave)

Pro Con

A little less BAB-intensive. You’ll still have slower ...but still very feat-intensive. You know the drill.
access than most full martials, but it’s not as painful a
wait as for Vital Strike.

Attack at highest BAB. See Vital Strike. Racial feat shenanigans. The best Cleave feats are for
Dwarves only, including Orc Hewer, Goblin Cleaver,
Giant Killer, and Cleave Through. Good thing
Dwarves make such good Inquisitors, no?

Good support from enchantments. Culling and
mighty cleaving weapons are your go-tos for weaponry;
advancing will help with positioning for the perfect
Cleave.
AoE Bane can be tricky. Unless your GM is lobbing
you softball encounters full of multiple enemies of the
same type or subtype who like to cluster together,
Cleave is likely to proc Bane damage on only one
hostile.

Suggested Feat Path

Power Attack (3)
Cleave (5)
Great Cleave (7)
Cleaving Finish (9)
Improved Cleaving Finish (11)
Orc Hewer (Dwarf) (13)
Cleave Through (Dwarf) (15)
 Final Thoughts
On balance, I like the Cleave route a bit less than the Vital Strike route. Vital Strike, whatever its problems, is at
least feat-light, whereas Cleave takes significant investment for far-less-significant return. I’d leave this path to the Fighters
and Barbarians.

The Specter (Intimidation)

Pro Con

Baked-in bonuses. Stern Gaze gives you an instant
edge over the competition with half your level to
Intimidate; Half-Orcs can optionally take the FCB that
gives a further half your level to the skill. Many cheaper
magical and alchemical bonuses grant even more
bonuses.
[Mind-affecting] tag. The Demoralize action is a
mind-affecting fear effect, which means that many
enemy types—Constructs, Oozes, Plants, Undead,
Vermin, some swarms, and a handful of Outsider
subtypes—will be naturally immune to even your best
Intimidate rolls. Not even the Antipaladin’s Aura of
Cowardice beats blanket immunity to mind-affecting
effects. Be prepared for this tactic not to work all the
time.

Resource-light debuffing. Demoralization is an Still feat-intensive.

inexhaustible source of debuffing and battlefield
control for Inquisitors. Add a few enchantments (cruel,
malevolent, dazzling radiance, and gory) and you’ll be
able to make enemies shaken, frightened, dazzled,
sickened, or blinded with minimal effort.

Enables sneak attack for Sanctified Slayers. The

Intimidate route is practically required for Sanctified
Slayers in large part due to Shatter Defenses, a feat that
allows them to treat shaken enemies as flat-footed. Flat-
footed enemies proc sneak attack, and endless sneak
attacks are the ultimate dream of any Rogue or Slayer.

Suggested Feat Path

Everyone seems to agree that using Intimidate to demoralize a single enemy as a standard action is wasting the
action economy. For this reason, most Intimidate builds try build toward demoralizing as a swift or free action,
demoralizing multiple enemies at once, or both. There are a few paths for each.
The Nonlethal Intimidator
Enforcer (1)
Bludgeoner (3, Optional)
Merciful weapon

This feat path is the lightest of them all, and also the most accessible to Finesse Inquisitors. Basically, Enforcer
allows you to demoralize an enemy as a free action any time you deal nonlethal damage; Bludgeoner can help you get
nonlethal damage on lethal bludgeoning weapons, or else the merciful enchantment will do it for any weapon. Nonlethal
damage is its own discussion, but the big advantage of Enforcer is the fact that you cause them to be shaken for a number
of rounds equal to the damage you dealt. That’s going to be an enormous number of rounds. Don’t bother with the
Merciful Bane feat—the lethal damage from Bane and the nonlethal damage from your weapon will meet in the middle
somewhere. Sarenrae’s Divine Fighting Technique can use this feat path to unreal advantage. Check it out in the Feats
section and the “Blade Savant” sample build.

The Lethal Intimidator

Power Attack (3)
Cornugon Smash (7)
Cruel weapon

The requirements to get into the Cornugon Smash feat line are a bit steeper than for Enforcer. There’s Power
Attack itself, and you’ll have to wait for Cornugon Smash at 7th level before you have a means of demoralizing as a free
action. A cruel weapon will let you dogpile further debuffs onto the shaken condition.

The Mass Intimidator

Weapon Focus (1)
Dazzling Display (3)
Shatter Defenses (9)
Violent Display (11, if Sanctified Slayer and allowed)
Dazzling Radiance weapon
Malevolent armor

Intimidating one enemy at a time is simple enough, but if you want to have a force multiplier for your patented
Scary Face, the Mass Intimidator is where it all comes together. Weapon Focus is a tax, but Dazzling Display starts to get
intriguing: as a full-round action, demoralize every enemy within 30 feet who can see you. Toss in Shatter Defenses, and
every shaken enemy is flat-footed against you; malevolent armor lets you add your enhancement bonus to attack rolls
against flat-footed enemies. Once you hit a shaken, flat-footed enemy, Violent Display can proc Dazzling Display damn
near every round.
 Final Thoughts
Each of the paths presented here is presented in the barest possible fashion, so as to be modular. Lethal + Mass is
great, but also benefits from Intimidating Prowess, if you somehow have the room. Nonlethal + Mass goes down much
smoother with Sarenrae’s Divine Fighting Technique, but it’s not mandatory. Your build reflects your goals. I should
mention that I’m not an expert on intimidation; that credit goes to the author of this guide on the noble art of
Intimimancy. As far as I know, the guide hasn’t been updated in a while, but it’s still the gold standard for how to build a
scary character. Traits, feats, items—it’s all there.
 INQ301: Race and Inquisition
Core Races

Dwarf

Pro Con

Excellent stat distribution. +2 WIS and CON make Strictly mediocre favored class bonus. Getting a
you a better caster and tank, while a penalty to CHA is little boost to one Judgment won’t make a huge
about as irrelevant as we could hope for. difference in your combats, and it’s obviously useless
for archetypes that trade away Judgment.

Phenomenal magehunter potential. The Hardy
racial trait gives you +2 to saves vs. spells and SLAs,
which is excellent. The Steel Soul racial feat bumps that
number up to +4, bordering on explosively awesome.
Lower base movement speed. It stinks, but you can
make up for it by charging, selecting the Travel
domain, getting a reliable source of haste, casting
expeditious retreat...when you need mobility, you’ll
have it.

No movement penalties for heavy armor. Most

Dwarves will become melee Inquisitors; most melee
Inquisitors should have heavy armor proficiency. QED.

Racial darkvision.

Other Features
The Barrrow Warden racial trait is excellent for an undead-heavy campaign, while Spell Smasher outperforms in
caster-heavy campaigns. Fey Thoughts and Fey Magic can expand your skill and spell options, respectively. Sky Sentinel
helps against flight, a common enemy tactic in later levels.

Final Thoughts
...and my axe! Sturdy and spell-resistant, dwarves have all the makings of wonderful melee Inquisitors. Archetypes
like Spellbreaker or Witch Hunter will help them specialize in anti-caster tactics, while burning a feat to pick up Heavy
Armor Proficiency will allow them to stand confidently on a battlefield. You're always going to be a little slower than your
teammates, so consider the options listed in the table above to get you into the thick of it faster.
 Elf

Pro Con

Great favored class bonus. Inquisitors will never not Low-light vision, but no racial darkvision.
need bonus spells known, so you’ll see this FCB
consistently rated blue.

Weapon familiarity. Elves get access to a good variety
of weapons, especially ranged weapons. If you also
spend a feat to get martial weapon proficiency, you can
access the Elven Curve Blade and Elven Branched
Spear, two of the best melee weapons around.
Abysmal stat distribution. +2 INT does nothing for
you unless you’re a Living Grimoire, and +2 DEX will
only be useful to Finesse or Ranged Inquisitors. A
penalty to CON makes for one awkward, frail
character.

Other Features
The Overwhelming Magic trait might be good for Monster Tacticians, who'll need Spell Focus (Conjuration) as a
prerequisite to some good summoning feats.

Final Thoughts
Ah Elbereth Gilthoniel? Honestly, there's little to recommend the Fair Folk to an Inquisitor build. The stat
distribution is all wrong for every archetype but Living Grimoire, and the main perks (weapon familiarity and the FCB)
can be duplicated in the Half-Elf. These poor guys were really meant to be Wizards and Magi, not Inquisitors.

Gnome

Pro Con

Generally poor stat distribution. I’ll never turn my

nose up at +2 CON, but the penalty to STR hurts
badly, and +2 CHA is pretty useless.

Low base movement speed. The Dwarf also has this

problem; the Dwarf, however, gets a pass, because it is
an incredible race for an Inquisitor. The Gnome is not.
 Mediocre favored class bonus. Defensive casting is
okay, but it can’t hold a candle to spells known or Stern
Gaze bonuses.

Low-light vision, but no racial darkvision.

Other Features
Only so much lipstick you can put on a pig, kids.

Final Thoughts
Woof. A disappointing performance from the gnomes, who were always meant to be Sorcerers, Rogues, Bards,
Oracles, or the like. I love the quirky little guys, but they have nothing going for them here.

Half-Elf

Pro Con

Floating stat bonus. Always good to have the option; Low-light vision, but no racial darkvision.
yours will go into STR, DEX, or WIS, depending on
whether your focus is melee, ranged/finesse, or casting.

Free skill focus feat. If you don't get Ancestral Arms,

enjoy your free skill focus feat. Perception's never a bad
idea.

Ancestral Arms. Getting access to any martial or

exotic weapon is extremely strong. It competes with
Adaptability, but most Inquisitors will need the Skill
Focus less than they'll need more weapon choices. If
you're only interested in elven weapons, select the
Weapon Familiarity trait instead.

Great favored class bonus. Again, more spells known

= more flexible casting. Never say no except in the very
first levels when you'll have access to orisons only.
Other Features
A Living Grimoire can parlay the free Skill Focus (Linguistics) into the Orator feat, which gives you all the face
skills you'll ever need.

Final Thoughts
Half-Elves almost always make a good showing in racial selection, and the Inquisitor is no different. Floating stat
bonus, excellent FCB, and the ability to grab better weapon proficiencies make this race a strong choice.

Halfling

Pro Con

Improved saves. +1 to all saves via Halfling Luck is 20-foot movement speed. You can and probably
neat to pick up for free. Fearless also makes it harder should rectify this with the Fleet of Foot alternate racial
for enemies to break your Judgment through fear trait.
tactics.

Poor stat distribution. CHA doesn't do much for us,

and you're missing a WIS boost.

Shitty favored class bonus. Many archetypes trade

away Teamwork feats, and anyway, how often during
the day do you want to change them?

Other Features
None of the alternative racial traits (apart from Fleet of Foot, which is mandatory) catch my eye in any particular
way. Usual disclaimer about Fate's Favored being an awesome trait on Halflings.

Final Thoughts
Much like Gnomes, Halflings were simply meant to be a different class. Your stat distribution alone makes
playing a Halfling Inquisitor a very tough swim against a very strong current.

Half-Orc
 Pro Con

Floating stat bonus. Again, always nice to get to

choose where that goes.

Racial darkvision.

Bonus weapon proficiencies. Holy cow, the falchion

and greataxe are both amazing weapons that the
Inquisitor doesn't naturally get access to; those with the
Chain Fighter alternate racial feat can pick up flails and
heavy flails, as well. Two-Handed builds will salivate
over this.

Two excellent favored class bonuses. Half-Orcs can

take the Human FCB (more spells known, eternally
blue) or choose to get half their level to Knowledges
when identifying monsters and to Intimidate. Both
FCBs are amazing, but the second is especially great for
demoralize builds looking to pump their numbers sky-
high.

Other Features
The Acute Darkvision and Dragon Sight alternate racial traits are good ones to grab (Dragon Sight especially, if
you're not demoralizing professionally) for improved darkvision. Overlooked Mastermind is the perfect fit for sneakier
Inquisitors like Cloaked Wolves or Heretics. I've never been such a fan of Orc Ferocity, so if you're like me, you'll be
looking for replacement traits, two of which jump out: Toothy (for a primary natural attack, 1d4) or Sacred Tattoo (which
grants a +1 luck bonus to all saves, boosted to +2 when you take the Fate's Favored trait).

Final Thoughts
There's a reason why Pathfinder's poster-child Inquisitor is a half-orc. They're scary, capable combatants with
amazing FCBs, bonuses to Intimidate that stack with Stern Gaze, great weapon proficiencies, and opportunities for better
saves, vision, and natural attacks.

Human

Pro Con
 Floating stat bonus. No darkvision or low-light vision.

Free bonus feat. This is what humans are famous for,

and on feat-strapped classes like the Inquisitor, this
starts to look even more appealing. Highly
recommended for ranged builds, who'll need all the
feats they can get.

Free skill point every level. Synergizes naturally with

the Inquisitor's focus on skills.

Other Features
The alternate racial traits are only rarely worth it, except in situations where your bonus feat mimics one of the
alternate racial traits (e.g., the Spell Penetration feat and the Unstoppable Magic racial trait—you can't get SP twice, but if
you take UM as your replacement for the bonus feat, you can pick up SP later on).

Final Thoughts
You'll work around your lack of darkvision. Light is a cantrip, after all. Apart from that, Humans are manifestly
excellent, giving Inquisitors more of the feats that they're so starved for.
 Selected Other Races
A complete treatment of every Pathfinder race would be exhausting and minimally fruitful. I'll cover some of the
highlights among Golarion's less common peoples, but there are a few criteria that you can use to make your own
selections:

● Stat spread. Look for bonuses to WIS, CON, or DEX/STR (depending on your style of play). Penalties to WIS
or CON are bad enough that they immediately put the race into the red, while penalties to DEX or STR can
usually be worked around with some creativity. Bonuses or penalties to CHA and INT are the least relevant for
Inquisitors.
● Favored class bonuses. Because the Inquisitor is a newer class, not every one of the featured or uncommon races
has a favored class bonus. Extra HP or skill points are never bad things, of course, but as commodities they're not
quite as precious as something like spells known. Some races can take alternate racial traits that allow them to be
treated as humans, which most GMs would rule qualifies you to select the excellent Human FCB. Go for it, if
that’s the case for your race.
● Base speed. You want 30 feet per round, obviously, not 20.
● Size. STR-based builds will probably want a medium-sized race. Finesse, Ranged, and casting-based Inquisitors
can consider small-sized races.

Aasimar

Pro Con

Solid stat spread. CHA will at least help us with face Overly specific favored class bonus. Unless you're
skills (or enable us to dump CHA safely, more likely) fighting Outsiders most of the time, this isn't for you;
and WIS is always needed. If you're allowed variant take the bonus HP (or Human FCB, with Scion of
Aasimar, you definitely want the Archon-blooded, Humanity) and call it a day.
which gives you +2 CON and WIS, plus bonuses to
Sense Motive and Intimidate. Could there be a more
inquisitorial Aasimar? (Honorable mention goes to the
Garuda-blooded, which is ideal for ranged or finesse
Inquisitors with +2 DEX and WIS, see invisibility, and
useful bonuses. Thanks to /u/ogrehalo for pointing out
this combo!)

Racial SLA, 1/day. Base Aasimar get daylight, a good

3rd-level spell, while other variants get different SLAs.
 Racial darkvision.

Other Features
If you're going to be fighting any undead in your campaign, take the Deathless Spirit alternate racial trait instead
of Celestial Resistance—the resistance to negative energy and boosts to saves vs. energy drain, negative levels, etc. are simply
too good to pass up.

Final Thoughts
Variant Aasimar are really the way to go; the base package doesn’t give you anything that you couldn’t get
elsewhere. As stated above, the Archon- and Garuda-blooded variants are best at preserving your bonus to WIS, so they’re
what I’d go with for melee and ranged Inquisitors, respectively. I do wish that Aasimar had a better FCB, but your GM
might allow you to take the Human FCB if you select Scion of Humanity to become mostly human. Check it with them!

Grippli

Pro Con

Racial darkvision. No favored class bonus. We're used to that by now.

Decent stat spread. +2 DEX/WIS, -2 STR makes you

a likely candidate for finesse or ranged play.

Climb speed. Another excellent ability, folded right in.

You get a +8 racial bonus to Climb, the ability to take
10 on your check even when rushed or threatened, and
no longer count as flat-footed when climbing.

Small size, normal speed. You're stealthier, more

accurate, and harder to hit, but you still have a base
movement speed of 30 feet. That's a package that very,
very few races get.

Agile Tongue feat. Grippli get access to Agile Tongue,

which lets you perform melee touch attacks from 10
feet away. Many Domain abilities are touch range,
along with several of your spells—it's a great investment
if you can swing it.
Other Features
Since Grippli already have the stat distributions to be good finesse Inquisitors, you'll obviously want the Princely
alternate racial trait for access to rapiers and a bonus to two of your commonly used face skills. Princely conflicts with
Toxic Skin, which I'm actually kind of cut up about—your Grippli Poison is free, deals DEX damage, and can be used as a
swift action, albeit with a mediocre save DC. If you're dead set on not being a finesse frog for some reason, go ahead and
take that.

Final Thoughts
As stated above, Grippli make for great Weapon Finesse builds. There's some interesting synergy between Agile
Tongue and the Crime Inquisition—getting the ability to use Improved and Greater Steal from 10 feet away could make
you a real nuisance on the battlefield. Add the Sanctified Slayer archetype, greater bane, and the Piranha Strike feat and you
won't even miss DEX-to-damage (although Weapon Focus: Rapier and Fencing Grace are still options if you really want
them).

Oread

Pro Con

Amazing stat spread. +2 STR/WIS, -2 CHA is
literally perfect for melee Inquisitors. Tough to beat.
Lower base movement speed. Allow me to introduce
you to Messrs. Slow and Steady. It's unfortunate, but
melee Inquisitors probably won't have to move much
except when positioning for the start of combat. You
can always use expeditious retreat.

Mostly Human. More spells known through the

Human FCB. You want this.™

Racial darkvision.

Good racial feats. If you're doing a two-handed build

with an Oread (and you should) you'll have enough
room in the build to access some nifty scouting abilities
in the form of Oread Burrower and Oread Earth
Glider. Having a burrow speed, including the ability to
burrow through solid stone, expands your tactics
considerably.

Racial SLA, 1/day. You won't get much use out of

magic stone, so trade it for Treacherous Earth for a
 useful bottleneck or choke point.

Other Features
Go ahead and drop your acid resistance for the +1 Natural Armor bonus from Granite Skin; Crystalline Form
and Treacherous Earth are also worth the swaps in alternate racial traits. Mostly Human is an absolute must if you intend
to do any casting; the versatility that more spells known gives you is too good to pass up.

Final Thoughts
Oreads are an incredibly solid pick for a melee Inquisitor. Your two racial traits that boost your AC will help ease
the early level survival-crunch, so enjoy them.

Tengu

Pro Con

Amazing weapon proficiencies. Kukris, falchions, Low-light vision, but no darkvision.

and elven curve blades are wonderful to get your hands
on when you only get simple weapons in-class.

Decent stat distribution. The penalty to CON hurts, No favored class bonus. It's okay. You should really
but might be surmountable with FCBs and the be taking HP on a Tengu anyway.
Toughness feat. At least you've got WIS, even if DEX
only excites Finesse and Ranged Inquisitors.

Built-in natural attack. You can't complain about

free damage.

Other Features
I want to love the Gifted Linguist feature—and I do, on Rogues or others who can use it more effectively—but it
just doesn't do much for you unless you pick up the Skill Focus (Linguistics) and Orator feats. If you don't have room for
those, just get the Glide alternate racial trait.
Final Thoughts
If you're going the Weapon Finesse route, give the Tengu a serious look. Go elven curve blade, Weapon Finesse at
1st level, Piranha Strike at 3rd. You'll never hit quite as hard as a Two-Handed Inquisitor, but you'll get better touch AC,
Reflex saves, and Initiative to compensate somewhat.

Tiefling

Pro Con

Variant heritages. There are many more good variant Shoddy stat distribution. This applies to the base
heritages for Tieflings than there are for Aasimar. The Tiefling only. You're golden if you can take a variant.
Asura-Spawn (+2 DEX/WIS, -2 CHA), Demodand-
Spawn (+2 CON/WIS, -2 INT), Devil-Spawn (+2
CON/WIS, -2 CHA), Oni-Spawn (+2 STR/WIS, -2
CHA), and Qlippoth-Spawn (+2 STR/WIS, -2 INT)
are all excellent choices that provide unique SLAs and
skill bonuses.

Decent favored class bonus. Same as the Half-Orc,

bonus to Knowledges and Intimidate. Perfect for the
Intimidancer builds I know you're concocting in your
head. Although you have to give up some good
alternate racial traits to get it, Pass for Human can get
you the Human FCB.

Racial SLA, 1/day.

Racial darkvision.

Other Features
I'd recommend Prehensile Tail, Scaled Skin, and potentially Maw or Claw (if you're looking for another attack on
a melee build) for just about any Tiefling. Too useful.

Final Thoughts
On balance, I'd say that the Tiefling falls slightly behind the Aasimar on account of their stat penalty. Tieflings do
have a much better Intimidation set-up, if you want to go that direction. Variant heritages are a make-or-break deal for
Tieflings, so ask your GM about them today; if you're not allowed, you'll likely be better off with a Half-Orc.
 Undine

Pro Con

Mostly Human. Get that sweet, sweet Human FCB.

Fairly good stat array. You're pretty much locked

into a ranged or finesse build with an Undine, because
that penalty to STR is too big to overcome. If you're
willing to work around that limitation, more power to
you.

Native swim speed. Very nice—you won't need it all

the time, but man, is it useful when you do.

Racial SLA, 1/day. Hydraulic push uses your caster

level and WIS modifier as your CMB bonus, so you'll
actually be able to push people around pretty will with
this. Always fun to hurl enemies off of bridges, cliffs,
rooftops, etc.

Racial darkvision.

Other Features
If you're not a fan of hydraulic push or feel that a 1/day SLA isn't worth the investment, Amphibious and its
associated water breathing are a fantastic pick; you also might as well get Hydrated Vitality, which isn't great, but will at
least save a little on end-of-day healing. None of the alternate racial traits replacing your cold resistance really blow my skirt
up. Just hang on to it.

Final Thoughts
Another solid showing from the geniekin. You'll have to sink a bit more into feats due to your STR penalty, but
other than that the Undine has more to recommend it than not.
 (Image Source)

“This child is an unholy demon. I’m sending it back to hell, where it belongs.”
— Judge Claude Frollo
 INQ351: Domain Analytics

For those just joining us in the world of tabletop roleplaying games, a word about domains: domains are thematic
packages of abilities that are granted by the various deities of Golarion and beyond. Every deity has five domains available to
his or her adherents, but there are a variety of Empyreal Lords, Archdevils, and other powerful planar beings that may have
a domain portfolio, too. The class that normally interacts the most with the domains is the Cleric: they pick two domains,
each of which grants them an exclusive list of domain-only bonus spells. As I mentioned earlier, Inquisitors also get access
to domains, but on a much more limited basis. Where Clerics get two domains, Inquisitors get one; where Clerics get
bonus spells, Inquisitors do not. Other than that, Inquisitors’ domain abilities function as their Cleric brethren and
sistrens’ do. In addition to the normal domains available to you depending on your choice of deity, Inquisitors also have
the option of picking an Inquisition; these “mini-domains” are based around ideals that an Inquisitor might pursue
regardless of deity. Green Faith Marshals get access to the Animal and Terrain Domains, so I’ll be reviewing those, too.

Deity Alignment Domains Favored Weapon

Abadar LN Earth, Law, Nobility, Protection, Travel Light crossbow

Asmodeus LE Evil, Fire, Law, Magic, Trickery Mace (In-class)

Calistria CN Chaos, Charm, Knowledge, Luck, Trickery Whip

Cayden Cailean CG Chaos, Charm, Good, Strength, Travel Rapier

Desna CG Chaos, Good, Liberation, Luck, Travel Starknife

Erastil LG Animal, Community, Good, Law, Plant Longbow (In-class)

Gorum CN Chaos, Destruction, Glory, Strength, War Greatsword

Gozreh N Air, Animal, Plant, Water, Weather Trident

Iomedae LG Glory, Good, Law, Sun, War Longsword

Irori LN Healing, Knowledge, Law, Rune, Strength Unarmed strike

Lamashtu CE Chaos, Evil, Madness, Strength, Trickery Falchion

Nethys N Destruction, Knowledge, Magic, Protection, Rune Quarterstaff

Norgorber NE Charm, Death, Evil, Knowledge, Trickery Short sword

Pharasma N Death, Healing, Knowledge, Repose, Water Dagger (In-class)

Rovagug CE Chaos, Destruction, Evil, War, Weather Greataxe

Sarenrae NG Fire, Glory, Good, Healing, Sun Scimitar

Shelyn NG Air, Charm, Good, Luck, Protection Glaive

Torag LG Artifice, Earth, Good, Law, Protection Warhammer

Urgathoa NE Death, Evil, Magic, Strength, War Scythe

Zon-Kuthon LE Darkness, Death, Destruction, Evil, Law Spiked chain

Deific Domains
 Air Domain

Base Domain Powers Subdomain Replacements

Lightning Arc: A weak blast. Inquisitors don't blast; Wind Subdomain

they are the blast. Wind Blast: It's better than Lightning Arc, but only by
a bare margin. Bull rush can help knock enemies into
walls or over cliffs, at least.

Electricity Resistance: Pretty weak for a second Cloud Subdomain

domain power. Thundercloud: No-save deafened within the cloud is
powerful, especially against casters. The ability to move
the cloud is nice, as is the damage per round (although
that will quickly become inconsequential). An item like
the Goz Mask will let you take full advantage of your
enemies' blindness.

Lightning Subdomain
Lightning Rod: As an Inquisitor, you don't really get
any spells with the [electricity] descriptor, so this power
is useless.
 Animal Domain

Base Domain Powers Subdomain Replacements

Bonus Class Skill: Knowledge (Nature). You already Feather Subdomain

get it in-class. Bonus Class Skill: Fly, which you don't get in-class,
plus a maneuverability boost. Yes, please.

Speak with Animals: Mostly fluff. Feather Subdomain

Eyes of the Hawk: Racial bonus. Half your level to
Perception on a WIS-based class, plus an initiative
bonus during surprise rounds in which you can act.
Perception is wonderful; this is wonderful.

Fur Subdomain
Predator's Grace: Swift-action boost to your speed.
You've already got expeditious retreat, but this is a nice
addition. Pity your swift action economy at the start of
combat is already so full. The improvements to vision in
dim light are just icing.

Insect Subdomain
Exoskeleton: Enhancement bonus. It's a great little
ability that lets you turtle up when you're flanked or
foreseeing being attacked by multiple enemies. Usual
caveat about Inquisitors being strapped for swift
actions applies.

Animal Companion: Your very own animal

companion. Extremely powerful, even without the
Teamwork feat-sharing that the Sacred Huntsmaster
archetype gets. The Boon Companion feat is a must
with this domain to ensure that your companion stays
on par with you.
 Artifice Domain

Base Domain Powers Subdomain Replacements

Artificer's Touch: At-will mending is a cute little Alchemy Subdomain

QoL improvement, but the attack against constructs is Divine Alchemy: Note: The wording on this
generally weak. subdomain is broken for spontaneous casters. You and
your GM will have to work that out.

The primary advantage of potions over spells is that

you can drink as a move action, rather than the
standard action to cast a spell, and administer self-only
buffs to teammates. It’s a strong contender, especially
replacing Artificer’s Touch.

Dancing Weapons: The dancing enchantment is Construct Subdomain

pretty good for many martial classes. You only get Bane Animate Servant: Carry around a bunch of daggers to
damage when you’re wielding the weapon, though, animate, or animate some trees to attack. Animate
which drastically limits the power’s usefulness. You objects is a good spell, and you get to use it several times
also get a measly number of uses per day. per day by the end of your career.

Industry Subdomain
Aura of Efficiency: You have to select the Urban
Acolyte trait to get access to this subdomain. Aura of
Efficiency opens up some lateral thinking hardness
shenanigans (using a normal steel blade to chop
through a stone wall, e.g.) but with only a few rounds
per day, you’re unlikely to get much mileage.

Toil Subdomain
Aura of Repetition: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder:
The Spell! This could be powerful, or not, depending
on what your enemies were doing when you activated
it. Will negates.

Trap Subdomain
Supernatural Trap: Much like the name of the
subdomain, this is a trap. Traps are pretty weak in
general, and your save DC is never going to be super
high. You're better off getting glyph of warding, greater
if you want to be a trapmaster.
 Chaos Domain
Base Domain Powers
Touch of Chaos: Forcing an opponent to reroll any
d20 and take the poorer result, even for one round, is
quite powerful. That's concentration checks, attack
rolls, skill checks, combat maneuver checks, saves, and
more. Good for assisting your casters in making a
BBEG feel the pain, especially since the touch attack
doesn't require a save to work.
Subdomain Replacements
Azata Subdomain
Touch of Elysium: Sacred bonus. Enchantment
effects are some of the worst in the game, potentially
turning you or one of your allies against the rest of your
group. You really don't want your Wizard angling that
prismatic wall your way, do you? The bonuses to
escaping grapples and ignoring difficult terrain are
icing.
Demodand Subdomain
Faith-Stealing Strike: To use this strike, you must
target someone who uses divine spells, then hit them,
then damage them, and finally hope that they fail a Will
save. All this in order to make them lose their casting
for one round. That's way too many "ifs" for a weak
payoff.
Demon Subdomain
Fury of the Abyss: Enhancement bonus. Hefty, hefty
scaling bonuses to melee attack rolls, damage rolls, and
CMB for one round. If you're an Inquisitor of Gorum
or something similar, this is a stellar pick that will
eventually outstrip even Bane.
Chaos Blade: Hedging weapons lets you bypass DR Entropy Subdomain
completely as a 1st-level spell. Align weapon is a 2nd- Hasten the End: If you could reduce the duration of
level spell. You really don’t need this. active buffs with every attack, this power would be
worthwhile. Once per day? Far, far too weak.

Protean Subdomain
Aura of Chaos: It forces enemies to make an
interesting choice: do I declare an action I don't want to
do, counting on myself to fail the Will save, or do I
declare an action that I do want to do, counting on
myself to succeed? Your chances of using this
predictably will actually increase as you level and Will
saves get higher. How many times does that happen?

Revelry Subdomain
Intense Celebration: Morale bonuses on your list
include bless, wrath, aid, instrument of agony, heroism,
righteous vigor, shared wrath, blessings of luck and
resolve, and heroes' feast. Some of your most powerful
buffs, Extended for free. Definitely not a bad deal,
especially as it replaces a turd of a domain power.

Riot Subdomain
Aura of Bedlam: You have to select the Urban Acolyte
trait to get access to this subdomain. Even with the
mark against it for being mind-affecting, Aura of
Bedlam is powerful. Force no-save concentration
checks (with penalties) for every enemy caster in the
aura? Yes, please.

Whimsy Subdomain
Unexpected Whimsy: It's Lawyer Morty, hahaha,
look at him go! The DC is even lower than usual for
you, but a rash of failed saves protects the team for one
round and gets you bonuses to skewer your frolicsome
enemies.
 Charm Domain
Base Domain Powers
Dazing Touch: No save, they're just dazed for one
round. A conductive weapon would help your action
economy.
Charming Smile: Charm person lasts for hours per
level, whereas Charming Smile lasts only rounds per
level. That’s unacceptable.
Subdomain Replacements
Love Subdomain
Adoration: Mind-affecting: ding. Will negates: ding.
Only protects against one attack: ding. Too much to
dislike here, not enough to like.
Captivation Subdomain
Entrancing Aura: The Perception debuff might be
useful for sneakier Inquisitors—a Perception debuff is
functionally the same thing as a Stealth buff. The bit
about reducing fascination requirements is useless for
you; litany of fascination is one of the only spells you
have that fascinates, and it does so without a save.
Lust Subdomain
Anything to Please: Mind-affecting: ding. Will
negates: ding. It's at least marginally better than
Adoration, because losing a powerful item, attacking
your enemies, or dropping prone are all fairly powerful
effects.
 Community Domain
Base Domain Powers
Calming Touch: The healing is bad; you don't need
it. Removing shaken, fatigued, or sickened is slightly
better, but those effects also tend to wear off quickly.
Unity: You get good saves as an Inquisitor, and
doubtless many of your compatriots could benefit
from substituting yours for theirs. The issue is that you
get so few uses of this power.
Subdomain Replacements
Cooperation Subdomain
Synergistic Touch: This domain power seems tailored
for Inquisitors. You get plenty of Teamwork feats, and
sometimes you'll actually want your party members to
have those feats instead of relying on Solo Tactics.
Obviously red if you traded away your Teamwork feats.
Family Subdomain
Binding Ties: The idea of taking on a family member's
suffering as your own is thematic, yes, but mechanically
bad. You'd be better off just ending the condition that's
bothering them with dispel magic, delay poison, or
delay disease.
Education Subdomain
Teaching Moment: You have to select the Urban
Acolyte trait to get access to this subdomain. Giving
your whole team flexible rerolls within a minute of a
Nat 1 or 20 is very good. The only thing that would
make this power better would be more uses per day.
Home Subdomain
Guarded Hearth: Sacred bonus. If you have time to
spend picking your battleground, Guarded Hearth is an
excellent power. Your WIS modifier to all attack rolls
and saves for every creature within the radius? That's
amazing. Just make sure not to leave the hearth's area—
the radius never gets all that large. Also note that this
won't stack with your Justice or Purity Judgments.
 Darkness Domain
Base Domain Powers
Bonus Feat: I mean, hell, I'm not going to say no to
Blind Fight for free.
Touch of Darkness: Miss chances are always good
damage mitigation for your party, and the ability to
just slap this on a BBEG and move on will greatly
improve your survivability.
Eyes of Darkness: Saves you some spell slots on
daylight. I wish you got this for minutes per level.
Subdomain Replacements
Night Subdomain
Night Hunter: Excellent at early levels before you get
invisibility on your spell list, Night Hunter quickly
tapers off in usefulness as more and more enemies start
getting some form of sight in darkness. Blindsense,
Blindsight, Scent, see invisibility, true seeing, and even
garden variety Darkvision will all negate this ability.
Shadow Subdomain
Whispering Shadows: I don’t think you’ve got the
spell list to take proper advantage of this power.
Loss Subdomain
Aura of Forgetfulness: Will negates. Causing casters
to lose spells is cool, but by 8th level they probably
won't mind losing some 1st-level spells.
Moon Subdomain
Moonfire: Weak blast, weak condition. Pass.
 Death Domain

Base Domain Powers Subdomain Replacements

Bleeding Touch: Weak damage. Pass. Shadow Subdomain

Whispering Shadows: I don’t think you’ve got the
spell list to take proper advantage of this power.

Undead Subdomain
Death's Kiss: Somehow even less useful than Death's
Embrace. The crowning turd in a turd-like domain
portfolio.

Death's Embrace: How often do you expect to face Murder Subdomain

negative energy channeling? Killing Blow: It's a fairly small amount of bleed
damage, you have to crit first, and you only get to use it
a few times per day.

Plague Subdomain
Touch of Virulence: You have to select the Urban
Acolyte trait to get access to this subdomain. As an
Inquisitor, you don't have ways of making people
diseased. Pass.

Psychopomp Subdomain
Spirit Touch: When you need ghost touch weapons,
you really need them. Nice to have this trick up your
sleeve.
 Destruction Domain

Base Domain Powers Subdomain Replacements

Destructive Smite: Morale bonus. You get a lot of Torture Subdomain

morale bonuses in your spell list, and this won't stack Painful Smite: It’s kind of like the Enforcer feat, only
with them. That said, it's a great boost to your damage instead of a bonus to duration you get a bonus to the
if you're currently morale-less. Intimidate check. Pretty good!

Destructive Aura: Turns every combat into a game of Catastrophe Subdomain

rocket tag: your enemies get the same bonuses against Deadly Weather: The fact that you have to change the
you and your party members as you get against them. weather each round hurts, as does the fact that you
Those aren’t odds I like. can't exclude friends from the effects.

Hatred Subdomain
Hateful Aura: Will negates. The effect is minor unless
you've got a group of enemies abusing buff spells or Aid
Another.

Rage Subdomain
Rage: Rage, even on a limited basis, is very good. No
surprises there. Don’t expect your Rage powers to do
you much good—the ones without level requirements
are pretty crappy.
 Earth Domain

Base Domain Powers Subdomain Replacements

Acid Dart: See Air Domain. Metal Subdomain

Metal Fist: One round of Improved Unarmed Strike.
Whoop de woo.

Petrification Subdomain
Fossil Form: Gaining the staggered condition probably
isn't worth the benefits. I'd sooner turtle up with
Exoskeleton from the Vermin subdomain.

Radiation Subdomain
Radiating Touch: Apart from being an asshole and
irradiating people's belongings, I don't see much use for
this. The object has to be unattended, Will negates, and
even if they fail their save, sickened isn't the worst
condition they could get.

Acid Resistance: See Air Domain. Caves Subdomain

Tunnel Runner: Insight bonus. Spider climb,
extended darkvision, your level to Stealth, and your
WIS modifier double-stacked with Cunning Initiative?
If you spend considerable time dungeoneering
underground, take a serious look at this one.
 Evil Domain

Base Domain Powers Subdomain Replacements

Touch of Evil: Sickened isn't the worst condition in Cannibalism Subdomain

the world, but it's also not the best. Best use is probably Consume the Enemy: Profane bonus. It all adds up to
to weaken an enemy up for one of your spells. a pretty hefty boost to your spell DCs. You've got to be
fighting one type of enemy consistently, but if you are,
it's mechanically strong.

Demodand Subdomain
Faith-Stealing Strike: See Chaos Domain.

Demon Subdomain
Fury of the Abyss: See Chaos Domain.

Devil Subdomain
Hell's Corruption: Anything that makes your spells
more likely to land is a perk in my book, but
Cannibalism subdomain actually does this better.

Plague Subdomain
Touch of Virulence: See Death Domain.

Sahkil Subdomain
Touch of Paranoia: All niche cases, all pretty
worthless.

Scythe of Evil: We'll assume that you're fighting Corruption Subdomain

mostly good creatures if you've chosen this domain. If Spark Malfeasance: Will save every round, and
that assumption is true, fantastic! Unholy is a good sickened is a minor condition.
weapon quality to have when fighting good creatures.
Fear Subdomain
Feed on Fear: At 8th level, 2d6 damage is a drop in the
ocean.

Daemon Subdomain
Whispering Evil: Mind-affecting, and Will negates.
Otherwise, mass fascination isn't bad.

Kyton Subdomain
Pain is Power: When you get this power, you'll
probably have a <50% chance of activating it. If you do,
great, it's a nice spell. It'll get better with age, from the
number of rounds that it's active, to your chances for
passing the concentration check, to the number of
times per day that you can use it.
 Fire Domain

Base Domain Powers Subdomain Replacements

Fire Bolt: See Air Domain. Arson Subdomain

Call Fire: Boy, what a turd. Reflex negates, and you
have to have a visible source of fire within 60 feet.

Smoke Subdomain
Cloud of Smoke: A 5-foot radius? *Sigh.* Oh, well. It's
still better than Fire Bolt.

Fire Resistance: See Air Domain. Ash Subdomain

Wall of Ashes: Wall of Ashes, I wish I knew how to
quit you. This is a top-notch battlefield control power
on par with many of the wall spells on the
wizard/sorcerer list. Not to be outdone by those spells,
this wall blocks line of sight, reveals invisible creatures,
and potentially blinds enemies passing through it—and
because it lasts minutes per level, you can afford to use
this power in every combat, right off the bat.
 Glory Domain
Base Domain Powers
Touch of Glory: Untyped bonus. Bluff a god!
Convince a king! Intimidate a paladin! With Touch of
Glory, you can give your party members the ability to
succeed at damn near any CHA-based skill check. Oh,
and Channel Energy, but who needs to hear about
that?
Divine Presence: Your DC is never going to be that
high, and all it takes is one enemy getting through to
muck everything up. It's also not advisable to base your
combat strategy on not attacking—might work as a
panic button, but hopefully you won't need one all
that often.
Subdomain Replacements
Chivalry Subdomain
Bolstering Touch: There are other domain powers
that deal with fear better. This one is strictly okay.
Honor Subdomain
Honor Bound: Enchantment effects suck, but many
allow repeated saves already. You're better off shoring
up defenses against them proactively, rather than
reactively.
Heroism Subdomain
Aura of Heroism: Ahhh, much better. Heroism is a
good spell. You've already got it on your list, but having
it as a swift-action cast is nice.
Hubris Subdomain
Divine Demand: As a rule, I don't like powers that
could go horribly, horribly wrong, and losing all your
spells and domain powers for 1d4 + 1 rounds certainly
qualifies. The reward simply isn't worth the risk here.
Legend Subdomain
Witness the Legend: Untyped bonus. Despite
sounding like something that a douchey frat boy would
say right before doing a keg stand, Witness the Legend
is actually a good power: you're kind of like a divine
wingman, making sure that others get the credit over
you. Only two strikes against it: first, that you draw
from your daily charges of Touch of Glory to use it;
and second, that you get so few uses per day. Bumps up
to green because of your free feat.
 Good Domain
Base Domain Powers
Touch of Good: Sacred bonus. A one-round super
buff. It's nice.
Holy Lance: Evil enemies abound in Pathfinder, and
you just picked up a means to stick it to them. Bane +
holy weapon can result in disgusting amounts of
damage being dealt to evil creatures, especially in builds
with lots of attacks.
Subdomain Replacements
Azata Subdomain
Touch of Elysium: See Chaos Domain.
Friendship Subdomain
Powerful Bond: Telepathy isn't useless, but it's also
not as useful as most of the other domain powers in this
portfolio, including the domain power it replaces.
Agathion Subdomain
Protective Aura: Deflection and resistance bonuses.
Your party will have Cloaks of Resistance and Rings of
Protection by Level 8; the aura won't stack with them.
If for some reason you have lots of summoned
creatures, leadership cohorts, familiars, or animal
companions, this might be more worthwhile.
Archon Subdomain
Aura of Menace: Imposes a no-save penalty to AC,
attack rolls, and saves on everything within 30 feet.
Definitely a good combo.
Redemption Subdomain
Aura of Sanctification: It's not bad, just narrow.
Other domain powers will be more universally useful.
 Healing Domain
Base Domain Powers
Rebuke Death: Weak, weak heal.
Healer's Blessing: Ah, much better. This’ll save you
plenty of money on wands of cure light wounds over
the course of your adventures.
Subdomain Replacements
Medicine Subdomain
Blessed Surgery: In contrast to healing spells, the Heal
skill is actually a very good investment for you, and this
power equates to a free cure light/cure moderate wounds
several times per day. If you're allowed to take the Heal
Skill Unlock from Pathfinder Unchained, Blessed
Surgery becomes much, much better, acting as a force
multiplier with Treat Deadly Wounds. At Level 5,
TDW heals 10 HP or 2 ability points; at Level 10, 40
HP or 4 ability points; at Level 15, 90 HP or 6 ability
points; and at Level 20, 240 HP or 12 ability points.
Toss in the Psychic Sensitivity, Psychic Healing, and
Incredible Healer feats, and you’ve got a pretty
powerful back-up healer. See this thread for more
information.
Restoration Subdomain
Restorative Touch: It won't relieve the bigger, badder
conditions, but all in all, not a bad power.
Resurrection Subdomain
Gift of Life: What about this power resembles a gift?
You bring them back to life for a minute, tops, after
which they die again. Good luck explaining that turn of
events to their loved ones.
 Knowledge Domain
Base Domain Powers
Bonus Class Skill: All Knowledge skills. You already
get the Knowledges that are important for monster
identification, but how are you ever going to make it to
the top of /r/trebuchetmemes if you haven't trained
Knowledge (Engineering)?
Lore Keeper: I’m not a fan of gearing this ability
around a melee touch attack. Besides, Monster Lore
(and the Improved Monster Lore feat, if you grab it)
will probably have you covered on identification.
Remote Viewing: Clairvoyance-Clairaudience is a
good Divination spell. It lasts minutes per level when
you cast it normally, and rounds per level here, which
probably won't give you enough time to observe
anything tactically useful.
Subdomain Replacements
Espionage Subdomain
Deep Cover: You have to select the Urban Acolyte
trait to get access to this subdomain. Another domain
power that’s broken for spontaneous casters. Even if
you resolve that with your GM, your deep cover still
won't be much good—the Will save won't fool
everyone, so you're better off using nondetection.
Memory Subdomain
Recall: Insight bonus. Your WIS modifier will cap out
around +11 or +12, and the people trying to make
Knowledge checks (Wizards, Investigators, Lore
Warden Fighters, etc.) are usually very good at them
anyway. It’s a nice power, just unnecessary in most
cases.
Aeon Subdomain
Void Form: Deflection bonus. Won't stack with your
Ring of Protection or hedging weapons. The more
interesting effect is immunity to crits when in void
form. I don’t see a few rounds per day as worth it for
your second domain power; you might disagree.
Education Subdomain
Teaching Moment: See Community Domain.
Thought Subdomain
Read Minds: It's faster than detect thoughts, at least.
Unclear whether you still run the risk of stunning
yourself in the presence of an enemy with an INT of
26 or higher, as you seem to "skip over" that round of
detect thoughts and go straight to the third round.
 Law Domain
Base Domain Powers
Touch of Law: Yeah, okay, I'll bite. Taking 11 on any
roll you want for one round could certainly save your
ass if you roll poorly. More useful in early levels, when
the dice influence your outcome more strongly.
Subdomain Replacements
Devil Subdomain
Hell's Corruption: See Evil Domain.
Inevitable Subdomain
Command: The spell command is already weak for ¾
casters, and it doesn't get better here. Pass.
Judgment Subdomain
Chastisement: Might net you a tiny boost in damage if
you were blasting...which you shouldn’t be.
Legislation Subdomain
Prohibition: You have to select the Urban Acolyte
trait to get access to this subdomain. Higher-level
enemies are going to laugh in your face as they swallow
the 10 damage and proceed to wreck you.
Loyalty Subdomain
Touch of Loyalty: Sacred bonus. Get a +4 boost
against Enchantment spells and fear effects. It's the
duration that sets this apart: one hour, as opposed to
most Touch domain powers' rounds per level.
Staff of Order: Hedging weapons lets you bypass DR Archon Subdomain
completely as a 1st-level spell; align weapon is a 2nd- Aura of Menace: See Good Domain.
level spell. You don't really need this.
Kyton Subdomain
Pain is Power: See Evil Domain.

Slavery Subdomain
Master's Yoke: Language-dependent, mind-affecting,
Will negates. Not to mention enemies can ignore the
command if they really need to nail you.

Sovereignty Subdomain
Demand Subjugation: Anything that lets you cast
geas multiple times per day is great. Creative users of
this power will find almost limitless applications.

Tyranny Subdomain
Tyrannical Strike: So...no Will save for at least one
round, am I reading that right? It's better than the
Inevitable subdomain, but not by a whole lot.
 Liberation Domain
Base Domain Powers
Liberation: Wooow. Freedom of movement with no
action cost for your level in rounds. “He rolls a check
to grapple and...yep, you’re grappled.” “I dismiss your
reality and substitute my own.”
Freedom's Call: If you thought Liberation was great,
wait until you can do it to all your friends! Get ready to
be the party MVP in literally every combat.
Subdomain Replacements
Freedom Subdomain
Liberty's Blessing: They just get to re-do the save. No
bonuses, no rerolls, nothing. Kinda disappointing.
Self-Realization Subdomain
Perfected Form: Sacred/profane bonus. Eh, It's a nice
static bonus. With strong Will saves and WIS for a
casting stat, how often are you expecting to get
polymorphed against your will?
Revolution Subdomain
Powerful Persuader: Don't get me wrong, rerolls are
cool, and you love to intimidate people, but you only
get it a few times per day and it pales in comparison
with Freedom’s Call.
 Luck Domain
Base Domain Powers
Bit of Luck: Reroll any d20 for one round. Simple,
effective, unbelievably worth it.
Good Fortune: Rerolls are excellent! I only wish you
got more uses per day. (Thanks to /u/IllogicalBlox for
pointing out my flawed thinking on Good Fortune!)
Subdomain Replacements
Curse Subdomain
Malign Eye: Anything that gives your save DCs a
boost is a worthy trick. The enemy can always hit you
to cancel it, so try to ensure you've got defensive
measures up and running or are ready to lock them
down.
Fate Subdomain
Tugging Strands: It's basically Good Fortune in
reverse, and it has the same issue: how do you know
you want your enemy to give up their first roll unless
you can see what it is?
Imagination Subdomain
Haze of Daydreams: I'd be inclined to use this
defensively, rather than offensively—any enemy
coming within 15 feet of you makes a Will save or else
just stands there while you attack its friends. Nice!
 Madness Domain
Base Domain Powers
Vision of Madness: If there were a color above blue,
I'd give it to Vision of Madness. In nearly all
circumstances, your best course is to buff your enemy's
skills, which wrecks their saves and attack rolls. You can
do that outside of combat to your friends, too, if they’ll
let you—as long as you’re reasonably certain that
there’ll be no combat or saves involved, it’s a free (and
large) boost to skills.
Aura of Confusion: Confused leads to some excellent
crowd control, and the aura stacks nicely with Vision of
Madness. Debuff a BBEG's saves, then hit him with the
confusion.
Subdomain Replacements
Insanity Subdomain
Insane Focus: Untyped bonus. The fact that this
replaces Vision of Madness is a strike against it, which
goes to show how powerful that ability is. Insane Focus
is okay, but the potential to turn against your friends in
the event of a failed save isn't good.
Nightmare Subdomain
Fearful Touch: At first blush, you think this is going
to be helpful for intimidating undead, constructs, and
other enemies with fear immunity. Then you realize
that it's a mind-affecting ability, and 99% of enemies
immune to fear also have blanket immunity to mind-
affecting abilities. Womp womp.
Truth Subdomain
Dawning Realization: *Sigh.* Please don't cripple
yourself for three rounds just to stick it to one enemy. I
feel like you haven't even been listening.
 Magic Domain

Base Domain Powers Subdomain Replacements

Hand of the Acolyte: Make a ranged attack with your Alchemy Subdomain
weapon using WIS instead of DEX. Simple, solid. Divine Alchemy: See Artifice Domain.

Arcane Subdomain
Arcane Beacon: Seems a little strange to give you a
power that you can't benefit from, but hey, who am I to
judge? The duration is quite short.

Divine Subdomain
Divine Vessel: Not bad if you're fighting divine
spellcasters on the regular.

Rites Subdomain
Enduring Ritual: You don't get permanency on your
spell list; you don't get many spells with casting times
over a full round, either.

Dispelling Touch: You already get dispel magic on

your spell list. Never hurts to have more uses, though!
 Nobility Domain
Base Domain Powers
Inspiring Word: Morale bonus. For buffs, it's pretty
wonderful. It affects nearly every aspect of a character
and has a decent range and duration.
Leadership: Free Leadership with +2 to your
Leadership score right off the bat? Haha, gross. Your
GM will never go for it, but if they do, this is another
one of those "higher than blue" abilities.
Subdomain Replacements
Aristocracy Subdomain
Noble Visage: Untyped bonus. It's a good little boost
to CHA-based skills and checks, but far too narrow.
Leadership Subdomain
Inspiring Command: Insight bonus. No limit on
daily uses? Wow. You just found something to do with
every standard action, ever.
Hubris Subdomain
Divine Demand: See Glory Domain.
Martyr Subdomain
Sacrificial Bond: You take damage instead of a
teammate. There are plenty of better ways to keep party
members alive.
 Plant Domain

Base Domain Powers Subdomain Replacements

Wooden Fist: Improved Unarmed Strike for a few Growth Subdomain

rounds per day. Ho hum. Enlarge: Only lasts one round. Too bad—enlarge
person is a good spell that's not on your list.

Leshy Subdomain
Leshy Caller: You don’t get any domain spells.

Thorns Subdomain
Cruel Thicket: 5-ft. radius, weak effect. Pass.

