The Flash

As the archetypal speedster character, The Flash fills the skirmisher role perfectly in a Pathfinder party. He uses his incredible speed to get in, hit quick and get out – moving across the entire battlefield to deliver targeted hits when needed.

It is a no-brainer, then, to start with the Monk class. Even just the base Monk without any feat choices gives us the Flurry of Blows feature, which is a huge step into the flavor of Barry. With Flurry of Blows allowing The Flash to deliver multiple strikes with a single action, he can choose to spend the other two actions on his turn moving to a target and then moving back away from the target, staying safe on the fringes of combat.

Add to that the major movement shenanigans that come with Monk Ki Spells, and we’re really starting to look like our speedster. Specifically, Ki Rush and Abundant Step are taken to give unmatched speed. Ki Rush even grants concealment for a turn, as The Flash is moving so fast he is hard to hit.

Since the build already uses Focus Points, we splash into the Magus Dedication to grab Dimensional Assault. This adds to the already potent movement options with a move/strike option to round out the trifecta.

An earlier version of this build took a few Magus feats to take advantage of that dedication, getting Spellstriker and a few spells for a once-per-combat Speed Force wallop. Since then, Secrets of Magic added the Stoked Flame Stance for Monks, which is a way better use of class feats.

The Stoked Flames Stance – available from level one – adds even more speed to the character (5 ft. immediately and another 5 ft. at level three!) and gives the Flash access to flashing spark unarmed attacks. These strikes are forceful, so the second strike in a flurry of blows deals more damage. Plus, with critical specialization, they deal persistent fire damage on crits. We'll imagine that as the friction burn from being attacked at such a high speed.

Taking this stance, and the super-on-brand Blazing Streak feat that follows, are way better choices than a single Spellstrike, so we aren't missing anything.

Outside of combat, the Flash makes a great scout. His speed, perception and reflexes makes him able to spot threats and make it back to the party to alert them quickly – even if he has to scale walls to get there.

Human – Half Elf

The Human / Half Elf heritage combo is without a doubt the best choice for Barry. Every ancestry feat along the way adds flavor and utility to the build.

On the human side, access to Natural Ambition lets The Flash start out with both ki spells and his stance, making him feel whole right from the begininng of the campaign. On the Half Elf side, feats like Nimble Elf and Elven Instincts add to the already blistering speed and flexible movement of the build.

Finally, the two combine at level 9 with Multitalented, allowing us to choose a class archetype without needing to reach the prerequisite attributes. That is huge, because we want the Magus focus spells, but don't care about getting 14 Int.

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Time Traveler

This represents Barry’s connection to the speed force. It is through that power that he can travel across time and space – in this case, using Bend Time to get an extra action at the perfect moment.

Plus, the Dexterity boost is just what this speedster needs.

Monk

This is really the only option for The Flash. The build is tightly packed with class feats, every level adds important functionality and flavor – there are really no filler feats.

The Monk offers the punching speed he needs to attack with blurred fists – unmatched by any other class. Plus, the Ki Spells available to the Monk offer so much flavor for moving at incredible speeds.

Ki Rush, Abundant Step and even Ki Form seem tailor-made for a Flash build – enabling the character to zip around the battlefield in an instant.

Plus, the build adds an additional focus spell with Magus Dedication. Dimensional Assault, which allows the Flash to teleport and attack with a single action, might be the spell that ties everything together. And since it doesn't require any saving throw, it doesn't matter that we dump the stat the magus spelsl are tied to.

With Dimensional Assault in the arsenal at level fourteen, the Flash can use just three actions to unleash an incredible barrage of speed and punches. He can teleport 25 feet and make a flashing spark attack with the one action Dimensional Assault. Use Flurry of Blows with another action to make two more flashing spark attacks, each of which adding more forceful damage if they hit. Then, with one more action and Winding flow, he can Step out of melee range of the enemy and then stride 55 ft. away to absolute safety.

That's the Flash!

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The Flash puts almost all his focus into Athletics. It takes some athleticism to move with such speed, hero or not.

Beyond that, Acrobatics are helpful for squeezing and other movements while moving so fast. And since he can get almost anywhere, it is helpful to hide there with some Stealth.

Legendary: Acrobatics, Athletics
Master: –
Expert: Stealth, Survival

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