4th & Dragon : Dungeons and Dragons...and stuff

I doubt otherworldly would fly here. Thanks for the effort though.

Just don’t forget about the spell Polymorph, and especially Draconic Polymorph (DCN). Take the form of something like a Cave Troll or War Troll, or a Hydra, as while in humanoid-shaped forms you can still use melee weapons and your physical ability scores will be exceptionally better, plus you’ll gain some nice special attacks. If you intend to use a Hydra form often, take the feat Robilar’s Gambit (PH2), as you’ll get to make a free bite with each head on anyone who attacks you, as per the Hydra’s AoOs. With an Outsider base race you’d be able to take forms like that of a Kelvezu (MM2), though many nonoutsider forms are still amazing. And don’t pay any attention to the “polymorph subschool” spell rules in PHB2, it specifically says that the rules text of any previous printing of such spells supersede the rules given for the polymorph subschool.

Honestly, I think that I will be going with the build (this character goes into play tomorrow at level 8):

Fighter 2/ Wizard 4/ Spellsword 1/ Abjurant Champion 5/ Eldritch Knight 8

Stats: (I have 1 point left, since I guess its 36 point buy. Should I boost Con by 2 and take Int down a point?)
Str:16
Dex:14
Con:14
Int:19 (17+2 for levels)
Wis:8
Cha:8

Flaw: Inattentive

01 Fighter(1)- [Flaw: Combat Expertise] / [Human: Combat Reflexes] / [Level: EWP: Spiked Chain] / [Fighter: Improved Trip]
02 Fighter(2)- [Fighter: Power Attack]
03 Wizard(1)- [Level: Practiced Spellcaster] / [Wizard: Scribe Scroll]
04 Wizard(2)-
05 Wizard(3)-
06 Wizard(4)- [Level: Combat Casting]
07 Spellsword(1)-
08 Abjurant Champion(1)-
09 Abjurant Champion(2)- [Level: Arcane Strike]
10 Abjurant Champion(3)-
11 Abjurant Champion(4)-
12 Abjurant Champion(5)- [Level: Extend Spell]
13 Eldritch Knight (1)- [Eldritch Knight: Leap Attack]
14 Eldritch Knight (2)-
15 Eldritch Knight (3)- [Level: Persistent Spell]
16 Eldritch Knight (4)-
17 Eldritch Knight (5)-
18 Eldritch Knight (6)- [Level: Defensive Sweep]
19 Eldritch Knight (7)-
20 Eldritch Knight (8)-

Spell Selection: (mostly just notes here)
Known: (10/4/2) wrote 10 cantrips in spellbook
Per Day: 4/5/4/3

0: Caltrops, Detect, Magic, Light, Mage Hand, Touch of Fatigue, Prestidigtation, Read Magic, Ghost Sound, Daze
1st: Mage Armor, Shield, Expeditious Retreat (Swift), Nightshield, Enlarge Person, Protection from evil, Grease, True Strike, Magic Missile, Color Spray,
2nd: Wraithstrike, Alter Self, Bull’s Strength, Blur, Scorching Ray, False Life, Frost Breath, Slapping Hand, Invisibility
3rd: Vampiric Touch, Dispel Magic, Blink, Bite of the Wererat, Greater Mage Armor, Manyjaws, Great Thunderclap

100gp/spell level=page/spell level
0=free
1st=none
2nd=5 x 200 = 1000gp
3rd=5 x 300 = 1500gp

Spellbook:15gp/100 pages
0 x 10= 10
1 x 10=10
2 x 9=18
3 x 7=21
Total=59 pages

Spell Component Pouch: 5gp

Scrolls:
0:
1st: Alarm, Comprehend Languages, Identify,
2nd: Protection from Arrows, See Invisibility, Knock,
3rd: Heroism, Dragonskin, Haste, Fly,

Shopping List:
+1 Spell Storing Spiked Chain 8k (for Vampiric Touch)
+2 Headband of Intellect 4k (is this better for the face slot?)
Gauntlets of Ogre Power 4k
Handy Haversack 2k
Wand of True Strike .75k
Wand of Benign Transposition .75k
Mithril Chain Shirt 1k
20.5k/19k (over slightly and haven’t spent money on spellbook/adding spells to spellbook)

Will inherit:
Vest of Resistance +1
Rod of Extend, Lesser
Amulet of Natural Armor +1
Ring of Protection +1

Questions that I thought of:
Should I specialize? Focused Specialist (CM)?
Immediate Magic variant? Weasel Familiar (if I don’t use it in combat, DM won’t mess with the familiar in combat)?
Increase Con by 2 for sacrificing a point of Int?
Languages? (Remember the campaign is Age of Worms and centered basically around Greyhawk)
Spell selection? (not sure on how much I get to add to my spellbook and at what cost)

Thanks for all the help guys. Will definitely let you know how things go for a first session. Hopefully I can get some feedback prior to game time, but if not, I’m pretty close so...thanks again.