Bramble Armor: Damage doesn't scale at all well, and Decay Subdomain
counting on getting hit is a bad strategy. Aura of Decay: Spell casters will start to feel the STR
pinch pretty quickly. The damage is mostly fluff.
 Protection Domain
Base Domain Powers
Domain Bonus: Resistance bonus. You get +1 to all
saves every five levels, to a maximum of +5 at Level 20.
This won't stack with your Cloaks of Resistance, so it's
a good way to save some Wealth By Level or invest in a
cloak with different effects.
Resistant Touch: Everyone else should have a Cloak
of Resistance, so they won't need your bonus.
Aura of Protection: Deflection bonus. Won't stack
with Rings of Protection, which again, everyone is
expected to have. The energy resistance is only
moderately useful.
Subdomain Replacements
Defense Subdomain
Deflection Aura: Only once per day, doesn't scale,
and won't stack with Aura of Protection. The CMD
boost is of limited use.
Fortifications Subdomain
Sheltering Walls: You have to select the Urban
Acolyte trait to get access to this subdomain. It lasts for
a very short time, but gives untyped bonuses to Reflex
saves and AC. Not bad.
Solitude Subdomain
Taboo: You definitely don't want to give away your
resistance bonus for anyone or anything, so you'll need
to own a redundant Cloak of Resistance to use this
tactic. If you do, by level 15 it's a no-save, -4 debuff to
all saves against the enemy for one minute, which is an
enormous turn of the tide in your favor. Too bad you
have to get hit in melee to use it.
Purity Subdomain
Purifying Touch: There's no bonus to the new saves,
which means that you might be just as likely to fail the
second attempt. Even so, effects that allow saves every
round are typically very powerful, and you don't want
your teammates affected by them.
 Repose Domain

Base Domain Powers Subdomain Replacements

Gentle Rest: Best against Undead. No-save stagger on Souls Subdomain

a melee touch attack. Touch the Spirit World: Eventually, a free ghost
touch weapon whenever you want it. Nice.

Ward Against Death: This makes everyone in the Ancestors Subdomain

aura straight-up immune to the nastiest tricks that Speak With Dead: The dead can still lie or pass their
Undead can play on you. Very powerful, in the right Will save. Might be useful in very niche scenarios, but
circumstances. you when you already have so many good options…

Psychopomp Subdomain
Spirit Touch: See Death Domain.
 Rune Domain

Base Domain Powers Subdomain Replacements

Bonus Feat: You get Scribe Scroll for free. Not as good
for you as for a Cleric, because you only know a few
spells.

Blast Rune: Weak blast. Ick. Legislation Subdomain

Prohibition: You have to select the Urban Acolyte
trait to get access to this subdomain. Higher-level
enemies are going to laugh in your face as they swallow
the 10 damage and proceed to wreck you.

Spell Rune: Slightly better? Still pretty bad. Language Subdomain

Rune Shift: You shouldn't want to use Blast Rune at
all, much less move it around.

Wards Subdomain
Warding Rune: This has a tiny bit of utility, at least.
Will still negates.
 Scalykind Domain

Base Domain Powers Subdomain Replacements

Venomous Stare: It's mind-affecting, and Will Venom Subdomain

negates. Fascinated is good, though. Venomous Saliva: Knock knock. Who's there? Poison.
Poison who? No one, if you’re using Pathfinder rules.

Serpent Companion: Constrictor is good, Viper is Dragon Subdomain

not. Any free animal companion gets an automatic Dragonbreath: Neither the damage nor the range will
blue. ever be all that impressive. I'd prefer the companion.

Saurian Subdomain
Dinosaur Companion: What whaaaat, free dinosaur
companion! Plenty of good options to pick from here.
Allosaurus, Spinosaurus, Deinonychus, Velociraptor,
and Ankylosaurus are all tops. Make sure to grab Boon
Companion to level them up appropriately.
 Strength Domain
Base Domain Powers
Strength Surge: Enhancement bonus. I'd love if the
duration were longer, but making your martial buddy
(or animal companion) a combat god for a round
definitely isn't a bad option.
Might of the Gods: Enhancement bonus. You can't
use it for attack rolls, which is too bad, and you
probably won't run into many STR checks that you
can't think your way around...but the image of an
Inquisitor suddenly gaining +20 STR is hilarious. Just
bulk up for a round to defeat that Barbarian in an arm-
wrestling contest using the power of Cayden's brews.
Subdomain Replacements
Competition Subdomain
Athletic Exploit: Untyped bonus. You have to select
the Urban Acolyte trait to get access to this subdomain.
A well-placed Acrobatics or Escape Artist check can
save your life...but you don't have either of them on
your class list. Swim and Climb checks you can get by
with one rank in.
Ferocity Subdomain
Ferocious Strike: Inquisitors are already good at
hitting things. This makes you hit quite a bit harder, so
long as you're in melee.
Fist Subdomain
Wooden Fist: See Plant Domain.
Self-Realization Subdomain
Perfected Form: See Liberation Domain.
Resolve Subdomain
Bestow Resolve: It's equivalent to using two cure light
wounds on people after a battle, but preemptively.
Seems like a minor effect, but can add up over the long
haul.
 Sun Domain

Base Domain Powers Subdomain Replacements

Sun's Blessing: Most Inquisitor archetypes can’t Light Subdomain

channel, and those that can are pretty bad. Blinding Flash: This can potentially blind mobs of
lower-level enemies in a single swoop. Careful not to
dazzle your teammates.

Revelation Subdomain
Guided Eyes: This would be more useful for Clerics,
who don't get Perception in-class. You've already got it,
plus perceive cues and acute senses. No need.

Thirst Subdomain
Wilting Glare: It's better than Sun's Blessing, at least?

Nimbus of Light: Abuse light sensitivity, deal Day Subdomain

automatic damage to undead, dispel darkness abilities Day's Resurgence: Just use keep watch. You can get
with no check...this is actually really good. this effect for the price of a 1st-level spell.

Thirst Subdomain
Withering Nimbus: You'll run into plants and
aquatic creatures far less often than you'll run into
undead.
 Travel Domain

Base Domain Powers Subdomain Replacements

Domain Bonus: Increase your base speed by 10 feet. Portal Subdomain

Cheers! Sacred Portal: Increase the DC to force a door.
Wooow.

Agile Feet: Ignoring difficult terrain helps keep you Exploration Subdomain
mobile and 5-ft. steppin’ on the battlefield. Never bad. Door Sight: This domain has a thing for doors, huh?
Door Sight is an okay scouting tool, if a bit tedious to
use.

Portal Subdomain
Travel As One: You don't get any teleportation spells.

Trade Domain
Silver-Tongued Haggler: Untyped bonus. You're
already great at Sense Motive, but this will make you
better at Diplomacy and Bluff, too. If you're playing a
sneakier Inquisitor archetype, this is blue.

Dimensional Hop: You get oodles of feet per day,

especially given that you’ll only be teleporting a few
feet at a time in most combats. The fact that hopping is
a move action and doesn’t provoke makes this ability
ludicrously good.
 Trickery Domain
Base Domain Powers
Copycat: The benefit to mirror image is that you cast
several mirror images, allowing you to shrug off
multiple hits. Having only one mirror image doesn't do
you a lot of good.
Master's Illusion: Veil usually lasts for several hours,
which is good; this lasts for several rounds, which is
bad. Also (and I hate to sound like a broken record
here) the DC is never going to be very high for you. All
it takes is one successful save to raise the alarm.
Subdomain Replacements
Ambush Subdomain
Chameleon Aspect: It's not great for melee'ers, but for
archers who expect to be at range most of the time, this
is green. Miss chances be strong, yo. Also of note—this
might be for kobolds only? Check with your GM.
Deception Subdomain
Sudden Shift: While it won’t get you entirely out of
harm’s way, it’s fantastic for getting into or out of
flanks. Inquisitors, with their Teamwork feats, can
surely appreciate that.
Espionage Subdomain
Deep Cover: See Knowledge Domain.
Greed Subdomain
More for Me: I'll admit to not understanding this one
very well, or at least not understanding how it would be
used. Doubling up on things like healing would be
pretty good, but all in all, it seems like stealing buffs
from your teammates is a dick move. I think this spell
would be better if you could affect enemy spellcasters
with it, taking their buffs.
Innuendo Subdomain
Fool's Privilege: You won't need help making those
Intimidate checks (unless your group rules wrongly that
Nat 1s on skill checks are automatic fails) and someone
else will probably be doing the Bluff and Diplomacy.
Not bad, but better options available.
Thievery Subdomain
Thief of the Gods: It's a good power, but most
Inquisitors won't have Sleight of Hand or Disable
Device on their class list. If you do (gestalting with
Rogue, Trapfinding Slayer talent as a Sanctified Slayer,
etc.) then it becomes green.
 Vermin Domain

Base Domain Powers Subdomain Replacements

Familiar: The Greensting Scorpion provides +4

Initiative, a natural synergy with Cunning Initiative.
Familiars are always, always good.

Vermin Friend: You don't get wild empathy.

Tremorsense: Flying creatures will beat it, of course,

but being able to find invisible enemies, enemies
shrouded in magical darkness, etc. is a huge boon.
 Void Domain
Base Domain Powers
Guarded Mind: Insight bonus. Confusion, fear,
charm, compulsion...there are a lot of really nasty spells
that use the [mind-affecting] rider, and you don't want
to be subject to any of them.
Part the Veil: Initial Will negates, and they get a save
every round. If you've got a way to tank their saves, this
might bubble up to green.
Subdomain Replacements
Dark Tapestry Subdomain
It Came from Beyond: Most Inquisitors don’t get
summons. For Monster Tacticians, however, this is
blue.
Isolation Subdomain
Aura of Isolation: Difficult terrain is powerful stuff,
preventing 5-foot steps—and therefore any full attacks
with movement, barring Pounce. You get this ability
for a short number of rounds per day, however, and it's
mind-affecting, which means some enemies will be
straight-up immune.
Stars Subdomain
The Stars Are Right: You don't get the bonus spells
like Clerics do.
 War Domain
Base Domain Powers
Battle Rage: Another ability that martials will love
you for. Toss it on the Barbarian as you run by and
watch him wreck face.
Weapon Master: Even a limited form of the Brawler's
Martial Flexibility is insanely powerful. If you've got
the systems mastery to use it effectively, this ability is
incredibly strong.
Subdomain Replacements
Duels Subdomain
Divine Challenge: Sacred bonus. It's too bad the AC
bonus doesn't scale, or this would be rated higher. As it
is, it's only useful to Inquisitors who use Feint; that
means Infiltrators and anyone picking up sneak attack
dice.
Tactics Subdomain
Seize the Initiative: Allowing another person in the
party best-of-two on an initiative check for every battle
of the day is powerful, powerful, powerful stuff. If
you've got a heavy debuffer or battlefield controller
(Witch, Wizard, etc.) who absolutely needs to go
quickly in order to do their thing, Seize the Initiative
will make them love you.
Blood Subdomain
Wounding Blade: Useless for ranged Inquisitors.
For melee Inquisitors, it's a free source of bleed
damage.
 Water Domain

Base Domain Powers Subdomain Replacements

Icicle: See Air Domain. Flowing Subdomain

Go With the Flow: Can't be used offensively, so it's
best used to remove fear or confusion from teammates.

Oceans Subdomain
Surge: It's certainly better than Icicle, and because it's
keyed to WIS and your level, you actually have a decent
chance of making the CMB check.

Rivers Subdomain
Current Flow: The big draw here is that it can increase
your land speed by 10 feet, too! The Swim bonus is just
icing.

Cold Resistance: See Air Domain. Flotsam Subdomain

Sift: Step 1: Get yourself a dunk tank. Step 2: Pull out
random treasures. Step 3: ??? Step 4: Profit. Seriously,
though, fence your stuff fast, because it'll disappear
within 24 hours. Might be best to move on before they
find out. This is another power that depends entirely
on GM fiat, so collaborate with them to make sure
you're not stepping on any toes.

Ice Subdomain
Body of Ice: DR 5/— and cold immunity for rounds
per day? That's an insanely good package. I'd much
rather have cold immunity for a few rounds per day
than resistance all the time.
 Weather Domain

Base Domain Powers Subdomain Replacements

Storm Burst: Weak blast. Nope. Seasons Subdomain

Untouched by the Seasons: Instances where you need
protection from extreme temperatures won't be
common.

Lightning Lord: It seems strong at first, but this will Monsoon Subdomain
probably equate to 3d6 damage 2/day to most enemies Refreshing Rain: Nonlethal damage is relatively
on the field. That's a little over 10 damage per use, with uncommon, but the removal of exhaustion, fatigue,
a Reflex for half. Bleh. nausea, and sickening is a good effect.

Storms Subdomain
Gale Aura: Preventing 5-foot steps within a 30-foot
radius is amazingly powerful.
 Animal & Terrain Domains
Green Faith Marshals have access to Animal & Terrain Domains by default, but it's unclear whether other
archetypes do. At the very least, Green Faith Marshals are the only Inquisitors who get the 1st- through 6th-level Domain
spells added to their spell list. Note that GFMs still have to spend spells known to learn their bonus spells, and because the
domains were originally meant for Druids, a number of powers don’t have a corollary in the Inquisitor class.

Aquatic Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Sealord: Channeling is fairly weak, and this only Hydraulic push, slipstream, water breathing,
affects sea creatures. Bleh. freedom of movement (already have on spell list),
black tentacles, freezing sphere

Seastrike: It's an all-day ability, so if you're in an

aquatic campaign, the ability to use weapons normally
underwater might be very good.

Arctic Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Call Cold: Same basic problem as Sealord: it only Frostbite, aspect of the bear, sleet storm, wall of
affects creatures with the Cold subtype. ice, aspect of the wolf, freezing sphere

Banish Flame: It only affects fire creatures or effects,

but the versatility is a selling point.

Badlands Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Subsistence: One campaign in fifty might run into the Cloak of shade, feast of ashes, cloak of winds,
rules for subsisting without food or water in a desert. spike stones, wind blades, find the path (already
have on spell list)

Wasteland Stride: Many GMs will rule that because

you don't get Woodland Stride, you can't get
Wasteland Stride.

Badlands Spirit: You don't get Wild Shape.

Cave Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Cavesight: Functionally unlimited darkvision at good Detect aberration, stone call, deeper darkness
range. Useful for humans, and if your GM rules that (already have on spell list), echolocation, wall of
this lets races with innate darkvision see even further, stone, conjure black pudding
maybe even blue.

Tremorsense: Wow. Wow wow wow. 60-foot

tremorsense is amazing, perfect for catching invisible
beasties.

Crocodile Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Familiar: You'll never see me turn up my nose at a Touch of the sea, savage maw, water walk, strong
familiar. Free Alertness and rerolls on skill checks are jaw, legend lore (already have on spell list), mass
amazing. owl's wisdom

Death Roll: It would be pretty powerful for a

dedicated grappling build, but your 3/4 BAB and lack
of bonus combat feats won't ever allow you to be a
dedicated grappler.

Ambush: Hey, free stacking sneak attack dice! This is

even better for archetypes or multiclass builds that are
already getting access to SA, like the Sanctified Slayer,
for whom this ability is blue.

Desert Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Heat Shimmer: You don't get this for many rounds Cloak of shade, shifting sand, cup of dust,
per day, and the effect when struck is weak (dazzled, 1 hallucinatory terrain, transmute rock to mud,
round, Fort negates). In later levels, true seeing will cut sirocco
right through your concealment chance, too.

Servant of the Sands: Some types of djinn are

extremely powerful; if you can make it to a desert,
being able to cut costs on services rendered (including
wishes for Efreet or Marid) could be well worth the
time investment.

Eagle Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Familiar: Again, I'll never mark a domain down for Aspect of the falcon, eagle's splendor, fly, river of
giving you a familiar, especially a familiar with flight. wind, overland flight, eagle's aerie

Hawkeye: For ranged Inquisitors, this is blue—a free

mini-true strike, several times per day!

Aerial Evasion: If you're taking this Domain as a

Green Faith Marshal, you have built-in access to flight,
which means free evasion and improved evasion! Both
are excellent abilities that will save your ass from any
number of fireballs and breath attacks.
 Erosion Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Rusting Touch: Same basic problem as with the Expeditious excavation, soften earth and stone,
Sunder maneuver: you’re destroying your own loot. disable construct, rusting grasp, transmute rock
to mud, symathetic vibration

Erosion Aura: Definitely OP against Constructs, but

of limited use elsewhere.

Frog Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Familiar: See Eagle and Crocodile domains. Jump, delay poison (already have on spell list),
lily pad stride, shout, blessing of the salamander,
confusion

Sticky Strike: The bonus on the CMB check might

actually allow you to make this once in a while, but it's
still difficult to see what the tactical use is; most enemies
in later levels will be larger than you anyway, so you'll be
pulling yourself more often than pulling them.

Webfoot: Swim and climb speed equal to your land

speed, the ability to breathe underwater
indefinitely...even if you only need those skills
occasionally, Webfoot still gives you a huge amount of
versatility.

Jungle Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Brachiation: The climb speed is strictly inferior to Glide, tar ball, venomous bolt, arboreal hammer,
Webfoot from Frog Domain, but the bonus to blessing of the salamander, swarm skin
Acrobatics is interesting: you might be able to activate
it temporarily to get through a crowded battlefield.

Trap Sense: You still don't get Disable Device or

Trapfinding in-class, so this is of limited utility.

Monkey Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Familiar: See previous domains. Beguiling gift, spider climb, cacophonous call,
freedom of movement (already have on spell list),
summon nature's ally V (dire ape or girallon
only), confusion

Monkey Athletics: You don't have most of these skills

in-class, but if you're playing an archetype that lets you
become more rogue-like, this is definitely a good bonus.

Ranged Legerdemain: Again, excellent for more

rogue-like Inquisitors. In fact, Rogues wish they had
access to this domain.

Mountain Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Foothold: Not much use beyond making a small patch Stone fist, stone call, cloak of winds, stoneskin
of terrain difficult for enemies. (already have on spell list), geyser, suffocation

Thin Air: The prospect of ability drain is intriguing,

but they'll need to fail a buuuunch of Fort saves to get
anywhere close to incapacitated.
 Panther Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Hunter's Senses: Unlike Cavesight, this explicitly lets True strike (already have on spell list), darkness
you increase the range of innate darkvision, but only (already have on spell list), deeper darkness
lasts for a few minutes per day. You get scent, as well, (already have on spell list), moonstruck, commune
but bloodhound can get you scent as a 2nd-level spell. with nature, mislead

Move in Darkness: Fantastic stealth ability—you'll be

in darkness frequently if you're playing sneakier
Inquisitors. See whether your GM will allow a +1
bonus per two levels to help with scaling, rather than a
+2 bonus per four levels.

Plains Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Migrating Herd: This power will only work for Mount, chameleon stride, haste, aspect of the
Monster Tacticians, as base Inquisitors don't get any stag, control winds, find the path (already have
summon monster spells. (Green Faith Marshal and on spell list)
Monster Tactician don’t stack—this is only if your GM
rules that all Inquisitors can take Animal & Terrain
Domains.) The duration extension will help in early
levels, but quickly becomes overkill; how often will you
want that ankylosaurus around for 20 minutes of
combat? Quadruped herbivores are strictly non-
magical, too, so there's an opportunity cost to using
Migrating Herd to summon, say, an Elephant instead
of an Azata.

Pounce: Even a few times per day, even on a 3/4 BAB

class, Pounce is incredibly powerful. Two-handed and
two-weapon fighting Inquisitors will love this power.
 Plane of Air Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Bonus Class Skill: Fly as a class skill and the ability to Feather fall, elemental speech, fly, planar
train ranks without needing a glider is pretty cool. adaptation, overland flight, mass planar
Won't turn my nose up! adaptation

Aerial Agility: The bits about maneuvering in areas of

subjective gravity are mostly fluff unless you plan to do
a lot of adventuring on the Plane of Air. Better are the
huge bonuses to Fly and Acrobatics (to jump) for a
bunch of rounds per day.

Wind Savant: How often do you run into wind effects

or gases? That's yellow unless your GM has a particular
love of gas traps. However, you also get the option to
take a small elemental as your familiar; that's blue.

Plane of Earth Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Spelunker: All of the bonuses (ignoring difficult Stone fist, elemental speech, burrow, planar
terrain, DR, etc.) are good, but far too narrow to see adaptation, passwall, mass planar adaptation
much use. Pass.

One with the Stone: Novel movement types are

always cool. Of course, you could just get yourself a
small earth elemental familiar, who can use this power
at-will.

Plane of Fire Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Fire Hardened: Yawn. Resistance is easy for Obscuring mist, elemental speech, ash storm,
Inquisitors to come by, with resist energy and protection planar adaptation, scorching ash form, mass
from energy on your spell list. planar adaptation

All-Consuming Flames: Limited uses per day, and

only affects two allies' weapons. Meh. Get yourself a
fire elemental familiar instead.

Plane of Water Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Aquatic Veil: It's a weird little ability: makes you Touch of the sea, elemental speech, water
better at swimming, but has some out-of-water uses, breathing, planar adaptation, solid fog, mass
too, by extending the range at which you can deliver a planar adaptation
touch spell. Might not be bad.

Hydraulic Crush: I'll say and say again that

Inquisitors aren't blasters, but dang, this is powerful
against tightly-massed enemies. Maybe one of the only
second-tier powers in the Planar domains that's worth
keeping. Water elemental familiar is still an option.

Ruins Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Ruin Touch: Great for smashing through walls, iron Magic stone, stone call, meld into stone, rusting
bars, gates, doors, etc. I won’t say no! grasp, commune with nature, stone tell

Remembrance: Free divination ain’t bad, and you’ll

spend plenty of time in abandoned ruins if you’re in a
dungeon-crawling campaign. I’m still just not excited
by it.

Surefooted: Kind of a paradox at play: by 8th level,

you should mostly be flying, and any difficult you
terrain you encounter is likely to be magical. I’d love
getting this at 1st level, but alas...

Serpent Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Familiar: Again, always good. Charm animal, animal trance, poison, strong
jaw, snake staff, charm monster

Slither: How often do you need to squeeze through

narrow spaces?

Venom Immunity: The 6th level power is far too

narrow; the 12th level power gets considerably better.

Swamp Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Natural Healing: Channeling is a fairly weak option Hydraulic push, burst of nettles, lily pad stride,
even for Clerics, and being limited to Animals, Plants, cape of wasps, insect plague, mass fester (already
and Vermin makes it even weaker for you. Pass. have on spell list)

Reed Hunter: The blindsense/sight only applies to

fog, water, or vegetation, which is too limited.

Vermin Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Vermin Whisperer: You don’t get Wild Empathy. Ant haul, summon swarm, vermin shape I,
vermin shape II, insect plague, swarm skin

Sudden Sting: Lousy damage (pun intended) and a

mediocre stagger are the best you can come up with,
Vermin? Nah nah nah.

Vulture Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Death's Companion: Never get hit with another Deathwatch, glide, death knell, death ward
disease or save-or-die again! That's actually quite good. (already have on spell list), breath of life, circle of
death (already have on spell list)

Agent of Rebirth: Hey, so now you can reincarnate

people, a power that you definitely didn't have as a base
Inquisitor. Getting to choose between two
reincarnated races helps ensure that your friend doesn't
have to come back as a Goblin (but she should
definitely want to).

Wolf Domain

Base Domain Powers Bonus Spells

Improved Trip: It might not be super useful to your
average Inquisitor, but Sacred Huntsmasters who
choose the Ankylosaurus, Wolf, or other companion
with Trip will find all kinds of ways to abuse team trip
tactics.
Hunter's howl, bloodhound (already have on spell
list), aspect of the wolf, strong jaw, tireless
pursuers (already have on spell list), find the path
(already have on spell list)

Pack Flanking: Even when using this ability

"passively," it’s still superior to Outflank, which is a
high bar to set. Being able to designate a square to
"flank" from is also great. Sacred Huntsmasters and
Monster Tacticians will find this particularly amazing,
as the masters of where their animal companions or
summons flank from.
 Inquisitions
Inquisitions are like Inquisitor-only domains: they do not grant bonus spells, and are generally more tailored
toward actions that Inquisitors often take. As with domains, there are some extraordinary Inquisitions...and some real
stinkers.

Anger Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Hateful Retort: It's quite good, but at only 1/day, you won't get many chances to use it.

Divine Anger: Rage rocks, but it's unclear whether this power qualifies you to take Extra Rage or Extra Rage
Power. If it does, this is green, but if not, you don't get enough rounds per day to bump this past yellow.

Banishment Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Righteous Awe: Why do a melee touch attack to make an enemy shaken when you can just use Intimidate
instead?

Dismissive Touch: You already get dismissal, and the boost to the save DC won't matter enough to warrant
taking this Inquisition.

Black Powder Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Bonus Feats: Even without Deeds, Grit, and DEX-to-damage, an Inquisitor with a gun is a terrifying thought,
allowing you to resolve attacks against Touch AC. The only strike against the style is that you lose out on all those
tasty iteratives. Get Rapid Reload ASAP with this style, and consider Amateur Gunslinger for a little Grit—
Deadeye and Quick Clear are probably your best picks for Deeds.
 Chivalry Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Mount: Even if you don’t go all-in on the Mounted Combat style, riding can still be amazing, maximizing your
action economy.

Faithful Steed: Your mount gets to share some of your Judgments. Sure, why not?

Clandestine Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Disappear: Saves you a bunch of spell slots wasted on invisibility, and with an excellent duration. Definitely blue
if you're playing a Sanctified Slayer or have another means of acquiring sneak attack dice.

Blessed Secrecy: When you really, really need to pass that Bluff or Stealth check, there's Blessed Secrecy.

Delayed Spells: You still have to activate your spell as a standard action, so you're not saving much on the action
economy; if you pre-cast, you’ll still need to “cast” it again later in order for it to take effect. The exception is if
you manage to time your delay perfectly, in which case it’ll just activate as you need it. Tricky to get this one right,
but could potentially be useful if you don’t want people to know that the casting is coming from you.

Conversion Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Charm of Wisdom: By the end of your career, Charm of Wisdom will have netted you 10+ more skill ranks in
Bluff, Diplomacy, and Intimidate than you would have had otherwise. Blue if you're intending to be the party
face or want to demoralize professionally.

Swaying Word: I really wish Conversion got a better second power. Dominate person won't make you any
friends (isn't that the point of this Inquisition?) and may cause some dire consequences after the minute is up.
The whole package would improve dramatically if the target got no Will save; without that, it's strictly worse than
dominate person.

Crime Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Criminal Minds: Tired of waiting for your mark to do something you can nick him for? Just force him to
commit a crime! As far as I know, there are no clear guidelines on when and how targets know whether they've
passed a Will save. If they're not clearly alerted to the fact that you just tried to make them go bonkers, this is
better.

Thief's Soul: Steal isn't always that good of a maneuver, but man, this is three feats for free, without the INT or
Combat Expertise taxes. That's fantastic, potentially even worth building around.

Damnation Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Fear the Flames: This power is explicitly for evil characters, which means it won't find a home in many
campaigns. In addition, the effect is very weak and has both the language-dependent and mind-affecting
descriptor limitations.

Collector of Souls: Allows for two saves, and some enemies can and will turn it back on you, forcing paralysis for
an entire combat unless you save. Pass, pass, pass.

Excommunication Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Touch of Silence: The target doesn't get a save, but it's only for one round. Might be good for mage hunters
going the Step Up route.
Excommunicate: Two Will saves negate. There are probably few times when you'll stick two failed Will saves on
a magic user; even if you do, the mechanical difference between "silenced all day" and "silenced for one combat" is
negligible. You just need that wizard to be silent long enough to kill her.

Execution Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Chosen Victim: It's a decent suite of benefits, but it would be nice if it applied to a class of enemy (like the
Ranger's Favored Enemy).

Executioner's Strike: You have to land the hit, deny your opponent DEX, and threaten a critical to have
anything happen.

Fate Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Augury: 1/day augury as an SLA; that's not bad, depending on your GM and whether the spell succeeds.

Agent of Fate: It's a cool thematic buff (changing as the fates change) but you only get it for one combat per day.
Not good enough.

Fervor Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Fire of Belief: Weak blast, and only against certain alignments. Nah.

Fervent Action: The benefit is fantastic, but you only get to use it 1/day.
 Final Rest Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Disrupt Animation: A weak cantrip, a few times per day? Nope.

Unravel Animation: I guess the phrasing "you may" indicates that you don't have to choose disruption, which is
a good thing, because I would almost always choose bane unless going up against a bunch of very weak undead
enemies.

Heresy Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Righteous Infiltration: This is 2/3 of the benefit of the Conversion Inquisition. Still a sweet deal.

Blessed Infiltration: A little bit better than the Clandestine Inquisition's Blessed Secrecy. Again, you don't
always need to pass these checks, but when you do, you really do.

Word of Anathema: Will negates, and it only lasts a minute, but bestow curse is brutal no matter who you stick it
on.

Illumination Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Illuminating Touch: Pre-buffing the team’s Will saves is a great way to improve survivability, and it won’t cut
into your combat actions an inch.

Aura of Enlightenment: Relatively poor bonus to skill checks, and won't work against deeper darkness. You've
got better tricks.

Imprisonment Inquisition
 Inquisition Powers

Caging Strike: A useful power that’s rendered slightly less useful by the fact that your confirmed criticals will
often kill enemies outright, leaving no target for the entangled effect.

Divine Prison: Also no opportunity cost, but Will negates, you only get it 1/day, and it won't affect things like
undead or constructs thanks to hold monster’s “living creature” requirement.

Justice Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Judicious Force: Dedicated crit-fishing builds will already have Critical Focus, and the two don't stack. The
range is quite small, too. I dunno—I just can't get excited about it.

Chains of Justice: Again, not great to build your damage around getting hurt.

Oblivion Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Life Anchor: Heal spells will work better, or buffing allies, or debuffing enemies, or killing enemies.

Stare of Oblivion: Feeblemind is a hell of a hit to any caster, and arcane casters take a penalty to the save. Smart
casters will just choose to avert their eyes, however, and swallow the miss chance that comes with concealment.

Order Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Mantle Against Chaos: You can already get protection from chaos—both the communal and individual versions
—on your spell list. Redundant powers get a pass.

Commanding Order: One target only, and they get a Will save every round. Pass.
 Persistence Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Bonus Feat: Step Up is a necessary part of any magehunter’s toolbox. I won't say no to this feat if it's free.

Relentless Footing: Enhancement bonus. Won't stack with expeditious retreat, haste, or Boots of Springing and
Striding. It's not strictly bad, just overly redundant.

Inner Strength: Hey, this one's pretty nice—almost like a Warpriest. The healing isn't too shabby, and getting to
remove a condition on top of that is icing.

Politics Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Labyrinthine Words: Another one that's 2/3 of the Conversion Inquisition. Having Diplomacy on the list is a
boon.

Heart's Desire: Depending on how willing your GM is to play ball, this could be incredibly powerful or fairly
trivial. I also love the idea of a deity answering your questions about what your rivals are doing: "Dear Rovagug, is
Jennifer planning on stealing my boyfriend?" “SHE TOO WILL BE MADE TO BATHE IN EMPIRES OF
BLOOD.” “...so that’s a yes?”

Possession Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Self-Control: Competence bonus. Again, compulsion effects are bad news. Bonuses never hurt.

Beast Ride: Maybe of some use as a scouting or eavesdropping tool? I'd like it if it lasted minutes per level instead
of rounds per level. Hard to do much in two minutes, maximum.

Body Snatch: Using magic jar to possess an enemy's body is definitely a better move than just lying there
bleeding, but you know the usual adage about not needing to get hurt or knocked unconscious in order to use
your skills.

Recovery Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Focused Search: It's nice that it stacks with Track, but you're already going to be excellent at that.

Locate Focus: I think locate object and locate creature should have been rolled into the first-tier power, but maybe
that's just me.

Redemption Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Patient Sensibility: Three exceptionally useful skills get a bonus for free. What's not to love?

Redeemer's Mercy: nonlethal damage can be very good sometimes, and you get the merciful enchantment with
no duration limit, all the time. Nothing but upside here.

Second Chance: Probably much better if you're playing with Leadership rules or the ability to draw a group of
zealots to you. Otherwise, meh.

Reformation Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Inspired Rhetoric: And another 2/3 Conversion Inquisition power. Good stuff.

Blessed Correction: Rerolls are always good, especially with Diplomacy and Intimidate.

Awaken Discontent: Want some disposable foot soldiers for that attack on the keep? Convince them that the
king is being stingy with the contents of his treasury.
 Restoration Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Mend the Broken: Somehow even worse than cure light wounds. It’s free healing, though, so...yellow?

Cleanse Impurity: Jeez, did this Inquisition give me a case of whiplash. Cleanse impurity is incredibly powerful,
giving you crazy bonuses on SR penetration CL checks, dispel magic checks, remove curse/disease/poison
checks...restoration indeed.

Revelation Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Burn the Shroud: Weak, weak touch attack. Hard, hard pass.

Reveal Form: Mind-affecting, Will negates. Can't do anything with that that you couldn't do with dispel magic.

Secrets Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Detect Secrets: Saves you on spells known, and gets rid of the main (and troublesome) caveat of stunning
yourself if you accidentally detect a very powerful entity.

Closed Book: Nondetection is a powerful spell for foiling enemies who rely on divination magic, but costly to
maintain over an adventuring career due to the material cost. Higher-powered enemies might still have a chance of
finding you with Closed Book, but it's better than a tinfoil hat.

Sedition Inquisition
 Inquisition Powers

Bonus Class Skill: Already on your skill list, hence useful only for Clerics who select an Inquisition. (Thanks
to /u/Issuls for the tip that Clerics even can take Inquisitions!)

Undermine Authority: Good for gaining a temporary ally on the inside, but Will negates. Nice long duration.

Leadership: If your DM will let you have at it, it's amazing.

Seduction Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

AUTHOR'S NOTE: As an unusual intersection between real life and fantasy, roleplaying sex or seduction
should always be approached carefully. Gaming culture at large has a poor reputation for toxicity; each of us
therefore bears an individual responsibility for changing the culture that gives rise to that reputation. If you
intend to use seduction as a tactic in your game, clear it with your group and be prepared to give up the tactic if
anyone expresses discomfort: remember, you will never know who at your table has been sexually assaulted.
Respectful player decisions lead to group cohesion and immersion, and group cohesion and immersion lead to
lots of fun, so make sure you explicitly ask your group (including your GM!) what they’re comfortable with
before RPing any sexy times.

Disarming Flirtation: Coercing someone who wouldn't normally talk to you into talking to you is mostly fluff,
but the bit about using it to feint and denying them attacks against you is interesting. On balance, I think your
CHA score is unlikely to be high enough to take real advantage of this power.

Inspire Devotion: I'm so glad they added the word "willing" in here, because consent is important even in—
especially in—a fantasy world with few rules. Mechanically, you might be able to get a few circumstantial benefits
out of it, and there's no denying that it's in keeping with, say, a Calistrian Inquisitor.

Sin Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Sin Sense: Untyped bonus. You'd obviously have to be Evil to use this power, but it's a good boost to skills you're
likely to be using a lot anyway.
Indulge: I'm trying to think of ways to use this, but coming up short. Tack on mind-affecting and two Will saves,
and it's not a winning combo.

Spellkiller Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Bonus Combat Feat: Disruptive makes you that much deadlier against enemies attempting to cast within the
area you threaten, and it's usually only available to Fighters. Definitely a solid gain.

AC Bonus: Sacred bonus. I wish the AC bonus scaled better, and I wish the stagger rider only allowed one save
(or better yet, none at all). Nevertheless, it targets Fortitude, which most arcane casters won't be able to pass
reliably.

Tactics Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Inquisitor's Direction: You'll almost always have something better to be doing with a full round of combat, but
if you know a teammate will be more effective than you, it's nice to have the ability to grant haste in your pocket.

Grant the Initiative: Now here's a kicker of an ability: Cunning Initiative for your entire team. Fantastic
through and through.

Torture Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Torturer's Presence: Untyped bonus. I won't ever pass up the opportunity to get a little more Intimidate, but
you've got better options from Conversion Inquisition or the pseudo-Conversion Inquisitions (Heresy, Politics,
Reformation) if you want to lean into that skill.

Torturer's Touch: Fatigue is a fairly mild effect.

Critical Precision: Eh, Critical Focus isn't a great feat even operating all the time. I can't get too excited about a
limited-use Critical Focus.

True Death Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Back to the Grave: Cure spells aren't for harming undead.

Hallowed Rite: Cleric-fodder. Your job is to put the dead down.

Truth Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Justice's True Path: Needing to touch someone limits the utility of this ability just a little, but it's still a strong,
versatile buff. Just use it fast!

Grasp of Honesty: Will negates. You won't be doing any grappling, and even folks outside of a combat might get
weird about you touching them with both hands. Let me know if you can make it work!

Valor Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Touch of Resolve: Morale bonus. Even though the name of the ability includes "touch," the text doesn't say
anything about it. If it were my table, I'd rule that it functions as remove fear, including the range. Goodness
knows it'd be hard to catch a fleeing teammate in order to use a touch power.

Fearless: Wooow. Immunity to fear is straight-up fantastic, especially since Judgment ceases to operate when
you’re under a fear effect. This power is excellent enough to put the entire Inquisition in the top tier.
 Vengeance Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Divine Retribution: Imagine, you could deal a whole 26 damage to a target by the end of your career! /s, this is
obviously terrible.

Final Vengeance: Jesus, you have to be a hit away from death to even use this power? Not cool.

Zeal Inquisition

Inquisition Powers

Zealous Surge: Let's hope you're not getting knocked into negative HP enough to need this often, but when you
do, it's good to be able to pop back up.

Scourge of the Enemy: Favored Enemy is good; Favored Enemy against one religion is too niche. Maybe if
you're going after a single cult for the entire campaign?
 (Image Source)

“It’s Mueller Time.”

— Robert S. Mueller III, Inquisitor, United States Justice Department
 INQ405: A Survey of Spellcasting

As I mentioned in the introduction, ¾ casters play very differently than full casters do. In addition to having fewer
spell slots available to you at any one time, your save DCs will never measure up to the full casters’. Practically, this means
that Inquisitors will only want to learn spells that allow for a save if they’re really, really good. Otherwise, you simply can’t
afford the risk that you’ll charge up, spend your standard action to cast in the middle of a frantic combat, possibly take an
AoO or roll a concentration check...only to have the enemy pass their save effortlessly. Nothing is more frustrating than a
wasted spell slot, so we’ll focus on buff spells and debuff/damage spells that have partial effects even on successful saves.

Spontaneous casting also differs enough from prepared casting to merit some discussion. Prepared casters such as
Clerics can afford to prepare situationally useful spells (think consecrate, zone of truth, or sanctify corpse) if they feel that
those scenarios will be likely during an adventuring day. Inquisitors need to think more concretely. Will the spell be useful
to me every day? Will the spell work consistently across many enemy types, with many configurations of saves and abilities,
across many levels? What are my “desert island” spells? Only the best of the best should pass muster for spontaneous
casters, because you’ll always be limited in the number of spells that you know. Now, this same math does not hold for
scrolls and wands, which allow Inquisitors to prepare for less common circumstances as long as they’re willing to
supplement their spellcasting financially. A table of scroll and wand costs is included below; spells that are ideal candidates
for scrolls or wands will be highlighted in black. Our calculus will favor scrolls and wands for out-of-combat applications,
where they’re the least dangerous to use, and spells for in-combat applications.

As a final note, I’m not paying any attention in this list to which spells are legal in Pathfinder Society, mainly
because I don’t play. Archives of Nethys puts a symbol next to each spell that can give you that information.

Spell Level & Scroll Wand

Minimum Inquisitor Level (Spell Level x Caster Level x 25 gp) (Spell Level x Caster Level x 750 gp)

Orisons (0th-Level) at 1st Level 12.5 gp 375 gp

1st-Level Spells at 1st Level 25 gp 750 gp

2nd-Level Spells at 4th Level 200 gp 6,000 gp

3rd-Level Spells at 7th Level 525 gp 15,750 gp

4th-Level Spells at 10th Level 1,000 gp 30,000 gp

5th-Level Spells at 13th Level 1,625 gp —

6th-Level Spells at 16th Level 2,400 gp —

 Orisons
Detect Magic: You'll need it, so get it.
Guidance: Competence bonus. Sure, the buff is small, but it's versatile and free.
Oath of Anonymity: Untyped bonus. Incredibly powerful infiltration magic, especially for a cantrip. Almost every
Inquisitor will want this at some point.

Acid Splash: You'll hopefully have better attack options, but a ranged touch attack is never a bad trick to have, and it can
occasionally nullify fast healing, regeneration, etc.
Light: If you're human you'll need this anyway, but there are some fun tricks you can pull with light even if you've got
Darkvision: cast it on a pebble, then toss it into a room; cast it on an arrow to make a distracting shooting star; see to the
bottom of a pit. Applications are limitless for the creative.

Create Water: Hey, can be useful.

Detect Poison: Situational.
Disrupt Undead: Situational, but good against incorporeals at low levels.
Read Magic: Your Spellcraft skill probably won’t be high. Read magic might be worth it to avoid those scroll deciphering
checks.
Resistance: With Cloaks of Resistance, this cantrip’s shelf life is extraordinarily limited. Powerful in early levels, though.
Stabilize: Sometimes you can’t reach an unconscious and dying teammate in the heat of battle. It’s nice to be able to
prevent them from bleeding out while you handle business.

Bleed: Just hit them again.

Brand: It's very inquisitorial, but...nah. Wait for greater brand if you’re into the concept.
Daze: Will save, immunity for 1 minute, humanoid-only, affects nothing above 4 HD. Blech.
Sift: Wow, it's actually worse than just using Perception.
Virtue: A standard action to grant one temporary HP. Pinnacle of action economy, that.
 1st-Level Spells
Bless: Morale bonus. Yes, Bless is good. Good use of spells known, good way to help the team.
Divine Favor: Luck bonus. Good bonus, stacks with luck-enhancing traits like Fate's Favored, long enough duration to
last during a combat. All signs are go for a blue.
Fallback Strategy: Torag worshiper only. A non-specific reroll on any d20 you want for minutes per level is formidable.
Torag is truly the god of contingency planning.
False Face: Nice long duration, and you can maintain a stable of identities that are ready to be assumed at a moment’s
notice. Great for intrigue, infiltration, or simple catfishing.
Keep Watch: A super underrated quality of life spell, especially if someone on your team is into crafting. The fact that it
will eventually scale to include everyone in its effect is cool, too.
Wrath: Morale bonus. Stacks with divine favor, and gives Improved Critical on top of that at level 12.

Bane: Bless is better, but bane still isn't too bad. Just don't count on the BBEG failing his save...for you.
Barbed Chains: A gem of a spell in the early and mid game: trip is good, shaken is good, frightened is even better. Later,
when you're fighting big enemies, enemies that fly, enemies with ungodly CMD scores, etc., this doesn’t do much.
Ears of the City: Get the low-down on any location, topic, or rumor without tipping anyone off or spending time. And
use your Perception skill instead of Diplomacy to do it! Win, win, win.
Expeditious Retreat: Enhancement bonus. Can always find a use for more movement speed, and at minutes/level it
wouldn’t make a bad wand. The enhancement bonus won't stack with haste or Boots of Springing and Striding.
Hedging Weapons: Deflection bonus. Won't stack with your Ring of Protection, but can definitely help alleviate the pain
of not having one if you truly need that ring slot. Depending on your deity, the weapons might deal more damage than
your real favored weapon, and in DR-ignoring, incorporeal-hitting force damage, too. A strong contender to beat spiritual
weapon.
Heightened Awareness: Competence bonus. Nice duration, and synergizes naturally with your WIS focus and Monster
Lore ability. The initiative boost is just icing.
Litany of Sloth: Swift action cast is interesting, as is the clause about preventing someone from casting defensively. Pity it
only lasts one round.
Opportunistic Loyalty: Help yourself to an enemy caster’s buffs! Quite, quite good.
Protection from [Alignment]: Deflection and resistance bonuses. Good AC and save bonuses, though they won't stack
with Rings of Protection or Cloaks of Resistance. The enchantment and bodily contact clauses are more interesting.
Protection from Evil is likely your best bet if you have to pick one.
Secret Sign: Not at all your typical powergaming selection, secret sign is nevertheless a great pick for creative players. Tell
the town watch that the spy will be designated by a certain invisible mark, then watch your rival get nicked. Set a mark for a
heist that your group is pulling. Fill a room with cursed or trapped items and mark the one safe item. Convince someone
they’re receiving messages from the gods because they really are the only one who can see the writing on the wall. Options
galore, with the only limit being your i m a g i n a t i o n.
Secret Speech: Calistria worshiper only. It’s weird—it’s not a language of its own, like Thieves’ Cant, but rather a flexible
message that you can hide within any parcel of spoken language: whether my mouth says “It’s lovely weather we’ve been
having lately, isn’t it?” or “So, how did you begin your career in burlesque dancing?” you (and everyone that I mentally
designate) still understand “Don’t drink that soup, it’s poisoned.” That’s a nice ability.
Strand of the Tangled Knot: Nifty defensive ability that could absorb some big blows if your timing is good.

Aspect of the Nightingale: Competence bonus, Shelyn worshiper only. The best aspect of this spell (if you’ll forgive the
pun) is the reroll against Charm spells. Minor buffs to Perform and Diplomacy are mostly fluff.
Cause Fear: Decent for early levels, but doesn't scale at all.
Compel Hostility: Of more use if you're a tankier Inquisitor.
Detect Demon: It's ironically better at early levels—if you use it at higher levels, you're likely to accidentally stun yourself
by detecting a demon with very high mental scores.
Detect Undead: Similar to detect demon. Note that you can get an at-will version of this through an Exorcist's Aspergillum
(Wondrous Item).
Ear-Piercing Scream: You're no blaster, but this scales reasonably well and sonic damage is rarely resisted. Worth
consideration.
Egorian Diplomacy: The main downside to using Intimidate in social contexts is that people tend not to respond
positively when you threaten to murder their family. This spell can take that downside away, pending a Will save. I’d still
recommend using Diplomacy as often as you can—more flies with honey, and all that jazz.
Hide from Undead: This could actually be pretty useful in some situations.
Hide Weapon: For Cloaked Wolves and other weapon-hiders only.
Lend Judgment: Judgments can be very powerful, and allies can always benefit.
Litany of Weakness: Forcing that big bruiser not to run or charge at the start of combat could be an interesting tactical
choice.
Lock Gaze: Concealment for the rest of your team is good, but you're unlikely to be able to stick this on the BBEG as
you'd usually want to, since Will negates.
Longshot: Good especially for Black Powder Inquisition or thrown weapon builds.
Lucky Number: Luck bonus. A fun little spell that will find a use no matter what the initial roll comes up as. Low? Reroll!
Middling? +2!
Remove Fear: It's a good bonus, but situational.
Shadowfade: It’s invisibility, but only functioning in areas of darkness. Saves you a higher level spell slot if you’re going to
be sneaking in a cave, darkened camp, etc.
Shield of Faith: Deflection bonus. Useful before you get that Ring of Protection. Hedging weapons probably retains a
little more high-level utility.

Abadar’s Truthtelling: Abadar worshiper only. It’s zone of truth, but as a 1st-level spell. Decent scroll.
Alarm: Situational, but potentially useful. I’d sooner pick up keep watch, which has other benefits, too. Either one you
pick, a wand won’t cost you much and will keep you going for many, many nights of adventuring.
Brand of Conformity: This is a really cruel spell, actually; it permanently destroys the target's ability to speak its native
language. That’s cool flavor for an evil Inquisitor, but mechanically only worth a scroll.
Cloak of Secrets: Excellent for intrigue-heavy campaigns and all the private whisperings therein. A scroll will suffice.
Cure Light Wounds: The wand pick par excellence. You’ll take enough damage in a day that you can’t afford to burn all
your spell slots on cure light wounds.
Deadeye's Lore: Sacred bonus. This spell plus your existing Track ability is interesting, and you might need to track at
some point.
Disguise Self: Untyped bonus. Just get a Hat of Disguise, or a scroll if you absolutely can’t muster the gold to buy the
item.
Funereal Weapon: Funereal weapon is a decent spell for its level, but if you can hold out a little longer, you’ll get
huntmaster’s spear, which pierces all DR for specified enemies. I’ll bite as a scroll, though.
Nature's Paths: It’s definitely no candidate for a spell known, but would be excellent as a wand or scroll for outdoor
tracking and general expeditioning, especially if you don’t have a Hunter, Ranger, Druid, etc. on the team.
Peasant Armaments: Milani worshiper only. Here’s what desperate weapon wanted to be: weapons for the whole team,
they function as the closest simple or martial equivalents, and everybody gets proficiency.
Recharge Innate Magic: Okay if you have some.
Refine Improvised Weapon: If you’re not a worshiper of Milani, here’s your other option for the times when you find
yourself weaponless. I’m 99% sure that Samwise Gamgee was just constantly casting this on his cast iron frying pan
throughout the events of Fellowship.
Sanctify Corpse: Sanctify corpse is a scroll, if it’s anything. Even then, only good in necromancy-heavy campaigns.
Shield of Fortification: Sneak attacks and crits will mess you up but good. Fortification armor, however, is extraordinarily
expensive, clocking in at +1, +3, or +5 enhancement bonus (for 25% chance to negate, 50% chance, and 75% chance,
respectively). As a 1st-level spell, shield of fortification could conceivably make a good wand, protecting you over many
battles. If you’re looking for more than a 25% chance to negate, you’ll have to wait for a scroll of greater shield of
fortification when you get access to 3rd-level spells.
Speechreader’s Sight: As a scroll, it’s good at its job. Getting it made permanent for 2,500 gp is an interesting option in
intrigue-heavy campaigns.
Sure Casting: It’s kind of like true strike, but for Spell Resistance. That won’t become prevalent for a while, but it’s never
too early to pick up a wand—you’ll use it later on.
True Strike: Insight bonus. When you need it, you really need it. For my money, a wand is best.
True Appraisal: Maybe, maybe as a scroll for that one time when you come across an enormous hoard of treasure and
have to assess it accurately and quickly. Otherwise, get someone in town to do this. I don’t know of many GMs who are
willing to put up with the finicky Appraise rules solely for the purposes of cheating their players out of a few gold.
Weaponwand: Wands are great, hence the ability to use them without sacrificing a hand to wield is also great. Although
there’s a danger of recursion and subsequent space-time paradoxes, a wand of weaponwand used in conjunction with sure
casting or true strike would be quite potent.

