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Your typical defensive characters are the rogue and the cleric. The rogue or bard can scout ahead for enemies, traps, and other dangers, while the cleric and the druid can cast protective spells and heal the party after nasty scrapes. These are tougher characters to play, requiring a little more experience.
Normally, the cleric is well armored and has spells and weapons for close range, while the rogue is suited for the famous sneak attack. These characters are useful in combat, but their positions as defensive characters mean that they shouldn't be at the front or the rear in the infantry or artillery positions except for special situations.
The rogue helps the party by finding traps, ambushes and other party-threatening agents. Skills like search, spot, and listen are good for spotting stuff that can be dangerous. Ranks in hide and move silently help with scouting as well as with sneak attacking and sniping. Since rogues already rely on stealth and dexterity, they make good snipers. They can use the short bow and the light crossbow, and they can do sneak attack damage when less than 30 feet from their target. With or without sneak attack damage, they can be hitting targets from a safe distance, which is always a good idea since rogues can't wear medium or heavy armor. Sneak attacking is how the rogue earns her keep in full on combat. Rogues need to hit their opponents when hidden, flanking or when their opponent is denied their dexterity bonus. This means that the rogue needs to move quickly and quietly and remain hidden whenever possible. Feats like dodge, mobility, and combat reflexes are good choices for keeping safe when moving thru open combat, as are ranks in the tumble skill. Dexterity is clearly the most important ability for the rogue, but intelligence is also good for adding those all important skill points.
Unlike the nimble stealthy rogue, the cleric is heavily armed and armored. With the ability to use heavy armor and shields one may think that the cleric's place is on the front line with the warriors, but this is not the case. The ideal position for the cleric is behind the warriors, protecting the mage. Wearing heavy armor and using a shield keeps her safe, while her spells can help the warriors and her hand to hand combat can be the mage's last line of defense. Depending on the cleric's deity, she may be able to use some martial weapons, which make for good fighting in hand to hand. Clerics can also use simple weapons, which include the half spear that can be thrown or used in melee along with a shield. Clerics can also use the crossbow, making her a viable player in the ranged combat game. The cleric has two other wonderful uses; one of them is turning the undead. Undead can be problematic depending on the type and number. In general they are tough to fight since most warriors use axes and swords, which don't work as well on the undead. By bringing the cleric in to turn the undead, the warriors are saved some combat and risk of injury. The final purpose for the cleric is to heal the party during and after combat. If there is any reason to have a cleric in the group, this is it. Clerics need both combat and magical feats, so choose them wisely. Wisdom and charisma are important for clerics (wisdom for spells, charisma for turning). Your goal should be to maximize the support for your party, and not to out shine your warriors or mages.
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