I’d definitely take Int to 16 to boost Con to 16. I’d also put your first 2 level-up points into Str, then the next 3 into Int. You shouldn’t really be worrying about your save DCs, since your offensive actions should only consist of melee attacks and when necessary no-save damage spells.

One item you should definitely consider is Armbands of Might (CV, MIC) because it will apply to trip checks, and you can always Power Attack for a -2 to hit for +6 damage. Plus due to the wording its extra +2 damage when Power Attacking would also be increased by Leap Attack. Another item you should definitely consider is a (Boccob’s) Blessed Book, right from the DMG. It costs 12,500 gp to buy, and it saves you 1,000 pages worth of 100 gp/page scribing costs, so in the end it will only have cost you 2,500 gp. In my group everyone always get a Ring of Sustenance asap, as well as Boots of Expeditious retreat (continual spell effect at caster level 1 for 4,000 gp).

Don’t specialize in any school of magic, the loss of at least one other school is too great a cost with this type of character. Your best choice in this case would have been to go with an Elf and use the Elf Wizard 1 racial substitution level from RotW. That could actually still be an option without changing your build if you use the Fighter Feat Wizard variant to get a Fighter bonus feat in place of Scribe Scroll, provided you’d be able to use RotW.

I don’t ever bother getting a standard familiar. In a build which would actually gain quite a few levels for familiar abilities I’ll get Improved Familiar or Dragon Familiar to make it worthwhile. With certain classes which can gain a familiar from a nonstandard list, such as the Dread Necromancer, one or more of the nonstandard familiars available is actually an exceptional choice and worth getting. Since a familiar does get more durable as you gain levels, regardless of whether those levels count for granting more abilities, it may not be a bad idea to get one as long as it would just be forgotten apart from the bonus it grants or unless its actions are actually needed.

On PHB page 179, first column, last paragraph under “Spells Copied from Another’s Spellbook or Scroll” it says that the fee for copying from another’s spellbook is Spell Level x 50 gp. For learning 1st level spells you’d be better off paying 25g for a scroll of that spell, but otherwise this fee is considerably lower than the cost of a scroll. Plus you could say that some spells you learn are traded for letting them copy spells from your book, which could/should automatically amount to a 50% increase in your spells known.

Biffoniacus Furious - 12 January 2008 02:48 AM

I’d definitely take Int to 16 to boost Con to 16. I’d also put your first 2 level-up points into Str, then the next 3 into Int. You shouldn’t really be worrying about your save DCs, since your offensive actions should only consist of melee attacks and when necessary no-save damage spells.

Done.

Biffoniacus Furious - 12 January 2008 02:48 AM

One item you should definitely consider is Armbands of Might (CV, MIC) because it will apply to trip checks, and you can always Power Attack for a -2 to hit for +6 damage. Plus due to the wording its extra +2 damage when Power Attacking would also be increased by Leap Attack. Another item you should definitely consider is a (Boccob’s) Blessed Book, right from the DMG. It costs 12,500 gp to buy, and it saves you 1,000 pages worth of 100 gp/page scribing costs, so in the end it will only have cost you 2,500 gp. In my group everyone always get a Ring of Sustenance asap, as well as Boots of Expeditious retreat (continual spell effect at caster level 1 for 4,000 gp).

I will definitely see about the Armbands of Might. Ring of Sustenance has always been under-impressive to me(as a caster). I doubt I can get special made things like the boots of expeditious retreat. As for the Spellbook thing. What am I getting for 2,500, encumbrance? Is the extra space being saved worth the cost?

Biffoniacus Furious - 12 January 2008 02:48 AM

Don’t specialize in any school of magic, the loss of at least one other school is too great a cost with this type of character. Your best choice in this case would have been to go with an Elf and use the Elf Wizard 1 racial substitution level from RotW. That could actually still be an option without changing your build if you use the Fighter Feat Wizard variant to get a Fighter bonus feat in place of Scribe Scroll, provided you’d be able to use RotW.

I’ll ask, but I doubt it.

Biffoniacus Furious - 12 January 2008 02:48 AM

I don’t ever bother getting a standard familiar. In a build which would actually gain quite a few levels for familiar abilities I’ll get Improved Familiar or Dragon Familiar to make it worthwhile. With certain classes which can gain a familiar from a nonstandard list, such as the Dread Necromancer, one or more of the nonstandard familiars available is actually an exceptional choice and worth getting. Since a familiar does get more durable as you gain levels, regardless of whether those levels count for granting more abilities, it may not be a bad idea to get one as long as it would just be forgotten apart from the bonus it grants or unless its actions are actually needed.

That is pretty much how our group treats familiars. lol

Biffoniacus Furious - 12 January 2008 02:48 AM

On PHB page 179, first column, last paragraph under “Spells Copied from Another’s Spellbook or Scroll” it says that the fee for copying from another’s spellbook is Spell Level x 50 gp. For learning 1st level spells you’d be better off paying 25g for a scroll of that spell, but otherwise this fee is considerably lower than the cost of a scroll. Plus you could say that some spells you learn are traded for letting them copy spells from your book, which could/should automatically amount to a 50% increase in your spells known.

Noted.