Animal Purpose Training: Sacred Huntsmasters will be training Handle Animal anyway. No one else needs it.
Authenticating Gaze: I like it for flavor; it’s far too niche for a spell known or even a scroll, however.
Batrachian Surge: Grippli only. Water breathing, swim speeds, etc. are great bonuses; however, at a handful of rounds per
casting, the benefit won’t stick around long enough for you to enjoy them. At least it’s a swift action to cast.
Bed of Iron: Sleep out of your armor, or get a comfort enchantment for a few gold.
Bless Water: Just ask a local Cleric to make some for you.
Blessing of the Watch: Morale bonus. Welp, they did it: they found a way to make bless bad. This is an NPC spell, really.
Bowstaff: You're better off just having a back-up weapon.
Burst Bonds: Escaping manacles or shackles is far too situational, and later on you’ll have freedom of movement. Scrolls
don’t really work, either, as anytime you’re bound you’re likely to have your possessions stripped, too.
Command: One round, limited commands, Will save negates. Meh.
Curse Water: Of even less use in most campaigns than bless water.
Deadeye’s Arrow: Erastil worshiper only. It’s a weak blast, and you’ve got mundane ways to achieve the beacon effect.
Desperate Weapon: It doesn’t eliminate any of the penalties for using an improvised weapon, so even if you do find
yourself needing a weapon desperately, this spell does no better than just picking something up at random.
Detect [Alignment]: Only good if you've taken an archetype that traded away your at-will version of all four of these.
Detect Faithful: If you need to find out where other members of your faith are, ask around. Won’t be a problem unless
you worship Lamashtu or something.
Doom: Standard action demoralize isn’t a good use of actions when using Intimidate, and it’s no better in spell form.
Fabricate Disguise: All it does is shorten how long it takes to create a mundane disguise, a power that is the very definition
of niche.
Forbid Action: There are too many ways to mess you up that don’t involve your forbidden action.
Forced Quiet: Short duration, limited use. Wait a level for silence.
Gorum’s Armor: It’s a tiny amount of damage, and only applies against natural attacks. Skip.
Grappling Scarf: Some free silk rope is okay. Everyone will be flying eventually, though.
Guardian Armor: People have the armor they have for a reason. Monks don't need it; arcane casters don't want it due to
spell failure; everyone else probably has armor the same as yours or better than yours. Why are you casting this, again?
Handy Grapnel: Grappling arrows already exist.
Haze of Dreams: Desna worshiper only. Short duration, will save negates, one target, weak effect.
Hex Ward: How often will you fight witches?
Hidden Diplomacy: Two chances to fail: the Intimidate check itself and the Will save. Just get Pearly Colgate the Paladin
to use Diplomacy.
Hide Bruises: Even for Evil characters, the benefit is minor. NPC spell.
Hobble: Targets get a save every round, and the spell doesn’t prevent 5-foot steps.
Horn of Pursuit: Announce your presence to everyone, why don't you?
Inflict Light Wounds: Maybe hit them with a weapon instead?
Instant Clot: Bleed effects are fairly rare.
Instant Portrait: For those many times when you need to describe a perp to the city watch. /s
Interrogation: One question per two caster levels, and they're still free to lie to you? Nope.
Invisibility Alarm: Somehow even less useful than alarm.
Itching Curse: Weak effect, Will save negates, doesn't scale past 5 HD. Pass.
Know the Enemy: Insight bonus. It’s a good benefit that suffers from a 1-minute casting time. Unusable in combat.
Linebreaker: Half-orc only. You probably won't be doing much bull rushing or overrunning.
Open and Shut: So it's an illusion spell...but only for doors.
Peacebond: A standard action will foil you here, as the people whose weapons you most want to glue to their bodies will
be the most able to beat the STR check.
Persuasive Goad: Circumstance bonus. Neither the bonus nor the damage scales. You’re better off using some items to
achieve a higher Intimidate score.
Pick Your Poison: Cayden Cailean worshiper only. At best, it buys you a little time to cure the poison that’s actually
affecting your teammate and prevent ability damage.
Pierce Facade: Better to pump your general Perception score, rather than boosting it specifically to see through disguises.
Planar Orientation: This is niche even for a prepared spell, and that’s saying something.
Poisoned Egg: Norgorber worshiper only. Most poison is mechanically bad. This poison is mechanically worse.
Preserve Grace: Develop your own moral compass, please.
Returning Weapon: Pretty useless. Even thrown weapon builds will want a Blinkback Belt or something similar, because
the returning enchantment fails if you move after throwing.
Reveal Secrets: Will negates, which might be a Very Big Deal© since your target immediately becomes aware that you
tried to magically compel them to reveal the secret. Most folk don’t take kindly to that.
Sanctuary: Sooner or later, you need to attack.
Scarify: nonlethal damaged is healed in parallel with lethal damage, but that’s the only perk to this spell. I’d sooner just
heal a little extra lethal damage with a wand of cure light wounds.
Speak Local Language: Hindered by the fact that you have to know the language that you’re imparting. You probably
won’t be putting many skill ranks in Linguistics, so...
Spiked Armor: Here's an idea: get armor spikes!
Stalwart Resolve: Great effect that will won’t do you a bit of good at rounds per level.
Stunning Barrier: It’s the same basic idea as strand of the tangled knot, but this spell has a tiny bonus where the other spell
has a huge bonus.
Theft Ward: Tengu only. Whoa! Whoa! Who’s in my personal space? No one, ya dingus. Stop letting your shit get stolen.
Tireless Pursuit: Do you know anyone who uses the rules for forced marching? No? Neither do I.
Touch of Combustion: Ifrit only. Terrible damage spell. As weak as they come.
Unerring Weapon: Bonuses to confirmation rolls are weak; you're not a Swashbuckler. Duration is too short, too.
Vocal Alteration: Good for Vigilantes, not for you.
Wartrain Mount: If you're a Sacred Huntsmaster, you'll be investing in Handle Animal anyway.
Weapons Against Evil: Iomedae worshiper only. Your weapons won’t function against anything that has DR higher than
5/, which limits the spell’s shelf life considerably.
Winter Feathers: Tengu only. It’s endure elements, but only for cold climates and only for birds. You do the math.
 2nd-Level Spells
Anticipate Thoughts: Insight bonus. On a successful save, you get an excellent defensive buff; on a failed save, you also
get a potent offensive buff. Both bonuses get better as rounds progress. Only downsides here are the relatively short
duration and the [mind-affecting] tag.
Boneshaker: I love this spell. It's flavorful as hell, the damage scales pretty hard for a 2nd-level spell, and you can use it to
abuse AoOs against the undead. Non-intelligent undead don't even get a save.
Defending Bone: Pharasma worshiper only. DR against a wide swath of damage types that is never bypassed by
enhancement bonuses or special weapon materials, and it lasts for a ridiculously long time. Great defensive spell to keep
you on your feet during protracted fights.
Focused Scrutiny: Untyped bonus. An absolute must for nearly any important social interaction. It even comes with nice
perks for demoralize builds.
Ghost Whip: Fuck yeah, ghost whip! 15-foot range, hits against incorporeals’ Touch AC, ignores even total cover,
impossible to sunder or disarm, and grants free drag, trip, disarm, and reposition maneuvers? I hear sick a guitar riff every
time I think about this spell.
Huntmaster’s Spear: Doesn’t get much better than a 24-hour duration, and you’ll usually have a decent idea of what
enemies you’ll be facing in a day. Add on the ability to get free bane rounds and pierce any amount of DR on a masterwork
spear (with reach!) and you’ve got a hell of a package.
Inflict Pain: Even a successful save leaves an enemy fucked up for one round. It’s [mind-affecting] and [pain], so be smart
about when you attempt it.
Litany of Duty: Untyped bonus. Oh, man. Reroll any enchantment spell you’ve been subjected to as an immediate
action. Incredible.
Mortal Terror: The debuffs start nice and get nasty fast, with a chance to reduce anyone failing their saves to a gibbering
heap within a few rounds. On a successful save they’re shaken for one round, which isn’t much by itself, but better than
nothing. Definitely a top-shelf spell.
See Invisibility: Enemies will go invisible, and that's a fact.
Silence: Excellent for covert ops and brutal against casters, silence has never been a bad pick.
Stricken Heart: You’ll grow old waiting for that spell crit, but staggered is still a powerful condition that prevents full
attacks from melee bruisers and forces casters into an unpleasant choice. And no save, either, which takes it at least to green,
possibly to blue, depending on how much time you spend in melee.

Acute Senses: Enhancement bonus. Acute indeed! Perception is an important roll to make, and this makes you insanely
good at it. Pity the duration isn't longer, or this would be blue.
Blistering Invective: You diss someone so hard they literally catch on fire. It's flavorful, mechanically strong, and a delight
to unleash.
Bloodhound: Competence bonus. The duration is excellent, and adding unusual modes of perception like scent is never a
bad idea.
Brand of Hobbling: Fail a Fort save, cut someone’s speed in half (including 5-foot steps) more or less permanently. If you
can tag a runner with it, so much the better.
Brow Gasher: No-save bleed damage and a progressive debuff that eventually blinds the enemy. I like what I see.
Build Trust: The duration is good, the ability to reroll failed CHA-based skill checks is good, and there's no wording
stating that you're limited to Diplomacy checks. Make sure you're doing whatever you can to pass those checks, though,
because each reroll prompts a new Will save.
Darkness: You never know when this might come in handy.
Escaping Ward: Halfling only. Useful spell for positioning and defense.
Fear the Sun: AoE light sensitivity that you can easily turn into a save against blindness with any one of your numerous
illumination control spells. Have at ye!
Guarding Knowledge: Insight bonus. A natural synergy with Monster Lore, guarding knowledge will protect you from
some of the very worst monster abilities.
Hidden Presence: Will negates, but suppressing even extraordinary or supernatural senses is quite the selling point.
Honeyed Tongue: Nice long duration, and best-of-two is a great mechanic, especially if you're having to be nice to
someone for a change.
Inheritor’s Smite: Sacred bonus, Iomedae worshiper only. Uncommon bonus, swift action cast, buff to hit, free bull rush
with no AoO...all systems are go.
Invisibility: Perennially useful.
Mark of Blood: The ability to find someone at all times is highly useful.
Perceive Cues: Competence bonus. Good boost to skills you're already going to be using a lot. Nice long duration. Stacks
with acute senses. All systems are go!
Protection from [Alignment], Communal: Pick Good or Evil, whichever your group faces most often, and enjoy.
Psychic Reading: Even with the chance for some inaccurate information, your Sense Motive skill checks are likely to be
sky high, and this is a form of divination that doesn’t allow for a save, making it excellent against other casters. Just take
what you learn with a grain of salt, including information like alignment.
Resist Energy: It scales pretty quickly, and can make tough fights easy when combined with quell energy.
Spiritual Weapon: It gets iterative attacks, penetrates DR, hits incorporeal creatures, and can attack an enemy without
continued action input from you. It won't ever be a powerhouse, but free damage is still a win, win, win.
Sun’s Disdain: Fear the sun is for crowds, but sun’s disdain is for solo operators. Permanent light blindness? I’ll have what
she’s having.
Tactical Acumen: Insight bonus. You're already a Teamwork feat powerhouse, and feats like Outflank paired with
tactical acumen can be powerful indeed.
Tactical Miscalculation: Enemies with reach and Combat Reflexes will be more than a little put out by this spell. Keep
the [mind-affecting] and [emotion] riders in mind.
Voluminous Vocabulary: Tongues doesn't give you the ability to read or write, and this does. Besides, you'll mostly be
using tongues to understand one language you don't speak, not many.
Weapon of Awe: Sacred bonus. Excellent pre-combat buff spell.

Bestow Insight: Insight bonus, human only. It's good for skill buffing. You're probably better off saving your 2nd-level
slots and using guidance, though. Less effective, but far more efficient.
Detect Magic, Greater: It's a nice upgrade to detect magic, but you probably won't want to be burning 2nd-level spell
slots on it.
Detect Thoughts: What are "surface thoughts," exactly? Who knows? That's half the fun. Careful using this around
BBEGs, as a high enough INT score will stun you.
Diminish Resistance: Fort saves will get sky-high in the later levels, so don’t count on landing this. Definitely useful if you
manage to, though.
Flames of the Faithful: Not the greatest, but some enemies do have fire vulnerabilities. Might be better off hitting them
with blistering invective, though.
Hold Person: Will negates. Probably best off leaving this to the Wizard, since they get a save every round.
Holy Ice Weapon: Undeniably cool, but holy crap, you have to tote around 5 lbs. of powdered silver?
Hunter's Lore: Thanks to the Monster Lore class feature, Inquisitors are pretty good at identifying enemies. This makes
you better.
Instrument of Agony: Morale bonus. The boost to Intimidate isn't bad if you've got a demoralize build, and nauseated is
a hell of a condition if you can proc it successfully. Passing that ability through SR, a Will save, and the [mind-affecting] tag
will severely limit your target choices, though.
Iron Stake: Haha, this will fuck up fey and demons pretty badly. Definitely a must-get if you’re going up against the
denizens of the First World or the Abyss.
Mindshock: Pairs well with the Enforcer feat. If you don’t have that, you might not get much mileage out of nonlethal
damage, especially since so many immunities (mind-affecting, critical hits, pain effects, etc.) will negate the bonus.
Qualm: Even if you stick the landing on the Will save, you’re effectively just dazing them for a round, which isn’t that
great.
Quell Energy: You still get one round of effect even if the target passes its Will save. Could be effective against dragons,
elementals, etc.
Righteous Blood: Great as a buff spell for a frontline Paladin or Warpriest. If you don’t have those on your team, skip.
Rovagug’s Fury: Rovagug worshiper only. No way your trip will succeed against most larger targets, but hordes of
minions? Good there.
Savage Maw: Adding a natural attack is never a bad idea. A free swift action Dazzling Display is icing.
Shadowmind: Useful for blinding enemies that see in supernatural darkness, pending a save.
Shield Other: Good tanking spell.
Spell Gauge: It's actually pretty nifty, but many times SLAs are the ones you have to watch out for. Also, a Will save
negates. That's bad news when you're targeting nothing but casters with it.
Spindrift Spritz: The spell’s chassis is solid; I think it’s more appropriate as a 1st-level spell in terms of power, however,
given the low severity of the listed conditions.
Surmount Affliction: What soothing word wanted to be.
Tremor Blast: This could be nice against large groups of weaker enemies.
Undeath Sense: Lasts a bit longer, comes out of the gate a bit faster. Modest trade-off with detect undead.
Urgathoa’s Beacon: Strong if you’re a necromancer; useless if you’re not.

Align Weapon: There’s been some discussion as to whether the +2 bonus from the Bane class ability allows Inquisitors to
bypass DR/Alignment earlier than other classes. My inclination would be to say yes, but your GM may differ. If the answer
is no, align weapon becomes a good wand pick vs. Outsiders, etc.
Brittle Portal: Rovagug worshiper only. Go ahead and punch your way through that stone wall! The World Ender loves
you for your destruction, and creative players will appreciate the possibilities of moving laterally through a dungeon.
Consecrate: This is not something you’ll be slinging around every day, but keeping a scroll on hand for hallowing unclean
sites is an okay idea.
Cure Moderate Wounds: Cure Light is just as good, and the wands are cheaper. You’ll be able to wield wands of cure
moderate if you find them, though, and that’s a boon.
Delay Disease: Ratfolk only. You could theoretically keep this running permanently, only letting it lapse once you finally
heal the underlying condition.
Delay Poison: Nice long duration. Poisons can be no bueno, and this spell will help stave off ability damage until someone
can cure it.
Desecrate: As consecrate, but for Urgathoan Inquisitors or similar.
Discovery Torch: Enhancement bonus. It's a neat little spell, light combined with a few skill bonuses. Duration isn't bad.
Pairs nicely with fear the sun.
Enchantment Sight: Such a useful spell! People who’ve been magically compelled to do something are often the worst
kinds of trouble in a campaign, full of backstabbery and sabotage; enchantment sight lets you figure out which
enchantment spells are active on anyone in your surroundings, as well as the approximate levels of the spells affecting them.
Another strong contender for permanency at 2,500 gp.
Find Traps: Acute senses will work for most applications. Find traps still has its role to play as a scroll, however.
Follow Aura: Far too narrow for a spell known, but tracking auras is one more reason you’re the tracking master.
Garrulous Grin: Could find a use or two in an intrigue-heavy campaign. Use with secret sign for extra shenanigans: “He’s
been marked as a drug mule using an invisible sign upon his person, my lady, a sign which through my magics I am able to
reveal to you. If you question him about it, he is likely to become evasive—the final proof of his guilt.”
Invisibility Bubble: Underwater invisibility. What will those crazy kids at Paizo think up next?
Knock: Could be useful, but the DCs get quite high. An auto-success would have been better.
Nondetection, Lesser: Good for general anti-divination use, and without all of the expensive material components. At
minutes per level, however, you’re not going to be able to screen yourself for any significant portion of the day. Probably
best in focused social encounters where you know someone with divination magic might be trying to glean information
about you.
Open Book: Might be useful on a BBEG or other important figure in campaign, but you probably won't be the one
casting it, as it’s much better for prepared spellcasters. Will negates.
Remove Paralysis: It's a nasty condition, so I’ll always recommend a scroll or two.
Restoration, Lesser: Scroll scroll scroll, especially if you don’t have two other casters on the team who can cast it.
Rotgut: Good for getting targets drunk, either to coerce/ambush them, or else as a tactic against some groups of
humanoids who might be delighted to discover that their water has, by some miracle, turned into wine.
Shackle: A scroll if there ever was one. Who knows? You might need to take prisoners at some point.
Spiritual Squire: A longer duration would have been great. Aid another is probably the best use of its actions.
Tongues: This spell has always been a good pick. A scroll will do, though.
Undetectable Alignment: It's an okay benefit, but you won't need it that often. Scroll it.
Whispering Wind: Tactical communication is always difficult during coordinated operations, but a scroll of whispering
wind might alleviate the pain a little.
Zone of Truth: Interrogations do come up, but note that smart enemies will dodge the truth or pass their Will save.

Abeyance: Far too limited, can only be used once, doesn't cure the curse. Pass.
Aid: Morale bonus. Bless gives you the same benefit for multiple party members as a 1st-level spell.
Ally Across Time: One duplicate won’t be helping you out much. We’ll wait for army across time.
Beacon of Guilt: Highly situational spell for when you’re trying to catch a thief or something similar.
Bestow Weapon Proficiency: One minute per level? Nah.
Billowing Skirt: The clothing clause is restrictive, and it’s a standard action to cast. Isn’t half the point of feather fall that
you can use it as an immediate action?
Blessings of Luck and Resolve: Halfling only. Remove fear does it just as well, and as a 1st-level spell.
Bloodbath: Generally speaking, it's not a good idea to deal damage to yourself just to deal damage to enemies.
Bullet Ward: Even with all things serving the Beam, how often do you face enemy Gunslingers?
Calm Emotions: Will negates, and concentration is bad.
Castigate: Why not just demoralize instead?
Conditional Favor: I’d rather use something like conditional curse or geas to extract good behavior from someone. This is
too finicky.
Confess: As flavor, it’s as inquisitorial as they come; 2d4 sicken is not a great use of a 2nd-level spell slot, however.
Corruption Resistance: Way too narrow.
Death Candle: Will negates, and the effect isn't very strong.
Death Knell: See above.
Delay Pain: Only guards against a few conditions, none of which are life-threatening.
Demand Offering: It’s like a Disarm or Steal maneuver in spell form. Probably just as likely to work, too.
Detect Relations: Really seems like you shouldn’t need a spell to figure out whether two people are family.
Disguise Other: Same issues as disguise self. There are better methods available.
Display Aversion: For use against vampires only, who will most likely make their save and realize that it’s just a figment.
Distressing Tone: Blergh. Short duration, limited targets, Fort negates, and you have to spend a full-round action.
Early Judgment: Flavorful, but mechanically useless.
Effortless Armor: If it were hours per level, this would be a hell of a spell. Minutes? Blech.
Enshroud Thoughts: Too narrow. Hopefully nobody’s trying to modify your memory on the regular.
Enthrall: Will negates, it takes a full round to cast, and you probably have an average CHA score.
Escape Alarm: Stop right there, criminal scum! Fun but mechanically poor.
Fairness: Abadar worshiper only. Far too narrow.
Fleshy Facade: NPC spell.
Flickering Lights: I mean, this will just fuck shit up and make your team hate you. If you want light, cast daylight. If you
want darkness, cast deeper darkness. I don't know of any group that wants the lighting to randomly switch between
supernatural darkness and bright daylight.
Force Anchor: I want to love this one—it's so cool. The damage sucks, though, and the debuffs aren’t meaty enough for a
2nd-level spell.
Ghostbane Dirge: Will negates. Again, better off buying some weapon blanches...or using the GHOST WHIP!
Ghostly Disguise: Too narrow.
Haunting Reminder: Fun as making someone permanently scared of you sounds, is there a mechanical benefit to it? Nah,
probably not.
Healing Token: You won’t really have the spells available to be a dedicated healer. Leave this role to the Cleric.
Hidden Blades: Way too niche for anyone but a Cloaked Wolf.
Hold Fey: See hold person above. This is even more situational.
Howling Agony: Yeah, casters are just going to choose the "scream" option and disintegrate you with their remaining
standard action.
Improve Trap: Traps? Nope.
Inflict Moderate Wounds: Yeah, no. Much better options available.
Inner Focus: Best for Evil characters who can’t reveal their faiths in public.
Instant Weapon: Only for melee characters. If you're getting this for its simulated ghost touch ability, you're better off just
buying some weapon blanches or using the incomparable ghost whip.
Kalistocrat’s Nightmare: The anti-Midas Touch...and about as useful as that sounds.
Know Peerage: Wow, what a niche spell. Not for you.
Light Prison: Iomedae worshiper only. The damage is terrible, and the blind isn’t much better, with so many options
already available to you.
Litany of Defense: Duration is faaaar too short. Besides, you need your swift actions.
Magic Siege Engine: How often do you use siege engines, again?
Muffle Sound: Duration is very short, and the spell failure chance will just piss most people off. Only rogues would see
much use.
Necrostasis: They still have to fail their save, which seems out of character for most undead-specific spells. I’d pass.
Protection from Outsiders: You have specify type and subtype of outsider, which might get too fine-grained for most
adventuring parties.
Quick Change: Inquisitors can’t change shape.
Retributive Reparations: About the only thing I'd put this on is a component pouch/divine focus, but you can just buy
extras.
Returning Weapon, Communal: For when you have an entire group of thrown weapon builds!
Revealing Light: Of dubious effectiveness, even against stealthy creatures.
Rumormonger: Too narrow.
Sacred Bond: Expensive material components for your level. Besides, you're not a healer.
Sense Fear: You don't need to sense fear. You're the one who causes it. YOU ARE THE ONE WHO KNOCKS.
Sense Madness: Too narrow.
Shamefully Overdressed: Well, let's see: it would only be useful against enemies that wear clothing; it can't be used to
remove armor, per the donning rules; there's no guarantee that they'll remove a magical piece of attire; and enemies get SR
and Will to negate. As a combat spell, it’s ridiculously bad. As flavor? You’ll never find better.
Shared Suffering: Please don’t plunge a dagger into yourself just to deal some damage.
Shield of Shards: Even for shield users, the damage is incredibly low and you lose your protection while the spell is active.
Shifted Steps: Better off having someone else cast ghost sound.
Soothing Word: It would be good if you were under the effects of multiple conditions, but if that's the case, you're
already toast.
Spellcurse: Most enemies won't be buffed this much, and the damage (especially if they pass their Will save) is anemic.
Spiral Descent: But you don’t get the ascent version? Strange.
Stoke the Inner Fire: As you’ll see later, the flaming weapon enchantment is as weak as they come.
Telepathic Censure: Too narrow.
Unholy Ice Weapon: Unless you've been stripped of possessions and imprisoned by Good-aligned outsiders...?
Vexing Miscalculation: Only guards against one critical. Blah. Fortification armor will do you one better.
 3rd-Level Spells
Bone Flense: 1d6 damage per CL with no cap, then 1d4 bleed and sickened for rounds afterward? Holy crap, that’s good.
I don’t even care that a Fortitude save negates. The only real fly in the ointment is that you have to be Red Mantis or using
a sawtooth sabre, an arrangement that’s unlikely for most inquisitors unless they worship Achaekek.
Channel Vigor: Whoa, whoa, whoa. Haste? +6 to Fort or Will saves? +4 to ranged attack rolls? Switch between effects as a
move action? Where have you been all my life, channel vigor? (/u/Shaffi points out that many of the spells published in
Inner Sea Gods are in fact not deity-specific, so all Inquisitors can rejoice that they get such a good spell!)
Deadly Juggernaut: Luck bonus. At minutes per level, you stand a good chance of building up to maximal effect: +5 to
hit, +5 damage, and DR 10/—. Juggernaut’s Pauldrons can give you this spell for free three times per day—give them some
thought if you’re playing with Automatic Bonus Progression rules.
Dispel Magic: Versatile and powerful. Perfect for a spell known.
Forced Mutation: -4 to CON is a hit against anyone, and -4 CHA might hinder some casters or feint/demoralize builds as
well. Add a free deformity on top of that, and you’re looking at a strong spell.
Hunter's Eye: Competence bonus. Ignore most forms of concealment, functional see invisibility, and a huge boost to
Perception, all wrapped up in a nice little package.
Magic Circle vs. [Alignment]: Deflection and resistance bonuses. Protect the squishy back line or your front line
partners for a good duration. Magic circle vs. evil will likely see the most use.
Righteous Vigor: Morale bonus. Great boost to attack and HP, and can be cast on others in case you've got morale
bonuses going already.
Second Wind: Emergency swift/immediate action cure moderate wounds when you’re below ¼ HP. Hell. Yes. This might
be the only thing standing between you and perma-death in some cases.
Shield of Darkness: 50% miss chance for rounds/level that beats true seeing and blindsense. You’ll still need to worry
about tremorsense, blindsight, and scent, but even taking those limitations into account, this is a powerful ability.
Terrible Remorse: It's a pretty brutal spell that's especially effective at shutting down big bruisers with weak Will saves
and high STR. Even better because it staggers and gives a penalty to AC on a successful save!

Apparent Treachery: No flanking, no buff spells, and targets provoke AoOs from their own erstwhile allies. If you’ve got
a friend with illusion magic, you could get some serious in-fighting rolling with this spell.
Blinding Ray: Dhampir only. Fear the sun or sun’s disdain + blinding ray allows you to give a target light sensitivity, then
blast them for damage and long-lasting blindness. This targets Fort saves, too, so good against casters.
Burst of Speed: Untyped bonus. With its ability to ignore AoOs and move you through enemy spaces (not to mention its
swift action cast) burst of speed is ideal as a mid-combat positioning tool or substitute for a full-round Withdraw action.
Claim Identity: Untyped bonus. The duration is excellent, you get a boost to the Disguise check, and nobody will believe
the target when he says he's you. You're not naturally great at infiltration, Bluff and Disguise not being such important
skills for the base Inquisitor, but this would be a good way to do it if you needed to.
Clay Skin: The worst part about stone skin is the material component costs. What if you could still get DR/Adamantine
with no material costs, though? That’s what clay skin is here for. It won’t soak quite as much damage, but 50 damage you
don’t take is 50 HP you don’t have to heal later.
Damnation: Will only negates half of the damage, and you're likely to fight a lot of enemies who use Evil spells or SLAs.
This one will continue to grow as you level because it's keyed off of your opponent's spell levels, not your own.
Daylight: Necessary for dispelling magical darkness.
Deeper Darkness: More tactical options than daylight.
Dimensional Anchor: Great against those tricksy casters and Outsiders.
Frosthammer: Kostchtchie worshiper only. It’s decent damage with no save and a free trip attempt using your CL and
WIS modifier instead of CMB and STR. Quite good!
Heroism: Morale bonus. I mean, yep, it's great, no surprises there.
Hide from Undead, Greater: Now the spell doesn’t cancel if you attack or cast! For non-intelligent undead, this means
death as you cut them apart.
Invisibility Purge: Help out your martial teammates. Only invisible stalkers are immune.
Keen Edge: Its duration is plenty good, and it saves you some enchantment costs if you don’t want to spend the +1 on
keen.
Litany of Eloquence: No save, but the duration is only one round and fascinated is a difficult condition to take advantage
of directly. Best used as a distraction on a BBEG while you handle a minion or two.
Magic Vestment: Nice long duration, great effect. If you’re playing as a Ravener Hunter with access to some of the armor
Revelations, talk to your GM about whether they qualify for magic vestment. They should.
Night of Blades: Norgorber worshiper only. I love wall spells, no matter the variety.
Nondetection: By this level, you've probably pissed off a few BBEGs with divination magic, and you don't want them to
know where you are. Good for infiltrating organizations, too.
Penumbral Disguise: Competence bonus. Gives a hefty boost to Disguise and Stealth that stacks with adjustable disguise
or disguise self in all but bright light. If you're a sneaky Inquisitor, this is an awesome spell that Rogues would love to
poach.
Prayer: Luck bonus. Won't stack with divine favor, but this is still a nice little combo buff/debuff.
Quell Energy: Great debuff against elementals and others that use elemental energies. Even a successful save gives you
some protection.
Selective Invisibility: Hmmm. Issue is that enemies will notice if one of their compatriots just gets up and starts fighting
with thin air. Maybe for shrugging off hits while you focus on one big enemy? But if you’re going for that, why not use...
Shield of Fortification, Greater: Crits and sneak attacks will kill you. This spell gives you the equivalent of a +3 armor
enchantment for as long as it’s up, so go ahead and take advantage!
Shield of Wings: Ragathiel worshiper only. A flight speed plus fire resistance (and eventually immunity) is wicked. Gonna
have to play a Ragathite Crimson Templar one of these days!
Witness: Nothing says your target has to be human. Excellent for spying, and gives you some meta-knowledge about
which senses your target has.

Bloody Arrows: Stackable bleed damage! Nice. Zen Archers and others with crazy amounts of ranged attacks will love you
for this buff. Good for self-buffing ranged Inquisitors, obviously.
Cast Out: Even if the enemy passes the Will save, you still dispel one ongoing enchantment or possession effect. Friends
might not thank you for dealing damage to them in order to get the dispel, however.
Coordinated Effort: Similar to the Tactical Leader archetype’s special ability. Quite good, but limited by the fact that you
need to be part of any “team” in order to proc the selected feat.
Daybreak Arrow: Another option to consider in the blinding ray/fear the sun/sun’s disdain suite of light sensitivity
tactics.
Draconic Malice: Nullifies fear immunity and immunity to mind-affecting conditions...but only for living creatures.
Womp womp.
Eldritch Fever: Disease immunity will stop it outright; however, a single Fort save in return for permanent sickened and
constant concentration checks can make a caster’s life hell.
Fearsome Duplicate: Halfling only, competence bonus. You could probably find a use for a larger, more intimidating
version of yourself from time to time.
Find Fault: Insight bonus. You tend to be pretty good at monster identification due to Monster Lore, but archetypes that
gave it up will find this useful. The boost to your next attack roll is just gravy.
Halt Undead: Non-intelligent undead get no save. Not a bad way to take three enemies out of a fight with minimal fuss.
Litany of Order: Double damage vs. chaotic creatures is ridiculously good; only the Paladins, Warpriests, and Clerics of
the party will see any benefit, however.
Litany of Warding: I'd sooner pick up Combat Reflexes, but more AoOs never hurts.
Locate Weakness: The utility depends on the threat range of your weapon. Could be green for crit-fishing builds.
Magic Weapon, Greater: Enhancement bonus. Won't bypass DR, and won’t stack with your normal enhancement
bonus.
Protection from Energy: I prefer resist energy in most circumstances.
Raven's Flight: You're limited to one turn, but having access to flight is never bad. The main use I would envision for this
spell is getting positioned at the start of battle, but burst of speed can probably do it just as well.
Resist Energy, Communal: Particularly good against enemies with strong elemental affinities, like dragons or elementals.
Stage Fright: Multiple targets, Will negates. A decent anti-caster tool that Spellbreakers and Witch Hunters should
consider.

Adjustable Disguise: The ability to change the disguise and a good duration make this a worthier choice than disguise self,
but you probably still won't be doing enough disguising to make this worth a spell known.
Align Weapon, Communal: The duration will last you only one combat, but everyone penetrating DR/Alignment can
make for severely foreshortened fights against Outsiders and the like.
Arcane Sight: It's definitely better than detect magic, but one is an orison that you can use at-will, and this is a 3rd-level
spell—a precious resource. A scroll will probably suffice.
Blood Biography: A great quality of life spell that will help you dissect what happened in crime scenes, battlefields, etc.
Cleromancy: The full-round cast makes cleromancy an unlikely choice for mid-combat. For skill checks outside of
combat, it’s quite nice.
Cure Serious Wounds: Again: excellent spell, but any healing you do needs to come from a wand. Your spell slots are for
combat and skills.
Detoxify: Just the slightest bit too niche for a spell known, but still a nice effect.
Gullibility: Untyped bonus. Some good applications if you’re trying to run a con or something similar.
Insect Scouts: Man, I really like this spell. You get information about joints you're casing (I still think like a Rogue, even
after all these years) and the ability to reroll some saves or skill checks if you fail them in the course of breaking in. It's
probably too situational for a spell known, but a scroll might be handy.
Locate Object: It’s a fairly weak spell for 3rd level, but hey, you never know.
Planar Inquiry: You'll be getting an Outsider that's aligned with your philosophies, hence one that generally wants to
help you and not, ya know, slaughter you. Your GM will decide how much meta-information the Outsider is able to
furnish, though.
Remove Curse: The cleric will always be better at this, but you should for sure keep a scroll or two handy.
Remove Disease: See above.
Retributive Reparations: Not as a spell known, but quite the pick for a scroll if you’re trying to hang onto a McGuffin.
Riversight: Cool in concept, too narrow in execution for anything but a spell.
Speak with Dead: So they can lie to you, or refuse to answer? Jeez, these guys. Might be useful as a scroll. Occasionally.
Spiral Ascent: Teleporting up is generally more useful than teleporting down.
They Know: Every Inquisitor should grab a scroll of they know at some point; it’s just too, too flavorful.

Agonizing Rebuke: Hobgoblin only. [Emotion], [mind-affecting], [pain], SR applies, and Will to negate, all for a little
bit of nonlethal damage. Blergh.
Anti-Summoning Shield: Your chances to prevent summoning cap out at 75%.
Aquatic Trail: Seafaring campaigns only.
Aura of Inviolate Ownership: Unless your DM is fond of the Steal or Disarm maneuvers, this won't be of any use.
Banish Seeming: It has its uses, but by and large dispel magic will always trump it.
Battle Trance: Half-orc only. Can't move away from enemies that attacked you, take INT damage, lose ability to cast
spells without passing a concentration check. Hell, no.
Bite the Hand: Narrow application + Will save = no thanks, Tom Hanks.
Blessing of the Mole: Competence bonus. Most races have darkvision already, and the Stealth bonus certainly isn’t taking
home any prizes.
Blood of the Martyr: Gross as hell and not mechanically strong. You have cure light wounds, others have infernal healing.
Blood Scent: Orc only. You have bloodhound, which gives you scent as a 2nd-level spell. Pass.
Continual Flame: Light or an ioun torch will serve for normal visibility purposes, and you’ll want something like daylight
to dispel magical darkness.
Countless Eyes: Useful for the tanks in the party; leave it for a full caster, though.
Delay Poison, Communal: Delay poison is nice because you can delay for a long time; if you split up the duration,
everyone will wind up getting poisoned.
Detect Anxieties: Long cast time, Will negates, risk getting stunned, mechanically weak...but what flavor!
Detect Desires: Same basic problems and flavorful eccentricities as above.
Disrupt Link: If you're focusing on taking out the familiar or animal companion instead of its bonded Wizard or Druid,
you're focusing on the wrong thing.
Disrupt Silence: Too narrow.
Divine Illumination: You can't channel.
Domination Link: If vampires are the main targets in your campaign, pick it up. If not, don’t.
False Alibi: Norgorber worshiper only. Highly, highly situational, and without a doubt an evil spell to cast.
Fester: Far too limited in scope. Most monsters with fast healing or regeneration also have ways to stop that regeneration.
Flexile Curse: Fortunately for your wealth by level, the broken conditions eventually go away (unlike Sundering or
something similar) but when are you going to have hours to wait while an enemy's armor degrades?
Free Swim: Good if your campaign is aquatic, bad if not. You know the drill by now.
Full Pouch: Alchemical items are cheap, and this is way too weak for a 3rd-level spell. 1st-level, maybe.
Glimpse the Hidden: Strictly inferior to see invisibility.
Glyph of Warding: Not for a spell known. A Wizard might prepare this while fortifying an area, but you need something
that you could reliably use every day.
Guardian Monument, Lesser: Again, a cool spell for a Wizard to reward a village with, but not for you.
Hidden Speech: Too niche for a spell known.
Holy Javelin: Low damage, short duration, and minimal effort for opponents to remove the javelin. Pass.
Horrifying Visage: Best case, enemies get the sickened condition under restricted circumstances. Not worth it to me.
Improve Trap: Kobold only. An NPC spell.
Inflict Serious Wounds: Bleh. Just attack.
Instant Fake: More suited to Arcane Tricksters.
Isolate: Most enemies later on will be able to see invisibility, hence will be immune to the effects of this spell.
Light of Iomedae: Iomedae worshiper only. The best application is as an anti-invisibility tool, but you already have see
invisibility and invisibility purge. This only affects undead, so I’d let it go.
Lightning Lash: Measly damage, with a Fort save negating what little there is. The image is cool, but nah.
Litany of Entanglement: Will negates, and won't work on flying creatures, which get more common as levels progress.
Litany of Righteousness: You don't have an aura.
Mantle of Calm: I don't care if everyone's raging, you don't want to take a -2 hit to attack while giving them +2 to all
saves.
Meticulous Match: Way too narrow. Another prepared spell.
Miasmal Dread: Half-orc only. Why are you not using Dazzling Display instead? Why waste a 3rd-level spell?
Mythic Severance: Anyone with mythic power is going to beat your save DC. Skip.
Obscure Object: Too narrow.
Pack Empathy: You've got better ways to do a sit rep than this.
Pillow Talk: A lot of potential downside here, with not a lot of upside in sight.
Reaper's Coterie: Profane bonus. The bonus type is hard to come by, but at rounds/level, how much of a boost do you
expect to get? You can't kill fast enough to rack up anything decent. Get deadly juggernaut instead—that lasts minutes per
level.
Respectful Quiet: Chelaxian only. I’d stick with silence.
Retribution: Inflict pain does it just as well—if not better—as a 2nd-level spell.
Sadomasochism: Zon-Kuthon worshiper only. Don't take damage to demoralize. Just demoralize.
Searing Light: At the level you get this, on average you'll be dealing 13-18 damage with it. For reference, many CR 7
undead in the Bestiary have 75+ HP. Not worth it.
Seek Thoughts: Slightly better than detect thoughts, but still not great for a 3rd-level spell.
Selective Alarm: Why not use alarm?
Slave to Sin: Worst case scenario for an enemy is sickened and staggered. We’re starting to get into the higher levels, where
we need to ask more of our spells.
Soul Vault: Far too niche.
Spotlight: I think you've got better ways to exploit light sensitivity, and the main guys you'll try to be tagging with this
(stealthy, invisible, etc.) will probably pass a Reflex save.
Stunning Barrier, Greater: You've got magic circle. Stop trying to get hit!
Sweat Poison: Grippli only. Puny Fort save DC.
Trial By Fire: If you're trying to deal damage, there are better ways; if you're trying to demoralize, there are better ways.
Unhallowed Blows, Greater: You’re not undead, I think?
Wall of Split Illumination: If you could see through the wall, this spell would be blue. If the wall stopped movement
through it, this spell would be blue. As is, it provides no tactical advantage beyond forcing enemies to spend a move action
getting onto your side of the wall.
Ward the Faithful: Magic circle has a smaller bonus, but includes everybody, even the heretics.
Winged Weapon: Don't need no stinking throwing weapons.
 4th-Level Spells
Army Across Time: Much, much better than its little brother. You’re the teamwork feat master, and this spell gives you
the ability to abuse that mastery to no end. All the Aid Other actions will help, as well.
Beacon of Luck: Sacred bonus, Desna worshiper only. +2 to all saves is worth the price of admission on its own. An
uncommon bonus type and giving allies rerolls on saves pushes this spell well into the blue zone.
Blade of Light: Sacred bonus. To-hit buffs, free daylight and ghost touch, automatic confirmations against sunlight-
vulnerable enemies, extra damage...the benefits of this spell just keep on rolling. Definitely an “I win” button for melee
Inquisitors when facing undead of any kind.
Divine Power: Luck bonus. Strictly better than divine favor (by a wide margin) but won't stack with it. Learn both, in
case one level of spell slot is in higher demand that day. Fate’s Favored is a tacky trait choice in my opinion, but it will
improve this spell noticeably.
Enchantment Foil: Untyped bonus. With a metamagic rod of Extend Spell, this can easily last all day. As I say
continuously, enchantment effects are some of the worst in the game; the ability to bluff your way into making the enemy
caster think that they own you is gravy.
Freedom of Movement: Perennially excellent. This spell is the reason people love the Liberation domain so much.
Judgment Light: Fantastic spell. You can put out the Judgments whose effects you want, use judgment light, then switch
Judgments as a swift action next turn if you want a different active Judgment.
Smite Abomination: Untyped bonus, Pharasma worshiper only. Whooooa! Free Smite against any one Undead creature,
using your WIS bonus instead of CHA? What sorcery is this?
Thaumaturgic Circle: Magic circle’s older cousin, and good for a variety of planar adventures. I like that you get to pick
which elemental affinity or Outsider race you’re protecting against as you cast it—versatility is exactly what Inquisitors
need from a spell.
Undeath Ward: Keeps non-intelligent undead and intelligent undead with fewer HD out, no save. A great “oh shit”
button in cases of emergency, or else a phenomenal protective tool for ranged Inquisitors.

Battlemind Link: Pretty good even for regular Inquisitors; probably blue for Sacred Huntsmasters.
Brightest Light: Good for dispelling darkness—what more needs to be said?
Cleansing Fire: Don’t come here for the damage, because it’s meager. What’s good about this spell is the constant, pulsing
dispel magic on [evil] effects. Great for stripping enemies of buffs or shutting down nasty necromancy spells as they’re cast.
Cold Iron Fetters: It’s obviously OP against fey and demons, but it’s also versatile enough to shine against larger, slower
enemies or flying enemies. Watch out, though, because any GM worth their salt will try to sunder the shackles and have
done.
Conditional Curse: Bestow curse is powerful, and conditional curse is still just as good. After all, you can set just about any
condition you want, as long as it doesn't ensure death. Highly hazardous to life and limb? Sure. Few things apart from
"spend a full week swimming in an active volcano" ensure death, so you've got a lot of leeway here.
Coward's Lament: Trivializes spellcasters and ranged enemies.
Death Ward: Undead and their ability drain can go get stuffed.
Denounce: Oh, but I love the flavor of this spell. You can use it to cause infighting during combat, or to turn the tide of a
social encounter in your favor.
Fear: You still get the equivalent of a successful Dazzling Display even if enemies pass their saves. If they fail, well, panicked
is a terrific debuff condition.
Fleshworm Infestation: Wow, gross. This will shut down casters and fast movers pretty quickly.
Forceful Strike: Extra DR-penetrating force damage, free bull rush with a hefty bonus, made as part of a full attack...good
stuff.
Invisibility, Greater: Excellent for combat, and blue for an Inquisitor with sneak attack dice. If you’re just after the miss
chance from concealment, remember shield of darkness from earlier levels.
Litany of Escape: As a swift action, save your friend from being pinned or swallowed whole. Worth my money.
Named Bullet: Obviously blue for ranged builds, named bullet lets you go nova with a guaranteed critical on the first
round of combat. Great even for melee Inquisitors if they have the time to pre-buff.
Protection from Energy, Communal: Monster Lore will let you identify which element an enemy is liable to use. The
shortened duration isn’t an issue, because you’ll only use this spell to make it past a hard fight or elemental hazard.
Shared Wrath: Morale bonus. Wrath is good. Give it to your friends!
Stoneskin: It's powerful indeed, but features an expensive material component. I’d keep clay skin around for most
workhorse uses, then bust out stoneskin for truly difficult fights.
Transplant Visage: "Three lives were owed to the Many-Faced God. A debt must be paid, girl..." Holy crap, it's the
Faceless Men spell! Obviously evil to use, but what flavor...

Awaken the Devoured: I doubt you’ll pass the Will save often, but if you do, the damage scales pretty well and bestowing
the confused condition for rounds per level will straight-up end encounters. Even affects multiple enemies. Your enemies
have to be daemons, however, so probably only useful as a spell known in campaigns like Wrath of the Righteous.
Brand, Greater: Making an enemy permanently sickened whenever they're within 30 ft. of you is pretty cool, especially if
you’re doing a “trust but verify” and expect that you might run into an enemy again.
Deathless: Ideal for casting on party members with the Diehard feat. If no one has that, I’d probably skip the spell.
Flash Forward: Inquisitors of Gorum will find a lot to like with their deity’s Divine Fighting Technique and this spell.
Too bad you still have to act as if charging, though—that opens up a lot of issues with difficult terrain, conditions like
blindness that might be affecting you, etc.
Geas, Lesser: 7 HD limit isn't ideal, and Will negates; even so, there are some powerful things you could do with this spell.
Glimpse of Truth: You can do some worthwhile things with this spell—tag an invisible enemy, spot an illusion, discover a
magically concealed door—but it's hard to parlay into combat effectiveness.
Holy Smite: It's got a similar problem as the other alignment-based nukes you get this level (i.e., nuking your teammates as
well as your foes) but at least you'll probably be fighting many more Evil enemies than Lawful, Chaotic, or Good enemies.
Leashed Shackles: The rare Reflex save! Casters will dispel it, which stinks, and you might not be able to hit the faster foes
to entangle them in the first place. If it's got a use, it's on the big bad bruiser, who will remain entangled even if he destroys
the anchor point.
Mark of the Reptile God: The best use is a quick and dirty -2 to an enemy’s saves on a ranged touch attack. Treat any
CHA damage you get as a happy coincidence.
Order's Wrath: Same issue as the other alignment-nuking spells in 4th level.
Sphere of Warding: I like that possession effects simply end without a save. Maybe worth a look in undead-heavy
campaigns.
Tough Crowd: Insight bonus. Duration's good, skill bonuses are good. Only gives a boost to one save, though, so it seems
a little underwhelming for a 4th-level spell.
Aerial Tracks: Likely won't come up enough to be worth a spell known.
Aura Sight: Detect [Alignment] will work just as well for most adventuring purposes. If you wanted to, however, the
7,500 gp price tag is well worth it to have constant aura sight running.
Brand of Tracking: High-level casters will still have plenty of tools to foil your tracking. It’s thematic and unique to
Inquisitors (good as an intimidation tactic!) but I’d leave this kind of thing to Wizards and the like at this level.
Crusader's Edge: The duration is much better than your Bane, so it might be worth getting a scroll if you anticipate
facing a lot of evil Outsiders. Probably not a good spell known outside of Outsider-centric campaigns, though.
Cure Critical Wounds: Again, you need to spend your resources on wands of cure light wounds, as they’re the most
reliable, cost-effective, and alignment-neutral means of healing in Pathfinder.
Curse of the Outcast: Curse of the outcast + brand of conformity = One permanently fucked up life. Good in intrigue-
heavy games or against enemy Bards.
Deceitful Veneer: Another intrigue spell.
Divination: As with planar inquiry, how much you actually benefit from a successful casting will depend on what meta-
information your GM is willing to give up.
Dungeonsight: Similar to insect scouts, and a similarly good candidate for a scroll. Extra tactical knowledge never hurts.
Find Quarry: A scroll once in a while won’t break the bank.
Neutralize Poison: Delay poison will buy you some time, and you can use this to remove the poison. I’d still leave it to a
full caster, if possible.
Restoration: It's got expensive material components. Probably best to leave to the Cleric of the group unless you’re
playing as a backup healer.
Sending: As teleportation, planar shifts, and other shenanigans begin getting more common in later levels, you should
have something to contact lost team members.

Ardor's Onslaught: The text doesn't specify that you hit only enemies, just "neutral creatures." This will probably make it
a big no-no in most groups.
Ban Corruption: Even if your GM wants to use the corruption rules, this still requires concentration, and Will negates.
Blightburn Weapon: Hurts you, too. Pass.
Burst of Glory: Sacred bonus. I dunno, I’m just not excited about it: the radius is small, the bonus is small, the temporary
HP are small, and the light isn’t anything you couldn’t already do with a cantrip. As a 1st-level spell, this would be
something to get excited about. As a 4th-level spell? No.
Chaos Hammer: Same issue as ardor's onslaught.
Charon’s Dispensation: Far too niche. How often do you come into contact with the River Styx in Pathfinder?
Curse of Magic Negation: Will negates, and the spellblight itself isn't too good. Casters who fumble their spell don't lose
the slot, and the check to beat their SR never gets too difficult.
Daze, Mass: This spell is somehow even worse than daze because...well, who in their right mind would use a 4th-level spell
slot to cause a group of humanoids with 4 HD or less to lose one turn?
Death Knell Aura: This spell makes it easier to get off a death knell, but the effect is far too weak at this level to be worth
it. Plus, successive death knell castings don’t stack—the bonuses come from the same source.
Defile Armor: Magic vestment will serve you better in the end.
Detect Scrying: Knowing when an enemy is scrying you is useful information, and the duration is permanent right off the
bat; however, your spells known are limited. Let the Wizard take care of anti-divination duty.
Discern Lies: This is part of your Inquisitor package already. If you traded it away, just rely on Sense Motive instead.
Dismissal: Most powerful planar entities will beat the save or have a way to return back to your current plane when
dismissed. Again, best for full casters.
Forced Repentance: You have better ways of shutting down a single enemy.
Harvest Knowledge: An evil Psychic who knows everything about the world because she’s been slowly bottling up souls
and using this spell on their receptacles: devious. Not great for PCs, though.
Healing Warmth: Maximum 5d8 healing. Just use your wand.
Hold Monster: Enemies get a save every round, and it only affects living creatures. You’ll never stick this on someone for
long, if at all.
Hollow Heroism: I mean, you wouldn't ever have to utter the keyword, enabling you to use this spell as a normal heroism.
The circumstances where you could betray someone with it are limited.
Inflict Critical Wounds: No, no, no. Still no. DROP IT.
Interrogation, Greater: It's...still bad.
Litany of Admonition: I thought the point of the Litany spells was to give you a one-round debuff with no save? This
allows a Fort save but still only gives you a single round of debuff. Useless.
Litany of Dependability: Many enemies pass their checks on average rolls. Not much of a debuff, is it?
Litany of Sight: Glimpse of truth gives you true seeing for one round as a 4th-level spell, and see invisibility is a 2nd-level
spell. Why does this spell exist?
Magic Siege Engine, Greater: Uh...?
Peacebond, Greater: Not much better than Peacebond. Enemies fearsome enough that you'd want to remove their
weapons are probably strong enough to pass a STR check with flying colors, not to mention that manufactured weapons
get rarer as you level.
Perceive Betrayal: Truly dangerous plotters are likely to have made themselves immune to thought detection, rendering
this spell irrelevant in most cases.
Persistent Vigor: The duration is too short to give you much healing or protection against conditions.
Planeslayer's Call: Meh, a minor boost to CL isn’t worth it. Casters will be smart enough not to cast fire spells at fire
creatures, too.
Probe History: Not demonstrably better than making a Knowledge check.
Quieting Weapons: Silence is better for ambushes.
Rebuke: The damage is laughable for this level, and it’s Fort for half. The spell gets better if you're fighting worshipers of
the same god, but how often do you expect to be doing that?
Red Hand of the Killer: Will negates, the hand can be covered, and anyway, it's waaaaaay too narrow for spells known.
Remove Radioactivity: Too niche except in Fallout-style games.
Reprobation: Spells targeting members of your own faith again.
Rune of Ruin: You're destroying the usefulness of your own loot.
Sanctify Armor: Magic vestment will do this just as well.
Sessile Spirit: Okay in occult games, but nowhere else.
Shadow Barbs: Actively hurts you. I’ll look elsewhere, thanks.
Sleepwalk: Far too narrow.
Spell Immunity: Most enemies that want to kill you with spells have enough spells that they can afford to kill you
creatively.
Spindrift Spritz, Mass: Minor conditions at this level.
Straightjacket: No aspect of this is powerful enough to warrant a 4th-level spell.
Tireless Pursuers: At least you can bring your team along? Useless unless your team uses the rules for forced marching.
Unholy Blight: The last of the alignment nuke spells in your arsenal, and also the least likely to be used in most
campaigns.
Ward Shield: Doesn't work against many spells, and most Inquisitors won't be using shields anyway.
 5th-Level Spells
Dimensional Blade: You know how Gunslingers are super deadly because they can target ranged touch AC? Yeah, this
spell lets melee folk do that for a round. Dimensional blade will let you cut through certain enemies like butter, especially
with iterative attacks. Against enemies that use mostly DEX or spells for AC, it won't do much; fortunately, touch AC
tends to be the lowest of the ACs as you go up in level because of the predominance of oversized enemies. If you're
anticipating only making one attack, true strike is probably better.
Disrupting Weapon: The usual caveat about Inquisitor DCs not being all that high applies, but you're still going to be
forcing a lot of saves on your hapless undead friends. No SR, either!
Heretic’s Tongue: Geryon worshiper only. Absolutely incredible anti-caster tool, with some AoE crowd control effects,
too. Pity about the faith restriction.
Righteous Might: Inuk chuk! DR 10/Alignment, a size increase, and stat bonuses for rounds per level? Where do I sign?
Wall of Silver: One of the very, very few battlefield control powers that Inquisitors get, and consequently highly valuable.
The damage and debuffs for evil creatures get downright nasty, and the wall blocks [evil] spells entirely. Great stuff.

