What are the advantages of switching to Sorcerer at level 2 versus staying with Bloodrager?

Question

I have a Bloodrager 1, and I'm thinking of multiclassing into Sorcerer at 2nd level. As far as I can tell, the only thing that I am losing is the favored class perks (since I would plan to pump all levels from here on out into sorcerer). As far as I can tell, I would become a strictly better arcane caster.

Have I overlooked any disadvantages?

The background: I started with Bloodrager thinking that the advanced class sounded pretty cool. Then our party lost its dedicated arcane caster (the player quit) before we reached level 2. I want to step up to fill that empty niche in the party.

Answer 1

RAW

The only "penalties" for multi-classing in Pathfinder are:

• you only get one Favored Class (and the associated benefits)
• BAB, Saves, Caster Level, etc., are likely to be a bit lower than if you were a single class
  • but, one or two saves might be way higher: a Fighter/Cleric's fort save, for instance
• Caster Levels (generally) don't stack

Depending on your race, you might not even lose out on Favored Class perks (Half-Elves, for instance, functionally get two favored classes).

Specific to this character

One caveat for your bloodrager is that you'll have two casting classes, which means two sets of spell slots to track (well, it would if you had any bloodrager spells yet). Your Sorcerer caster level will max out at 19 (baring feats/items/house rules, etc), which means that you'll be a spell slot or two - and a spell known or two - behind where a sorcerer without a level of bloodrager would be.

Remember: the 4th level Blood Casting does not apply to any spells you can cast from sorc levels (that is, if you go sorc for the rest of this character's adventuring career, he still wouldn't be able to rage while casting).

At my table

You're changing your character concept quite a bit to fill a gap caused by a player leaving, but your original class is still based on sorcerer. Were I the GM, I would probably let you switch your favored class over to sorc, and I'd probably let you count your bloodrager level for determining caster level for concentration checks, spell durations, etc. (but not for spells known/per-day).

In your shoes, I'd ask the GM if she'd go for that, but be prepared for a "no".

Answer 2

Taking levels of sorcerer makes the character a better arcane caster than taking levels of bloodrager. The classes are designed to do different things, but

Single-classed characters are encouraged

It's true that if the character picked bloodrager as his favored class he won't get his favored class benefit when he takes levels of sorcerer. Favored class benefits can be a big deal—sometimes that benefit's irreplaceable (e.g. a vanara druid's unnamed bonuses to both the skill Handle Animal and the special ability wild empathy)—, but if the character either functions acceptably without his favored class benefit or wasn't planning on much of it anyway (e.g. the character plans on taking levels in one or more prestige classes), not getting the benefit is less of a concern.

The far bigger concern is that by taking the first level of sorcerer at character level 2 the character is forever behind the appropriate spell-level power curve. The character will finally get 2nd-level sorcerer spells at character level 5, the same level that wizards and clerics get 3rd-level spells and 1 level later than typical sorcerers.

That's a really big deal. It means many times the character'll confront enemies who can cast better spells than he can, and the character's spells will struggle to deal with level-appropriate foes.

Further, what the character's gained from that one level of bloodrager is frozen, never increasing. While it's probably handy early in his career to have those few rounds of bloodrage to fall back on when the spells aren't doing the trick, those few rounds of bloodrage become nearly useless later in the character's career as bloodraging leaves the character unable to use his most valuable resource—his spells—, and the character doesn't have the support of his chassis anymore for mixing it up in melee, having traded away his good base attack bonus and meaty hp for better spellcasting.

That's not to say this combination can't work. With the right spell selection, anything's possible, but unless planning carefully to take full and serious advantage of those abilities granted by that first level of bloodrager, ask the GM for the opportunity to change that bloodrager class level to a sorcerer level through retraining.

Answer 3

A Bloodrager is basically a barbarian who trades his rage powers for a bunch of useless crap and a fairly crappy spell list. There might be a gem or two hidden in there, but if there is, I missed it. You're probably better off as a straight barbarian for smashing stuff.

A Sorcerer is a spontaneous caster who gets spells one level later than a wizard, and whose only advantage - bloodline powers - is often gained in min/max builds by 'dipping' a 1st level of sorcerer and then going Wizard. For all that, they are still incredibly powerful especially if built to a theme and with bloodline powers that improve that theme (such as a Crossblooded Orc/Draconic Sorcerer slinging Fire spells, or a Sylvan/Elf or whatever the ones that improve save DCs slinging around Suggestion and Charm Person).

In this case, the advantage of taking a level of sorcerer is that you haven't taken more levels of the crappy Bloodrager class. An even better option is to retrain Bloodrager into Sorcerer entirely. Bloodrager gets a lot of abilities, but they are along the lines of '+2 to save DCs vs something that comes up once per campaign!' so overall much less useful than a Rage power that gives you a bite attack you'll use pretty much every single rage round as a secondary natural attack, or Pounce that you'll use every time you charge, or half CHA to AC that you'll use every time something attacks you.

If Bloodrager wasn't so intensely terrible, and this was, for example, a question about multiclassing Sorcerer and Barbarian in roughly equal measure (as the title implies), i'd advise not doing so. Without a focused plan and a higher level of optimization than the other characters in the group, Pathfinder's classes tend to screw over people who try to multiclass in that manner. 3.5's answer to caster/noncaster multiclassing, classes that granted dual advancement, are much more absent in PF. Eldritch Knight still exists, and a few others, but they mostly offer only half-advancement at best. PF's design attempts to enforce single-classing in general, with classes like Summoner, Alchemist, and Magus to fill the holes left by penalizing multiclassing. The 'hybrid' classes are a grab bag of weirdness rather than, as you might imagine, an alternative to multiclassing. Some, like the Investigator, look playable, but almost by accident.