Banishment: Again, the DC is never going to be as high as a Cleric's, but the option to add to it if you've done your
homework is a nice touch.
Break Enchantment: Dispel magic will suffice in a majority of situations, but when it doesn't, there's break enchantment.
Divine Pursuit: Inquisitors don’t get many movement buffs on their spell list, so this spell is valuable. Don’t go haring off
on your own, though, unless you feel like dying.
Forbid Action, Greater: Its little brother is kind of a stinker, but this is actually quite good because enemies don't get
repeated saves in future rounds; if they fail that Will save, they're going to be stuck not attacking or casting for 13+ rounds.
Foster Hatred: Fomenting riots, playing enemy groups off of each other, destroying friendships through prejudice—
you’ve got a lot of opportunities for creativity with this spell.
Freedom’s Toast: Cayden Cailean worshiper only. Freedom of movement will probably do the job just as well, but it’s
undoubtedly fun. Get your mate out of the clink with the power of alcohol!
Hunter’s Blessing: All-day Favored Terrain and Favored Enemy. The spell never scales past +2, but with the ability to
swap out your enemies and terrains every day, I’d say you’re still getting a deal.
Lend Greater Judgment: That's a potent buff for a friend, but remember that they lose the benefit if you swap Judgments
midway through combat. Obviously useless if you traded away Judgment to an archetype.
Spell Resistance: Remember that SR makes it difficult for allies to target you with spells, too, although you can always
choose to lower your SR for your own spells.
Stoneskin, Communal: Still just as expensive as stoneskin. Ideal for boss fights only.
Sun’s Disdain, Mass: Mass blinding is a great tactic. Honorable mention goes to mass sun’s disdain + blade of light for
instant crit confirmations.
Telepathic Bond: What sending wanted to be. Perfect for scouting and tactical coordination.
True Seeing: Of course true seeing is powerful—the question is whether you want to spend on the material cost.
Remember that you've got glimpse of truth as a 4th-level spell if you just need the effect for a moment, although the cost
effectiveness of GP/duration is in true seeing's favor.
Alaznist’s Jinx: Magehunters will probably love this spell, especially with some means of tanking an enemy’s saves or feats
like Disruptive that make defensive casting harder. For most, the save DC just won’t be reliable enough against enemy
casters.
Chains of Light: CR 13 creatures have Reflex saves that usually run in the 8-12 range, which means that most creatures at
that CR will make the save around 50% of the time (DC 10 + 5th-level spell + WIS modifier of +5, as an example). That's
not great, especially since they get a save every round, but paralyzed is a powerful condition, and the ban on
extradimensional travel is icing. If you've got ways to boost your DCs or cripple an enemy's saves (Touch of Madness from
the Madness Domain or the Spell Bane feat, for example) this probably goes to green or even blue.
Decapitation: Bumping up the critical modifier and damage is nice, but it only works with slashing weapons. If you're
running a slashing weapon build, it deserves some consideration.
Geas/Quest: No combat utility due to the casting time, but otherwise as powerful as lesser geas. I prefer conditional curse
in most scenarios.
Litany of Thunder: Fort negates. Might be good on casters, though, who definitely care about being deafened.
Litany of Vengeance: Sacred/profane bonus. A good "focus fire" spell, if you can coordinate your team for a round.
Green if you traded away your Judgments—Justice doesn't stack with this.

Atonement: Thematic yet extraordinarily expensive.

Commune: Relies on the GM's goodwill; has an expensive material component and long casting time.
Hallow: Clerics will probably do this better, but a scroll is okay for you, too.
Mark of Justice: Maybe as a scroll? The only benefit this has over conditional curse is forcing compliance out of someone.
Unhallow: Same as for hallow.

Banishing Blade: Bull rush isn't a great maneuver at this stage in the game. You've got better tools for dealing with
Outsiders.
Blood Ties: Wow. Evil, evil, evil. Also way too narrow. This is probably an NPC spell.
Castigate, Mass: Fear and mind-affecting immunities are starting to become extraordinarily common by this level, as are
high Will saves. You won’t get any significant mileage out of it.
Claim Identity, Greater: It's got a component cost and isn't appreciably better than claim identity. If you're stealing
someone's identity, you're probably knocking them out or otherwise rendering them helpless anyway—you don't need to
tote them around as a porcelain mask.
Command, Greater: Still has limited commands and an overreliance on failed Will saves.
Compelling Rant: A spell to be used by NPC cult leaders, etc. You certainly don’t want to take any kind of WIS damage
voluntarily.
Cure Light Wounds, Mass: Bad, bad, bad.
Dispel Balance: You've already got a number of deflection bonuses up and running, and they won't stack.
Dispel [Alignment]: You have banishment, dispel magic, and break enchantment, all of which are better and more
versatile than these spells.
Flame Strike: I’m begging you, don’t blast.
Ghostbane Dirge, Mass: I'm not saying you'll never fight a group of incorporeal enemies, but is it worth a 5th-level spell
known when you have such easy access to ghost touch weapons or spells?
Guardian Monument, Greater: DR 4/magic isn’t even a speed bump to enemies at this level.
Inflict Light Wounds, Mass: Incredibly, this is even worse than mass cure light wounds.
Mage's Decree: It's better than sending, but you still probably won't want to spend a spell known on it.
Profane Nimbus: It's a paltry amount of damage for this level.
Resounding Blow: Puny damage, Fort negates.
Sabotage Construct: It's limited in scope, but a successful Will save still leaves the construct confused for one round. A
scroll would be perfect.
Sacred Nimbus: Slightly better than profane nimbus due to the number of Evil enemies you'll be fighting in most
campaigns, but still a poor choice overall.
Shroud of Darkness: Shadowmind isn’t a great spell, and this is basically mass shadowmind.
Soulswitch: Most Inquisitors won’t have familiars, and even if you do, what’s the mechanical point here?
Spell Immunity, Communal: Same issue as spell immunity.
Unwilling Shield: 250 GP for rounds per level. Pass.
 6th-Level Spells
Blade Barrier: You get so few battlefield controls as an Inquisitor, but this is one of them. You get some soft cover, and
enemies still take half damage on a successful Reflex save to pass through the wall.
Dispel Magic, Greater: Just as versatile as its little cousin.
Heal: Ah! Finally, a good healing spell, right at the end. Just a flat 150, every time. Works wonders, and can be used as an
undead nuke if necessary.
Inspiring Recovery: Morale bonus. Your one and only resurrection spell, and it’s a good one for mid-combat: heal, buff,
and resurrection rolled into one. You’ll never be the primary miracle worker, but you can fill in in a pinch.
Invoke Deity: Now that’s what I call a capstone spell! It’s a little pricey on the material components, but fortunately the
spell doesn’t specify that they’re consumed in the casting. Even the powers for mediocre domains appear to be really good,
so have fun, go nuts.
Named Bullet, Greater: Still fantastic.
Unshakeable Zeal: Morale bonus. Failing is something we do quite often in Pathfinder, thanks to the vicissitudes of the
d20. Getting a +4 bonus to any check you failed for hours per level is an amazing perk that you’ll want to have running on
yourself every day.

Bite the Hand, Mass: Summons are deadly at this level. Even a few turned against their masters can be enough to
drastically turn the tide of battle.
Emblem of Greed: In addition to being able to turn very innocuous, non-threatening weapons (e.g., masterwork daggers)
into a very conspicuous, threatening weapon (+3 spell-storing flaming burst glaive) you also use your caster level for your
BAB, giving you a fourth iterative and better chances to hit. Very choice.
Neutralize Poison, Greater: Insta-win against poisons and any effects thereof. Strike those from your “things that worry
me” list.
Overwhelming Presence: They get a Will save every round, but if they recover early they get hit with some big penalties,
and even a successful save staggers for one round. Definitely one of your better offensive 6th-level spells.
Rotting Alliance: Ho ho ho. Positively wrecks groups of enemies, if given an opportunity to work for you over a few
days. 1d6 CHA and CON damage is quite nice on the front end, too, although the usual caveats about save DCs at higher
levels apply.
Umbral Strike: Good damage that ignores concealment and potentially renders the victim blind for the whole encounter.
Rough against casters.
Unconscious Agenda: BWAAAAMP. BWAAAAMP. That's right, you can now incept people! I like it—there are so
many opportunities for screwing with politics and intrigue with this spell. When you cast it depends on how your GM
approaches the question of whether people know when they’ve failed a Will save.

Artificer's Curse: Depends on how frequently you run into magical items—at this level, plenty of enemies can wipe the
floor with you with no aid.
Blessings of Luck and Resolve, Mass: Morale bonus, Halfling only. If it’s for the whole party, this spell is starting to
become more worthwhile. Heroes’ feast is generally superior if you have the time to eat every day.
Heroes' Feast: Morale bonus. Not a bad package of buffs to start a day of adventuring with, but you're unlikely to want to
cast it all the time. It says "every creature partaking of the feast is cured of all sickness and nausea, and receives the benefits
of both neutralize poison and remove disease," which I would take to mean that you don't have to have the entire feast to get
those benefits, just "partake" for a few bites. If many people in your party are poisoned or diseased, it's definitely worth it—
and if you're running keep watch, you can afford to feast every day. The bonuses vs. fear and poison are quite good.
Holy Word: Probably the only nuke spell worth getting, but I still wouldn't recommend it if you've got non-Good party
members.
Litany of Madness: You get at least one round of confusion, which is good. Don't count on it giving you more than that,
though.
Vision of Lamashtu: Not actually restricted to Lamashtu worshipers, although it’s most certainly evil. Your compulsion
(geas) and curse (conditional curse) spells are the best riders for this ability, as their range makes them difficult to pull off in
combat.

Find the Path: It'll get you out of maze, which is a brutal spell. It's also handy for general navigation.
Knock, Mass: A scroll, not a spell known.
Lost Legacy: What a way to wreck someone's life. Not much mechanical use, like many of the more flavorful curses on the
Inquisitor's list.
Sarzari Shadow Memory: Great spell for a scroll. At this level, you need to stack the deck entirely in your favor when
going after big bosses, and sarzari shadow memory helps you do it. Plus, you get to pray to Achaekek, who will forever be
my main mantis.

Arbitrament: Good way to piss off your team, unless you're all some flavor of Neutral.
Balance of Suffering: 9d6 + CL puts you at around 50 HP dealt and healed, on average. That’s not terrible, but I’d rather
use heal to heal and attacks to hurt. If your target passes their save, you’re looking at 35 HP dealt and healed, on average,
which is looking less and less appealing.
Besmara’s Grasping Depths: Only useful at sea. You’ll know when you’re playing such a campaign.
Blasphemy: Same as for arbitrament.
Circle of Death: It caps out at 8 HD, and has a 500 GP material cost. No thanks.
Cleanse: Forget this one, kiddo, and get heal.
Commune With Texts: It’s a scroll, if it’s anything.
Cruel Jaunt: The restrictions are too fiddly for a 6th-level spell, your pinnacle of power.
Cure Moderate Wounds, Mass: A thousand times no.
Death Knell Aura, Greater: As with the base spell, it’s nice to be able to trigger death knell faster, but death knell is easily
outclassed as a buff and doesn’t stack with itself. What, then, is the point?
Dictum: See arbitrament and blasphemy.
Fester, Mass: You probably won't meet many enemies who want to heal each other in combat.
Forbiddance: This is for the Wizard setting up his demiplane, not you.
Glyph of Warding, Greater: Still not for you.
Harm: Same basic problem as the inflict line of spells: by the time you get them, you've got much, much better ways of
dealing that damage.
Inflict Moderate Wounds, Mass: Blergh.
Legend Lore: Expensive, time-consuming to cast, and entirely up to GM fiat. Pass.
Litany of Truth: You have so many other ways of achieving this effect by now. Use one of them instead.
Plague Bearer: Urgathoa worshiper only. Good for biological warfare against commoners and not much else. Enemies
certainly won’t have a difficult time shaking these illnesses.
Prognostication: Long casting time, expensive material costs, cryptic answers. Pass.
Repulsion: Will negates, and they can still shoot or cast at you.
Seer’s Bane: Mephistopheles worshiper only. Lacking a means to follow up on your counterstroke, your opposed diviner
will heal the damage, remove the curse, and go about business as usual, resolved to be more careful around you next time.
Tactical Insight: For mass combat, so probably not your campaign.
Undeath to Death: Same basic issue as circle of death.
Wither Limb: Forced mutation will get you a withered limb and CON/DEX damage as a 3rd-level spell. Redundant.
Word of Chaos: See arbitrament.
 INQ440: Feat Dynamics
As I mention in other places in this guide, there are a staggering number of options available to players for feats.
As a GM, I’m in favor of giving my players extra feats that aren’t combat-oriented (usually at every even level or every other
even level) to encourage them to think outside the box on selection. Pathfinder doesn’t incentivize anything other than a
combat-effective build, but there’s so much more out there that’s hilariously fun to play with. Racial feats! Stunning
Irruption! Spirit Ally! Many of the feats listed here are only “useful” in a scenario where your GM is running games as I do,
with a little leeway in PCs’ feat selection. I’ll designate these “fun or flavorful yet sub-optimal” feats in black throughout
this section. Inquisitor-only feats will have an asterisk (*) before them.

All Characters
Armor Proficiency, Heavy: Two-handed and casting-based Inquisitors may want heavy armor, as it gives them good AC
scores with low investment into DEX. The classic mithral breastplate is always an option, too.
Big Game Hunter: Do you have any idea how many enemies past 8th level will be Large or larger? This feat equates to +1
to hit and +2 damage to basically everything.
Cunning Killer: Hoo hoo hoo...what a feat. The only spell this feat will conflict with is anticipate thoughts, which makes
it ideal for buffing damage and to-hit on the regular. You’re naturally great at Knowledges, too—what’s not to love?
Deific / Demonic / Celestial / Fiendish / Fey / Hellknight Obedience: The Obedience feats are some of my absolute
favorites in Pathfinder, giving an immediate benefit and several thematic abilities later in your career, ranging from daily
SLAs to entirely new mechanics. Which benefits you get depend entirely on the entity you worship, of course, so some will
be better than others. If you’re given bonus feats that don’t provide large mechanical bonuses, the Obediences are almost
always the place I would begin.
Dirty Fighting: The base bonus by itself is decent enough, but take a look at the bottom: “This feat counts as having DEX
13, INT 13, Combat Expertise, and Improved Unarmed Strike for the purposes of meeting the prerequisites of the various
improved combat maneuver feats, as well as feats that require those improved combat maneuver feats as prerequisites.” HOLY
SHIT. Where has this feat been all my life? Dirty Fighting opens up Style feats, maneuver feats, etc. to Inquisitors, who
normally wouldn’t have the INT or build space to pursue any of those avenues.
Diverse Obedience: Really, really ups the ante for Obediences when you can pick one of three boons at each level. And an
acceleration of how fast you get those boons? Perfect!
Divine Fighting Technique: Most gods in the Inner Sea Pantheon have a divine fighting technique that provides an
initial benefit at low levels and an advanced benefit at 10th level or so. These abilities range from dreadful (Calistria) to
amazing (Sarenrae), and will be rated individually in the Deity-Specific Feats section below.
Improved Initiative: The poster child for universally useful feats.
Leadership: They won’t, but if your GM lets you...nah, just kidding. They won’t let you.
Spirit Ridden: The devil’s in the details with this one, and depends greatly on your GM. Maybe that personality change is
nothing; maybe you’re getting sudden urges to murder children. If your GM is lenient with it, you’re getting major
bonuses to skills with long durations. Imagine suddenly picking up 10+ ranks in UMD when you find that nifty scroll or
wand, or for obscure knowledge checks!

* Branded for Retribution: The trade-off here is whether you believe you can hit more times in three rounds, or whether
your team can hit more times in one round. For the most part, that’s an easy trade: add a full-BAB archer with Rapid Shot,
a full-BAB frontliner, and it’s all too easy to focus fire and cremate an enemy. Great for going nova on bosses. (Thanks
to /u/HighPingVictim for bringing this feat to my attention!)
Combat Patrol: With your longspear proficiency, Combat Patrol is actually a great option, although I wish you could
somehow poach longarm and enlarge person. It’s an easy way to set up a “no-no zone” and spread the Bane damage around
quickly.
Wanderer’s Fortune: Even freedom of movement on a limited basis is excellent, especially when you don’t need to spend a
spell slot to do it! Great pick.

Additional Traits: My philosophy as always is to find something flavorful rather than mechanically strong. I see you
reaching for Reactionary, you munchkins. Hände weg.
Ambuscading Spell: As a ¾ caster, you want to take any opportunity possible to buff your casting, and with your
initiative boosts, Ambuscading Spell is a great bet.
Damned Disciple / Damned Soldier: Diverse Obedience for Hell’s Inquisitors. Choosing boons from two of the three
Fiendish Obedience prestige classes really helps you get the most bang for your buck.
Deceitful Incompetence: Like Combat Patrol, another fabulous feat for AoO/reach weapon builds, providing stacking
accuracy bonuses when you miss with your AoOs.
Divine Deception: +5 to UMD with divine wands and scrolls. Holy crap, that’s good! Get your hands on some Cleric
goodies, kids!
Divine Interference: Functionally, it’s worse-of-two, which is already a bad deal for enemies. Throw a debuff on top, and
you’ve got a great ability for keeping allies alive in grueling encounters.
Evolved Familiar: Familiars are already good, but Eidolon evolutions make them even better. What you pick will be based
heavily off of the role your familiar will be playing.
* Extended Bane: You can never, and I mean never, have enough Bane rounds in a day.
Feign Curse: What a feat! I like it because it’s essentially an upgraded version of the Witch’s (already excellent) Misfortune
hex. At higher levels, it gets more swingy—some enemies will have zero ranks in Spellcraft or Sense Motive, while others
will have the ranks to beat your feigned curse automatically. How often do you get “magic” effects that bypass saves and
SR, though?
* Improved Monster Lore: Ooh, that’s tasty! Great for any Inquisitors that didn’t trade it away. Knowledge is power.
* Instant Judgment: Getting the ability to change a Judgment as an immediate action opens up several tactical avenues:
pick up resistance just as the drake spits acid at you, add on a few points of DR to shave damage off a big hit, etc. Not bad,
all in all.
Noble Stipend: 100 gp/week is a lot of money for mundane services and nonmaterial goods. 50 gp is equivalent to 1 lb. of
gold. At the time of this writing, 1 lb. of gold is worth roughly $16,000. With that kind of money you can buy hordes of
lowly human servitors, or just blow it all on 100 goats/week and start your own farm, pocketing the profits.
Prestigious Spellcaster: If you’re willing to commit the feats, Prestigious Spellcaster will take the casting sting out of PrCs
like Evangelist entirely.
Tundra Stride: It’s not quite the Travel domain, but it’s sure close. Because charging, withdrawing, and running all
multiply your base speed, you’re actually getting anywhere between 20 and 40 ft. of movement bonuses here.
Weapon Versatility: DR vs. slashing/piercing/bludgeoning damage can be tough to penetrate unless you’re prepared.

* Baneful Judgment: 10 + CR is easy to beat even at 1st level, so you’ll only get better at this skill. Useful for sparing your
Judgments in harder one-on-one fights.
* Heavenly Bane: The usefulness here will depend on whether your GM rules that Bane counts as an enhancement bonus
for penetrating DR. If so, redundant; if not, far more intriguing.

Agonizing Obedience: Holy shit. This feat is so metal, it shits bats. Absolutely on-point for Hellknight aspirants or
Inquisitors of Zon-Kuthon, but the boons are generally a little weaker than for other Obediences. Your call whether to self-
mutilate, friendo.
* Channeling Scourge: It’s not unreasonable that an Inquisitor might have picked up channeling abilities from other class
levels, and Channeling Scourge will give you the ability to scale that channeling with your class level, as long as you use it to
blast people or undead. Not what I would call optimal (channeling is rarely optimal without heavy investment, even for
Clerics) but it’s an option that’s there.
Creature Focus: At last, a means of acquiring Favored Enemy outside of a Ranger dip! It’s juuust strong enough not to be
counted as a fluff feat, but still probably only a pick if you want an ability that needs FE as a prerequisite.
Expanded Arcana: More spells known, always good. You only get one for the price of a feat, though, and that’s not a great
use of resources in a feat-starved class.
* Favored Judgment: Good in campaigns that focus on specific enemy types—Giants in Giantslayer, Undead in Carrion
Crown, Demons in Wrath of the Righteous, etc.
* Grant Initiative: Giving your Cunning Initiative bonus to friends always has an opportunity cost, but can be worth it in
scenarios where you know someone else could cast an encounter-ending spell or deliver a devastating sneak attack to a flat-
footed opponent if only they could act first.
Just Out of Reach: Dodge and Mobility stink as prereqs, but hey, what are you going to do? Fortunately, Just Out of
Reach is excellent against all those enormous enemies that can hit you from halfway across the continent.
Lunge: -2 AC for 5 ft. of reach isn’t a bad trade-off. It unfortunately only lasts until the end of your turn, making it
unsuitable for an AoO build with a longspear or somesuch. (Thanks to /u/ClosetIntrovert for reminding me of that
limitation!)
* Merciful Bane: Taking foes alive is a good tactic in some cases. Inquisitors of Sarenrae have a much better option
available to them in their Divine Fighting Technique.
Quick Draw / Quick Stow: These are great filler feats if you ever find yourself with the space, improving action economy
in shifting battlefields and negating costly AoOs.
Unsanctioned Detection: A 1/day mega-buff to Perception and Sense Motive might well be worth it to you.

Acrobatic Spellcaster: Best for Inquisitors with light armor, obviously, but still a fun idea because of all the defensive
casting you’ll be doing.
Armored Athlete: ...that said, heavy armor is brutal on your DEX- and STR-based checks. Armor enchantments can
alleviate some of the pain (e.g., the creeping enchantment to negate Stealth ACPs) but not all of it. If there’s a skill you
simply must be good at (Swim in a Ruins of Azlant campaign, e.g.) this is a decent way to do it.
Nimble Moves / Acrobatic Steps: Get out of jail free cards on difficult terrain? Yes, please.
Associate: Despite its appearance in Agents of Evil, Associate is suuuuper flavorful for any Inquisitor. Really helps with
the perception that you’re living in a fully fleshed-out world in which organizations continue to exist and work toward
their goals when you’re not around.
Believer’s Boon: Mechanically weak, but strengthening your connection to your deity is never bad.
Black Market Dealings: If anyone knows how to access some shady shit, it’s Inquisitors.
Call Out: That’s right: succeed on an Intimidate check, initiate a duel. Extraordinary flavor for Inquisitors, with their
single-target burst damage focus.
Combat Vigor: I can’t rate this according to normal standards because of how cheap wands of cure light wounds are, but
it’s thematic and cool to be able to heal yourself with nothing more than grit and focus.
Deepsight: Increase that 60-ft. Darkvision out to 120 ft. Will most Inquisitors have the build space? Probably not. Still a
great feat.
Detect Expertise: Another power that lets you roleplay your Inquisitor as an “I know all your darkest secrets at a glance”
type. Love it.
Devil Sense: Iroran Inquisitors and others who despise devils love this power.
Divine Communion: What would Calistria do? Seduce the town guard? ...yeah, sounds about right.
Esoteric Advantage: While not mechanically strong, Inquisitors are absolutely the types who could pull out some bizarre
piece of minutia about a creature to give themselves the upper hand.
Expanded Studies: The feat doesn’t explicitly allow Inquisitors, but I don’t see why they shouldn’t be included; both the
Hunter and Warpriest are ¾ divine casters, same as the Inquisitor.
* Exploit Lore: Great Inquisitor-only ability, hampered only by its 1/day limitation.
* Eyes of Judgment: An extra little oomph on your detect alignment SLAs.
Far-Roaming Familiar: Long-distance scouting for those of you with familiars.
Fleet: Straight +5 ft. to base movement speed. Always, always good, but rarely will you have room.
Friendly Switch: Swap spaces with an ally as a 5-ft. step? Cool.
Ghost Whisperer: Highly thematic for an Inquisitor of Pharasma or Urgathoa, and cool in a supernatural or gothic
campaign.
Ghostslayer: Even better for Sanctified Slayers, who can now deal precision damage to ghosties.
* Insightful Gaze: Congrats, you’re now the best Sense Motive user in the game!
Lifeless Gaze: Best poker face in Avistan.
Noble Scion / Enlightened Noble: Love these feats! Something for every character concept here. Mechanically, Scion of
Lore and Scion of Peace are your best bets.
Rat Catcher: Every party needs a method of handling swarms. Larger enemies, not smaller, tend to be the rule as levels
progress, however.
Read Spell Traces: It’s a fun flavor feat for everyone. Likely even more thematic for Royal Accusers and other intrigue-
oriented archetypes.
Reflexive Caster: You’ve got plenty self-only abjuration spells. Worth a look?
Sense Assumptions / Loyalties / Magical Interrogation / Relationships: None are going to make it into a normal
build. As bonus feats? That’s a different story.
Spirit Ally: The ultimate in harmless feats, a permanent Unseen Servant isn’t going to be threatening to any GM unless
you cheese hard.
Stunning Irruption: The flavor feat par excellence, there’s simply no beating breaking down a wall so hard that you stun
everyone on the other side. OH YEAAAAH!
Supernatural Tracker: Be the best at tracking there ever was.
Telepathy Tap: TFW your Sense Motive is so high that you can literally read minds.
* Thoughtful Discernment: The fact-check of the Pathfinder universe.
Thrill of the Hunt: Tracking using Survival won’t be universally useful, and the subsequent morale bonus is quickly
superseded. That said, what flavor! Amazing for Inquisitors.
Underworld Connections: Riddleport...you will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.
Veiled Contempt: Infiltrators would love this one.
Virtuous Creed: Kind of like a Deific Obedience to a positive character trait? I like Humility best for Inquisitors. It’s a
strong mechanical benefit, and Inquisitors love to appear less threatening than they really are.
War Blessing: I like some of these powers that give you extra powers from other classes. War Blessing is one such, giving
you two of the Minor Blessings that Warpriests get. At only 2/day, these are probably flavor.

Agile Maneuvers: It’s a trap! Even if you’re finesse-based, Inquisitors still don’t have the BAB to compete in the maneuver
game long-term. Just leave it.
Eldritch Heritage: Skill Focus requirements, minimum CHA scores, few visible benefits until 11th level. Bards, Oracles,
and CHA-based Rogues will all see more upside than you will.
* Extra Bane: Strictly worse than Extended Bane. Pass.
* Judgment Surge: Although second judgment and third judgment will let you apply the surge to more of your active
Judgments, 1/day still isn’t worth the investment. Pass.
* Menacing Bane: You don’t get to keep the bane quality, so you’re trading a for-sure +2 to hit and 2d6 damage for a
potential +2 to hit for you and allies. That’s waaay not worth it in my book.

Weapon Focus: Weapon Focus is like a learner’s permit: no one likes it in and of itself, but we all tolerate it because it leads
to undeniably cooler things.
Weapon of the Chosen / Improved / Greater: Even if the feat chain takes a while to get into, it eventually pays
dividends. DR penetration is an ever-necessary tool to have in the toolkit, and Greater Weapon of the Chosen is ideal for
Inquisitor builds picking up Vital Strike—rolling twice to hit is tasty when you’re dealing 3x weapon damage.

Archetype-Specific

Cloaked Wolf

Betrayer: Perfect for this playstyle. You’ll be beginning most combats by trying to snag a surprise round, and Diplomacy
checks are excellent ways to get them. Between the immediate action attack, a standard action attack in the surprise round,
and a full attack as combat opens, you could easily have someone dismantled before they even get a chance to respond,
especially if your attack leaves them flat-footed.

Conceal Spell / Improved: Cloaked Wolves can do concealed attacks well, but what about casting? Here’s your answer.
Perfect for debuffing people in plain sight. The improved version just gives you mildly better chances at success.

Catch Off Guard: Feat tax, pure and simple. You’d probably get this for free at my table if you were really dedicated to
improvised weapons. Why penalize an already sub-optimal style?
Improvised Weapon Mastery: Two feats and +8 BAB later, you’re finally as good at combat with a chair leg as a person
with a real weapon is! Again, I think this should be packaged in somehow for those dedicated to improvised weapons, but
maybe that’s just me.
Wave Strike: If you’re going for a Feint build, Wave Strike can help you open a combat more easily. Great for Cloaked
Wolf/Sanctified Slayer combos.

Intoxicating Flattery: A fun way to lower your opponent’s guard before you hit them.
Secret Signs: A decent adjunct to Conceal Spell, but nothing too earth-shattering. Useful if you’re given some bonus feats
to burn and really want to lean into undetectable casting.
Walking Sleight: Sleight of Hand as a move action. Keep pumping it up as a Cloaked Wolf!
Wary Smuggler: The non-weapon item clause impedes this feat somewhat, but it’s still fun as a bonus.

Blade Among the Folds (Heavy Armor Trick): The ACP on DEX-based skills (including Sleight of Hand) will be too
high in heavy armors to be worth the bonus from Blade Among the Folds. Too bad! It’s another one that would work well
for Cloaked Wolves in a kinder world.
Chairbreaker: An extra 1d4 damage won’t blow anyone’s skirt up, even those using improvised weapon builds. Pass.
Cunning Caster: Waaay too many penalties to the Bluff check. You’ll never pull this off unless the skill has been buffed to
obscene levels.
Sly Draw: As far as I can tell, Sly Draw applies only to a Feint performed immediately after you draw your weapon, as in
Wave Strike. That’s not too useful. If it applies to all feints when using a light weapon, that’s much better for Cloaked
Wolves.

Living Grimoire

Focused Shot: Makes casting-focused Living Grimoires much more viable by letting them use their casting stat for
accuracy with bows and crossbows.

Briliant Spell Preparation: Some GMs will let you leave slots open at the start of the day anyway—after all, there’s
nothing forbidding you from doing it if you want to take an hour in the middle of the day to re-prepare. Lowering that
time penalty to 15 minutes is an okay upgrade. I wish you got more prepared slots, though.

Esoteric Linguistics: With an INT focus, you’re much better at Linguistics than you used to be, which opens the way for
some of the fun feats that replace skill checks.
Orator: Replace important face skills with Linguistics! Fun fun fun. And how cool would it be to spew fiery rhetoric off
the battlefield, as well as on it?
Legalistic Reading: This is the archetype best suited to make use of scrolls, largely because of the Pragmatic Activator trait
and a natural focus on Linguistics. And using scrolls twice? How cool is that!?
 Monster Tactician

Evolved Summon Monster: Ah, I’m glad Paizo finally got wise to Pounce and Reach being OP for 1-point evolutions.
Even with those abilities off the table, Evolved Summon Monster still gives you unparalleled latitude to customize creatures
as you summon them. Worst case, you get better armor or attacks; best case, an evolution like Swim saves the day in a fringe
scenario that you don’t usually encounter.
Summon [Alignment] Monster: That much better option for expanding your portfolio of summons? This is it. Five or
six new options per summon monster level, and an additional bonus depending on your alignment—Goodies get Diehard,
Baddies get to be summoned with a standard action, and Neutries get a +2 resistance bonus to Will saves. (It should be
noted that Monster Tacticians already summon creatures as a standard action, so those who selected Summon Evil
Monster have a little redundancy for that portion of the feat.) Look. No. Further.

Augment Summoning: Good for keeping trash summons relevant for longer, as well as for when you summon packs of
creatures, all of which will benefit from the increased STR and CON.
Expanded Summon Monster: Not bad! You’ll get an even better option for expanding your portfolio later.
Superior Summoning: As with Augment Summoning, this feat keeps your lower-level summons relevant for much
longer, in addition to putting more SLAs at your team’s disposal.
Versatile Summon Monster: I’d probably pick Dark/Primordial and one of the elemental templates.

Profane Studies: The duration buff is ultimately irrelevant to Monster Tacticians, who get the minutes/level Summoner
versions of summon monster spells. Great boost to Kn(Planes), though!

Ravener Hunter

Abundant Revelations: Extra uses of your Revelations are always fantastic.

Extra Revelation: Remember, you can’t have this one, per the archetype text. :(

Sacred Huntsmaster

Monstrous Companion: Magical beasts make fantastic companions. First of all, they’re intelligent, which makes for even
cooler RP. Second, they often come with resistances, SR, SLAs, or exotic special abilities. You want those!
Planar Focus: Expanded options for your Animal Focus, and some excellent ones at that. Plane of Fire focus is especially
good for damage output, but check the Sacred Huntsmaster section for a complete write-up.

Beastmaster Style / Beastmaster Salvation / Beastmaster Ire: A relatively new set of feats from Ultimate Wilderness
that Sacred Huntsmasters should absolutely want to get their hands on. The basic style feat, which has no real prerequisites
apart from CHA 13, lets you substitute a Handle Animal check for your companion’s AC against one attack per round as
an immediate action; Salvation lets you do it for a saving throw. Lastly, Ire gives you a frankly insane boost to damage and
attack rolls if the enemy even attempted to attack your companion, much less dealt damage. If you’re playing a simple
STR/WIS Power Attack build and have the feats to spare, there are very few reasons not to take the Beastmaster line.
Disruptive Companion: You normally have to be a Fighter (or select the Spellkiller Inquisition) to get the excellent
Disruptive feat, but companions can get it (albeit at a lesser bonus) with no levels in Fighter. Even better, this feat qualifies
companions for feats like Spellbreaker, which can be horrifyingly effective for companions with reach, Combat Reflexes, or
both.
Ferocious Beast: Animal companions only. It’s Stern Gaze (well, half of it, anyway) for your companion! Great if you
both want to be masters of demoralization.
Totem Beast: Permanent Animal Aspect for your companion! A lenient GM might allow your companion to spend the
feat, rather than you.

Evolved Companion: Eidolon evolutions are still quite powerful, even without Pounce or Reach, but perhaps just not
universally useful. (Thanks to /u/fishmcfish for pointing out that those two are not allowed!)
Spirit’s Gift: There aren’t any game-changing options among the Shaman spirits, but the fact that you get to choose each
day lends it versatility.

Extended Animal Focus: Will you have space? Likely not. Is it useful? Of course!
Feral Grace: Animal companions only. It’s your DEX-to-damage feat if your companion uses Finesse.
Genie-Touched Companion: The genie-touched companion functions as a horse companion, which isn’t too great. If
your GM rules that you can make regular companions genie-touched, this feat is at least green, possibly blue.
Tenacious Hunter: Animal companions only. Stealth DCs are nigh-impossible to make vs. invisible opponents, even with
+10 to the Perception check. I like that animals can hit flat-footed AC if they do manage to spot the enemy, though—the
invisible beasties are often the ones most worried about flat-footed AC.

Monstrous Mount: Seems like you should be able to take it, but you don’t technically have the class features listed.

Sanctified Slayer

Dampen Presence: Blindsense and blindsight are huge pains to deal with when you rely on Stealth to deal most of your
damage. That’s no longer an issue with Dampen Presence.
Flensing Strike: The best feat available for Sanctified Slayers, period. You simply cannot do better than the sickened
condition and permanently reducing a foe’s natural armor bonus. Besides, the Bleeding Attack Rogue talent is one of the
only ones that’s worth taking with your Slayer talents, so you might as well pick up the prerequisite.
Shadow’s Shroud: It’s like shield of darkness, except you can use it for Stealth! Excellent, excellent feat, potentially even
rendering a Shadowdancer dip obsolete.
Violent Display: The feat comes with some Weretiger flavor and isn’t PFS-legal, but holy shit, you can see why. Violent
Display is the third leg of the Dazzling Display/Shatter Defenses/Violent Display trifecta that allows Intimidation-based
Rogues and Slayers unlimited sneak attack, all day long. The chain goes something like this: Intimidate an enemy, which
makes them flat-footed vs. the rest of your attacks via Shatter Defenses; execute a sneak attack against the flat-footed enemy;
immediate action Dazzling Display via Violent Display to demoralize other enemies within a 30-ft. radius.

Focused Target: Good for boss fights.

Gang Up: Anyone with sneak attack dice loves flanking. Gang Up lets you flank better. ‘Nough said.
Shadows of Fear: Don’t want to do Shatter Defenses? Don’t worry! You’ll still get your SA damage at least once per
round if they’re shaken.
Shatter Defenses: The advantage of Shatter Defenses over Shadows of Fear is that it makes the enemy flat-footed against
all your attacks until the next round, an arrangement ideal for characters who are full-attacking constantly. On the
downside, Shatter Defenses has two feat prerequisites and pretty steep BAB entry for Inquisitors. Your call whether that
trade-off is worth it for you. Shadows of Fear could still be viable for Vital Strike or Spring Attack builds.

Accomplished Sneak Attacker: It’s not a great feat in and of itself, but you may need to select it in order to access feats
that have more intensive sneak attack prerequisites.
Hellcat Stealth: Sanctified Slayers have a definite edge over Rogues and Slayers in that they can cast spells like invisibility
to set up sneak attack. Sometimes you need those spells for other things, though, which makes abilities like Hide in Plain
Sight all the more valuable. Hellcat Stealth has its problems—penalty to the Stealth check, lighting restrictions—but overall
is one of the only universally available tools for getting sneak attacks off alone and without help from other skills or spells.
Seething Hatred: Again, depends on how single-minded your campaign is about enemy types.
Surprise Maneuver: Makes you full BAB for the purposes of maneuvers, for whatever that’s worth to you.
Surprising Combatant: Hard to know quite where to put this feat. Here, I guess, since Sanctified Slayers benefit so
greatly from flat-footed opponents.
Visceral Threat: If you’d rather feint as a Sanctified Slayer, here’s your route, which benefits from Stern Gaze.

Dastardly Finish / Merciless Butchery / Brutal Coup de Grace: This is a trio that works together marvelously for
Sanctified Slayers at high levels (15+). Dazzling Display + the Unchained Intimidate Skill Unlock at the start of combat will
hopefully drive a few enemies straight to cowering; castigate can achieve cowering at lower levels for single targets. If you
move to cowering enemies and coup de grace as a standard action, you get a free Dazzling Display, which then causes more
targets to cower...you see how the cycle keeps on keepin’ on. It’s a big feat investment, though, and won’t work on every
enemy.
Shadow Strike: Dealing precision damage to targets with concealment is an attractive prospect, especially if you’re playing
as a human, for whom lighting rules are prone to give out concealment.

Careful Sneak / Exquisite Sneak: Obviated by the creeping armor enchantment, which is cheap and doesn’t eat into your
total enhancement bonus.

Spellbreaker & Witch Hunter

Scrutinize Spell: Oof, is this good for Witch Hunters. Valuable meta-knowledge, bonuses to future Spellcraft checks, and
an immediate Intimidate check with a bonus.
Spell Drinker: 1/hour is great, bonus HP are great, untyped bonus to saves is great. Great all around.

Arcane Vendetta: Hate arcane casters? Want to kill them? Arcane Vendetta! Even better for Witch Hunters, who get
bonuses to Spellcraft for free.
Atheist Abjurations: Hate divine casters? Want to kill them? Atheist Abjurations! Dispel magic is never a wasted spell
known, so get comfortable with using it quite a bit.
Focused Disbelief: Not many ways to acquire SR in Pathfinder, but here’s one for only two feats! The standard action to
lower resistance takes it down from blue, just because allies will have to pass a caster level check to buff you unless you slow
your roll.
Step Up / Following Step / Step Up and Strike: Your suite of abilities for following casters as they attempt to back
away from you. They’re brutal against enemies that are relying on five-foot steps to keep them safe.
Unimpeachable Honor: Between all your defensive abilities, you can probably avoid enchantment effects altogether. If
not, however, Unimpeachable Honor ensures that you won’t do any harm while controlled.

Divine Defiance: An untyped +2 to saves against divine spells isn’t anything to snicker at. Opens up some of the later
Magehunter abilities, too.

Spell Denial: Enchantment and Evocation, always good bets.

Zealous Mind: I feel as if it’s starting to become overkill by the time you get to Zealous Mind, but hey, bonuses are
bonuses.

Exorcist’s Rebuttal: Activating the retaliatory hit to WIS is a little finicky and requires several feat prereqs, which is why
this feat is rated as flavor only. I like to think that Harry Potter trained this shortly before his trip to the Ministry in Order
of the Phoenix.

Tactical Leader

Battle Cry: Higher morale bonuses will quickly outpace it, unfortunately.

Combat Style-Specific

Casting

* Spell Bane: You don’t have many tools that allow you to pretend like you’re a full caster. This is one of them.
Spontaneous Nature’s Ally: Whoa, you can just pick up summoning? And it’s tied to the Animal domain, which is
already amazing? (Plant, well, eh.) Fabulous stuff, especially because you’ll be using cure spells primarily with wands, not
daily spell slots.
Dispel Synergy: Anything, I repeat anything that lets you lower enemies’ saves is something you should be interested in.
Spell Penetration: As long as you heed the important caveat that Inquisitors will never be great at offensive casting, Spell
Penetration can still do good work. Every bit of SR penetration helps.
Steadfast Mind: In general, of course, we should be aiming not to fail defensive castings, but if you do, there’s nothing like
getting a chance at keeping your spell slot.
Warrior Priest: It’s like Combat Casting, except you also get an initiative bonus! Definitely nice.

Uncanny Concentration: It’s at least as good as Combat Casting, and depending on your GM’s familiarity with
concentration check rules, might be better.

Combat Casting: Losing spells hurts. Warrior Priest is strictly better, however.
Destructive Dispel: Even if the enemy caster passes the Fort save to avoid the stun, they’re still sickened. Not too shabby.
Knowledgeable Spellcaster: It’s a pity that the application is so narrowly confined to one enemy type, because even out
of the package you get more SR penetration than Spell Penetration. Definitely worth a look if your campaign focuses on
one enemy type—Monster Lore certainly sets you up nicely for it.

Minor Miracle: A 1st-level spell 1/day isn’t strong enough to use one of your normal feats, but it might also weak enough
that GMs aren’t scared to give it to you for free.

Crit Fishing

Critical, Improved: Ah, this one’s excellent. Keen as a feat, doubling the threat range of any weapon. Inquisitors of
Sarenrae, Cayden Cailean, and Lamashtu will appreciate it particularly.

Butterfly Sting: Desna worshiper only. If you do happen to worship Desna, this can be a great tool. Much of your
damage will come from Bane, which isn’t multiplied on a crit—so why not give that crit to someone who can use it better?
Obviously works best if you’re wielding a high crit range weapon like a rapier; you’d have to pick up proficiency through
racial or feat options, though, because the starknife will always be lackluster for anyone except a Warpriest.
Destroy Identity: Lamashtu worshiper only. Can be particularly devastating against Bards, Sorcerers, Bloodragers—any
class that uses CHA as its casting stat, really. The BAB requirement is up there, though, and there’s always the small matter
of Lamashtu.

Critical, Blinding (etc.): Late, late access for you. There are some good options on here, but only for the very end of
campaigns.
Critical Focus: Unfortunately necessary for getting into Critical feats. Only two certainties in Pathfinder: death and feat
taxes.
Disposable Weapon: Not actually as bad as all that if you’ve got someone with mending on the team.

Crossbow
Crossbow Mastery: You’ll need to work up to this eventually if you really want to go with crossbows—the free action
reload is too good to pass up.

Rapid Reload: For those using light crossbows and primarily casting, this is as far as you need to go. If you want the bigger
guns, progress to Crossbow Mastery.

Abadar’s Divine Crossbow: There are some amazing Divine Fighting Techniques; ADC, unfortunately, isn’t one of
them. Steal and Dirty Trick don’t get you much as a ¾ BAB class.

Finesse Fighting

Combat Patrol: If you’re looking at doing a Finesse Reach build (e.g., glaive with Combat Reflexes and a DEX focus)
here’s how you turn all those AoOs positively lethal. Combat Patrol increases your threatened area, letting you spread Bane
damage around even when it’s not your turn.
Piranha Strike: It’s Power Attack for Finesse fighters. What more needs to be said?

Bladed Brush: Shelyn gets special mention for a Finesse-esque feat that’s A and B the C of D (that’s Above and Beyond
the Call of Duty, kids). DEX to hit for glaives is an interesting take, and it provides multiple other benefits that might be of
interest, not least of which is the ability to threaten 5 ft. away with a weapon that’s normally reach-only.
Dervish Dance / Fencing Grace / Slashing Grace / Starry Grace: Each of these feats has the same general purpose: to
use your DEX modifier for damage rolls, instead of STR. They are all weapon-specific, and usually deity-specific, as well
(e.g., Desna for starknives, Sarenrae for scimitars, Iomedae for longswords, etc.).
Spring Attack: Spring Attack is one of those feats like Quick Draw that often doesn’t figure into “optimized” builds, yet
still affords you many more degrees of freedom than you’d otherwise have, particularly if you’ve got high Acrobatics to
avoid AoOs. If this feat makes it to 2e, I predict it’ll undergo a bit of a renaissance, as fewer enemies will have access to
AoOs at all.
Wind / Lightning Stance: These feats make you incredibly difficult to pin down, and concealment chances always scale
well, even into later levels.

Combat Reflexes: The higher your DEX, the better it gets. Ideal and necessary for any build taking advantage of Combat
Patrol.

Dodge / Mobility: Mobility is no one’s idea of a good time, and Dodge barely does better. They open the path to some
better feats, though.
Weapon Finesse: Obviously necessary for this fighting style, but nothing more than a feat tax.

Graceful Athlete: For those who think climbing and swimming should be more about technique, not raw strength.

Intimidate
Enforcer: Hohoho. Jewel of the Intimimancer’s crown, Enforcer gets you some serious duration on the shaken
duration, a means of demoralizing as a free action, and all with very affordable
entry requirements. All you need are boosts to Intimidate and a means of escalating
fear conditions, and you’re a holy terror on the battlefield. Inquisitors of
Sarenrae should think about pairing Enforcer with either Sarenrae’s Mercy or the
Blade of Mercy Religion trait in order to take full advantage of the nonlethal →
demoralize chain. (Thanks, /u/T3h_Prager, for introducing me to that excellent
trait!)
Hurtful: Thanks to the swift action, you’re limited to a single Hurtful attack per turn, but each one is another source of
Bane, Judgment, and weapon damage. Take it and enjoy.
Signature Skill (Intimidate): The Pathfinder Unchained skill unlock feats are...interesting. Many of them feel less like
complete reimaginings of what you can do with the skills so much as reductions to annoying penalties—slight
improvements to bookkeeping, in short. Not so with Intimidate. Grab this feat, and you’re suddenly able to escalate fear
conditions beyond shaken with good checks, all the way up to cowering in later levels. That’s amazing, because any enemy
that’s fleeing in terror isn’t damaging the team.

Disheartening Display: Great in conjunction with the Intimidate Skill Unlock—lets you push enemies ever closer to
total, blind panic.
Dreadful Carnage: Kill an enemy, get a free DD. Pretty straightforward, and very useful. Note that it comes in at a high
level.
Golden League Tattoos: Ifrit can usually get the ability to take 10 on Intimidate checks, but for the rest of us, there’s
Golden League Tattoos. Obviously only works if you’ve got connections to Tian Xia.

Bludgeoner: Why am I including a feat for dealing nonlethal damage? Why, because of the amazing Enforcer feat, of
course! Bludgeoner isn’t great on its own, but it extends the utility of Enforcer beyond Improved Unarmed Strike and
Sarenrae’s Divine Fighting Technique. All of a sudden, you can use any bludgeoning weapon with Enforcer, and that’s a
big deal.
Dazzling Display: Dazzling Display isn’t overwhelmingly good on its own, but it’s the entry point for many other
Intimidate-based feats. The addition of the Intimidate Skill Unlock from Pathfinder Unchained makes DD much better, as
you’re suddenly able to bump fear severity up to frightened or even panicked/cowering...but more on that later.
Gory Finish: Functionally similar to Dreadful Carnage, except you trade Dreadful Carnage’s later entry for Gory Finish’s
single attack action. Because it only allows that single attack, it actually pairs nicely with Vital Strike.
* Intimidating Bane: By itself, it’s not much. If your GM rules that you can keep more severe fear conditions up and
running while Bane is active (say, with the Intimidate Skill Unlock) then this becomes incredibly useful.
Intimidating Prowess: It’s not the brightest bulb of the bunch, but every little bonus helps when demoralizing.

Destructive Persuasion: Break shit, scare folks. That’s what the Inquisitor is all about, no?
Position of Strength: Good for frightening hapless peons, not enemies. Fun, though!
Shocking Bellow: It probably won’t earn a spot in most builds, but a free demoralize check at the start of battle ain’t bad.
Sinister Reputation: I love the idea of an Inquisitor’s terrifying reputation preceding them into town. Good enough to
merit a regular feat? Meh, probably not.
* Intimidating Gaze: Ohhhh, if only they could have kept this the same as its Sense Motive cousin, Insightful Gaze. As it
is, it only gives you the reroll 1/day, which is trash.

Ranged

Circuitous Shot: Boy, does it take a long time to get, but what else do you have at the mid-to-high levels? Circuitous Shot
removes the last remaining obstacle to efficient ranged combat: cover.
Hammer the Gap: Extra damage on full attacks helps punch through DR, if nothing else, and multiplies on crits. Ranged
Inquisitors shouldn’t have any difficulty pulling off full attacks much of the time.
Improved Precise Shot: It comes in late, but boy, is it worth it.
Manyshot: In spite of the fact that you’re firing two arrows, you only get one dose of Bane damage. Still great!
Rapid Shot: Rapid Shot does what its big brother Manyshot can’t: give you more Bane damage. Haste and Rapid Shot are
(to my knowledge, at least) the only ways of cheating BAB progression to get more attacks as a ranged Inquisitor, so enjoy
this essential tool in your toolkit.

Bullseye Shot: We all like to pretend that ranged combat is nothing but endless full attacks, but with ¾ BAB, there’s no
guarantee that even your first shot will land on heavily armored foes. Bullseye Shot improves your ability to land at least
one shot, which sometimes is all you can do. One shot that lands is better than three that don’t.
Empty Quiver Style / Empy Quiver Flexibility / Empty Quiver Flurry: Alternatives to Point-Blank Master and Snap
Shot that let you use your ranged weapon as a melee weapon and take AoOs by, I guess stabbing people with arrows?
Maybe? Flexibility is the logical jumping-off point in the three-feat line, as it lets you “Rapid Shot” with your melee bow
and take any AoOs that might come your way.
Tracer Fire: You’ve got spells on your list to give enemies light sensitivity—now here’s your method of abusing that while
simultaneously buffing your team.

Gunslinger: Point-Blank Master for Black Powder Inquisitors. Phenomenal for them, useless for everyone else.
Point-Blank Shot: A prereq for many feats later in the chain, even if you intended to be fighting from afar. Sigh.
Precise Shot: Still a tax, but more universally useful than PBS.
Snap Shot / Improved Snap Shot: A threatened area of 5 ft. won’t do a lot of good, as it’ll only come into play if an
enemy attempts to back out of combat with you…and if a melee enemy closes from range, you can bet they’re there to stay.
Improved Snap Shot ups your game, however, by allowing you to threaten 10 ft. Now anything without reach needs to
step to you, and even combos like ranged Combat Patrols become viable.

Warning Shot: The only advantage this feat has over out-of-the-box demoralization is the added range.

Point-Blank Master: Don’t let the rating fool you: Point-Blank Master is an amazing feat. You need Weapon
Specialization to get it, though, and off the top of my head, I can’t think of anything apart from a Zen Archer Monk dip
that nets it for you.
 Two-Handed

Power Attack: Criminally obvious pick for two-handed builds.

Steadfast Slayer: Toe-to-toe is always the worst place to be with enormous enemies, but at least you can pump out even
moar damage with this feat.

Surprise Follow-Through: Sanctified Slayer Cleave build? Maybe.

Furious Focus: Because of your ¾ BAB, Power Attack affects you more strongly than it does for full BAB classes. It’s not a
huge benefit, though.

Two-Weapon Fighting

* Double Bane: Ohhh, Double Bane. What am I going to do with you? You burn double the Bane rounds per day of
normal Bane, and off-hand attacks are always less likely to hit, potentially rendering the benefit null. My opinion? Even if
you’re TWFing, you’re better off putting Bane on your main-hand weapon and leaving it at that. The ability eviscerates
monsters efficiently enough not to need another feat tax.

Deity-Specific

Abadar

Divine Dignity: The “Oh Crap” button par excellence, Divine Dignity ensures that you won’t get cremated as you
attempt to cast invisibility or some other emergency power when in an enemy’s threatened area.
Perfect Casting: And now you never provoke for casting of any kind. Absolutely amazing.

Abadar’s Crossbow (Divine Fighting Technique): Oh, Abadar, I’d love to love your DFT more, but it doesn’t age
gracefully as ¾ BAB and monster CMD scores diverge.

Asmodeus

Asmodeus’ Mandate (Divine Fighting Technique): Sickened is an excellent way to drop enemies’ saves and attacks, and
you get the perk just for threatening a crit. The second benefit is good, too: even if the dirty trick can’t be counted on to
land consistently, there’s no opportunity cost for trying.
Devilish Pride: Roll twice against charms and compulsions. Predictably good.

Diabolical Negotiator: Listed as black only because you need Skill Focus (Diplomacy) as a prerequisite, Diabolical
Negotiator nets you some excellent effects for being less out-and-out murdery as an Evil character.
Verify: Oathkeepers are going to love this feat, too.

Calistria

Calistria’s Poisoned Lash (Divine Fighting Technique): Poison still pretty much sucks, but this feat at least makes
delivery considerably easier.

Cayden Cailean

Cayden Cailean’s Blade and Tankard (Divine Fighting Technique): You’re dual-wielding, technically, and can still
use the tankard to deal bludgeoning damage if you so choose. The much better idea is using the tankard to perform dirty
tricks and administer potions to yourself. Standard disclaimer goes that you shouldn’t expect your maneuvers to land much
of the time...but still, what style! What a feat! How can you not love splashing ale in someone’s face to blind them?

Drunken God’s Blessing: Hahahaha! This is why I love CC. What a badass. The bonuses won’t blow anyone away, but
it’s still cool to be able to say, “I can read his mind because I got drunk at a gambling den last night.”
Drunken Sing-Along / Read the Room: I think these two feats should be mandatory for any self-respecting Inquisitor
of CC. There’s just so much fun to be had here.
Hearty Liver: Take your drink like a true Caydenite! Again, one of those feats that I think any worshipper of CC should
get for free. After all, where’s the harm?
Truth in Wine: Get drunk, gain psychic abilities!

Drunken Brawler: No, don’t get me wrong, it’s a good effect, but the bonuses only last until those measly few temp HP
are gone, and then you’re just left with a hangover.

Desna

Startoss Style / Comet / Shower: The base style gives you a straight boost to damage, which the starknife desperately
needs. Comet gives you two attacks per standard action—definitely worth it—but Shower won’t do much for the ¾ BAB
of Inquisitors.

Butterfly Sting: Inquisitors do a good bit of their damage through Bane, which isn’t multiplied on a critical hit. So why
not give that critical to someone who can use it more effectively? This feat is especially effective for characters who can pick
up access to martial weapons with higher crit ranges, like Grippli and their rapier proficiency, or Half-Elves and the Elven
Curve Blade. Sanctified Slayers are even more incentivized to pass off crits, because their sneak attack damage doesn’t
multiply.

Guided Star: WIS-to-damage is a nice touch, but in conjunction with Starry Grace and Weapon Finesse still only just
manages to bring starknife damage into “acceptable” territory. Limited uses per day further hinder the feat.

Desna’s Shooting Star (Divine Fighting Technique): Oh, Desna. Warpriests are really best for starknife builds, because
Sacred Weapon turns the weapon’s damage into something...well, that exists at all. Using CHA for to-hit and damage is a
fantastic trick for CHA-based classes, but doesn’t do any better for Inquisitors than DEX or STR would.

Erastil

Erastil’s Blessing: Incredible, incredible feat for archers. Using WIS instead of DEX to hit lets you pump your mental
score sky-high right from the start, leading to better casting, skills, and Will saves. Best of all, your initiative doesn’t even
take a hit—Cunning Initiative recoups your losses!

Erastil’s Distracting Shot (Divine Fighting Technique): Decent in the early levels, Erastil’s DFT will drop off sharply
in value as enemies start hitting more and more reliably. AC is eventually a sucker’s game, and you’ve got to rely on spells,
winning initiative, DR, or other factors in order to survive. It’s still a thematic ability—somehow manages to combine
archery and taking care of your community in one feat.

Savior’s Arrow: Is your ally taking heavy damage? Shoot the booboo away!

Gorum

Gorum’s Swordsmanship (Divine Fighting Technique): Part of the reason this DFT rates so highly is that greatswords
are OP without any help. Being able to use Vital Strike on charges, AoOs, and for the purposes of magehunting pushes
their OP status into nigh-godlike territory. (Take note, though: the feat does not explicitly grant you the use of Improved
Vital Strike on charges or AoOs, so check with your GM about whether they’ll kindly allow that.

Iomedae

Disciple of the Sword: Simple, straightforward damage boost with longswords. Great if you have the room or are going
Heritor Knight.
Iomedae’s Inspiring Sword (Divine Fighting Technique): The first iteration of Iomedae’s DFT is like a reverse
Dazzling Display, buffing allies rather than debuffing enemies. It’s a decent ability that suffers somewhat from a short
duration. At BAB +10 things get much more interesting—you’re now able to grant that same bonus for a full minute
whenever you charge or use a single standard action to attack. Easy peasy. The entire team gets a more or less constant +2
sacred bonus to attack, saves, and skill checks. Only downside there is that sacred bonuses might be more common by the
time you acquire the ability.

Iomedaean Sword Oath: It’s not worth a slot in your normal build, but might be worth a flavor feat.

Irori

Draining Strike: Fatigue ain’t bad as a debuff, and any second application of the strike will cause enemies to become
exhausted. Limited uses and a Fort save to negate hamper it, though, so it’s mostly fluff.
Joyless Toil: It’s a decent ability, but unarmed strike is simply a bad road for an Inquisitor to walk.

Domain Strike: It’s not strictly an Irori-only feat, but Inquisitors of Irori are the only ones likely to have both a Domain
and Improved Unarmed Strike. Too bad he doesn’t have any good debuffs on his domain list.
Irori’s Perfected Fist (Divine Fighting Technique): Iroriiiii. Why do you do this to me? Even for Monks, -2 to attack
in exchange for dealing guaranteed average damage is a shitty, shitty trade. With no scaling unarmed damage, it’s even
worse for Inquisitors.

Lamashtu

Lamashtu’s Carving (Divine Fighting Technique): High bleed damage is a yup. Staggering opponents with a halfway
decent save DC is also a yup, especially at later levels when enemies’ full-round attack actions consist of, like, 12 attacks.

Fearsome Finish: Untyped, stacking bonus to Intimidate for each foe you drop? Where do I sign? Lamashtu really does
Intimidate well.

Norgorber

Norgorber’s Silent Shiv (Divine Fighting Technique): The initial benefit is...meh. Moving up one damage die for one
hit per round isn’t gamebreaking. Now, Stealth vs. enemy’s CMD in order to treat them as completely unaware of your
presence? That’s a godsend for Sanctified Slayers. To cap it all off, no prerequisites except for the ranks in Stealth you were
going to take anyway!

Pharasma

Eerie Sense: Undead can run, but they definitely can’t hide when one of Pharasma’s Own is on the scene.
 Rovagug

Rovagug’s Thunder (Divine Fighting Technique): The advanced benefit is good for penetrating DR/— in the later
stages of a campaign, but the initial benefit won’t see much use in your non-maneuvery hands. I also have to rate this one
lower because of how incredibly difficult it would be to play an Inquisitor of Rovagug, even in an evil campaign like Hell’s
Vengeance. I mean, remember, Asmodeus was part of the cohort that shut the Rough Beast away!

Sarenrae

Dervish Dance: The scimitar is one of the best Finesse weapons in the Inner Sea pantheon, so enjoy it if you worship
Sarenrae. Dervish Dance is your basic DEX-to-damage, and pairs well with her Divine Fighting Technique.
Sarenrae’s Mercy (Divine Fighting Technique): “Wait, but why would I want to deal nonlethal damage?” you ask.
First, it’s thematic as fuck for Sarenrae, who always gives even the most hardened of criminals a chance to repent and come
over to the light. Second, take a gander at the Enforcer feat. Starting to see the uses? By the time you get to the advanced
benefit, you’re essentially casting cure light wounds on yourself every round. Now, granted, hit point damage isn’t the
most dangerous thing lurking in the later stages of campaigns: you’ve got save-or-die effects, permanent polymorphs, ability
drain, negative levels...still, HP damage almost always comes wrapped up in there somewhere, and you can heal it during
combat. On your own. That’s fantastic. If you’re not interested in investing a feat in the DFT, the PFS-legal Religion trait
Blade of Mercy can take away your nonlethal penalty while also giving you a nice little bump in damage. Also remember
that Inquisitors can sacrifice a 1st-level Domain or Inquisition power to pick up their deity’s Divine Fighting Technique.

Shelyn

Bladed Brush: Weapon Finesse for glaives, plus the ability to modify your attack range to either 5 or 10 ft. Great stuff for
Shelynites.

Torag

Torag’s Patient Strikes (Divine Fighting Technique): Using your WIS modifier will probably give you even more
AoOs in the long run than DEX will. Add Vital Strike, Combat Patrol, and reach buffs from allies, and you can just crush
everything that comes within 25 ft. of you. Another thematic ability that solidifies Torag as the patron god of defensive
tactics.

Blessed Hammer: Less useful than for Clerics due to Inquisitors’ general lack of good touch spells. Prevents Sunder or
Steal shenanigans with your holy symbol, though.
 Urgathoa

Urgathoa’s Hunger (Divine Fighting Technique): When these DFTs are good, they’re really good. Converting damage
to temp HP bunches of times per day really sets you up nicely as a tank—you’ll rack up a huge buffer, especially if you
manage to score a crit with that x4 modifier. The advanced benefit is crap; the blue rating goes to show you just how good
the initial benefit is.

Zon-Kuthon

Cruelty: Easy pick: spiked chain, Power Attack, Cornugon Smash, Cruelty. +2 to hit and damage literally every time you
demoralize.

Chain Mastery: Potentially dual-wield spiked chains? Brutal. I like that you still get a bonus when two-handing, too.
Cornugon Shield: Inquisitors will never be the beefiest combatants on the field. Not bad, getting a shield bonus with your
primary weapon.
Dance of Chains: DEX-to-damage for the spiked chain. A no-brainer if you’re going the Finesse route. Prereqs are a little
steep.
Zon-Kuthon’s Flensing (Divine Fighting Technique): The bad news is that you’ve got to debuff yourself to see any
benefits here—but c’mon, it’s Zon-Kuthon, so what were you expecting? The good news is that the immediate, no-save
sickened condition opens enemies up to become nauseated. If that happens, it’s game over for them.

Endure Pain: Definitely not worth a feat pick in your normal progression. As a bonus? Well, maybe still not worth it. But
damn, can a Kuthite get more thematic than being tortured 10+ times?
Flagellant: Neither [pain] effects nor nonlethal damage are common. I’m not sure how or when you do fall unconscious
with this feat, but I’m inclined to say that it’s just below 0 HP.

Cornugon Trip: Unless you’ve got a means of getting that chain back, no, don’t throw your primary weapon.

Teamwork Feats
Allied Spellcaster: Casting builds are possible with Spell Bane and the shaken/sickened conditions to drop enemies’ saves.
What the Inquisitor is lacking, however, is a means to reliably pierce SR, which begins to kick in in earnest around 9th level.
Should you be going for a casting build, this feat is absolute gold, making it easy to get those SR penetration bonuses just
by moving next to an ally. If you’re near another caster with your spell prepared, you get double the bonuses and a boost to
CL for other effects like range and duration. It’s a mark of how powerful this feat is that it’s still decent in non-caster
builds.
Coordinated Charge: Charge has its limitations, and this feat places one more on by allowing you to move only up to
your speed. That said, you’re getting a full-round action for the cost of an immediate action and zipping around the
battlefield like a hopped up pinball. Melee characters can’t beat the action economy and free attacks, and Inquisitors with
Cavalier allies will learn to adore how synchronized this feat makes them.
Escape Route: Very useful for when you need to get out of a tight spot. There are some cool shenanigans with the Reaper
of Secrets archetype (bleh though it is) and the Mind Games class feature you can pull with Escape Route. Basically, if
you’ve used your Gaze on an enemy, it can’t target you with AoOs while you’re adjacent; you’re treating it as an ally, and
you don’t provoke for moving in squares adjacent to an ally.
Friendly Fire Maneuvers: Cover stinks for ranged characters, and there’s little chance of a respite until you can get Lob
Shot, Circuitous Shot, or Improved Precise Shot. Friendly Fire Maneuvers at least fixes cover provided by melee friends,
making crowded scrums a lot less difficult to shoot into. Melee Inquisitors will pass, the other benefits not being worth
your while.
Improved Outflank: Every melee Inquisitor should get Outflank and Improved Outflank at some point in their career.
Period. They’re just too good, especially for Sanctified Slayers who rely on flanking to deal out SA damage.
Improved Spell Sharing: This feat will really only be appealing to Sacred Huntsmasters, but holy cow, what a feat. With
your companion sharing wrath, divine favor, etc., you really will be unstoppable.
Living Fortress: Dwarf only, and encapsulates perfectly why Dwarves make the best Magehunters. An additional +2 vs.
spells and SLAs, on top of Hardy and Steel Soul? Yeah. You want this.™
Outflank: Flanking is always a tactically sound move; Outflank just incentivizes it to a scary degree. Sanctified Slayers
especially will want this feat for its ability to proc sneak attack.
Overwhelm: Even for two Medium characters, this feat still allows you to flank Huge, Gargantuan, and Colossal enemies
from anywhere. Anywhere. Imagine Outflank bonuses against most enemies in the later levels. Imagine it, I say!
Scarred Legion: Is there anything better than an untyped bonus to Intimidate and Will saves? Let me answer that
rhetorical question for you: no.
Shake It Off: Untyped bonuses to all saves are an absolute must for just about any build. Get it.
Shielded Caster: Awesome feat for just about anyone interested in casting while threatened. You’ll probably want it.
Target of Opportunity: For ranged characters only. Easy extra attacks, with all the Bane damage that entails.

Coordinated Capture: One of a trifecta of feats (Coordinated Distraction, Coordinated Capture, and Crowd Control)
that deals with enemies making Acrobatics and Concentration checks to avoid AoOs. Distraction gives you just
Concentration, Crowd Control gives you just Acrobatics, and Capture gives you a mix of the two. Quite, quite nice.
Coordinated Distraction: It’s more specialized than Coordinated Capture, but it essentially approaches the defensive
casting problem from the other angle, raising the DC rather than lowering the bonus to the Concentration check. At any
rate, endorsed for Magehunter builds. Good stuff.
Coordinated Shot: Easy +1 to ranged attacks. Make sure you have Precise Shot so you’re not stacking a -4 penalty to
shoot into melee range on top of that +1, though.
Duck and Cover: Now here’s an interesting one. Inquisitors will never be all that great at Reflex saves, and although
they’re by far the least serious saves to fail, they still can involve some nasty damage. What if you could take your Rogue
friend’s save, though? Falling prone is obviously bad, but you’re never required to take that option, only allowed to. The
clause about an AC bonus when adjacent to an ally with a shield is mostly fluff, as shield builds are vanishingly rare in
Pathfinder.
Enfilading Fire: Stacks with Coordinated Shot for some truly ridiculous bonuses to hit. If you’re at range, and they’re
flanked, they’re toast. (Thanks to /u/T3h_Prager for reminding me that they do stack!)
Lastwall Phalanx: Obviously reliant on Evil enemies—lucky for you, most enemies are.
Lookout: Sticking close to the party Rogue or your animal companion can help you take advantage of this feat. Getting a
full round’s worth of actions in a surprise round is tasty, tasty.
Paired Opportunists: Especially lethal in DEX/Reach/Combat Patrol builds where AoOs will be happening every time
an enemy attempts to do...well, basically anything.
Precise Strike: Easy +1d6 of damage whenever you’re flanking an enemy, which you should be doing whenever possible
anyway. No real downsides here.
Shared Remembrance: You have to be an Elf to get it, so meh for Inquisitors, but still, this feat will make you the
undisputed King/Queen of Monster Identification. (Oh, what a heavy crown to wear!)
Spirit of the Corps: It would be difficult to track morale bonuses for the entire team in order to know when and how to
use this feat, but that doesn’t make it a bad effect, just an advanced one.
Stealth Synergy: Terribly worded feat. I think the community has arrived at a satisfying definition, though. Inquisitors
aren’t known to be the stealthiest lot (unless you’re playing with an archetype that gets bonuses) so it’s nice to be able to
poach rolls from other PCs.
Trade Initiative: Sometimes, it’s not important for you to go first, especially if the Wizard has a pit, wall, etc. up their
sleeve and just needs to get it off quickly in order to save the entire party. It’s okay to help other people sometimes, kiddo.

Broken Wing Gambit: Useful only for Tactical Leaders and Sacred Huntsmasters—your allies need to actually have the
feat in order to take advantage of the AoOs. Even then, putting your own hide on the line is still a risky maneuver—a
gambit, even. I’d probably think twice before using the ability.
Circling Offense: Also TL/SH only, unfortunately, and it’s a pity, because it’s an excellent feat. Inquisitors running
DEX/Reach builds will already have the prerequisite feats, and it’s an ideal way to needle large enemies to death.
Coordinated Defense: It’s not bad, per se, just lackluster. You definitely don’t want to be grappled, swallowed whole,
tripped, etc. Will this feat let you avoid those? Eh, maybe. You’re generally better off keeping a spell like freedom of
movement in your back pocket, or if you’ve money to burn, a ring of freedom of movement.
Coordinated Reposition: Any feat that gives you free 5-ft. steps must be taken into consideration. Note that you’re
trading your swift action in the next round by taking an immediate action off-turn, however, and that without size
increases or reach weapons you might not threaten the same enemy as your allies much of the time.
Covering Fire: Decent debuff for Black Powder Inquisitors. Everyone else can skip.
Distracting Charge: A bit finicky on the conditions, but ranged Inquisitors in a party with a charge-happy comrade
(Cavaliers, some Paladins, Samurai, etc.) could probably take advantage.
Feint Partner: Sanctified Slayers aren’t great at feinting, but who knows, maybe someone on your team is! If they are, stick
close by them, because each of their feints will also deny the enemy’s DEX bonus for you. That means it’s time to meet the
mayor of Sneakattacktown.
Hammer Guards the Anvil: Between this feat and Escape Route, you’re gradually becoming able to ignore AoOs for a
multitude of actions. Worth considering.
Pack Attack: Potentially useful for Sacred Huntsmasters to gradually move into flanking position with their companions.
Protective Line: Again, for Black Powder Inquisitors. Everyone else, move on.
Punch Through: Quite good for Tactical Leaders, who can share this feat among the team and get everyone through DR.
Incompatible with Solo Tactics, sadly.
Swing About: Can actually help with tactical positioning, which is everything in this game.
Tandem Trip: Wolf Domain Inquisitors will love this one—see the Animal-Friend build at the end of the guide for an
example of how to use Tandem Trip.
Volley Fire: Gets better the more ranged teammates you have, obvies.
Drinking Buddy: Who cares whether the rest of the team is drunk? It’s 5:00 somewhere, and you get to treat them as if
they were! Worship the Accidental God and go enjoy your 1/day free reroll, ya lush.
Horde Charge: Half-orc or orc only, and mentioned only because of its obvious synergy with Coordinated Charge.

Back to Back: Only negates enemies’ flanking bonus, and the circumstances under which you would receive it are finicky.
Best to just get out of the flank by taking a 5 ft. step diagonally.
Blades Above and Below: Seems like it could be decent at first, until you see the size restrictions. As you grow in level and
enemies tend to get bigger, the bonus will become more and more situational.
Combat Medic: You have stabilize, if you’re truly concerned about making Heal checks in the middle of combat.
Coordinated Maneuvers: I’m going to go on record as saying that perhaps 98% of Inquisitor builds should not attempt
to perform combat maneuvers. The entry costs to the Improved feats are prohibitively high without the Dirty Fighting
feat, and the return on investment is low. Exceptions are Ravener Hunters who take Battle Mystery’s Maneuver Master
Revelation, Inquisitors of the Crime Inquisition, and Wolf Domain Green Faith Marshals/Sacred Huntsmasters.
Crowd Control: If you’re like me, enemies using Acrobatics to avoid AoOs are uncommon, while enemies casting
defensively are common. That being the case, Coordinated Capture can do yeoman’s service for both scenarios, rather than
focusing on Rogues or others who are going to dodge, duck, dip, dive, and dodge.
Ferocious Loyalty: Decent enough morale bonus for a common occurrence, but it will be quickly replaced by other
morale bonuses from your spell list. Pass.
Improved Duck and Cover: Improved, my ass. I’ve never seen the “improved” version of a feat take such a left turn. No,
your Rogue friend doesn’t want to get hit by that fireball instead of you, you asshole.
Improved Precise Strike: Not as good as its little brother, unfortunately. One point of bleed damage won’t be raising any
eyebrows.
Pack Flanking: INT 13 and Combat Expertise kinda kill it for this feat, despite the excellent bonus for Sacred
Huntsmasters.
Spell Chain: Good benefit; broken with Solo Tactics.
Stick Together: I personally don’t think that being staggered is worth the movement, but your mileage may vary.
Swarm Scatter: Minor buff to AC, and the bonus doesn’t extend to all swarms, just rats.
Wounded Paw Gambit: I like it much more than Broken Wing Gambit, but it’s still broken with Solo Tactics.
 “Never stop fighting till the fight is done.”
—Eliot Ness, Inquisitor, U.S. Department of Justice
 INQ495: The Inquisitor’s Arsenal
A Few Notes
Regarding bonus progression and “The Big Six”: I’m of the opinion that The Big Six which Pathfinder
encounters are balanced around (magic weapon, magic armor, Cloak of Resistance, Ring of Protection, Amulet of Natural
Armor, and stat-boosting belt/headband) are crap, the last four especially. That’s a shoulder slot, ring slot, neck slot, belt
slot, and head slot, all taken up with boring, mundanely necessary items. Paizo introduced rules for progressing defenses
automatically in their Pathfinder Unchained rulebook, however, the tl;dr version of which goes as follows: in exchange for
half of PCs’ wealth by level, they get resistance bonuses, stat increases, and bonuses to deflection/natural armor for free as
they level up. This allows them to use their five newly vacated slots for all the many Wondrous Items that Pathfinder
authors spend time lovingly crafting. I’ve played at tables with and without similar rules, and without a doubt, the ones
where players are allowed to wear the cool niche equipment are more fun, at least in my experience. It also looks as if
Pathfinder 2e is moving toward this system, so get hip to the new vibes, cat.

Regarding shields: Inquisitors are proficient with shields, which should at the very least make them worth a
look. The official Paizo ruling is that it is impossible to cast any spell with somatic components without a hand free, which
means no sword-and-board loadouts allowed. Now, many tables like to houserule that light shields count as having a hand
free for the purposes of spellcasting, and I'm in agreement with them—shields are already bad enough in Pathfinder
without penalizing the players who want to use them. If your GM agrees to play by those rules, I'd actually recommend
shields quite highly for Inquisitors: you can get +4 armor and a +3 shield for the same price as +5 armor, and there are some
very useful shield enchantments out there. Much of your damage will be coming from Bane and Judgment anyway, so two-
handing weapons for the STR bonus isn't as important for you as it is for, say, a Barbarian.

Regarding Wondrous Items: There are a staggering number of mundane and wondrous items in Pathfinder,
with more being added in each new supplement. I did actually write a guide reviewing every slotted wondrous item and
magical weapon or armor in Pathfinder, so look at that if you feel like you need a bonus in a certain area that you’re not
getting elsewhere. If you notice that I’ve missed your favorite wondrous item or mundane piece of equipment that enables
some cool tactics, by all means, shoot me a message at the Reddit handle listed in the last section. I’ll update the list as often
as I can, and give you credit where credit is due.

Regarding armor proficiencies: I formerly thought that there wasn’t a great case to made for medium armor,
given that it seems to provide the worst of both worlds in terms of mobility, ACP, and protection via AC. However, I was
since reminded that an Inquisitor wearing a Mithral Breastplate can achieve AC values extraordinarily close to those
provided by heavy armor, and with minimal ACPs when wearing the Steelbone Frame. If you’re dead set on having high
AC in the early game, picking up Heavy Armor Proficiency is still a decent option, but otherwise we want to keep you in
Medium (if you’re going the STR- or WIS-based routes) or Light armor (if you’re going the DEX-based route). We get to
keep stalwart, and ultimately there’s little benefit lost in skills, movement speed, or AC.
 Armor Enchantments
The Wheat

Gold-Only Enhancement Bonuses

Comfort (CL 5; 5,000 gp): What a nice little package of benefits! Endure elements, sleep in your armor without getting
fatigued, and -1 to the ACP. Well worth the enchantment costs once you can afford it.
Determination (CL 10; 30,000 gp): Cue the Mario 1-UP music, because you just got an extra life. This is a wonderful
enchantment that will get you back on your feet when needed most. Hope you learned heal, you poor bastard.
Expeditious (CL 5; 4,000 gp): Enhancement bonus. Zero enhancement bonus cost for a 3/day boost to movement
speed? Heck yeah, I'll take that. The swift action will compete with lots of good stuff at the beginning of combat, but if you
ever need to position better or eke out that last bit of movement on a charge, here's your man.
Malevolent (CL 7; 5,000 gp): Competence bonus. This enchantment is sky blue for anyone using a Demoralize build.
After using Shatter Defenses, your opponent is flat-footed against you; that's bad enough for them, but once you start
adding your armor's enhancement bonus to hit, your miss chances against demoralized enemies drop to nigh-zero.
Rallying (CL 5; 5,000 gp): Morale bonus. It's twice as good as mass blessings of luck and resolve, a 6th-level spell; it's
always active, affects everyone within 30 feet, and doesn't use up any enhancement bonus. That's over-the-moon fantastic.
Remember that your Judgments stop working if you ever become frightened or worse—you want to be passing those
checks with flying colors.
Restful (CL 5; 4,500 gp): Crafters rejoice! This is an excellent enchantment for those who need to burn the midnight oil,
and combined with comfort you can basically live in your armor. Highly recommended quality-of-life enchantment.

Corsair (CL 5; 5,000 gp): Competence bonus. Great for light armor builds that will be avoiding AoOs through
Acrobatics.
Creeping (CL 7; 5,000 gp): You can get pretty sneaky between creeping and shadow, as long as you're willing to shell out
for it. Useful if you want to sneak effectively in medium or heavy armor.
Glamered (CL 10; 2,700 gp): Cloaked Wolves are going to love this one for its ability to make them appear both
unarmed and unarmored. True seeing will eventually become an issue, of course, but you've got some time before that
happens. With this costing such a reasonable amount of gold and no enhancement bonus, I say go for it if you think it will
aid in your subterfuge.
Hosteling (CL 9; 7,500 gp): Oh, man, Sacred Huntsmasters are going to love this. Speak the word, hide your animal
companion as a symbol on your armor; speak the word again, and out they come, ready to attack. Size restrictions might
put a damper on things, so ask your GM about how to make the enchantment work for you. Obviously useless for
archetypes without animal companions.
Shadow/Improved/Greater (CL 5/10/15; 3.75k/15k/33.75k gp): Competence bonus, +5/+10/+15 to Stealth.
Useful for Umbral Stalkers, Sanctified Slayers, and others of the Inquisitor's sneaky-stabby ilk. Inquisitors not sneaking for
a living will probably prefer creeping to negate their ACP to Stealth.
Amorphous (CL 8; 4,500 gp): Competence bonus. This enchantment functions as a slightly improved slick, with a
utility power 1/day. The restriction on only supple, organic armor materials will probably scupper most Inquisitors' plans
of using it, however.
Deceiving (CL 7; 5,000 gp): The Infiltrator archetype is your go-to for detecting as a different alignment. Unless you're
trying to infiltrate enemy organizations and expect to run into Divination spells, you won't need it.
Delving (CL 5; 10,000 gp): Getting a burrow speed isn't bad, though being unable to
breathe underground or burrow through solid stone dampens the utility a bit. Try
out the Stony Step → Oread Burrower → Oread Earth Glide line of feats if you're
honestly curious about better brands of burrowing.
Mental Focus (CL 5; 3,000 gp): Enhancement bonus. Any perks to casting defensively are helpful; you'll probably be on
the front lines and threatened quite often.
Phase Lurching (CL 13; 9,100 gp): A poor man's ethereal armor. 1/day is probably too little to be worth it, but it's not
nothing.
Radiant (CL 6; 7,500 gp): Spells like dancing lights and light are nice because they don't necessarily paint a giant target
on your chest that says "KILL ME FIRST." 1/day daylight is cool and all, but you don't want to get your shine on
everywhere you go.
Righteous, Unbound, Unrighteous, Vigilant (CL 10; 27,000 gp): Righteous might is a very good spell—definitely one
you should be spending a spell known on. Is a 1/day righteous might worth 27,000 gold? I'd say no, but your mileage may
vary. The other enchantments on this list are righteous might for chaotic, evil, and lawful PCs, respectively.
Trackless (CL 5; 7,500 gp): Infiltrators will be more interested in this than base Inquisitors. Being restricted to leather or
hide armor lowers the utility somewhat, so you'll probably go with shadow instead.

Poison-Resistant (CL 7; 2,250 gp): Resistance bonus. The utility here depends on whether your GM rules that a
resistance bonus vs. poison is different from (and therefore stacks with) a resistance bonus to Fort saves. If they can stack,
this is green; if not, red. Your Cloak of Resistance (or equivalent automatic bonus) should have you covered.

Variable Enhancement Bonus

Fortification (+1 to +5): These are costly enchantments, but nothing, I repeat nothing, will kill you faster than criticals or
save-or-die effects at high levels. Given how easily AC is outstripped by enemies’ bonuses, you need a way to mitigate
damage when it inevitably gets to you, rather than hoping it doesn’t. Fortification isn’t the sexiest effect, but it’ll save your
life.

+1 Enhancement Bonus

Advancing (Heavy Armor only): Excellent for battlefield mobility. You'll kill things quickly as an Inquisitor, and getting
10 feet of free movement after a kill will often set you up nicely for a full attack.
Bolstering (Medium/Heavy Armor only): Circumstance bonus. Damage an enemy, get a free boost to your saves
against that enemy—perfect for mage hunters or anyone looking to be safer on the battlefield.

Assiduous (Shield only): A +1 assiduous buckler will run you about 1,000 gold—immunity to gaze attacks is certainly
worth that price to me.
Blinding (Shield only): It's an AoE blind effect, but—and here's the weird part—Reflex negates. I bet you can think of
some times when you would have loved to blind that enormous, slow-moving bruiser, but couldn't because his Fort save
was through the roof. Wish no more! For a +1 bonus, this is a steal, but talk to your GM about whether you can boost the
save DC in return for a higher enhancement bonus; DC 14 won't scale well into higher levels.
Defiant: Best in campaigns that focus on a single enemy type—Wrath of the Righteous, Carrion Crown, etc. DR 2/—
isn't huge, but it's cheap and better than nothing!

Clangorous (Shield only): You get to decide the area, eh? Can I deafen everything within a mile? 100 miles? Joking aside,
you're not going to want to deafen your teammates unless they have earplugs or something similar. Still, maybe a good low-
level tactic, especially against casters.
Impervious: Good against Rust Monsters or if your GM likes to sunder your equipment.
Mirrored: Bonuses to AC against rays and to miss chances against enemies with gaze attacks. It's versatile enough that it at
least bumps up to yellow. You could couple it with the assiduous enchantment to get supreme protection from gaze
attacks.
Terrain-Striding: Useful for campaigns that tend to take place predominantly in one terrain type. A constant 10-ft.
bonus to speed would be worth it on its own; the ACP negation property makes it even better.
Withstanding: Another one that's good for campaigns focusing on a certain enemy type. Great if you're in one, mediocre
if you're not.

+2 Enhancement Bonus

Spell Dodging: Dodge bonus. Energy drain, polar ray, disintegrate—some of the nastiest effects out there target your
Touch AC, and you want none of them near you. Bonus points for giving you extra AC against summoned creatures. A
must for magehunters.

Animated (Shield only): This enchantment solves the main drawback of shields: how do you get your two-handed
bonuses? It can't bash or use any offensive actions, but you weren't trying to build for that, were you?
Rampaging (Heavy Armor only): Ignoring difficult terrain on a charge is quite nice—adventure paths and PFS scenarios
often include difficult terrain, and many enemy casters will open combat by messing with the ground in between the two
sides. And fuck them, you're going over it anyway.

Adamant (Heavy Armor only): 1/day isn't great, and even DR 3/— is eventually going to get outclassed. Probably not
worth the +2 bonus, in the end.
Jarring: Dazed is a hefty condition. The things hitting you in melee will probably be able to pass a DC 16 Fort save,
especially as levels roll by, but still worth some consideration.
Phantasmal: It's a cool idea, and might find some play with Sanctified Slayers or others who need flanking in order to help
them proc sneak attack. The phantasm's AC is abysmal, however, which means the tactic will be over as soon as they take
one hit.

+3 Enhancement Bonus
Ghost Touch: Costly—and potentially worth it. Incorporeals can fuck you up pretty badly with ability drain or negative
levels; an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Arrow-Collecting: 20% miss chance is good. Issue is, the things that are going to kill you are exactly the things this
enchantment doesn't protect you against: spells and large projectiles. Thrown weapons are out, too, so that leaves just
arrows and bolts—not exactly a sizable group after a certain point in the bestiary. Likely not worth the enhancement
bonus.
Titanic: Enhancement bonus. Strange suite of benefits, some of them pretty nifty (Native Outsiders, for example, will love
the clause about being able to use enlarge person). It draws a lot of attention to you, though, and Inquisitors aren't ideally
suited to attracting attention. Worth +3 and a worse ACP? I'd lean toward "no."

+4 Enhancement Bonus

Bastion: Mind-affecting effects will wreck you pretty hard. If stalwart, a high Will save, and WIS as a casting stat don't
protect you, bastion is always there. It's a high price to pay, though, so not many will use it.

+5 Enhancement Bonus

Dread Wing: +5 bonus, indeed: a fly speed and two natural attacks are worth getting excited about. It'll cost you, though.

The Chaff

Gold-Only Enhancement Bonuses

Adhesive (CL 10; 7,000 gp): Enhancement bonus. You won't be using maneuvers, so that part of the enchantment is
worthless. The climb speed is easily replicated by spider climb or similar spells, and at only 10 rounds/day, I can't
recommend it.
Buoyant (CL 5; 1,000 gp for light armor; 2,000 gp for medium and heavy): Maybe for Skull & Shackles? ACPs
when swimming won't come up in 99% of scenarios.
Burdenless (CL 5; 4,000 gp): Ant haul, a wagon and team, Muleback Cords, a Handy Haversack—if your group uses
encumbrance rules, you've got better ways of dealing with excess weight.
Channeling (CL 8; 18,000 gp): You can't channel.
Cushioned (CL 1; 1,000 gp): Not many armors fit the bill, and it's a minor benefit. What were you expecting for 1,000
gold?
Energy Resistance/Improved/Greater (CL 3/7/11; 18k/42k/66k gp): Resist energy is a 2nd-level spell that you'll
probably have known. You need the versatility of being able to select which element you're resisting, unless you're playing
an element-specific campaign like Reign of Winter or Legacy of Fire.
Harmonizing (CL 7; 15,000 gp): Fun for Bards, not for Batman. Pass.
Jousting (CL 5; 3,750 gp): Competence bonus. Scant few Inquisitors will go for mounted combat.
Locksmith (CL 3; 6,500 gp): Enhancement bonus. You can't do much with this, but for Rogues, Ninjas, or other
dedicated trap-finders, this is blue.
Martyring (CL 9; 18,000 gp): A wand of cure light wounds costs 750 gold for 50 charges, or 15 gold/charge. The
Martyring enchantment costs 18,000 gold. You do the math.
Putrid (CL 5; 10,000 gp): Your teammates will murder you in your sleep if your armor accidentally sickens them for 5
rounds in combat. Don't purchase this.
Radiant Flight (CL 10; 15,000 gp; Heavy Armor only): Between your poor maneuverability and heavy ACP to Fly,
you're going to have a tough time staying aloft. The 10-minute/day duration kills it dead—useless for both combat and
travel.
Slick/Improved/Greater (CL 4/10/15 ; 3.75k/15k/33.75k gp): Competence bonus, +5/+10/+15 to Escape Artist.
Between the general lack of an ACP-negating enchantment and the Inquisitor's lack of Escape Artist on the class skill list,
you're unlikely to be able to boost this skill much. Plus, you have freedom of movement, the ultimate get-out-of-jail-free
card. Rogues will love it, though.
Spirit-Bonded (CL 9; 6,000 gp): You're not a Medium.
Spiteful (CL 7; 7,000 gp): You're not a Swashbuckler.
Undead Controlling (CL 13; 49,000 gp): Your GM isn't going to let you have this, and for good reason.
Venom-Eating (CL 5; 15,000 gp): Poison has always been weak, and this enchantment doesn't change that fact.
Wyrmsbreath (CL 5; 5,000 gp; Shield only): Weak effect, finicky to charge. Pass.

Variable Enhancement Bonus

Spell Resistance (+2 to +5): SR is really a mixed bag. On the one hand, yes, SR makes you more difficult to target with
spells. On the other hand, it affects spells cast by allies, too, and certainly doesn't guarantee safety against powerful casters
with Spell Penetration, Piercing Spell, etc.

+1 Enhancement Bonus

Arrow Catching (Shield only): You'd rather not take that arrow to the knee, thank you. Leave this to the meat shields.
Balanced: Unless your DM is Overrun- or Trip-happy, this won't come up enough to be worth it to you.
Bashing (Shield only): You don't have the feats to do two-weapon shield bashing, so this won't be useful.
Benevolent: You won't be using Aid Another often.
Bitter: Fort save doesn't scale. Pretty useless after early levels.
Calming: Only 10 rounds/day, with a weak effect. Womp womp.
Champion: You don't have Challenge or Smite.
Crusading: You're neither a Warpriest nor a Paladin.
Dastard: Same as champion, but for Evil characters.
Deathless: How often do you come up against channeled negative energy? You can cast death ward to protect against
negative levels.
Evolving: You don't get your armor bonus to AC when evolved, which makes it hard to justify. Still, it's a neat little suite
of options: swim speed and water breathing, scent, a natural attack, resistance. Better for light armor users.
Folding (Shield only): I'm struggling to come up with a mechanical reason why you'd want to change a shield into a
different type of shield. Write me if you've got any insight.
Grinding: A piddling amount of damage. Generally speaking, getting grappled shouldn't be part of your game plan.
Heraldic (Shield only): Use your shield as a holy symbol. Good if your GM likes to steal your holy symbols.
Merging (Shield only): Can't cast spells while merged. Pass.
Ramming (Shield only): Excellent for shield bash builds; you're not likely to have a shield bash build.
Rebounding (Shield only): Splash weapons and thrown weapons aren't terribly common.
Singing (Shield only): How often do you run into enemy bards?
Spell-Storing: Most unfortunately, you don't get many touch spells apart from conditional curse. Ask your GM whether
you can use Domain abilities with spell-storing armor; it would be amazing for some domains, like Madness.
Spellrending (Shield only): Another enchantment that requires you to be shield bashing. Pass.
Spellsink: You want it to work so badly, don't you? Unfortunately, casters are going to cackle maliciously at passing a DC
14 Will save even at lower levels, much less in the rocket tag matches of 15th level and up.
Vouchsafing: If you're under the effects of any of the listed conditions, you've got problems that even DR 5/— won't fix.
Focus your efforts on avoiding those conditions in the first place, because they're likely a death sentence if they ever affect
you for more than a round or two.
Warding: Can't think being the subject of a Judgment, Challenge, or Smite effect happens often at most tables.

+2 Enhancement Bonus

Arrow Deflection: Won't work against spells or extraordinary projectiles, plus you'll have the devil of a time making that
DC 20 Reflex save.
Bloodthirsty: Enhancement bonus. The bump to AC is tiny, and even if you took the Rage subdomain (which I
wouldn't recommend) +3 AC will eventually be a minor speed bump for enemies.
Frosted: You should be learning freedom of movement as quickly as possible to avoid getting grappled or pinned. That
being the case, frosted probably isn't worth the enhancement bonus cost.
Ghost Spike: You shouldn't be grappling things even in ideal conditions, much less ghosts with a -4 penalty to CMB.
That's what we in the business call "not ideal."
Mastering: You don't have Weapon Mastery. Arsenal Chaplain Warpriests might be interested in this enchantment,
though.
Mind Buttressing: Resistance bonus, which conflicts with your Cloak of Resistance. Can't stack the two.
Poisoning: You don't use poison.
Volcanic: Weak effect for a +2 enchantment. Pass.
Weeping (Shield only): Most campaigns pit you against evil creatures, not good ones. If you are playing an evil campaign,
it's a nice little area debuff, potentially worth a look.
 +3 Enhancement Bonus

Brawling: Under no circumstances should you be using unarmed strikes.

Invulnerability: Enemies will blow right through DR 5/Magic by the time you can afford this enchantment. Pass.
Sensing: I'd prefer to bring tools that prevent blindness or magical darkness, rather than relying on this enchantment.
Wild: A Druid says yes; an Inquisitor says no.

+4 Enhancement Bonus

+5 Enhancement Bonus

Etherealness: By the time you can afford to drop 25,000 gp on an enchantment, you should have better ways of going
ethereal.
Reflecting (Shield only): That's a huge enhancement bonus to be spending on a 1/day reflected spell. I'd sooner shore up
my saves and not get hit than pony up this much money.
Unbowed (Heavy Armor only): A +5 enchantment that permanently destroys your armor. *Facepalm.* Why would you
not be using determination armor instead?
 Weapon Enchantments
The Wheat

Gold-Only Enhancement Bonuses

Dueling (CL 5; 14,000 gp; finesse weapons only): You're in this for the initiative bonus. Between Cunning Initiative,
DEX as your attack stat, and the dueling enchantment, Finesse Inquisitors have no excuse for losing initiative. Ever.
Glamered (CL 10; 4,000 gp): What's the difference between glamered and concealed? Anyway, could be a nice little
utility enchantment.
Impervious (CL 7; 3,000 gp): You'll pay a small cost, but in return you'll get peace of mind against sunder attempts and
Rust Monsters. Seems fair.
Shrinking (CL 5; 1,000 gp): Man, Cloaked Wolves really do get all the best gold-only enchantments, huh? This could be
useful if you're attempting to conceal something big (falchion, glaive, elven branched spear) but it leaves me wondering
about interactions with Titan Fighters or others who use oversize weapons.
Sneaky (CL 7; 5,000 gp): For Sanctified Slayers, sure, why not? I wish you got it more times per day, but for a gold-only
enchantment, I won't complain.

Adaptive (CL 1; 1,000 gp; bows only): Technically, you need to have compound bows re-made at every bonus level.
This little enchantment lets them scale up without any fuss. I think it's an annoying rule, so ask your GM whether you
really need to get this.

Lesser Concealed/Concealed (CL 5/10; 3k/7.5k gp): Cloaked Wolves want concealed, no questions asked. It's optional
for everyone else. Lesser concealed is more restricted; prefer its big sister.

+1 Enhancement Bonus

Cruel: Indispensable for Intimidation/Demoralize builds. Sicken while you demoralize!

Dazzling Radiance: There are some truly amazing enchantments for Demoralize builds, and this is one of them. Most
Intimidate-heavy builds will pick up Dazzling Display; dazzling radiance lets you blind while you use that feat. Having an
effect even on a successful save makes this worthwhile.
Keen: Winner, winner, chicken dinner. Wielders of falchions, rapiers, and scimitars will gobble this baby up and go
looking for enchantments like exhausting to pair it with.
Seeking: Concealment is a real bear to deal with. You'll absolutely take a look at an enchantment that lets you negate it!

Agile: A poor adventurer's Weapon Finesse. You'll still need the Finesse feat to qualify for DEX-to-damage feats, so keep
that in mind.
Conductive: I'm sad that you have to expend two uses of your ability in order to pass it through your weapon; however, it
does improve your action economy. Certain debuffing domains—Chaos, Charm, Darkness, Madness, and others—will
want a conductive reach weapon.
Conserving: Saves Bowquisitors some money, especially if you're using special arrows that you don't want to lose.
Dispelling: Dispel magic will never be a bad choice for you, but you need all the help you can get to pass your Caster Level
checks. Dispelling weapons are that help.
Distracting: Spellbreakers will want this one—makes casting defensively that much harder.
Fervent: Good for Inquisitors generally (and excellent for Cloaked Wolves) fervent weapons provide bonuses for
situations that you'll likely be in already.
Guardian: Better than its sister enchantment, defending, for its boost to saves instead of AC. You'll still need to surrender
the enhancement bonus in order to get the benefit.
Merciful: Finesse Inquisitors can work around the Power Attack + Cornugon Smash tactic by getting a merciful weapon
+ Enforcer. Even gives a little damage increase, to boot.
Mighty Cleaving: As with culling, this rating assumes you went with a Cleave build.
Patriotic: As with fervent, the patriotic enchantment is easy to pull off in most situations if you're from Canada, the
Crown of the World, or somewhere similarly exotic.
Sapping: Sapping + merciful + greater bane makes for a hell of a combo in some builds. (See "The Blade Savant" in the
Sample Builds section for more info.) +7d6 nonlethal damage? Yes, please. Who even cares whether you're killing at that
point? (Do note, however, that constructs and undead are immune to nonlethal damage.)
Spell Storing: Fear the sun, barbed chains, blistering invective, dimensional anchor, conditional curse, and boneshaker all
make for good stored spells.
Summon Bane: Magehunters want this to deal with the meatshields their targets inevitably summon.

Beaming: Free searing light spells several times per day. Best in undead-heavy campaigns.
Compassionate: Take 'em alive! Your compassion can be suppressed as a free action, so you still have the option to
commit wanton murder if you want.
Cunning: Confirmation bonuses are usually fairly lackluster, but thanks to Monster Lore you're going to have a lot of
ranks in Knowledge skills anyway—might as well get a benefit for that.
Defending: At most, a +5 to AC—a minor nuisance to high-level enemies, but better protection than nothing.
Distance: Nice for ranged Inquisitors to be able to keep their distance if need be.
Fortuitous: Finesse Inquisitors using a reach weapon and Combat Reflexes will see quite a bit of use. Others, not so much.
Ghost Touch: Hedging weapons and spiritual weapon can probably handle the occasional incorporeal; for everything else,
there's ghost touch.
Heartseeker: It's a lengthy list of restrictions, but concealment does suck.
Leveraging: Unlike other maneuver-enhancing enchantments, leveraging provides a large enough bonus to consider,
especially in the hands of someone like a Wolf Domain trip build.
Limning: Compare with heartseeker to figure out which one is better for you.
Menacing: Poor adventurer's Outflank. Has some uses, especially if your team's tactics are solid.
Mimetic: Your slower iterative progression hinders your ability to stack resistance a bit, but it's otherwise fairly good in
elemental-heavy campaigns like Reign of Winter or Legacy of Fire. Adaptable, too.
Plummeting: Flight becomes a definite problem in later levels; plummeting makes you able to address that problem.
Sticky: The Steal maneuver is useful only in select scenarios, but at least through sticky you can do it with reach and as if
you had Improved Steal.
Thundering: The Fort save will eventually become irrelevant, but sonic damage is rarely resisted.
Training: Useful on very feat-starved builds.

+2 Enhancement Bonus

Culling: This rating assumes that you're making a Cleave build. Warpriests and Fighters do it better, of course, but there's
a lot to be said for greater bane + culling + buff spells. Mmmm. You can plow through hordes of mooks with this
enchantment.

Advancing: Combine this with advancing armor, and you're able to move quite easily around the battlefield, even in
heavy armor. Helps keep you full-attacking, which is always a perk for Inquisitors.
Designating, Lesser: Morale bonus. An excellent way for ranged Inquisitors to contribute to the damage of the team. Less
effective if you've got another source of morale bonuses, such as a team Bard.
Truthful: Again, miss chances suck when your opponents are using them against you.

Anarchic, Axiomatic, Holy, Unholy: All these might as well be addressed as a single unit. In most cases, only holy will be
worth the enchantment cost, but that might depend on your campaign. If you need one of these, you'll know it.
Anchoring: You'd probably want this on a secondary thrown weapon, rather than your primary—it can't be used while
anchoring. Unclear whether it prevents enemies from using dimension door or similar tactics. Remember also that the first
thing enemies will do if they can't move the weapon is try to sunder it. Might lose a few daggers this way.
Defiant: It's the bonus to saves against ongoing effects like poison, disease, and enchantments that you're after here.
Everything else is window-dressing.
Dispelling, Greater: You won't get greater dispel magic for a looooong time in your Inquisitor career. A normal
dispelling weapon will suffice in most cases.
Glitterwake: Debuff and anti-invisibility/stealth tool, all in one. It's situational enough that I wish it cost +1.
Glorious: A dazzling radiance weapon will accomplish this task much more effectively; not everyone will be picking up
Dazzling Display, however.
Legbreaker: A weak-ish effect that is only spared a red rating by its lack of a save.
Phase Locking: Many enemies in later levels can use teleportation or plane shifting to be a right pain in your ass. Why not
deny them the satisfaction?
Sharding: This is the better alternative to returning.
Unseen: It's not a gold-only enchantment like sneaky, but it does deny DEX to AC more consistently; worth a look from
Sanctified Slayers.

+3 Enhancement Bonus

Spellstealing: Steal your opponent's buffs with a reasonable caster level check. Even better for Inquisitors using keen
weapons with naturally high crit ranges, like scimitars or rapiers.
Exhausting: Phenomenal for crit-fishing builds, especially Finesse crit-fishers. An Inquisitor of Cayden Cailean with a
keen exhausting rapier can dance through the battlefield dealing out no-save exhaustion. Undead, constructs, oozes, and
elementals are immune to fatigue or precision damage, which brings this enchantment down to green.
Gory: Free, stacking bleed damage, with the option for an immediate action demoralize (with a huge bonus) on a critical.
Phenomenal in Intimidate builds.
Redeemed: You get everything that holy gets you, plus a sacred bonus to saves and Knowledge (Planes) checks to identify
evil outsiders. Saves are great, and the Knowledge bonus synergizes naturally with Monster Lore. Positively lovely for a
campaign like Wrath of the Righteous.
Speed: More Bane, more pain—anything that gets you extra attacks is worth having. Hopefully you'll grab divine power,
but if not, there's always this.

+4 Enhancement Bonus

Dancing: Because dancing weapons are considered wielded, they can proc Bane and greater bane, or channel Domain
abilities when paired with conductive. A dancing conductive longspear would be a force to be reckoned with.
Designating, Greater: Morale bonus. An even better boost to damage! Again, great for teams who don't have a source of
big morale bonuses.

Second Chance: Excellent for Bowquisitors. Always nice to reroll misses, especially with your lower BAB.

+5 Enhancement Bonus

Flying: It's not significantly better than dancing, but it is there if you particularly like the playstyle.

The Chaff

Gold-Only Enhancement Bonuses

Dry Load: You're not a Gunslinger.

Exclusionary: You're not a Cleric.
Phantom Ammunition: Not worth the expense unless you're trying to pull off the perfect crime.
Transformative/Greater: Inquisitors are naturally proficient with a very small pool of weapons, rendering this
enchantment useless.

+1 Enhancement Bonus
Allying: You can transfer the enhancement bonus to an ally, but it doesn't stack with their enhancement bonus? How
does that make any sense?
Ambushing: It's hard to do sniping effectively as anything but a Slayer, Rogue, or Ninja. You certainly can't do it well.
Answering: You're not a Swashbuckler.
Bane: Won't stack with the class ability.
Benevolent (Melee only): You won't have an aid another build.
Bewildering: Save every round, non-scaling DC. It'll work pretty well in early levels, then taper off sharply.
Blood-Hunting: Less useful even than bane, as few enemies will have bloodlines.
Bloodsong: Explicitly for Skalds or those who have a Skald on their team. It's blue if you do (free keen and bonus HP every
time you confirm a crit? Heck yeah!) and red if you don't.
Brawling: Inquisitors can't do maneuvers well, thanks to their 3/4 BAB progression. Not worth it.
Breaking: You're not going to fight crystalline enemies or need to break things that often.
Called: Thrown weapon builds aren't terribly common for Inquisitors, and even if you're using thrown weapons,
gobbling up your swift action economy doesn't leave you with much room to change Judgments, etc. See whether your
GM will let you use a Blinkback Belt as a bandolier or something.
Confounding: You're not a Swashbuckler.
Corrosive: Tiny bonus to damage.
Countering: Disarm and sunder don't come up often enough to be worthwhile.
Courageous: Morale bonus. This was never intended to buff all morale bonuses, just morale bonuses vs. fear effects.
That’s not widely useful.
Deadly: You want to deal lethal damage unless there's a very good reason not to.
Debilitating: The penalty imposed on enemies is small enough that even Sanctified Slayers won't see much benefit.
Deceptive: Not many Feint builds for Inquisitors out there—you just don't have much of a reason to feint. Sanctified
Slayers will probably prefer flanking tactics, spells, or Intimidate.
Driving: Inquisitors don't really have the BAB to take advantage of this enchantment.
Fate-Stealing: You're not a Swashbuckler or Gunslinger.
Flamboyant: You're not a Swashbuckler.
Flaming: See corrosive.
Frost: See corrosive.
Furious: You're not a Barbarian.
Grayflame: You're not a Cleric.
Grounding: Weak effect.
Growing: 1/day, small damage boost.
Huntsman: A tiny sliver better than flaming/corrosive/frost/shock. A tiny sliver.
Injecting: You don't poison.
Inspired: You're not an Investigator.
Jurist: Bad even as an Inquisitor-specific enchantment. No wonder the Exarch archetype stinks.
Ki Focus: You're not a Monk or Ninja.
Kinslayer: Daddy's little patricide. Why are you trying to kill your family, again?
Lucky: You're not a Gunslinger.
Miserable: Too niche.
Neutralizing: Also too niche.
Ominous: Weak even for Intimidate builds.
Planar: Too situational.
Prehensile: Whip-only? Swashbuckler-only? Nope.
Quenching: See neutralizing.
Reliable: You're not a Gunslinger.
Returning: Even if I were going with a thrown weapon build, I'd still prefer something like a Dagger of Doubling or
Blinkback Belt to this enchantment.
Rusting: Most players will rightly point out that that's your own loot you're turning into flakes of rust.
Sacred: It's meant for Warpriests, not you.
Seaborne: Blue in Skull & Shackles. Literally nowhere else.
Shadowshooting: The free ammo definitely isn't worth the trade-off in damage if your opponent disbelieves the illusion
(and at a DC of 15 + the enhancement modifier, they will disbelieve quite a bit as levels go up).
Shock: See corrosive.
Skewering: What the math is up with all these Swashbuckler enchantments?
Slithering: Too niche.
Smashing: Don't sunder.
Spell Hurling: You're not a Magus.
Spirit-Hunting: Are you planning on fighting Oracles exclusively? No? Didn't think so.
Thawing: See neutralizing.
Throwing: Build for thrown weapons; don't just throw your melee weapon on a whim.
Valiant: You're not a Cavalier.
Vampiric: Each sentence you read in this description gets progressively worse. A few charges of a wand of cure light
wounds will do much better.

+2 Enhancement Bonus

Corrosive Burst: Not worth it even if you're crit-fishing.

Cyclonic: A Silver Nocking Point can probably take care of the majority of cases without eating into your enhancement
bonus.
Dazzling: Inquisitors weren't meant to be Gunslingers—even the Black Powder Inquisition can't fix that.
Disruption: The Will save DC is low-ish. A disruption light mace might be worth it in undead-heavy campaigns at low
levels, but it's otherwise unremarkable.
Endless Ammunition: Mundane arrows and bolts shouldn't be a strain on your wealth past the first few levels, certainly
not enough to spend a +2 on.
Flaming Burst: See corrosive burst.
Furyborn: Bane will have you covered in this department.
Heretical: Why are you killing members of your own faith?
Icy Burst: See corrosive burst.
Igniting: Still weak.
Impact: You won't be bull rushing, in all likelihood.
Invigorating: Morale and enhancement bonuses that will probably conflict with other buff sources.
Ki Intensifying: You're not a Monk or Ninja.
Liberating: A good group will be taking extraordinary measures to ensure that no one ends up charmed or dominated in
the first place.
Lifesurge: Sky blue in undead-heavy campaigns, and mediocre everywhere else.
Lucky, Greater: You're not a Gunslinger.
Negating: You’ll only ever lower DR by 5 points, which isn’t great.
Peaceful: Merciful and Enforcer will give you enough duration on shaken without the bonuses from peaceful.
Penetrating: Enchanting ammunition starts to get costly; this isn't worth the money.
Quaking: I love that this enchantment gives you the ability to trip creatures of any size, but that ability is better off in the
hands of a Barbarian, Fighter, or Bloodrager who can take greater advantage of a strong CMB score.
Shattering: Too loud, too niche.
Shocking Burst: See corrosive burst.
Silencing: The enemies you want to silence will pass a DC 13 Will save every time. Get used to disappointment.
Sniping (any variety): You're not a Rogue.
Stalking: Although it sounds at first blush like this would be phenomenal for Sanctified Slayers, the sad truth is that you
won't have rounds to study an enemy in most combats, especially as a standard action. You're essentially trading a round of
action now for 1d6 damage later. Not worth it in the slightest.
Toxic: Please don't try to poison.
Treasonous: Much more limited in scope than patriotic.
Vampiric, Greater: Still a stinker.

+3 Enhancement Bonus

Nullifying: When SR levels are in the 20s, reducing it by 1 per hit isn't going to make an appreciable difference in a
combat.
Reliable, Greater: You're not a Gunslinger.
Repositioning: You'll never be good enough at combat maneuvers to do this reliably.
Sonic Boom: You're not a Gunslinger.
Tailwind: Loses much of the utility of gust of wind.
Umbral: One daylight and you're screwed—not to mention all of the non-sight senses that eventually get used against you
like blindsight or tremorsense.

+4 Enhancement Bonus

Brilliant Energy: At first blush, this enchantment looks amazing: ignore all armor and shield bonuses? Crazy! Issue is that
natural armor, dodge, and dexterity bonuses comprise most of an enemy's AC past 10th level or so. You also can't hit
undead or constructs, which further restricts the enchantment's effectiveness.
Nimble Shot: If not provoking with ranged attacks is so important to you, I'd recommend three levels of Zen Archer to
pick up Point-Blank Master.
 +5 Enhancement Bonus

Heart-Piercing: You can do so much with a +5 enhancement bonus. Why choose a <5% chance of an instant kill on a
select subset of enemies?
Interfering: If you really want to be able to do this as an Inquisitor...well, you shouldn't be playing an Inquisitor, you
should be playing a Zen Archer.
Spell Siphon: Costs +5 when spellstealing (the same enchantment, basically) costs only +3. Oversight?
 Wondrous Items
I need to make a disclaimer here: I can talk to you about Wondrous Items all day long, but ultimately, I already
wrote a guide for that: The Armamentarium, a shorthand glossary of every slotted Wondrous Item in the game. You’ll have
to read through the introduction to figure out how to do all the tag searching that’s available, but once you’ve got it, I
guarantee that you’ll be able to find any items you need to make your Inquisitor a boss.

All Inquisitor Builds

Stole of Justice (18,000 gp; shoulder slot): It's so many bonuses: +5 competence bonus to Sense Motive, zone of truth
5/day, amped up detect [alignment], and a free jurist effect during Judgment. I'd argue that's worth the price.

Exorcist's Aspergillum (8,000 gp; no slot): Free, at-will detect undead and Ectoplasmic Spell for an entire combat 1/day
is a great package, relatively cheap and occupying no slot.

Bane Baldric (10,000 gp; chest slot): It was formerly thought that a Bane Baldric allowed you to progress Bane toward
greater bane when multiclassing. This interpretation has since been ruled against, which means that the Bane Baldric's only
effect is to give you 5 more rounds of Bane per day. Your GM might rule in your favor, of course, in which case the item is
practically mandatory for multi-classing Inquisitors; just know that it might not be as good an investment as it once
seemed.
Death Mask (16,000 gp; head slot): It's a little pricey, but you're also getting a free (and improved!) version of speak with
dead and the ability to impersonate dead people. Archetypes like Infiltrators that like to get deep inside enemy
organizations will really want this.

Inquisitor's Bastion Vambraces (4,000 gp; wrist slot): If you're using my proposed Judgment tweaks, this will be very
good. Assuming your GM isn't willing to listen some rando on the internet, though, this item won't provide enough of a
bonus to CMD or Concentration checks to merit the slot.
Righteous Fist Amulet (4,000 gp; neck slot): It's designed for the Inquisitor, but boy, what a dud. You shouldn't want
Improved Unarmed Strike as a normal feat (unless you're picking up a Monk style?) much less IUS on a limited basis.
Torc of Enmity (9,500 gp; neck slot): Most Inquisitors don't have to tools to crit-fish effectively, making this item
subpar. If you have managed to get a crit-fishing build going (e.g., an Inquisitor of Cayden Cailean with a keen rapier or
Improved Critical at 11th level) it can be a decent way to replenish your Bane rounds over the course of an adventuring
day.

Casting Builds
Caster's Tattoo (6k/21k/48k gp; no slot): Dispel magic makes for an excellent lesser tattoo, and freedom of movement
would be my top pick for a normal tattoo—you never know when you'll need to escape or break an enchantment while
bound or silenced.

Armband of the Golden Serpent (20,000 gp; arm slot): You don't get many touch spells, so leave this to the bad touch
Cleric or the Witch.

Intimidate Builds

Mark of the Grinning Skull (2,000 gp; headband slot): Intimidation builds will find a lot to like about this item:
demoralize as a move action? Double the penalties applied by the shaken condition? Yes, you want this.

Melee Builds

Juggernaut's Pauldrons (40,000 gp; shoulder slot): At-will size increase, Ferocity, and 3/day deadly juggernaut for the
duration of a combat. This is a downright brutal group of abilities for a melee 'Quisitor, although you won’t have the
scratch to buy it until the very, very end of a campaign.

Belt of Thunderous Charging (10,000 gp; belt slot): You'll often lead with a charge on the first round of combat;
treating your weapon as one size category larger is a nice boost to damage.

Amulet of Quaking Strikes (28,000 gp; neck slot): Bane and greater bane unfortunately don't proc off of your
earthquake. Probably best left to those who can muster a bigger hit without supplementation.
Bonebreaker Gauntlets (6,000 gp; glove slot): The penalty imposed on your target is rough, but a DC 14 Will save
won't scale well at all—even enemies at 1st level are making that 50% of the time or more.

Ranged Builds

Bracers of Archery/Greater (5k/25k gp; wrist slot): Competence bonus. The Bracers are so good that I've seen them
banned at tables before. Bowquisitors in particular are capable of slaughtering enemies with little to no effort, so don't
expect GMs to receive your purchase kindly.
Nightbane Quiver (16,000 gp; no slot): The daylight effect makes this quiver an almost-worthy purchase for melee
Inquisitors, which should give you an idea of how powerful it is. Add the ability to bypass DR and strike some incorporeal
ghoulies and ghosties, and you've got a sleek combo. Very choice.

Efficient Quiver (1,800 gp; no slot): Bowquisitors, go ahead and buy this one. It's cheap and will make your life much
easier.
Legacy Arrow (305 gp; no slot): Reusable arrows with great enchantments. Bowquisitors will want to pick up a couple
as they level.
Silver Nocking Point (3,150 gp; no slot): Campaigns with lots of wind effects (lookin' at you, Reign of Winter) have
had some of my ranged players close to tears before—this cheap item goes a long way toward reducing the penalties of
shooting into the wind.

Finesse & Crit Builds

Gloves of Marking (7,200 gp; wrist slot): Turn those crits into bonuses for your team! Works well with your
intimidation tactics, too.

Pendant of the Blood Scarab (1,000 gp; neck slot): Simple effect: take 1d6 of damage to automatically confirm a crit
1/day. Cheap and nice for when you absolutely need to kill something or penetrate its DR with Expose Weakness.
 INQ621: Archetypal Inquisition

The Wheat
Abolisher (Monster Hunter's Handbook)
What's the niche?

Not into tentacle stuff: an anti-Aberration specialist with some tools for wriggling out of sticky situations.

What you're getting

● Sworn to Purity: Alters Domains. Usually I'd call foul on Domain restrictions, but Air (Cloud), Animal (Any),
Earth (Caves), Fire (Ash), and Water (Ice) are all good options.
● Revealing Gaze: Replaces Stern Gaze. Anything attempting to infiltrate your group, either through disguise or
stealth, is going to have a bad time. The ability to grant this power to adjacent allies for free bumps it up ever so
slightly into green territory.
● Expose Aberration: Replaces detect [alignment] and alters Bane. Losing the ability to detect alignments is a
straight downgrade; the loss is compensated for somewhat by the fact that you can hit an enemy, instantly
identify whether it's an aberration, and activate Bane as an immediate action. Saves just a bit in the action
economy.
● Escape Corruption's Grasp: Replaces discern lies. Immediate action freedom of movement for your level in
rounds per day is fan-fucking-tastic. You'll never get grappled or paralyzed again with this baby.

Is it worth it?

You go into this archetype expecting it to be overly niche-y like the rest of the Inquisitor archetypes, and then it
actually does pretty well for itself! Being able to see stealthy creatures and wriggle out of any grapple is a huge boon...and it's
compatible with both Sacred Huntsmaster and Sanctified Slayer. Swoon.

Cloaked Wolf (Ultimate Intrigue)

What's the niche?

Bond, Inquisitor Bond: a solo operator who goes from smiles and diplomacy to sudden death in nothing flat.

What you're getting

 ● Class Skills: We're assuming that you'll need Sleight of Hand if you're playing this kind of Inquisitor, so trading
away Intimidate isn't a big loss; Cloaked Wolves like to get close to their targets with honey rather than vinegar,
anyway.
● Lure Prey: Replaces Stern Gaze. I wouldn't usually be excited about the Disguise bonuses, but again, the
Cloaked Wolf is a different animal from the base Inquisitor; getting your level instead of half your level to Sleight
of Hand checks when drawing hidden weapons is quite good. To refresh you, it's a DC 20 check to draw a light
weapon, with opposed Perception checks from enemies—you'll need all the help you can get.
● Always Wary: Alters Cunning Initiative, and replaces Monster Lore. The circumstances in which you get your
Cunning Initiative bonus are quite narrow, but when an enemy does try to sucker punch you, they're definitely in
for an unpleasant surprise. Losing Monster Lore would stink in most campaigns, but we're assuming you're in a
human-centric, intrigue-heavy campaign, remember?
● Unleashed Fury: Replaces Solo Tactics and Teamwork feats. Quick Draw lets you draw and attack, and is
essential for the Cloaked Wolf's playstyle. Alertness, Catch Off-Guard, Deceitful, Deft Hands, Dodge, Improved
Initiative, Improved Unarmed Strike, Improvised Weapon Mastery, Mobility, Spring Attack, Stunning Fist, and
Throw Anything are your other bonus feat options, although do remember that you need the prerequisites first.
Lookout is a trap unless others on the team are taking it—you traded away Solo Tactics.

Is it worth it?

The motto of the Cloaked Wolf is: "For a certain kind of campaign, this would be awesome." And indeed,
intrigue-heavy campaigns with opportunities for negotiation, social combat, betrayal, and subterfuge are where Cloaked
Wolves shine. Outside of that type of campaign, the focus of the archetype isn't super clear, as the feat choices would
appear to let you specialize in unarmed strikes, improvised weapons, or hidden light weapons, all of which are somewhat
sub-optimal unless you're going for flavor. You'll probably want to pick two of your three attack options and let the bonus
feats work for you.

Green Faith Marshal (Heroes of the Wild)

What's the niche?

I am the Lorax, I speak for the trees: an Inquisitor who's more in tune with the natural world.

What you’re getting

● Power of Nature: Alters Domain and replaces Stern Gaze. Some of the Animal & Terrain Domains are quite
powerful, and unlike most domains granted to Inquisitors, you get the bonus spells added to your spell list
(though you still have to spend spells known to learn them). Take a look over at the section to see what's worth
pursuing.
● Wild Lore: Replaces Monster Lore. I'd rather be able to identify monsters than remember facts about trees any
day. This is a mechanically weak trade.
● Nature's Ally: Replaces discern lies. You won't be using it all the time, but for longer travels through natural
areas, this could give you an edge.
 ● Wild Step: Replaces stalwart. Wild Step doesn't allow you to ignore magically altered difficult terrain, but any
other kinds of naturally difficult terrain (ice, thick undergrowth, shifting dunes, etc.) should be fair game, RAW.
stalwart is probably the superior option mechanically, but Wild Step functions in heavy armor, whereas stalwart
does not. Something to think about.

Is it worth it?

There are some powerful combos here, for sure. Wolf Domain lets your flanking bonus scale with WIS, for
example, which could be insane in the hands of a Sacred Huntsmaster; Cave Domain grants darkvision and tremorsense;
Eagle and Crocodile Domains grant you a familiar, plus hefty Perception bonuses and limited sneak attack dice,
respectively. Obviously this archetype will be better in campaigns where you do a lot of wilderness exploration, so ask your
DM whether you can still select Animal & Terrain Domains as a base Inquisitor if your setting will be more urban-flavored.

Heretic (Ultimate Magic)

What's the niche?

You are charged with heresy on three counts: a fallen Inquisitor who uses stealth to escape charges of apostasy.

What you’re getting

● Escape Judgment: Replaces nothing. Nothing but upgrade for your Judgment, so I can't rank it any lower than
yellow. For Sanctified Slayers (who can abuse sneak attack with it) it's green.
● Lore of Escape: Replaces Monster Lore. Being better at Bluff and Stealth again helps more Rogue-ish Inquisitors
as they sneak attack and feint.
● Hide Tracks: Replaces nothing. A free -5 for others to follow your tracks. Again, won't come up often, but as it
doesn't replace anything, I can't really mark it down.

Is it worth it?

You're not giving away much, so...sure? With its bonuses to Bluff and Stealth, the Heretic seems designed to fulfill
its true potential in tandem with a source of sneak attack dice, as with the Sanctified Slayer archetype or an Unchained
Rogue dip (thanks to /u/darkforce547 for the reminder that Green Faith Marshal and Heretic don’t stack). Inquisitors
who want to do more straightforward combat won't find much value here.

Living Grimoire (Horror Adventures)

What's the niche?

Half librarian, half pugilist: an Inquisitor who beats people to death with her holy book. That's not a joke.

What you’re getting

 ● Holy Book: Replaces Monster Lore. Losing Monster Lore isn't great for most Inquisitor archetypes, because
WIS remains their casting stat; for your new INT focus and associated increase in skill ranks, it's no big deal—you
basically get Weapon Focus (Grimoire) as a free feat. The only reason this isn’t rated higher is because the Holy
Book is treated as a light mace, and you don’t get your 1.5x STR bonus to damage for two-handing light weapons
when Power Attacking (/u/rekijan points out that this makes the Holy Book less OP than previously thought).
● Spells: Alters spellcasting and replaces Cunning Initiative. You become a prepared spellcaster (!) who uses INT as
your casting and domain stat, essentially turning you into a divine wizard. Everybody’s got a different preference
as far as prepared/spontaneous goes, so this might be a good or a bad thing, depending. I tend to think of it as a
good thing—there are enough decent niche spells on the Inquisitor list that I could foresee wanting some of them
at hand.
● Sacred Word: Replaces Judgment. You'll lose Bane and greater bane down the line, but that's okay, because
Sacred Word takes its place. You get the Warpriest's Sacred Weapon ability (which is awesome, by the way) along
with the ability to add bane and other effects to your book. Scaling damage dice help adjust your book’s damage
for the loss of two-handed STR bonuses. I'm struggling to find a flaw in this ability.
● Blessed Script: Replaces second judgment, third judgment, Bane, and greater bane. There are two components
to this ability: first, you can prepare the tattooed spells without your holy book, and second, you can cast them as
spell-like abilities 1/day. SLAs can be cast without material, somatic, or verbal components, so when we think
about which spells should go into the tattoo slots, we immediately see that these were intended to be "panic
button" spells—invisibility, dispel magic, freedom of movement, the like. If you think about which spells you'd
want if you were stripped of your grimoire and gear, then gagged and imprisoned, you'll be in the right ballpark.
● Word of God: Replaces True Judgment, although it's not actually a replacement. You just swap out WIS for
INT in the DC.

Is it worth it?

Absolutely. With the loss of Cunning Initiative, Judgment, and your WIS focus, a Living Grimoire won't play
like your garden-variety Inquisitor, but I think it's well worth the trade. An INT focus turns you into even more of a skill
monster and compensates for your loss of Monster Lore; meanwhile, prepared spellcasting ensures that you're much more
versatile when you need to be. Sacred Word scales your base damage with your level, and also allows you to put bane on
your book as a base Inquisitor can. That's nothing but upshot.

Monster Tactician (Monster Summoner's Handbook)

What's the niche?

Another day, another meat shield: an Inquisitor who summons monsters instead of pronouncing judgment.

What you’re getting

● Summon Monster: Replaces Judgment. Holy crap, is this good. You'll probably be able to summon about 6/day
at the beginning of your adventuring career, and that number will only go up as you bump your WIS score.
You're limited somewhat by the number of creatures that you can pick from, but you get your summons for ten
times longer than the base spell allows, can summon as a standard action (thanks to /u/strongindependentpc for
 that PSA), and with a single feat choice (detailed in the Feats section) can greatly broaden your cramped menu of
options. Summon Monster is one of those ideal abilities that gives you both increased power and unparalleled
versatility: if you know the templates of the creatures you have available, you'll never lack for a tactically perfect
battle companion.
● Summon Tactics: Replaces discern lies, second judgment, third judgment, Slayer, and True Judgment. Just
when you think Summon Monster can't get any better, you get Summon Tactics. The beauty of this is that
having multiple summons out at a time can make positioning for Teamwork feats a cinch. Need an adjacent ally?
Done. Need a flanking ally? Done. Need an ally to charge? Done.

Is it worth it?

Uhhh, duh-doy. The fact that summons get a bunch of spells and SLAs makes this more powerful than
Judgment, even without considering that all those summons are attacking and soaking damage, too.

Oathkeeper (Merchant’s Manifest)

What's the niche?

Swear to me: an Inquisitor who deals with those who break their word.

What you’re getting

● Alignment: Must be Lawful, which makes sense. I would think worshipers of Asmodeus (with their focus on
contracts and agreements generally) and Abadar (with their focus on mercantilism) would see the most use out of
this archetype.
● Class Skills: Trade Knowledge (Nature) for Appraise. Blech. That’s not great, but it’s the only real dud in the
archetype.
● Divine Witness: Replaces Monster Lore. You have here a powerful, one-sided lever in your favor, in that you
can break your own agreement with no consequences; should the opposing party in the contract do so, however,
they gain a curse that can only be broken through wish or miracle, as well as a brand that allows you to track their
precise location for months on end. It makes for such a flavorful roleplaying stinger at the end of any negotiation
where you don’t trust the person you’re dealing with, too, and doubly effective if the person doesn’t know it’s a
magical contract. “Of course we’d be willing to track down and slay those kobolds for you, but first I’d like us to
sign this agreement that we’ll suffer no harm at your hands after completing our task, and that you’ll deliver our
promised reward promptly and in full.” BBEGs and their lieutenants will be crippled if they double-cross you!
● Oathbreaker’s Scourge: Replaces Track. A great replacement for Track, Oathbreaker’s Scourge lets you hunt
down people you know have broken promises or agreements more easily, then kill or capture them with boosted
Judgments. Good stuff, but make sure you’re positive about their guilt. Corroborate stories, check up with
sources, perhaps even talk to the target beforehand to secure a confession. You don’t want to have to use
atonement.

Is it worth it?
 The loss of Monster Lore isn’t great, but I’d say the benefit outweighs the cost—Divine Witness is an excellent
bargaining tool. Considering how little you give up in this archetype, yeah, go for it, especially if you find yourself wanting
to play a punctilious rule-follower.

Preacher (Ultimate Magic)

What's the niche?

Son of a hmm-hmm man: an Inquisitor who doesn't really "do" Teamwork feats.

What you’re getting

● Determination: Replaces Solo Tactics. You only start out with the ability 1/day, but the number grows as your
Teamwork feats roll by. Aggression is pure gold; when you need to hit, you need to hit. Defense and Warning will
make you and your team more survivable, respectively. (Thanks to /u/That_Darn_Skeleton for pointing out that
you reroll for Aggression after seeing the result of your d20. Duh-doi. Thanks, mate.)

Is it worth it?

Some people really hate Teamwork feats, even with Solo Tactics, so this is a no-brainer for them; the only issue is
that you really don't get many uses per day. Archers used to be Preachers almost by default, but with the advent of the
Ranged Tactics Toolbox there are more Teamwork feats to choose from. The choice is up to you!

Ravener Hunter (Blood of the Beast)

What's the niche?

Oracular inquisition: an Inquisitor who's part-Oracle and hates Evil Outsiders.

What you’re getting

● Charged by Nature: Replaces Domain. Cool, free Oracle Mysteries without any Curses. See whether your GM
will let you use WIS as your casting stat, otherwise you'll be even more multiple-attribute dependent than most
Inquisitors (which is already pretty MAD). There are so many good options here that it's tough to address them
all, but I'll try:
○ Ancestor: Spirit Walk is a good utility power, even 1/day. I'm not all that excited about most of the
others.
○ Battle: Maneuver Mastery and Weapon Mastery allow you to get a ridiculous number of feats for free,
no prerequisites, as well as full BAB for your chosen maneuver; War Sight will ensure that you never go
second in another battle ever again; Skill at Arms gets you free heavy armor proficiency and martial
weapon proficiency if your deity's favored weapon is shit.
 ○ Flame: Cinder Dance is this archetype's answer to the Travel Domain; Firestorm gives you some decent
battlefield control 1/day; Wings of Fire is a nice innate flight ability that covers a gap in your
spellcasting.
○ Heavens: Coat of Many Stars lets you save a bundle on armor, and eventually grants DR 5/Slashing;
Lure of the Heavens is another path to flight, albeit on a slower track than Wings of Fire.
○ Life: Energy Body provides only mediocre healing, but turns you into an Elemental, a type that boasts a
host of useful immunities; Lifesense gives you an amazing extravisual sense. Of note, also, Ravener
Hunters who pick up the Channel Revelation can qualify for the Holy Vindicator PrC, which is
awesome.
○ Lunar: Form of the Beast lets you be an animal for most of the day, which could give you excellent
scouting or combat capabilities; Primal Companion gets you an animal companion, though from a
limited list; Prophetic Armor again lets you dump DEX, but more safely than Nature's Whispers.
○ Nature: Bonded Mount is, of course, amazing; Erosion Touch lets you progress laterally through many
obstacles by simply sundering them; Nature's Whispers would let you dump DEX fairly easily, though
you might want to take Lightning Reflexes to help your Reflex save; Natural Divination, despite its
lengthy casting time, is highly versatile and quite powerful—a good pick at Level 8.
○ Solar: Astral Caravan is a peerless travel and exploration power; Luminous Form gives you
concealment, blinding, and a way to abuse light sensitivity—it's a powerful incentive for enemies not to
stay next to you, and could be excellent for an AoO or reach build; Serpent in the Sun gives you a neat
little package of immunities if you can get your daily tanning in; Starlight Agility gives you access to
some awesome feats that you almost certainly wouldn't have the DEX for normally; Sun Stride could
make for an interesting Dimensional Agility build.
○ Stone: Crystal Sight and Earth Glide give you some decent scouting options, but Stone Stability is
probably the only Revelation of much combat use.
○ Time: Aging Touch would be excellent for taking big bruisers down a peg or causing casters to go limp;
Temporal Celerity is the equivalent of War Sight from Battle Mystery, and equally wonderful.
○ Volcano: Ash Cloud is a phenomenal spell, giving you a 20 square foot killzone that you can see out of
but enemies can't see into or safely approach—a great power for archers, especially considering there's
no limit on daily uses; Pyroclastic Shove and Magma Form are decent choices for your Level 8
Revelation.
○ Waves: As with Firestorm, Blizzard gives you some decent battlefield control 1/day; Ice Armor is just as
good as Coat of Many Stars; Punitive Transformation can be a good way to take a Big Bad out of a fight
before he does too much damage—feel free to wail on him once he's transformed.
○ Wind: Air Barrier is the best of all the armor Revelations (see Armor of Ice, Coat of Many Stars, Wood
Armor) for its ability to deflect arrows, rays, and other ranged attacks; Wind Sight makes scouting
laughably easy; Wings of Air is the best of all the flight Revelations (see Lure of the Heavens, Wings of
Fire) for its speed and maneuverability upgrades.
○ Wood: Speak with Wood is bizarre ("You spend 1 minute meditating on and communing with the
wood") but asking the couch questions could lead to some interesting answers; Wood Armor again gets
you some nice protection, and Wood Bond is an absolute no-brainer for archers.
● Holy Magic: Alters spellcasting. Never going to say no to free access to Cleric spells: the angelic aspect line is
great, spear of purity is pretty good, and eaglesoul is an obvious pick.
 ● Demon Hunter: Replaces the Teamwork Feat gained at 3. It's a little limiting only being able to use it on
Demons, but not too shabby, given how dangerous demons can be.

Is it worth it?

Revelations absolutely spank the pants off of Domains, and two is usually all you need to suck the marrow from a
particular Mystery. Mwangi Expanse flavor aside, I have difficulty seeing why anyone would choose not to take this
archetype.

Royal Accuser (Inner Sea Intrigue)

What's the niche?

I accuse you, Pikachu: an Inquisitor who forgoes some teamwork feats in order to be more effective against
specific enemies.

What you’re getting

● Class Skills: Alters class skills. Knowledge (Local) for Knowledge (Nature). We'll call it a fair trade, although it
seems a little weird that they didn't add Knowledge (Dungeoneering) to include aberrations.
● Meticulous Inspection: Replaces Stern Gaze. Between your WIS focus and this ability, you just became the best
Perception jockey in the entire game, bar none. By 20th level you could have 20 ranks + 3 class skill + 10
Meticulous Inspection + 6 WIS modifier = +39 Perception...and that's not even counting items or spell bonuses.
What even is your life.
● Detect Monsters and Secrets: Replaces detect [alignment]. I'd rather know whether something is Evil than
know specifically what it is...that's what Monster Lore is for. Nevertheless, this isn't a bad package of at-will spells.
● Favored Enemy: Replaces Solo Tactics and the Teamwork feats gained at 3, 9, and 15. Favored Enemy is an
extremely powerful ability, but as with the Ranger, you're limited by which enemies you're fighting. One cool
trick that Samsaran Inquisitors can pull is to use the Mystic Past Life alternative racial trait to pick up instant
enemy from the Ranger spell list. Bingo bango bam, you can now treat any enemy as Favored. (Thanks to
/u/GFFO for that one!)
● Informed Hunch: Replaces the Teamwork feat gained at 6. I love it! It's flavorful and useful for just about any
campaign. It even helps GMs, who can use it to give you nudges in the direction of their plot hooks.
● Greater Detect Magic: Replaces the Teamwork feat gained at 12. Well, this is pretty great. Greater detect magic
is a wonderful upgrade to your base cantrip, allowing you to identify specific spells cast and their casters for weeks
after the original casting.
● Final Sway: Replaces the Teamwork feat gained at 18. If you make it this far, Final Sway is a good "capstone"
replacement for a Teamwork feat. Do some odd jobs for an organization, gain the ability to make significant
requests 1/day. Again, most campaigns could find a use for that.

Is it worth it?
 I absolutely love this archetype. It's flavorful without being cheesy, mechanically solid without breaking the
power curve, and different without losing the original thrust of the class. It will obviously be better in campaigns with lots
of undead or aberrations, and better for Inquisitor players who don't like having to deal with Teamwork feats.

Sacred Huntsmaster (Advanced Class Guide)

What's the niche?

Dances with wolves: an Inquisitor with an animal companion that shares your Teamwork feats.

What you’re getting

● Animal Companion: Replaces Judgment 1/day. Holy shit, does this archetype start off with a bang: free animal
companion that scales with your level. That right there is worth the price of admission. Hunter or Druid guides
will help you select your animal companion; some make better tanks, strikers, etc., and which you choose will
depend on your party composition and the role your buddy expects to play in combat. Of note, you receive the
Hunter version of Animal Companion, meaning that you can teach your companion the excellent tricks from the
Skirmisher Ranger archetype. (Thanks to /u/rekijan for that tip!) Bolster Companion, Rattling Strike, Sic ‘Em,
Skill Sage, Surprise Shift, and Vengeance Strike will likely be good picks.
● Hunter Tactics: Replaces Solo Tactics. Hunter Tactics singlehandedly solves the two essential problems with
Teamwork feats: first, how do you convince your teammates to get the same feats you do; and second, how do
you convince them to change their tactics to activate those feats? With this ability, your companion gets all your
feats—and you control their tactics. So if you want to flank, flank, and if you want to fight side by side, fight side
by side! Hunter Tactics gives you the latitude to play around.
● Animal Focus: Replaces all later iterations of Judgment. Woo woooooo, the blue train keeps on rolling! Animal
Focus is a great class feature, and you get it as the Hunter, which means that your animal companion gets a
constant focus, and you qualify for feats like Extended Animal Focus and Planar Focus. You can really do some
cool stuff with this ability. My thoughts on the foci are detailed below:
○ Air: Requires the Planar Focus feat. You won't need it much of the time, but you'll be glad to have it
when your Broom of Flying gets destroyed in mid-air or that Hill Giant bull rushes you off a cliff. Ask
your DM whether you can choose between feather fall and levitate when you activate this focus—they
serve different purposes, and RAW levitate replaces feather fall at later levels.
○ Bat: Obviously better for humans and fairly useless for races with innate Darkvision. If your DM rules
that it can be used to improve upon existing innate Darkvision, it becomes blue. The blindsense is
ultimately mediocre, unfortunately.
○ Bear: Enhancement bonus. A good focus that loses steam quickly, thanks to the incompatibility of its
bonus type with physical stat belts. Also watch out for what happens to those extra HP when you
switch foci—wouldn't want you to drop dead because you stopped cosplaying as the grizzly from The
Revenant.
○ Bull: Enhancement bonus. Same basic pros and cons as Bear Focus.
○ Chaotic: Requires the Planar Focus feat and a Chaotic alignment. Negating all critical and precision
damage might have been worth glancing at. Negating it only a quarter of the time? +1 Fortification
armor can do that. Pass.
 ○ Cold: Requires the Planar Focus feat. It's a small amount of damage, sure, but you don't have to get hit
for it to work, only attacked, and it doesn't allow for any kind of save for half.
○ Earth: Requires the Planar Focus feat. Novel movement type plus a bump to natural armor? Yeah, why
not? Versatility is the name of the game.
○ Evil: Requires the Planar Focus feat and an Evil alignment. Profane bonus. The boost to AC is small;
saves are more interesting. Still, profane bonuses are hard to come by, so...meh? Might be worth
throwing out if you're fighting Good Outsiders.
○ Falcon: Competence bonus. Can always find a use for more Perception, but it won't stack with
heightened awareness, bloodhound, or perceive cues.
○ Fire: This is really what flaming weapons should have been—scaling damage boosts. By the time you
get Bane at 5th level, Fire Focus will give you +1d6, and by the time you get greater bane at 12th level,
that will have increased to +3d6. And Bane and Fire Aspect stack. You heard that right. Resistances will
obviously bedevil you from time to time, but overall this is a fantastic damage boost for melee
‘Quisitors.
○ Frog: Competence bonus. You won't be using these skills much, but hey, the option's nice to have.
○ Good: Requires the Planar Focus feat and a Good alignment. Sacred bonus. See Evil Aspect.
○ Lawful: Requires the Planar Focus feat and a Lawful alignment. Just shrug off that baleful polymorph
like it ain't no thang. Maybe talk to your GM about whether you could shift to this focus as an
immediate action if you use Spellcraft to identify a transmutation spell as it’s being cast.
○ Monkey: Competence bonus. Another circumstantial one.
○ Mouse: Ooh, now this is interesting. Evasion and improved evasion make you a regular tank against
certain types of spells and enemies (lookin’ at you, Dragons) so don't be afraid to abuse this.
○ Owl: Competence bonus. This is a decent focus for a stealthy animal companion, but for you, the
shadow armor enchantment will provide a better bonus as a constant effect. If you’re looking for stealth,
consider Shadow Focus for its untyped bonus.
○ Shadow: Requires the Planar Focus feat. Untyped bonus. Ah, much better. That bonus will stack with
everything, and pairs wonderfully with the Stealth Synergy teamwork feat if your companion is also
using the aspect.
○ Snake: Untyped bonus. Excellent when paired with a reach weapon or a crowded battlefield.
○ Stag: Enhancement bonus. Doesn't stack with Boots of Striding and Springing, expeditious retreat, or
any other enhancement bonus to movement speed. If you don't have those, by all means, bound away.
○ Tiger: Enhancement bonus. Oddly enough, Tiger is likely to be your physical stat Aspect of choice: it
improves your touch AC, shores up your weak Reflex save, gives you more AoOs with Combat
Reflexes, and likely won't be covered by your Belt slot for a considerable portion of your career. Look
into ways to improve the maximum DEX bonus of your armor, e.g. through mithral.
○ Water: Requires the Planar Focus feat. Beats the pants off of Frog Aspect by giving you a swim speed
and the ability to breathe water. You won't be doing it all day, of course, but if you're like me you hate
leaving tools out of the toolbox.
○ Wolf: Useful as an early-game replacement for see invisibility, Wolf Focus quickly gets outclassed by
bloodhound—the range on this ability is just way too short.
● Improved Empathic Link: Replaces second judgment. Being able to see through the eyes of your animal
companion is a great deal, especially if you’re not great at sneaking. Be careful not to send companions too far
ahead, though—you don’t want them rolling for initiative alone.
 ● Raise Animal Companion: Replaces third judgment. Do try not to let Fido die, alright? At least if you do,
you've got this. The negative level is, thankfully, temporary.
● Second Animal Focus: Replaces Slayer. You get this very late in the game, but more Animal Foci never, ever
hurt. It enables some interesting combos: Tiger + Mouse turns you into a Reflex save god; Tiger + Snake, into an
AoO whirlwind; Owl + Shadow, into a professional sneaker; Fire + Cold, into a punishing melee damage
machine; Stag + Earth or Water, into a dauntless pursuer; Bat + Wolf, into an extrasensory specialist. Play around
with it, see what you like.
● Greater Empathic Link: Replaces True Judgment. Usual caveat about 99% of campaigns never reaching this
point applies. I'd still prefer True Judgment, if given the choice; that said, telepathy ain't half bad.

Is it worth it?

Sweet Christmas, yes. Animal companions expand your tactical options enormously, not to mention
contributing to your overall action economy. The fact that you then get shared Teamwork feats and free Animal Focus on
top of that—all without sacrificing Bane—is ludicrously powerful, plain and simple. Definitely a top-tier 'Quisitor
archetype.

Sanctified Slayer (Advanced Class Guide)

What's the niche?

...but what I do isn’t very nice: an Inquisitor who's got more than a little Slayer influence.

What you’re getting

● Studied Target: Replaces Judgment 1/day. Ah, studied target: the ability that rendered the entire Ranger Class
obsolete. In exchange for a move action (later a swift action) you get untyped bonuses to hit, damage, and a wide
array of skills against your studied enemy. The question of whether Sanctified Slayers get to add their studied
target bonuses to the save DCs of spells is a subject of fierce debate, and to my knowledge has never been ruled on
in a Paizo FAQ. Sanctified Slayer says you get studied target as a Slayer of the same level, which then kicks you
over to the studied target text on the Slayer’s page. It reads: “The DCs of Slayer class abilities against that
opponent increase by 1.” There are two schools of thought about what that sentence means:
○ Pro: Spells are an Inquisitor class ability; hence, spells benefit from studied target.
○ Con: Ah, but here’s the thing: Sanctified Slayer doesn’t make any exception for applying those increases
in save DCs to Inquisitor abilities. It gives you the Slayer’s version of studied target, which states that
only Slayer class abilities get boosted. Slayers have no spells; hence, spells don’t benefit from studied
target. In the time since I first wrote this guide, I’ve come to favor this interpretation. It’s truer to RAW,
and it eases the absolutely busted power curve that the archetype has if you give it boosted spell save
DCs. I mean, come on, do you really need studied target, sneak attack, Slayer talents, and humongous
boosts to all your spell save DCs? Haven’t you been given enough?
● Sneak Attack: Replaces all later iterations of judgment. You get the same SA progression as the Slayer (albeit
delayed a level) that stacks with Bane and greater bane. In some ways, you're better equipped to make use of SA
dice than either the Rogue or the Slayer: you have a greater incentive to flank already due to Teamwork feats, you
 can use spells like invisibility and darkness, and your Intimidation tactics like Shatter Defenses synergize well.
Anyone interested in the finer points of SA should check out One Thousand Years of Death's guide to the
Unchained Rogue, as it is ridiculously comprehensive.
● Talented Slayer: Replaces second judgment, third judgment, Slayer, and True Judgment. There's not a wide
variety of Paizo Slayer Talents to pick from. Blood Reader could give you some weird meta-information if you
noticed that that one random peasant has hundreds of HP; Trapfinding lets you play as a Rogue, especially when
paired with the Trap Spotter Rogue talent; Bleeding Attack (also on the Rogue list) further supplements your
damage output and pairs incredibly well with the Flensing Strike feat.

Is it worth it?

Absolutely! As mentioned, studied target is a great ability, easily on par with Judgment and practically de rigeur
for caster Inquisitors. Add to it Bane, sneak attack, and possibly some bleed effects, and you're capable of truly sick-nasty
levels of damage.

Sin Eater (Ultimate Magic)

What's the niche?

Eat some sloth, get some perks. Sin Eaters heal when consuming the sins of dead enemies, which is just cool.

What you’re getting

● Eat Sin: Replaces Domain. Never heal after battle ever again! Just spend a minute or two chowing down on envy
and wrath for the equivalent of cure critical wounds on every enemy you murdered. Seriously good ability.
● Speak With Dead: Replaces the Teamwork feat gained at 6. Speak with dead can be a useful ability; this power's
utility is limited slightly by the fact that you need to be the one to make the corpse. That also means you'll almost
always be interrogating unfriendly corpses, who get a Will save to be belligerent and deceitful toward you.
● Burden of Sin: Replaces Exploit Weakness. Beats me why you'd want to take someone else's disease or poison
when you could just cure it. Your Fort and Will saves are great, though, so you’ll have better tools for handling it
than many other classes.

Is it worth it?

Eat Sin is the pinnacle of momentum abilities: hoover up sin with a few full-round actions, make any necessary
inquiries of your corpses, and off you go again, forewarned and forearmed. Hard to beat that if your Domain choices are
crap (Gozreh, anyone?).

Spellbreaker (Ultimate Combat)

What's the niche?
 Spellbreakers are anti-magic specialists, focusing on defensive abilities and increasing the difficulty of
concentration checks for enemy mages’ defensive casting.

What you’re getting

● Strong-Willed: Replaces Monster Lore. We've spoken before about how dangerous charm and compulsion
effects can be; this ability guards against those, but also against other mind-affecting spells. Quite strong.
● Defense Against Magic: Replaces all Teamwork feats. Great ability that really amps up your "Screw you"
attitude toward casters. Necromancy and Evocation should probably be your first picks for schools due to their
ability to straight-up murder you. Enchantment and Illusion come in a bare second; although mind-affecting
spells are by far the most dangerous on any spell list, you also get to roll twice on every save with that descriptor—
thanks to Strong-Willed, you're safer than most. Conjuration spells can be deadly, but usually have no save or
target AC. The Divination and Transmutation schools are more annoying and inconvenient than anything else,
putting them in fifth and sixth place. Abjuration comes in dead last for the simple reason that there are nearly no
enemy-targeted spells on the list.
● Foil Casting: Replaces Solo Tactics. The main draw here is that it stacks with the Disruptive feat and a
distracting weapon for a potential -8 penalty to defensive casting. It's starting to get reeeeeeal hard for casters to
make those Concentration checks, especially if they were foolish enough not to pick up Combat Casting.
○ As a math example, we'll use your worst-case-scenario enemy as a spellbreaker: an arcane caster who does
nothing but specialize in casting, say, a Level 10 Wizard. He had 20 INT at the beginning of the game,
then dumped his 4th- and 8th-level attribute increases into INT. His +4 INT headband gives him some
extra leeway, for a total of 26 INT.
○ 1st-Level Spell: DC 15 + 2(1st-Level) = 17 to successfully cast defensively. Caster Level 10 + 8 INT
Modifier = +18 bonus to Concentration check. Check succeeds on any roll, even a Nat 1. 2nd-Level
spells also succeed on a 1. Add 10% to the failure chance each spell level thereafter, to a maximum of
30% for a 5th-Level spell.
○ Now that same Wizard faces an Inquisitor with Disruptive, Foil Casting, and a distracting weapon. At
this point, it's getting less and less likely that even this highly specialized enemy will be able to avoid
losing the spell and its action.
○ 1st-Level Spell: DC 15 + 2(1st-Level) = 17 to successfully cast defensively. Caster Level 10 + 8 INT
Modifier - 4 Disruptive - 2 Foil Casting - 2 distracting = +10 bonus to Concentration check. Check
succeeds on a roll of 7 or higher, for a 30% failure chance. Add 10% to the failure chance each spell level,
to a maximum of 70% for a 5th-Level spell.
○ The probabilities speak for themselves: against most characters, a Wizard can cast 1st- and 2nd-level
spells defensively without worrying about a thing; against your Inquisitor, though, even the simplest
spell has a 30% chance of failing, and by the time we get up to their highest available spell level, they're
fumbling 70% of the time. As I said, this is also your worst-case scenario—against enemies that invested
less in their casting stat, are lower level than you, or dipped a non-casting class, you're doing even better.
● Impervious: Replaces True Judgment. Impervious makes a strong case for Evocation or Enchantment as your
first Defense Against Magic school, as they have the highest proportion of wreck-your-life-and-the-lives-of-
everyone-you-hold-dear spells. Then again, who gets to Level 20?
Is it worth it?

Royal Accuser and Spellbreaker are both very, very tempting options for players who don't much like Teamwork
feats or having to finagle with Solo Tactics. Accuser gives you lots of versatility and some increased offensive oomph against
certain enemies, while Spellbreaker is all about defense, defense, defense. If you see yourself going up against a lot of casters,
there's almost no downside.

Sworn of the Eldest (Wilderness Origins)

What's the niche?

Servitors of the Eldest, who are the watchful deities of the Fey and the First World.

What you’re getting

● Whimsical Worship: What the Scaled Fist archetype did for the Monk, Sworn of the Eldest does for the
Inquisitor. Now you’re a fully CHA-based caster! This will mean weaker Will saves and lower Perception checks,
but it also opens the way for Eldritch Heritage, better face skills, and more. A different Inquisitor, but not
necessarily better or worse.
● Deity: You’ve got to worship one of the Eldest, and can’t select an Inquisition. About as expected.
● Disarming Discernment: A strictly inferior trade, but it does let you become quite, quite good at telling when
people are lying to you.
● Feytongue: I like Feytongue just a bit better than Stern Gaze. Not trying to cheat on you or anything, honey, but
Intimidate isn’t as universally useful as Diplomacy.
● Feywatcher: If your campaign takes place in the First World, this will obviously be amazing, but for everyone
else, Fey and plant-based magics come up maybe three to five times in a campaign.
● Magic of the Eldest: You get your Domain spells for free! Yaaaay. Whether this ability beats out Teamwork feats
is obviously a question of which Domain you selected, but there are some strong ones out there.

Is it worth it?

As a Gathlain-only archetype, you probably won’t see Sworn of the Eldest in play very often, and yet there’s
something appealing about it. Gathlain make ideal ranged Inquisitors, and the innate +2 CHA and small size are excellent
incentives to boost your casting power, too. I’ve always been a fan of Fey-based archetypes, and Sworn of the Eldest is no
exception. Plus, the Eldest are really cool! Magdh for the win.

Tactical Leader (Ultimate Intrigue)

What's the niche?

Like Cavaliers, Tactical Leaders get to grant Teamwork feats to allies, rather than the pseudo-Teamwork feats
granted by Solo Tactics. You get fewer feats, but they tend to become more powerful than they were before.
What you’re getting

● Leader's Words: Replaces Stern Gaze. You're giving up Intimidate and Sense Motive for Diplomacy. Not a great
trade, especially since SM and Intimidate both have in-combat uses, too.
● Tactician: Replaces Solo Tactics and Teamwork feats. The issue with Solo Tactics is that your effectiveness can't
stack with anyone else's. Tactician changes all that—if you want everyone to have Outflank, they all have
Outflank; if you want everyone to have Coordinated Charge, they all have Coordinated Charge. The more
teammates, cohorts, companions, summons, or familiars you have, the more effective this is.
● Battle Acumen: Replaces Exploit Weakness. Imagine giving the benefits of your Piercing, Justice, and
Destruction Judgments to a Zen Archer, or a Barbarian, even for a turn! That BBEG just turned into a fine red
mist. I wish you got more uses per day, but this is definitely an extraordinary ability.

Is it worth it?

You're sacrificing a little of your personal effectiveness, but in return you get to turn your team into a buzzsaw. If
you wanted to use Diplomacy more anyway, there's really no downside to choosing this archetype.

Umbral Stalker (Ultimate Intrigue)

What's the niche?

Umbral Stalkers are one of several options for sneaky, assassin-esque Inquisitors, and focus on sudden strikes from
the shadows. You lose much of your edge in out-and-out combat, so set up your ambushes with care.

What you’re getting

● Class Skills: Alters Diplomacy class skill. It'll be hard to use Acrobatics effectively in medium armor; maybe if
you're playing a finesse 'Quisitor?
● Dark Descent: Alters Domain. Unless you're playing as an Inquisitor of Zon-Kuthon, the Darkness domain isn't
available to any of the Big 20. Free Blind Fight and Eyes of Darkness are good abilities, although I would prefer
Touch of Darkness over the Night subdomain power.
● Stalking Judgment: Replaces Justice Judgment. In return for less accuracy when visible, you have higher
accuracy when unnoticed. You'll probably need Hide in Plain Sight, Hellcat Stealth, or a similar ability to leverage
this Judgment. Bumps up to green for those dipping Shadowdancer.
● Swift and Silent: Replaces Stern Gaze. If you're playing an Umbral Stalker, you need Acrobatics and Stealth, so
yay, you got a bonus!
● Deadly Efficiency: Replaces Exploit Weakness. Exploit Weakness isn't a gamebreakingly good ability, only a
middle of the road ability; that said, this rewards you for attacking enemies from stealth, which you'll be doing
anyway if you're playing this archetype.

Is it worth it?
 It’s a very different animal than nearly any other type of Inquisitor, but yeah, I think so. The best corollary I can
think of for how this archetype would play is like a Stalker Vigilante: you appear, hit them, then disappear into the shadows
again. Gestalt builds with either a Vigilante or an UC Rogue would be excellent, as they give you access to more stealth
abilities and a source of sneak attack dice that the Umbral Stalker is lacking.

Urban Infiltrator (Magic Tactics Toolbox)

What's the niche?

Urban Infiltrators are specialists at blending into crowds, disappearing in urban environments, and insinuating
themselves into organizations through magical and mundane disguises.

What you’re getting

● Class Skills: Alters class skills. Knowledge (Nobility) and Knowledge (History) are useless in combat, but
excellent during infiltrations; Knowledge (Local) identifies humanoids, and Disable Device is certainly an
interesting addition for those who want to play as a rogue-lite.
● Gifted Detective: Replaces Monster Lore. Since you're giving up your edge in the Knowledge skills, you might
as well get something in return for it. Disguise might not be worth much, but Bluff is good. Depending on how
often you find yourself needing information (and how closely your DM hews to those rules for Diplomacy) the
other parts might be useful, as well.
● A Thousand Faces: Replaces stalwart. This is what you came to this archetype for: unlimited alter self. You can
get natural attacks, a swim speed, darkvision, scent, as well as unparalleled infiltration abilities. Only Vigilantes do
it better.

Is it worth it?

If your team already has knowledges and monster identification covered, e.g. with an Investigator or Bard, there's
not much of a reason not to take this archetype. A Thousand Faces is simply too powerful, especially with some cheap
items like Sleeves of Many Garments. You can become just about anyone, given a few seconds of respite.

Witch Hunter (Ultimate Combat)

What's the niche?

Like the Spellbreaker, the Witch Hunter is a peerless magehunter. The archetype leverages the Spellcraft skill
especially well, so be thinking about ways to find those bonuses.

What you’re getting

 ● Spell Sage: Replaces Monster Lore. Spellcraft can do a variety of cool things, but its best use is identifying spells
as they're cast, which doesn't cost an action. That might not be mechanically powerful for most 'Quisitors, but
Witch Hunters get...
● Knowledgeable Defense: Replaces discern lies, detect alignment, and True Judgment. Heck. Yeah. A nice
defensive bonus against any spell that the Inquisitor is able to identify, whether that spell targets AC, Fortitude,
Reflex, or Will. Perfect for the up-and-coming mage hunter.
● Spell Scent: Replaces Track. For my money, much, much better than the ability that it replaces. Following
footprints will eventually become a thing of the past, but being able to cast locate creature upon studying a spell or
magical object will always be useful.
● Witch's Bane Judgment: Replaces Exploit Weakness. This one's a great one, too, essentially punishing arcane
casters for casting within a certain radius of you. You'll definitely want it out whenever there are enemy wizards
on the field.

Is it worth it?

I love it! It's unfortunately incompatible with Spellbreaker, but either of these two archetypes is good for caster-
slayers. Note that Witch Hunter is more offensively-focused, while Spellbreaker is more defensively-focused. Also note that
even though the Witch Hunter specifically calls out being an anti-arcane caster archetype, none of their abilities except
Witch's Bane are exclusively arcane-affecting.

The Chaff
Cold Iron Warden (Demon Hunter's Handbook)
What's the niche?

Cold Iron Wardens specialize in anti-Evil or Chaotic outsider tactics—creatures like Demons, Devils, or Fey will
have a hard time against them. Many of the benefits that they get aren’t actually that beneficial, though, or beneficial only
in very select scenarios.

What you’re getting

● Track Teleportation: Replaces Track and the Teamwork feats gained at 12 and 18. Don't you just hate it when
that caster gives you the slip? Now you can point your finger toward her and give your team an ETA on when
you'll intercept. The ability gets better with age, but I still think it's too niche for most situations.
● Abyssal Scourge: Replaces the Teamwork feats gained at 6 and 15. Channeling isn't the greatest of options for
you, and the effects again depend on a fairly uncommon event—i.e., an Evil Outsider attempting to teleport or
summon. No doubt that forcing concentration checks could make enemies' lives tough, though, and this lil’ guy
can help you qualify for the Holy Vindicator PrC, if that’s your jam. There are better entry archetypes, though,
like Ravener Hunter with the Life Mystery.
 ● Favored Judgment: Replaces the Teamwork feats gained at 3 and 9. Against your favored enemy Outsiders,
there's no denying your Judgments will be stronger, but unless you're literally invading Hell, you can't count on
the bonus operating all the time.
● Bane: Alters Bane. Stronger against Outsiders, weaker against everything else. Sensing a theme here?
● Translate Telepathy: Replaces discern lies. Listening to telepathic transmissions is cool, flavor-wise, but is it
really all that mechanically useful? At least it's not limited to Outsiders.

Is it worth it?

In the vast majority of circumstances, probably not. Teamwork feats can be powerful and universally useful; the
abilities that you get in return for them are too situational. If your GM has told you that you'll only be fighting Evil
Outsiders or are running an AP like Wrath of the Righteous, sure, pick it up.

Exarch (Advanced Race Guide)

What's the niche?

This Dwarf-only archetype is a strangely mixed bag, heavily tied into the jurist and menacing weapon qualities.
Unfortunately, you lose your Bane and most of your Judgments without any real mechanical gain.

What you’re getting

● Spells: Alters spellcasting. You can't cast any spells with the [chaotic] descriptor. That's not a huge loss, but I
have to ding it for taking away options without giving you anything in return.
● Inflexible Will: Replaces Monster Lore. Confusion will mess you up, and we obviously don't want that;
however, this bonus doesn't scale throughout the levels like Monster Lore does, and the bonus is much, much
more situational.
● Fearsome Jurist: Replaces Bane. No. No no no no no. You don't trade away Bane, and certainly not for powers
this mediocre. Jurist won't get you anything that you need during combat; menacing gives a +2 to hit when
flanking, but Bane can give you that all the time. The improved crit range is the only upside—and it's not enough.
● Aura of Repetition: Replaces second judgment. The domain power itself is of questionable worth; when you're
giving up your second Judgment in order to use it, that crosses the line into "bad" territory.
● Double Jeopardy: Replaces greater bane. You're still not getting anything useful by combining jurist and
menacing. Greater Bane is the better ability by a country mile.
● Aura of Reversion: Replaces third judgment. Lots of enemies have transmutation or polymorph abilities at their
beck and call by this level, and Aura of Reversion will penalize them heavily for trying to use those abilities. Is it
worth trading a third Judgment? I'd argue not. Fort negates, anyway, so you probably won't land it.

Is it worth it?

You're losing Bane, greater bane, and all later iterations of Judgment for some very mediocre abilities. Skip it and
consider Spellbreaker or Witch Hunter for your Dwarf. You'll be glad you did.
 Exorcist (Ultimate Magic)
What's the niche?

Exorcists, no surprise, have some good tools for putting an end to possession. Then again, how often do you run
into that?

What you’re getting

● Verdict of Exorcism: Replaces second judgment. How often does someone on your team get possessed? And
would you really want to end your Judgment early to expel the possessing entity? You're giving up your second
Judgment to do this, remember.
● Verdict of Exile: Replaces third judgment. You can force the possessing entity to return to its home plane if it
fails its Will save. Again, how often is this happening to you?
● Closed Mind: Replaces Slayer. Immune to compulsion is amazing, but you get it far too late to be of much use.
● Verdict of Anathema: Replaces True Judgment. For that one-in-a-million scenario where five enemies within
ten feet of each other are all possessed! /s

Is it worth it?

Jeez. No. Any archetype giving up your Judgments for one extraordinarily rare circumstance is bad, bad, bad. Just
skip it already.

Expulsionist (Haunted Heroes Handbook)

What's the niche?

Anti-haunt, anti-incorporeal. Expulsionists keep it simple.

What you’re getting

● Expel Spirit: Replaces Domain. CHA is likely to be one of your dump stats, which is too bad, because I quite
like getting a little extra versatility through channeling. Even imperfect as it is, it’s still considerably better than
many of the turds on the domain list. As with so many Inquisitor archetypes, better in undead-heavy campaigns.
● Expulsionist Lore: Replaces Monster Lore. From a versatility standpoint, not a good trade. Ghosts and haunts
simply aren’t common enough in most campaigns to warrant a power dedicated specifically to identifying them.
You’ve certainly got the whole package if that’s your campaign, though!
● Spirit Sleuth: Replaces discern lies. Love the flavor on this ability—feels like some sort of psychic sensitivity that
lets you figure out how to put the uneasy dead to rest. Again, though, probably not universally useful.

Is it worth it?
 You’ll know whether it is based on the AP or homebrew world your GM has constructed. If it’s Strange Aeons,
Ravenloft, etc., give it a look-see.

Faith Hunter (Ultimate Intrigue)

What's the niche?

Faith Hunters claim to be better at combat against creatures of one specific alignment that opposes yours along
the law/chaos or good/evil axes. You only get one alignment of the nine, however, so it’s a limited, limited range.

What you’re getting

● Sworn Enemy: Replaces Domain and the Justice and Destruction Judgments. Okay: so you only get 1/day until
10th level? And your Smite doesn’t scale in damage? And it has to be one alignment (Chaotic Evil, say) instead of
an alignment spectrum? And it replaces key Inquisitor abilities? What a crock of horse shit.
● Enemy Revealed: Replaces Detect Alignment. Remember how Detect Alignment is extraordinarily versatile,
and can be used at-will? What if we took away that versatility and only let you use it a few times per day?
● Hateful Bane: Alters Bane. Great, so now Bane doesn’t function unless your enemy matches your Sworn Enemy
alignment. Another steaming pile.

Is it worth it?

*Soft retching sounds in the background*

Hexenhammer (Horror Adventures)

What's the niche?

Hexenhammers purportedly draw inspiration from the Witch class, but the implementation is done...poorly.

What you’re getting

● Withering Gaze: Replaces Stern Gaze and Monster Lore. Where to start? Shaken is actually better than Evil Eye,
especially if you have a way to heighten it to frightened or panicked; the ability specifies that you need to
demoralize as a standard action, which means no Dazzling Display, Cornugon Smash, Enforcer, etc.; and you're
trading much of your demoralize potential away with Stern Gaze. Hard to tell what Paizo was thinking with this
ability.
● Pride and Penance: Alters Domain. So let me get this straight: anytime you use one half of your archetype
abilities, you lose access to the other half? Bullshit.
● Cunning Mind: Replaces Cunning Initiative. Doesn't scale with WIS, provides a niche bonus, and will be
suppressed for a combat or the entire day if you use a Hex or Witch spell. Again, what was Paizo thinking?
 ● Hexcrafter: Replaces Teamwork feats. Limited hex list, slower progression, no access to Grand Hexes, and of
course the shitty Pride and Penance mechanic. Worst of all, though, is the 1/day rider on all of these. What is the
point of a hex that you can't use all day? Unlimited-use hexes are the only feature keeping the Witch class viable!
● Dark Trade: Replaces Solo Tactics. No. NO. You should be able to use hexes as many times as you want
without trading away Cunning Mind or your domain powers for the entire day, not to mention a use of
Judgment.
● Witchcraft: Alters spellcasting. Whoop de doo, a few Witch spells. Hard to get excited about this when the rest
of the archetype is certifiably terrible.

Is it worth it?

What an absolute turd of an archetype. It's too bad, because the whole "consorting with dark powers to combat
even darker powers" trope never gets old. Take a look at Flaming Crab Games’ Witchknight archetype for a
Witch/Inquisitor hybrid done right.

Iconoclast (Ultimate Combat)

What's the niche?

Iconoclasts get really good at sundering or otherwise inactivating magical items. And I get it, they can occasionally
be bad news, but even in situations where that’s true, the Iconoclast can’t do anything particularly beter than base
Inquisitors.

What you’re getting

● Shake Effects: Replaces Monster Lore. Untyped bonus. Some magical items can be very powerful, but it
probably won't come up enough to be useful, and the bonus doesn't scale in any way.
● Detect Magic: Replaces detect [alignment]. "I'll take a single cantrip instead of those four 1st-level spells,
please"...said no one, ever. Seriously, this is a bad trade. Every Inquisitor can and should be choosing detect magic
as a cantrip at 1st level, no questions asked. The Royal Accuser archetype at least has the good grace to give you at-
will greater detect magic.
● Dispelling Attack: Replaces discern lies. You have dispel magic on your spell list. You should use that instead of
this ability, which requires a successful attack to even get to the caster level check.
● Negating Critical: Replaces Exploit Weakness. I think I'd rather suppress regeneration and pierce DR instead of
suppressing a minor magical item. The ability makes a big deal of how it stacks with critical feats, but you won't
have the BAB to acquire those until very, very late in your career.
● Destroy Artifact: Replaces True Judgment. Maybe your experience differs from mine, but how often do you
find yourself needing to destroy a minor artifact? Besides which, you only get one chance to destroy it! Hard pass.

Is it worth it?

No. You're not giving up your strongest abilities to get any of these, but they're either redundant or entirely too
niche to be worth trading away even your flavor powers.
 Immolator (Advanced Race Guide)
What's the niche?

Ifrits can take the Immolator archetype, which is all about cleansing heathens with a refiner’s fire. That race has
bubkes going for it in terms of stats for Inquisitors, though, which limits the archetype’s usefulness. Over-reliance on fire
damage doesn’t help.

What you’re getting

● Servant of the Flame: Alters Domain. Your deity has to have the Fire domain in their portfolio, which for the
Big 20 means Asmodeus or Sarenrae. Fortunately, both Asmodeus and Sarenrae have better domains available, as
Fire kind of sucks (with the exception of the Ash subdomain).
● Immolation Judgment: Replaces Smiting Judgment. Unfortunately, the fact that Immolators deal exclusively in
fire damage means that they need some way to deal with fire-resistant enemies; the Immolation Judgment,
therefore, isn't so much an upgrade as the cost of doing business. Equally unfortunately, this means that
Immolation will have to be up for many fights in place of Judgments like Justice or Destruction that could boost
your damage output.
● Burnt Offering: Replaces Bane and greater bane. Bane and greater bane are the cornerstones of your damage
capabilities, and replacing them with flaming or flaming burst weapons doesn't come close to cutting it. A strict
downgrade from the base Inquisitor.
● Judgment by Fire: Alters True Judgment. The usual save-or-die that Inquisitors get at Level 20, except fire-
immune enemies aren't affected and anyone killed by it does a small AoE as they burst into flames. I'd sooner be
able to hit anyone with this attack, not just enemies who can be damaged by fire. Anyway, 99% of campaigns
won't ever see this capstone.

Is it worth it?

Definitely not. Ifrit stat distributions are crap for Inquisitors, and the synergy between Wildfire Heart / Cunning
Initiative and Stern Gaze / Fiery Glare doesn't go far enough toward making up for it. This archetype is good in concept,
but the loss of Bane and greater bane without a suitable replacement just pushes it into terrible territory.

Infiltrator (Ultimate Magic)

What's the niche?

Infiltrators give you some tools for pulling the wool over even other Inquisitors’ eyes, which is intriguing if you’re
going to be, well, infiltrating. It’s not bad, just limiting—the Heretic, Royal Accuser, and Urban Infiltrator give you better
abilities for what you give up.

What you’re getting

 ● Misdirection: Replaces Stern Gaze. True, other Inquisitors will always be good at seeing through your disguises,
and true, this would help prevent that from happening. In general, though, you won't be infiltrating enemy
strongholds enough to make this worthwhile.
● Guileful Lore: Replaces Monster Lore. You're losing a bunch of skill ranks in your Knowledges for Bluff and
Diplomacy boosts. It's not the worst trade in the world, but I say there are easier ways of bumping your social
skills.
● Forbidden Lore: Replaces Track. There aren’t many spell specifically keyed to alignment, so Forbidden Lore
doesn’t buy you much, barring someone saying "Cast this necromancy spell or we'll know you're a snitch."
● Necessary Lies: Replaces discern lies. I'd rather be the interrogator than the interrogated, but then you wouldn't
be playing an Infiltrator.

Is it worth it?

Unless you regularly go into deep cover among enemy organizations with their own Inquisitors, the base
Inquisitor is probably stronger.

Keeper of the Current (Blood of the Sea)

What's the niche?

A real missed opportunity for the “Oceanquisitor” pun, but so be it. Keepers of the Current are the token aquatic
version of the Inquisitor class.

What you’re getting

● Underwater Hunter: Replaces Track. For a certain type of campaign, necessary. For most campaigns, useless.
● Marine Magic: Alters spellcasting. Snowball, aqueous orb, ride the waves, geyser, and holy ice are all good
candidates for you.
● Rudderless Attack: Replaces discern lies. A free slowing effect just for attacking people with Bane, which you'll
be doing anyway.

Is it worth it?

Much like the Cloaked Wolf, the Keeper of the Current might be okay in seafaring campaigns like Skull and
Shackles or The Ruins of Azlant. You're not giving up much, all things considered, but you're also not getting much in
return apart from some slight versatility in spellcasting and a free rider on Bane. One of my favorite character concepts is a
Royal Accuser/Keeper of the Current Inquisitor whose mission it is to hunt down Aboleth influence in humanity’s
governments. Cool stuff.
 Kinslayer (Advanced Race Guide)
What's the niche?

This Dhampir-only archetype hunts down other Dhampirs, disgusted with the circumstances of their own
creation. Cool, cool concept, and Slayer’s Brand is a flavorful power that keeps growing as you grow.

What you’re getting

● Slayer's Brand: Replaces Destruction Judgment. The base ability obviously sucks, but we can't really consider it
in isolation, because the main feature of Slayer's Brand is...
● Greater Brand: Replaces Teamwork feats. Yeah, here's where Slayer's Brand actually gets good. As levels go by
and you can pass up more Teamwork feats for Brand upgrades, the ability gets better and better: make it a ranged
touch attack, make it affect anything Evil, make it affect two targets at once, make it hit harder, make it impose
penalties on the enemy. It takes a long time to get rolling, but there's also no limit on how many times per day you
can use it, and no limit on how many times it can affect one target. Hell, after a certain point you could be making
ranged touch attacks against Undead and Evil enemies all day. Probably even better if your GM would allow you
to take upgrades in place of regular feats.
● Undead Sense: Replaces detect [alignment]. For a campaign like Carrion Crown, this is brilliant. The bonus to
identifying vampires is cool and thematic, too. Of limited use in campaigns that focus on other enemy types.

Is it worth it?

Dhampirs have awful stat distributions for Inquisitors, but their resistance to energy drain and negative levels
makes them an intriguing choice for undead-heavy campaigns. As with so many Inquisitor archetypes, you won't
experience universal benefits as a Kinslayer, but the archetype does excel against certain enemies.

Reaper of Secrets (Dirty Tactics Toolbox)

What's the niche?

Ah, old Father Skinsaw: Norgorber has always been one of my favorite evil gods, and this archetype is explicitly
one of his. The lynchpin of the archetype is Mind-Game Tactics, which is unconventional and tricky to leverage. See what
you make of it.

What you’re getting

● Bound by Secrecy: Norgorber will obviously be a no-go in most campaigns, but if you're playing an evil
campaign or are okay being a true neutral assassin, this won't be a big deal.
● Deceitful Lore: Replaces Monster Lore. The bonus to Disguise likely won't see much use, especially with so
many disguise spells on your list; having a godly Bluff skill might be of more use, but (as in life) it's hard to keep a
bunch of lies going and people do tend to find out. Maybe for a feinting build when combined with Sanctified
Slayer?
 ● Soul-Piercing Gaze: Replaces Stern Gaze. It’s an Insight bonus, rather than a Morale bonus, and you need a
swift action to activate. Probably pretty even-stevens with Stern Gaze, in the end, though you do lose much of
your combat effectiveness.
● Mind-Game Tactics: Replaces Solo Tactics. Incredible flavor to this ability, but mechanically it’ll slow you
down. Only one enemy can be affected by Mind-Game Tactics (whereas every ally can provide the benefits of
Solo Tactics) and you’re burning swift actions to change the focus of your Soul-Piercing Gaze. It would be okay
with Teamwork feats that focus on adjacent allies, because moving into an enemy’s threatened area would give
you benefits instead of drawbacks, but that upside is outweighed by the fact that you can’t control the tactics of
your enemies. (/u/large_kobold points out that Mind-Game Tactics makes it possible to use Betrayal feats on
enemies. This might raise the ability slightly up from red, but it’s still a looong way to yellow.)

Is it worth it?

Other archetypes do subterfuge better, unfortunately. I like Mind-Game Tactics conceptually, but I think you’d
need it to affect all enemies in order to bump it into “useful” range. Scaling the number of targets affected by Soul-Piercing
Gaze would be another necessary buff.

Relic Hunter (Occult Adventures)

What's the niche?

Relic Hunters are Occultist/Inquisitor hybrids, which means free implement schools and Focus powers.

What you’re getting

● Spellcasting: Alters spellcasting. For those of you unfamiliar with Occultists, they’re psychic magic users whose
power comes from magical objects called implements; the type of object used as an implement depends on the
school of magic with which they're invested. Occultists can only learn spells that belong to one of their
implement schools, so Relic Hunters need to think carefully about which roles they intend to play in the group
and then choose their implement schools accordingly. This feature forces the Inquisitor, already something of a
specialist caster, into an even more niche spellcasting role. Your Focus powers help compensate somewhat for this
drop in versatility, but I still can’t account it a positive change.
● Relics and Deific Focus: Replaces Judgment, second judgment, third judgment, Domain, Bane, and greater
bane. So now you're an Occultist: you get a pool of Mental Focus (rebranded here as Deific Focus) that let you
use Focus powers depending on your implement schools. There's waaay too much content for me to review
individually here, but CTP has an excellent guide to the Occultist out there that will give you the run-down.
Divination and Conjuration (at least according to CTP) are strong places to start at 1st level.

Is it worth it?

Q: If you take away Judgment, Domain, and Bane, are you still an Inquisitor? A: Maybe? There's no doubt that
the Occultist's resonant and focus powers can be extremely potent: the Divination resonant power, Third Eye, for example,
can grant you constant see invisibility for the entire day. Reading that, you think, Wow! Incredible! The Relic Hunter gets
half the number of focus powers that an Occultist does, however, and even though your relic schools progress slightly faster
than the Occultist's implement schools do, you're still going to be locked out of a significant portion of your spells for a
significant portion of your adventuring career. You’re ultimately sacrificing all your damage-dealing potential for fewer
Occultist tricks than an Occultist has. My feeling is that you should play an Occultist if you want to, but you shouldn’t
look here for an effective mix of the two classes.

Secret Seeker (Ultimate Intrigue)

What's the niche?

Secret Seekers get some elements of psychic espionage, but sacrificing Bane and greater bane already makes them
suspect.

What you’re getting

● Occult Lore: Replaces Monster Lore. Prognostication is slightly more useful than Read Aura, but neither is
earth-shatteringly good. I'd prefer Monster Lore in most circumstances.
● Detect Mind: Replaces Bane and greater bane. In isolation, getting these spells at will isn't bad. It's far from
good, but not bad. When we ask Detect Mind to fill the giant-sized shoes of Bane and greater bane, though, we
can see just how far short it falls.
● Seek Mind: Replaces Exploit Weakness. I can't think of a time when I'd need to find somebody with a specific
fear of snakes, or a specific desire to find the Ark of the Covenant. More useful just to see what thoughts, desires,
or anxieties are bubbling near the surface and roll with them.

Is it worth it?

Sorry, no. When you give up Bane, you'd better have something damn good to replace it, and Secret Seeker simply
doesn't. I do think a Secret Seeker would make an interesting NPC class, e.g., a villain who always knows what you fear and
feel.

Suit Seeker (The Harrow Handbook)

What's the niche?

Suit Seekers are Inquisitors who rely on a harrow deck to provide random bonuses in accordance with fate's flow.

What you’re getting

● Alignment: Suit Seekers need to be some brand of Neutral.

● Class Skills: The skills you lose aren't big deals, but picking up Use Magical Device is a big, big deal. So many
things you can do with wands in Pathfinder.
● Domain: All of the listed domains, subdomains, and inquisitions are kind of shitty, with the exception of Luck.
 ● Improvised Array: Alters Judgment, second judgment, and third judgment. It's way, way too random for
combat, and being immune to a single ability's damage or getting +4 to an ability score isn't mechanically
fantastic.
● Eye of the Harrow: Replaces detect [alignment]. A minor, minor buff that's decided entirely randomly. Nah.
● Unravel Array: Replaces True Judgment. It's not even a save-or-die, like True Judgment, and you've got to
destroy part of your deck to do it.

Is it worth it?

No. Drawing harrow cards is too random, and the benefits you get from drawing are too mechanically weak.

Traceless Operative (Ultimate Intrigue)

What's the niche?

You...hide bodies better? Okay.

What you’re getting

● Conceal Evidence: Replaces Stern Gaze and Monster Lore. How often do you need to conceal a crime scene?
Bleh.
● Trackless: Replaces Track. Again, you'll need to conceal your own tracks even less often than you'll need to
follow others' tracks.
● Uncanny Dodge: Replaces Bane. This is so not worth it, it's not even funny. Uncanny Dodge and its big brother
are okay, I'll grant you, but Bane is your primary damage dealer. You need Bane.
● Improved Uncanny Dodge: Replaces greater bane. As the prior ability.

Is it worth it?

● No, no, definitely not. Giving up Bane, Stern Gaze, and Monster Lore for essentially nothing in return is
unacceptably bad. Stay away.

Vampire Hunter (Inner Sea Magic)

What's the niche?

Better against vampires and undead. No surprises there.

What you’re getting

● Smiting Judgment: Alters Smiting Judgment. Fairly even trade, aligned weapon for silver weapon. You'll need it
if you're going to fight a lot of vampires.
 ● Purity Judgment: Alters Purity Judgment. Again, losing poison and curse resistance in favor of disease and
energy drain is probably even-stevens.
● Silversmith: Replaces detect alignment. Why can't you just buy these items? I know crafting silver weapons,
blanches, etc. would save you a bit of wealth by level, but this still seems too restrictive.
● Bane: Alters Bane. Your Bane doesn't function against anything but undead, which kind of obliterates the point
of having a flexible bane weapon to begin with.
● Sun Strike: 1d6 extra damage and the equivalent of a light spell. Snoooooze.

Is it worth it?

Pure and simple, no. Kinslayer and Royal Accuser both fill the anti-undead niche better than Vampire Hunter.

Vigilant Defender (Ultimate Intrigue)

What's the niche?

Similar to the Tactical Leader, the Vigilant Defender is a more team-oriented archetype. Unfortunately, it doesn’t
perform quite as well as the Tactical Leader.

What you’re getting

● Shared Judgments: Alters Judgment. The wording's a bit funny on this one, but I'm going to assume that what
Paizo means is, "At any point during a combat in which you have used your Judgment ability, you may expend a
swift action to grant the benefits of your active Judgments to your teammates." It's a nice little tool to let the team
go nova right at the end of a combat, but for longer hauls you're probably better off with the lend
judgment/greater suite of spells.
● Protect the Faithful: Replaces Stern Gaze. Perception is probably the only universally useful skill granted by
this ability; Stealth won't help the fighter clanking around in full plate, Bluff can get you into trouble if you fail,
and Disguise is far too situational. On balance, I think I'd rather have Stern Gaze.
● Bolster the Wounded: Replaces Exploit Weakness. Taking the edge off a crit is okay, but I still think Inquisitors
are better suited to liquefying the enemies that went after their teammates, rather than soaking the damage
themselves.
● True Vengeance: Replaces True Judgment. We've been over this: having abilities that rely on you or your
teammates dying in order to function is a bad gamble.

Is it worth it?

Eh, I can't get too excited about it. The best ability is Shared Judgments, and even that is just a nice little perk at
the end of combat, probably nothing game-breakingly powerful.
 INQ705: Dips, VMC, Prestige, Gestalt
(Special Topics in Inquisition)
Dips
Full-BAB martial classes will likely be most interested in dipping into Inquisitor, but a two-level dip is about all
they’ll need to get the most they reasonably can out of the class. Monster Lore, Cunning Initiative, and Domain abilities
are all keyed off of stats rather than class level, making them ideal features to give to a WIS-heavy martial class like Brawler,
Monk, or even Ranger. Those without any innate casting of their own will appreciate the few orisons and 1st-level spells
young Inquisitors get, as well as the suite of alignment detection tools that kick in at 2nd level.

As far as dipping from Inquisitor into other classes goes, the reasons why you might choose to do so are
numerous, and the methods of doing so are even more numerous than that. Your dip choices will be guided by your build
goals, so I can offer you only a few pieces of universal advice. First, casters get disadvantaged by multiclassing more severely
than martial classes do, so do what you need to in another class and then get out. The Bane Baldric item can help you
progress your Bane rounds back to normal levels, and the Magical Knack trait (tacky though it is) grants you a +2 trait
bonus to caster level, ensuring that your SR penetration, etc. don’t fall too terribly behind. Second, look for features that
are either granted without any caveats at all or that scale with attributes, not class level. Dips are meant to snag you feats
and low-hanging class abilities, so go for the stuff that will give you the most for your sacrifice of Inquisitor levels.

A short list of common dips:

● Fighter X: You’re here for feats, BAB, and weapon/armor proficiencies. Get as many as you need and get out.
● Unchained Rogue 3: You’re here for DEX-to-damage, primarily, but the free Weapon Finesse and sneak attack
dice don’t hurt.
● Gunslinger 5: Less a dip than a lifestyle, Gunslinger 5 gives you DEX-to-damage with firearms. Taking a five-
level “break” is obviously not going to do your casting or Inquisitor class features any favors, but if you’re into the
flavor of a Mysterious Stranger-type of character, it might be worth consideration.
● Rake Rogue 1: Anytime you would deal sneak attack damage, you get to make a free Intimidate check. It’s not
ideal, but it might get the job done if you really have no other build space to get scary with.
● Inspired Blade Swashbuckler 1: The one-level wonder! You’re here for Weapon Finesse and Weapon Focus
(Rapier). As with so many random dipping byblows, a Deed or two is nice but not the main reason you’re here.
● Daring Champion Cavalier 1: Again, free Weapon Finesse. Tactician doesn’t hurt to have, either!
 Variant Multiclassing
Variant Multiclassing (or VMC, for short—Pathfinder players love their acronyms) was introduced in Pathfinder
Unchained, and provided a means to gain levels in two classes concurrently rather than in two classes sequentially.
Unfortunately, the price that VMC exacts in exchange for your secondary class’ features is your feat selection at 3rd, 7th,
11th, 15th, and 19th levels. For some classes that get multiple bonus feats (usually full-martial classes like Fighter, Brawler,
Monk, Ranger, etc.) this is an excellent trade, as a feat or two lost won’t break the bank in the grand scheme of things.
Inquisitors are different creatures, however, with zero bonus combat feats. DEX-to-damage? Impossible until at least 9th
level. Basic Power Attack? Impossible until 5th level. Forced to bet the odds on an attempt to walk across the Pacific Ocean
rather or an attempt to build a workable ranged Inquisitor VMC, I’d bet the former outcome every time. Given how weak
the VMC abilities are overall and how much of your combat effectiveness you have to sacrifice in order to VMC, there’s no
real choice here. Wish I could recommend it, but if you want a non-gimped character, don’t VMC.

Prestige Classes
I have to say, I’m a sucker for Prestige Classes. They get a lot of flack from the community at large,
understandably so: when your character’s effectiveness in-game is largely determined by class level, taking a 10-level detour
out of your starting class to pick up a flavorful yet mechanically weak set of abilities just doesn’t make sense. And yet, PrCs
are great petri dishes for classes based on specialized organizations, regions, or religions; they’re proving grounds for creative
mechanics and unlikely melanges of classes. Perhaps most importantly, PrCs give us a means of pumping the brakes on our
own power curve as PCs. Why would we want to do that? To spare your GM the massive headaches that can come from
trying to balance encounters against a party full of PCs who are min-maxed to the gills, for one, or maybe just because
characters with flaws are often more interesting than characters without them. Whatever the reason you go Prestige, you’ll
want to try to strike a balance between meeting the entry requirements, getting something out of the class, and not giving
up too much from Inquisitor. We’ve got a couple of different tacks to try as we accomplish those goals.

● Streamlining entry requirements. Skills are usually easy to come by as an Inquisitor; our list is good and we get
plenty of ranks per level. Feats, proficiencies, and either BAB or spellcasting are a bit harder, and might delay your
entry. Special requirements such as the Gray Gardener’s public trial and execution will have to be undertaken
with your GM’s permission anyway, so there’s not much lost there. At any rate, we’ll favor PrCs that we can get
into using mostly skills and one or two feats.
● Maximizing your gains. We want PrCs that shore up the Inquisitor’s mechanical weaknesses. A good Reflex
save is nice, full BAB is nice, bonus feats are nice, bonus proficiencies are nice, and of course any fun class features
are also nice. You know the drill by now on what Inquisitors are good at and what they struggle with.
● Minimizing your losses. We want PrCs that force us to give up as little as possible from the base Inquisitor.
Some PrCs allow you to advance your Inquisitor levels to some degree, whether greater (Evangelist, e.g.) or lesser
(Chernasardo Warden, e.g.). A greater number will advance your spellcasting, but not your class features. Many
PrCs will not advance anything from your base class, leaving you in anguish, wallowing in freakish misery forever.
 The Magical Knack trait will help with CL, and the Favored Prestige Class/Prestigious Spellcaster feats can ease
some of the pain of spellcasting, although let’s be honest, who wants to burn two feats for one level of casting?

Aspis Agent (Paths of Prestige)

What's the niche?

Professional treasure hunters who are great in a dungeon crawl—and great at concealing their true intentions.
Infiltrators and other intrigue specialists will find plenty to like here.

Where and how do we enter?

Skill requirements on top of skill requirements! Holy cow. Rogues or Slayers would probably have an easier time
with this, but we might be able to get away with it. Proficiencies and spells are harder; the Royal Accuser can get detect
secret doors, but barring a feat, only Inquisitors of Calistria get whip proficiency. Not daunted yet? Okay. On we go.

How far do we go?

Aspis Agent 2 gives you the most bang for your buck with one Agency Secret, the ability to mask your
alignment, and some trapfinding abilities. If you’re savoring the flavor, Aspis Agent 6 is probably your next best exit
point, netting you a little sneak attack damage, some more Agency Secrets, and the ability to shift your alignment as an
immediate action.

What you're getting

● Trapfinding / Trap Sense: It might be useful if you don’t have a dedicated Disable Device specialist on hand.
Given that traps typically target your weak Reflex save, too, you might benefit from the boost to saves. Overall,
though, a mediocre gain.
● Agency Secrets: Bonus feats are the big draw here, although Conceal Thoughts is highly useful for Infiltrators
and other sneaky snakes. Note that you need to qualify for feats normally.
● Mask Alignment: Suuuper useful if you’re trying to act as a rogue agent in an enemy organization. Disguises are
no good if a simple divination spell can ping you as obviously not belonging there.

Is it worth it?

Bonus feats and alignment obfuscation powers are all well and good, but man, those entry requirements are steep.
All your skill points will go into qualifying for the PrC, and there’s no scaling of class features or spellcasting. Unless you
really, really want to be a divine Indiana Jones, leave this PrC to Rogues and Slayers.

Brewkeeper (Path of the Righteous)

What's the niche?

Worshipers of the Accidental God who combine draught brewing with metamagic-laden casting.

Where and how do we enter?

No particular requirements, just an already-useful feat and a measly number of skill ranks in Craft (Alchemy).
You’ll qualify by 6th level.

How far do we go?

Brewkeeper 5 gets you Brew Specialization and the ability to apply two metamagic effects to your draughts, but
Brewkeeper 6 unlocks Maximize Spell and the ability to apply two Harmful Homebrews.

What you're getting

● Distilled Spells: You get to turn all those self-buff spells into potions that can be consumed as move actions,
instead of cast as standard actions. Depending on your GM’s interpretation of the Urgathoa/Accelerated Drinker
trait combo, you might even be able to drink those buffs as swift actions, which is incredible. Furthermore, you
can pass out buffs to allies ahead of time so that they don’t waste your action economy (which should be spent
murdering things) on casting.
● Faithful Drinker: Sacred is an uncommon bonus type, so you could get some decent mileage here. Pity neither
the buff duration nor the bonus to saves scale.
● Helpful Homebrew: Extend Spell is a fabulous metamagic feat for Inquisitors, who primarily focus on self-
buffing, but those level increases hurt. Now you’ve got a special reserve of points dedicated to metamagic, and
you don’t even have to spend a feat! Empower and Maximize are great for blasters; you might want to save those
metamagic feats for healing. Silent, Tenacious, and Fleeting are all of lesser value.
● Harmful Homebrew: Theoretically very good, but that Fort save DC will never, ever get very high. Used on
softer targets like casters, Harmful Homebrew can still be useful, and hey, at least you get free sickened even on a
successful save.
● Potion Master: Remember that you can brew your own potions if you took this PrC, so scaling them with your
caster level instead of the potion’s is really nothing but benefit. And you get to add a Helpful Homebrew!
● Brew Specialization: Even one combo will burn most of your Brew Points for the day, but it can make for a hell
of a bang.

Is it worth it?

If you want to up your buffing game, yes. Your spells per day won’t suffer much, but you’re trading many of the
Inquisitor’s offensively oriented class features for the mostly Brewkeeper’s defensively oriented class features, giving you
versatility and tankiness, but slightly less power. It’s quintessential Cayden Cailean flavor, too, if you’re into the RP as
much as I am.
 Chernasardo Warden (PF #116: Fangs of War)

What's the niche?

Ranger- or Slayer-like savants of wooded combat who hit and run with a variety of guerilla tactics.

Where and how do we enter?

Skill ranks and alignment are easily done; BAB, on the other hand, will force you to wait until 8th level before
entering. The caveat of killing a creature with a CR 5 levels higher than yours is...difficult. At best. Your GM will need to
be on board with your PrC choice, and maybe work with you to tailor the encounter; without serious surprise damage,
traps, or high-level buffs, you’re not winning that fight.

How far do we go?

Honestly? Chernasardo Warden 10. Aligned Class ensures that you only lose out on 5 levels of Inquisitor
features in exchange for 10 levels of Warden; the bonus feats, tactics, and SLAs are incredible; and the save bonuses from
Unchained Heart just keep getting better.

What you're getting

● Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: You pick up martial weapons. Nice get, although it comes late enough that
you won’t be able to build your previous 7 Inquisitor levels around access to them.
● Aligned Class: Every other level, you get all the benefits of an Inquisitor level! Incredible, and Evangelist is the
only other PrC that I know of that does it. You’ll really, really appreciate this feature.
● Forest Magic: These SLAs will rock your socks off, and you just keep getting more and more of them. My picks
would be longstrider (1), fog cloud or spider climb (3), plant growth or spectral scout (5), nondetection or sylvan
hideaway (7), and freedom of movement (9).
● Unchained Heart: Untyped bonuses to Will saves vs. compulsions and [mind-affecting] spells—i.e., the most
dangerous saves to fail. And the bonuses scale. Yep, yep, yep.
● Bonus Feats: And this class gets bonus feats? Hahaha, gross. Yes, you always want those. There’s something here
for everyone, although the list leans slightly toward favoring ranged combat.
● Guerilla Tactics: Sneak attack, Exploit Weakness, and Preemptive Shot are universally useful. Good news is, you
don’t have to pick! Just switch between tactics as a swift action, and enjoy the upgrade to two tactics at 9th level.
● Phantom Strike: The cowering DC is likely to be low, unfortunately. Might be better off just taking the
precision damage.

Is it worth it?

Wow. Wow wow wow. Even though Chernasardo Warden was clearly meant to be a Slayer or Ranger offshoot,
you just pick up so much from this class without any huge sacrifices. Especially flavorful for, say, an Inquisitor of Erastil.
The only reason I can think of that no one talks about this PrC is because it’s buried in an Ironfang Invasion book, not a
Core book.
 Dawnflower Anchorite (Path of the Righteous)

What's the niche?

Worshipers of Sarenrae that buff and blast using the power of the sun.

Where and how do we enter?

Skill ranks, easy. 2nd-level spells, also easy. You’ll be set up for your first Dawnflower Anchorite level at 6th.

How far do we go?

Dawnflower Anchorite 5 makes sense to pick up the move action Solar Invocation (+2) and two Credences.
Apart from that, it’s really hard to argue with Dawnflower Anchorite 10: your casting won’t suffer much, and the
Focused Class Feature Credence will ensure that your animal companion or Bane rounds progress as normal.

What you're getting

● Solar Invocation: Competence bonuses are fairly easy to come by, but this is still a significant buff to hit,
damage, and spell save DCs (!) that scales with level. The base ability is really only a chassis for cool Credences, so
get ready. Obviously ticks up in usefulness as the action economy moves from standard actions to move actions
and (if you stick it out until 10th level) swift actions.
● Credence: Credences take Solar Invocation from a situationally okay power to a non-stop awesome power.
Divine Light should be your first stop in order to make your Invocation universally useful, but after that, it’s
open season. Focused Class Feature (Bane) will be a likely stop, as will Solar Defense—taken twice, you can really
start protecting your team effectively. Dervish Dance and Sunlight Summons will find a home with melee and
Monster Tactician Inquisitors, respectively, and Extra Invocations never hurts. Solar Weapons, Sun Blade, and
Sun’s Mercy are generally not worthwhile.
● Bask in Radiance: Ahhh, here come the team buffs. Casters will love the save DC buffs, and martials will love
the buffs to hit and damage. You love both.
● Sunbeam: Reflex saves tend to be the lowest as you move up in levels, so you might actually stand a chance of
permanently blinding a good number of enemies. And sunbeam is patently OP vs. Undead, Oozes, etc.
● Dawnflower Invocation: 10 free rounds of Solar Invocation (with a bonus) once per day is nice, but probably
overkill at this point. The swift action Invocation is the real reason we came to 10th level.

Is it worth it?

Dawnflower Anchorite is pretty awesome. In terms of what you’re trading, it’s akin to swapping Judgment (your
main progressing class feature as an Inquisitor) for the Bard’s Inspire Competence and some assorted other goodies. If
you’re looking for an Inquisitor that can protect teammates much more effectively, this would be an excellent place to start.
 Divine Scion (Inner Sea Magic)

What's the niche?

Specialists in certain aspects of the deities’ domains.

Where and how do we enter?

Skill ranks and two annoyingly mundane but useful feats. Not too steep, as these things are reckoned, and the
typical 6th level entry.

How far do we go?

Divine Scion 3 is the best pick, grabbing you a Domain Specialization without losing out too much in the class
features department.

What you're getting

● Opposition Alignment: +1 CL to overcome SR is useful, but not too useful. Remember, Inquisitors aren’t
usually trying to affect other creatures with spells.
● Domain Specialization: You won’t get any of the healing benefits owing to your lack of domain spells. That’s a
bummer, but it does free you to choose any of your deity’s domains, rather than the one you selected at 1st level.
Choice is nice!

Is it worth it?

Three levels of Inquisitor features for some minor, yet permanent, buffs. You could make worse trades.

Evangelist (Inner Sea Gods)

What's the niche?

Powerful representatives of the gods that advance in a previous class at almost the same rate as their PrC.

Where and how do we enter?

Deific Obedience is 100% necessary to the class, so it’s not a loss. Skill ranks are easy to pick up, making it possible
to enter at 6th level. Note that SLAs do not count for entry into Evangelist, so sorry, Aasimar with daylight.
How far do we go?

Once you get past that first level, Evangelist is nothing but gravy. Go Evangelist 10 unless you’re super
concerned about your Will save or something—you’ll get all your other class features anyway.

What you're getting

● Skilled: Sure, why not add even more skills to the already skilled Inquisitor? Acrobatics, Knowledge (Local),
Sleight of Hand, and Use Magic Device are all fine picks.
● Aligned Class: The class-defining feature of Evangelist, you essentially lose only one level of Inquisitor class
features and spells in return for 10 levels of Evangelist. Fabulous.
● Protective Grace: Cool, more AC.
● Divine Boons: Evangelists get access to Deific Obedience boons much faster than normal, which is nothing but
good news for you. Walter still has the best Guide to Deific Obediences for those thinking about this path.
● Gift of Tongues: Similar to Skilled and Protective Grace, I sure won’t say no, it being essentially free.
● Multitude of Talents: Largely superfluous, given that Inquisitors and Evangelists get so many skill ranks.
● Spiritual Form: Telepathy, an untyped bonus to one attribute, and a fly speed for minutes/level? This PrC is
just gross.

Is it worth it?

There’s essentially no reason not to take Evangelist if you’re going to take Deific Obedience. Faster access to
boons can give you summons, SLAs, and bonuses unobtainable anywhere else, and the other benefits are minor yet
undeniably free.

Gray Gardener (Paths of Prestige)

What's the niche?

Agents of the Revolutionary Council of Galt that share many of the same class features as Inquisitors.

Where and how do we enter?

Combat Reflexes seems like an unusual requirement, but the rest of the PrC’s prereqs are easily fulfilled.

How far do we go?

Gray Gardener 8 picks up many of your bonus feats, but Gray Gardener 9 gives you yet another SA die and
the last upgrade to greater bane. You’ll have to decide whether to enter the PrC from Sanctified Slayer or base Inquisitor.
I’d probably recommend SS.

What you're getting

 ● Anonymity: Sure, why not? Inquisitors aren’t typically great at Bluff and Disguise without help from an
Inquisition, so this helps you out quite a bit.
● Sneak Attack: Your SA stacks with the Sanctified Slayer archetype’s SA, so hey, free damage!
● Harsh Judgment: The Gray Gardener’s Judgment explicitly stacks with the Inquisitor’s, so this PrC is a good
way of picking the feature back up if your archetype traded it away or if you want it to progress at the normal rate.
As with the Inquisitor, GGs eventually get the ability to maintain two Judgments.
● Stern Gaze: Sensing a pattern yet? Good way to progress more class features.
● Bane: The GG’s Bane doesn’t stack explicitly with the Inquisitor’s, but as a GM I’d probably just allow my
players to track it with HD, instead of class level. The GG’s version of Bane tracks nicely into Improved and
greater bane later on, smoothing out the 2d6 → 3d6 → 4d6 progression.
● Dramatic Interrogation: Tie someone up, get hefty Diplomacy bonuses against them and their friends. Finally,
a new class feature!
● Execution Feats: Bonus feats are awesome, and being excused from prereqs only sweetens the deal. Gang Up,
Vital Strike, and Sidestep are the best on this list (if you have the means to deal nonlethal damage consistently, you
should already have Enforcer) with the later feats being mostly fluff unless you’re a Sanctified Slayer going for
Dastardly Finish/Merciless Butchery. More about that feat chain in the Feats section.
● Sinister Bane: Relatively minor bonus at this level, but Inquisitors do love to flank. And look at that, you’ve got
Gang Up for extra fun!
● Slaying Judgment: An extra pop of damage once per day. Doesn’t hurt to try.

Is it worth it?

Part of the appeal of Gray Gardener is that it scales your main class features, Judgment/sneak attack and Bane,
while also giving you access to features that archetypes might have traded away. The other appealing parts are the feat
selection and skill buffs. There aren’t many Galt-related adventures yet, but the GG is still an excellent choice if you’re
looking to trade away Teamwork feats and some spellcasting for even more combat brutality.

Hinterlander (Path of the Righteous)

What's the niche?

A bow-wielding scion of Erastil who defends farmlands and other sparsely populated corners of the world.

Where and how do we enter?

Endurance is highly mediocre, but can be acquired for free with the Shaman’s Apprentice half-orc racial trait.
The other requirements are a cakewalk.

How far do we go?

 Hinterlander 3/5 gets you most/all the feats you can siphon from the class; Hinterlander 7 nets you Imbue
Arrow to facilitate a Bad Touch playstyle from afar; Hinterlander 8 grabs a last Favored Enemy.

What you're getting

● Favored Enemy: In exchange for your slower progression, you get unique abilities based on the enemy type.
Which type you pick will likely be campaign-specific; there aren’t really any trap options here, apart from perhaps
Magical Beasts.
● Master Archer: Improved Precise Shot or Point-Blank Master at 3rd level? Pinpoint Targeting at 5th level?
Haha, that’s insane, especially for Inquisitors, who are so BAB-restricted. Ranged combat is feat-intensive, so
these bonus feats are most welcome.
● Fast Movement: Doesn’t even count as an enhancement bonus, so it stacks with other effects like expeditious
retreat or longstrider.
● Favored Terrain: A little specific, but the bonuses (especially to initiative) are okay.
● Hinterland Stride: Could be useful in some wilderness areas.
● Chosen Kin: Would it have broken the bank to give them the full bonus? Ech. Okay.
● Defended Hearth: You start to be able to defend wider and wider swaths of land with Defended Hearth. I’m
thinking campaigns like Ironfang Invasion or Giantslayer might like this ability.
● Imbue Arrow: How’d you like to be able to use silence, blistering invective, barbed chains, or deeper darkness as
an arrow attack? Do it, friend.

Is it worth it?

The effectiveness of the Hinterlander PrC is understandably dependent on the availability of hinterland terrain.
That said, there are some powerful, powerful feats included under the Master Archer heading, making a 3- or 5-level dip
appealing for ranged Inquisitors.

Holy Vindicator (Advanced Player’s Guide)

What's the niche?

A full-martial holy warrior who uses Channeling to protect themselves and smite enemies.

A special Nota Bene

Holy Vindicator is a bit of a weird PrC that was definitely designed for Clerics and Paladins. Inquisitors, who
don’t naturally get Channels, appear at first glance to be ineligible—until you remember the Expulsionist archetype.
Remember, the one that’s overly pigeonholed into fighting ghosts and haunts? Well, Holy Vindicator gives you a whole
slew of better options for burning those Channels, including Channel Smite and Vindicator’s Shield. Take a look below.
You’ll love it. (Thanks to /u/kuzcoburra for pointing out this excellent PrC choice!)

Where and how do we enter?

 Expulsionists will get Alignment Channel, 1st-level spells, and Channel Energy as features at 1st level, and 5 ranks
in Knowledge (Religion) shouldn’t be a stretch at all. After that, it’s simply a matter of waiting for BAB to catch up until
we can enter at 8th level.

How far do we go?

If you’re not grabbed by the PrC as a whole, Holy Vindicator 1 nets you Vindicator’s Shield, an easy buff to AC
that squishy Inquisitors should be interested in; because it scales with Channel dice rather than class level, it’s by far the
easiest dip. For those who savor the flavor, Holy Vindicator 5 gets you Channel Smite and Bloodfire for some offensive
oomph, while Holy Vindicator 6 lets you activate your Stigmata as a move action. At Holy Vindicator 8, all your self-
targeted heals are Maximized, and at Holy Vindicator 10 you get swift action Stigmata and the ability to cast bestow curse
on anyone you crit or anyone who crits you. Yeah, HV starts nice and gets nasty fast.

What you're getting

● Proficiencies: Free martial weapon and heavy armor proficiency! It’s perfect for the tankier playstyle of a HV.
● Vindicator’s Shield: At the very least, it’s a Sacred bonus to AC that scales with your Channels, which will
improve at every odd level. I wish we had some clarification about a few of the caveats, though: for instance, the
text doesn’t specifically state that you expend a use of Channel Energy when using the ability, although that
might be implied; likewise, the text doesn’t make me 100% clear on whether you need to be carrying or wielding
the shield in order to activate the ability. It’s not a Shield bonus, so I’d be inclined to rule that you could be
carrying the shield on your back or something. At any rate, it’s hefty protection, at least until you get hit.
● Stigmata: In return for unstaunchable bleed damage, you get a bonus equal to half your HV level to AC, saves,
to-hit, damage, or CL checks. The power here can’t be overstated: Stigmata (AC) + Vindicator’s Shield will turn
you into an untouchable tank; to-hit and damage let you murder things very efficiently; and CL checks can be
used to supplement SR penetration rolls. You’ll also enjoy this ability for the immunity to other sources of bleed
damage it confers.
● Faith Healing: This Warpriest-esque ability is what allows you to keep rolling despite taking all that bleed
damage. Self-healing will always be either Empowered or Maximized without increasing spell level or casting time,
which, ya know, is amazing. The ability appears not to apply to wands, as it specifically calls out spells that the
HV casts.
● Divine Wrath: Doom isn’t a good spell for this level, so you likely won’t use this ability much, if at all.
● Bloodfire: The damage from your Channel Smite is starting to stack up pretty fast, no? HVs who channel
negative energy actually have the advantage here, as their Smite can be used on any living creature, whereas HVs
who channel positive energy are restricted to Undead.
● Versatile Channel: Minor benefit, but not nothing.
● Divine Judgment: Death knell is much better—cast it as an immediate action on a mook you knock below 0
HP, and you’ll be set up nicely for the rest of the fight.
● Bloodrain: You can now attempt to sicken and bleed all enemies within your Channel radius. Will the save DC
ever be high enough to make it? Probably not at this level, but you’re bound to catch a few bad saves. Bloodfire
gets the slightly higher rating because the action economy of Channel Smite is better and you still get weapon
damage even if the enemy passes their save.
 ● Divine Retribution: Bestow curse is a fitting capstone to the class, and you’ll have far more 3rd-level spells to
sacrifice than your Paladin brethren. Even if an attack incapacitates or kills you, you can still flip the magical bird
as you go down in a bath of divine energy and blood. Cool stuff.

Is it worth it?

If you’re looking for a grim, bloody, Paladin-lite martial character who can dish out some serious damage, bleed
effects, and debuffs, look no further. The back half of the class is a little weaker than the front half, but still not bad.
Getting rewarded with death knell and bestow curse is a fun incentive to stick with it.

Master Spy (Advanced Player’s Guide)

What's the niche?

An infiltrator par excellence who supplements mundane Disguise checks with alignment-altering magic.

Where and how do we enter?

The feat taxes are unfortunate, but skills are always easy for Inquisitors.

How far do we go?

Master Spy 2 gives you the basic ability to conceal your alignment, an excellent ability for undercover Inquisitors
or the Infiltrator archetype; Master Spy 5 sees the advent of constant nondetection and the Rogue’s Slippery Mind class
feature; Master Spy 9 and its constant mind blank are basically an “I win” button against [mind-affecting] and divination
magic, but 9 levels is a looong time to follow Master Spy.

What you're getting

● Art of Deception: Inquisitors are pretty deceptive already, and the Master Spy ratchets that up to 11. Untyped
bonuses, too, which are hard to come by.
● Master of Disguise: Mostly fluff. Anybody remember that terrible movie with Dana Carvey?
● Glib Lie: CL checks will beat this version of glibness rather early in your career, but always useful if they roll low.
● Mask Alignment: Going deeper undercover will probably provoke more layers of scrutiny, but many cursory
checks just involve a detect alignment spell and nothing else. This is perfect for sneaky snake Inquisitors.
● Nonmagical Aura: Also mostly fluff.
● Superficial Knowledge: Also also mostly fluff.
● Concealed Thoughts: Now this is interesting. Feeding your more nosy enemies a line of BS about your thoughts
is a great way to gain the upper hand.
● Quick Change: The Disguise stuff in this PrC is unfortunately worse than what the Vigilante gets.
● Elude Detection: Bingo! Constant nondetection should keep your thoughts as private as you want them to be.
 ● Slippery Mind: You’ll rarely be affected by compulsions for more than a round with Slippery Mind. It’s a good
get.

Is it worth it?

It’s a much, much narrower PrC than many of its colleagues on this list, but that’s reflected in the rating. If you
truly want to delve into the “Inquisitor as an inscrutable agent working undercover behind enemy lines” aspects of the
class, this right here is your PrC. Even a 2-level dip gets you a not-insignificant number of features, without impacting
progression too terribly.

Noble Scion (Paths of Prestige)

What's the niche?

Members of the aristocracy who get servants, privilege, and a whole lot of money.

Where and how do we enter?

The skill prereqs (outside of Knowledge: Nobility) are likely ranks you would have been assigning anyway, so
that’s no skin off your back. Half-elves can get a Skill Focus feat for free, and there are plenty of good skills on your list. The
Noble Scion feat is your other option; Scion of Peace and Scion of Lore are likely the most inquisitorial options, but Heroes
of the High Court introduced some others that are worth considering, most notably using your DEX or CON score in place
of CHA for determining the effects of the Leadership feat. Because CHA is a bit of a dump stat for Inquisitors, you’ll
definitely want to mull that choice. Entry is possible at 6th level.

How far do we go?

A simple dip for Noble Scion 2 gets you an improved version of Leadership, which without any bonuses is
already the best feat in the game. Noble Scion 4 gives you a weekly allowance of gold that you can spend on any number of
things (one interesting option, because “spellcasting services” are explicitly allowed, is to save for a few weeks and then get
casters to hit you with permanent buffs like enchantment sight or see invisibility). Upper levels of Noble Scion grant bonus
feats, an NPC dedicated to running your estate and generating wealth for you, and, at Noble Scion 10, the ability to reroll
any of your face skills.

What you're getting

● Weapon and Armor Proficiency: I won’t say no to martial weapons and heavy armor! Inquisitors can jump
into this PrC faster than most, so you’re essentially getting two feats for free.
● Affluent: Woo! Free money. 10 full levels of Noble Scion will net you a little over 41,000 gp from Affluent alone,
which accounts for roughly ⅙ of the wealth by level you’d have if you started at 6th level and went straight
 through to 15th. That is a considerable amount of money, and prudent investment via downtime mechanics (you
are nobility, after all) will only make that number grow.
● Greater Leadership: Make that three feats. Leadership needs no introduction to most PF players, but for the
uninitiated: Leadership is the strongest feat in the game because it essentially allows you to attract your own army
of NPCs. You get a Cohort who’s close in level to you and can take class levels, and at later levels start to attract
hordes of weaker Followers who perform grunt work, Aid Another on skill checks, churn out goods for you using
Cooperative Crafting, etc. GMs are predisposed not to like the feat because it’s a tremendous amount of
bookkeeping and busts the already-somewhat-broken power curve of the game unless it’s done very carefully. If
you want to prevent it from being banned in your game, you need to plan well ahead of time with your GM
about steps that you’re going to take in order not to destroy the game that they so lovingly crafted. Be a mensch,
wouldya?
● Aristocratic Erudition: Diplomacy and Knowledge (Local) are pretty universally good, and Knowledge
(Nobility) will be necessary if you’re hobnobbing with the upper crust—which you will be. Decent.
● Prestigious Influence: The text of the ability flavors Prestigious Influence largely as fluff—eat fancy meals, hire
erotic acrobats, spread a mean rumor, hire some more erotic acrobats—but the resources at your disposal every
week are astounding in comparison to the costs of most goods and services, and can be leveraged more or less
constantly. Hire a guild of thieves to break into your rival’s house and steal everything that isn’t nailed down; hire
a lawyer to deal with the inevitable legal fallout; hire a companion to soothe away the stresses of appearing in
court; hire a doctor to treat the ensuing venereal disease. The world’s your oyster!
● Regional Expertise: Feats! Feats feats featsfeats! There are a lot of skill feats on these lists, which, hey, I’m not
knocking. Improved Initiative and any of the Weapon Focus feats are universally useful.
● Dilettante Studies: Dilettante Studies in no way compensates for your lost spellcasting or Inquisitor abilities.
That said, it’s better than nothing. Scholar and Warrior will be most people’s picks.
● Servitor: By the time you reach this level, your Servitor can and possibly should be overseeing your vast business
empire. Play the game of houses on a grand scale, become a manufacturing tycoon, scout out exotic investments
in other lands—Noble Scion is all about doing ridiculous things on a ridiculous scale with ridiculous amounts of
money, and Servitor gives you the ability to delegate that job.
● Peerless Patrician: Inquisitors love all these skills, but it’s still a mite lackluster as a capstone.

Is it worth it?

Let’s be clear: if you go whole hog on Noble Scion, you won’t be identifiable as an Inquisitor. Noble Scion is kind
of its own identity. Losing out on casting progression makes the PrC ultimately more useful for characters like Rogues or
Fighters, but it’s still an interesting choice for Inquisitors, who might see (and revile) the excesses and corruption of the
aristocracy all too clearly. Your cohort can shore up pretty much any weaknesses, depending on what class levels you give
them (lost your casting? Why not Wizard levels?) and your followers can super boost you by dint of Aid Another actions
alone. Do it! Surrender to your noble birthright!

Shadowdancer (Core Rulebook)

What's the niche?

 Rogue-likes who manipulate the power of shadow to summon, blast, and play hard-to-get.

Where and how do we enter?

Entry at 6th level is possible, but three feats in five levels is a squeeze unless you’re a Human. Because
Shadowdancers are DEX-based almost by force, you’ll need Weapon Finesse in there somewhere. Play as a Human, use the
Solar Mystery from Ravener Hunter to pick up the Starlight Agility Revelation (and Dodge!), or else discuss feat tax relief
programs with your GM. Shadowdancer isn’t an OP class even with a little help.

How far do we go?

Shadowdancer 1 will be all Sanctified Slayers need—Hide in Plain Sight is what every character with sneak attack
dice wants, and Rogues have to wait a bunch more levels to get it. Shadowdancer 3 is about as deep as we’d ever want to
go, picking up a host of nice defensive abilities at 2nd level and a Rogue Talent (I recommend Bleeding Attack, the better
to eventually foray into Flensing Strike) and STR-draining Shadow companion at 3rd level.

What you're getting

● Hide in Plain Sight: The creme-de-la-creme of Stealth abilities, right at first level. HiPS is most beneficial for
Sanctified Slayers, who have sneak attack dice but not necessarily a way to proc them all the time. Between
improved flanking via Teamwork feats like Outflank and spells like invisibility, Inquisitors have many more tools
for getting SA off than their Rogue colleagues; even so, HiPS all but guarantees at least one SA per round.
● Evasion: Although Inquisitors’ Reflex saves might not ever be great, PCs dipping Shadowdancer are almost
certainly lightly armored finesse fighters, meaning a higher DEX stat to take advantage of evasion. It’s a solid
ability that will allow you to shrug off any number of fireballs and breath weapons as long as the dice are with
you.
● Darkvision: Humans will love their new ability, and even classes with innate darkvision enjoy expanding the
range.
● Uncanny Dodge: The more you rely on DEX for AC, the worse it is to be caught flat-footed. Uncanny Dodge
helps you not get caught flat-footed.
● Rogue Talent: Armor Piercer, Bleeding Attack (to better pick up Flensing Strike), Offensive Defense, and Slow
Reactions are some of the best sneak attack talents. Among the non-SA talents, Combat Trick, Dampen
Presence, Eldritch Conduit, Favored Terrain, Ninja Trick, Shades of Gray, The Whole Time, Umbral Gear, and
Without A Trace are particular gems.
● Summon Shadow: Ain’t no party like a Shadowdancer party, ‘cause a Shadowdancer party features Strength
damage. That’s right, your shadow pal deals 1d6 STR damage as a melee touch attack! Your BAB (which his is
based on) isn’t great, but your saves are a damn sight nicer than a Rogue’s, and with full Will progression, he’ll be
able to stand up to magical attacks better. In fact, that’s the only thing he’ll have to worry about, because Shadows
have Undead immunities and are incorporeal! Check out the incorporeal rules and you’ll see why Peter Pan
makes such a good scout and battle partner. Always have him scoot into the wall or floor if you think there’s even
a decent chance that he’ll be killed—under no circumstances do you want to take that permanent negative level.
Is it worth it?

Full disclosure: I’m a sucker for Shadowdancer. I don’t think spellcasters can justify more than 3 levels in the PrC,
but I love taking Rogues all the way through! Anyway, Finesse-based Sanctified Slayers looking to rack up some unusual
offenses and defenses are coming to the right place here. Open combat with a strike from the shadows, then immediately
start flanking with the incorporeal creature that just popped out of the floor. I’m still trying to cook up an Aasimar build
that combines the Solar Mystery from Ravener Hunter with Shadowdancer—conflicting light and dark, that old tale.

Umbral Court Agent (Paths of Prestige)

What's the niche?

Sneaky-snake Kuthites who teleport in shadows and damage foes with umbral chains.

Where and how do we enter?

8th level will have to be what we settle for—having Deceitful in there kind of stinks, but at least most Inquisitors
can benefit from a bonus to Bluff.

How far do we go?

Unlike Shadowdancer, where each level loses you more and more spells, Umbral Court Agent at least buys you
back some casting ability. Honestly, I’d go a full Umbral Court Agent 10, as Touch of Darkness just keeps getting nastier
and nastier the more you level in this PrC.

What you're getting

● Blessings of Darkness: If you’re in this PrC, you already worship Zon-Kuthon and (hopefully) took the
Darkness Domain. Blessings of Darkness just lets those levels stack, which is nice for unlocking your second
domain ability.
● Tenebrous Magic: Free +1 to spell save DCs and CL while in dim light or lower. Why not? You’re still not
reliably able to shut down enemies’ saves, but it never hurts.
● Umbral Courtier: Lots of untyped skill bonuses. Yummy wummy.
● Darkvision: As with Shadowdancer, darkvision is integral to this playstyle. Try to enter as a race with innate
darkvision so you get nothing but benefit.
● Shadow Chains: Here’s where UCA starts to go off the rails! Entangled is a great condition, limiting mobility,
decreasing AC, dropping to-hit and DEX-based skill checks, and forcing concentration checks for casters—this
on top of the 20% miss chance that Touch of Darkness already grants. Plus 10-ft. Reach! ToD gets even more
powerful at 6th and 10th levels, so stick around.
 ● Shadow Jump: Poof! You’re over here. Poof! You’re over there. Shadow Jump makes traversing a crowded
battlefield very easy, but you should talk to your GM about whether the ability qualifies you for the Dimensional
Agility feat chain.
● Unnerving Gaze: This ability is part of the two-part Wombo Combo with Touch of Darkness that debuffs
enemies through the floor. At very high levels, the staggered condition will be hell for other casters.
● Grasping Darkness: Some key advantages that Grasping Darkness has over typical grappling: 1) 15-ft. reach, 2)
uses WIS instead of STR in the CMB calculation, 3) doesn’t provoke an AoO, 4) untyped bonus to the check in
dim light, essentially equalizing the grapple with full-BAB classes, and perhaps most importantly, 5) does not
confer the grappled condition to the caster. This means that you take no penalty to DEX or to
hit, can make AoOs as usual, can move...the benefits are pretty massive
here. Dirty Fighting → Improved Grapple → Greater Grapple wouldn’t be a bad
feat line to get into in your later levels.
● Crushing Umbra: Now you’re dealing 5d6 every turn you grapple someone and can prevent casters from casting
anything with a verbal component. Watch out for Silent Spell + freedom of movement, though—your Touch of
Darkness isn’t an insta-win button.

Is it worth it?

Umbral Court Agent won’t be as OP at high levels as I’ve made it sound here; the class is somewhat reliant on
favorable lighting conditions (which enemy casters can change with daylight or the ability to see in supernatural darkness)
and grappling (against enemies with sky-high CMD scores). I think it would be considerably better as a class if it were
attainable by 6th level, allowing you to reach the meat of the PrC before literally every foe is a high-level caster. That said, I
friggin’ adore the flavor, having always like the cut of Zon-Kuthon’s jib, and you’ve got some nice synergies between
Unnerving Gaze and Touch of Darkness that should help soften enemies considerably for your teammates.

Gestalt Builds
Gestalt character creation is a process that essentially combines all the class features and casting capabilities of two
classes, and is typically done when PCs need to be extra powerful, as when an adventure path designed for a four-person
party is only being run by two PCs. Complete rules can be found here. It’s not terribly difficult to pick a gestalt class,
because anything you choose isn’t a trade-off so much as an addition. That said, there are choices that maximize what the
Inquisitor already has, so in this section we’ll detail general precepts for what you should be looking out for in a gestalt
pairing.

● First and foremost, we’re looking for a partner class that benefits from a high WIS score. The point buy
rules at your table may vary, but many GMs will not budge on 20-point buy, which means that you have to find a
class that makes the most of the stats that you’ll already be boosting: STR or DEX, CON, WIS, and (to a much
lesser extent) CHA.
 ● Second, our partner class should patch the Inquisitor’s weaknesses. A d8 hit die is one such weakness; weak
Reflex saves, ¾ BAB, ¾ casting, and the absence of bonus combat feats might be other areas to consider shoring
up.
● Third and lastly, we should try to capitalize on the Inquisitor’s strengths. Inquisitors are burst damage
specialists who already have an enormous number of incentives to flank—should we go for an Unchained Rogue
gestalt for sneak attack? Inquisitors have excellent Intimidate potential—should we go for a Menacing Combat
Style Ranger, who can grant us free combat feats in that arena? Inquisitors get a whole bunch of Teamwork feats
for free—perhaps Cavalier, to grant all of them to our teammates? Once you’ve isolated what you believe to be
the Inquisitor’s areas of strength, you can start to pick classes that amplify what (your) god gave you.

Although Barbarians don’t make for effective Inquisitor gestalts due to their restrictions on casting while raging,
Bloodragers are another story entirely. With full BAB progression, a variety of self-buff spells and bloodline powers, and
moar smash than you can shake a greatsword at, Bloodragers take the Inquisitor’s wrecking-ball-burst-damage propensities
and ratchet them all up to 11. The class nets you some much-needed combat feats, too—always a plus. Speaking of extra
combat feats, well, there’s always Fighter. Armor Training is a boon for the squishier Inquisitor chassis, and you’ll
definitely appreciate Advanced Weapon Training. Even Bravery finds its niche on the Inquisitor, whose Judgments all shut
down if they’re ever subjected to a fear effect. Best of all, however, are those tasty, tasty feats, some of which are Fighter-
only. Go TWF and be a Bane Blender, become a god of knowledge checks as a Lore Warden, or roleplay as Christian Bale
from Equilibrium with a Black Powder Inquisition/Trench Fighter combo. With the Fighter’s feats, the world’s your
oyster. If you’re looking to be a little more adaptive and a little less reactive, the Brawler is worth taking a look at. Brawler’s
Flurry gets Bane stacked onto each hit, and there’s no denying that Martial Flexibility rules the school if you’ve got enough
familiarity with the system and its many feat trees to take full advantage. I wish your spell list were better for touch debuffs,
because being a close range Domain Strike debuffer with access to Style feats and genuinely good combat maneuvers
sounds amazing. Monk can do some of what Brawlers can, of course, but where the Brawler can fill other niches, the Monk
feels a bit more straitjacketed unless you’re going for a specific archetype. With the advent of the Martial Arts Handbook
and its new handwrap weapons, both the Brawler and the Monk are more viable as DEX-based classes. Just slap the agile
enchantment on there and go to town.

Other full-BAB classes tend to fulfill more specific purposes: Cavaliers make for bad-ass mounted gestalt
Inquisitors, unsurprisingly, and the Cavalier’s Tactician ability combined with the Inquisitor’s metric tonne of Teamwork
feats can melt even brutally difficult encounters in a hurry. Melting enemies is also par for the Gunslinger’s course; the
Inquisitor’s natural out-of-combat utility compensates for the Gunslinger’s utter lack of the same, making it a strange but
wonderful pairing. As always, Ranger can be an excellent choice in games where terrain and enemy types are more or less
consistent, but Slayer is the safer bet, effortlessly boosting combat punch in nearly all scenarios. And if you really want to
go off the rails? Hell, gestalt with a Kineticist to pick up either way more utility (think Aether, Air, etc.) or non-stop blasts
(Earth) for when you get tired of going toe to toe with enemies. Absurdly high CON scores help Kineticists immensely, so
think about races like Dwarf that conveniently boost both CON and WIS.

If you don’t feel like BAB is your primary concern, you can always look at other ¾ BAB classes. Hunter again
amps your Teamwork feat game up to 11, gives you a fully scaling animal companion and Animal Focus, and puts the
Ranger and Druid spell lists in your hands. Druids are incredibly powerful, but you might need to choose between casting
efficacy and combat efficacy. At any rate, highly thematic for Erastil, Gozreh, and other nature deities. Shaman can fill a
similar role, giving you full casting, hexes, and a variety of powerful Spirit portfolios to play with; those seeking more
traditional Domain-oriented options and equally powerful casting/channelling should apply inside with the Cleric. I
know that the Unchained Rogue and Vigilante are cousin classes at best, and that Vigilante has much to offer on its own,
but I’ll mention them in the same breath here to say that they both add immense combat and out-of-combat utility to the
Inquisitor, especially in intrigue campaigns like War for the Crown or Curse of the Crimson Throne. Will you be better at
hitting things? No. But man, will those hits hurt. Self-buffs, Judgment, Bane, sneak attack, Debilitating Injury...ludicrous.
Last but not least, I’ll mention that the Warpriest is for those who truly want to knock down legions of bodies with the
power of their faith. Say goodbye to your swift actions. Permanently.
 INQ750: Build Sampling

I’ll preface this section with my standard disclaimer that Pathfinder is an incredibly complex game, and that no
one who hasn’t spent a great majority of their time since 2009 at a table playing can hope to understand how all the
interlocking feats, traits, spells, and items interact. These builds are intended to be moderately optimized, with an emphasis
on adherence to their deity’s or archetype’s theme; I don’t claim to be a powergamer, especially in a game where failure and
loss often tell a better story than an unbroken record of victory does. If you’ve got builds that are thematic, moderately
optimized, and fun as hell to play, send them my way! I may put them in, and as usual, I’ll always credit you if I do.

The Animal-Friend
LN Human Green Faith Marshal/Sacred Huntsmaster Inquisitor 15

Deity: Torag, Domain: Wolf

STR: 16 DEX: 13 CON: 14 INT: 8 WIS: 14 (+2) CHA: 9
Primary Weapon: Warhammer
Racial Traits: N/A
Traits: Dirty Fighter (Combat), Defensive Strategist (Religion)
Favored Class Bonuses: HP 1 - 3, Extra Spells Known 4 - 20

Abilities
1: Animal Companion (SH), Power of Nature (GFM), Wild Lore (GFM), Skilled
2: Track, Detect Alignment, Cunning Initiative
3: Hunter Tactics (SH)
4: Animal Focus (SH)
5: Bane, Nature’s Ally (GFM)
6:
7:
8: Improved Empathic Link (SH), Pack Tactics (Wolf Domain)
9:
10:
11: Wild Step (GFM)
12: Greater Bane
13:
14: Exploit Weakness
15:

Feats
1: Improved Trip (Wolf Domain bonus), Torag’s Patient Strikes (Human bonus), Heavy Armor Proficiency
2:
3: Power Attack, Paired Opportunists (Teamwork)
4:
5: Dirty Fighting
6: Tandem Trip (Teamwork)
7: Weapon Focus (Warhammer)
8:
9: Felling Smash, Precise Strike (Teamwork)
10:
11: Vital Strike
12: Swarm Strike (Teamwork)
13: Improved Critical (Warhammer)
14: Torag’s Patient Strikes (Advanced Unlock)
15: Improved Vital Strike, Overwhelm (Teamwork)

Strategy

Even though our Animal-Friend is a human rather than one of Torag’s offspring, the Dwarves, frequent trips
from her hometown of Oppara into the dwarven communities of Maheto and the World’s Edge Mountains have gradually
brought Torag’s love of tradition, lineage, and sturdy foundations into her heart. As Torag is the god of defensive strategy,
this build attempts to construct an impassable wall of AoOs, trip maneuvers, and flanked attacks wherever enemies appear
to be breaking through the line. We have trip bonuses from Improved Trip, Dirty Fighting, Tandem Trip, Felling Smash,
and the advanced unlock of Torag’s Patient Strikes, which grants a free action trip attempt on successful crit confirmation.
Functionally unlimited AoOs from the base Divine Fighting Technique hit their stride with Paired Opportunists and the
advanced DFT ability to apply Vital Strike to AoOs. Finally, our flanking is incredible. Pack Tactics grants our WIS bonus
to hit when flanking conventionally (a huge boost that far outstrips even Outflank) or we can designate squares to “flank”
from if conventional flanking is difficult; Swarm Strike adds yet more accuracy, while Precise Strike is a good bit of damage.
The template for most combats will be to move ourselves and our companion into flanking position with the biggest
baddie we can find, trusting heavy armor and hedging weapons to provide some defensive cover in early levels while we go
to work. Clay skin, deadly juggernaut, and the magic circle spells will be our go-to defenses in later levels. Even using just
1st-level spells, expeditious retreat is fantastic at moving us into position, while wrath, bless, and divine favor ensure the fight
won’t last long. In situations where melee combat is impossible, we’re best off buffing the team using wands or spells or
taking potshots with a crossbow. Some no-save spells (the litany line especially) can even give us some decent offensive
casting. If you don’t need Improved Critical, I’d suggest you pick up the Spontaneous Nature’s Ally feat for easy battlefield
summoning or the Planar Focus feat for more versatile foci for you and your companion.

The Ascetic
LG Oread Zen Archer Monk 3 + Ravener Hunter Inquisitor 12

Deity: Erastil, Mystery: Stone

STR: 12 (+2) DEX: 13 CON: 14 INT: 8 WIS: 17 (+2) CHA: 9 (-2)
Primary Weapon: Composite Longbow
Racial Traits: Crystalline Form, Granite Skin
Traits: Deadeye Bowman (Religion), Storm Hunter (Regional)
Favored Class Bonuses: Skill Point 1 - 20

Abilities
1: Flurry of Blows (ZA)
2: Evasion
3: Fast Movement +10 ft., Zen Archery (ZA)
4(1): Judgment 1/day, Stern Gaze, Monster Lore, Charged by Nature (RH), Holy Magic (RH), Stone Stability (Stone
Mystery)
5(2): Track, Detect Alignment, Cunning Initiative
6(3):
7(4): Judgment 2/day
8(5): Discern Lies, Bane
9(6): Solo Tactics
10(7): Judgment 3/day
11(8): Second judgment, Earth Glide (Stone Mystery)
12(9):
13(10): Judgment 4/day
14(11): Stalwart
15(12): Greater Bane

Feats
1: Point-Blank Shot, Improved Unarmed Strike (Monk Bonus), Perfect Strike (Zen Archer Bonus), Precise Shot (Zen
Archer Bonus)
2: Weapon Focus: Composite Longbow (Zen Archer Bonus), Rapid Shot (Zen Archer Bonus)
3: Deadly Aim, Point-Blank Master (Zen Archer Bonus)
4:
5: Tracer Fire
6: Demon Hunter (Ravener Hunter Bonus)
7: Ranged Trip
8: Improved Trip (Stone Mystery Bonus)
9: Manyshot, Tandem Trip (Teamwork)
10:
11: Clustered Shots
12: Target of Opportunity (Teamwork)
13: Snap Shot, Greater Trip (Stone Mystery Bonus)
14:
15: Improved Snap Shot, Shake It Off (Teamwork)

Strategy
 My home state is Wisconsin, so you’ll have to forgive the cheese. Zen Archer has had a reputation as being
brokenly, stupidly overpowered since Day 1, and the Inquisitor can do some brokenly, stupidly overpowered things with
it, mainly by getting a bunch of very necessary feat taxes dumped into the build within the first few levels. Thematically, I
like the idea of a rustic Oread living in harmony with the land, connecting with small communities around him yet always
living one step removed. At 4th level, the local settlement is terrorized by a swarm of Vrock, and he’s forced to take on the
mantle of an Inquisitor, striking the Abyss-spawn from the sky with divine magics and volleys of arrows. As he ventures
out into the world, older and wiser, he takes with him revelations from his Oread ancestry, manifested as the Stone
Mystery.

The Ascetic build doesn’t have a lot of tricks up its sleeves, but it doesn’t necessarily need them. You get “all” the
necessary early-level ranged feats by 3rd level, including the excellent Point-Blank Master, which allows you to stand in the
middle of a crowd and fire off arrow after arrow like Robin Hood crossed with a Howitzer. This isn’t to say that the shift
into Inquisitor is painless, however. Our flurry starts to fall behind quickly, for example, leaving us to rely on Rapid Shot
and Manyshot more than a full Zen Archer would. Likewise, the AC bonus from WIS stops cutting it more and more of
the time as we progress, so we switch to medium armor immediately after getting our proficiency from Inquisitor; the
movement speed is nice, but armor ultimately gives us better AC in the absence of the Monk’s scaling bonuses. One last fly
in the ointment: our Oread combines two ¾ BAB classes that together delay entry into some of the +6 and +11 BAB feats.
If your GM is cool with you taking Zen Archer as an Unchained Monk archetype, that wraps that problem up with a neat
little bow. If not, well, this build is probably stretching their patience as it is. We do add in some small utility with Ranged
Trip, although the feat is really only there to 1) take up space while we wait for +6 BAB, and 2) capitalize on Stone
Stability’s free Improved/Greater Trip feats. Ace Trip is unfortunately not open to anyone but Fighters thanks to the
Weapon Training prereq. Womp womp. As you move into Inquisitor, do be sure to grab the Bane Baldric, as it will
replenish your Bane rounds to normal single-class Inquisitor levels. You’ll want those.

The Blade Savant

NG Human Ravener Hunter/Sanctified Slayer 15

Deity: Sarenrae, Mystery: Battle

STR: 10 DEX: 16 (+2) CON: 14 INT: 8 WIS: 15 CHA: 10
Primary Weapon: Scimitar
Racial Traits: N/A
Traits: Careful Combatant (Combat), Flame of the Dawnflower (Religion)
Favored Class Bonuses: HP 1 - 3, Additional Spells Known 4 - 20

Abilities
1: Stern Gaze, Monster Lore, studied target +1 (SS), Charged By Nature (RH), Holy Magic (RH), Weapon Mastery
(Battle Mystery)
2: Track, Detect Alignment, Cunning Initiative
3: Demon Hunter (RH)
4: Sneak attack +1d6
5: Discern Lies, Bane, studied target +2 (SS)
6: Solo Tactics
7: Sneak attack +2d6
8: Slayer Talent (Ranger Combat Style: Menacing), War Sight (Battle Mystery)
9:
10: Sneak attack +3d6, studied target +3 (SS)
11: Stalwart
12: Greater Bane
13: Sneak attack + 4d6
14: Exploit Weakness
15: Studied target +4 (SS)

Feats
1: Weapon Finesse, Divine Fighting Technique (Sarenrae’s Mercy, Human Bonus), Weapon Focus: Scimitar (Battle
Mystery Bonus)
2:
3: Dervish Dance, Demon Hunter (RH Bonus)
4:
5: Enforcer
6: Precise Strike (Teamwork)
7: Signature Skill: Intimidate
8: Shatter Defenses (Menacing Ranger Combat Style Bonus; the Ranger text specifically states that we can select feats on
the list without meeting their prerequisites, which is why we can pick this up without Dazzling Display), Improved
Critical: Scimitar (Battle Mystery Bonus)
9: Great Fortitude, Outflank (Teamwork)
10: Divine Fighting Technique Advanced Unlock
11: Dazzling Display
12: Greater Weapon Focus: Scimitar (Battle Mystery Bonus), Shake It Off (Teamwork)
13: Focused Target
14:
15: Improved Monster Lore, Duck and Cover (Teamwork)

Strategy

As part of the Cult of the Dawnflower, the Blade Savant learned the way of the scimitar at a young age, raised
within the Mwangi Expanse during the Cult’s long period of exile and disfavor in Osirion. Although she recognizes that
mercy is the ultimate gift of the Dawnflower, she also knows that only by rendering enemies helpless as swiftly as possible
can they be prevented from harming others. To that end the Blade Savant build focuses heavily on nonlethal damage, with
intimidation skills helping end combats before they begin or leaving enemies unable to muster effective defenses.
Thankfully, the many bonus feats from both Sanctified Slayer and the Ravener Hunter’s Battle Mystery allow us to achieve
levels of martial prowess normally unattainable by other Inquisitors.
 Our initial levels are typical of Finesse builds: Finesse at 1st level, and DEX-to-damage by 3rd. Our Divine
Fighting Technique, Sarenrae’s Mercy, doesn’t come into its own until 5th level, when Enforcer allows our nonlethal
scimitar damage to demoralize on every hit. From that point on, the Intimidation train rolls through all obstacles. Signature
Skill: Intimidate nets us the ability to escalate fear conditions quickly, and Shatter Defenses, which follows at 8th level,
enables nonlethal sneak attack against every shaken enemy. The Battle Mystery also ups our crit range at 8th level to a
whopping 15-20/x2. With a brief detour to pick up the prerequisite Great Fortitude, we suddenly have the ability at 10th
level to heal ourselves for 2d6 damage, once per round—enormous for staying power in more protracted fights. Dazzling
Display tops off our build with some crowd control, but we’re basically complete by 10th level. Per scimitar hit at 13th
level, we’re dealing 1d6 (weapon damage) + 2d6 (merciful sapping scimitar) + 1d6 (Precise Strike) + 4d6 (greater bane) +
4d6 (sneak attack), healing 2d6 damage, and demoralizing as a free action; our crit range is 15-20/x2, we have Weapon
Focus/Greater Weapon Focus/studied target bonuses, and best of all, we’re rolling three times for initiative on a DEX- and
WIS-based class with Cunning Initiative. Even against enemies with immunity to nonlethal damage, our build isn’t
hamstrung too much—we take away the 2d6 merciful sapping bonus, 2d6 damage healed, and Enforcer demoralizations,
but otherwise we’re clean. Savant indeed.

The Brute
CN Half-Orc Ravener Hunter Inquisitor 15

Deity: Gorum, Mystery: Battle

STR: 15 (+2) DEX: 12 CON: 14 INT: 8 WIS: 14 CHA: 13
Primary Weapon: Greatsword
Racial Traits: Sacred Tattoo
Traits: Steel Skin (Combat), Memorable (Social)
Favored Class Bonuses: +½ Intimidate & Knowledges 1 - 20

Abilities
1: Stern Gaze, Monster Lore, Judgment 1/day, Charged By Nature (RH), Holy Magic (RH), Weapon Mastery (Battle
Mystery)
2: Track, Detect Alignment, Cunning Initiative
3: Demon Hunter (RH)
4: Judgment 2/day
5: Discern Lies, Bane
6: Solo Tactics
7: Judgment 3/day
8: Second judgment, Maneuver Mastery: Overrun (Battle Mystery)
9:
10: Judgment 4/day
11: Stalwart
12: Greater Bane
13: Judgment 5/day
14: Exploit Weakness
15:

Feats
1: Heavy Armor Proficiency, Weapon Focus: Greatsword (Battle Mystery Bonus)
2:
3: Power Attack, Demon Hunter (RH Bonus)
4:
5: Dazzling Display
6: Pack Intimidation (Teamwork)
7: Cornugon Smash
8: Improved Critical: Greatsword (Battle Mystery Bonus), Improved Overrun (Battle Mystery Bonus)
9: Signature Skill: Intimidate, Scarred Legion (Teamwork)
10:
11: Hurtful, Greater Overrun (Battle Mystery Bonus)
12: Greater Weapon Focus: Greatsword (Battle Mystery Bonus), Outflank (Teamwork)
13: Furious Focus
14:
15: Dreadful Carnage, Coordinated Charge (Teamwork)

Strategy

As much as I hate to reuse archetypes in these builds, the Battle Mystery is simply too on point for The Brute —
perhaps even closer to Gorum’s flavor than the War Domain—and there’s no doubt that Inquisitors are in desperate need
of the bonus feats that Battle provides in spades. Our halfie was raised in the Hold of Belkzen, like so many of his full-
blooded Orc kin, but the life of a bastard is not easy there: half-orcs must prove themselves either more vicious or more
cunning than full orcs, and where possible, they should prove themselves to be both. When it became clear to him that the
orc tribes of Belkzen had no higher goal than infighting and clan warfare, he took a contract with the infamous Children of
Steel mercenary company, which allowed him to exercise his considerable talents for violence and terror. The more he
slaughters in the open field, the more ferocious Gorum’s smile grows.

As I mentioned in the two-handed combat style section, decent armor and Power Attack are all that STR
Inquisitors really need to smash face. Because half-orcs also have considerable advantages in intimidation builds, however,
we’ve also capitalized on our in-born abilities in that arena. Taking into account our initial bonuses (Racial +2, Trait +2,
Stern Gaze +½, FCB +½, Rank +1, Class Skill +3, CHA +1) we begin play with +10 to Intimidate —not at all shabby. 5th
through 7th levels prove crucial stages for our Intimidation skill, giving us DD at 5th, Pack Intimidation (an easy untyped
+6 to Intimidate) at 6th, and free action single-target demoralization with Cornugon Smash at 7th. Scarred Legion gives
another +2, and pairs nicely with Hurtful, which gives swift action attacks for more Bane damage. Signature Skill:
Intimidate represents another jump in effectiveness, as we begin moving enemies straight into frightened or panicked.
Furious Focus is decent enough at 13th, but mostly sets us up for Dreadful Carnage at 15th. Every kill is another Dazzling
Display, and the Memorable trait helps us keep those fear conditions running throughout an encounter.

Of course, the Battle Mystery needs no help in keeping us combat-effective. Weapon Focus, Greater Weapon
Focus, and particularly Improved Critical are excellent adjuncts to the greatsword, which is an OP weapon without any
help at all. We can and should be placing enchantments like cruel, dazzling radiance, exhausting, and gory on our
greatsword to ensure maximum demoralization debuffing. At 8th level we also become decent Overrun specialists, using
class level for our BAB and grabbing Improved Overrun for free. With Greater Overrun at 11th and especially Coordinated
Charge at 15th level, enemies will be taking AoOs if they’re ever knocked prone by our combat maneuver, which we like
just fine. War Sight can be subbed for Maneuver Mastery if you don’t like that playstyle. Overall, the Brute does scary
damage, area debuffing via demoralization tactics, and self-buffing (strictly self, due to our low WIS score) to hopefully
increase size and CMB for Overruns.

The Magehunter
LG Dwarf Spellbreaker Inquisitor 15

Deity: Torag, Inquisition: Spellkiller

STR: 16 DEX: 12 CON: 13 (+2) INT: 10 WIS: 14 (+2) CHA: 10 (-2)
Primary Weapon: Warhammer
Racial Traits: Spell Smasher
Traits: Sound of Mind (Regional), Defensive Strategist (Religion)
Favored Class Bonuses: HP 1 - 20

Abilities
1: Judgment 1/day, Stern Gaze, Strong-Willed (SB)
2: Track, Detect Alignment, Cunning Initiative
3: Defense Against Magic: Enchantment +1 (SB), Foil Casting (SB)
4: Judgment 2/day
5: Discern Lies, Bane
6:
7: Judgment 3/day, Defense Against Magic: Necromancy +1, Enchantment +2 (SB)
8: Second Judgment
9:
10: Judgment 4/day
11: Stalwart, Defense Against Magic: Evocation +1, Necromancy +2, Enchantment +3 (SB)
12: Greater Bane
13: Judgment 5/day
14: Exploit Weakness
15: Defense Against Magic: Conjuration +1, Evocation +2, Necromancy +3, Enchantment +4 (SB)

Feats
1: Heavy Armor Proficiency, Disruptive (Spellkiller Inquisition Bonus)
2:
3: Power Attack
4:
5: Step Up
6:
7: Following Step
8:
9: Iron Will
10:
11: Spellbreaker (if allowed by GM), Spell Drinker (if not)
12:
13: Teleport Tactician (if allowed by GM), Unimpeachable Honor (if not)
14:
15: Step Up and Strike

Strategy

The strength of the Magehunter build is determined in some part by how lenient your GM is willing to be about
counting Spellbreaker Inquisitor levels as Fighter levels for the purposes of qualifying specifically for anti-magic feats. At
my table I would allow an Inquisitor to take Spellbreaker and Teleport Tactician if magehunting were their sole focus, but
your dynamic might vary. There are some who say I’m soft. Assuming we’re lacking Spellbreaker, that crucial alchemical
element in an anti-caster build, all we’re empowered to do is stay within threatening range, follow where they step, and
keep hammering them while tanking their defensive casting. Certainly the Magehunter’s defensive abilities will always be
greater than any Fighter’s: we’ve got Hardy for an initial +2 to Will, rerolls on [mind-affecting] spells, Sound of Mind, Iron
Will later on, stalwart shutting down spells with partial saves, and Defense Against Magic’s scaling bonuses vs. some of the
most dangerous magic schools in the game. Despite getting rerolls on the aforementioned [mind-affecting] spells, I’d still
recommend you pick Enchantment as your first school; getting mind-controlled will dismantle your team, especially
because you’ll be getting bonuses to your saves vs. their spells to cure or pacify you! Litany of sloth will be your absolute
best friend in this build, denying casters any chance to avoid AoOs for casting.

The Mastermind
LE Devil-Spawn Tiefling Royal Accuser/Urban Infiltrator Inquisitor 4 + Evangelist 10 +
Inquisitor 1

Deity: Norgorber, Inquisition: Secrets

STR: 8 DEX: 15 (+2) CON: 14 INT: 10 WIS: 16 (+2) CHA: 10 (-2)
Primary Weapon: Shortsword
Racial Traits: Pass for Human, Beguiling Liar, Soul Seer
Traits: Cunning Liar (Regional), Ambitious (Social)
Favored Class Bonuses: +½ Intimidate & Knowledges 1 - 20

Abilities
1: Judgment 1/day, Gifted Detective (UI), Meticulous Inspection (RA), Detect Secrets (Secrets Inquisition)
2: Cunning Initiative, Track, Detect Monsters and Secrets (RA)
3: Favored Enemy: Undead +2 (RA)
4: Judgment 2/day
5(1): Skilled: Acrobatics and UMD (Evangelist)
6(2): Discern Lies, Bane, Protective Grace +1 (Evangelist)
7(3): Informed Hunch (RA), Boon 1: Secrets and Lies (Evangelist)
8(4): Judgment 3/day, Gift of Tongues (Evangelist)
9(5): Second Judgment, Closed Book (Secrets Inquisition), Multitude of Talents (Evangelist)
10(6): Favored Enemy: Undead +4 (RA), Favored Enemy: Aberration +2 (RA), Boon 2: Noxious Bomb (Evangelist)
11(7): Judgment 4/day, Protective Grace +2 (Evangelist)
12(8): A Thousand Faces (UI), Gift of Tongues (Evangelist)
13(9): Greater Bane, Greater Detect Magic (RA), Boon 3: Secret Self (Evangelist)
14(10): Judgment 5/day, Spiritual Form (Evangelist)
15: Exploit Weakness

Feats
1: Weapon Finesse
2:
3: Divine Fighting Technique: Norgorber’s Silent Shiv
4:
5: Deific Obedience
6:
7: Deceptive
8:
9: Conceal Spell
10:
11: Cunning Killer
12:
13: Divine Deception
14:
15: Improved Conceal Spell

Strategy

A Lawful Evil Tiefling must worship Asmodeus, right? That’s exactly what she’d like you to think. Growing up as
the child of a minor noble, the tangled intrigues of Ustalav always seemed to come naturally to the Mastermind. She
just...knew things, things that she never should have been able to know. It was only later that her powers were revealed to
be a divine gift from the Reaper of Reputation. She set about extending her influence throughout the nobility of her
nation, hoarding secrets and finding leverage wherever necessary. Mechanically, her immense power in an intrigue-heavy
game stems from several sources. First, she has an insane Bluff score (Cunning Liar lets us use WIS for a +4 at 1st level,
Racial Trait +4, Gifted Detective +4, Deific Obedience +3, and later constant nondetection) with Disguise and Diplomacy
bonuses to back up our web of deception. A Thousand Faces at 12th level gives us at-will alter self. Second, she gets a slew
of detection and illicit knowledge-gathering spells, including constant deathwatch (Soul Seer racial trait); at-will detect
undead, detect aberration, detect secret doors (Royal Accuser); and detect thoughts, detect desires, and detect anxieties as often
as you can devote the spell slot. Lastly, Meticulous Inspection, Informed Hunch, and a good favored class bonus will
ensure that she can make lateral leaps of logic to discern seemingly unknowable details about her targets.

From a combat perspective, our Mastermind has a bit of a slow build. Strong WIS scores to start and the bevy of
Divination spells lends itself to a casting focus, so we grab Conceal Spell/Improved at later levels in order to hide our
unsanctioned detections better; Divine Deception patches any holes in our spell coverage with scrolls and wands. Cunning
Killer leverages good Knowledges from our FCB, and with any luck we’ll be able to utilize those Favored Enemy bonuses at
some point. Norgorber’s boons are surprisingly strong, too, including more Divination SLAs that we’ll always find a use
for, poison (it’s meh overall, but at least you improve the action economy and no longer poison yourself), and best of all get
a minutes/day version of greater invisibility, which is already incredibly strong at rounds/level. If you’ve ever wanted to
play a Faceless Man, this is your build.

The Vigilante
CN Grippli Inspired Blade Swashbuckler 1 + Umbral Stalker/Sanctified Slayer 14
(Add Heretic, if allowed)

Deity: Calistria, Domain: Darkness, Subdomain: Night

STR: 10 (-2) DEX: 16 (+2) CON: 14 INT: 10 WIS: 15 (+2) CHA: 8
Primary Weapon: Rapier
Racial Traits: Princely
Traits: Criminal (Sleight of Hand, Social), Bandit (Stealth, Regional)
Favored Class Bonuses: HP 1 - 20

Abilities
1: Panache, Deeds, Inspired Finesse (IB)
2(1): Monster Lore, studied target +1 (SS), Dark Descent (US), Swift and Silent (US), Night Hunter (Night Subdomain)
3(2): Track, Detect Alignment, Cunning Initiative
4(3): Solo Tactics
5(4): Sneak attack +1d6
6(5): Discern Lies, Bane, studied target +2 (SS)
7(6):
8(7): Sneak attack +2d6
9(8): Slayer Talent (Rogue Talent: Bleeding Attack), Eyes of Darkness (Darkness Domain)
10(9):
11(10): Sneak attack +3d6, studied target +3
12(11): Stalwart
13(12): Greater Bane
14(13): Sneak attack +4d6
15(14): Exploit Weakness, Deadly Efficiency (US)

Feats
1: Fencing Grace, Weapon Focus: Rapier (IB Bonus), Weapon Finesse (IB Bonus)
2: Blind-Fight (Darkness Domain Bonus)
3: Skill Focus: Stealth
4: Precise Strike (Teamwork)
5: Accomplished Sneak Attacker
6:
7: Dampen Presence, Outflank (Teamwork)
8:
9: Flensing Strike
10: Escape Route (Teamwork)
11: Hellcat Stealth
12:
13: Big Game Hunter, Wall of Flesh (Teamwork)
14:
15: Extended Bane

Strategy

Dark creatures stalk the Grippli of the Sodden Lands, yet while some of the frogfolk fear to tread in the swamps
and marshes after dark, the Vigilante relishes the night. Darkness hides friends as well as foes; anyone who ventures into this
Grippli’s home with ill intent will soon find out just how much vengeance hurts. The purpose of this build is to deny
enemies any opportunity to see the Vigilante coming, and he gets off to a strong start: between his various bonuses (DEX
+4, Size +4, Class Skill +3, Trait +1, Swift and Silent +1, Skill Focus: Stealth +3, Ranks +3) he arrives at 3rd level with a
tidy +19; if he’s allowed to take Heretic on top of this package (there are some minor shenanigans with Judgment) he’ll be
getting our WIS modifier to Stealth, as well, for a potential +22. Dampen Presence and Hellcat Stealth (lacking HiPS really
stinks, although this build can easily dip Shadowdancer to fix that) will continue to assure his stealth supremacy
throughout most of the game.

As for offense, the Vigilante focuses on being as elusive as possible, blinding big bads with magical darkness
(darkness that he can see through quite fine, naturally, thanks to Eyes of Darkness at 9th level) before stinging in with
studied target, sneak attack, and Bane. 8th and 9th level give a means of contributing to the team’s effectiveness by
permanently carving away natural armor. He’s incredibly difficult to pin down, using Escape Route and an excellent
Acrobatics score to weave through crowded battlefields and reach priority targets easily. His natural Climb speed lends a
vertical element to stealth and ambush. On offense he’s somewhat reliant on sneak attack, Bane, and bleed damage, Finesse
builds and Small rapiers not being known for their huge damage modifiers, but with his ability to entrap, ensnare, and
evade enemies, you might not find yourself missing the huge numbers that a build like The Brute can achieve.

The Witch
CE Half-Orc Monster Tactician 15

Deity: Lamashtu, Domain: Madness

STR: 10 DEX: 15 CON: 14 INT: 10 WIS: 16 (+2) CHA: 8
Primary Weapon: Crossbow
Racial Traits: Sacred Tattoo
Traits: Bloody-Minded (Combat), Mother's Rage (Religion)
Favored Class Bonuses: HP 1 - 20

Abilities
1: Stern Gaze, Monster Lore, Summon Monster I (MT), Vision of Madness (Madness Domain)
2: Track, Detect Alignment, Cunning Initiative
3: Solo Tactics, Summon Monster II (MT)
4:
5: Bane, Summon Tactics, Summon Monster III (MT)
6:
7: Summon Monster IV (MT)
8: Aura of Madness (Madness Domain)
9: Summon Monster V (MT)
10:
11: Stalwart, Summon Monster VI (MT)
12: Greater Bane
13: Summon Monster VII (MT)
14: Exploit Weakness
15: Summon Monster VIII (MT)

Feats
1: Summon Evil Monster
2:
3: Improved Initiative, Shake It Off (Teamwork)
4:
5: Spell Focus: Conjuration
6: Outflank (Teamwork)
7: Augment Summoning
8:
9: Evolved Summon Monster, Shielded Caster (Teamwork)
10:
11: Superior Summoning
12: Allied Spellcaster (Teamwork)
13: Versatile Summon Monster
14:
15: Warrior Priest, Stealth Synergy (Teamwork)

Strategy
 Although she doesn’t look it, Lamashtu is actually a fertility goddess, a point of theology that this Inquisitor has
not forgotten. There are many who would wantonly slay the Mother of Monsters’ children, so the Witch takes it as her
personal goal to vomit more out into the world as often as possible. The build itself is fairly simple: fill the field with
powerful summons, then take potshots with the crossbow or provide backup buffing through spells. Our first pick,
Summon Evil Monster, is important for two reasons: first, it vastly improves the summoning options we have available;
and second, it allows us to summon evil creatures as a standard action. That’s right. With our already-excellent DEX and
WIS scores, plus Improved Initiative at 3rd level, we should consistently be going first, either summoning with our
standard action in the surprise round or else ASAP in the first round of combat. Properly placed, our summons can take
AoOs as enemies attempt to close with the party, or even provide soft cover in order to let allies safely escape enemies with
reach. In later levels, our summons will stick around long enough to support the party with an excellent variety of SLAs.
The home stretch simply boosts the power curve, with Augment, Evolved, Superior, and Versatile buffing our summons
exponentially. Teamwork feats stay low-maintenance: all summons get Outflank, and the rest are for shoring up our
casting and defenses on the back line. Stealth Synergy at very late levels lets us sneak with our stealthier summons.

The Wizard-Shield
NG Peri-Blooded Aasimar Living Grimoire/Tactical Leader 15

Deity: Shelyn, Domain: Luck, Subdomain: Imagination

STR: 15 DEX: 14 CON: 12 INT: 16 (+2) WIS: 10 CHA: 7 (+2)
Primary Weapon: Holy Book
Racial Traits: Deathless Spirit, Scion of Humanity
Traits: Student of Philosophy (Diplomacy) (Social), Pragmatic Activator (Magic)
Favored Class Bonuses: HP 1 - 20

Abilities
1: Holy Book (LG), Sacred Word (LG), Leader’s Words (TL), Bit of Luck (Luck Domain)
2: Track, Detect Alignment
3: Tactician (TL)
4:
5: Discern Lies, Blessed Script (2nd Level, LG: litany of duty, silence)
6: Haze of Daydreams (Imagination Subdomain)
7:
8: Blessed Script (3rd Level, LG: magic circle vs. evil, dispel magic, shield of darkness)
9:
10:
11: Stalwart
12: Blessed Script (4th Level, LG: enchantment foil, freedom of movement, thaumaturgic circle)
13:
14: Battle Acumen (TL)
15:
Feats
1: Improved Initiative
2:
3: Warrior Priest, Shielded Caster (Teamwork)
4:
5: Divine Deception
6:
7: Power Attack
8:
9: Steadfast Mind, Allied Caster (Teamwork)
10:
11: Divine Interference
12:
13: Combat Casting
14:
15: Uncanny Concentration

Strategy

Ever the devotee of Shelyn, our Wizard-Shield Inquisitor illuminates her own copy of Melodies of Inner Beauty,
lavishing attention on the descriptions of innocence and virtue contained therein. She knows that there is more beauty in
one saved life than in a thousand lost lives, even the lives of foes, and so she focuses absolutely on the defense of the full
casters who comprise the back line of any adventuring group. Because caster level checks and spell save DCs will never be
her mechanical forte (Forte? Goddess of Music? Get it?) she instead opts to expand her spell options and ensure that she
never, ever fails to cast in moments of dire hazard to life and limb. Right from 1st level, Bit of Luck sets her up to help her
Wizard and Sorcerer buddies by letting them roll twice on ranged spell attacks, caster level checks to beat SR, saves against
devastating Fortitude effects, and other things that shut casters down quickly. Her Tactician ability lets her select Shielded
Caster at 3rd level to prevent the back line from faltering should they get charged, and select Allied Caster at 9th level for
when offense is the name of the game—just in time for SR to become prevalent, too. In later levels, she can use Divine
Interference to tear down powerful, one-off hits from enemies who rampage into the rearguard.

While the Wizard-Shield is bolstering her allies, she’s also shoring up her ability to hold the back line all on her
own. Warrior Priest, Combat Casting, Uncanny Concentration, and Steadfast Mind together make it nearly impossible for
her to lose a spell when casting defensively, and Divine Deception paired with the Pragmatic Activator trait make her a
pocket-Cleric or pocket-Paladin, always ready with a scroll or wand—even Druid spell completion items aren’t out of the
realm of possibility. Haze of Daydreams shields her from approaching hostiles, pending a Will save. Should anyone get
swallowed or grappled, she naturally has freedom of movement on tap in her 4th-level Blessed Script SLA slot—equally
naturally, she flavors her tattoos as an expression of inner creativity. Lastly, there’s our Wizard-Shield’s offense, which we
haven’t even touched on! Power Attack with a not-inconsiderable 16 STR hits pretty hard, especially once her self-
illuminated Melodies gets bane and other fun Warpriest goodies stacked onto it. Decent DEX/CON and medium armor
make her more than capable of soaking stray hits. She dwells with beauty, beauty that must die...
INQ900: Graduation and Back Matter
And so our journey concludes, bold Inquisitors. I hope you’ve found the guide as enjoyable to read as it was to
write. If you’d like to send words of encouragement or constructive criticism, feel free to shout out at me on Reddit—my
handle is /u/Allerseelen. I plan to update this guide regularly until 1e material stops publication, after which I’ll be linking
to a second guide for the 2e Inquisitor. My designs there will be homebrewed initially, but switch over to Paizo-official
content once they inevitably bring the Inquisitor back. Still to accomplish for this guide are more wondrous item
recommendations for Inquisitors, compatibility between archetypes for those selecting two or more, and the completion of
the Dips, VMC, Prestige, and Gestalt section, which is a considerable undertaking. Anyone who has suggestions will always
be credited.

As always, thanks goes out to the incredible Pathfinder community, without whose guides and formatting tips I
would have been hopelessly lost; and Paizo itself, which has created a truly wonderful game that makes for some truly
times. Here’s to many more years in Pathfinder 2nd Edition, and may your hats always be inquisitorial!

All my best,
Allerseelen